Dress and dag

"Step we gaily, 

on we go, 

heel for heel, 

and toe for toe!"

My outfit consists of blue wool jumper- retail, 

orange felted wool vest(modified by me after felting so it still fit! ) And added motif "x in the box, or cross your heart" to symbolise my love for my genderqueer self. 

Red Asian fabric skirt - secondhand in a shabby state, I reworked to fit me. 

Very old patterned tights, 

Stars and Stripes ankle socks- retail, 

and slip on Rockport gorgeousness- $5 second hand.

The bling- second hand plastic polka dot ring - $2, 

copper coloured knot necklace - $2

Various beaded bracelets, secondhand or made by me. Silver bracelet-gift from Bushy

The daggy look I wore by the end of the day: 
with the addition of green silk scarf - secondhand, 
grey wrap - retail, 
and sheepskin slippers - retail many, many years ago.

Let's dance!

'Til next time, keep creating!

Jazz

BeautyScope 30a: Swan Song

Hello baaaaby! 

What's a chick like you doing in this neck of the woods?

It was Autumnal perfection!

Last time we went to our bush block Heartwoods, we made a trip to Cooma and Numeralla nearby. It was one of those perfect Autumn days...clear, still and golden.

The waterhole at Numeralla looking its best.

With "No Hippies etc" sign the kids loved!

What an amazing tree!

Our dog Winter loved the leaves.

View to the ranges from the car

The kids competing on swings

The Actor and The Artist communing with the river.

Hope you enjoyed our little trip!

'Til next time, keep creating,

Jazz

BeautyScope 30: String Theory

Is it right over left...or left over right?

BeautyScope 29: Empty Cups

The morning after...!

Watching the clock

The Artist had a great idea while we were at Heartwoods. We found a sawhorse, put it in one place and photographed the same view at different times of the days we were there.  Here is the result, out of sequence as we forgot to write the times down! But its still interesting I think, to see the light and activities changing.

'Til next time, keep creating!

Jazz

Another Award!!

I want to start by thanking the wonderfully awesome Shawna of the Director of Awesome for nominating me for this award. I am honoured that she would consider me a great reader and team member.

I have enjoyed Shawna's blog for a while, but mostly I have enjoyed her comments on my blog, because she was the first person outside my family to comment! You can imagine the excitement in our household when her first comment, all the way from the other side of the world, winged its merry way into my blog :-)

Shawna is a powerhouse of blog discovery, and in my humble opinion is doing a massive effort supporting new bloggers, in spite of her difficult circumstances. Shawna I salute you!

So...

The Rules

1. The Nominee of the Wonderful Team Member Readership Award shall display the logo on his/her post/page and/or sidebar.

2. The Nominee shall nominate 14 readers they appreciate over a period of 7 days (1 week) – this can be done at any rate during the week. It can be ALL on one day or a few on one day and a few on another day, etc.

3. The Nominee shall name his or her Wonderful Team Member Readership Award nominees on a post or on posts during the 7 day (1 week) period.

4. The Nominee shall make these rules, or amended rules keeping to the spirit of the Wonderful Team Member Readership Award, known to each reader s/he nominates.

5. The Nominee must finish this sentence and post: ”A Great reader is…”

*********************************************************************************

A great reader is ...

one who comments, obviously, and explains how they reacted or related to my post.

I think we all know this. I dont require comments to be upbeat and funny, although that is fine too. Sometimes I feel more in contact with my readers when they explain how my post made them feel vulnerable.

Now I just have to explain something...I've not had that many readers leave comments, so I don't have 14 people to nominate.

Here are some who have stopped by...

In Honour of Mencken

Angels have red hair

bahnwaerterhaeuschen

vintage vixon

Suzanne Carillo Style Files

Pink Stripey Socks

ephemera

the director of awesome

This has been a valuable exercise for me, because I had forgotten how many people have touched base with my little blog. Thanks so much!

The other result I've had from these awards, is that people see my name in a list on a blog they follow, and click on it. My readers tripled on the days I was listed. So thanks again!

Now I just have to make sure I am a good reader for others!

I will leave you with a couple of shots of my outfit today. This is the toned down me!

Me and my shadow!

Now sit up straight!

'Til next time, keep creating!

