SHOWS OF THE WEEK

the emperors new clothes

We're not going far this week for our fashion festival fix - these three shows opening at Craft Victoria on Thursday night will provide enough to contemplate with a diverse range of garment related works made from books to body parts.

Kate James: The Work of Worry is Never Done

Kate James is worried: about animals, about people, about technique. In this exhibition she has created an exquisite range of horsehair Jewellery created using repetitive incredibly time-consuming and precise techniques that include horsehair hitching, tapestry, hand spinning, knitting, hairwork and rope-making.
The show is thematically centred around the concept of anxiety and these ancient craft techniques used to make works replicate a common feature of anxiety: whereby thoughts, images or actions are repeated over and over. While the use of hair in jewellery takes its cues from Victorian mourning jewellery, the art of Horsehair Hitching dates back to as early as 600-800 AD in Spain.

Interestingly it was a craft adopted by Midwest prisoners in the USA during the mid 19th century, as a measure to make constructive use of the prolonged time they had at their disposal while incarcerated. It takes about an hour to hitch 1 inch. And that doesn't take into account the time preparing and finishing the hairs for hitching. Very Definately Slow Craft.

Nicholas Jones & Warren Harrison: Without Bias
Book sculptor, Dandy and mustachiod and man about town Nicholas Jones and up and coming fashion designer Warren Harrison of made by warren have worked on a collab of late to create works that explores the technique of binding as a cross-over point in their respective practices. We love a collab, and we love books and as for fashion... well we just wish we had figures and bank balances that could indulge our passion properly.

In Without Bias, Harrison has incorporated basic book-binding techniques to create garments with a distinctively bookish twist.While Jones has made a series of sculptures from books about textiles, garment construction and fashion design which take their inspiration from the tools of the fashion trade (scissors, needles, thread).

Adele Varcoe : iFOLD: A NEW FASHION, A NEW YOU
Adele’s practice uses the body both as location and material, fashioning ‘garments’ by manipulating the skin you’re in. Apart from her extensive background in fashion she has also worked as a special effects artist on a range of b-grade movies. And you know how much we love both b-grade cinema AND a makeover show. This could well be our perfect exhibition.
All in All well worth coming to the openings on Thursday night just to see what Nick will be wearing, and perhaps what Adele will not.

BLOG OF THE WEEK

Due to popular demand the ladies of HML now have a permanent blog address for Craftbusters. Updated every Friday. Good for a craft laugh. Coz lets face it, it can be funny. Bookmark it, blog roll it, enjoy it!

www.craftbusters.blogspot.com

OUTING OF THE WEEK

to market
I got a real bee in my bonnet this week about heading up to Daylesford for the farmers market and the Makers Market. I'd been seeing them pop up on other peoples blogs and the idea of staying in Melbourne doing housework just wasn't going to cut it. So the boys, Maggie and myself headed out despite the ominous clouds.

We were so lucky with the weather. We managed to get around the whole Farmers market and make it back to the car just as the heavens opened up. We then managed to find a parking spot on the main street just outside the Makers Market - miraculous!

The Makers Market was actually really sweet with lots of great kids clothes, some terrific music and most importantly shelter from the gathering storm

By the time we got back to the car the heavens had opened up and the drive to Woodend was the slowest we've ever had. Quite scary at the time, but incredibly beautiful. I took nearly 100 photos on the short drive!

We had to go via Woodend for one reason only...

despite driving in the rain and coming home to a flood in the bathroom it was a lovely lovely day.

oh and what did we get from the Farmers market? Beer made in someone's garage, olive oils infused with lemon and basil, kangaroo salami, lemons, potatoes,capsicum, corn, tangello marmalade, two kinds of feta, a butterscotch and date pudding for Easter, north African spice mix, and fresh pistachios on special request from Miss Pen Pen. 

From the Makers Market a little wool/cotton collar (reversible) for the Intern and a cute screen printed tee for Thom. 

We spent way too much money and got a little damp and cold. But what a great way to spend a Saturday!

PROJECT OF THE WEEK/MONTH

sew easy

Regular readers of HML will know that I am no seamstress (the sewing machine is really Becks dept) but god knows I try. I might add that in the past five years, through trial and error and asking questions, reading books and watching instructional videos on youtube (how to make bias binding, how to mitre a corner on a quilt, even how to use interfacing - seriously I had no idea) I've got some simple sewing skills under my belt

                                             

So this week as work has calmed down a little I'm making the above trousers out of the below fabric. Thom needs 'going out to cafe, gallery, library' trousers - all his other clothes seems to have permanent dirt stains on the knees. I read on someone's blog it took them 1 hour to make them. I'm giving myself a week.

I've also splashed out on this GORGEOUS book by Heather Ross after her seeing her make a simple sun dress on Martha

I'm very keen on this kimono-ish frock but am terrified of setting sleeves. So I've given myself March to complete this one (there may be a bit more youtubing I suspect).

And really the only reason I am allowing myself these indulgences before I start my winter knitting (more on that tommorow) is because I have nearly (after a year) finished this

I think this was for Maggie last mothers day, then birthday, then Christmas and I never quite got there. but I'm nearly done. Lucky I had this beautiful fabric by Saffron Craig to work with. Actually this fabric would be great for that skirt on the front of the book.

I'm hoping as my skills improve so will my speed. I've found to get things perfect I need to move like a big old tortoise. just keep going, just very sloooooowly.

SHOW OF THE WEEK

In typical HML fashion we are doing far too much people.We can't help it, we get excited! At the beginning of February we  were feeling pretty smug- we'd rejected all offers of market stands, trade fairs, pop up shops. We'd not applied for any funding, artist run space or book. We made plans...for 2011... and had lots of cake and congratulated ourselves on embracing a 'quiet' year. Then the festival of the photocopier happened and we found ourselves making our Craftbusters zine (100 copies later we are already working on Vol 2). Then the wonderful Nella Themelios and Kim Brockett asked if we'd like to participate in their Insert Coin Here show. How could we resist? Giant gumballs full of art at $2 a pop with 60 participating artists in shiny red gumball machines placed at cool venues around town as part of the Fashion Festival? We were in - both as HML and as Beck and Ramona. Which meant 30 balls had to be juggled in a week!

                                          

HML have created Craft Emergency Kits that should see you through most disasters (instant necklace when you need some bling, a monogram kit for when a name tag is not enough etc). We like to help people. It's part of our, you know, thing.

Beck got to indulge her passion for fashion by designing some 'David Lee Rocks' which quite frankly are making me want to pull on the spandex and get some big hair (could he be hotter? I don't think so)

                                  

I made some little boutonnieres for the lapels of fab Melbournians that get out and support contemporary art in all its crazy DIY glory. The machines can be found at these venues:

Mon 1 March - Sat 6 March Craft Victoria: 31 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Tue 8 March - Sat 13 March Captains of Industry: Level 1, 2 Somerset Place, Melbourne (off Little Bourke Street)

Sun 14 March - Sun 21 March Alice Euphemia: Shop 6, Cathedral Arcade, 37 Swanston Street, Melbourne

Mon 22 March - Wed 31 March The Thousands Shop: Level 6, Curtin House, 252 Swanston Street, Melbourne


So we are thinking its not going to be a quiet year after all!