It's my birthday!

I turned 17 today! I've received some lovely gifts and spent the day with great friends and family. I'm looking forward to my 18th year and all of the exciting prospects ahead of me!

Last weekend my family tidied up the garden at Almora - lots of weeding, pruning, trimming and some replanting. We are preparing the house for tenants, but that plan will be on hold for a bit longer than anticipated because...the house is lined with asbestos.

It's important to remove the asbestos immediately especially since the plaster is already cracked and falling off, and we want it to be safe for the people who rent it. If you don't know what asbestos is, it is basically an ingredient that was used in building materials three or four decades ago. Except now, it has been discovered that when fibres from those materials (e.g. from cracks in the wall) are inhaled, they can lead to serious illnesses decades after they are breathed in and can sadly cause death. It is imperative that the house is free from the toxic material and fitted with safe plasterboard.

I'm not too sure how the whole removal process works, but you can be sure I will document it!

I thought I'd give you an insight into my Art that I do at school. Our latest outcome had to involve a canvas, but not be a conventional painted landscape. I opted for an installation, with the canvas being the surface. And I always do something involving interior design or decoration.

 

 

As you can see in the above photo, I painted a wooden effect onto the canvas. This was achieved with a wood grainer - my new favourite tool! It's rubber and is simply a ridged version of a squeedgie. It has curves and loops that create the grain effect when used.  I painted the base coat of the canvas in a sandy acrylic paint, dried it, then did a quick coat of watered-down brown acryclic over the top. I pulled the wood grainer down the canvas, and you have to rock it to get the "holes". Go google it! It is such a neat tool.

 

So my installation is a table setting! I went to IKEA and bought everything that you see on the canvas. I didn't have a theme in mind, I just knew I wanted it to be pretty, have the pieces work together but not match, and look realistic - hence the Nespresso capsule on the coffee cup and the ready-burnt candles. I can imagine this setting being on the balcony or deck outside in the Summer. It was so fun to put together. I didn't glue anything down to the canvas becuase I want to be able to recycle it all for next year in Art.

I hope you're enjoying this blog! I am looking forward to when I can tell you all about the construction side! 

xo