Flippery in The Fernery

Our Lovely Mrs Grandma came a visiting today, bearing gifts.  This little vintage copper tea pot complete with fern.  This tea pot has been one of those things that Mrs Grandma has had forever and was always around during my childhood.  You know one of those things that you see every day (and in some cases not even like,) but forget all about until you are reunited one day and then you treasure it.

I said "Why thank-you it's lovely, Ooh I shall put it on my blog." Mrs Grandma said "You sound like a Kerigan - It's going straight to the pool room."  Well a Kerigan I must be.

We just have to decide now where to put it so it can become ingrained in my childrens' lives!

Meet the Ghastlies

My Ghastlie fabric by Alexander Henry arrived in the mail today and I am just so pumped!!!

Mr Daddy and I have long been fans of Edward Gorey the author/illustrator and these fabrics seem very inspired by him.  I am not sure what I will make yet I have so much swirling around in my head.   I took some extra pics to share, please excuse the unironed fabric I was too excited there was no time to iron.

Very Crinkly but who can you identify with?

I just love the Malingering Old Dowager Matriarch and the Nasty Knitting Spinster Aunts sitting judgmentally in the background.

I am completely enamored...

Boys Shorts and Skinned Knees

Master B is a skin your knee kind of kid, and it happens a lot.  Especially when he insists on riding his scooter backwards down our neighbors sloping driveway.  So I always make him long shorts that cover his knees in hope that they may help keep some of his skin in place.   He loves his shorts and always checks that any new pairs have been made by me (I am not sure who else he thinks makes them for him.)

One of my first pairs, one of the girls even tried to help make these ones.  In doing so they cut a hole in the seat, so it sports a contrasting patch.  The patch makes the shorts.

I am not a huge fan of these but he loves the pocket.

These are my favorite, I had two fat quarters of this great flannel and as Master B has grown so much I had to sew the fabric together to make it fit my pattern so I alternated the designs.  

These are Master B's favorites, they are last years Christmas pants but he won't let me pack them away.

 (and yes he does own shoes but as you can see rarely wears them.)

Butterscotch Buttons

Master B's kindy had a little market day on the weekend and we made these cookies for the Cake Stall. These are one of Miss M's favourite biccies, she had them at a friends house and they rocked her world (Miss M is notoriously hard to please.)  So we just had to get the recipe - Thanks Trudi for sharing.

125g Butter   1//2 cup brown sugar   1 tsp Vanilla essence   1 tbsp golden syrup   1 1/4 cup SR flour

Cream butter and sugar, add rest of ingredients and mix well.  Roll into small balls and flatten with a fork. Bake for 30 mins in a slow (150 degree C) oven.

They lent themselves so well to cute packaging so we went for the jam jar look.  I thought they looked really good but they couldn't compete with cupcakes and were some of the last things left of the table.

Butterscotch Buttons

They are so quick and easy, I usually double the batch.

With a Circle Over Here And a Circle Over There.

We have been so busy here getting ready for Kindy Market Day.  So far it's all been about Circles, Circles of craft and circles of cookies.

More pictures to follow soon when we get it all done.

Gift Bags and Baby Echidnas

Because I have a bag fetish and make too many bags I have a box in my cupboard full of little bags of all types.  I love them all so much that I don't end up doing anything with them, you know when they are too precious to use so they just stay hidden away.  Well this term I am going to start a bit de-clutter blitz as I am feeling overwhelmed with all the STUFF we have.  What better place to start than the bag box in my cupboard.  

We had a third birthday party this weekend so Miss S choose a little farm-yard bag to be our gift bag and stuffed it full of goodies.

P.S. This is the birthday party cake made by the very talented Aunty L, isn't it great and the baby echidnas where a very big hit.  Miss M has ordered baby echidnas for her party in a few weeks time.

P.P.S This cake photo was taken by the very talented Chani Ridley.

Japanese People Must be Much Smaller Than me

I have finally got one of the much coveted by me, Japanese Dress making books. I had been deliberating on which one to get for months now,  I love looking on line but I need to touch and flick pages before I can confidently buy.  My super friend Kel let me know that Penguin has published a translated version of Yoshiko Tsukiori Stylish Dress Book - Wear With Freedom.    On what turned out to be an all day trip to Bulimba, I found the lusted after book as it was being removed fresh from its delivery box and was able to intercept it on its way to the shelf.   (Thank-you River Bend Books.)  Anyway I love the book and got started right away on Dress A.

 Dress A, made in a cute Lawn from Spotty (Spotlight.)  Had to go for a size 14 to 16 (usually size 10 to 12) as it would seem I am much larger than Japanese women.

