A good Friday

Friday printmaking with The Press Gang.

 Louise's Drypoint of faces in development. 

 Carolyn's feather print. Below in closeup detail.

 The original plate.

 Some specimens used for Gelli prints. 

 Lot of lovely colours.

 Gelli print of mine.

 Marianne carves a bushland landscape with sandstone steps in Lino.

 

Pat enjoys studio time, illustrating a family cook book.

 Free Rosemary from Crop and Swap, Pat's home made Seville Marmalade.

 Sue's 2 colour designesque composition of drypoint detail overlaid on lino print.

 Outside the window from Wallarobba, these characters up a Palm tree.

Painting a mural for Anzac Day

A little overdue, however now the scout hall's Anzac
Mural is well on it's way.

Rebecca designed a great concept, and procured paint
from everywhere.

I helped a little with some technical advice, design
alternatives and drawing up the soldier.

Our deck is currently overrun, what with this quite long
mural and a door being repaired and painted too.

 Firstly taping off the ground level, spray painting black 

and filling the anchoring holes.

 An improved, reassembled, glued and screwed door. Filled, sanded, 

undercoated and waiting for the glass to be replaced.

 Using the sliding doors as a lightbox to trace the contact stencil.

 The sunset sky takes shape. Lettering, soldier, a setting sun, rays and a treeline to come.

Fun at 'The Crop and Swap'

It has grown so much!

Council's social media must work a treat, I think this session
was 3 times the size of the original first one.

So much diversity to swap from. Again, so many lovely people.

The ideas, we didn't even think of, and there we saw so many
great and different things to bring, and all delightfully displayed.

Some really sweet packaging too. Nice effort by all.

I only photographed mine and friend Marilyn's - it was way too
crazy to stop and ask anyone else for permission.

I came home with so much more than I bargained for. The generosity
of people is amazing.

Here is a list of the day's treats: 1 adorable crocheted mauve beanie,
a novel, a rhubarb root to plant, an Arrowroot tuber to plant, Bok Choy
seedlings, so many wonderful and fresh herbs, Dutch cookies, chillies,
dried Lemon Myrtle leaves, Warrigal Greens - a native food, and much
more.

Daughter Bec and I pondered what to make with some of the herbs, she
made pesto incorporating the Warrigal Greens, Basil, and Lemon Balm.
I used the lemon Balm and made a sweet syrup with it.

 Getting ready early in the morning, like a hobby farmer getting ready for market.

Heart shaped Lemon/lemongrass/chia seed shortbread cookies. 

Reduced gluten, 1/3 rice flour, and 6 to a plate.

 Freshly picked, Crucifix Orchid plants and their flowers.

A quick photo shoot on our dining room table at home.

 The cards arranged in  a basket, but then the rain comes down, 

so repackage to get safely to the hall and display again.

 Thinking of my colours, and what to show things in, baskets are always useful. 

I think it is a good fit for the rustic, earthy nature of it all, homespun and fresh.

The light hits the gold paint on the pear.

 Trying to be sustainable and use recycled containers, a simple 

lettering on tape. A bit of quirky humour.

 Recycled can, glass jar, and a paper napkin wrapped cut down milk carton with 

white cotton twine. I even like the leaf print on the paper towel.

Necessity is the mother of invention...

 Brightly coloured Crucifix orchids. After the plants were swapped, a very nice couple 

struck up a conversation, and I said I would deliver them some plants too. The lady took 

the little flowers, and gave me a gorgeous little crocheted beanie.

 All ready to go, my trolley will help.

 Friend Marilyn set up next to me, here is her Rosemary and Lady finger eggplants, and Tomato Jam.

 I also had a little mint plant to offer, and made sure the ingredients were listed on the cookies.

 By session's end all but one of the cards had been swapped, 

all the cookies gone too. We got compliments on the Basil.

 Marilyn's Eggplants got scooped up, and we noticed another type there, 

small round ones we didn't know about. Soon the session was over and 

Marilyn and I went off for coffee.

Home again, and in the afternoon another brief shower, the valley 

a little misty with sparkling raindrops. this view from our back 

deck of Florence Cotton Bushland Reserve Park.

It's barter time - 'Crop and Swap' here we come.

Producing currency to swap for foodstuffs.

So far:
Have produced 16 mini artworks, now pasted onto cards and
put with envelopes.

Potted up a little mint plant.

Plan to pick fresh Basil, and possibly fresh Crucifix Orchid
flowers, maybe plants too.

If time, make Lemon shortbread.

 A little production line that only took one afternoon for first stage.

Home made Gelatine printmaking plate to the rescue!

 Slight colour and patterning variations.

 Gold paint gives an extra touch as does hand drawing. Another evening to embellish.

 These above and details below have the most interesting little quirks or pattern differences. 

Wallarobba print day Friday

Here are the latest offerings from our Friday
printmaking group.

Gloves at the ready in front of heritage window refection. 

Below an interesting sheet of paper.

Michelle's jigsaw Collagraph.

Kathy's delicate nature themed work on fabric and paper.

Printmaking is a messy business, ink seems to transfer itself to everything,
but we use all sorts of things to help with this rubbing in and buffing off,
phone book pages, and tarletan cloth.

Michaela's inked up Drypoints ready to print, her fellow commuters or Karaoke characters.

Two toned Tutankhamun

Printed work of Michaela's.