Spring?

Ali wrote today about autumn approaching so I thought I'd share some pictures of the seasons changing here. It is definitely still winter here. It has been windy and raining and the fire is on, but there are signs of change in the garden.

Giraffe

Finally sewed this together last night and all the little piles on my desk that have been here for weeks are gone. So today I need to make some new ones.
One thing first - while I was out shopping and the girls were here with Chris they somehow got into this room and had some fun. I think I am quite lucky - it could have been a lot worse.

Pincushion

A short, but sweet post today - so much mess in this house! I have finally made a pincushion using this great tutorial, and this sheep is ready to be sent to a little girl called Amy.

Tags

The girls are both asleep. Yeh! I'm hoping they will stay that way for a bit. Yesterday was a bit of a nightmare. One would have a quick nap, while the other jumped up and down and screamed and then they swapped. And as soon as you got the awake one out of their cot they started poking the other one until they woke up and if you shut the door to stop them they screamed until the other one woke up anyway.
Normally I deal with this, but we had a 1st birthday later in the afternoon so after half an hour of being there they were revolting and kind of loud.
While Amelia had one of her quick naps i distracted Grace for about a whole 3 minutes and we stamped some tags.

A new favourite game is trying to get on the couch and then jump up and down until we nearly fall off. This photo is a bit of a mistake as Grace looks calm and there is no jumping.

This is Amelia after she pulled everything off the shelf and decided it was a good place to sit.
Might have a coffee and read while I have the chance.

Just Thinking

I have had a pretty productive day yesterday, craftwise. I had to get the dolls finished so Chris took the girls to visit friends for a couple of hours and I finished the dolls, caught up on a stack of crafting podcasts and managed to read a magazine in the bath - the first time this year!
Zinnia and Penelope

Francesca the Giraffe


I started thinking about all things handmade yesterday. Since I have started reading and participating in the craft blog world I sometimes forget that the rest of the world may not appreciate handmade items like I do. And then I hear a comment like 'why would anyone bother to do that' or questioning my use of wool instead of acrylic to knit with or people assuming you will make something for them for free.
Then I realise that it is still a minority of people who prefer handmade and appreciate the use of really good materials. It was so good to see the dolls at Joybucket sell for a really good price. It is nice to see that there are some people who appreciate the value of really good handmade stuff.
It has been such a revelation to discover Etsy and so good to have places like Whip Up and Craftster to inspire and encourage crafters.

Little Green Doll

Chris and I did a deal. He umpired footy this morning and I crafted this afternoon.
With lots of inspiration from here and a bit from here this is what I came up with.

She looks kind of funny sitting in this picture. But I like her. And the girls do too. They have been trying to get her which is unusual as they usually prefer mass produced crap from China to my lovingly handmade stuff. Maybe I'm slowly converting them. For really amazing dolls have a look here at Joybucket.
Big news here - Amelia has been walking. She isn't big on it though - would prefer to slide around on her knees, but she gets where she wants to go.

Finished Bags

Grace and Amelia had some good naps this week which let me finish some bags that will be presents for two little girls. Two different styles, but both having a couple of matching hairclips. With any luck they will keep sleeping for a bit so I can finish a few more things.

My little stunt rider

It is raining here again. The days have been starting really nicely and you think it's going to be a sunny day, so you walk down the street and then it starts raining. Yesterday I was saturated, the girls were very cosy, snug in the pram. The same thing today, lucky Mum was down and I had planned to meet her in town after playgroup with the car.
In amongst the rain Mum did a great job on the front garden. All the old dead daisies and lavenders are gone and new plants are in their place. It should look really nice in spring. Thanks Mum!!
Amelia has stood by herself a bit and even tried a few steps last night, but she really prefers to be doing this:
A few little cards, copied straight from Denyse Schmidt.
I have sold a few softies locally which always makes me excited that someone likes something I make and today I was asked to make something - a doll. I said yes but now I'm having a small panic attack (although the wine is helping with that). They didn't specify colour, size, anything - just left it up to me. Aaaahh. Another wine and I might have a plan.

Lara

My WIP today is Lara by Debbie Bliss using Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed. I think I cast this on over a year ago and knitted the first sleeve and that was it. So I have pulled it out and am going to try to finish it, but the rows are so long that it seems like it will take forever. At least there will be hardly any seaming when I do finish knitting.

Some finished things.

I've have had stuff cut out and sitting in little piles for weeks. I am slowly working throught the piles - new ones do keep mysteriously appearing though. If I'm quite honest my new craft room looks like its exploded, I can't see the bed or the floor.
Thank goodness Chris just rang to day he doesn't have to umpire footy tomorrow, so I might make a start on cleaning. But if I clean I can never find anything in here. I know I have a complete double standard I could never stand having anything like this mess anywhere else in the house.
Here is what I have finished. A sheep, definetely looks like he's a bit surprised or he's just leaving a rave party.
I finally made some minimoopys for the girls from scraps of cotton and corduroy. This is a pattern from here that Carly kindly shared. It is a great pattern and a great size for little people.

Hairpins

It's raining again today. It is so nice to have some rain and to know that a lot of farmers are finally getting some, but it means another day stuck inside and wet washing draped around the house.
We had a day like this on Monday and I really needed to get to the shops. We finally made it later in the day, but as soon as we got there it started raining again and by the time I got the girls back into the car it was pouring. And then the car wouldn't start - the battery was really dead. I think the girls knew I wanted to scream so they did it for me. Lucky school had finished so Chris and a friend came to the rescue.
I finally got around to making some hair clips. The big ones on the right for me and the little ones for the girls - they match some pants I made for them. We'll see if they stay in their hair for more than 30 seconds.
An action shot of Grace walking - she thinks she's pretty clever. Poor Amelia gets on her knees and slides along. I think she thinks she's walking too.

