{ kass } an artistic journey

travel/art journal

I have been searching for the perfect book to take with me to Canada - I wanted something that wasn't too heavy, was flexible, could be easily added to.... and since I couldn't find exactly what I wanted, I made it.

Materials:

Boxboard - 2 X 9x9 inch pieces
Basic Grey Papers (Recess range)
American Crafts foam alphas
Kraft card
Black card
White Linen Paper
Hinged rings

So far I have only added a small map of the island and my flight itinerary, but I intend on using it as a daily journal, photo and ephemera album and more. It will encapsulate my internship, the conference and the personal experiences.

Front Cover

Title up close

Inside front cover - map and flight details

Blank pages

Back cover

another bag

OK I made another bag - I have to hand in my working folio on Tuesday so I thought a second bag might be easier and give a contrast point. I didn't use a pattern on this, I just made it up as I went. Yep - I learned some things the hard way but it will be useful for the future to be aware of construction issues!!

SIDE 1

SIDE 2

INSIDE

Even though these are only for Uni and not for sale, it's really important to me that I construct bags that look as professionally made as I can, so I am paying attention to detail as much as I possibly can with my little sewing machine. Obviously they are not as perfect as I want but I always expect way more of myself than I can reasonably expect and I think that given my sewing skills are basic, I think they look pretty good. I got some gorgeous red duck canvas yesterday which I think I am going to use for the skirt I am going to make.

Last week I finally got my Adobe Creative Suite 3 - it has Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Flash, Acrobat Professional and Adobe Bridge (which is a photo storage program). Today I went and bought a book which teaches me how to use these programs. We use them at Uni but the classes are 3 hours, one day a week, and the 3 units we've done have been spread over 3 years - so my ability to absorb and remember how to do things is limited! The book I got is from the SAMS range and I am finding it really easy to read and understand - well worth the $50 I had to pay for it!

Plans for PEI are full steam ahead. I am all booked and paid, I will be gone 27 May - 4 July. I can hardly wait to go but I also know I have a lot to do between now and then! My PEI family are very exciting as well - instead of one of my flying visits, I get to be one of the kids for real for 5 weeks which I can't wait for. I'm saving up as much money as I can - work has said they'll throw some extra shifts my way when they can which is great. I'm also getting some other financial support too which has relieved alot of the pressure.

Have a great week!

blood, sweat and tears!

and I didn't really think I would get there because my machine was playing up something terrible, but it's done. It took 3 days...but it's done.

Next stop - more bags and a skirt!

beginning the project

well, really I have done so much preparation work that it can be hardly called the beginning of the project. But now I am past drawing mode, collecting mode, and experimental mode. As my lecturer said last week, it's time to start DOING.

I'm making bag D first (on the left in the second row)...but I plan on making several. I also bought these patterns:

So far so good, waiting for paint to dry is like....well watching paint dry!! But I am happy with how things are going so far! Photos to follow...

thankyou

I want to say THANKYOU to my grandparents, the late Lorna and Plugger McMahon.

You see, when they laid out their plans for their estates, they were kind enough to include their grandchildren. That's not something that happens very often and I am very conscious of how generous that gesture was. I am very lucky to have had them as grandparents, they were both extraordinary people, kind, loving and a fine example for us to look up to. And I miss them both very much.

Thanks to their generosity, I am taking up an unbelievable opportunity to learn and grow, in June when I go to PEI for 5 weeks. I paid for my airfares yesterday.

Thanks to their generosity, I have been able to buy the Adobe Creative Suite, which means I can now learn and create with photographs and graphics, really lift my skills base, and make a living from my artistic work.

These are opportunities I would not have had, had it not been for them being the wonderful grandparents they were.

So Grandma and Plugger, thankyou. I hope to make you proud.

hit the road, kass...

So I think I mentioned I have been looking for an internship for Uni without a lot of success. I can admit that I have been fussy - this is 108 of free labour I am providing and I wasn't going to settle for something less than awesome, because this is a huge opportunity for me to really add to my education in a meaningful way.

Last week got really frustrating. I was sending emails all over the place, and getting rejections - all really kind rejections, which is all the more painful. Being told your resume is outstanding and we think you'd be amazing but we're full up, or we don't take interns....it got a bit much.

So I started looking further out than Melbourne, including New York (OK so maybe I was dreaming big there but hey....). Then my mind (and web browser) wandered "home" to PEI. I was looking at all the stuff going on there this year because it's the centenary year of the publication of Anne of Green Gables.

Then I saw it.

Imagining Anne: Celebrating the Creation and Centenary of L.M. Mongomery's Classic, "Anne of Green Gables".

An exhibition of art, books, prints, memorabilia and more of Anne and her authoress.

I knew I found it. This was the opportunity I had been looking for.

So I sent an email to the curator, Dr Elizabeth Epperly from UPEI, and told her who I was, my story and connection to Anne, and then asked the question - could I intern on her exhibition?

And she, as well as the art gallery manager, said YES.

I am going "home" to PEI for a MONTH in June!!

As well as interning on the exhibition, I am going to be there for the launch of a book which I am in, written by Don Harron who co-wrote the Anne of Green Gables Musical. I'm also going to be attending a conference run by the L.M. Montgomery Institute. So it's all happening!

I'll be staying with Ma and Pa Smith of course and I will be there from around 28 May through 1 July, so it's going to be HUGE!

Can you believe it? I have to go tomorrow and get some more quotes on flights and also ring the Canadian Consulate about whether I need a work permit - even though I am not being paid to intern. Whatever the case, I am confident it will work out well.

I am so excited!!!!!

Nic & Trent's Wedding

Lee will have much better photos on her blog when she gets home but for now, here's some snaps from Nic and Trent's wedding.

The sunflowers - Trent planted 3 PADDOCKS of them - no joke - so they could choose the best paddock. They wanted to get married in the sunflowers, and that the did!! It was stunning!

d'oh!

you see kids, this is why we experiment and test stuff before going headlong into our projects.

they are completely f-u-c-k'ed. LOL. I am slightly bummed coz I kinda liked those samples, but this is how one lives and learns, and that's OK. I swear I added the fabric medium as directed but maybe they didn't have the volume in mind that I was....I dunno.

So now I have to decide: do I (a) continue as normal and simply exhibit them as artworks and not wearables (just samples if you like) or do I (b) perservere with finding a way to make them washable while still looking like I want them to look.

A lesson from your Aunty Kass.........

nervous

because I just put my two samples - yep those big ones you see a couple of posts down - in the wash. I added fabric medium to them so I *think* they'll be OK but I am a tad nervous - I want them to come up well and I also do not want to destroy my washing machine!!

I've also registered the domain name www.urbanbrats.com.au so that in second semester I can build a website as part of my final assessment to go with the UB line and into the installation in the gallery. I am getting the Adobe Creative Suite next week so I have a big project but I think building a website is a great companion work to the stuff I am doing and demonstrates a variety of skills learned within my degree.

I'll report back on the success of the washing - I wussed out and put it on delicates!

Stay tuned....

puggy porn

(I will post photos of Nic and Trent's wedding ASAP. Thing are a little hectic here)

This is how I found Sunny when I woke up this morning. Is this pornographic? Should I be showing these kinds of photos of my little girl on the internet?

Who knows, but it's damn funny if you ask me.