we're baaack!!

Yup we made it out the other side of Christmas and are back to our peaceful little home in Blackmans bay after a couple of day on the North West coast with family.
We did have a nice time and it wasn't all wasted on sitting around talking and doing nothing we actually got out a bit and I took Allan around to few of my favourite places around the area as I was born and breed there .

The highlight of the trip was our visit to Sheffield where we met a lovely Chap by the name of Matthew Simms.
I have been familiar with Matthew for many years though his handmade chairs that he made completely by hand, no electric tool from my knowledge, I could be wrong though.
He also makes Musical instruments, which he can be seen playing nearly everyday at the highlander Cafe in Sheffield main street.

The day we went in with the kids Matthew was playing a set of pipes that we later found out that he had made them all from scratch.
After Ruby started doing a jig to his music and he came over to say hello, we all got talking and found out that Matthew had also written a couple of books one that had already been published called Mackle Pickle and one of short poems for children, the book he had made as a mock-up was very sweet he had cut some stamps and printed the pages and had hand written the poems.
I couldn't help myself I offered to print his little book for him using the letterpress and add some more illustrations cut out of lino and print them for him.

We then got talking about music and explained that Allan is a composer and they resided that they may be able collaborate on something together, we ended back up in Sheffield the next day over the road in another cafe that has a piano for a little jam session.
It was pretty interesting hearing the pipes and the Piano together, it must have sounded ok because the cafe owner was thrilled and was Happy for Allan to have a concert there on :
Saturday 13th of February, at The Blacksmiths Cafe, Main street Sheffield
If you are in the area you are more than welcome to come along, there isn't a cover charge as far as I know but Allan would love for people to purchase a cd in appreciation.
We are hoping that Matthew will maybe bring along his pipes and join in with a bit of improvisation with Allan.
So all in all we had a lovely time over Christmas,
You just never know when you are going to meet someone very special like Matthew and have such a lovely creative collaboration happen.
Allan and I are very excited about it and can't wait to get back up to Sheffield.

Introducing Elizabeth Barsham

I have been wanting to do a little feature on a very good friend of mine for a while now, her name is Elizabeth Barsham, she is a local painter/sculptor who lives in Lindisfarne Tasmania and I am proud to be able to call her a friend.
I first came Across Elizabeth early last year when I had decided that it was about time I learnt how to paint in oils, after many years of procrastinating over it.
So off I went trawling the internet for a teacher and it wasn't long before I found Elizabeth in amongst all the old traditional landscape and still life painters.
I knew Elizabeth was the one to teach me, she was different and she had guts and she was well and truly an original.
I think the first thing that stuck me about her work is its complexity of tone and colour, the depth of her painting draw you in and there is no escape! I love that and I thought that if I was going to learn how to paint I was going to need someone like her to teach me.

Anyway I umed and ahhed about contacting her for ages then I realised she took adult ed classes so I signed up and took her class and I guess the rest is history we became friends
I hold an enormous amount of respect for Elizabeth and her Intelligence, humour and genuinely friendly manor, oh and her painting are pretty good too. Elizabeths very well behaved models for her
Barbie Does Bagdad Etching

If you are interested in seeing more of Elizabeths work or maybe becoming a student in one of her classes take a look at her web page here http://tasmanian-gothic.com/ or her blogger here http://tasmanian-gothic.blogspot.com/


There will be more on Elizabeth at a later date as we have decided to do a handmade letterpress printed book collaboration together It should turn out to be a very interesting project going on some of the ideas we both come up with at times lol
So stay tuned and hang on folks it could be a rough ride !!!

Calling Christopher William guitar hero jensen

Hi baby I miss you and haven't heard a peep out of you for weeks you really should call your mother from time to time I worry about you buddy
Anyway I just wanted to tell you I love you and I will see you up at little Nannies on Christmas day
I'm aaaaaaaaaaa lovin Yoooooooooooooooooooou!!
xxx Mum

10 Days on the Island 2012 cancelled for Opera Australia

I was just looking at my facebook and came across a post about 10 days on the Island being cancelled due to a visit from the Australian opera company http://tasmaniantimes.com/index.php?/weblog/article/oz-opera-visit-cancels-ten-days-on-the-island/

Ten Days on the Island will be cancelled in 2012, due to terms and conditions for a five-day Australian Opera tour organised by the Sydney-based Australian Council for the Arts. The AO will be performing two nights in Hobart and one in Launceston, with the program not being decided until late 2011 by managers and executives in Sydney. Public relations for the AO point out that this tour, the biggest in the State’s history, will ‘interpolate Tasmania on the world’s cultural cosmos’, and draw hundreds of thousands of cultural ‘guests’ to the Isle.
Furthermore, in the fortnight before or in the week after the AO’s tour, no local TV or radio station may broadcast any opera-related material, nor can local artistic, cultural or entertainment activities can take place. This means, for example, that no cinemas in Hobart and Launceston, or within an 80km radius of each city, can operate during the exclusion period.

now when I read this I really thought it was a joke but I am afraid it is serious .

