A Little R & R

It’s time for me to put down my brushes and dollies and take a much-needed holiday break. While Oz is heating up rapidly with the approach of summer, I am looking forward to going fourth into a colder climate. After 3 years in Oz I am still not used to wearing shorts and flip flop so late into the year! I will be back in a few weeks—in time to begin my Christmas dollies, hopefully with a jauntier outlook on life and perhaps a renewed appreciation for the warmer climate!

See you soon!

 

The Young Ones

To say I didn’t have a traditional upbringing is an understatement. I learned English from watching “The Monty Pythons” and knew every single line from “The Fawlty Towers” by heart. Was it any wonder that while everyone else was watching “Growing Pains” and “The Cosby Show,” I was tuning into “The Young Ones?” In my opinion, this Britcom’s got it all: Violent slapstick, surrealism, puppets, and best of all, musical guests like Madness and Motorhead! This is my homage to a part of my formative years!

(From right to left) The students of Scumbag College: Neil, the long suffering hippie; Rik, the snotty anarchist/poet obsessed with Cliff Richards; Vyvyan, the violent punk rocker; Mike, the suave and tiny Don Juan of North London; and SPG (Special Patrol Group), Vyv’s pet hamster.

A close up of SPG.

 

“Never before had violence of such degree, squalor, physical foulness, blood, sex and death, all been used as such a regular part of a flagship comedy programme.”  -BBC

Too bad there aren’t many shows like this out there!

A Family Portrait

I suppose it’s not such a bad idea to immortalize your family in matryoshka form…that is, if you don’t mind the Rubenesque physique. Here’s my very latest project:

It took longer than usual to paint this set because A. I really want to get every detail right and B. I made my first ever decal! It was purely by accident, mind you. But after a few trials and errors, the photographs in the second doll’s hands have been transformed into plastic decals…but not after I lost a few in the process, since they were itty bitty.

Russian dolls usually come in odd numbers, which leaves the last doll of this set empty. So I filled it up with a little surprise:

I’ll be the first to admit a ball and a bone is an utter cliché, but hey, those are the two things that my own dog is obsessed with, and I have to go with that!

The Darjeeling Limited

Here’s the latest set from the Wes Anderson movies…

Who says good things comes in threes—especially when it comes to family?

Despite a stellar cast, I thought one of the most memorable presence in the movie were the boys’ luggage—which was designed by Louis Vuitton, using Wes Anderson’s brother Eric Chase Anderson’s safari designs—all eleven pieces.

(Left to right) Peter, Jack, and Francis

 

Goodness Me!

It must’ve been a slow news week here on the Gold Coast (the Gold Coast 600 notwithstanding), because yours truly was featured in the local paper!

We had to do the photo shoot up on the beach because Anthony and my combined 1300 projects has completely overtaken the entire house. Plus, it didn’t help that there’s a giant surf kayak in the living room.

This was kind of fun and completely unexpected. I always thought that the only time I’d ever be in the news was if I was being led away in handcuffs. Reno 911-style.