Pigeon pairs

A few more bronzewing pigeons painted and ready to be turned into a textile design.

Autumn reds

Red seems to be the colour of the moment in the garden now that the temperature has dropped. Back to painting in front of the fire-place and bad daytime TV!

Cottonbox Kids website has launched

The new Cottonbox Kids bed linen collection is now online at http://www.cottonboxkids.com.au

Worldwide shipping is available too!

Outside my window

Eucalyptus blossoms, the old garden gate and a bronzewing pigeon who visits the birdbath every day, all painted in watercolour.

Digging up the past

Out in the dusty back paddock, under a mulberry tree lies a burial ground for long-ago broken ceramics and other discarded household items; old irons, tins and cutlery. Every couple of years the paddock is ploughed ready for the winter crops, and more treasures make their way to the surface.

This is my first go at mosaics - hopefully this pot will look OK (potted up with daffodils I think) and if so, my next project will be a bird bath. I love the delicate and ornate patterns - a shame to waste!

The owner of the mosaic studio has a garden filled with quirky little mosaic details too.

Textiles by Mary Schoeser

I love a good textile design reference book and Textiles: The Art of Mankind by Mary Schoeser is a must have for any admirer of the wonderful world of decorative textiles.

Covering textile art and design from around the world and through the centuries, the book meanders through diverse subject matter such as Indian woven silk fabrics from the 15th Century, the sinuous and elegant line work of William Morris' block printed furnishing fabrics, densely stitched robes worn by Turkmen tribal women, through to the brightly coloured brocade weaves of 20th Century Guatemalan dress fabrics. These examples are just a tiny slither of the vast selection of beautifully documented textiles featured in this wonderful tome - and I call it a tome as it is one very heavy book, beware Ikea shelves! Over 1000 images reveal the beauty and variety of textiles in stunning detail.

The author Mary Schoeser writes: 'Over the past forty years, the first hand sight of hundreds and thousands of examples has convinced me that textiles are beautiful, inventive, expressive, and more. They reveal the human compulsion to engage with texture, colour and storytelling. They record our ever-changing feelings of play, joy, wonder and profound thoughtfulness. They preserve skills, encourage creativity and represent continuity'.

Themes covered in the book include Impact, Ingredients, Structure, Surface, Added Dimensions and Imagery. By juxtaposing historical and contemporary textiles from around the world, the author highlights an unbroken story of skill and invention stretching back thousands of years.

Textiles: The Art of Mankind by Mary Schoeser is published by Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2012.

Autumn Dahlias

Dahlias from my garden - the more often they are picked, the more blooms they produce. 

My kind of flower!

Muted palette

Just by chance this muted colour palette appeared on my desk this morning, courtesy of a trawl through my grandmother's needlework collection. It's time to start colour mixing!

From Holland

One of my favourite kid's design blogs is DecoPeques from Spain, and each week they send out a condensed newsletter of highlights from the blog. Today I spotted a few of my textile designs alongside these beautiful beds from Saartje Prum that look as if they belong in a fairy tale. So many Dutch homeware companies manage to combine quirky & kid friendly design down pat!

On my desk...

...is a pile of painted butterflies waiting to be scanned in. Have a lovely weekend!