Stitches from Finland

Before I begin I would like to thank all of you who left me sweet birthday wishes.  I think I've got to the bottom of the email reply list!  You really are a sweet bunch aren't you?  You made my birthday week extra special!

Now a few of you were interested to know about the Scandinavian Stitches book I received for my birthday.  I have to say, it's my favourite book to date.  There are just so many projects that I can see myself making.  I've made two of them already and I have plans to make some angels soon.

Now I see in the front of the book that I'm not allowed to put pictures of this book on the internet, which is a bit of a bummer, but not to worry because you can pop onto this Flickr site and see what sort of creations are in the book.  Here is Kajsa's own blog as well if you fancy some extra inspiration.  Isn't it neat how we can buy a craft book now and then go onto their blog to ask further questions or see what sort of person they are?

Well I just couldn't resist making one of these cute little houses.  I've now made six of them they are so much fun.  I love being able to use some of my new fabrics too, but not too much!

The instructions are super easy to follow and the projects are great for beginners as well.  I love the simple nature of Kajsa's designs.

The book contains instructions for quilts, cushions and soft toys mainly,  but there are a few others bits and pieces too.

I made this cushion yesterday.  I loved how it was made with old tea towels.  I've used two here, one for the tea pot and the red gingham one as well.  So pretty and different.  The top of the cushion is actually some quilted fabric from when I was learning how to free motion quilt roses!  Waste not, want not, I say!!  Daughter No.1 exclaimed how lovely it was when she arrived home from school.  "Where did you get it from?" she asked!!  I'll take that as a compliment.

The floral tea towel was a swap gift from an ex blogger which makes it even more special.  Thanks Stephanie, if you still check out my blog.

 I like the hand quilted steam from the dainty tea cup.

And for the back of the cushion I combined the two tea towel fabrics and played around with them a bit.  Keeping with the theme, it fastens together with a vintage button from my Gran's collection. 

If you are looking for a great craft book for a gift or for yourself, then look no further, this one is brilliant.  You'll be seeing more of the projects on my blog soon I imagine. 

Now I completely forgot to show you this vintage fabric I bought from the quilting show!  Please forgive me as I did promise.  I still don't know what to make with it.  I've had the suggestion to make an apron but I already have two lovely ones.  I'm thinking about a cover for the bread maker but then I'll have to keep taking it off each night - might be a nuisance.  Any other ideas ladies?  I do have a blender but I keep it in the cupboard. 

Alrighty, I'm suddenly really hungry so it must be lunch time.  I'll be back soon with photos from my lovely cookie swap evening last night. See you later!  Oh and you ladies experiencing snow, be very careful outside, but keep showing us piccies, they are so beautiful!

Edited to add:  OMG Kajsa herself has been here and left me a lovely comment!!!  Oh my gosh I'm so excited it's silly!  It's just like I was saying, you can get so close to the authors these days.  And to think I've warmed her heart!  Oh gosh, I'd better go and have a calming cup of tea after that.

Rubbish is Not a Disposable Item

It all started with this book...

which has some fantastic chapters on shopping, recycling, green cleaning and growing your own vegetables.  As you may know, I am now cleaning with baking soda, salt and white vinegar with fabulous results.  I take bags with me on all shopping expeditions, so there is no reason to collect yet another plastic bag.  I've even taken goods out of bags and left them at the counter.  Do I get a gold star for that? 

This NZ Gardener magazine style book was gifted to my mother after sending them a recipe.  It's such a great read.  I read nearly all of it in one sitting.  Anyway now I am thinking what we can do to reduce wastage, packaging and money and lead a simple life eating more natural products instead of packaged ones. 

My hen hopes have been dashed due to regulations in our area.  Seems you need them to be ten metres from a house and three metres from a boundary fence.  That means they would be in negative space.  Now we wouldn't want that for some feathery friends would we? 

In our area we are all given a huge 240 litre wheelie bin for our recycling.  That's always been a great thing for us, as we sure put out a fair bit of paper and plastic each fortnight.  But I still feel bad about the amount of packaging that goes in there each day.  Honestly the bin is packed to the brim.  So...

from now on when I visit the supermarket I need to remember to take my bags with me, including the bulk bin ones.  If I buy from the bulk bins with recycled bags I will not be consuming any packaging at all.  If I buy other goods in bulk there will be less packaging in the long run.  It's not always cheaper, but perhaps if we make a fuss about it things will change.  And I'm hoping that our bin will be much lighter next collection day.  I'll keep you informed on that one.

I will bake all our bread so I won't be left with a bread bag each day.  I've worked out a really quick and easy way to make the bread too.  I filled five ice cream containers with all the dry ingredients minus the yeast.  So now when I want to make a loaf I just have to empty a container into the maker, add water, oil and the yeast.  All done in 30 seconds!  You can't beat the heavenly smell of it cooking and I know it's better for our family too.

