Filling the canvas.

It is cold and dark outside. Most people would have Friday night plans of the pub or snuggled up on the couch under many blankets.  But not for a creative few in Donald, not at all.

Buried deep in the darkness a shining light peeks through the old school room windows and once the creaky old door opens and one steps inside, all thoughts of that cold outdoors are soon a distant memory.

Inside is far from cold with warm company, a hot coffee and that fuzzy feeling inside. A feeling of freedom, a feeling that can only be put down to feeding one's passion in company of those doing the same. What is happening?  Women are gathering just because they want to, women are doing things that they love to do, women are chatting about things that usually get interrupted by a cranky kid or a need to be somewhere else.

At the first official evening gathering of 'A Room of One's Own', it all came together.  The instigators had been working hard and it was plain to see their vision was as clear in practice as it was in theory.  The bfvvvvvt, bfvvvvvvt of sewing machines, the conversation, the soft music and the boiling of the kettle combined with a few snip snips and the occasional creak in the floor were all music to their ears I am sure.

There is no other way to describe it than a room busting with inspiration.  Ideas by the bucket load and those experienced ones able to lend some advice and guidance as well as pick up some fresh ideas from the learners. While the learners came up with some pieces to be proud of and some newfound skills to build on.

Some incredible work was on show to inspire the creativity in all of us.  Hidden talents which had never before had the forum to come forward and show themselves, and, most of all, be appreciated.  Some of us left behind grumpy partners and cranky kids, but in the sanctuary of creativity those thoughts were never far as it became a comfortable space to air concerns and offer one another support.

Projects which had sat dormant under layers of time-poor days and detours which had seen it pushed further and further behind the boxes were brought to light, worked on and the story behind each piece told.

What an amazing space, what an incredible first mark on the canvas.  The outcomes from this room will be awe-inspiring, the articles produced will amaze, and the problems solved while chatting over crafting will be even more incredible.

Amazing effort girls, I am priveliged to have been a part of the first official meet and cannot wait until the next one.
- Rose.

The great saturday working bee

Saturday dawned with the promise of great weather. I packed the car with as many mops and cleaning products I could lay my hands on and headed down to our new 'room'. Fran and Jen were already hard at it so, taking their lead and ignoring the large pile of detritus in the middle of the room, I made a start. Ros arrived shortly after I did and soon the air was thick with dust. At one point I turned from the window frames I had been wiping down, and was hugely surprised to see the room behind me empty -the girls were working with real gusto!

The morning passed in a blur of dust, cobwebs, dirty windows, coffee, more dirty windows and a lovely, lovely picnic of hot chips on the floor with the kids and soon enough were ready to move what little furniture we had into our freshly claimed space.

We are enormously pleased not only with our achievement but with environment of the 'room' itself. Well done and thank you everyone for your efforts on Saturday. Thanks also go to Glenn and Harry for arriving with furniture and lending a hand with the kids.

I'll leave some room for the others to fill in because this is not the end of Saturdays story. But I leave you with some photographs of the working bee. Notice the sunny patches that hit the carpet in the mornings? We didn't expect he windows to be so beautiful before we took the ancient, tearing drapes down but the resulting atmosphere is warm and inspiring.

Before

 

 

 

After

 

 

 

 

 

 

So here is our blank (or blank enough) canvas. I wonder what we'll draw on it? - Candece

A temporary home.

Tomorrow we move in to a temporary 'Room of Our Own' in an old classroom belonging to St Mary's Church. We're all terribly excited. I expect some of the girls will be there at the crack of dawn with mops and cloths and big, big grins!

It begins!

It began with an idea. A small seed planted by one, fed and nutured by others until it grew into something tangible. And then we ran with it.......