Weekend wrap

It's been a wet and drizzly weekend, the weather has been nice and cool - perfect for some crafts and snuggly family time before my busy upcoming week.

Saturday Wendy and I went up to Silkwood to do a craft workshop. We weren't going to, but after seeing the finished demo piece at our weekly Monday craft - I was inspired! I've wanted to learn how to wet-felt for a while now, so this opportunity was too good to pass.

The workshop is to make a fully handmade sewing case, big enough to hold all of our sewing tools. I rummaged through my sewing bags, and dragged out everything that I like handy when I'm getting crafty. I've worked out that I can fit way more than I thought in, so it's going to be exciting having a customised place for everything. I'm cramming in my dressmaking scissors, embroidery scissors, paper scissors, felting needle and spares, little note-pad, pencil roll, eraser, quick unpick, needle book, chopsticks (for stuffing things) and a few random pockets for extras. It's HUGE, but so awesome.

First up we cut out all the patterns of things we wanted to fit in, and working out what size felt we would have to make. Next was on to the felting. WOW, this is so much fun, but so much work. I've really developed an appreciation for pieces I have seen at craft markets now, realising just how much effort goes into each piece. You start with a blank piece of white batting, and then delicately layer it up with wispy bits of coloured fleece. I didn't realise the work involved, so of course jumped right in the deep end and envisaging mine to end up as a garden scene. Most of the others where smart, sticking to simple colours and random patterns. You keep layering up the fleece, which by now is getting quite high and I was starting to wonder how the heck it was going to squash down and look like felt. After the 2 layers of fleece, it was time to work on the detail. I made mine into a meadow scene, with a tree in the centre and a rainbow off to the side. I was a little rushed in the end, and would of preferred to put more detail into the flowers etc, but had to get on to the next step. Wetting down the fleece and rolling it all out. I really thought this step wouldn't take too long. WRONG. We were there for the next 3 hours, pain stakingly rolling and rubbing, trying desperately to get the fleece to felt onto itself. After, what felt like forever, it finally started to come together. To finish off the process we were told to throw it in the washing machine when we got home. Now, that was stressful. Lucky I had Wendy's piece as a practice piece and after that coming out fine, put mine in. It was exhausting and hard work, but I'm so pleased with how it's worked out.

I've heard that making felt involves breaking down mental and physical barriers, which I believe now. This might sound bizarre, but the process seems to take on a life of it's own. As each piece opens up, it evolves, develops and transforms. What I started with, was completely different to the end piece. Apparently that's the journey of felt. Amazing.

The workshop is on again next Saturday, where we will start sewing on the pockets for all the tools.

Saturday night I headed by myself to a screening of a birth movie at the Uni. It was a documentary on a woman that was wanting to deliver her baby vaginally, even though he was presenting breech. It showed her journey with trying to find her peace with the decision to vaginally birth, rather than opting for a c/s & her fight for this to happen. It was interesting to watch and then to see the birth of a baby coming feet first was awesome. Although the movie was great, it was the panel and all the other women speakers that inspired me the most. All the local and Brisbane women that are active in the birthing community were there. Fabulous midwives, those working politically for birth choices and many, many women that are passionate about preserving birth. It was inspiring and wonderful to be in a room full of so many like minded women (and a few men!) who all trust birth and have so much faith in our bodies to do what we were made to do. The wonderful Sarah J Buckley, was supposed to attend, but had to cancel. Instead she pre-recorded a talk for us all, telling us all about her breech birth and explaining why Breech vaginal birth is mostly un-heard of any more. She herself had an undiagnosed breech birth, at home!

Apart from breech birth talk, there was also a discussion on the ramifications of traumatic births, and the devastating effects that a dis-empowering birth can have. How the ripples of that flow further out and through society than we could ever imagine. And to realise that an empowering birth doesn't necessarily mean a text-book perfect vaginal birth, that also has the ability to be dis-empowering if there is a power in balance. It's mostly about giving women clear information and then supporting them in making an informed decision, and of course the long standing need for good midwife-led continuity care programs -not just for those deemed "low risk", but those that really require the extra care ie, vbacs.

There were a bunch of very passionate and motivated woman who are doing their absolute best to keep making people are that birth matters and there needs to be change in the system, and I'm hopeful that these changes can happen, soon.