Today's Projects

Today Kimmy and Wolf came over.

The kids played and we did a bit of craft. 

I have been saving tins to mod podge so we did a little bit.

The conversations are unreal when we are doing this stuff.

Alot of laughing and stupidity.

We got a photo of us today, standing in front of the fabric piles and ironing board where the best work happens.  Now she has gone over to her sisters to bake cakes, for no reason, just for fun.  What a fun day she will have had!  p.s. they are entering my kitchen rules as a sister duo, lets hope they get in!

Here is my latest crochet project, this one will see me through till next winter I'd say.

It's a Lucy inspired from Attic 24 Granny Stripe Blanket.

I thought it would be a good way to use up some wool.  I am not thinking about the colour combinations, just using up wool but making sure there is enough to complete to rows in each colour at least.  It's pretty long, so we'll see how quickly I get bored with it. 

This is a crochet hat for Lilly.  It is a touch too big.

I finished this off when the kids were fishing the other night.  See where I ran out of light pink wool, nevermind I think the darker band looks ok.  And the flower was pure scraps, which I made up as I went, the centre is a little dodgy!

Here is the little boy in his new crochet hat he had to have.  His is plain blue 100% wool and fits like a glove.  I've got his size and pattern sorted just need to perfect Lilly's.

Crochet Hat for Violet

I paid 20c for this model this afternoon.

Cheap.

This is for cousin Violet who is 1 soon and since I'm into crocheting at the moment and its a bit cold and her name is Violet and I love her Mum  lots and I've never met Violet yet even though I was given a chance, I made her this hat!

I tried it on a 7 month old baby boy today (a big boy for his age) and it was perfect on him, it is also pretty perfect on my boy above.  I need to write down what I did, cause I think I have finally cracked it on a good shape that fits!

Warm winter things for newborn baby girls

I have finished off the things for my friends new little girl. 

Pink is easy!

A big rug/quilt (not really quilt but you know) made with beautiful flannelette and chenille and binded with pink spots.  No handstitching went on here (binding) as this little beauty needs to be very washing machine friendly as I am hoping this gets used and used and loved and cuddled.

Some warm winter crochet hats for newborns.

Finally I can make these for someone where they will actually fit.  I am determined to upsize this pattern to fit Lilly this year properly.  Here is last years efforts.

There wasn't much in the way of cute flannelette at spotlight this week, I found the white owl print, which is pretty cute.  I just hemmed it into a big bunny rug, can't have too many of them!

and I finished off my crocheted cushion.

Now that wasn't easy- getting that thing onto a pillowcase.

It turned out ok in the end.  But it was tricky stitching it onto the fabric first, without pulling it all out of shape.

Back of the cushion. 

It is going on my bed, not Lilly's!

Now I need to paint my bedroom and make it look worthy of this cute cushion.

My Creative Space

Supplies purchased from the Light yesterday ready to make some snuggly bunny rugs for my friends new baby.  I am backing the animal print flannelette with the light pink chenille.  I splashed out on new scissors too!

Repurposing an already repurposed vintage doily! Is that possible!

This is Lilly's dress which she has outgrown, so I am unstitching the waistband to remove the doily (I slipped it in without cutting into it, knowing it couldn't stay in a dress forever)  thank goodness I did this!  Cause right now, that doily is exactly what my table needs, it is perfect, blue and red to go with the blue enamel jug on my table.  The dress should be ok, after restitching the spotty waistband back down and some other little friend can wear it.  Such a great pattern that Miss Madeline dress from the Handmade Dress.

Monarch Caterpillar update...other updates here and here...

Here we have one of the younger caterpillar's (not Munchie, who is huge now by the way and at school for the project today!)  who has just shed its skin, the kids watched him wriggle out and I caught this picture just as he popped out.  We noticed how bright the yellow stripes are immediately after this and we now know that's why some of the caterpillar's look 'dull' at times.  You can just see the old skin curled up on the leaf behind him, now he is so bright and the black stripes are so glossy, we think they shed their skin about 4 times in the 2 weeks they are caterpillar's. 

What a way to eat your breakfast!  I can highly recommend having nature at the breakfast bench, cause as they are eating, they are studying and watching-  not one ounce of fighting or bad behaviour goes on. 

Here is Lilly, with her 'habitat' ready to present today.  Munchie is on that piece of milkweed in the plastic bottle.  We did up this poster using all our photos and things we have learnt about the Monarch Butterfly lifecycle and she is taking that in as well. 

More Creative Spaces Here!

China Love

Yes sir, I love china, heaps and heaps.

Think it's my Mum's fault.

I've loved it since I was a teenager.

And I especially love it when I get it for a bargain.

Like this selection above, which completely doesn't match, but that just makes it all the more special, cause one day when I find a random bit which does match a bit I've already got- that's like winning lotto (I think kind of, not really).

The blue/gold floral cup above is a new find from the weekend trip to Goomeri, we called in at the (expensive) Kilkivan Antique shop, this cup was $6.  That's alot, for a random cup.  It's a Crown Staffordshire and the saucer under it was also $6 and its Anysley and soooo cute. 

When I find the cup that matches that saucer, that will be a winner!

But until then, I love it like this.

And check out this gorgeous gold Japanese Coffee set for 6 lucky people sipping coffee.

My Mum found me this at the Collectorama on the weekend.  I mentioned that I was into gold china at the moment and she found this for $25.  Now that is a serious bargain, it is mint condition and I can't wait to use it.  Coffee at my house very soon for the local readers with scones too to try it out...actually, that will be open to the 'commenting' local readers only, hint, hint!!  Thanks Mum, I love it.

This is what makes me happy, piles of this stuff!

This is all thrifted china, all english and all old and unmatching, I love it.

This is a few years worth at least, the op shop ladies are getting smart and pricing it high, not as many bargains these days.

I changed my kitchen hutch display last night, to a yellow theme, since I am loving the gold.

That is a very precious carnival glass bowl on the left that belongs to my husbands mum.  I don't know alot about carnival glass, but I believe it is very precious and I really love it.

The plain yellow Royal Albert cup and saucer with gold rim belongs to Lilly, she let me get it out of the china cabinet to join the other yellow friends on the hutch!  I gave it to her last year.  She loves yellow!

And here is my efforts from yesterday's car journeys, nearly sewn up. 

It will be a small cushion but so bright and colourful.

It is Lucy from Attic 24's pattern.  With a couple of changes also known as mistakes. Never mind!  But now looking at this picture, they are so obvious to me and making me a bit mad now the more I look at it!