Shoefiti...A True Classic

I am continually surprised by how much joy it brings me to see shoes hanging from the power lines. I am sure it is an absolute nuisance for the companies maintaining the power lines, and possibly quite upsetting if you are the owner of the shoes and a victim of some sort of bullying. But I cant help but smile each time I see them hanging there.

Well, after a quick Google, Wikipedia tells me that Shoefiti (shoe flinging) is a worldwide activity & infact in some places it is used to advertise the location of a 'crack house' or to mark the territory of gang turf. In some places the hanging shoes signify that someone has died & the shoes hanging are belongings of the deceased. Wikipedia says it may also be another manifestation of the human instinct to "leave their mark on" and decorate their surroundings. The list goes on...

Strangely, I think I was a little disappointed to see soooo many reasons behind the shoe-fling! There was something I liked about driving along to see sneakers hanging from the lines & to think that someone did that for no reason at all!

But it definitely made my day to recently find another hanging treat near our home. Remember those completely giant, oversized, wooden spoon & fork sets that people would mount on their dining room walls in the 60's & 70's? We now are able to appreciate them each day on our drive home... someone has kindly attached 'shoe laces' and flung them over the power lines also. Thank you... not sure about anyone else, but it makes me smile.

Not Sure When... a draft

My impatience to share with you is blatantly obvious (but perhaps you like to see the journey?) In my excitement, I couldn't even wait until it was finished... here it is, a new piece in its very early stages.

Its funny, because I look at this rough drawing & for a moment, I see what you probably see: an unfinished sketch with funny eye lashes on dirty paper. But then I see its potential to be something beautiful & amazing. I begin to dream about what fabric she will eventually be teamed with.  I imagine her (hopefully) hanging in an embroidery hoop on someone's wall.  

I look at her & hear her story, the circus of thoughts dancing in her head. I feel her doubts, her uncertainty.  She is not just black lines on a page... not to me. I am excited, and her journey has only just begun!

Thank you chunky chooky!

I'm pretty sure I used the magic of Facebook to mention Chunky Chooky's blog... that is, the feature that Chunky Chooky did of Gretel Girl.

Why do I feel so embarrassed to see it posted?

I cringe slightly reading my words on her page & at the same time I am a little proud of myself as I am reminded of Gretel Girls first steps. Very small, immature, baby steps. Here I am one year later... I feel like I have only begun... I am excited that there is such a huge journey ahead of me.

An April Mini-Gallery

Gretel Girl hoops have taken over the mini gallery space in Irving Baby this month. They also have a secret saturday sale on this weekend...thats right, only 2 more sleeps till you can get your hands on dozens of vintage & retro loveliness along with many other treasures... IB is the place to be on Saturday.

Polaroid Love... sneak peek

I have fond memories of rummaging through the cupboards in my mum's room when I was young. She seemed to have an unlimited supply of 'treasures'.... one of my favourites was a green & gold glass jar filled with buttons. I would pour them out onto her neatly made bed & sort the buttons into groups according to colour, holes, size.  There weren't many, but it was a lovely assortment of buttons & seemed to bring me great joy... such a simple pleasure.  

Hidden in the cupboard of treasures was also a polaroid camera... almost always it had no film in it, except for one day when I took an accidental, random photo of the carpet. I was so sad that I had wasted a very precious instant photo. If I had known there was film, I would have at least stood in front of the mirror & taken a photo of myself. The emotions of this day came flooding back to me this week when I found an image of a girl with a polaroid camera... it has now inspired Gretel Girl's latest illustration, Polaroid Love.

She is Violet Bella

Her photo caught my breath, there was something about the smokiness of her eyes, her lovely tattoo, her swept up hair, the softness of her face. The picture was wonderful & I knew I had to draw her. After a slightly embarrassing (feeling stalker-ish) email to ask permission, I began my sketching. And now she has made her way onto Gretel Girl's embroidery hoops! Thank you Lauren.
Violet Bella also has a wonderful online shop & blog... check it out at http://www.violetbellasworld.blogspot.com/.

Get Crafty... Portlandia: Put A Bird On It

I am a bit of a fan of bird images, bird tattoos, bird brooches.... I dont even mind watching the odd bird in our yard. Meet Me at Mikes posted this YouTube beauty on their blog. It made me laugh. I had to share it also.