Thursday Thanks

• Care packages - love to do this.
• Gifts of food.
• Cooking using food from the garden still, but not for much longer...  
• Great progress for the swimmer.
• Great new piano teacher for the pianist.
• An enthusiastic pianist.  

644/1000

Confetti

Confetti Sprinkle socks.  

A party on your feet every time you wear them maybe?  

Well these are my new socks just finished with a yarn I hadn't tried before.  It's pretty pretty!  I will have the best dressed feet in winter!  

Taking Stock - February & March

Cooking :  lots of food with zucchini.  See some favourite recipes here that we have enjoyed. 
Making :  stuff for the school fair
Drinking :  water
Reading:  Book Of Lost Threads - Tess Evans
Trawling:  sewing patterns
Wanting:  to get through more books that are on the shelf & have been for ages.
Looking:  at what I need to do next
Deciding:  what to do with zucchini next!
Wishing: I had a fairy to come & cook tea 
Enjoying: listening to BJ learning new piano tunes.
Waiting: for when DJ can have lessons.  
Liking: the cooler nights.  Ahhh...  sleep...
Wondering:  where February went!
Loving:  having the chickens in the orchard!
Listening:  to DJ sing crazy made up songs.
Considering:  what to make for next years fair.
Buying:  all sorts - piano books online this week.   I'm excited about that!  
Watching:  Our Girl season 1.  For the third time
Hoping:  Season 2 of Our Girl is out soon.
Needing: some garden magic.  Anyone want to pull weeds out?
Getting:  winter boots.  Can't wait to wear them!  
Bookmarking:  sewing stores
Feeling: clever that I made tomato sauce from our harvest.

Nailed It

Maybe I should call it "Zippered It"!  

Another party coming up in a week, but while I printed up the name for the other one I did this one.  So, got stuck into it & sewed it up.  Actually it took a little longer this time.  

I wasn't happy with the zips I had put in.  Or rather how I had put them in.  I just couldn't get them pretty enough.  Not for my liking anyway.  So I did a search & came up with this tutorial which was exactly what I needed to refine my work.  It worked a treat & made the whole bottom look so much better.  Six year old's won't care either way, but it is still nice to learn something.  Improve things, you know.  So we have different front & back for this Star Wars cushion.  Should be liked too I hope!  

ETA - This was a hit.  Apparently it will be something he treasures forever.  awww... nice...

Thursday Thanks

• A successful day for the school with the fair.
• Gifting food.
• Being able to give back to some who have been so good to us in the past.
• Fun with chickens.
• A boy that is growing up & maturing in important ways.
• Amazing creations in the grass - clever webs covered in dew early in the mornings.  So small but so intricate!

638/1000

Back To Regular Schedule

Things might calm down a little now.

Well maybe not.

Birthday parties are here.  Last year we got almost through first term without any.

But that's OK.

That means I have a reason to sew again.  Not that I don't have reasons to do some things, but as expected, it's been a bit of a crash & burn few days.  Totally conked out.

 DJ told me that Toby likes farms.  Well he lives on one so that's probably something to do with it.  Hopefully this personalised cushion goes down well.

ETA - It did apparently, go down very well.  

Fair Day

Well the day arrived!

Just to add to the busy crazy time that has been this week, why not throw in a class dog!

Oh I was excited on Friday evening to find out that DJ had this weekend to take the class dog home & record it's exciting weekend with us!  I guess it was nice that we had things to report about other than making a fence!

Daisy Dog had 2 birthday parties for our family members to attend.

& of course the fair.  So yes, DJ had to carry her to school.  The family all walked down.  I went down at stupid early o'clock to help set up our craft stall though it was half done the day before.

Daisy & DJ at the craft stall in front of the slippers that Gran & Aunty Sheila knitted for the stall.

DJ & Daisy with the stand for the hamper prizes. 

DJ & Daisy dressed in the costume that DJ got in his show bag.  

It was a massive day.  The fair was a huge success as usual.  The boys had a great time.  I was flat out on the craft stall.  It was good fun really.

OK, a report on my stuff.  Success or not?

Peg bag aprons - all gone!
Fabric cover notebook holders - all gone.
Souvenir tea-towel tote bags - just over half gone I think.  Also hopefully networked a little to try to get hold of some more.  hehehehe
Hanging hand towels - not many gone at all.
Framed inspirational pictures - all but one lonely one gone.  The last one was never going to go once it was all that was left.  But the target audience of the school kids was a success as mostly they went to kids.  Good price & trendy product currently.
Fabric Baskets - Half went...  happy with that.

So there you go.  If you need some ideas for your own school, that may be a help!!!

A Little More

Some time back I saw an advert for some printables.  You know the sort?  You see them in every home decor store these days.  Foxes, deer, inspirational quotes - you name it.  I got this set of prints online.  They had a really good deal.  Combine that with some frames from the op shops & bingo!!!  You have some really cheap & effective cool pictures ready to sell!

Yes, the fair...  sigh...

ETA - these all went, fast...  the animals first.  I had a few more than what are pictured & I have one lonely one left.  Super impressed.

Thursday Thanks

• Feeling good.
• A great husband that can build stuff!  
• Fun with our chickens.
• Successful medical things for a friend.
• Being able to give the gift of meals & food.
• Great weather to be able to do more work outside.