Concert At Meadowbank vinyard

I know I am a bit late posting this but It's better late than never I guess .
My very talented Husband Allan is having a concert tomorrow at the very classy Meadowbank Vineyard at Cambridge tomorrow afternoon at 3pm ticket are $20
Please come along and hear all new composition of Allans new Album Mandala of Sayla and Ava, an album of beautiful instrumental pieces played on the piano with flute and Cello.
Allan has worked very hard over the past year to compose these pieces and It would be wonderful to share it with people, so please try to come along and support a local talent.

newly listed on etsy

These have just been newly listed on my etsy if you are still looking for little Christmas tags or a little gift for anyone special you are sure to find something on my etsy store



http://www.etsy.com/shop/rubyvictoria

I have been blogged!!

Not once but twice !!!!
I recieved and email a little while age from Anna of the Matilda's market saying that she had been thrilled to receive my application for the 2010 market in Hobart and that she had blogged me here
http://mathildasmarket.blogspot.com/ How lovely is that !!!

Also earlier last week I was features on
http://www.indie.com.au/ in their festive tags and trinkets column.

I feel very lucky and grateful to be feature on these two wonderful web pages.

Please visit both have a look at my special features and take a nice long look around both these pages as they are brim full of loveliness .
Please support all your local makers and designers and have a Happy Handmade Christmas.
Narelle xx

New item just listed in my Etsy and Madeit stores

Just listed in my Etsy and Made it store are there lovely debossed letterpress notecards
there is a set of 5 , they come with 5 recycled envelopes and are all tied together with Italian cotton butchers twine, just Beautiful!
These would be great for someone that has everything for Christmas, there is also an option to change the text and colour to what you would prefer as well.

SO just go check it out there is heaps of other nice things in both store to choose from .
just follows these links
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=36746880

http://www.madeit.com.au/storecatalog.asp?userid=1983

Happy Shopping XX

market updates

Well it was a seriously hectic weekend but it all ended very well for all concerned I think !
There were alot of people through both the beach and the sandy bay markets which was nice to see and the weather was good to us as well always a plus on market day.

These were my last two market for the years and I will be taking it a little easier but will still be working on new stuff for next year, getting some drawing done and actually carve out some new blocks which I am especially looking forward to.
I will still be filling orders from etsy and Made it through the Christmas period so if you want to order anything feel free to visit my store and make a request.

market melt down in progress

I just have to say that this weekends markets have created a fair amount of anxiety in me.
As I type I still have things unfinished nothing too serious but just enough to get me upset and the fact that the tables at one of the markets have shrunk to half the normal sized , so that in itself is enough to make me go into a complete decision making melt down .
DEEP BREATH - DEEP BREATH - DEEPBREATH!!!!!
Oh my Gawd ! forgot to put the blooming Christmas tree in the photo so I have that too !!!!!!
Cup of tea and some curry and I will think about getting my act together ,get the car packed up and off I go ! sounds pretty simple really doesn't it !!!

I hope to see many of you readers at the markets and as i always say please make yourself known and say hello xxx

Letterpress love and surprises in the post

hi everyone yep I have been at it again buying stuff online .
Firstly I bought one of the upcycled journal off Isis http://www.etsy.com/shop/isis for a good friend of mine for Christmas and lovely Isis send me a little surprise in the shape of 3 little badges, since I have been attending markets I have become quite partial to the odd brooch and I have been holding the erge back to buy as I know that once I start I wont be able to stop.
the other purchases are of yes letterpress type a lovely 36pt bold font from my mate John in Queensland and a perpetual calendar from the UK so I can make my own limited edition handmade calendars, I have had ideas floating around in my head for a while now !

recent aquisitions

I have been very lucky lately to be able to pick up a few lovely things for my letterpress business and also this lovely calendar by Lori Dean Dyment, Lori creates the most beautiful monotype prints and her Etsy shop is really worth a look. http://www.etsy.com/shop/DeanDymentStudios
She has been a solid favourite of mine since I first joined Etsy and remains to be so I adore her work.

My other two purchases have been a nice find, both used for shaving lead type one a straight edge the other for angle so that I can make mitred boarder frames.
I have also got a small book press on its way and some lovely 36pt type will post photos when they arrive.

