Colour, Fun, Stuff!

My alter ego Betty Jo ran a "Glaminex" jewellery workshop for MakeUP at Harvest Workroom this morning. It was great to work with such tuned in ladies that got stuck into making and didn't shy away from colour, cuteness and a big lot of quirky.

If you like to collect things, arrange and assemble things and play around with colour, I am running three evening workshops in August at Harvest Workroom where you can create cool colour collage pictures and mini assemblages that can be worn as brooches or pendants as well as having some fun getting creative!

Even if you don't have the *collecting* gene in your DNA that’s OK. There will be lots of instant collections to work with.

OK , sales pitch over. Thanks to Em at Harvest for the pics today.

Crafty Heaven

There's a special shop in the Nicholas Building in Melbourne's CBD called L'uccello, filled with vintage haberdashery & other fancy goodies . It was the perfect spot to visit yesterday to pick up an old buckle or two. Just right for the handles of these Aunty Mabels's Handbag Brooches.

There is an Open Studio event at the Nicholas Building today and tomorrow.
Or else you can come to the Nicholas Building next week to the POP UP Studio Sale in the room right across from Buttonmania ( seriously dangerous) and a few steps down the hall from L'uccello.
It's gonna be Crafty Heaven if you ask me!

Colour Therapy

It's been so dark and gloomy lately I am going to administer some Colour Therapy to Lino Forest readers.

I'm not going to dwell on balancing chakras or stimulating our magnetic energy fields, but if your aura needs energising, there is nothing better than bright vibrant colour to give you a boost!

1. Plastic Fun, 2. crocheted hex sign rug, 3. even rainbows get the blues, 4. Plastic beach rainbow, 5. Magic Shield "Color Wheel" - Fresno's Storyland Keys, 6. Colour from my Childhood, 7. Cotton Spectrum, 8. Pencil stub assemblage, 9. knitted blanket

Where I come from........

My boy Charlie has good ideas. Yesterday in the car he said "Why don't you make a brooch in the shape of Australia." So I did.

A week or so ago an editor from The Grid Magazine, a weekly street mag from Toronto asked to publish a picture of one of my Rubbish Rainbows. Great I said.
Unfortunately the accompanying text was a little wrong:
"Turn trash into art: Taking arty photographs of random stuff is fun. But New Zealand artist Elizabeth Jones (from Betty Jo Designs) takes it a step further. For her “Rubbish Rainbows,” she collects items that she finds along the beach and organizes them by colour and type"

Never mind. I'll just wear my "I Call Australia Home" brooch so there's no confusion!I couldn't get Charlie to stay still long enough to get an in focus picture ( could be the chocolate cake he just ate?)
By the way, my name is actually Elisabeth with an S, but NOBODY calls me Elisabeth anymore. If I hear Elisabeth it reminds me of my father having a growl at me as a child......"E-LIS-A-BETH, stop teasing your little brother."

Sew Far.....

So far I have had a great response to the "Sew Far Sew Good" mini sewing machine brooches.
At least four have found stitchy homes, and now you can find them on Etsy.Master Tape the Tailor's son is getting one.......sew get yours today.

Sew Far Sew Good

Yesterday I whipped up a couple of new "Sew Far Sew Good" Sewing Machine brooches, because I know there are a few of you who like getting chummy with a sewing machine!

I have named this new Owl Clock "Eureka", because everything he is made from (except his beak) are things I gathered on my little Ballarat sojourn.

Check out my side bar for info about the POP UP Studio Sale . Lots of pretties will be available!

Ballarat Lino

Yesterday I had a play around with the Ballarat Lino.

I'm loving the orangy brown!

Who you gonna call?

When there's Lino to rescue? Betty Jo of course!
I was contacted by Haylee and Marcia (of Red Brick Gallery fame) a while ago telling me about their recently purchased fixer-upper with rooms of vintage lino. So I packed up the boys and headed up to Ballarat.

I helped pull up pieces from each room and now the Ballarat lino is living in my studio waiting be cleaned and fashioned into new creations. Thanks for the invite ladies.A trip to Ballarat is not complete with out a visit to Morgan Will's new shop "The Crafty Squirrel".

Morgan had a box of fantastic red lino offcuts for me from her new floor . In fact I saw a red theme emerging when I looked at my little stash of goodies from the Crafty Squirrel and the Red Brick Gallery. All I can say is Ballarat kicks Crafty butt!

Busy Owls

I have discovered a sure fire way of selling my clocks. Visit the shop with the clock in store and decide to either swap it or remove it for a refresh. Then wait.

In no time at all a customer will arrive and ask to buy the clock that is no longer there. It has happened too many times to be a coincidence.

Yesterday at Craft Victoria I had taken an Owl clock to the car and swapped it with another when sure enough , a lovely girl appeared and asked to buy it. I had to do a quick sprint to the car to catch Mr.BJ before he drove off with it!
I don't care how they happen, or how fast I have to run, it's just nice to have a sale!

And in other news, my kitchen was deemed "too busy" to appear in the pages of a certain newspaper. Sorry, even if I tried I just can't do minimalist!

Three Birds.....

These three birds will be heading North to "Two Birds" Gallery in Toowoon Bay.

And this Bowl O' Fruit brooch is going to hang around Melbourne so it can be part of this......

Where I Make!

I just wanted to say thanks to The Design Files and Harvest Workroom for last Thursdays guest post. It was a bit of a sneaky peek into my studio.

I will be running a "makeUp" workshop at Harvest Workroom on the 30th August where you can make your own "Glaminex" brooch. It's part of the State of Design Festival's 2011 "Design for Everyone" program.

Colour-rama!

Well, that's another road trip to Mill Park Savers done and dusted. I'm a little poorer, but my life is way more colourful. We left with two big bags full of goodies, but it could have been worse!
When you spy a vintage orange typewriter with the brand name "Craftamatic Mark 1", tell me honestly, would you not buy it? Regardless of the fact there is no room for it and you may never use it..........I thought so.An opshopper after my own heart!
But caution. Think twice about taking a teenage girl who is studying fashion and is into re- purposing clothes to Mill Park Savers.

I'm all about branding , logos and colour at the moment. I am going to steal the names from my Savers game and typewriter, give them a slight tweak and voila, I'll have two new blogs: "Colour-rama" and "Craft-o-matic". I have some ideas for these already, but they will have to wait till after this special event.......Mark it in your diaries!!!!

Lino Mix n' Match

Having a bit of fun playing around with Picassa Collage maker!
This is just a small collection of all the gorgeous Lino I have salvaged personally or through generous donations over the last six years. No wonder I needed a bigger studio.

Colour Fiesta!

Even though today was decidedly grey and miserable, I brightened it up with a few quick purchases from Coburg Market. A box of "Stackin' Brats and Jumpin' Frogs ( with one lonely Indian). I wonder what I'll do with these?

A big pile of paper lanterns to fancy up the kitchen window,
and this old school sauce bottle that reminds me of childhood barbies.
And to top off my "Fiesta of Colour" I popped into Harvest Textiles this arvo to see Beci Orpin's show.

Now that's Colourful!!