I'm home from a trip to Central Queensland, to Yeppoon then down to Australia Zoo at Caloundra. I was accompanied by my 6 year old granddaughter Emma, and together we swam a lot, made up stories, did some drawing and got sick! Antibiotics work much faster on children, so Emma is up and running again, while Grandma is still plodding along.

We visited the Caloundra Art Society's workrooms and gallery and got lots of information on how to achieve your vision of building an effective art venue.

Returning to Melbourne on Saturday, I also had the opportunity of visiting TAFTA's Forum open day in Geelong. Saw lots of great work done in the workshops, as well as visiting the traders. Was certainly encouraged that we are doing well here in Merrigum ...

She's not quite finished yet, but I'm still playing with the light tent...

I'm trying to make photos with an improvised light tent. This is my best shot so far.

The hat is an early one and you can see the imperfections. It is well worn and well loved, .... by me.

the weather's improving and it's time to felt! My latest hats are classics, with rounded domes, a narrow brim, and an embellished and beaded felt flower. I think my grandmothers would approve! The Merino fibre is so soft and felts finely making the hat lightweight and flexible.

I dye the fibre with Landscape dyes, and exhaust the dyepots to see what I can get. I start with full colour, then just keep adding fibre, and sometimes another dye, to do some "serendipity" dyeing. I get lots of soft compatible colours this way, great for blending.