Jazz

BeautyScope28: Trapped hot air

Balloon ascension

BeautyScope 27: Nervous Nellies

Knock-kneed swings!

Cleaning Couture

What I wore to do the vacuuming today!

A thrifted wool jacket, knitted shorts made by me, tights extra old!

Underneath an Australian flag - second hand

And I added Stars and Stripes socks to add to the nationalistic fervour! Plus my suede booties - thrifted

On the back of the jacket I needle felted a patch which I had made earlier, to jazz up the jacket as I have had it a while and was getting a little bored with it :-)

What do you wear to do the vacuuming?

'Til next time, keep creating!

Jazz

BeautyScope 26: mellow yellow

Contemplating awesome Autumness

Reflections on blogging

So, I've been Blogging for almost two months now and I wanted to reflect on this experience.

I initially wanted a focus for my artwork and ideas. I've always been making art, but haven't really done it formally. This blog has enabled me to gather all my ideas into one place, and helped me see my direction more clearly.

Since I have so many different media/genres of art, I find its easy to lose focus and think i'm not getting anywhere.

I thought if I started a blog, I might be able to pull together some ideas for a performance. This still may happen.

One of the unexpected bonuses of blogging and social media I've found, is that I reach people I only know marginally, or not at all!

I also have found people are really supportive and have had some surprise compliments, which is nice. I wonder if people give and receive more compliments online than they would have in the old days, because it's so easy to do with the click of a button.

I have found I have to be careful, because I tend to measure the worth of my posts or my blogging or even my art, by how many comments I receive. I read other's blogs and note the number of comments they receive, and feel inferior by comparison.

One factor in all this internal debate is also my Aspergers. I suspect when I try to blog like others, and break into new circles, I am touching feelings of unworthiness and confusion that I've had all my life. I have struggled to feel strong when I've had problems understanding the social nuances of friendship, and have had no real interest in the topics they seem so engrossed in.

I've caught myself thinking I need to change my content or style to try and capture the interest of visitors and to encourage repeat visitors. This is a dangerous road, and I constantly have to remind myself to stay true to my own vision. If I am, I will eventually create an audience who is interested in what I'm interested in!

I have to remind myself what my original intent for blogging was- to put my art out there, and help me to create on a daily basis. Has this been done? Yes! So the blog is a success. Anything else, like multiple comments or awards is a bonus!

As of today, my all time views stands at 1,033 from eight different countries! Boy, that's what I call exposure. So even though I don't receive comments, I am touching people I never would have before. How cool is that!

'Til next time, keep creating!

Jazz

BeautyScope 25: rusty tin can

This has been hanging on our fence at Heartwoods for at least 10 years. I do love rusty objects!

In the heart of the woods...

Imagine: 

Sitting in a bloom of sunshine

Warming up the cockles of your heart

Gazing on tree canopies 

Eucalyptus scenting the air

A silent circling bird of prey

Jewelled darkness

Stars sparkling, strewn across the dark sky

The orange moon rises 

Reflecting the camp fire across the clearing

The temperature drops

Travelling home
Weary and dirty
Squinting in electric light
Showering in warm water
Civilisation's perks

We have returned from our journey to 'Heartwoods', our bush block. We had the most magical time. One of those times when everything clicks. We have owned Heartwoods for 10 years, but this is the first time the weather was lovely, there were minimal insects, we had time to explore, and the kids were old enough to entertain themselves. We also had a new-to-us tractor to make tracks for the kids to ride their bikes on, and they were able to cut down some trees(heavily supervised by the trained professional hubby Bushy).

It really is a magical place. In the midst of farm land, we have a forest to play in! 

So here are some piccies!

A sign drawn by The Artist when he was small.

The Actor starting a fire with a flint. He is so patient, and with the addition of some paper he actually made a fire!

The Artist learned to make a fire from blowing up some coals. He was very good at toasting bread!

The boys had a ball on their bikes

and chopping down trees. Don't worry, we have plenty!

Bushy was Farmer Jo for the weekend.

The scene of construction...kids making bike jumps near some wombat holes.

The view, slightly obscured by cloud. We are up in the sky.

Now you can imagine yourself on the hammock where I spent quite a few hours. Ahh bliss!

Hope you enjoyed your trip to Heartwoods :-)

'Til next time, keep creating!

Jazz