Places I've Been

create your own visited countries map

More Japanese Craft Books

We have been out enjoying the last of the school holidays, going to lunch and seeing people. not much sewing being done.
A couple of milestones for the girls today. Grace tried to walk and managed a bit of a shuffle and Amelia stood by herself. Grace quacked at a dog yesterday and then quacked for the rest of the day.
Some more of my favourite books. ISBN 4579111001. Great children's clothes.
ISBN 4277311512 - Gorgeous smocking and it doesn't look too tricky. More pictures from them can be found here.

WIP and Felt

My WIP this Friday is my room. It is meant to be the spare room, but also had the computer, all our books, another television. I have a craft desk in the laundry, but have never used it - way too cold out there. I do everything at the kitchen table. Yesterday Chris decided I needed to shift some furniture so we can actually use the kitchen table to eat on.
Here are a few pictures of how the spare room looks now. There is still a bit of work to do, but it is going to be great to leave the sewing machine out all the time.


I have oftened admired the banner over at Soozs and all the softies she makes from felt. A while ago she wrote about her 'felt dealer' (this stuff is definitely like a drug!) and I just received my first parcel from them. I say first as I know there will definitely be more!

Home Again

We are back from another trip around the countryside. We went to Perth for the weekend to see Chris's family and celebrate David's 60th birthday. The girls held up pretty well at the party considering that there were a lot of new faces for them there.
After Perth we headed to the farm to Mum and Dad's for a few days. My sister Jane and her husband came too which was great.
A couple of pics from the trip. Nanna Jean and Amelia.

Chris and Grace. Grace had to be pushed all the way to the car after the party.
Cupcakes for playgroup today. These may look pretty basic compared to the cupcakes here and here, but this was a big effort for me. Lucky I had Mum and my sister Jane to look after the girls, otherwise they would never have been made.

Nice Book

A couple of pictures from a lovely Japanese Craft Book - my current favourite one.
It is called Linen Handiworks for Everyday Use. The ISBN is 4834724034.

Corduroy

With Chris being on holidays this week and the girls growing I have needed to make some more clothes for them. I've used a lot of corduroy. Corduroy used to make me cringe. I think it reminds me of bad 70's flairs in ugly colours, but it is the best thing for kids clothes. Easy to sew and easy to wash. So we have pants. Green for Grace and aqua/blue for Amelia.
Dresses for Grandad's special birthday party this weekend. I actually cut into my stash of Liberty print - it did take some courage.

I am pretty proud of the little flowers I made.I find it hard somedays working out how to dress them - will they need counselling if I dress them the same or will they grow up needing to be dressed the same as some twins I've talked to did. I still feel the need to have two things pretty similar even if they don't wear them at the same time. It started when I was pregnant. We didn't buy much until they were born, but if we did there had to be two.
I think it was a superstitious thing - if we bought two then we would have two healthy babies at the end. Mum bought a "Happy Child" rose when I was pregnant and became so paranoid that she had to buy another one the next day. The strange thing is one has always been smaller and grown a bit differently then the other.
We have all been stuck in here for a few days with colds and Amelia has had gastro. The sun has appeared and it actually looks warm outside I am hoping it is and we can go outside to play.

Thuja Socks

I have finally finished a pair of socks for Mum.
The details:
Pattern - Thuja
Yarn - Lorna's Laces Shepherd Worsted in Icehouse (this stuff is seriously soft and fantastic to wear)
Needles - 3.75mm

Friday

The girls are growing which means they need some new clothes. So here is my WIP for today - piles of fabric which will eventually become clothes for Grace and Amelia.

I joined up for the Magazine Swap and received this fantastic parcel from Rebecca in London (who sadly has no blog).

The girls seem to always want to play with the same thing, I think they have reached a compromise here - one drives and one pushes and then they swap.

Giraffe

I finished my other WIP from the weekend and I only had to change the ears, hands, feet, legs, face and horns about 57 times!.
I am very happy with the horns. I think it might also solve my dilemma I had a while ago trying to make beetle and butterfly antennae. They are made like my elephants tails and the ties on the cube. And it's sold already!

Sheep

One of my WIPs from yesterday became this:

There is a couple of things I will change on my next sheep, but I'm pretty happy with this one. Chris went to the toy library yesterday and got new stuff. Grace will only ride with Milly if she is in charge. She will not sit behind her. Luckily Milly doesn't seem to care.

Works in Progress

I know it is Work in Progress Friday, but that didn't happen so here it is today. 2 little creatures waiting to be sewn up. I didn't look too hard around the house for unfinished things - I think that would freak me out to see how much there is.
I did finish these glasses cases though. They have been sitting waiting for buttons all week, but now they are finished and for sale here.
I received the fantastic Kitty,Bunny,Bear Pattern and it is fantastic!

Inspiration

I woke up the other night with a great giraffe idea in my head (I'm still on the hunt for the perfect frog and giraffe softies). I had the perfect picture in my head. But today I've been thinking, was this great creativity or have I ripped off someone elses design. I have read so many blogs and looked at so many pictures on flickr that my head is spinning. I have been thinking a bit about the difference between copying and inspiration. I want to make things that are unique, but there are only so many ways to do a facial feature or do a leg.
I have found some inspiration in some books I was reading with the girls yesterday.
The Gigantic Turnip - love the cow and the lady.


Russell the Sheep - gorgeous sheep and frog.

In other news:
-Grace has learnt to stand up on her own.
-I'm can't wait for my copy of the Wee Wonderfuls book to get here to make some for the girls.
- I went to Bilby Yarns in Perth - great to find a local supplier of fleece, wool, dye and spinning equipment and back issues of Interweave Knits and Spin Off magazine.