day 31 - pics + thanks

It's the last day the a photo a day in August, and it's been a wonderful project. It's got me out and about taking photo's, getting to know my camera better and really looking at my surroundings. Thanks to Megan for organising, and everyone who participated - it was really fun!

It's also been a great way to "meet" other bloggers. If you haven't discovered 74 Lime Lane yet, pop over for some daily inspiration and lovely bits'n'pieces.

Tomorrow it will officially be spring ...

.... bring on the sunshine! Looking forward to a creative September for me, and for you. Thanks for dropping by!

day 30 - super retro ...

.... the inside of a 1963 Hillman Super Minx ...

... I'll have to go out and get some driving gloves for this baby!

A photo a day in August is drawing to a close .... visit The Byron Life for more.

day 29 - I made this ...

...a simple business card holder made out of some of the surface art fabric I bought last weekend at the Stitches and Craft Show in Sydney. It has a snap button on the inside to keep the cards from falling out. I like it and it works well - what more can I ask!

More photo's in August at The Byron Life ...

day 28 - vintage ric rac

Another fabulous ebay find. Aside from the actual ric rac, I love the old cards they come on - the design and typography. Bargain!

my creative space ... in panic mode!

OK - the deadline for my square in the Quilt Project is looming and I am slightly freaking out. Thus, my creative space this week is full of red (which is great - being my favourite colour and all!) ...

I'm still working on my design (which is why I'm in panic mode), but I'm thinking about an appliqued flower, with a bit of machine embroidered whimsy.

Also fun this week - trying to get to know my new sewing machine - we don't have a connection yet - mainly because I'm used to my lovely old Globe Janome (which sadly died last year - for good this time) and this new one is a fancy dancer which is taking me a while to understand!!

Here's my first draft/testing the machine square ... I'm imagining more petals and more layers ...

Thanks for dropping by - hope your project is going well.

For more creative spaces, or to join in, go to kootoyoo.

day 26 - belle couture vintage Français articles

Translation - lovely vintage french sewing items - arrived in the mail after a successful session on ebay last week ...

More photos every day during August, here.

in stitches in sydney!

I've been in lovely, warm and sunny (so over Melbourne weather this year!) Sydney this past weekend - mainly to see my sister, but also to get to the Stitches and Craft Show. I made my way there on Sunday and thoroughly enjoyed it. I need to say upfront that I forgot my camera - du'oh!

First up was Jodie's (from Vintage Ric-Rac) studio session on blogging. It was really good info, but also one of the most entertaining and funny half hours I've had for ages. That woman is a gem!

Next was Level 4 - the indie crowd. What a wonderful array of talented people. It was vibrant, happy and full of creative inspiration. I was able to meet a whole stack of people who I follow in blogland - Pippijoe, Ink & Spindle, Kristen Doran Design, Sprout Design, Surface Art. Many thanks to everyone for being so friendly and making time for a chat!

Here are a couple of pics of things I bought while there - some lovely remnants from Surface Art and a resin ring from Trove ....

I'm already looking forward to the Melbourne show next year!

Craft & Design as a Career

I have just spent a lovely day with like-minded souls at Craft & Design as a Career professional development seminar held by Craft Victoria. It was a really well run day with a range of really informative and inspiring presenters. I got so much practical advice today, but in addition to that, here were the messages I took away:

>> Plan to make it happen

>> Make a start and keep moving : don't stagnate

>> Dare to dream : who knows where it might take you

>> Work hard and be resilient

>> Networking is the best form of publicity for those on a budget!

This blog is my first step down the creative path. I want to make beautiful and interesting designs for fabric. I will get there, and I look forward to sharing the journey will you all out there. Sorry for the lack of pics today!

my creative space ...

This week in my creative space, I've been experimenting with making a simple little fabric bag for each of my nieces (ages 9 months and 2). I am seeing them on the weekend (they live in Sydney) when I'll also be visiting the Stitches & Craft Show - double yahoo! Anyway, this is my prototype (made last night) ...


I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, although the embroidery does get a bit lost in this fabric (which I love!). Anyway, on the agenda today is to make another one. It's been lovely to sew again after such a long break during renovations. I'm trying to decide on the fabric to use - maybe the stripe ...?


