Category: art and craft

Fabulous feedback

Here are some of the comments from visitors to my “artist in studio” display as part of the Kapiti Coast Art Trail 2024:

What an amazing display. Love the jewellery.
Great colourful display!
Absolutely beautiful artworks and jewellery. Joyful and heartwarming to look at.
Beautiful work, well worth a visit.
Amazing, unique style – really cool.
We really enjoyed seeing your art – you have such a lovely and lively way of using colour, shapes and texture.

I really appreciated this feedback, and the visitors who took the time to write in my comments book – thank you!

Beady business

I’m trying to focus my jewellery-making on high end, complex floral pieces – although at the Saturday market, it’s the kids’ bracelets that sell!

This month I’ve added several sets or template pieces to my bridal and wedding party collection; you can see details on my BronzBeads website, and check for new listings in my Bridal.Beads online shop.

Here are a few, to give you an idea of what I’m working on:

2023 in review

In early December – a great finish to the year – I enjoyed many visitors and a good number of sales as an artist in residence during the annual Kāpiti Coast Art Trail.

Also in December, my third book of inclusive, progressive, evolving-christian liturgy resources, named “Joyful Spirit Bubbling“, was published.

In July, my hand-stitched cushion, “Sunshine on Fields of Gold”, was awarded the Crafts prize in Kāpiti Arts and Crafts Society‘s annual Art and Craft Awards. Judged by Penny Eames and sponsored by Forsyth Barr, the Society awards prizes in both Art and Craft sections.

March – April: my story about a fibre art commission made the cover of March 2023 Creative Fibre magazine – and one of my entries in the national Creative Fibre Exhibition at Pataka Art & Museum in Porirua had a red sold sticker before the Creative Fibre event began!

Friends have given me linen and Aida cloth, and I’ve tried new stitching techniques this year, for example, the Black and Red Village fibre artwork. And for the first time, as part of a demonstration/workshop following my weekly craft group, I made silk paper, and was very please with the results.

I’ve been concentrating my jewellery-making on high end, complex floral creations for wedding parties and special occasions; my best-sellers are still kids’ bracelets at the Saturday morning markets.

And right at the end of the year, I’ve tidied the gardens – including moving some plants, and finding a home for the beautiful standard “Iceberg” rose my daughter and grandsons gave me for Christmas!

Wishing you a happy new year and heaps of art-and-craft enjoyment in 2024.

Merged websites

Because I’m concentrating on fibre art and jewellery-making, my knitting has taken a backseat lately, and I’ve concluded it no longer needs a dedicated website. Fortunately, it’s easy enough to merge WordPress sites, so many of the pages from my little brother big brother website are now here on my showcase. It’s given me the chance to refresh some of the pages, and – although it’s a work in progress – keep the knitting pages up-to-date.

Check out my two main ranges, with themed accessories and links to my online shops:

BronzArt – women’s accessories

little brother big brother – quirky knits for colourful kids

News from bronz.beads: Bellflowers

See my latest collection of earrings and a necklace in my new “Bellflowers” range. I’ve bought some most beautiful bell-shaped flower beads in several colours. Some are glass; some acrylic. My first few Bellflower earrings are on a short drop and quite shiny and delicate; latest ones are on a longer drop, with toning beads and spacers.

https://bronzbeads.com/news/

Bellflowers

Fibre art has its own site

My Eclectic Yarn pages and updates were beginning to take over this site, which was meant to be just an overview of my creative endeavours – so I’ve created a unique website. I’d love you to FOLLOW me on the new site, as well as this one.

All the fibre art pages from this showcase site have been transferred to the new one, and there’ll be plenty more new and updates from eclectic yarn, especially as I create new things and prepare for the 2023 Kapiti Arts Trail in November.

Sunshine on Fields of Gold

(July 2023) This cushion, “Sunshine on Fields of Gold”, has been awarded the Crafts prize at the winners of Kāpiti Arts and Crafts Society’s annual Art and Craft Awards. Judged by Penny Eames and sponsored by Forsyth Barr, the Society awards prizes in both Art and Craft sections.

See images and description here

Fibre artworks – double happiness!

One of the photos accompanying an article I wrote about a fibre art commission, “Da Bees”, has made the cover of March 2023 Creative Fibre (New Zealand) magazine.

And one of my entries in the national Creative Fibre Exhibition at Pataka Art & Museum (Porirua, Wellington Region) already has a red sold sticker!

My entries: “Enchanted Forest” stitched fibre artwork (behind me) and the small, bright turquoise “Swirling Summer Seas” scrumble knit work.

I’ve also made a couple of works for the “Squares, squares, squares” challenge at the Festival of Fibres event at the end of the month – see previous post.

Squares, squares, squares

Latest fibre artworks: for the NZ Creative Fibre “Festival of Fibres” Event challenge later this month:

Two more Silver Birch Forest works, and a couple more ‘works in progress’ – stitching is finished but still deciding whether to frame or make into a bag or cushion