Bali textiles

The top photo is of the women in the car park at the textile market we went to, all wearing the sarong lenghts on their heads. I bought the blue one and quite a lot of others as they were so cheap, in a way I wish I had bought more as there were so many lovely patterns. Less than A$4 each, as it was they were quite heavy and my luggage didnt need any more, tour leader Cynthia is in the center.
We went to the Museaum of art and in the grounds this lass from the village that is renowned for its double ikat weaving and her husband had set up a small area. She is using a back strap loom and you can see one of the larger pieces in the back ground, that had possibly taken 2 years to make.
Below is the one I bought, 18 months to 2 years in the making, front and as it comes off the loom at the back. I paid quite a lot for this piece but I love it. I probably wouldnt have paid as much had this not been nearly the last day of the tour and I had some money to play with!
The husband made the calendars and bookmarks out of dried palm fronds, scratched into with a very fine stylus and then burnt candle nut rubbed in to show the design, I bought a bookmark which I still havent got out of its bag, they are real little works of art and I will probably frame mine.
Ubud is a fantastic place so long as you dont get caught up in the very commercial part of it, there are so many little back streets and compounds with fantastic work going on in small corners If you know where to look.
I have had a reasonable couple of days, I dont want to go on about what is happening, suffice to say it is slower than I would like!

A few things from Bali

I am doing this under some pressure, still in pain, mostly manageable but nights are bad pretty boring on the whole, John insists I am moving better but it is up and down.
I thought last nights change of PM would keep me interested but really, cant we just have an election, a recycled PM is not what we need. The ego's of these people is to be seen to be believed.
Enough!!
These pieces are mostyt ikat weavings, the top one with the animalistic figures caught my eye when we went to the big ikat weaving place.
The next one was a rather lovely, fine, I think silk one I bought up in the mountains, the photo doesnt do it justice.
The next is a really lovelt batik I bought in the place where we watched them making these, using a very heavy cotton or hemp/linen fibre.
This one day will go on my bed.
Finally some Bali silver, a sweet pair of ear rings, a delicate ring that I love and a coral and silver ring.
click or double click to enlarge.
The power is supposed to be off today so I am doing this in a hurry, more in a day or so.

More from Bali

I am home from hospital, very tired and with an upset stomach from the pain meds.
Great to be home but I am finding it all terribly tiring, Just travelling home yesterday was exhausting.
To day in to the physio later today.
So a few photos from that wonderful Bali trip.
A cake in a little cafe.
Abuilding down a back street with an interesting roof line and plants.
A lotus flower in the orchid gardens and finally a lovely pot abandoned by the side of the road, would have loved to bring it home!
I may be a bit sporadic with my blogging, so nice to be bck though.

Weaving ikat

We went to a factory where the single weave ikat is made.
The first photo is how they paint the design, I am not absolutely sure how this is done and I think in the next phot it shows the start of a design done with plastic rope, then the actual weaving itself on large looms with the threads of the design hanging on the end of the looms and finally a shot across the area with the bycicles that are used for I think putting the thread onto cones.
I got very confused about all of this as I am not a weaver but the results were lovely.
It may be better to google more info on this.
We were told that the man who owns all of this is not a happy man as he has no sons to pass it on to.
Happens everywhere I suppose.
Trying to get my act together today, the power will be off tomorrow from 8 am so I have done some ironing, a bit more washing, and put the casserole I made yesterday into freezer containers and frozen them.
Some bread is baking and I have another load of washing drying.
At least it has been a lovely sunny day today, but that probably means we will start to have frosts as well.
I hope to be back on the computer in a weeks time. there is still more of the Bali photos to come.

Interrupting the Bali photos

 It has been wet here, rain for days, about the equivalent of 6 inches since it started.
I had hoped for a walk before I go into hospital so we headed out to Petrel's Cove and a walk along the cliffs. Well rugged up but we still got damp from a shower that came through, then a magnificent rainbow.
Such a delight to be there and see it all. Something to keep with me for the next few weeks.
Double click to enlarge.
I hope blogger may be on its good behaviour today.

