Author Archives: ruthdevos

Elsie, Arthur and Little Red

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I promised to share my completed Ric Rac dolls here (Aaron and Hannah still have work to do on theirs).

So please allow me to introduce Little Red….

…and Elsie and Arthur Cabbage…

These patterns were so easy to work with, with every step spelled out (Aaron and Hannah were able to work fairly independently on their projects because the instructions are so clear). And Elsie and Arthur's patterns are the best doll patterns I have ever used – I love their shape, and can imagine them dressed up in so many different ways.

Which of Jodie's patterns would you like to make?

 

This week: distracted

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This week has been characterised more by distractions that by any kind of diligent effort in the studio. That's the way life goes sometimes, isn't it. When I find it hard to focus on my bigger tasks and projects I try to tackle a few little things – like tidying up the bookshelves, or organising the stationery drawer, or wiping some marks off the walls. That way I can make up a little bit for feeling largely unproductive. Does that make sense?

So while I'm feeling a bit frustrated about any sewing progress this week, I do have an extra tidy house. Hopefully that means I can enjoy extra sewing time next week.

While it has been a different sort of week, it has also been rather nice. I had a sewing friend for three days (and watched her house grow on another day). I also had Caleb home sick for four days, which Daniel and I both enjoyed! I also got to pop out for the opening of the Minnawarra Art Award and thoroughly enjoyed that little outing.

On top of that, I heard that my artwork 'Trike' one a category prize and the Acquisitive Prize at the Australian Cotton Fibre Expo. What an honour!

Thanks to my sewing company, (and play company for the boys), I did at least manage to finish cutting out my latest (large!) quilt. Now I'm eagerly anticipating lot's of stitching next week.

Enjoy your weekend!

 

Today in Ten

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My day in 10 photos…
Really just another ordinary day, but sometimes usually ordinary days are the best kind…
The day started with half a coffee (inevitably, the second half gets cold before I get around to drinking it)…
…and time spent enjoying the beautiful early-morning post-rain light (and my new IKEA RASKOG drinks-cum-book trolley – I could happily use a couple more of these around the house!)…
…and the fact that I can enjoy the drops on the balcony balustrade even though my windows are very dirty…
It continued with a trip to the butcher and the vegie shop and the rest of the morning in the kitchen…
…accompanied by a grubby bubby…
We have four lasagnes and four meals of sweet curry to show for our morning! (I try to keep plenty of meals in the freezer so that I always have an easy dinner handy).
I got to enjoy my lunch while Marcus played nicely. He does so well in his playpen, and usually has his head in the toy bucket looking for new treasures.
As usual, Daniel joined me for lunch.
I am so happy that he and I have come to an agreeable arrangement for his afternoon naps.
One that no longer involves turning Mummy's bed and bedroom inside out and upside down, but rather involves snuggling up on the studio couch while Mummy cuts out quilt pieces… (He shares a room with Marcus so he has to take his afternoon naps elsewhere).
Cutting out a new quilt takes perseverance. I don't enjoy it, but working away at it for half an hour or an hour here and there gets me there in the end. (I love my regular afternoon studio time.)

And we all love after-school coffee time and play time! That's when I try to slow down for the rest of the day. Well, until the kids go to bed, anyway. I still only managed half a cup of coffee before getting distracted, though.

I hope you had a good day too, whether it was ordinary or not so ordinary.

By the way, I'll be sending out a new newsletter soon. If you haven't signed up yet, you can do so in the sidebar of this blog.

 

Ric Raccy School Holiday Sewing Marathon

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So Hannah and I had plans to sew a Ric Rac doll during these past school holidays. Hannah wanted to make a Kinder Girl, and I was going to make Little Red and Elsie too. And then, when we pulled out the sewing machine to get started, it was a lovely rainy indoor kind of day, and Grandma, who was staying with us, decided to make an Elsie too, and Aaron asked to make a Beet from my first Ric Rac pattern (I still love it!). So suddenly there were fabric scraps and doll arms and legs and pins and stuffing everywhere!

We had fun though. Aaron and Hannah are able to work largely independently now, just coming to Mum and I for quick checks at regular intervals. (It was great to have Mum here to keep them going when I was busy with Marcus).

And the next day, when friends came over to play, the kids were keen to keep sewing, and pulled out Hannah's little Creative Card from Jodie to make some birds. They did a great job, too!

Hopefully I can share the completed dolls soon. They are turning out great!

 

In My Portfolio: It’s a Wonderful World

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It’s a Wonderful World
© Ruth de Vos 2011

Size: 180cm H by 200 cm W
Materials: procion fabric dye, fabric paint cotton homespun, cotton batting
Techniques: hand-dyed, screen-printed, machine pieced, machine quilted

Available for purchase here.

This artworks has a sleeve stitched onto the back for hanging purposes, and can be hung using a gallery-style hanging system, or with two screws in the wall. More info including pictures here: http://ruthdevos.com/blog/how-to-hang-an-art-quilt/

View more of my artwork at www.ruthdevos.com

On people and softies and play quilts…

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Little people’s drawings of little people are just about my most favourite thing ever (which any of you longer term readers probably already know)! I love it how every young child develops their own signature ‘person’ drawing, which over time develops along with that child.

These ones are by Daniel. He’s doesn’t have as much interest in drawing as the three older children did, so I’m very happy to have these.

My sister Viv knows that I love drawings of people by children, too and tries to coax one out of her children every so often, to send to me. My favourite kind of mail!

And here’s something else I really love: the softies that Viv made with her two children and some of their friends.

To keep it simple, they used fabric markers instead of screen-printing. The children ranged in age from two to eight. Didn’t they do a great job? Unfortunately Viv doesn’t keep a blog (yet…) but here‘s her Pinterest board of some of her creative projects AND her own paintings. I am – well, actually, Marcus is – the proud owner of that bird mobile.

These softies were inspired by ones I made with the kids once.

Over the summer, I also made some softies/cushions to put in my shop for those of you who are interested. They are finally finished. There’s a Little Man softie, based on Aaron’s drawing, and a Caleb softie, drawn by Caleb.

I also made some play quilts, incorporating various screen-printed panels, that coordinate with the softies. I love how these quilts turned out, but I did not love making them, so I will not be doing them again.