One Very Tired Wombat will be published by Random House Australia and is expected to reach bookshops in September 2012.

One of the first Very Tired Wombat pieces which inspired the picture book.

This picture book features one of my favorite characters, a very tired wombat, and all the cheeky Australian birds that conspire to keep him awake.

The project has been very special to me — I wrote the text and created the illustrations while I was recovering from chemotherapy, radiation and the multiple surgeries that accompanied my breast cancer treatment.  It has been so wonderful to have some good news to share with our friends and family.

I will be sure to post updates regarding this book’s progress here and (hopefully someday) information about a second book…

First on the list of thank you’s is my good friend Steph at Bondville for a lovely feature on my new line of ornaments, brooches and necklaces.  You can read it here and while you are browsing, be sure to spend some time on the site looking at her gorgeous site for “mums who love design.”  She is also hosting a subscriber giveaway so sign up to receive her newsletter and enter to win a necklace or 3 ornaments of your choice!  The winner will be announced tomorrow (10 December) so be sure to pop over there today.

The second on my list of thank you’s goes to Shavani at My Owl Barn.  If you love owls, then you will just fall in love with this blog — it showcases owls in art, design, vintage, food, parties and more!  In honor of her birthday, she is hosting a holiday giveaway to two of her lucky readers to win either a necklace or three ornaments.  You can read about how to get your name in the draw here — but hurry up, winners will be chosen soon.

Happy holidays and good luck!

I will be inside the church hall sharing a site with the lovely Amanda from Easy Peasy Organic.  If you are not familiar with Amanda’s blog or her work, she’s an amazing vegetarian mom with a passion for organic food, beauty, education and photography.

You can check out a post she has written about the markets here — while you are there be sure to browse around her site for great inspiration and recipes (yum!).

We hope to see you Saturday!

These three pieces are the first not-book-related illustrations I did following chemo.  They are a little different from my usual, but I like them and I hope you do too.

Ornamentals: Barn Owl

Ornamentals: Boobook Owls 2 & 1

These pieces follow my favorite theme of relocation and habitat loss — where will our birds go when their are no more trees?  In this case, the owls are treated as pretty ornaments on decorative orchids (although I don’t think the boobooks approve).

So, here they are in their shiny new Australian-made frames, ready to hang in an upcoming benefit exhibition for the RSPCA.

Who Needs Trees? (3 & 2)

Who Needs Trees? 1

The original triptych was awarded Highly Commended in the 2009 Caldera Art Awards and Who Needs Trees?2 was featured in the demonstration piece I wrote for Artists Palette Magazine two years ago.

As usual, my photos do not do them justice, but I was in a rush to get them online before I hand them off to the exhibit organizer today.

Invitation to the RSPCA Benefit Exhibit in Rosalie at the Blueroom Cinebar

If you are interested in attending or want more info about the benefit exhibit, please contact Jacqui Vial at jvial@rspcaqld.org.au or 0416 251 319.

My favorite serious shot wearing an awesome new top I picked up at Finders Keepers last weekend.

Bevan did a wonderful job capturing the delicacy of this sweet little brooch.

Did I mention we had a good time taking all these photos? (Note: this one did not make the final cut.)

If you want to see the other photos, click on over to my Etsy site and check out the brooches and necklaces.

Small Owl, Cardinal and Large Owl Necklaces

Each necklace is hand cut, signed and numbered by the artist and strung on a sterling silver chain.  The pendant is plastic, so they are super lightweight and extremely durable.  They are also slightly curved to lay smoothly on the chest.  Although they are well-sealed with a UV and waterproof coating, I would not recommend wearing them swimming or bathing.  Each necklace is packaged on a recycled card stock.

Finished Product

Big Owl measures approximately 100 x 35 mm, cardinal measures approximately 90 x 30 mm and small owl measures approximately 75 x 27 mm.

These will be available online very soon (I just need some better photos!) and for wholesale (although these did not make it into the catalogue).  Please email me at ReneesArtwork[REMOVE]@gmail.com if you need details about how to get a necklace.

Bilby Angel Ornaments

The markets were lovely as usual and (surprise surprise) I have no photos from the day.  So much amazing work to chose from and I was happily supporting other designers with my purchases.  Check out the line-up of designers here.  I was fortunate to visit with many repeat customers and meet some new ones and my lovely friend Cait was helping me both days.

Oh right, back to the ornaments!  These ornaments will be available online at my Etsy shop, at the upcoming BrisStyle Indie Design Markets (Dec 10) and Twillight Markets (Dec 16),  and are available for wholesale (even though they did not make the catalogue).

King George's Square all lit up for Twilight Markets!

This is my first market after way too many months of breast cancer treatment and I am so excited to finally display my new necklace designs, as well as ornaments, brooches, stationary and new artwork.

Can’t make it tonight?  No worries — I will also be at the Finders Keepers Brisbane Markets at the Old Museum next weekend (Nov 5 & 6) and the BrisStyle Eco Markets on Saturday Nov 13 in Hamilton.  Not in Brisbane? You can always visit the lovely stockists in your area or shop online (necklaces will be available online and in shops soon).

If you are at any of the markets, please stop by and say “hi” and let me know what you think of the new designs!

I am proud to be participating in this fundraiser as a donating artist.  While I was undergoing treatment earlier this year, I received amazing support from Chicks in Pink.  This included house-cleaning, hospital parking vouchers on chemo days, and (best of all) they organized a wonderful mum’s group full of other young mum’s with breast cancer.

You can also help support Chicks in Pink at the upcoming BrisStyle Indie Mother and Child Market on Saturday 8th October.  (Note: I will not be participating in the Mother and Child Markets, but will be at the upcoming Twillight Markets in the CBD on the 28th of October.)

http://brisstyle.blogspot.com/2011/10/chicks-in-pink-thinking-chicks-charity.html