Eco-Friendly Creative Practice: Supercyclers

By Phoebe Miller I'm interrupting this month's regular Eco-Friendly Creative Practice interview programming to highlight a very worthy event in the world of local sustainable design: the Supercyclers exhibition currently running in Sydney.

I'm sure many of you are no strangers to their work. Supercyclers are an ever growing international collective of designers who take waste materials and transform them into very beautiful, and often highly useful new products.

After successfully leveraging a campaign on the local crowd funding site Pozible, Sarah King - one of the original Supercyclers -  took an exhibition of new supercycling work to The Other Hemisphere at Milan Design Week. The "Supercycle Our Souls" exhibition is now back on home shores and available for your viewing pleasure in Sydney.

In honour of the event, and to make up for not being in Sydney to see it myself, I thought it would be fitting to highlight the work the local creative ladies that are part of this exciting exhibition.

Plastic Fantastic Transparent Collection Images via Supercyclers 

As part of her own supercycling work Sarah K works with another sustainable design dynamo, Liane Rossler, as Plastic Fantastic. Their stunningly gorgeous ethereal looking creations are made from discarded single use plastic bags.

Quilt light by Tamara Maynes (photo by Andy Lewis) Image via Supercyclers

Broken ceramic plates repaired with coloured glue by Tamara Maynes (styled by Vanessa Colyer Tay, photo by Sam McAdam) Image via Supercyclers

Tamara Maynes is something of a craft queen, with a tendency to re-use and see the beauty in the discarded. Her Quilt Lamp (pictured further above and right below), which is featured in the exhibition, is available as a downloadable template that can be made from any flat, stiff material.

Tamara Maynes Quilt Light made from recycled cardboard Image via Supercyclers

I should note that supercyclers are an equal opportunity collective! ;) While we're all about awesomely talented ladies at the CWC, you can also check out what the supercyclin' boys are up to on the supercyclers website.

SOS (Supercycle Our Souls) runs until July 15 at Moore Park Supacentre. Venue details here.

Phoebe Miller is a Brisbane-bred, Sydney-fled, Melbourne-embedded gal who enjoys making, spruiking, collecting, exploring, telling her friends where to eat and posting photos of doors on instagram. After several years working in corporate marketing and communications, Phoebe followed the urge to explore her creative side. These days she divides her time between her sustainable fashion accessories label, Simply Phoebe, and freelance PR consulting.

Stress & Wellness: Creativity through Meditation (Part 1)

By Emily Harrison Call it meditation, mindfulness, being still, present or quiet time – this ancient method of bringing balance and connection is making a modern day resurgence.

From school kids - to Olympic athletes - to healing miracles – Mastery of the Mind is a powerful tool. Even science and medicine are now lining up to prove its benefits.

The list of benefits is extensive. And on the back of this growing awareness an industry is emerging with techniques, books, audio guides, retreats and so on to learn ‘what is’ and ‘how to’ meditate – but let’s look at the ‘why.’

Why meditate?

If you think about it we give the outer body a good wash, sometimes several times a day. But how often do we clean out the mind?

We also feed the body several times a day. But how do we nourish our mind?

Meditation does just that. It helps regain control of the mind; it helps to catch the excitable puppy that is running around in circles trying to catch its tail.

Yet what so many people find, then quickly give up in despair, is once they stop and be still in the physical body, they suddenly become aware that the mind chatter is a buzz – racing in circles and just as out of control as the puppy!

It's something the sages of old have known since the beginning of time. As this saying goes:

‘you should sit in meditation for twenty minutes every day…unless you are too busy; then you should sit for an hour.’

If I remember back to my first introduction to a meditation course – during the first morning of homework practice I had to stop (distracted by hunger) to have a snack…the second morning I discovered there was a leaking tap somewhere….the third day I knew the movements of the neighbours. The point being it can take regular practice, focus and a sense of humour to make meditation friendship with your mind.

It can take time to reign in and train the puppy.

The goal is to be master of the mind rather than be mastered by the mind; to be present rather than playing back what’s been and gone or playing out what could happen next.

And once the chatter has quieted down, it’s in this alert stillness that we have space for insights, ideas and inspiration to come to the surface.

It is where we can tap into our creative potential, naturally, without the use of mind-altering substances.

In next month’s column we’ll look at how this creative potential translates on to the canvas as I talk to an artist about meditation as part of her artistic process and inspiration.

