Weaving her own yarns
Libby Brady’s creative energy is evident from the moment you meet her.
Dedicated: Artist Libby Brady is producing beautiful baskets with a range weaving techniques after getting inspiration from an elder woman from the APY lands. Photo: Linda Stanway
Her mum was a spinner and Libby has enjoyed spinning and knitting for as long as she can remember, but it wasn’t until her own children had grown up and left home that she discovered her passion for basket weaving.
“I went to a WEA workshop and straight away thought ‘yes, this suits me!’," she said.
A few years later, when she was attending Oysterfest, Libby had the privilege to sit and weave with an elder woman from the APY lands.
The informal workshop lasted over four hours and Libby felt a deepening connection to this ancient practice.
“It is rhythmic, meditative, although at times exacting,” she said.
A keen gardener and bushwalker, she combines her craft with her love of the outdoors. Using natural and found fibres in her weaving, she gathers materials from her own garden and from the bush and is also a passionate recycler.
‘’I enjoy using things like washed potting-mix bags, baling twine and fabric in my weaving and often find great things at the op shop," she said.
Libby began selling her baskets at the Tin Shed, Mintaro, and was a founding member of the Art@Auburn collective.
She also belongs to the co-op, Wool and Fibre Corner - a group of spinners, knitters, and weavers who create together weekly, run a busy weekend shop and organise an annual Wool and Fibre Fair.
“It is the best thing, being around people who create things," she said.
"Coming into the space always brings me joy and gives me ideas.
“I am always pleased when someone loves something that I have made and buys it.
"They have made a connection and will enjoy having in their home.”
Enthusiasm and delight in basket making are showing no signs of waning for Libby.
“My hands get a bit stiff sometimes, but I have found that a wider needle on the end of a toothbrush helps.”
As well as basketry, Libby still loves spinning, knitting and crochet. She recently bought a loom and is looking forward to weaving.
As for taking up any other arts practices, Libby is not ruling it out. Travelling in the countryside and outback, she has often wished she could paint.
“A friend and I saw an oil painting demonstration by Don Burrows, then for Christmas she gave me some canvasses – so, who knows? I would like to have a go," she said.
You can find Libby’s baskets at the Art House in Mill Street, Clare, and at Wool and Fibre Corner, in Auburn.
Great work: Just some of the work, which includes natural fibres from around the district, produced by artist Libby Brady. Photo: Linda Stanway