Warning, real life photo ahead!!!!!!!!!!!

These bins now reside on our bench.  It's our food scraps and egg shell collection points.  All scraps, minus fats and meats, end up in here instead of down the sink.  The drain will thank me for that too as it regularly blocks up.  (Hubby too for that matter!) 

The plot to the far right is now my dig-in compost plot.  I'm going for this method as I don't want to buy a compost bin.  It should keep the smells away too.  The rest of the garden is looking pretty flash too after a day in the garden yesterday.  I found 22 self seeded lettuces too under the mass of weeds - bonus!  Oh and plenty of parsley plants too. 

A trip to the garden centre provided me with loads of seed packets.  There is plenty of time to start with seeds instead of buying punnets.  Besides I have so many empty punnets behind the shed waiting to be recycled. 

Shhh, the babies are sleeping in the nursery.  Daughter No.1 helped me plant the seeds and made name tags for them out of recycled yoghurt lids. 

I was finding The Challenge of the Utmost Kind a little unchallenging, (probably because of all the clauses I added!) so I am hoping that this will be more challenging for me.  I'm just going about it quietly and trying to make it a normal everyday life thing.  Feel free to join me if you think you need to improve in this area.

Raggy Heart

Here's a quick project you can do in front of the TV in an evening.  It's so easy and so much fun, even the kids could make one of these.  And the best part, it's really cheap.

I picked up this wire heart for about $3 from Spotlight.  But you could make you own shape from an old wire coat hanger if you wished.  Good recycling as well.

Those bins of scraps that never seem to get used are just perfect for this project.  Just find fabrics in suitable colours or go for a jumble multi-coloured mix like I did.

Cut narrow strips about 15cm long and fold them in half.  Wrap them under the wire and loop the ends through the loop.  Push them really tightly together for a nice firm look.  The ends seem to stay up straighter this way too. 

You could hang a fabric heart down from the centre too.  Not sure whether or not I will.  I quite like the simple look of the bare wall.  I've had another three orders for these already - thanks girls!

I'm on a bit of a craft roll at the mo.  I have another project to show you next time that I really, really love.  I'll give you a clue.  It's made from some really old fabric.

What Has The Woman Sent?!!

Well I found a sweet little present for you on Saturday. It wasn't at Market Day, but at the shop by dance class. It's a creative centre and the shop there sells things that crafters have made. It's a great place to shop for presents as they are reasonably priced and very unique. So this secretly hidden present, with a very lovely felt envelope, will be part of my giveaway. I'll add a few bits and pieces as it would be a bit boring unwrapping just one present wouldn't it?

Now I have decided that I would like one of my regulars to win my birthday giveaway. So if you left me a message on my last post, 'Oh Dear!', then your name will be put into a hat on Sunday 29th, my birthday, and she will draw a winner out. Sound fair? By the way No.2 is feeling quite good now thank you. She did love reading your kind messages.

And speaking of presents, my goodness did a wonderful collection of them arrive this morning! All the way across the world, dear Liz trawled the op shops and market places to find as much red gingham and spots as she could carry by the looks of things!! She warned me beforehand that it was all a bit of fun and nothing serious, and she would have to explain a few items. Just look at this bag full...

Liz you completely spoilt me!! And she just did this because she is such a sweetie. Thank you so much for all these lovelies. Well, shall we have a bit of a looksie then?

A spotty cap which will be perfect at a picnic as I will now match my picnic blanket!! Great as camouflage should war break out. Spotty pen and pencil case - very useful and will also blend in. Fragrant beads wrapped in gingham that looks like a necklace but is probably a smelly for my wardrobe. Four gingham squares for jam jar covers I'm guessing.

Two padded coat hangers for my best clothes. And the funniest thing of all... a red gingham school uniform dress that I nearly wet myself over when I opened it!!! Imagine sending me a uniform?!!! What a hoot!

Shower cap covers for the fridge leftovers, beats the clear ones I currently use by a long shot!

The prettiest kitchen cloth that Liz must have known I've been pining for since I first saw them on UK blogs.

I'm not sure if No.2 is ready to forgive me yet for dressing her up!! She is so glad it's not her real uniform as she is not keen on it at all! I think it fabulous and I'm hoping No.3 will let me dress her in it when she gets home. Isn't she just the funniest?!! Honestly we were both in stitches afterwards. So funny! (Have you noticed the plunger on the floor? You never know when you may need one in a hurry!)