Being in the midst of Winter, it’s a time when we tend to focus more inwardly – a natural turning in as the days are shorter, darker and colder. It can be a period of introspection before the burst of Spring energy entices us out.

So why not use the opportunity of the season to take time for stillness? Take some time to connect with the breath, still the body and allow the mind to de-clutter.  But please, play lovingly with the puppy if you find it a little excitable.

Emily Harrison is a yoga teacher and writer who often has a mind that runs like an excitable puppy.  She finds taking time for yoga, meditation and relaxation is important to keep the puppy under control (along with a sense of humour). You can read more at iamem.com

Organise Me: It's Tax Time

By Andrea McArthur

Tax time. Time to get serious. The count down to June 30 is on and we only have 5 days left. Now is definitely the time to start thing about your Tax. Below are some ideas to get you thinking about your Tax this year.

Organize Buy a filing system and commit to it, your filing system could be as simple as a physical accordion file or go digital with some financial software (there are many different programs on the market, just ask around and trial a few).

Decide your key spending categories, record your expenses and keep your receipts. You can even find software that will allow you to view your expenses as a colourful pie graph, how shocking. I have started organising myself for Tax time and I have decided on a few categories:

- Office expenses under $1000 - Office expenses over $1000 (which are deemed depreciating assets and can be depreciated over time, see below about the changing rules) - Client printing - Books - Professional memberships - Software - Stationery - Phone - Internet - Parking -Travel.

Here is the ATO Guide to claiming business deductions www.ato.gov.au

Save Use a percentage savings model and stash some cash away for the Tax man. As a newbie freelancer my annual income is relatively unknown. Instead of continuing a back breaking savings plan or changing my name and going into hiding at Tax time I like to squirrel away some income as it comes in. I put away 30% of any freelance income into an online high rate savings account specially for Tax. This should cover my tax with deductions already considered. If you are registered for GST I am told that this percentage will be slightly higher approximately 35%.

Hire I am a professional in my field not a Tax accountant, I know this and that is why I believe that I should hire a professional in the field of Tax accountancy. I am two years new to Brisbane and so I am still growing my network of people. I am one of those that asks who your mechanic is and who you get your hair cut by. It's no different with accountants, I recently asked a good friend who has been freelancing for much longer than myself who she uses or recommends as a small business/self-employed specialist accountant.

I have a list of questions to ask when I see the said accountant, I have been putting off the visit because once I do I know I need to get real. Your accountant should ideally prepare your tax, give you some tips on your allowable deductions and help you prepare for the next financial year. In most cases, the savings the accountant will find for you will more than cover their fee, plus you can rest assured you haven't made any big mistakes.

Plan Eeik, yes we all need to think about where we have come from and where we would like to go in this freelancing world. Projected income is a tricky issue to tackle but setting yourself some financial goals for next year will help you feel more satisfied and motivated to network.

Try this form for setting next years financial goals: www.marketingmixblog.com

Think about if you are going to register for GST in the next financial year if you haven't already. Currently you only need to register for GST if you earn more than $75,000. Apparently though if you’re not registered for GST you can still claim a tax deduction on the cost of goods and services (inclusive of GST), as long as they are essential to your business. For instance I purchased a new iMac this year and can claim the tax back on that.

Research Tax rules which effect Small Businesses in Australia are changing from 1 July 2012. There will be significant changes to business expenses over $1,000, business vehicle purchases, the entrepreneurs tax offset and Superannuation contributions for over 50's.

If you are thinking of making some last minute business purchases hold off making any purchases between the cost of $1,000 to $6,500 until next financial year for a 100% write off in 2012/13 tax year. If you earned less than $50,000 this year be sure to enquire about the 25% entrepreneurs tax offset which is available for it's last year.

See more details here: www.thefinanceguru.com.au

My goal for the next financial year as a freelancer is to organise my financial life better in order to avoid the last minute "end of financial year" scramble. I am confident that this years trip to the accountant will be a positive exercise which will help me set myself up for the next financial year to come.

(Note: please double check all advice stated before acting.)

Andrea McArthur has a passion for all things visual and a soft spot for organisation. Type is her true love and goes weak at the knees over beautiful design. Andrea works as a freelance graphic designer in Brisbane by day and lectures in graphic design by night. You will find her sharing design related goodness via @andyjane_mc  www.andyjane.com

Book Review: The Creative License by Danny Gregory

By Jodi Wiley

Danny Gregory is a bit of a poster boy for sketchbook journaling, having written several books about it and published thousands of his own journal pages online. He's an advocate of the idea is that everyone is an artist, and everyone is creative, whether or not you're in a so-called 'creative' profession.

