Toddler art and graffiti

The BIA exhibition is over, and I am about to have my pieces collected for me.  Later, I will find out if I sold anything.  Even if I didn't, the opening was fantastic if the size of the audience was anything to go by, and, as usual, I found a print I liked and bought it.

I have taken a break from creating on paper and am alternating between knitting a multicoloured blanket and knitting my shrug during a quick trip to catch up with family down south.

In Melbourne, I am having fun of a different kind with two year olds.  Knowing I am babysitting, I raced over to Riot Art and bought one of their craft bags.  My two year old friends had lots of fun covering masks, paper, themselves, their clothes, the house, the sink, me, the dogs.......and more, with textas, glitter and glue:

I was also lucky enough to be given a day tour of Melbourne by a fellow craftie, who knows all the little lanes and arcades in the CBD.

I bought  gifts in Monster Threads, and tried on clothes in all the fantastic little boutiques around the city, like Alphaville in Flinders lane, with its wonderful shoes and clothes.

We took photos of graffiti in  Hosier Lane and other locations around the city.

My friend  introduced me to the Tessuti Fabric store in Flinders lane and was tempted to learn how to sew my own clothes properly once again.  Time is all I need........ And a guide.  Meanwhile, I liked the room divider curtain they had created from tape measures.

I also became acquainted with L'Uccello where I only succumbed to buying Karin Neushutz' "Sew Soft Toys" because I loved the animals in it, and my son had been reminiscing about a little felt donkey he used to love as a child.   Naturally, I had to buy some hand- dyed felt too.  And, then I saw some cute fabric I needed too.  There were so many yummy things in the shop, and the lady there was so nice that it was hard exhibiting restraint.  Still, I didn't feel too bad since since my companion also invested in wool fabric for a new quilt.

Then, it was off to Kimono House, where some blue and white Japanese fabric beckoned.

I fell in love with the buttons in Buttonmania, though I didn't succumb.  It's on my "to return to" list though! Great retro and modern buttons!

And I took photos of a lot of the city corners.  I especially liked this little flower shop

But I found lots of different  types of inspiration everywhere!

It  is exhausting being a tourist, but artistically invigorating.  And I haven't even been to an art gallery!