Early last year, I saw an ad at the side of my Facebook page about some company called NaturesFace Art. Facebook tailors those advertisements based on each person's likes and I have discovered some great fabric shops etc this way :-). So I thought I would give this site a bit of a 'look-see'.
Well I was 'hooked'; there were these beautiful fabric squares showing Aussie Nature at its very best...and the fabrics were high quality and could be used in numerous ways including patchwork. Postage was free...worldwide! So I ordered just 3 as I had thought they would be a lovely inclusion in overseas swap parcels. I had ordered just before we took off for the UK, so 7 weeks later when we arrived home, I eagerly opened the envelope...and loved what I saw!
Passionflower... |
Deep Forest |
And people, such as Denice, to whom I've sent them to, have loved them too. So just before Christmas, I bought some more :-).
I had recently sent one of these patches to Lin, over at St Victor Quilts Blog (France) and in our email 'conversations' I said that maybe I could write a post about NaturesFace Art. Lin thought that was a good idea, so I asked the 'man behind the label', Gerhard Hillmann if I could use some of the biographical info on the site and maybe some photos too. In his lovely reply, he gave me permission to use whatever I needed.
So firstly here is a photo of Gerhard...
So firstly here is a photo of Gerhard...
Gerhard was born in Cairns in Far North Queensland and spent much of his childhood 'exploring and discovering' both the plants and animals of the rainforests. On his website, this statement sums it all up pretty succinctly...
'The curiosity of nature from an early age and the desire to share the experience with others has motivated him to be a nature based artist'.
For 15 years he travelled and studied overseas but is now back 'home', living in Kuranda with his young family.
Gerhard at work... |
Gerhard has won numerous awards for his photography, and as well, he has had a number of exhibitions which are listed on the website. His skills as an artist means that in some of his works, Gerhard incorporates his paintings and drawings with photography.
There is so much to look at on the website, including a section where there are photos of projects using the fabric patches. Quite a few people have shared their photos...they are well worth a look!
Now I've only really talked about the fabric patches that NaturesFace produces, but this family owned and run company is much more than that; jigsaws, prints and art cards are all made using the beautiful photographs and images.
So now, today's giveaway...of course it's a lovely fabric patch ! lol. Maybe some of those photos in the People's Creations section on the website could inspire you to make something yourself...and this lovely patch could be the the start of that process.
To be in the draw, just leave a comment on this post. All 5 Giveaways will be drawn on Monday, January 19, starting at 7pm EST (Australia).
My photo doesn't do it justice...the colours are gorgeous,the details incredible. There are holes in the leaves, maybe from caterpillars in the life cycle of that species of butterfly? There are all sorts of little details waiting to be discovered. Children would love finding all those little creatures and flowers :-)
This fabric patch is 'fp13' so you could check out the photo of it on the website to see it in all its glory.
So here is the link to Gerhard's website again...http://www.naturesface.com.au/
Why not make a cuppa and settle back and look through Gerhard's website?...you won't be disappointed. :-)