I've always been interested in journaling. In the past I've kept the written kind but recently I've become more interested in the illustrated form. So this book is right up my alley.

The Creative License inspires you to pick up a pen and just draw. Gregory wants us to draw no matter what, even 'badly', as a way to access our own innate creativity. This book is full of advice such as 'celebrate your mistakes' and 'give yourself deadlines' to complete pages in your journal. Gregory wants us to draw the mundane and the commonplace and in the process see the beauty in everyday life.

By drawing daily, Gregory believes we tap into our creativity. 'I want to show you that it is possible. That you can do it. That you can draw and write and sing, and live more richly, and find and be the real you.'

The book is filled with practical instruction on drawing (although it's always in the spirit of fun and never boring, technical lessons), lists of things to draw as well as pep talks about things like procrastination or calling yourself an artist ('an artist is someone who makes art' Gregory insists).

The book's design lends itself to the lucky-dip style of reading: you can just open it at any page and be inspired by what you see and read. It's full of Gregory's own drawings from his journals and the eclectic layout means your eye is constantly drawn to new material. After spending time with this book I always go away energised and motivated to draw.

And just as an aside, if this is the kind of thing you're interested in, you may also like another book by Danny Gregory - An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators and Designers.

The Creative License is fantastic for people who love drawing or want to be inspired to draw. But even if you've never considered this form of creative outlet, after looking through this book you may begin to feel like picking up a pen and beginning.

The Creative License: Giving Yourself Permission to be the Artist You Truly Are is published by Hyperion Books.

Jodi Wiley is an artist, writer, teacher and blogger. She has written freelance articles and book reviews for magazines and newspapers, as well as education curriculum. She has won awards for her artwork and been a finalist for several art and illustration prizes. Jodi is currently on maternity leave from high school teaching and is on a (quite frankly deranged) quest to update her blog daily: artbywiley.com

Women in the World: Quilts, Part One

By Joanna Francis I wouldn’t really call myself a quilter. More of a collector of fabrics, a lover of pattern and colour and an admirer of the art of quilting. There’s something about it that I find fascinating. Perhaps it’s the ability of quilts to hold and tell a story, to be a part of a continuing history. Perhaps it’s the potential for so much individual expression. Perhaps it’s just that they’re so beautiful to look at, and at the same time, so damn cosy to snuggle under!

It probably started as a youngster while watching my mother hand quilting by the light of the evening lamp. And it has grown and developed as I have gotten older and seen the quilting of different cultures, started my own little collection, learnt a little of their history and now, started making my own.

My passion really took off when I was living and working in Afghanistan. I remember visiting a family in a small village in the middle of winter - freezing, absolutely freezing and there was no electricity. To keep warm, the family had a low and wide table under which they put a bucket of hot coals, and over the table was a huge quilt. Everyone, myself included, sat on the floor around the table, with the quilt covering our lap, and keeping in the heat from the coals to warm our bodies. It was just about the most awesome thing I’d ever experienced. From there, I went to Pakistan and in the back of a carpet shop, I discovered the mother load - shelves of antique handmade quilts. I just about had a heart attack. I spent hours looking and feeling, and listening to the stories, and then painstakingly chose the ones I would take home. If you ask me that old chestnut “What would you take with you in a house fire?”, those Pakistani quilts are quite high up on the list.

Since then, I’ve tried to find out more about them, with limited success. But they are similar to the Kantha or Gudari quilts of Bangladesh and India, which are made using old saris and quilted with a striking running stitch. These quilts are made by women who are still using traditional techniques, including wood block printing and hand dyeing of fabrics. They are techniques that have been used for hundreds if not thousands of years, and are being cherished and brought to a new audience today thanks to women such as Australian, Sally Campbell. 

Women such as Sally are keeping these ancient crafts alive and supporting the women who make them, while celebrating the art and introducing them to a new and appreciative market.

I love that such ancient methods of creating, initially intended for purely practical purposes had such a beauty to them that is recognized today and carried on into new generations. Just what quilts are good for.

