First Print

Well .... this is new for me .... my first blog! You would have thought they could have used a nicer name than "Blog". Anyway, so I am off and printing.

I am a lady of Bees Creek in the Northern Territory who is an avid Papermaker, book binder, scribe of poetry in my spare minutes of any day .... anyone with a regular business to run with their husband, active teenagers, a rural block and all that goes with that .... knows only too well that there is little time for our passionate pursuits of art or art in the making. However! I will not be perturbed and so I beg, borrow and steal any time I can get to push on with my visions and goals of creating something wonderful from what nature provides or what we humans no longer use. I am also a PartyLite Consultant .... anyone who doesn't know what PartyLite is ?? Candles, high quality candles with sumptuous scents and quality accessories to calm the mind and soul in any day or night.

Why would someone make paper you ask in today's abundance of paper and accessories? Well to create handmade paper is unique, a therapeutic experience in creating it and a timless treasure when it is recycled from either cotton sheets, denim or made with only plant fibres from nature - unique and personal - even more so when you create your own journal for your own thoughts, goals or experiences.

I do 3 different kinds of workshops on papermaking - a basic course on recycling paper at home; a recycling of cotton and denim fibres and basic bookbinding; and the last course is usually for experienced papermakers in which I use what nature has provided, cook it in caustic to neutralise the fibres and create papers using either bush grasses or plants from my local environs. With this I paint on it, print on it (yes even put it in my inkjet and laser printers) and use it as a backdrop for my photography. My dream is to one day have an exhibition of my works and pursue art on a part-time to full time basis in my later years. For now I am happy to hold workshops and pursue my dreams and my creations privately for the time being. I am happy to blog with likeminded persons and help with any queries.