'Girly girl' sewing

I've been having fun sewing lots of kid stuff lately.


Haven't finished the 'boyish boy' sewing yet, but have completed a couple of 'girly girl' things.


An apron and quilted pot-holder for a niece's 2nd birthday.


She received a gorgeous big wooden kitchen for Christmas from Santa, so I am hoping these might get some use (I also included a rolling pin, some cookie cutters, and a sweet little tin teapot).


A little dress for Kate that I actually cut out while I was away on holidays, but didn't get around to finishing until now. It was a vintage pattern in size two, and was actually meant to be a straight 'A-line' dress. However it seems that the 'size 2' referred to a size 2 giant. Not a wee little two and a half year old. So I decided it just needed a little cinching at the waist. The vintage pink buckle on the belt was one I picked up when shopping with Sherrin in Fitzroy. It's from a gorgeous vintage clothing/accessories shop called Circa. Highly recommended (their collection of buckles, brooches and dress clips was quite delicious)!!

Thank goodness it passed the dancing test!!!

Hope you are having a great start to the year. As of Saturday I will be officially closer to 40 than 30. Eeeekkk!!! How on earth did that happen? And why don't I feel grown up yet?

Thankfully I'm still immature enough to pass for a bit younger....he he....

100th post crafty giveaway bonanza!!!

I've always wanted to get the word 'bonanza' into a post title. And now I have. Yay!

So I am joining many other fine people who are having bloggy milestone giveaways at the moment, and am having one of my own. It's funny that I had decided to have a bloggy break when I realised I was about to do my 100th post. So it seems like a good time to stop and reflect on how much blogging has enriched my life. Or rather, how the blogging community has enriched it. So thank-you to anyone who has ever read one of my posts, or has left me a comment. My little break is not a reflection on my lack of appreciation that's for sure. Ok, enough of the sentimental rambling of an overtired crafter. Onto the good stuff. Here's a lowdown of the loot that will go to the lucky winner of this crafty giveaway bonanza (and if you can just say this in a booming echo voice while you read this it would make me really happy :P).


1. A gorgeous vintage apron.


The detail on this little baby is amazing (unlike my ironing skills which are significantly less than amazing - sorry).


2. Six vintage sewing patterns.


The Simplicity patterns top left and bottom right are a women's size 12. The Simplicity pattern bottom left is a women's size 16. The girls' dresses pattern is a size 6, the toddler patterns are a size 3, and the boys' shirt pattern is a 35" chest (and come on, wouldn't a teenage boy just love to wear a homemade shirt like one of these...he he...) Oh, I haven't thoroughly checked that all patterns are intact but they do seem to be, and I have no reason to believe they aren't.


3. Five vintage knitting patterns and one vintage crochet pattern. Check out the ciggies in some of these shots. The dude is doing the 'casual ciggie' hold, and I think the chick is going for a 'sexy sophistication' look. And I'm not even going to comment on the girl doing the crochet, with her little brother holding her wool, and the older brother looking down with interest...yep, moving on...


4. A pack of vintage sheet fat quarters.


5. Some handmade goodies, including a fabric bookmark,


felt rosette brooch, and felt hair clip.

Now as I may have mentioned once or twice, I am now having a bloggy break. So you will have plenty of time to enter. I will do a random draw to determine the winner on Thursday 14th August. To enter, I am actually going to bully you into participating in some market research for me. No don't worry, I'm not going to ask for your phone numbers and ring you during dinner time to ask you to do a quick survey which will only take five minutes but really will take 40mins. No - what I am asking you to do is just to visit my Etsy shop and tell me in the comments here, which is your favourite item. I have committed to doing a market with BrisStyle at Christmas time, and I really have no idea what I should be focussing my efforts on making. Little bags, big bags, girls' bags, boys' bags, brooches, clips, bookmarks.....if you can just copy and paste the name of the item you like best it would really help me to make some decisions. If you could also tell me why that item is your favourite that would be great - but it's not an entry requirement (I know how time consuming commenting is). And you might win a nice prize :P

Thanks again to everyone who reads these posts (especially those who actually make it all the way to the bottom). Many thanks my friends. Be well. XXX Bec

One for the boys, one for me, and one for Sharon!

