bits'n'pieces fabric packs

I've had a lovely afternoon going through my fabric offcut basket and making up some bits'n'pieces packs. Each pack has one piece of all current Yardage Design handprinted fabric. Sizes and shapes vary, but each pack has enough fabric to cover a square of approximately 40cm x 40cm - perfect for small crafty projects and patchwork.

Bits'n'pieces Fabric Packs in the shop now. Have a lovely weekend. Don't forget your umbrella if you're in Victoria!

gippsland ...

... that's where I've been for almost the last week. For international readers, Gippsland is the far eastern region of the state of Victoria and is home to the most beautiful lakes system. It was the first time we'd been to this part of Victoria, and we were so impressed. It was wonderful - relaxing, beautiful, and just right to recharge the batteries for the rest of the year. Here are a few happy snaps of things that took my fancy while we wandered the lakes and surrounds ...

We stayed in a lovely little town called Metung, right on the water. Coincidentally, the Getaway team was there while we were there, so Aussies will be able to check it out on TV in the coming weeks!
Have a lovely weekend!

mixtape

I whipped over to Little Shop of Handmade yesterday afternoon to visit Bec and pick up a copy of the latest mixtape zine, fresh off the press! I was looking forward to seeing my first paid for/real businessey "ad" on the page 31 of this lovely crafty zine ...

It's always great to talk to Bec - she's a gem! It was also nice to have a quick squizz around the shop. There are so many great things in there at the moment. I took a photo of the front window with a couple of my tea towels hanging up in it (thanks, Bec) - a bit hard to see, but they are there!

Little Shop of Handmade, Carnegie ... here
Mixtape ... here ... this edition may be the last printed ever ... one more, please Justine!!

Have a great Sunday!

floor cushion collaboration

Today I picked up my latest collaboration that resulted from the Finders Keepers market - a gorgeous Mookah floor cushion made out of my ocean blue {exclaim} fabric.

I just love it! It will live in our family room next to the bookcase - perfect for sitting on whilst having a little browse. Thanks to Nicole and Leisa from Mookah for their amazingly fast handiwork - brilliant! You can check out all of the other lovely things Mookah make for the home and for kids here.

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

psssst .... get your own footstool

I just got home from Magnolia Square Market which is on this weekend in Melbourne. I was dropping some fabric samples to Jacqui from Reissued when I spied that she has upholstered another footstool in my cherry red {exclaim} fabric. It's almost exactly the same as mine, but this one is for sale ... just letting you know!

Have a great afternoon! I'm about to move two cubic metres of pebbles from my driveway into the garden ... at least it is a beautiful day for it!

gallery grangie

You can now buy a selection of artichoke tea towels and market bags at Gallery Grangie, in Richmond (Melbourne). I had the pleasure of meeting Grangie herself this morning when I dropped off my goods. Gallery Grangie is an art space and hand made emporium, specialising in emerging artists. I am thrilled they have decided to stock my wares!

Gallery Grangie also run drawing classes in the evenings - for beginners and for new mums with baby's - how excellent is that! Gallery Grangie can be found at 323 Lennox Street, Richmond - just off Swan Street, near Richmond Station. Incase you needed another reason to visit Richmond, the amazing fabric store The Dancing Queen is just a couple of doors down from the gallery.

Have a good Thursday!

vintage tram roll menu tea towels in rainbow colours!

After lots of lovely feedback, I printed some vintage tram roll menu tea towels in a range of rainbow colours for the Finders Keepers Market. There were just a few of each colour left after the market, so I've popped them in the shop here ...

You can choose from bright red, royal blue, grass green, duck egg blue and white. My favourite is the duck egg blue - I have kept one of each of these for myself!

Have a lovely day! The sun is shining here in Melbourne, so I'm itching to get outside and enjoy it.

rhubarb crumble slice

Made this morning using a recipe from the June/July 2010 Donna Hay magazine. This recipe is similar - replace the coconut with the same quantity of plain flour for exactly the same result (or just leave it in if you like coconut!). A really easy recipe, and very yummy. Next time I might add a bit more rhubarb than the recipe suggests, just because I love it so much! Hope you're enjoying your Sunday.

everything but the thread ...

My lovely friend Kate from Fox's Lane has finally opened an online shop called Everything but the Thread. Now we can all have a beautifully made (from reclaimed and vintage fabrics and notions) dress or hand screen printed t-shirt like the ones she makes for her girls. Last week, I quickly snapped up this colourful little spring dress ...

Best wishes for a lovely weekend wherever you are. It's going to be wet and cold here - spring, where have you gone?? I'll be trying to have a quiet one here after last weekend!

my creative space ...

... is about collaboration and the cleverness of others. I handed a rather ordinary footstool (bought at the Camberwell Market a while ago for nix) and some of my new cherry red {exclaim} fabric over to Jacqui from Reissued about 2 weeks ago, and received this in return ...

This foot stool was part of my display at the Finders Keepers market on the weekend - mainly to show what you can do with a small amount of fabric, an old foot stool and a clever friend! It was very popular - I had so many requests to buy it, but this one is just for me. I love it. The piping around the edge really makes it look special. Just for the record, this is what it used to look like (in all of its vinyl glory) ...