A FRONT PAGE PIC ON ETSY

Wow Just got an email from Luisa saying I got a front page spot on Etsy, I went to have look and it was gone NOOOOOOOOOO!!!
Damn it!! I didn't get to see it, so no picture of it I'm afraid, it would have been nice to see what they had grouped my flora note card and tag set with though
Oh well !!


I just went back and had a look and it was there Yieeeeeeeeeeeee !! on a happy high now thanks Lusia for letting me know xxx

Blackmans bay beach market & The design market

Yes call me crazy but I will be attending two markets in one weekend I have called in the backup support team and we are going to be there to provide the best in Letterpress printing in Tasmania.

The Blackmans Bay beach market
11th & 12th of December Friday night is from 4pm - 8pm Saturday from 9am - 4pm

There is promised to be a huge amount of handmade goodies to be snapped up for Christmas pressies and decorations, cards, fresh flowers there is even going to be face painting for the little one and a bbq so come along and support your local makers
The Hall can be found along the Esplanade at Blackmans bay Beach just along from the Restaurant and beside the skate park.

Next is
The Market
At the masonic Hall Sandy Bay road,Hobart opposite St david Park,
13th of December Sunday 10am - 5pm
I have attended this market a couple of times before and it has never failed to impress me, the girls that organise this market do an outstanding job setting up and advertising it and we alway have a bumper crowd through the door.
It really is one of the best markets I have been to and the stall holders are carefully chosen to provide the best there is to offer in Hand made/design and art in Tasmania.

I feel very proud to be apart and particularily fond of this market as it was one of the first that I introduced Ruby Victoria Letterpress to the general public to a fabulous response.
I hope to see all the regulars and hopefully some new people at the next market and as I always say Please don't feel shy about saying hello if you have seen my blog and would like to ask me anything about what I do and the letterpress machine.

This Is the last design Market before christmas so it will be well worth visiting so that you dont miss out on getting something extra special and handmade for you loved ones this year.

what a weekend!! Handmade Hobart a success

Well I have to say I have had the best weekend at the inaugural Handmade Market at St peters Hall in Hobart.
Even thought the weather was shocking the good people of Hobart and from all over still braved the weather and still came in their droves to see what local crafters / makers and artists had to offer for sale
So many wonderful visitor to talk to and share our loves of what we do with .
I Have to say this new market has just the most wonderful friendly atmosphere the table set up were wonderful with lots of room to move from one stall to the next .
Stall holders we all happy and friendly and from what I could see where all very happy they had supported this lovely new market.
I hope you all enjoy the photos and feel that you would like to visit when the next market will be held in January.



















<--------- Oh yeah and this is Rosie (notion) haha told you I would I would post this photo! I have a feeling I might be gotten back for this thought lol Thanks for being a very entertaining neighbour stall holder Rosie I look forward to seeing you and all the other people at the next market.

Handmade Hobart - market is Tomorrow

Handmade Hobart is On tomorrow and even if it is rain please do come along everything is undercover and there will be a fabulous array of stall holder with many many beautiful things to buy.
The market is held over 2 days the
28th and 29th of Nov. at St peters hall
corner of Brisbane and Harrington St in Hobart.
from 11an till 4pm both days
http://handmadehobart.blogspot.com/

I will have my little tabletop letterpress machine there doing demos for people to have a look and see how my printing is done and if space permits people can have a go at printing something themselves.
It is always a joy for me to see a little kids face when they see something they have printed and better still they have seen and understood where it has come from .
It feel nice to know that I am able to keep Letterpress alive in my own little way.

Please come and say hi especially if you have seen my blog and have been following I love meeting new people that are interested in what I do .

New letterpress treasures

I went to visit a friend of mine yesterday to pick up some printing plates that her sister had sitting on their verandah for ages.
When I got there they had boxes of them ....... I was in heaven.
I will post more photos when I get a chance to go through the boxes to see what is hiding in there .
The plates come from a quarterly booklet that was printer for a hiking / bush walking group based in Hobart and apparently they were just sitting around in the boxes getting in the way and they were destined for the tip so Elizabeth's sister rescued them and took them home and they had sat on their verandah ever since until they we found a use........ through Elizabeth and her sisters generosity and them being aware that these beauties would be safe in my hands they have now come to live with me.
I have to say they have been kept if perfect condition, all look to have only been used for the one run to print the books and then they were just boxed up and left .
I printed a couple of them tonight as I just couldn't resist it any longer. The maps are just fantastic.