632/1000

Ooops

So I gave a bunch away.  So I made some more!  

Evenings

I've still been getting my sock knitting on!

Somewhere in all the madness that is sewing stuff for the fair, I manage to pump out a little bit of knit, usually on an evening when I have an hour or so finally & I stop myself from sewing & I watch a show on iview or The Great British Sewing Bee.  (there are some good English dramas on ABC at the moment).

Yet another pair of After Thought Heel socks & another colour way in the Cascade Heritage Paints yarn.  One of my absolute favourite yarns for socks.  Knits up beautifully!

Late Summer

The rumours were true about us getting summer in March!  I won't complain though as we have been able to get a lot done at home.  

Today was a holiday.  So not only was it a brilliant day as we were home, but the day was just magnificent.  Stuart & I had a big day.  Stuart had got quite a bit done over the rest of the weekend so I could get in there & nail some wire on fence palings.  It was great.  It is really good to be almost just about done.  But we ran out of wire, again!  Also out of U shaped nails that I have been nailing on.  I even went out to buy the next hardware store out.  So I have to find another hardware store this week.  (unfortunately Stuart knows that it is close to Spotlight so he doesn't think it is a good idea at all that I go to get them!  lol)  

Having got most of the wire on though I did open the chicken run so the girls could have a walk.  Snowy was the only one to brave the yard the first time & then later on when it had cooled off a bit I tried again & they all went for a walk about catching bugs.  They are quite quick really!  

While they were roaming, the boys were playing in the sprinkler.  We haven't done a great deal of that sort of thing at all this past summer.  So it was a really terrific day!  Busy & lazy too.  

Beautiful Rain

I was given a stack of souvenir tea-towels last week.  I was a bit excited!  I also picked up another couple in an op shop.  They weren't there last week!  Timed that well.  

Work on Saturday meant I didn't do much of anything but did get started on them on Saturday evening.  

The lovely rain all morning this morning meant that I had a good chance to power through some bags though.  13 bags, 2 of which went back to the giver of some of the towels.  She is excited to be able to use them in a more interesting way, that not drying dishes as we all know souvenir tea-towels are made to look at really as they don't dry a thing.  

Here is a selection of them anyway.  A couple of interesting ones that aren't from a particular place like most are.  But certainly retro!  

I also got my sauce making action happening...  I am not one to make stuff like that usually.  But this lot of little red things needed some use.  It was a very productive day!

What's Hiding In A Cupboard

I really love scraps of fabric, wool or anything.  Do you know why?  I don't see them as scraps!  Yes they are bits & pieces, but they are always waiting & ready to be turned into something!  

From scraps you get stuff.  Hopefully mostly useful things too.  

Yes, I did it.  I made a few more fabric baskets.  They didn't take long.  I had to play with them a bit so I have a couple with multi-coloured sides too.  But I think they look pretty cool.  I really like the world map one in the middle at the bottom.  

Oh yeah, there is one missing as I was asked by DJ to use some fabric for one for him.  So I did of course.  

Fabric Baskets

I'm mad you know.

I said I wouldn't do any more.  

But ummm.....  ooops...

Just using up a bit of the stash fabric that I have in the fair box, plus some quilt wadding scraps.  All good really.  

I found a pattern at work that I decided was easy.  I could also shrink it to fit onto the strips of fabric I had stashed.  So that was cool.  The one on the top is the first one I made.  It is actually missing it's draw cord through the top though.  I need to get some.  But I decided I could make some more quickly leaving the sleeve off for the draw cord & just make them box types of things instead.  They aren't too bad.  They aren't tiny or anything.  We'll see how it goes.  My fabric is lightening up a little so that's a good thing.  

Fell Chicken Farm

There was much excitement today.  We are now the proud owners of 4 little hens.  They would nearly be 6 months old I guess.  They came all the way from...   next door.  

They are settling in we hope.  They were used to being chased & picked up as they had 2 little girls taking care of them.  Now they have 2 boys ready & willing - for the moment at least.  

It was very warm again though so they chose to take cover in the shade under the Hen Hilton.  Can't say I blame them at all.  

We all chose a name & so they are now refered to as Billy, Snowy, Hettie & Doris.  

Also some progressed was made on the rest of the fence so before too long it should be all looking very fancy!  

Crazy Bag Lady

After quite a bit of unsuccessful op shopping looking for souvenir tea-towels, all I could come up with was seven.  

Oh well, that's just going to have to do then isn't it?

Yes, more stuff for the fair.  I have lined them with calico & put canvas webbing on for handles & voila, a cute & unusual tote bag.  Plus there is a picture both sides albeit upside down on the other.  Oh well, that's part of the novelty I think.  

Fair Madness

I was given one of these little notepad holders yesterday.  My dear old friend had made some for her church fair.  She gave me one to copy.  Top centre one is hers opened out.  Two pockets on the left, one in the centre for a little pen or pencil & then a pocket on the right for a little notebook to slide in.  I stocked up on little notepads.  I bought 10!  ONLY 10.  So I sewed 10.  That's it.  Done.  I just have to find short pencils or pens now.  That will probably not be as easy to find.   It was a great stash buster though, using up some smaller pieces of fabric.