The Handmade Dress Patterns GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

The Handmade Dress Patterns GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Awww! I love these patterns. What a great giveaway!

Kindy Costumes - finally finished!

I have posted previously about my wonderful Auntie and how she gave me her Enid Gilchrist magazines. I love them. And I love her!! Here are a few pics of the latest (and last) of the Kindy dressups I made for them. Yes, I know it's near the end of the year and Oscar will be leaving in a month (!!) but I said I'd make them so I had to follow through. That will teach me for being enthusiastic and saying, "Yes sure I’ll make you six aprons, six oven mitts, 4 vests, 2 mechanics outfits, two doctors' coats and two pairs of chaps as well as sew up 6 kindy sheet sets." Easy!


Here’s a pic of O in the Mechanic’s outfit. I used an Enid Gilchrist pattern and modified it by adding length to the jumpsuit. I think the legs turned out a bit funny because I trimmed them before sewing the inner seam – shouldn’t have done that! So now the legs aren’t even length. Hmmmmm – in the photo from behind you can see how it rides up a bit. Not sure if that’s just the fact that O’s wearing shorts and t-shirt underneath or my bad sewing!



And here is a pic just of the outfit – without the boy :)


Thanks again Auntie Robin for your precious Enids.

Christmas Bling

Look at all these lovelies! I had a beading night with my beading buddy the other night and made these! 20 pairs of Christmas sparkliness - 10 each in gold an silver finishes. I'm thinking $8AUD per pair plus postage. What do you think?

Here are a few closeups for you.

They are my versions of stylised Christmas Trees and little piles of Presents. I really enjoyed making them. Let me know if you'd like some :)

I won I won!!

this!!

Sam, from Jetta's Nest, won the competition to have her design printed on the BrisStylettes bag and I won a bag when they're printed!

I am so excited!

Thanks BrisStylettes :) hope to see you all at the market on Dec 4th.

Go and check out the awesome women on the BrisStylettes blog - amazingly wonderful crafty creative women! And then come to the market and buy lots of stuff!


Woooooooo hooooooooo!

Lovely Giveaway!

On Nadine's blog :)

17 years ago today . . .

. . . my mother died.

I was 17 when she died, so it is now half my life that she has been gone. Well, if I were going to be *really* accurate I would say that it isn't actually exactly half my life because I'd already turned 17 when she died. So half my life will be in another couple of months, but who's counting, right?

One of my sisters and her children came over today and we all went to the cemetery, which is very close to my house. Despite the proximity of the cemetery where Mum is buried, I rarely go there. I don't suppose it's something that I'm keen to do although it was kind of nice (if I might use that word) to take my children there.

Since having children I've been a bit caught up in them to really remember my grief for my mother. I think because this year's anniversary is quite important, being the halfway point as it were, it seems to have come back and hit me at full force. Grief's funny like that. Sometimes I wonder whether I set myself up for it or whether Grief really has a mind of its own and comes and goes as it pleases. Quite probably it is a combination of both. I have been reading some books about Grief lately as I have been a bit apprehensive about this anniversary. I'm getting old enough to say that something happened "half my life" ago and I can remember the details :).

It is significant that this past year I have felt the need to move through to the next stage of my Grief. I was cocky enough to think that I was "over it" and that I had "moved on". Don't you love how we like to think of Grief as being "over" or "through"? I am reading Grieving Mindfully at the moment. It comes from a Buddhist perspective and as I'm learning some Mindfulness exercises and meditation at the moment it seems to really hit the spot for me.

I am quite surprised and a little perturbed at how distressed I was this morning. Possibly the anticipation of going to the cemetery, not wanting to be upset around my children/sister/ children/husband/anyone! Possibly not wanting to feel the anger and hurt and sadness that I feel when I remember my loss. I was quite surprised by the amount of anger and hurt. I think out of all the emotions, as I get older, Anger is predominant. And I mean that capital A. Just as I'm giving Grief a capital G. These emotions are becoming more than just acquaintances to me, and I think that's because they've been around for so long! So perhaps instead of dreading them I should welcome them with open arms and live with them. We have known each other for half a lifetime after all :)

I thought I'd share a couple of pictures from our trip to the cemetery this morning. Perhaps it's morbid to take photos at a cemetery? I don't know. It is what it is.

Kindy costumes

Have had these on my to do list for awhile. Thought I'd post some pics. I volunteered to make up some kindy dress-ups that weren't ballet skirts or fairy-related :) I've already made a mechanics jumpsuit and some cowboy chaps - but I forgot to take pics of them! I'm making another mechanic's jumpsuit so I'll take pics of that when I'm done.

Here are a few doctors' coats and some vests - both from a Butterick kids' costume pattern that I got from Lesley when she had a clean-out :) The coats came from an old bed sheet so they are quite stiff and sturdy like medical coats are. I don't think they would have worked very well if they were from polycotton.

The coat is a size 5 - the biggest the pattern went up to. I don't know that I'd bother making it smaller ever. Here is Miss E in the same coat. Now, she is a tall 2-year-old but still - she'd grow out of it quickly enough!

The red crosses are painted on with really cool fabric textas that I got from Crafty Mamas - my favourite shop :)

These are the vests, from the same costume pattern as the coats - one out of fluoro fabric and the other of a cow print. Master O wouldn't wear the cow print so Baby Girl obliged. They're both size 5 as well - again I would never bother making a smaller one for E.

These were so quick to whip up - love fast, satisfying jobs, especially ones that don't cost a whole lot.

Pattern - free

Material - old bed sheet that was given to us

Fluoro - about $1

Cow - about $2

Now to make some for the kids to keep.