Joanna Francis spends most of her time hanging out with her one year old son. But she also works for a children’s foundation and has recently started her own little business making baby quilts. It goes without saying that her house is a mess. In the past, Joanna has worked as an aid worker in several developing countries, and is passionate about the rights of women and children. You can visit her and her blog at www.miettehandmade.com

Scenes From Sydney: Vivid Festival

By Jaclyn Carlson Each year I look forward to the Vivid Festival in Sydney. For a few short weeks the city glows with light and each night hundreds of visitors and families flock to Circular Quay and the surrounding areas to be mesmerised by light - in all forms.  This year there were light installations in the water, billowing sails projected onto the Opera House and the MCA transformed into a kaleidoscope of moving pictures - it was amazing and a huge congratulations must go to the organisers for the work that was put into this year's event.

Beyond the light installations was another part of the festival called the Vivid Ideas Exchange, a creative collaboration with artists, businesses and more that resulted in a stellar line-up of events and workshops held in Sydney over the past few weeks.  Last weekend I was lucky enough to attend one of those events called Etsy Success Sydney.  The event was a day long conference where the CEO of Etsy, Chad Dickerson talked about courage and other creative types and bloggers held sessions on everything from styling to DIY PR. For anyone with a creative spirit it was 8 hrs of bliss. I walked away floating despite my embarassing run in with the CEO that I wrote about on my blog earlier this week.  I believe they will be posting all the event videos on the Vivid site so I highly recommend grabbing a cup of tea and listening to Chad's presentation. Sometimes you just need to learn from someone else's experience,someone who has accomplished great and wonderful things.  His advice was simple but strong - Take the leap. Courage comes from doing - you just have to start.

Originally from Boston, Massachusetts, Jaclyn Carlson is the author behind the Sydney-based blog, Little Paper Trees. When not documenting her expat adventures, she can be found working for one of Australia’s top design & homewares trade shows. Passionate and prone to wasting hours on Pinterest, she has years of experience in marketing, advertising and PR and aims to put Sydney’s creative women in the spotlight with her monthly column.

Tools of the Trade: Ilka White

By Brianna Read “Art is the objectification of feeling, and the subjectification of nature.”

Susanne Langer (1895-1985)

This quote is from the text Mind: An Essay on Human Feeling by another inspiring creative woman –  I cannot think of a more appropriate way to introduce Ilka White. Ilka’s creative practice simply does not fit neatly into any box and while Ilka herself is unsure about labels, for the purpose of describing to the readers a little more about her work I shall informally call her a textile maker and educator.

One of the first questions I ask the subjects of this column is “Which tool makes your practice possible?” Ilka’s immediate response to this query was “My mind.” This  initially puzzled my very literal and practical self but through the course of the interview I came to understand a little better why Ilka’s work and teaching practice both leave an indelible mark on those who encounter them.

Whether works are initially explorations of materials or ideas White’s pieces always exude a depth of concept in partnership with a mastery of craft in each medium she employs. Often drawing both inspiration and materials from the natural world the work always speaks of where its materiality originated from and of the hands that shaped it’s new form.

When I inquired after how her practice has evolved over time, Ilka observed that recently her meticulous analytical nature has given way to a gentler approach to making and self-critique. This shift in her practice has also seen a change in the focus of her work which she described as valuing process as much as product  and an interest in “making work in response to the essence of something, rather than depicting it's physical form.”

Feeling that 'mind' did not adequately describe the essential tool of her practice, Ilka searched a little longer for the right words to summarise this elusive ingredient, and proposed 'perception and soul' as a more adequate answer. From the outside though it seems very clear that her work is extraordinary in its ability to communicate both the mind, hand and heart of its maker, of course there is no single word to sum this up as it is many things… passion, intelligence, talent, dedication, an open and inquiring mind and on the list goes.

Ilka’s work recently showed at the Counihan Gallery in Brunswick as part of an exhibition titled Material Culture, several of these pieces are currently on display at Pop Craft until the end of June. July and August see Ilka sharing her wealth of textile knowledge in numerous workshops across Victoria.

To contact Ilka about her work or classes email ilkajanewhite@gmail.com or follow the links below for further information on each event.

Decorative Techniques for Fashion (Intensive 5 day workshop at RMIT)

Responding to the Natural World in Textile Practice (Lecture as part of the Beautiful Silks Natural Dye Symposium)

Weaving Connections - A week of textile activities, classes and demonstrations in Castlemaine. August 20 - 25

Works by Ilka are showing in Petite Miniature Textile Exhibition at Wangaratta Art Gallery from June16  - July 22.

Brianna Read is a designer-maker based in Melbourne. Her knitwear label Jack of Diamonds employs hand-made techniques in combination with machine knit technologies. Brianna’s multi-faceted creative practice encompasses design, production, works for exhibition and machine knitting workshops.