weekend link, shelley edition

This week Shelley is here to give Liesl a week off from writing her usual Friday post. So let’s turn it over to her.

Hello again everyone,

I’m feeling like the teenager who’s been given the keys to the car! It’s always exciting to take over the Oliver + S blog and even more so for the Weekend Links post.

It’s starting to get really quite cold here in Melbourne, Australia and my favorite season of dressing is arriving. Layers and tights, boots and jackets. Also, it’s much easier to participate in Me Made May when you’re wearing so many more garments all at once – at least one of them is bound to be me made!

Instagram Picks

I’ve been busy sewing for my kids who are growing like weeds, but I’m about to tackle a most unusual sewing challenge. A New Yorker, now resident in Melbourne is in need of a tuxedo and I’ve offered up my services. His measurements are not like any I’ve seen before….

My research thus far has involved looking at lots of tuxedo photos and trying to work out what style will best suit my little friend. I’m imagining him a bit like Woody Allen

Of course, any image search for “tuxedo” will result in me being side-tracked by lots of beautiful black and white shorthair cats – my personal favorites of the cat world.

Pinterest Picks

Leaves are starting to fall in our street and I’m reminded of the amazing art of Andy Goldsworthy.

Continuing with the warm orange tones I love these shorts. The lustrous, satin fabric turns a simple pair of shorts into something very elegant for a child. Personally, I could forgo the big bow, but I think a Lisette Butterick B6183 cream top and a pair of orange Soho Shorts would be a fabulous outfit whatever my age might happen to be.

Rhubarb is one of my favorite vegetables. Maybe because we treat it as a fruit and make delicious desserts with it! How pretty is this rhubarb and custard pie. Whenever I see color palettes relating to food I’m reminded of the French artist Sophie Calle who, as part of a performance piece, ate only foods of a certain color on particular days of the week. Here’s orange day.

Back to sewing shorts, I love this outfit Nicole (Mother of 5) put together for her daughter: A pair of puppet show shorts, a vintage pattern puff-sleeve shirt and a gifted knitted vest. It’s outrageously fashionable and so cute. I was immediately reminded of our national news broadcaster Lee Lin Chin who has a wicked sense of fashion and equally wicked sense of humor.

Wouldn’t it be fun to renovate the interior of a vintage campervan, assuming someone else could look after the mechanics.

Macramé is a craft that seems to be making a bit of a resurgence. Regular macramé is perfect for bold, statement jewelry but micro macramé using fine threads and jewels can be very delicate and beautiful too.

If I could find the wall space and the time I’d love to try making a bigger hanging piece, and how fabulous to see there’s still a place for the owl!

Weekend Reading

• It was a discussion with Sarvi about the author Paul Auster that also put me in mind of Sophie Calle’s food color palette. When a real person becomes a fictional character and then reality is further fictionalized…. It’s a Double Game.
• I made some beeswax food wraps at a workshop recently and have found a great online tutorial if you’re keen to try and reduce your disposable plastic use.
• How hard will it be to make bricks on Mars? Surprisingly easy according to the University of California.
• Who’s got the weirdest parents? I read this book (video link) while holidaying with my mother in law. Highly recommended!
• Way more ga-ga than Lady Ga-Ga. It turns out he was from the suburb next door to mine and has just had a theater named after him, the outrageous and utterly original, Leigh Bowery.
• Also, close to my home. My sewing machine repair man used to be a champion weightlifter. Now, to me, he is worth his weight in gold.
• A beautiful series of photographs of artisans at work: Made not Manufactured.
• Finally, do you know the difference between correlation and causation? Here’s a little lesson. But here are some hilarious Spurious Correlations.

I hope you all have a delightful weekend!

Shelley