June Meeting

We are back at Felt Central aka Stirling Street Arts Centre this Friday for our June project - "Making a Softie with Felt".

To get you in the mood here are some photos of the gorgeous Annie Foy's work from the Convergence.

Designer Annie Foy

Designer Annie Foy

Bridal Wear Circa 1900 to the 21st Centrury

A couple of weeks ago there was a spectacular afternoon of bridal dress held at the St Boniface Cathedral in Bunbury.

It was a very elegant afternoon with the "guests" all dressed for a wedding.

This stunning nuno felt wedding gown and cape, perfect for a winter bride, was the star of the show



Designer Sue Seaman

Designer Sue Seaman

Designer Sue Seaman

Designer Sue Seaman

Designer Sue Seaman

Designer Sue Seaman

Now if you don't want to go for the traditional white gown, how about this from the early 1900's-

Designer unknown

It was a beautiful afternoon and how lovely to get those wedding dresses out of storage and back into the church.

New Book

New Book

New Book

New Book

The Improbable Object

Opening today is the very talented sculptor and feltmaker - Anita Larkin's latest exhibition "The Improbable Object" at The Defiance Gallery - Newtown NSW.

Anita tells us "At long last my solo show THE IMPROBABLE OBJECT is opening at Defiance  Gallery, 47 Enmore Rd, Newtown. The official opening is on 23rd May  6-8pm. I would love to see you, and show you some of my new works.   I have been working on some new felt works (look out for the Sydney Morning Herald article this weekend) and have also made several new  collected object works, amongst them is a Device for composing sonnets  in the dark.  I have just finished my last work for the show which is now my current  favourite, it is called Weapon of Mass Deception".

Anita interprets the world in a unique way and her work is definitely worth a look.  She does some stunning work in felt - here she is in her trademark head piece (well we had to get a hat in, after all our previous posts we just can't get them out of our head).

This was Anita in party mode at our final dinner at the 11th Southern Hemisphere Felting Convergence where Anita had been running a master class and inspiring a dozen lucky participants to create work like this -

To experience Anita in person make sure you go to the 12th Southern Hemisphere Felting Convergence which is being hosted by the Illawarra Feltmakers in 2013.  Click here for more information.

And of course you can enjoy her work straight away at

The Defiance Gallery

47 Enmore Road

Newtown

NSW
23rd May - 16th June

More Hats

There were over 35 hats on display at the Stirling Street Arts Centre's Decorated Hat Challenge - many of them felt.  Well done to everyone who entered the competition.

The results were fabulous with 5 of the 7 awards going to the felters!

Winner of the Elegant Garden Party Category was  "Fashion Passion" by Brenda Warner.



Designer Brenda Warner

Highly Commended  in the Elegant Garden Party was "The Green Gossip" by Kerry Gelmi

Designer Kerry Gelmi

The Mad Hatter Category winner was Sue Smorthwaite with "Snug"

Designer Sue Smorthwaite

And Highly Commended Mad Hatter was Jacqui Gibson's "The Day the Parrots Ate Mum's Roses"

Designer Jacqueline Gibson

Jacqui's hat also won the Viewers Choice.

Well done ladies.

May Meeting Show and Talk

Wow, didn't we get creative in last months hat making project. 

The first by Penny, it's still waiting for some finishing off around the brim but looks still fab now.

Designer Penny Elliot

Designer Penny Elliot

Beautiful colour by Maureen

Designer Maureen Foss



Designer Maureen Foss

 This one by Sue is decorated using a light cotton which really worked with the green wool.  Looks like a tapestry.

Designer Sue Smorthwaite

Designer Sue Smorthwaite

Val's amazing hat was mistaken for a flowering cactus when she left it out drying on her doorstep.

Designer Val Hornibrook

 It can be worn all sorts of different ways.

Designer Val Hornibrook

 You can even do a turban thing with it -

Designer Val Hornibrook

There was a bull in the next field and your blog writer hoped he wasn't going to get any angry thoughts about the red, especially when everything fell off the fence post and landed in his territory. Whooops!   Had to carefully sneak to other side of gate to retrieve Val's hat whilst keeping watchful eye on "El Toro". Sorry Val, think I brushed off all the agricultural bits!



Designer Val Hornibrook

Meeting the Alpacas in May

After taking some more photos of the supplier we wandered back to the farmhouse to see the product.

We learned what bits were what of the fleece.

Then Maureen demonstrated the carding machine.

So looking forward to what we create from our own processed alpaca.

Meeting the Aplpacas in May

Many thanks to Maureen who was a fabulous host welcoming us all to Rock View Alpacas to get fleeced with their family of 35 gorgeous girls and boys or to be more correct we should say "Hembras" and "Machos".

There was a little drizzle so we soon turfed the animals out of the shed and took shelter there.

 

Maureen knows each one by name.


They are the most attractive animals,  They stood and starred at us and we stood and starred at them.



Cute fringe huh.

This one's a mummy alpaca and baby had a feed.

Maureen knows each of them by name and was determined that we should be able to give them a pat.  They were a little wary so a bit of force was applied.

This one's a boy and as all macho males are he was not going to be told what to do by a woman.

When they'd finished the tango we decided we'd skip the next dance and went off to be shown fleece, carding and soup!

Thanks to Maureen and Kerry for making the soup, Brenda for her home made bread and to everyone who brought in eats.  We certainly weren't going to starve.

Thanks again for a great day.  Rock View Alpacas - you rock.

Stretch Festival

Congratulations to Kerry Gelmi who won the "Couture" category of Mandurah Stretch Festivals "Common Threads" Wearable Art event on Sunday with her felt creation - Song Lines.

Designer Kerry Gelmi

Wearable Art

If you are looking for some wearable art  this weekend then run to the Mandurah Stretch Festival.

Designer Kerry Gelmi

The Wearable Art Fashion Parade starts at 10.30 at Madjar Square which is outside the Mandurah Performing Arts Complex.  And yes, the Bunbury Felters have some entries - well you can't have wearable art without us can you!

Have a great arty weekend.

Dardanup Art Spectacular Trail

If you are not going to the Stretch Festival this weekend then perhaps the Dardanup Art Trail will be the thing for your family.

Lots of great artists and galleries to visit.

Click here to read the full brochure

City of Mandurah's Stretch Festival

If you are looking for something to do this coming weekend then Run don't Walk to the Mandurah Stretch Festival. 

This is their second Stretch Festival. This year they explore the theme 'Breath' in all its forms; through the environment and our iconic thrombolites and through our own daily breath.

The festival program is filled with exhibitions, art markets, fun activities, workshops, great live music, roving entertainment, amazing art installations, tasty food and much much more.

The Stretch Festival starts with -

Festival Launch 6.00pm, Thursday May 3, Mandurah Performing Arts Centre

Listen to jazz diva Anea Duratovic and experience a very special community dance performance.
This dance work is an excerpt from the 'Breath series' proudly supported by Festivals Australia and will showcase community members, local and visiting professional artists and our local Riptide Youth Dance Company.

For more information or tickets, please visit the Mandurah Library, Falcon eLibrary and Community Centre or the City of Mandurah Administration Building, or call them on 9550 3279.

The Festival includes their Wearable Art Competition "Common Threads" and yes - there is some felt work in it.

Click here for more information.