I think you can see the neck line a bit better in this pic.  I went for a pleat rather than a gather at the neck line and as I am challenged in the bias binding department I went for a yoke on the neck and arms.  

Longest Ever

We just had our ten year wedding anniversary.  Ten years, longest boyfriend ever and I still really like him! Look what Mr Daddy brought home that day...

Two dozen beautiful pink roses - lucky we live just by the rose farm.  I have roses in vases all over the house, so many happy places to rest my eyes.

Can You Have Too Many Bags?

I have been making bags again, they are my favourite thing to make.  It is also a great way to put a dint   into my growing (again) fabric stash.  Bags being so simple lend themselves well to sewing in stages, when ever you can sneak over to the sewing nook even for a few minutes you can get another bit done.  How cute is this Japanese linen with it's little French print.   I am really happy with how these worked out.  The pattern evolved as I was going along, you know when you think, "I can just do this and if I add this here..."  Next time I will try and draw up a pattern as I go along so I have it for a rainy day.

Plain tote and messenger bags.

the Tote

Bargain Vase

 I found this vase on the bargain table of my local freedom store.  I like the shape, the colours as nice as they are don't match me but for $7 I was unable to do anything but buy it.

I spray painted it white with my $2 bargain can of paint from Bunnings,  now I love it.  It sits on the shelf in my sewing nook and looks after my rolls of tracing paper.  Next to my "Keep Calm and Sew on" print it has become another favorite place to rest my eyes.

Favorite Spots To Rest My Eyes

School holidays are nearly at an end...  I would still like another week or two.  However I am looking forward to having a big tidy up and clean out when everyone is back at school.  I have a couple of spots that I like resting my eyes on when the rest of the house gets too much.

This is my red shelf with my huge reel of red thread, I brought it at a Op Shop for $6.  I love looking at it and we always know where the string is.  Just take your scissors over and snip off what ever you need. 

This is our wooden Russian Doll collection, they live up high on a shelf as I have learnt they need a bit of adult supervision (not to be opened with teeth.)  We had a nice little look at them all today then they were lovingly nested back up safe and sound.   

Lost Wonderlands

It is time to replant our garden beds so we had a visit to our local nursery to get some new plants.  I left the box of plants at the front door while I finished my other Mummy jobs.  When I came back I found that a village had sprung from the box...

It seemed to be a very busy settlement with Buccaneers, fairy like creatures and an assortment of livestock all happily going about their daily lives.

Another of Miss M's Toy Land creations I want to play with them too.  It was bitter sweet to dismantle  the plants so they could be planted I felt like I was destroying Lilliput.  I didn't even mind that my good baking tray was being used to hold sand.

Miss S's Jacket - for all day everyday

I am so excited I have finally made an item of clothing that Miss S won't take off.  My greatest critic has been silenced!  This is the Make it Perfect Uptown Girl jacket.  I love Make it Perfect patterns they are right up my alley, simple, uncomplicated, fast and a perfect way to use beautiful fabrics.

I had long admired the sample of this jacket that hung in my local fabric store and finally built up the courage to try it.  Like lots of things I thought it would be way too hard for me, but it really wasn't.  I think it took longer to cut it out than it did to sew together. I really did make the whole thing in three hours with a Master Chef Master Class on in the background, which is true testament to the easy of this pattern.

Miss S choose the fabric too - with only the smallest amount of suggestion from me.

I have even had to sneak it away while Miss S was sleeping to wash it, all my dreams have come true!

Party Bags

As you may have noticed we take parties and party paraphernalia very seriously.  Party Bag/take home gifts are also big business, much discussion and planning is always involved.   One of our favorites is little draw string bags.  The children choose their fabrics then we sew them up on the over locker.  I call out Go and Stop as the birthday child gets to control the presser foot.  (It is very nerve racking for me and usually we only do one or two bags like that before we all need a lie down.)   On a whole they are really easy to make and give a nice touch to party home time.

Master B's 2011 Party Bags

  After two girls I was surprised that Master B was just as keen for the fabric bags.  All kids it seems like a little pouch to put bits and pieces in.

Miss S's Tool Belt

Miss S always has something in her hands and loves to dress which just screams I need a tool belt.  I saw some beautiful roll up pencil cases in a magazine so taking the same idea we made one.  I added a  tie up sash/belt so Miss S can wear it and wear it she does.  

I do worry about her always having a pair of scissors so handy but so far all the barbies still have their hair in tact.

We also had a little sojourn in hospital and the tool belt was perfect for tying to the side of the bed so that everything a girl could need was at hand.