I have been busy the last few weeks finishing over some things and making more for the exhibition on the 21st September.  I have finished two more wall hangings.  I just need a couple of bits of driftwood to finish them off.

Then there are the black mannequins for the small cloaks.  They have arms and hands and weights in the bottom to keep them upright. 

There was also the experiment to see if I could make an arapaki from one pelt.  This one is a green melanistic pheasant.  It was a beautiful pelt but I'm not sure if I like the finished article.  Instead of the grouped feathers of the pheasant the woven article has the feathers are in rows of similar design.  Still it's quite nice.  It has mawhitiwhiti on the sides in the design of a Nikau palm.  So its a sort of bush design.

Now I am busy with another arapaki with thick string and spikey feathers.

And this is the poster for our exhibition.

Speaking of strings I have been asked what sort of string I use.  There are two sorts we use.  One is thicker and a bit fluffier than the other.  The thick one comes from  ICB Cleaning supplies in Arthur Brown Place, Mt Wellington, Auckland. It is a thick general purpose string, easy and quick to work. I like using this for most things but it can leave fluff on your clothes. The other is a finer better quality string from Browns Brushware, Portage Rd, New Lynn, Auckland. It is slower to work as you need to use double strings for each whenu or the garment would lose its shape. If I am doing something special I would use this string.

If anyone knows of other strings especially good quality jute or sisal I would like to know.

Enough for now

Robin