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It's been so busy recently ( helloooo, Christmas! ) that I haven't had a chance to share a few pics from the Hot One Inch Action button show . Until now! I was happy to see another dessert button in the show! And even more pleased that they placed our buttons side by side! :) You can check out all the Vancouver 2011 buttons on the H1"A site. The show was a lot of fun. Lotsa people, lotsa buttons - even some brought in from previous years! After we left the busy gallery, we were happy to see that the delicious Nicli Antica Pizzeria - where they make real Neapolitan pizza - was just a couple of doors down. So it was a good excuse to celebrate with a magherita pizza and wine! Mmm...

A reminder that the Vancouver edition of the Hot One Inch Action button show is tomorrow night! Did I tell you that the button design I submitted is going to be in the show? Well, it is! Pretty cool. Mine is the one with the slice of pie, called "I Heart Pie." I originally designed it as a part of the button collection for guests at my wedding this summer. Lotsa pie, losta love. You can already see a gallery of the buttons from Seattle's H1"A show in November, but you'll have to go to the show tomorrow night to see -- and trade! -- the Vancouver buttons in person. Hot One Inch Action - Vancouver 2011 Saturday November 26, 2011 from 8-11pm Gallery Gachet , 88 East Cordova St, Vancouver, BC with DJ Darwin Meyers Invite your friends on Facebook The Vancouver show features button art by: Ada Fu, Adelle Bueno, Amanda McCuaig, Andrea Hooge, Anne Emberline, Becky McEachern, Ben Worth, Brian Bredonia, Carelle B. Dunn, Carita Ho, Charles Ferguson, Colin Moore, Dacosta!,...

On now at the Tate Modern, artist Ai Weiwei has created a room full of sunflower seeds... over 100 million of them. Wow. Actually, double wow because the sunflower seeds are actually individually handmade porcelain replicas of seeds. Since that video was made, the Tate has roped off the exhibi t, as they've had so many visitors that the seeds are getting damaged and the ceramic dust could be a health risk. Ai Weiwei's video about the artwork is really interesting. It highlights the amazingly extensive amount of work that went into creating it. Read more about the exhibit on the Tate's website.

"We’re just hugging for the picture. When we’re done I’ll walk away quickly. It's almost over." I'm loving Miranda July's new art installation in NYC's Union Square. The collection is called "Eleven Heavy Things" and consists of empty pedestals with just a few handwritten words. Alone they don't make much sense, but once they draw people in, it's a whole other story. The pieces invite you to interact with them - standing on top or sticking your head or a limb into a hole or nook - and then they really come to life. Like a lot of her other works, these pieces are a balance between humour and something a little more serious and melancholy. "What I look like when I'm lying." You can see a lot more photos that people have posted on Flickr tagged with "Eleven Heavy Things". Read more about "Eleven Heavy Things" on Flavorwire and an interview with Miranda July about the project on ArtInfo .

Vancouver textile artist Kirsten Chursinoff has a new exhibit opening this week. If you've ever walked along the beach at low tide, and crouched over a small pool to see what's living there, you're going to enjoy this show... Entitled 'Low Tide', this collection is inspired by the amazing creatures living along the shores of British Columbia: anemones , birds , starfish , and more. Low Tide The exhibit celebrates the details of tide pools and treasures of beach combing with the traditional and contemporary techniques of embroidery and quilting. By layering and combining materials such as cotton, silk and wool, the artist uses the natural texture and unique surfaces of thread and cloth to their full potential. The opening reception of 'Low Tide' is on Thursday, June 17, 6-8pm at the Craft Council Gallery Crafthouse at 1386 Cartwright Street on Granville Island, Vancouver. Kirsten's also giving an artist talk on Tuesday, June 22, 7pm (RSVP to kirsten at c...

After reading on the Times site about a never-published Alice in Wonderland chapter (!) - with a related letter that's up for sale (£15,000 to £20,000!), I happened to notice a story about a new statue that's just been unveiled in London, on Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth . A play on traditional statues, this one's a ship ... in bottle ! Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle was created by British artist Yinka Shonibare. Unusual and whimsical, this is just the kind of statue I'd really enjoy coming across (and I think a trip to London is long overdue!). What's more, there's also an interesting history about the textiles used in the original ship... [...] Shonibare’s model of Nelson’s HMS Victory (his flagship at the Battle of Trafalgar) is gaudy with sails made from his trademark Dutch wax fabrics. “The Dutch wax fabrics were originally Indonesian-influenced fabrics, known as batik. The Dutch tried the Indonesian market with industrially produced versions and then subse...

Not only is The Museum of Vancouver (aka MOV) screening Handmade Nation this Friday , they're also hosting another DIY Night! MOV AT NIGHT: DIY @ MOV 2 April 09, 2010 / 7:00 PM Back by popular demand! A social-crafting night featuring workshops and a craft market by Birkeland Bros. Wool, Collage Collage, and Got Craft?. An event for craft newbies and seasoned creators. Music – Bar – Free Materials – Workshops $15, Members free The first DIY Night was lots of fun. I could hardly believe the line-up to get into the event! The museum was filled to the brim with creative, crafty people. My advice: get there early! Most of the supplies were already taken before I got there (except for the insanely huge pile of yarn!). But there was still lots of paper and pens left, so I grabbed a pink marker and spread out the floor to draw.... I left my drawing there (on purpose), and guess what? The MOV used it on their website to advertise the new DIY Night! Nice!! Kirsti Wakelin (who also designed ...