This is my latest new creation. After making a few 'Little Lady bags' for little girls, I decided it would only be fair to have a crack at doing some boy bags too...or as I like to term them - 'Little Man bags'. He he he, always makes me think of Kel from Kath and Kim.


So here is Jack. A mini-messenger bag with a velcro flap closure, made with vintage denim and vintage airplane fabric, and he's currently sitting in my shop.

On an entirely different note, and with no groany segue whatsoever (and as sighs of disappointment echo all over the bloggersphere...) I have a lovely award to pick up. Just let me sashay down red carpet and pull my speech out of my cleavage (yeah right...as if I have cleavage)...


"Ahem...the lovely Sharon from Iris and Lily has very generously bestowed upon me a lovely blog award, which is very flattering coming from such a talented sewer, crafter and blog-writer. So firstly, I'd like to thank my Mum and Dad..and oh I just can't believe I'm standing here...and oh my goodness I'm so not prepared for this, um....oh yes to my husband, thank-you...and oh oh, the wind-up music already..just one more thing...um my kids ....um....can you shut that damned music up?...."

Sorry about that - I think I fell into a 'Scrubs'-like daydream sequence there...

OK, so I am in turn passing this award to the following blogs:

1. Charlie and Grace - because I love reading about all the wonderful creative things Ali has been up to. And she has just done a great tutorial on making a book/journal which has me all inspired.

2. Hey Harriet - because it is always an entertaining read, and Tracy is the founder of 'Shadow Shot Sunday' which is a very inspiring meme where participants take photos of cool shadows.

3. Great stories - because it always takes me at least two days to compose my comment for each of Paula's posts. This girl really makes me think....and I like it!

4. Hot Fudge - because her blog is so full of colour and beautiful things...and I don't just mean the photos. Robyn describes her sewing exploits (which are stunning) and her family life so well - everything is always so vivid. And she makes me look forward to one day being a grandma!

5. Kimono Reincarnate - Not only does Melanie's creative talents appear to know no bounds (her bags, her jewellery, her paper/fabric folding - all beautiful) but she writes as an Aussie living in Japan, soaking up all the cultural goodness that is to be had there. Always inspiring!

6. Stripy Sock Studio - Helen's posts are honest, raw, and ridiculously beautiful. She is a writer and poet who also knits and crafts, making endless beautiful things. I like that I feel transported to a different world when reading her blog.

7. Fabric Fantastic - Kara Smith is an amazing designer, and also a really nice person to boot. I always love reading about how her business is going (and booming) and about her idyllic life in the Blue Mountains. And of course, her design aesthetic is to die for!!!

8. Leni and Rose - If you haven't checked out Michelle's posts on technical bloggy tips and tricks then you are definitely missing out. Not only that, but you are missing a whole lotta crafty inspiration too, as Michelle knows her way around a sewing machine as artfully as she does a computer!


Whew!!! OK, now lastly.....these were baked a long time ago, so I'm sorry Sharon, they may be a bit stale by now - but these are for you :) In honor of the gorgeous apron you sent me the kids and I whipped up these yummy afghan biscuits, and the aprons are all nicely christened with butter and chocolate stickiness.

And for everyone else - if you got to the end of this long post and you're still awake - then you deserve a bikkie too! Oh go on, have two. The ARE really yummy :)

Aprony goodness!

A little while ago I was the very lucky winner of a giveaway being run by Sharon from Iris + Lily, as a celebration of the opening of her new Etsy Shop.

Today, a parcel arrived.


Beautifully wrapped. My son was very excited (as we all are when parcels arrive in the post) and kept asking if it was something for him. A little guiltily, I said "no, I think it's for mummy".


He very helpfully assisted me in unwrapping it anyway. And inside was not just the giveaway apron I had won (although I was already squealing with delight at the sight of it alone, a beautiful package in itself!).


There were two other little apron bundles - again, each tied up so beautifully. That hand is my son pointing out which bundle he thinks is his. By now there were two of us squealing!!!

