You may know a little about my mum, she is the superstar that knits my Blanket Bunnies beautiful, colourful cardigans. And you probably already know that she is a great inspiration to me. She is also an amazing gardener & intrepid traveller. She volunteers at our local Information Centre and has recently joined a choir & bookclub. She supports and is involved with many arts organisations, such as McClelland Gallery & is an avid fan of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, amongst other things!
Yesterday she also became a Doctor of Letters for the work she did on her amazing book, "Artists Tapestries". As the founding director of the Victorian Tapestry Workshop she lived and breathed the world of tapestry for almost thirty years. All that she absorbed during that time, and much more has been captured in her book which took ten years to come together. Mum has achieved much in her life and this book really is her masterpiece.
I was so happy & proud to be there yesterday, to see her in her gorgeous gown and hat, the colours seemed custom made for her! Her glasses even matched, red & purple.
Mum was glowing and her eyes were shining. It must be a pretty amazing feeling, all the years of work and dedication being acknowledged and celebrated. After cups of tea we headed over to Collingwood where Stuart Purves & his lovely partner, Kerry, were hosting a special dinner in her houour.
Before we headed upstairs I had a sneaky peek at the inside fish pond, the swirling golden fish swam round & round, beneath the sculpture reflectioned in the glass above.
Stuart, who is an old & dear friend of Sue's, made a speech about their friendship, the book and Emeritus Professor Margaret Manion's great support of Mum as her academic supervisor. Margaret really encouraged her to make this book happen and has been there to help all through the writing process.
John Hopkins who is another great friend was also there to share in the celebration, as was Mum's cousin Tracy & Graeme Drendel & Wendy. I discovered that Graeme & Wendy have a house in Trentham, such a pretty local town.
I also had a good chat to John. He is a lovely man, very warm and funny. We all admired his Liberty print tie,apparantly after Charlotte & I left he gave everyone a lesson in conducting, I'm sorry we missed that!
So, you can see, it was a special, special day. In Stuart's speech he spoke about friendship and love. To me these two things are what makes the world go round. It's so important to celebrate, to take the time to talk about and share occasions like this. On the long drive home I thought about the speeches, the dinner and the day. What my mum has achieved in her life so far is so much more than awards and presentations, what she has brought to us all is her great love of life. She really brings colour and adventure into everything she does, she engages us all with her energy and vision, her zest & brightness. She is a doer, she is always thinking and creating, buzzing & living. And while doing all this her love & generosity & caring nature is always there. I couldn't be prouder of my mum, she is simply the best.
I'm so happy to be giving away a signed copy of "Artists Tapestries" to one of you lovely readers. Just leave me a comment telling me your favourite colour & I will pick out a name later in the week.
Hope you re having a happy weekend, see you soon xo