Wimble & Co. lead cutter

Today my big heavy Wimble & C0. lead cutter arrived by courier I knew it was going to be bigger than the one I have but I wasn't expecting the handle of the Wimble to be as big as the entire Adana lead cutter hehe ! It makes the Adana cutter look king of sweet really
Another plus was pack with the cutter was this beautiful Wimble & Co ink specmin book showing the rang of ink that were available .
The guy that I bought them from was telling me that he bought them at auction here in Tassie, so I have bought them back home from the mainland

Handmade Hobart is coming!!!!!

There is a new market on the block and Ruby Victoria letterpress & printmaking are going to be there with a whole heap of other creative, wonderful people that work hard to bring you the best there is to offer in handmade.

The list of stall holders is rather impressive really and it will be well worth the effort in coming along and saying hello and maybe even buy some Christmas gifts for yourself and your loved ones.
So I hope to see you there and please come say hello and have a look at the little letterpress machine in action if I haven't met you before and you have only just found my blog.

• Barista Sista
• Snowpea Handmade
• ERA-zistable
• Mahdi Chandler
• Bucket Brigade
• copycat design
• She Sells Sea Glass
• Fait main
• Notions
• shall design
• Ruby Victoria
• Twin Things
• Dance in my Garden
• What Katie Did Next
• Fairy Goat Mumma
• Little Snoring
• Tizzy Bits
• Loopee Designs
• Little Black Crow Studio
• The Bird and the Fish

My poor little machine

This gorgeous little machine has really coped a floggin the last couple of months and It doesn't look like it is going to get a rest just yet.
This Christmas season is becoming a bit of an eye opener for me, I wasn't expecting to be as busy as I have been the faster I print the faster it is all walking out the door . I received a call from Essie at Love & clutter this afternoon requesting more of my flora coaster tags, apparently they have just flown out the door after only a day in the store and they need more already ... just incredible !
So as you can see I seriously need a new home for my workshop so that I can finally get Adana's big brother up and running.
If anyone reading this knows anyone that has a place local, that would be happy for me to set up a small letterpress printing studio in PLEASE call me at let me know
It is getting desperate now that I also have a lead casting macine on its way here from Queensland

little green teapot feature

what a lovely surprise , I was just taking a look at the madeit blog http://madeitdotcomdotau.blogspot.com and realised that my little green teapot has been featured in a christmas gift guide called Tea & cupcakes.

Etsy treasury by Under the Shade of a Bonsai tree

Thank you to Shadeofabonsia for creating this lovely treasury on Etsy titled Talented Tasmanian and an extra special thank you for including my little blue teapot.
She has chosen a lovely group of makers in here Listed from left to right Owletshop, littleglowinglights, whatkatiedidnext, littlesnoring, Thatvitage - sohpiehillartist, catrabbitplush, pipemma, 3redbuttons,rubyvictoria, nerine, poppylane and Danceinmygarden.
We really are a creative bunch here in Tasmania

Please go visit her shop and have a look at her lovely jewellery
http://www.etsy.com/shop/ShadeOfABonsai you can also catch her at various market around hobart

Red Bamboo candles

I got the best package delivered today, A box of 6 Red Bamboo scented candles and they are simply divine. Seriously I have been carting the vanilla candle around with me all day smelling in the sweet scent and every now and then hold the candle to my nose and breathing it in, the smell is sooooooooooooo yummy!
makes me want to go buy a vanilla hot chocolate from Anvers House of Chocolate! but that is a whole other story in itself drool!
Annie contacted me a little while back about having a swap, some of her candles for some of my Christmas goodies , I can't help but feel she got a bit of a raw deal though as these are as I keep saying divine.
I got the sandalwood for Allan as that is his favourite, the vanilla for me and the magnolia for my mum but I am going to keep the one with the little lid thought cos it is way too cute to give away even to my mother ..sorry mum!
Please go and have a look at Annie's blog and buy some of her goodies you will find she make alot more than just candles, you can also catch her at the Civic Homespun Market in Launceston and the upcoming Niche Market at the end of November just google the two market to find out where and when ! Annie's blog is here ------> http://redbamboohandmadethings.blogspot.com/
Now I am off to go smell my new candles! Vanilla of course!

Handmade Nation

Yup I went and bought a copy as I didn't get to see it when they had a little viewing get together at the local salamanca art centre a little while back and I just figure that if I didn't just buy it there would be a pretty good chance that I would never get to see it .
Maybe if there are another other local artists and crafters that haven't seen it and would like to ,we could have another little viewing get together and nibbles at my place and I have to tell you Allan is a chef and make the yummiest finger food. let me know what you think and we can maybe get some number and just do it !! I think it will be fun to get to know people away from the meltdown environment of the markets .