I can't tell you how absolutely stoked I am by Sharon's amazing generosity. She whipped up two little aprons so my children wouldn't feel left out. Not just any old aprons either - both are matching to mine, with their own screen printed vintage spoons - and the ties are adjustable through the neck and waist so they are super easy to get on and off and can be adjusted to fit just right, while still only having one tie at the back. They even had their own little loops for hanging them up. Just beautiful!

Of course you can guess what came next.....no, not baking....ahem...


PHOTOSHOOT OF COURSE :)


I thought adding a rolling pin as a prop would add to the domestic authenticity of the shot, but I look more like a domestic Tank Girl about to bop someone....hhhhmmmmm.


I've got to admit, I feel way cooler wearing this apron then when I am donning my vintage numbers - much as I love them as well, it's a whole different feel. I actually want to wear this one out!!!!


And have I mentioned the level of detail that has gone into this apron. From the hand screen-printed vintage spoon designs, to little button and ribbon details, and even a hand-embroidered label on the side. How cool is that!

OK, enough pics of me doing my domestic vanity thing. The kids were bouncing up and down waiting for their own go..


Lee decided to play air guitar with his rolling pin.


Kate was waving her whisk madly at me.


And they both wore their aprons for the rest of the day.

OK, make that...we ALL wore our aprons for the rest of the day.

Thank-you so much Sharon for such generous gifts. They are very well loved, and I now know exactly what I will be buying for my friends when their birthdays come around.

XXX
Bec

PS. I know I am ridiculously late with this week's THIS IS post, but I'll do a catch-up later in the week. This post DEFINITELY had to come first :)

This is...my collection!

So in my last post I mentioned there may be a little more to come on buttons...so brace yourself! This week's 'This is...' theme is 'My Collection', so this is where I display my (possibly unhealthy) obsessions. And of course, was it ever going to be anything other than buttons?

I'm sure my meagre collection is nothing compared to many more seasoned crafters, but I love it all the same, and it seems to be growing very rapidly. And I must say, it is not really a new obsession. As a child, I loved nothing better than sitting up at the table with my Grandma's button tin and sorting them by size, then by colour, then by pattern. Because of these happy memories, I love everything about buttons. I love the way it feels to scoop your hand through a big pile of them, the chinking sound they make against each other, and the different tactile intricicies of the patterns on individual buttons...ok, so enough about buttons already. I love 'em. You get it. Moving on now...


These are only a very small portion of my very old classic novels/poems collection (it was too dark downstairs to photograph them there, and they were too heavy and cumbersome to cart all of them upstairs into the light). When I was at Uni I would scour the Op Shops in Melbourne (Caulfield South always had the best ones, in my opinion) for old classics (I was studying literature as part of a BA at the time, so very into poetry and wearing black!!!). Again, my love for these books goes deeper than just thinking they are kinda cool. I love the musty smell of old books, the heavy feel of thick yellowed paper (and some of these books have gold edging on each page!!!!) the warm soft feel of the binding. And that's not even starting on the jewels found inside these books - which is one thing in particular I love about books in general. It doesn't matter how old and tattered a book is, the story itself is as gleaming and new as the day it was written. I love that!!!!! And does my love of collecting books end there?....oh no folks, it doesn't....


So I guess everyone kinda knows about my obsession with Enid Blyton books by now. Again this is just a small selection of my actual collection. At various times in my life I wanted to be: a fairy, a child who found fairies, the naughtiest girl in the school, and George (from famous five). Of course, I also wanted to own a magic wishing chair and find a magic faraway tree....actually I still want that....

So there you go. This is not actually the sum total of my collections....I could have added vintage crockery, science fiction books (in fact, I could have just gone with a general book collection, as our bookshelves are heaving with the entire works of many authors from Tom Robbins to Isaac Asimov - Matt is also a bit of a book collector). But I think this selection probably says the most about me. And as for the beginnings of new collections/obsessions...well let's just say I'm developing an unhealthy interest in aprons, brooches and soft toys....and leave it at that.

Oh, and while we're on the topic of aprons (hello segue!!) I have put an apron into the Tie One On challenge (run by Amy from Angry Chicken), and the Flickr Gallery is now up. I feel like a bit of a newbie having my apron posted next to so many fine sewers (such as Meg from Montessori By Hand - her apron is so gorgeous I just had to go and order the pattern!). But I have decided that this year is the year of the LEAP for me. Which means just jumping in the deep end and having a go. So that's what I've done. Anyway, here is the apron I submitted (the theme was 'Polka Dots').





