The Empress Dowager's New Toy

#111. Another piece for the Precious Materials exhibition.

And it's a brooch! Not a necklace.

Again, like with the first piece for the show, I thought I should use motifs that was originally from the MonoWing that I made last year.

Hence the hand-embroidered Peacock and the Cloud...

...the silver beadwork and the same haberdashery trims for the Kite's tails.

The Cloud is another brooch in itself - you can wear it on its own.

If you're wearing it with the Kite, you can insert as many tails as you like through a loop on the back. And you can move the Cloud around for more "tail hang" or less.

Why make a brooch and not another necklace for the exhibition, you might wonder.

Well, I thought I should revisit some of my old work - I used to make these fabric Kites two years ago and have kind of forgotten about them until...

Image from Fred Butler

...I saw this on the amazing Fred Butler's blog late last year!

I am a big fan of her work so if it's good enough for Fred, I thought, then it's good enough for me. Time to bring the Kites back!

I don't know if I'll make another one so if you like it, it's up for sale at the Precious Materials exhibition. And after in the blog-shop if it's not sold.

Precious Materials - A group exhibition featuring contemporary jewellery & objects
From Thursday 25 March to Tuesday 6 April 2010
The Keeper Gallery at Gaffa
281 Clarence Street (behind the Queen Victoria Building)
Sydney
Phone: (02) 9283 4273
Website: www.gaffa.com.au
Opening Hours: Mondays to Fridays from 11.00am to 6.00pm, Saturdays 11.00am to 5.00pm