Look what I picked up the the op shop this week...

and these darling little florets. I thought they suited that name! I'm thinking these will be perfect for adding to my bags and cushions. The tray cloth will be carefully cut up into individual stars for our Christmas bunting. How flash will that look I wonder. I've had to give them a good soak to revive them back to their former glory. I wish I had taken before photos because I was quite shocked when I found them so very white. I may have to tea stain the little ones.

Well that's enough for today. I feel a list coming on. I think I may have many more things to make for Christmas still. Really don't know what I'm up to. Don't like that feeling of being so unorganised, you would think I would have got used to it by now wouldn't you?

Oh golly No.4 is finally thinking about toilet training herself. Must go and supervise! I didn't ever think she would get there as she's so much later than the others. Bye!!!

Claire's Boys Ate On This

This morning before playgroup, but after kindy drop-off, I popped up to the post office and posted off three parcels. Only three to go now and that's it for my overseas posting. Such a relief that will be. Tomorrow, I've promised myself. Of course I haven't even thought about Christmas cards but plenty of time - right? Oh golly that brings on terrible thoughts of trying to get four girls, looking half way decent, for a family photo for the card. You try it, almost impossible!


Now remember dear Claire, from Dolly Dollop, who posted me her old table cloth? Well it arrived last week and just look at it now...

Does it not look very flash in it's new surroundings? Oh indeed it does. Just the right sort of colour for a garden potting table too. Yeah right, like I could ever dirty it! It just looks really pretty. Maybe I could put some pretty pot plants on it and surrounding it. Claire's boys used to eat on this cloth. Probably licked it too. Bet she sometimes thought it looked as though it belonged in a garden when they had finished eating. I know that feeling, most days.

And look what my darling husband put up for me. A lovely board across a beam so I can store my digging implements. Maybe I can round up a few more things to fill it up one day. Perhaps
I need something like a pretty picture on the fence too. It's all a bit natural looking. We'll see. Don't think I could use applique in this instance, sadly.

See the little baby carrots growing? I could hardly tell what was a weed and what was seedling on Sunday. But now there is definitely two lines of the little fellows growing so well. I can finish the weeding now.

I made the mistake of picking a pea pod for the littlest one to eat yesterday. She loved it and bawled when she'd finished it because it was so yummy and could she please have another one. OK but only one more! But it seemed like it just wasn't going to do. Now she knows where they come from they won't be left alone. Luckily she's the only girl who eats her peas.

Weeded paths, swept off paving stones are the results from the weekend in the garden.

Look at my nicely swept path. It used to be thick with leaves, but no longer.

Gosh the garden really looks nice from photos. You miss out on all the clutter and mess. We have been making plans to tidy up a few more parts of the garden this spring. Must get on with those.

Our garden has been neglected quite badly since we moved here three years ago. You get that when children are little. I was just about to have baby No. 4 when we arrived here. The garden was so perfect, with a pond, waterfall, weed-free gardens and under-control plants. Now it's like a jungle in places. The chalking, bikes, left out toys and general garden mess has started to take over.

Oh well, I guess this pile of washing isn't really folding itself whilst I'm on the computer is it?

Thanks for your lovely comments about my advent calenders yesterday. You really are too kind! I don't really have anything to sew today as I have material needs. Well more notion needs really. Perhaps a trip to Spotlight is on the cards this week.

I must show you some pretty Christmas pictures next time. Quite inspiring they are. Have a happy day!

I Love Blogland!!!

My day started with this...

Look at the lettuce leaf! It was requested. Seaweed sheets, home baked bread, cucumber, crackers and a biscuit. I love using these Tupperware lunch boxes as you don't use wrappers of any sort. Very friendly they are!

I made myself an apron, I've never worn one before. Horrors! The fabric is a lovely Amy Butler print named Nigella. Do you think it will improve my cooking? Hubby says the fabric isn't centred, but I had to cut it this way to get two out of the same fabric. I kind of see his point now! Oh well.

And what about these knee patches!! Pink felt hearts are a winner. Please feel free to have a squish of those rather delicious legs. We do!!

When one of the big girls passes a spelling level test they get a gift. Usually it's been a new book (bought on big sale!) or a $5 book token. They love it and I think it's a good gift as you can't read too many book can you? It also motivates them to do better. Anyway, as I am now on "The Challenge" I need to replace this type of gift with a homemade surprise. So I told No. 2 that I would make her a gift last night.

She received two little flower brooches this morning in her all-time favourite fabric. She loves them and was very happy and excited. They only took about half an hour to complete and were quite fun to make as well. I found the idea here.

I promised some garden shots when we had better weather. Well that day has come already! Yes there is still a sun people!! Here we have broccoli, beetroot and celery...

Some spinach and lettuce...

