This is...a bit of a catch up...

I've had so much trouble keeping up with blogging lately, so here's a catch-up from the last two 'This is...' themes.


Last week's theme, as chosen by Betty Jo from Lino Forest was My Best Op Shop Find. And basically I was paralysed by the choices, as I've found so many great things over the years. In the end, I chose my favourite most recent find, which is this little embroidered tablecloth (sorry, I really should have ironed it, but hey, I think I may have confessed here once or twice already that I'm lazy like that!).


I just love the little Scotty dogs around the edge, and the little matching napkin (shown in the middle of the cloth). It's in perfect condition - looks to have never been used!

And this week's theme, as chosen by Danielle from Teacups on Treatops is My Most Treasured Childhood Possession.

Again I have lots of things from teddies, to plastic jewellery, to poems written in Grade 2.


But the thing I love most is this tin. Looks pretty unexciting really doesn't it! But it used to belong to my Grandma, and it was always filled to the brim with buttons. I would spend hours at her place playing with this tin, or rather with the buttons within. I would sort them by colour, then by size, then by pattern, or even by interestingness. I even loved the feel and the sounds of them.....are you starting to get the picture of where my button addiction may have originated? Anyway, this button tin became mine a long time ago, and before I discovered sewing, it just sat in my special meatsafe cupboard (another treasure that once belonged to Grandma and Grandad - it is a rickety old thing with a stained-glass window in the top cupboard door, with wire mesh at the sides. Grandma used to keep her potatoes in it. But I digress...).

Anyway, once I discovered sewing, I realised I could actually start using the buttons I had loved so much for so long. And then I realised that I actually had an excuse to start a button collection of my own, adding to Grandma's stash.


And of course my button collection fast outgrew this old tin, and is now sorted (by colour) in glass jars by my sewing area. But this tin still has pride of place. It now contains pieces of elastic, because I like to think it would still prefer to be useful. And I never tire of looking at it. If I am stuck for inspiration, this tin always takes me back to a childhood filled with colour, texture, and imaginative wonder.

All this from a tin eh?....who'da thunk it!!

Another 'Built by Wendy' mash-up!

After wearing the last linen dress I made to death, I decided I should whip up another one. This is probably the cheapest dress ever, as I found this watermelon-coloured fabric in an Op Shop and it was 20 cents. Yep - TWENTY CENTS!!!!!! Can you believe that! Actually I did pay more for it than that, because I would have just felt SO cheap, and it was worth so much more than that. It was a huge fabric remnant (I still have enough to make either a small dress for Kate, or maybe a bag). And the fabric itself is quite gorgeous. It looks like a heavy linen, but doesn't crinkle anywhere near as much as 100% linen. A friend who knows a lot about fabrics said she thinks it may be a linen/rayon blend. Anyway, it just feels kind of old-fashioned and lovely. And of course, I had to add some buttons to it...just because...



I basically did the same mash-up of the Built by Wendy Simplicity pattern #3835 that I did last time, with the exception that I cut out the back piece of the dress as one whole piece, rather than two pieces with a seam up the back. Which just made it even quicker and easier to whip up.



Next time, I am going to find some heavy winter-weight fabric, and try actually making the dress according to the pattern, with the yoke, zip and longer sleeves. I think it will make a very nice winter dress. But while summer's still here...well..this design is just hard to pass up. OK, off now to post the pic in the Built by Us Flickr group, and also check out how all the other Built By Wendy projects are turning out (a lot of other people seem to alter and embellish their patterns, so it's great for inspiration). Yee har!

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....

This is....

Ok, so I'm late on joining in the 'This is..' fun over at three buttons, but I am figuring that in doing this I am killing two birds with one stone....

Firstly, I did know about this earlier, but the first 'This is...' was "My Favourite Cup", and to be perfectly honest, I don't have one.... Sad I know, especially as I am a compulsive tea drinker. But every morning I would just grab whatever old cup came to hand. I didn't even have a favourite that was just for 'looks', you know. Until now...

Check out this rose coloured lovely:


I found four of these in an Op Shop yesterday. I haven't actually tested them for drinking out of, as I suspect it would be kinda difficult. Very wide and very shallow. But oh the beauty!!! It's a bit hard to tell from the photos, but this cup is heart-shaped on the inside, and sort of lilly-padish on the outside. I feel like I should be sitting on a toadstool drinking nectar out of it. So I'm not sure I'll ever sip my earl grey tea out of it while I tap away at the computer, but I will admire it each day...


OK, now that I have caught up on the first round, I am jumping straight into the second, which is "This is.....what scares me". Which would be this post. Right here! Yep, turning up late for events scares the beejeezus out of me! When I was younger, if I turned up late for a Uni lecture (and I mean even literally one minute late) I would pace outside the door wringing my hands trying to work up the courage to open the door and walk in.....and I couldn't! Sometimes I might have driven for 30 minutes to get there, and then after being one minute late I would turn around and go home. How's that for some neuroticism for ya!


As you can see though, I have become much braver as I have got older (and I think having kids also has a tendency to make you 'get over yourself'). So here I am. Crashing a meme! A latecomer! Going off to dry my sweating palms now.......

Oh, and to see everyone else's responses, visit three buttons.