MakeOver Monday - The Exhibition Ensemble

'MakeOver Monday' 
... sharing how I cut up & REmake items from my wardrobe 
in the hope you'll pick up scissors & start cutting up yours!

I knew back in July 

I was going to my friend Reginas [aka The Mad Queen] 
first solo exhibition in Fitzroy

Some of Reginas Tapestry & Tin Tea Frocks - over a third of her exhibits sold on the night!

because

when you have someone in your life

who's a diamond

you book your flight 3mths ahead of time 

to fly to the other side of the country 

leaving your children to fend for themselves 

what I hadn't counted on

was that two days before I was due to fly out

I'd change my mind about the outfit I was preparing to wear on the big night

so armed with the understanding 

I do my best work under pressure

and an extensive REinventing resource which sometimes doubles as my wardrobe

I grabbed two items 

a fisherman frock made years ago  from a sheer metallic fabric
featuring mens ties for shoulder straps

and an op shop sourced heavily hand embroidered silk skirt 
that had been filed for years

just waiting for this moment....

the top of the frock and the bottom of the skirt

[with retro-fitted inseam pockets]

 were attached to each other

which took a couple of goes 

and the opinion of the eldest 

to get the depth of the bodice right

and being I was heading to  Melbourne 
she needed a Cardet
which I REfashioned from a too-small woolen knitted cardy/jacket
by manipulating the fastenings

and for those essential items

[keys, lippy, cash]

a Fragment Bag was neccessary

to complete the

'Exhibition Ensemble'

I was lucky enough to come home with my absolute favourite piece from the exhibition

and 4days worth of wonderful memories!

A Remarkable Friend

I've a friend, 
 Regina 
and she's remarkable 

'Remarkable Regina'

not just because of her text book Leo characteristics  
awesome parenting skills,
 fierce loyalty, patience & passion for those whom she loves
or
because we both love exactly the same things

food

shopping




and Melbourne



Regina is courageously creative
with an ability to turn wire & found objects 
into whatever takes her fancy



during a recent, very brief visit to her home in Sth Gippsland, Victoria
I took the opportunity to snap a few shots in her Studio 

  

Reginas natural talent, focus & drive
is evident by the eclectic range of creative objects 
which emerge from her backyard studio 

*

*   

eccentric jewellery

to fascinating Chandeliers

which occasionally make their way to art shows and exhibitions

The Dragon Lady Chandelier

if you happen to find yourself in the presence of one of her masterpieces

and she's in the room

give her a hug from me. 

xo

I want to REinvent like Regina.

A box was waiting for me upon returning from shopping the other day.

It was a lovely gesture by the courier to bring it in through the gates

and tuck it safely behind the chair outside my Studio

because I know the whole time he was here 

the dog would have been doing an excellent impersonation 

of a rabid wolf threatening to rip his throat out.

I recognised the hand writing immediately

and knew it to be the long anticipated & much alluded to 

birthday present from Regina (my birthday's in July).

I'm glad I waited until I had some me time to open it 

because my children would have been traumatised 

by me squealing O.M.G's 

 for about 5mins.

Have a look for yourself and tell me if you think I over reacted

 According to the creator it's a Candle Holder -

if anyone comes near it with a candle I'll kill them!

It doesn't have to be anything in particular - to me it's pure whimsy and

will be a constant reminder (because I'm not likely to let it out of my sight for quite a while)
 of my friends

humour, talent & generosity

and that bunny makes my heart sing.

There was other gorgeousness in the box
which I'll share later
and a lovely card
saying she'd make sure my Christmas present arrived in time for my Birthday :)

Dear Regina, if I never get anything else from you
I already have too much
and when I grow up
I want to REinvent clothes like you REinvent bric-a-brac. 
x

Determined - Day V Blogtoberfest

I'm committed to this Blogtoberfest thing and determined to put something up on here everyday
and if my camera batteries go flat like they did this morning
ruining the scheduled post
I wont be deterred
I'll rummage through my files and pull something out of the box
like this which I can't believe I've not shared before now

 Regina Dudek made these stunning Candelabras
she's a special friend
you know
the rare sort that only come round once in a life-time

I wish I could also share Reginas fb page & website, her blog, address & phone number but she doesn't have any of the first 3 and she'd maybe not be too happy about the last 2.
If you see her name
jump
at the chance to see what she's doing and give her a big hug from me!

Duh!

Not sure how much of a friend she thinks I am 
when I forgot I had her business card in my wallet...

Regina is a WINNER!

Reg is also proof that no matter how hard the knock the creative spirit will shine through - giving you wings to occasionally soar above the crap that life can throw your way!

 

My dear friend has far too much natural talent to let her house burning to the ground stop her from creating her masterpieces.

Hurray for the simple things in life - a pair of trusty pliers & a length of rusty wire!

Happy Birthday Leos!

I know some pretty awesome women but these 2 favourites just happen to be Leos too!

Regina whom we visited on our recent jaunt across the Nullabour is 'modelling' the shawl I felted her.
When her house burnt down this year during the Jan. bushfires she lost everything including the wedding dress I had made her some 10yrs ago. While re-organising my studio recently I found a remnant piece of the the silk organza used in the dress and decided to nuno-felt her a shawl with it.

Rebecca sent this photo yesterday of the newest family members & her multi-tasking skills.
She should be declared patron saint of all orphaned animals. Dan reckons if he comes back as anything he wants it to be as one of Rebs animals!

Happy Birthday x

FOUND

Op-shop find.
I'm a sucker for pink & green.
No oldies except the lavender sachet w/- embroidery needles, some cuties like bunnies & bumble bees, great colours & styles straight from 1940's.
Whatever I don't keep I'll send onto Regina.
Who by the way is doing well - good days and bad as they try to get back on track.

SORTING...

red ones in the red tin, green ones in the green tin etc...

Reginas house burnt down!

Regina rang yesterday afternoon from Boolarra, just after her brother gave them the news. They literally own what they're wearing and a few baby photos. They're safe. In shock.
The latest news this morning is for more high temperatures and for more homes to go. It was 15 homes gone on the news this morning.
Regina is one of the strongest pragmatic people on the planet and she will get her family through this smiling through the tears to the other side. A long journey but like she said yesterday "we can rebuild, bigger and better", and I can hear little Jas in the back ground saying "with a pool!".