And the intention here is for the peas, butter beans and Sweet 100 tomato to grow up the fence and attach themselves to the mesh. Lets hope they follow that plan. We also have several capsicums as the big girls eat them like apples. Red, orange, yellow and purple. Not see purple before!

And mint like you've never seen! I would love to make mint jelly but will have to hunt out a recipe for it. I'm sure I have one somewhere.

Now I have to say that I am quite overcome with the generosity in Blogland once again. Really and truly. Last night I received three separate offers from kind people.

Pomona has offered to send me some pretty tea towels and in return I will be gifting her one of my recycled jeans bags. When on "The Challenge" one needs to have people like this looking out for one another.

Claire mentioned that she was just about to take her old oilcloth off the dining table and would I like it for my potting table? Would I ever!! It's a very pretty sage green with white polka dots. Just perfect thank you. Oh I will be fancy after all!!

And Joan has offered me a gift subscription to Country Living magazine!!! Imagine! It's something the magazine offered her as a gift for a friend. Gosh yes, I'll be your friend Joan. What a kind thought.

So you see, the world really does have many lovely people in it after all. We generally only hear about the bad bits on the news. I'm quite shocked at how all the generosity this week has had quite an impact on how I feel about the world. Lets keep it up, little things do make a big difference.

I think I've written quite enough already, but I just want to say I have signed up for a PIF (that's pay it forward) from Michela, and I am looking for three participants. I will send you a small handcrafted gift and in return you send out three gifts to other people. Sounds nice and definitely in the theme of things. I'm thinking mine will have a Christmas theme. Interested? Let me know and if I have too many people I will draw them out of a hat. Thanks!!

Another Parcel and a Bit Of Pottering

Oh my goodness me!!! Look what Michela insisted on sending me. A pair of her old worn jeans. What was she thinking you're wondering? I mean look at the state of them!!! Now really, I just got so excited about them that I cut them up before photographing them for you. How silly is that?

See here is the evidence. She wanted me to be able to make some more of my bags so she offered to send me some she no longer needed. How very generous is that? And look, that's just what I'm doing with them. Looking good!

Of course I said no at first as the cost of sending them would be way too high. But Michela is rather insisting and said she would throw in a dress she didn't wear and a magazine. Well I could hardly turn her down again now could I? And look, she sent delicious chocolates too. Excuse me? Are you suggesting that these could be empty boxes? Well you'll never know will you? He he!

And goodness what fabulous bedtime reading this is going to be. I love this mag and have just started getting them out from the local library. But to have my own copy is another story!! I can even cut pictures out of it if I want to.

And look at the dress she sent. Never worn. Claims it didn't fit her bust which she swears is similar to a surfboard! I'm thinking now that perhaps I am more like a baking tray, as it fits me like it's been made to measure.

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Gosh the compliments I received yesterday. I wore it over a top and jeans and it looked gooood! I thoroughly enjoyed telling people that it was sent from a good friend in Venice. Oh the groans and disappointment in their faces. It was too good.

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Aren't I so lucky? What a lovely person Michela is to send me all this and wanting nothing in return. You would be mistaken in thinking it was a swap parcel. There are truly some wonderful people lurking in blogland. Thank you so very much Michela!!!

And look at my baby with her new hair clips Jo sent her. Aren't they just the cutest?

I had been admiring a table, quite an uninspiring one to many really. It was down the road from here outside someones house. I had stopped to look at it quite a number of times I suppose. Well all my girls knew which one I wanted so you could probably say I was obsessing over it really. OK I admit it, I was totally in L.O.V.E. with it!!!

So as one does, I sent the dear husband out straight after work to collect it. Gosh I didn't think it was quite so big, whoops. He wasn't terribly impressed with having to get it and how it looked. But he know how to make a girl happy and shut one up too I guess. Oh look at my wonderful people mover. It still excites me to own one. It's truly the bestest car in the world, even if it does resemble a tip inside.

So what do you think of my new potting table? Hey, not bad for nothing is it? Picture a few nails on the fence to hand a few tools. A few decorative pots to look like it's being used. Lucky for that high fence we have as I would have looked quite suspicious with the camera hanging out the loo window! It's one of those with a security catch too.

And what about a nice plastic table cloth to cover the top. Yes this would be ideal and no not too bright at all. Unfortunately if I want something similar to this I would have to fork out some serious dollars. Now that would no impress Tif (The Challenge maker) would it? No it would not. I'm thinking I will have to look around and see if I can find something cheaper, or free even.

I've gotten quite serious in the garden over the weekend and extended my small patches considerably. I will have to wait until the jolly rain stops to show you what I've been up to.
Well now, I might just go and see what the littlest madam is up to. I can't hear water so it's probably OK. Have a good day/evening or whatever you are at.

Bye for now, Sarah xxx