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Monday, 25 January 2021

Australia Day - 26 January



26 January is Australia - the day that we celebrate everything that makes Australia such a great country to live in - it's for all of us - our diverse country, our amazing landscapes, our unique wildlife, our multicultural society, and acknowledge the indigenous people who populated Australia before white man arrived. 

I just found this map of indigenous Australia - as you can see there were many many groups. Australia's First Peoples have been living on the Australian continent for millennia and are the world's oldest surviving culture. AISTSIS - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australia


There is always much discussion and conflicting opinion about whether we should celebrate Australia Day on 26 January - the day in 1788 that the Union Jack was first raised on Australian soil to establish the colony of New South Wales. Some indigenous people call it "invasion day" and in some ways it was. 

I know that many wrongs and atrocities were committed in the past, and some say wrongs are still being committed today. 

But as a proud white citizen of Australia whose family dates back to early settlement, I do not think changing the date we celebrate Australia day will make any difference. We can learn from the past but we cannot change the past. What has been done has been done. 

Instead I think we should all, indigenous people, whites and multicultural people who have made Australia their home, celebrate the Australia we have today and all the unique parts that make up Australia. We have all done our part to make Australia what it is today. We are all part of the story. 


I do not usually make political comments on my page, so I leave you with some links back to some of my past Australia Day posts - I think you will find some unique Aussie humour in there. 


I can walk on your country, I can listen and hear your stories, I can learn about plants and see the trees, birds, flowers, animals, I can study your ancient rock art, I can walk along your paths, I can sit under a tree and be still and feel the breeze on me, but I cannot really know your deep connection to your country, your cultural heritage, and what it means to you. But I, as a non-aboriginal "Balanda" can try.   Walking on Country - Kakadu - 2019


There won't be any Australia Day fireworks in our city this year due to Covid concerns, but there will be other events happening. Australia Day BBQ breakfasts are very popular. 


I think we might be going out in our boat in the morning, and then lazing around in the afternoon watching a typical Aussie movie - like The Man from Snowy River or watching the cricket, before enjoying an Australia Day BBQ. 


Whatever you are doing, stay safe, and happy Australia Day! It's for all of us! 

Thank you so much for stopping by. I hope you and yours are safe and well. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week.  


I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!


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Monday, 18 January 2021

The Marri trees are flowering

I always say there is always something flowering in the Western Australian bush.  It's mid summer here and the marri trees are flowering in the south west of Western Australia. 

Corymbia calophylla - commonly known as Marri - is one of around 80 eucalypts which were transferred in 1995 from the genus Eucalyptus to the newly created genus Corymbia. The species was formerly known as Eucalyptus calophylla and that name is still preferred by some. Australian Native Plants Society

Marri is an indigenous aboriginal Noongar word. Growing to 40-60 metres tall they are not suitable for suburban gardens, but they shade a creek walk near where live. We walked along there this morning. The bees were buzzing in the Marri flowers and the cockatoos where having a good time high in the trees chewing on the new buds and cracking into last year's nuts. 

Here below you can see the buds, the flowers, the nuts (commonly called honkey nuts) and nuts laying on the ground that have fallen after they have been cracked open by cockatoos. 


Below you can see here are red-tailed black cockatoos. We could hear them screeching in the trees. 


The red-tailed black cockatoos use their wide beak to shred the edge of the nuts so they can get to the seeds inside. 



Gum nuts and the gum nut babies were a feature of May Gibbs book Snugglepot and Cuddlepie - an Australian children's classic - May Gibbs

More information:
Kings Park Botanic Gardens
Australian Native Plants Society



Just a short post from me today. I hope yo and yours are safe and well in these troubled times. Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. 

Take care, stay safe, hug those you love, and enjoy your week. 

You might also like:
Arbor Day - Celebration of trees
Old Timbeline Trail , St John's Brook, Nannup, Western Australia


I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
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Monday, 11 January 2021

Experimenting with Paper making

 Hi everyone, I hope you have had a good start to 2021, and that you and yours are safe and well. There has been some disturbing footage coming from around the world, and I feel very fortunate to be in my little relatively safe bubble here in the south west of Western Australia. 

I have started a new project. I think my husband despairs of me....always some new art project to explore. But he is very supportive and even bought me a "paper making kit" this year after I had it on my Christmas list for the second year. He managed to get it into the house without me knowing when the parcel deliver brought it. 


Now I don't profess to know anything about paper making. I have never even seen it demonstrated. So all I know is what I have gleaned from the Born in Paper website from where my husband bought the kit, and from a few little on-line videos. 

But I wanted to have a go, and that is what I have been doing most afternoons for the last week.  I have had mixed results, but I have enjoyed playing but gosh it has been hot on my patio. My husband did ask me the other day what I was going to do with the paper I had made. All I could reply was "don't ask me something I can't answer yet". 

The best place for you to learn is go to a workshop if you can. Born in Paper is located on the eastern side of Australia, a LONG way from me, so I need to find a workshop closer. Until then I just experiment and play. 

1. First you need paper. I have always kept paper in a box under my computer that has only been printed on one side. So this is a great place for me to start. If you work in an office I am sure there is a LOT of office waste paper. Also for one batch I used offcuts from my botanical eco-printing projects which uses printmakers art paper. 

Tear the paper up and pulp it all up in a blender with water. I bought a cheap one just for this. Don't use it for food after. 


2. You can add flowers or leaves to your mix. I've sun dried some rose petals. Only took a couple of days, but it is summer! 


3. You also need a Mould and Deckle. Put the pulp and extra water into a plastic tub. Mix it around so it is moving freely then "pull" your first sheet of paper with your mould and deckle. 

Below is a mould and deckle. It is like two picture frames the same size with a piece of wire on one piece.   The mould is a frame covered with metal or nylon mesh, and the deckle is the frame that sits on top of the mould. The paper is formed on the mould, and the deckle is used to create straight edges on the paper sheet.


There is a good video here to show you the process: Born in Paper on instagram


4. Transfer your paper mush on the mould and deckle face down onto the "couching" cloth. Also can be seen on video from Born in Paper on instagram


Press out some of the water with sponge, then take the mould away - this is the tricky bit! Put another piece of cloth on top and roll with a rolling pin. Turn over, take away the wet cloth, replace with another cloth, roll again. The firmer and more you roll the better the paper will be. 

Then transfer your paper to a board to dry. You can iron them flat when dry, and then put them under a stack of big books to flatten them more. 

Here you can see my first go - a bit of tearing going on. Could be the paper was a bit thin, but also because I had trouble peeling the paper from the wire of the mould. 


I've only started making paper this week, so honestly, I think you should ignore my "notes" and go to a proper paper making site like Born in Paper or Paper Slurry

 Here are a few of my papers from this week. I still have lots to learn Like how to get the wet paper off the screen without it tearing.... and how to get an even layer of slurry in the mould and deckle. Lots more to learn. 

Dry wildflowers and leaves added to the mix 


Dry statice flowers sprinkled on top of the wet paper and pressed in


The paper I made with scraps of printmakers paper previously eco-printed with eucalypt leaves. A few dry leaves were added to the blended when pulping the paper. This paper was thicker than the paper I made with the office paper. 


So there you have it. A newbies little look at paper making. 
I've borrowed the couple of action photos from Born in Paper on instagram

Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week.  

I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!

Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.
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