Still blogger problems

Textile stuff

In the first photo we were at Ulawato where they make the most exsquisite lace, this was the girl showing us how it is made with a treddle machine. Holes are cut in the pattern and it is free motioned around each hole. I bought a couple of sets of hankies as the lovely tops do not suit short plump women but they were stunning.
we then went to a place where the Batik was made, I dont know where this was, one day I will find the receipt!!
That is Margaret in the background trying to work out what she wanted to buy.
Here are some of the lovely designs that they do, then some of the stamps that they use, mostly copper made in Java so we were told but some wooden ones too, not as lovely as the Indian wooden ones but the copper ones give a very fine print.
In the next photo this was a huge lump of bees wax that every so often some one would hack a lump off with a machete type of knife, this was then put in the pots over a heat source and used to paint onto the cloth, they had some silk here but a lot was quite a coarse woven cotton.
Last is the indigo vat that is used in so much of the dyeing here.

Bali doors and gateways

 This photo should have gone with yesterdays post.
Blogger messed up.

Bali doors and gateways

 The cener bottom left and the top right were taken at the resort at Jimbayan and the rest were around Ubud.
For some reason I thought I had taken one of my lovely red and gold ones at Ketut's but I dont seem to have it.
The one with Cynthia was at the museum.
I do wish I had taken more but it wasnt to be.
Double click to enlarge.

At Ketut's place in Ubud, Bali

Here outside Ketut's place was our driver Jack and Cynthia, our tour leader, such lovely people.
This is a very short post as I am terribly tired tonight, done too much again!
Next is my magnificent bed there, very comfortable.
A bromeliad that I have just got at home, I had to take its phot it was near my door.
Finally the little area that I had to sit out on, it was bliss, breakfast ou t there, you felt part of the compound but just out of the way enough as well to be private.
I loved sitting out here and drawing and sketching, see my other blog on the side bar.
It is pouring with rain and has been for the last 2 days, lovely but it means mud and wet inside and things not drying, I am never pleased.
I have been told they want me in the hospital on Monday afternoon, latish, as I am first on the list the next morning.
Oh dear!!

Home from wonderful Bali

 Just a few photos, you will get more through the week. I had a fantastic trip with Cynthia and Margaret, we saw so much, from the sea to the mountains.
My poor camera had a few problems with the humidity and going from air conditioning to heat. I didnt take nearly as many Photos as I should have but we were so busy for such a lot of the time and when we were out and about taking photos with a walking stick in hand was not easy.
Yes it was hot and humid but we sort of got used to it, I was so grateful for my metal walking stick, it got me up and down uneven pavements and generally was a huge help.  It was a new one I bought that telescopes and has a bit of give in it, looks like a ski pole.
The first two photos are taken in the family compound at Ketut's place in Ubud. If you are looking for somewhere as a base in Ubud this place was fantastic, lovely people, not too far to walk to a lot of people and if I can do it at my age and with a very bad knee any one can.
I had to have a dog and a motor cycle, they were every where, the traffic is horrendous but every one seems pretty polite about it all.
We went to wonderful textile places, this was at a Batik place where the women were making up fabrics, I bought a piece here, more on that later.
Finally a little shop we bought some more fabric from up in the mountains, they were doing ikat there on a backstrap loom..
If any one wants a fantastic textile tour of Bali email me and I will put you in touch with Cynthia.
I cant speak more highly of our little tour and we saw so much, did so much and were well looked after.
My knee op is in a week so I have lots to do, clean, wash, sort so a bit each day for the next week or so.
Max was so pleased to see me!!
Double click the photos to get a larger picture.

Its rained !

 We have had 46 mm to 9 am this morning.
Wonderful, wonderful rain, and its the 1st of June so officially winter.
I hope it keeps going, I couldnt resist a few photos this morning, although I am still trying to pack etc and be organised, which I am not.
John and I had fun trying out my new international sim card and making sure we both know how it works!
I need to have some contact with him while I am away.
so odd packing clothes for heat as here we are now cooler.
I will be back after the 10th.
Probably with more photos than I know what to do with.