Somebody in my family turned ONE last year and there was a party, for which the guest of honour and I collaborated to produce the invitations.

I supplied the paper and trays of paint ...

... The artist stripped off and set to work, using all of his twenty little digits to create these masterworks.

All party attendees were duly impressed, and I enjoyed many congratulations for the idea.

Some weeks later I realised that it had no doubt been inspired by these invitations to a performance of 'new music' by Melbourne's Quiver ensemble.

Not only is my friend B. the group's talented flautist, she is an excellent sometimes designer whose work has a light, deft touch. She and another Quiver musician spent an afternoon sending ink onto large sheets of nice stock, that were subsequently cut to size and stamped with B.'s logotype.

I can't even take credit for the paint-splattered floor (seen here beneath the cards), although I did rip up the hideous carpet that had kept them hidden for who-knows-how-many-years.

Child: What's the film about? 
Adult: It's wonderful.

According to my friend Jo, according to the stars, my year really starts today. Bienvenue 2011.

C: I hope it's good this time. 
A: It's magnificent.

Accordingly, a new header.

And some pictures and lines from one of my favourite films - Victor Erice's, El espiritu de la colmena (The Spirit of the Beehive), which I'm championing again (after some relatively unsuccessful periods of championing in the past). It is a beautiful work. Years ago, when I watched it for the first and second times, I found a blank notebook for it - wrote 'The Spirit of the Beehive' on the opening page - and planned to make it into a ballet.

These illustrations, used in the opening titles, were drawn by the film's little star, Ana Torrent - who was seven years old at the time.

Speaking of bees ... A petition to aid their plight, here.

Cotton Long dress by ESS Laboratory

Voila. The final dress is one of my own, a beautiful black drop-waist dress, which I wore to my brother's wedding. I was the Best Man, and very proud.

I am feeling a little bit proud now or glad, at least, to have finished what I set out to... I can go to sleep in a minute, certain of dreams in which fine things will manifest in suites of thirty-one. Goodnight.

Charmer dress by Romance Was Born

Flying panel dress by S!X

Today is the last day of October, and Frocktober. It is 11.15 at night and my work is almost complete. I would have liked to have uploaded one drawing per day in a civilised fashion but this blog is not called Disorganised for nothing.

At any rate, there are now 31 sketches of 31 dresses on Milly's front wall; 29 originals - the couple pictured above were sent off a couple of days ago (to lead everyone onto the dance floor at last Friday's Official Frock Party and raffle). All reserved sketches will be packaged and sent in the same way - framed loosely in an A5 card, dated, and labelled with the name and designer of the dress. I am collecting tax-deductible donations of any amount in exchange for these sketches. All proceeds go to the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation, to assist the organisation's research into such things as the development of an early detection test.

Rustling dress by St Clements

Hangers In dress by ffiXXed

Two for Charlie by High Tea with Mrs Woo

Mesh gather dress by Alexi Freeman

I post this little section of drawings with Hayley in mind... It was her birthday on the 27th of October. She is a few months younger than I am, and has already been treated for ovarian cancer. I am pretty pleased to have received a note from her today, thank you Hayley.

Red shoes (interlude)

7pm last night - abandoned by the closed op shop - thwarted ambition?