reflections on the past - Canberra
1 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Tuesday, May 13, 2008 at 10:18 AM.
Recently my Dad and I returned to Canberra to look back at our roots. Neither of us was born in Canberra but we both spent some of our formative years there: Dad was a boarder at Canberra Grammar School and I went to University at the ANU. This trip help me to see how far I had come since that time, not so much in terms of financial or career success, but in terms of a maturing of outlook and of spiritual depth.Here are a few pictures from the trip. I particularly like the second one which is in the Sculpture Garden at the National Gallery of Australia. A divine place that in the golden light of an autumn afternoon was alive to the happy voices of dozens of tiny wrens skipping in and out of the foliage picking up tiny crumbs from between the flagstones.
Labels: Life
Sunday, Plastic Girl and I head down to the Gold Coast for a day trip. I grew up on the Gold Coast, a short walk from one of the world best beaches, however I was a fish out of water, I wasn't a beach chick. While I frolicked on the beach as a child as grew I longed instead for trees whose leaves changed colour and for a climate where clothing other than shorts and t-shirt were the norm. It is no wonder then that I chose the frosty Australian Capital of Canberra for a place to study at University.
These days, I live in the tropical Queensland Capital of Brisbane and I'm comfortably enjoying its warm and sunny clime. With the new highway, the Gold Coast is only an hour's drive from Brisbane city and so with my "still in its wrapper" Driver's Licence it was off on a road trip to visit my old stomping ground and give Liana the cook's tour.
So much has changed in Surfer's Paradise and then some things haven't. As we walked along the beach, in my woefully inappropriate city clothes, I remembered how much I loved the beach. I was transported back to my childhood when my sister and I made dribble castles in the sand or wrote our names in huge letters with pieces of driftwood. The surf on Sunday was clean and the whole scene was postcard perfect. People were everywhere enjoying themselves in the layed back fashion Australia is so known for. I had to wonder at myself and at the opinions of a younger me who's eyes where so blind as to wish to flee from such a place whose golden gifts are free to all.
I look forward to more homecomings.
Labels: Life
Saturday Sunshowers
2 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Saturday, April 19, 2008 at 6:27 PM.
Slowly travelled, with Gentle footsteps, Pooling the waters of life.
Quiet and cool, the Spirit reposes within the Human Soul, Finally Home.Tags:
Labels: Inspiration
Walking in the morning lately has been so clear and bright: with the Water Dragons of the East still sleeping, the sun holds dominion until noon.
But later, on a walk by Bramble Bay I pause on an island of sand and belong briefly to the companion of Silver Gulls bathing and waiting for the tide. The plane of heaven stretched out into the haze of distance, and sinking not, emerged above it in mysterious mountains of white, prevailing with secret atmospheres all of their own.Tags:
Labels: Inspiration
The Fishing Line - hanging mobile
12 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Thursday, April 03, 2008 at 8:00 AM.
This month's new addition to the Flying Star Toys collections is a hanging mobile called The Fishing Line.
Clear water and sapphire skies, silvery light on a midday sand, little fishes slip through, in the stream of life. These are the images of inspiration that linger in The Fishing Line hanging mobile.
Fish have long been significant symbols of life and and the soul in nature and man. The soul swims unseen through the sea of our life, sometimes we need quite moments to catch sight of it. You can read more about the The Fishing Line on The Fishing Line Story page.
The Fishing Line is a significant piece of subtle detail. The current limited edition Bramble Bay is named after the tranquil cove of Moreton Bay near my home. You can see more images on The Fishing Line Gallery page.The Fishing Line is now available in the Flying Star Toys on Etsy shop.
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Labels: Flying Star Toys
Today was a Sunday filled with auspicious clouds breathed fresh from a happy water dragon. Even the late afternoon sky, seen above, held on to its promise.Tags:
Labels: Inspiration
Front Page Etsy Love
2 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Tuesday, March 25, 2008 at 8:59 PM.
I was surprised to see Flying Star Toys Black Swan on the Etsy front page today in a treasury by Australian designer Fede ...a very pleasant surprise indeed.
I love the colours in this list. And I really like the fingerless gloves by Overcast from New Zealand. I've favourited a few of those in various colours :)
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Labels: Media
Easter Bunny Sale!!
3 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at 10:28 AM.
To celebrate Easter there is now 20% off all Biscuit Bunnies and Best Bunnies in the Shop until Easter Monday 24th March (inclusive). To receive the discount all you have to do is email me at florence@flyingstartoys.com and let me know which Bunny or Bunnies you'd like :)Happy Easter from Flying Star Toys!
*Seen above: Best Bunny Chocolate Box series.
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Labels: Fun
Making MajicCatsMini
3 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Sunday, March 16, 2008 at 12:07 PM.
Here are a set of MajicCatsMini in the making. The thread used to embroider them is a big pain to use as it is untwisted (or rather only lightly twisted) and it feathers very quickly. I could make it easier on myself and use a rayon DMC thread but I just can't give up the extreme lustre of this difficult thread and so I persevere with it for its unmatched brilliance. I was reading recently in C.G. Jung's book Alchemical Studies that the unconscious is attracted to bright colours. So it seems I was striking the right note when I chose to incorporate the vibrant colours of the penne velvet on the back and the lustre of these beautiful threads into the making of majicCats.Tags:
Labels: Behind the Scenes
The Owl and the Pussycat
3 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Sunday, March 09, 2008 at 11:13 AM.