Thanks for dropping by! For more creative spaces or to join in yourself, go to kootoyoo's blog here.

SEW Hip!

Yes, the name is a cringeworthy, but this is a great sewing mag that was recommended to me by Pippi creates.

SEW Hip is a UK based mag, but has content from all over the world. It has a great focus on sewing and fabric without too much fluff! I bought the July issue yesterday ($9.95 - not bad), and it had some great articles and projects (all with patterns included). I really liked these ...

I really enjoy the Fabric Showcase each month where they interview fabric designers. This month there are interviews with Etsuko Furuya, as well as Heather Bailey, and includes some inspirational pictures of her amazing studio ...

A really good mag if you need some (more) ideas, or just a bit of quiet time! Cheers!

day 19 - tram stop treasure

Little mister and I caught the tram yesterday and this is the seat at our tram stop - many layers of paint peeling, but well used and kind of groovy in its own way.

Click here for more people playing along in the photo a day action!

vintage glass buttons

I collect lots of old/vintage things, including beautiful glass buttons.



They are like jewels and make a wonderful tinkling sound when they tumble out of the jar where they live. I'm thinking of making a necklace or bracelet with some of them. Ebay is a great source of vintage beads, as are op shops and antique/collectable stores.

What old things do you collect?

day 18 - backyard fun

It was a lovely day in Melbourne yesterday, so there was alot of activity in our back yard, including some "cooking" for mum to taste! Mmmmmmmmmm!

Enjoy your day. Head over to The Byron Life for more pics today.

day 17 = pic + a winner!

Happy Monday! At last .... the sun is shining in Melbourne for more than a few minutes - yahooo!

Let's get down to business .... the lovely Pam from Pippi creates has been over for a spot of morning tea, and was kind enough to draw the winner of the racing car fabric from Thursday's post.

An the winner is ......

... Nikki Cardigan from My Black Cardigan. Congrats! I can't wait to see what you make with it!

Back to a photo a day, and today I wanted to show you an amazing artwork made out of recycled copper from (very) old hot water systems that has been dyed. I bought this from the artist a few years ago in New Zealand. I just love to colours and shine of this work ...

For more photo's, head over to The Byron Life!

Have a great day, and I hope this is a creative week for you.

day 16 - playing catchup ;-)

Whoops! The last few days have really got away from me, so I need to post a few pics to catch up!

During the week, my copies of the Homemade: Handmade Help Recipe Book arrived in the post. What a treasure trove of great recipes. This morning I made the Beetroot Dip (page 21) ready for drinkies with friends this afternoon - it is so delicious and the colour is FABULOUS!! I'd never cooked beetroot before, but I bought some at the farmers markets yesterday and then just roasted it in foil for about an hour. This recipe book is a real gem and would make a lovely gift (maybe get in early for Christmas?). they are just $15 and all profits go to the Salvo's who are helping survivors of the Victorian Bushfires. Go to this website to buy online.

Just incase you were wondering, I am still taking photo's of flowers coming up in my garden. the colours and shapes are wonderful ...

FYI - it is soooooo wild and windy here in Melbourne right now .... I hope the roof stays on!

Have a great Sunday!

my creative space ... much better + a freebie!

Voila! Much better than last week - I hope you agree! Thanks to a new bookcase from ikea and some decisive decluttering, I now have a spick and span creative space. Now to get to work ...! I want to make some little handbags for my nieces over the next week, which should be a lot of fun.

During the clean-up, I came across this vintage fabric I got ages ago on ebay. It's about one metre square and covered with racing cars and other racing stuff, and I'm giving it away. Just leave a comment and I will draw a lucky winner in Sunday night.

Have a great day! For more creative spaces and/or to join in and show us your creative space today, visit kootoyoo!

day 12 - gilmour

This is our oldest dog, Gilmour. His full name is Happy Gilmour (like the movie) as we got him from the RSPCA when he was 6 months old, and we figured that he'd be pretty happy spending his life with us after being dumped as a puppy (how could someone do that ...?). Anyway, Gilmour is 12 now and I'm about to take him to the vet to have a couple of his back teeth removed. He's got a bit of arthritis in his back legs, but aside from that he is aging gracefully and is still sharp as a tack! In fact, I'm pretty sure he thinks he's human!

day 11 - dark & stormy

I just took this from our back deck - it is sooooo dark and stormy looking. Fingers crossed for more than just drizzle! More pics during August here.

