The Original Twiggy
I began creating Twiggys in 1999. A successful combined entry in the Nelson Wearable Art Awards, with ceramic and multi-media artist Lesley Le Grove and painter and textile artist Chris Smith, both of Stratford, was the inspiration. We later had solo entries accepted.

Originally I whittled the Twiggy ‘bodies’ from twigs of the exotic trees growing on our farm at Douglas, east of Stratford - oaks, silver birch, beech, poplar, ash, maple. I carved a series from native trees including rimu, totara, kowhai, kauri, pohutukawa and kahikatea. Twiggy themes have been Christmas ‘fairies’, Valentine Twiggys, Brides, Mother and Child, Sunrise 2000, and Taranaki.

In this collection, 10 years later, Flower Twiggys are fashioned from a mixture of native and exotic trees and each represents and is named after a particular garden flower or tree. A set of Daffodils raised funds for the annual Cancer Appeal, and I have also created the Seasons, iconic Taranaki landmarks, some whimsical designs, a set of Womad Twiggys and Royal Brides.

Since living near the beach in New Plymouth I’ve dreamed of continuing a series of Beachcomber Twiggys I created from driftwood while holidaying on the Coromandel in 2001.

The 2010 driftwood set of Tutumaiao, beach spirits, has been inspired by the Maori belief that the tutumaiao, mystical images, visit the beaches from their homes in the sea and appear far ahead as you walk along the beach in the early morning or evening light, as misty forms, like people retreating. Tutumaiao is also one of the names given to the Aurora Australis in the deep-south.

My unique Twiggys are all hand-crafted, from their delicately carved ballerina-like feet, to the hand-stitched creative fabrics and mixed media decoration of mostly recycled scraps of silk, chiffon, satin, wool and threads, used to artistically dress each Twiggy, accentuating her identity. The limbs of each Twiggy are firmly attached to the body with flax thread, each has a tie for hanging and each Twiggy is completed with mohair, wool, marabou or natural ‘found’ hair.