Many more creative spaces, great ideas and lovely things via Kootoyoo. Have a great Thursday!

{exclaim} fabric packs + cushion covers ...

A quick shop update today. I have just listed some small {exclaim} fabric bundles in the shop here ...

... as well as some {exclaim} cushions covers here ...

I've been slowly getting through piles of paperwork and emails today - catching up on the backlog that resulted from the frenzy of Finders Keepers prep and market last week. Happily, I'm off to see Bec at Little Shop of Handmade this afternoon for a chat and to drop off some new stock. Hope your day is productive too!

finders keepers - the wrap in pics ...

The market is a wrap! I'm still recovering, and the house looks like a  fabric bomb exploded in every room! Here are some pics of the event that was ...

My lovely friend Pam and I (sporting the wonderful market aprons she made for us) ...

Some pics of the stall ...

Thanks to my lovely market neighbour Phoebe for taking some of these pics for me (those are her gorgeous fabric necklaces in the foreground of the last pic - divine!). There are some amazing pics of the whole event over at The Design Files here. Huge congrats to the Finders Keepers gals for putting on such a fab market! From my perspective, it was a great success, a great experience and fun to be involved in. Big thanks to everyone who stopped by, said hello and/or bought something too! I will be updating the shop this week with some new goodies (a few retro spice canisters tea towels are already in there after selling out last week) - I'll keep you posted!

P.S. Exactly one year ago today, I registered Yardage Design as my business name. I would never have believed I would be where I am in just a year. Thanks to my family and friends (both on- and off-line) for your support. The journey continues ...

market day one

I have had a great day at the Finders Keepers Market - brilliant weather, lovely customers and excellent visitors stopping in the say hello! Thanks to Beky for this snap of me doing my thing (I had no idea I was being photographed!) ...

A very big thanks to Pam (she's just behind the sign) for helping me out today too, and making the coolest market aprons (for money, pens etc) I have ever seen. I will have to remember to take my camera tomorrow and take pics of everything. I am just amazed at how many fantastic designers are selling their stuff at this market - I will need to do some serious shopping before the doors close at 5pm. The weather is going to be glorious again tomorrow - hope to see you there!

Finders Keepers Market on tomorrow + how to get there

Yep, the Melbourne Finders Keepers Market is on tomorrow and Sunday (10am - 5pm). This was the state of our family room this morning ...

All of that stuff is now down at Shed 4 in Docklands. It is such a huge shed - and right on the water which is lovely.  The weather this weekend is supposed to be fab - can't wait!

How to get there ... there is a map on the website, but access to North Wharf Road is actually via Bourke Street. Just keep following Bourke Street until the end, then turn left and follow the road around until you see a big shed with a 4 on it. Keep going a bit further - the entrance is at the other end of the building. There is plenty of parking or you can tram it and walk the last bit. There are so many brilliant designers there - I can't wait to have a bit of shopping time myself!
I'm lucky enough to have my lovely friend Pam helping me over the next couple of days, so please stop by and say hello!

new tea towel design ... retro spice canisters

I have been toying with the idea of a canisters tea towel for more than a year now ... but it wasn't until I scored these lovely, bright, vintage spice canisters at Camberwell Market a few months ago, that I knew what I wanted to do.

Two things struck me about these canisters - the colours and the font used. The colours are old school and just really work well together, and the font is just so retro it was hard to resist. Can you guess what each of the spices are? I don't know for sure, but I have a pretty good idea ... let me know what you think!

The challenge of a five colour print was a little daunting at first, but I am just thrilled with both the results and the fact that I could actually do it. These tea towels take a while to print, but watching the colourful image build is very exciting. These will be available at the Finders Keepers Market this weekend, but I have also listed a few in the shop for those who can't make it.

{exclaim} ... a new fabric design

{exclaim} ... indeed! Regular readers of this blog will know how much I love typography, and this fabric design is a dedication to beautiful parentheses and exclamation marks ...

I love this motif - the curves especially. It came to me one Friday night as few months ago as I was slowly going through the footy tips (NRL - we're originally from NSW) with Little Mister - he chooses the winning team based on whether or not he likes the mascot (side note, we came third in the tipping comp using this method - go figure!). Anyway, as I was calling out the mascot names and waiting for the decision, I was doodling (quite crudely, as you can see!) and came up with variations on a theme of parentheses and exclamation marks. Sometimes the ideas come straight away, other times they take some work - you just never know! 

As you can see, I've already been busy making cushions for the Finders Keepers market this weekend ...

This design is hand printed onto a light cream coloured, medium weight hemp/organic cotton blend base fabric. This fabric is slightly heavier than the hemp/organic cotton blends I've used in the past (288gsm as opposed to 200gsm), making it perfect for soft furnishings, as well as craft and dressmaking projects.  I've chosen three bold colours - cherry red, ocean blue and black.

This new design is now available in the shop, and will also be available to buy at the Finders Keepers market this weekend.