Dino-gram

The dino stamp is finished, and I had a go at stamping him onto a card and envelope ...


It was a really fun and quick project. I might try stamping onto fabric next.

Dino the Block-osaur

This week, I'm having a go at creating a small stamp to do some block printing. This is step one ... Dino is created and then clumsily (it's a bit harder than I thought!!) cut out of some Speedy-Cut with some nifty tools.


The next step will be to test it out with some actual ink and fabric ... stay tuned

Have a good day!

day 9 - delicate

I couldn't resist - how beautiful is this flower ...

day 8 - vale john hughes ...

John Hughes, the genius 80's teen flick creator, died yesterday. Upon hearing the news, I thought "thankyou, Grace, I think you're wrong". However, it was true. The scene in Pretty in Pink where Molly Ringwald refashions a prom dress out of two other pink dresses has been with me for years, and is still one of my favourite scenes in a movie.

There is a great post on the Meet me at Mikes blog, and some lovely comments worth a read if you are a fan too.

day 7 - ribbons & tape

I love ribbons and tape. I didn't realise how much I was accumulating until I started sorting out all the boxes in my creative space over the last couple of days. Also, how cute are these paperclips from kikki k? Noice!

Thanks to all who commented on my creative space yesterday - your words of encouragement were lovely!

Have a great day! More august pics at The Byron Life.

My creative space ... or not!

I'm joining in with kootoyoo and others and revealing my creative space. As you can see, it's not very creative looking at the moment, but after a trip to ikea yeasterday, I have a bookcase to put together and many storage jars and bit's and pieces. Fingers crossed I will get my corner of the spare room sorted out and be able to sew again after being out of action while this room was replastered (the joys of living in a house during the renovation ...).

So, let's consider this the "before" photo of my creative space - check in next week to see how it turns out!

day 6 - a photo a day in august

I just love flowers ... I promise to not do too many more for a while, but I couldn't resist posting this one as it has just come up in my garden and it is so lovely! For more pics of the day, head over to The Byron Life, where it all began!

Have a great day!

ikea goodies

During my (supposedly) quick visit to Ikea this arvo to get some "storage solutions" for my creative space, I found these groovy melamine plates and tray - cheap and most definately cheerful!!

day 5 - red & green

Two of my favourite colours ...

Speaking of red, my calico square arrived in the post from kootoyoo for the redwork quilt project.

My goal today is to get my creative space sorted out - at the moment it is just a pile of storage boxes on a table. Wish me luck!

Have a good day!

day 4 - pam's garden

Today's pics come to you from my lovely friend Pam's garden ...

Check out other pics of the day at The Byron Life ...

day 3 pic - classic curves

I love the colour, chrome and curves of this 1965 Austin Healey Sprite - it is a happy little car known as the "bug" in our house. Our little mister thinks it's the best toy he owns! You can see what everyone esle is snapping as part of a photo a day in August, by going here. Hooray for sun in Melbourne!!

a photo a day in august - day two

Today we took a roadtrip to Castlemaine, which was lovely (except that I forgot my camera - doh!). We had lunch at The Empyre and then wandered around admiring the lovely buildings, farmers markets and shops. I found this great glass stopper for my collection - yay! The other big find was Fashion Central which houses some great designers and a lovely little teahouse - the apple cake was second to none. Of particular note was a great little store call Habadash which has all manner of vintage buttons and bit's and pieces - I'll be heading back there next time I need some lovely vintage buttons to finish something off! It was a good day. Hope yours was too.

a photo a day in august .... day one

I am joining in with the fun over at The Byron Life and posting a photo a day in August. I found out about this great idea over at the TinnieGirl blog - thanks! I can't wait to see everyone's happy snaps. Here is my offering for day one on a rather gloomy day in my garden in Melbourne ... I just love the shape of these lillies.

Have a great Saturday night!