I strongly suggest checking out the Tie One On gallery to see everyone else's submissions. There are some real works of art there. But be careful....like me, you may find yourself tempted to start a new collection....

Feelin' kinda Christmassy...

It's been looking a lot like Christmas for a while now, but just this last week, it has actually started 'feeling' like Christmas. For me, anyway. Saturday night saw us at our local Carols by candlelight (although we no longer have candles anymore, so it's more like carols by 'glow-stick light' which is kind of strange **flashback to Melbourne docklands warehouse parties - oh my, what a lifetime ago..**). The kids had such a great time - Lee conducted the brass band, and was even asked up the front to shake his bells (we took our own bells along) when they played "Jingle Bells". And of course we didn't take the video camera...oh well....

We have also done the Christmas light tour, checking out all the houses that are done up like National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Love love love it. And love it even more because it's not my house that is all 'neoned' up!

Christmassy craft has also been high on the agenda, from 'kind of' handmade cards (photo of Lee's Christmas tree art, with cardboard stuck onto the back), to the little felt garland shown above. And here is a close up.


It was so easy - took about 5 minutes! I just followed Liz's felt Christmas garland video tutorial. It reminds me of Christmas with the Flintstones or something. And the bells at the bottom were my own Christmassy addition, which I can't help but tinkle every time I walk past - yep, I guess I've got a thing for bells this year. Go figure!


I also made this bag to wear to a Christmas party that is being held on a yacht on the Brisbane river. I actually found the old necklace in an Op Shop, and paid 20 cents for it, and then found a handmade cushion cover (also in an Op Shop, for $1.00) and decided they would go together nicely (the rest of the outfit is just a black dress and black shoes). It is likely to be a very swank affair, so I hope the outfit pulls together nicely, and I don't feel too self-conscious in my $1.20 accessories.

Lastly, I have been giving my Grandma's old handmade apron a big workout, and have decided I need more. So I bought a vintage pattern (1960s I think) and made this apron/smock. Only problem is that it was a size 12 pattern (and I'm more a size 6), so I cut it down a bit, but not quite enough, so it looks a little dowdy on. But it fits mum perfectly, so once I've made another one for myself she can have this one. It was my first go at putting bias-binding on something, and I'm really happy with how it worked out.



Two big thumbs up once again for my "Bend-the-rules Sewing" book by Amy Karol, who explains nicely and clearly all the different ways of applying (and even making) bias-binding.

And now I'm off to prepare for the Mother's Group Christmas party, which will be held here tomorrow. So I'm going to get cracking. With bells on!

A busy weekend

Last weekend was busy in the best sense of the word. Lots of sewing, and interesting projects that actually got finished!


First cab off the rank was this bag for myself. The fabric was once an ironing board cover. Isn't it great! The ladies in the Op Shop where I bought it wanted me to come back and show them the bag once it was made. They seemed to find it most amusing that I would want to make a bag out of such a thing. But who could resist such a fantastic print. I love it!

Second project was resizing an apron that was my Grandma's, and was handmade by her goodness knows how long ago (I'd have a guess and say it was made in the 60s or 70s). It was quite a tricky job as my Grandma was a larger lady than myself (ok, maybe quite a bit larger) but I got it to a point where it fits good enough for an apron. I've been loving wearing it around the house. For one thing, I don't have to worry when I pick up Kate and she wants to smear her dirty face all over my shoulder, and for another, it just makes me feel all 'business like' in regards to the whole domesticity thing, which is kinda fun.






Last major project for the weekend was this little clutch for my sister. She had a dress she wanted to wear to a Restaurant Awards night yesterday, and she had no bag to match. So we went through my stash and found some suitable fabrics, and came up with this clutch.





It was the first time I'd tried making a clutch bag, and I didn't have a pattern, so I just kind of winged it. Now I can see what I would do differently next time, but it worked out well enough to be used.

Besides sewing, we did lots of walks in parklands, and playing outside this weekend. Very low key, and just hanging around the house kind of stuff, but productive and relaxing none-the-less. A lovely weekend!