A strange and wonderful thing happen to me the other night. Let me tell you about the owl and the pussycat.My cat Baby isn't the toughest cat on the street but she's very protective of her little patch and will stand her ground if need be. This night her young male nemesis Tinkerbell Tom was on a spraying trip around our neighbourhood and took it into his little head that the friendly house known of in his youth would be a desirable place to scent. Not that he was thinking of Baby, she's friendly to no one but me and my partner John. Baby wasn't having a bar of Tinkerbell Tom's insolents and so with his approach she growled and growled but still he cautiously padded up the steps to our balcony. He obviously crossed a line at one point because suddenly it was on and the cry of my Baby in a fight stunned my grandmotherly nerves into action and defence. I rushed out the front door and into the night to see the rebel cat fly into the street. That's when something unexpected happened.
Swooping in out of the blackness over the back of our house came a night creature. Tinkerbell Tom reared up to swipe at it, claws out, arm extended, with the fervour of instincts still in defensive heat. When the creature settled on the telephone wire across from us, I was shocked to see it was not a Flying Fox fruit bat, which are common here, but a rare owl! "An owl? An Owl? It is indeed an owl," I thought. I had no idea that owls lived in our area and I felt like I was looking at something unreal or uncanny - a spirit of the unconscious flown into view or a god in disguise.I have often been inspired to make toys based on the local wildlife as they intersect my life but rare indeed is it that the toys precedes the animal. Perhaps some inner devotion has granted me a special view of itself as it wings its way silently in the dark: with wisdom on a wire, four hunters in the dark.
The Owl and the Pussycat went to sea in a beautiful pea-green boat.....And hand in hand on the edge of the sand they danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.
*****
image 1 graphic using MajicCatsMini
image 2 graphic using Look and See Owl
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Labels: Inspiration, Tales
Introducing Nature Owls!
5 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Tuesday, March 04, 2008 at 11:10 AM.
March brings a change in the air and also a new toy to join the Flying Star Toys collections. This month we welcome Nature Owls!
Mr and Mrs Nature Owl live in a tree and hunt in the forest. They always take time to smell the flowers and watch the clouds. It's so good to be nature-owl they would say to each other with a chuckle. Nature Owls are nice and plump because the forest provides them with lots of good food. Mr and Mrs Nature Owl have been together for years and years. I don't think they can remember how long it's been.
Currently Nature Owls come in Mr Nature Owl in brown cotton and Mrs Nature Owl in cream quilter's calico. On the reverse is something a little special, their backs are covered with a netting fabric in a most interesting pattern. Doesn't it look like feathers? And what a curious texture it has.
The first edition is called Twilight Rose after the delicate face fabric that is fringed at the edge. The Twilight Rose edition is limited to 14 Nature Owls.
Dimensions: Nature Owls sit 14.5 cm (5 3/4 inches) tall and are 15.5 cm (6 1/4 inch) wide. They are weighted to sit independently.
It was only very recently that Nature Owls came into being. Instead of waiting their turn they have insisted they be released straight way....must be something in the air :)
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Labels: Flying Star Toys
Best Bunnies at MoBstore
4 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 9:07 PM.
I dropped off the set of Chocolate Box Best Bunnies I've been working on to the Museum of Brisbane Store today. They liked them so much they popped them in the front window straight away. Tomorrow they'll be on their very own display plinth in store :)Tags:
Labels: Behind the Scenes
I took my beloved sewing machine for a service yesterday, as I've been having trouble with the pedal. The machine would keep sewing after I had stopped.... it was like she was possessed...not good!! She needed to go to the sewing machine doctor - but how long was it going to take to fix?!I told them how absolutely essential it was that the machine was fixed right away....I think I must have sounded like a nervous mother. They said they would see what they could do as they had a 10 day wait!! Looking around at the shop floor I saw they did indeed have sewing machines waiting in every nook and cranny. My heart sank but the friendly assistant made me feel like she would look after me. And she did, later that afternoon they phone to let me know all she needed was a thorough clean and I could pick her up as soon as I like. :) Happy days! So now she's back in her spot, queen of the toy studio, just the way it should be.
Oh, and of course, since I was out I popped into one of my favourite fabric shops, Faeries in My Garden....you can see some of the fabrics I picked up next to my sewing machine, beautiful double sided Japanese linen.
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Labels: Behind the Scenes
Made of Dreams - Flying Star Toys
2 Comments Published by Florence Forrest on Monday, February 25, 2008 at 7:11 PM.
Last night, before I fell asleep, a pageant of toy designs flew through my mind's eye like a short film run very fast. I remember being fascinated by their beauty and soft colours. While I no longer remember them distinctly now, I still feel their shapes like a sweet after taste or an aura of perfume.When I look around my studio and see the many toys waiting to be launched, I'm both overwhelmed by the preparations needed for the website and at the same time excited in anticipation for the day they are introduced. I love designing toys and a vision like last night's dream augers exciting possibilities ahead. I think a large dream catcher above my bed might be in order :)
Image: Biscuit Bunnies - Gingerbread
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Labels: Inspiration
