Emmie Loves.....

DIY Little Girl Dolly Tutorial!!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 07 May 2014 13:16:00 +0000

I was recently told by a 4 year old friend of mine that the dolly I made her was falling apart. It was the first doll I had ever made and she’s become a bit tattered and torn over the years. But to be honest, I was pretty surprised (and proud!) that she had lasted this long!

Ava came across Poppy (the dolly) and was so enamoured with her that I thought I’d make one for her too, and perhaps my sewing skills have improved in the past few years and she won't fall apart any time soon…we’ll see!!

So, in case you didn’t already know, my husband is a super talented published illustrator, and has recently been published as an author/illustrator too! I know, right?! So cool! A few months ago, Heath released his second written-as well-as-illustrated picturebook called “I Wanna Be A Pretty Princess’ and it’s amazing.

In this gorgeous book is about a young (unnamed) girl who desperately wants to be a pretty princess. I’m not gonna give too much away, but there comes a point in the story where she is more than happy to dress in her favorite tutu, pearls and rainbow tights and smear make-up all over her face.

Ooooh! If you would like a copy of this book, you can order it online here or here or at any worthy bookstore!

I adore this young lady so much that I thought I might just make a mini version of her! Ava is also obsessed with her Jemima doll (from Play School, we’re in Australia, remember!) and I love the way that this toy is made, so I based my pattern on her.

So, here’s a tutorial for you on how to make a pretty dolly girl of your own!

The pattern pieces are here.

**Please note that I am in NO WAY a proper seamstress and my pattern drafting skills are far from perfect. I am an amateur crafter who loves to create and make stuff and thought I’d share her with you. If you would like to use these pattern pieces, please be aware that it may not be PERFECTLY exact so always allow a ¼ inch seam allowance and feel free to adjust as you see fit!**

Plain ‘skin coloured’ fabric

Dress colour

Tuille

Felt

Cotton

Sewing machine

Embroidery thread

Needle

Button

Wool in desired hair colour

Stuffing

Firstly, cut out your pieces. The pattern pieces attachment will tell you how many of each you need. Please remember to allow a seam allowance on each piece! About ¼ inch worked for me.

Make your hair! I followed this fabuloustutorial, it’s excellent, explains it perfectly, and does a much better job than I can! Here are my pictures though just in case you wanna scope out how I did it for this pretty lady!

Sew the face onto one of the plain pieces! This part is a bit tricky as it’s really hard to know EXACTLY where to place everything. Heath tends to say that the eyes need to go in the centre of the head. I ignored this info, then I think he was right in the end as I ended up moving my pieces later on.

Mark on your eyes and mouth with a light pencil or fabric chalk before attaching, then sew on as you wish!

Then, with right sides facing, attach the face pieces together leaving a gap at the bottom for turning out.

Fill the head piece with stuffing (as full and form as you can!) and then blind stitch the bottom hole as neatly as you can. Put aside.

Next, move on to the body. Place body pieces together, right sides facing, and stitch all the way around, leaving the arm holes and bottom parts open.

Next is the arms and legs. Now-I had grumpy times with my original cut-out pieces, so I restarted both of them so they allowed more of a seam allowance and allowed me to turn them out more easily (hence my harping on about the seam allowance…experience!)

Put pieces right sides facing and sew around the edge TWICE for reinforcement. Leave the top ends open for each.

Turn arms and legs out, then stuff with stuffing, filling them as firmly as you can.

Then, attach the arms to the body. Do this by tucking the loose end fabric into the open hole on the body, fold over the loose body seams and blind stitch as best you can. This can be really tricky, so if you’d prefer to machine sew it, please do (I did). It doesn’t look as neat but I trusted that it would be much firmer and hold for longer!

Once the arms are attached, fill the body with stuffing through the bottom hole, then, add legs into the hole and blind stitch the bottom hole as neatly including the legs in too. You’ll find that if you allow a bit of room at the top of the legs it will work much better for you!

Now attach the head to the body! You will be sewing through the seams as closely as possible here, but allowing the needle to go through the stuffing will work really well too.

It’s now time to dress her!!

Obviously you will want to dress your dolly as you wish, but please feel free to pinch a few ideas from this lovely lady!!

To attach her hair please follow thistutorial because she explains it much better than I ever could!

Sew together the boots with a backstitch, stuff, then attach to the feet, reinforcing around her ‘ankle.’

Sew the tuille carefully and gradually through the machine, folding every 2 centimetres. Do this 4 more times and layer each on top of the other to form a nice full skirt.

Attach this to the waist of the girl!

There is also a dress attachment in the pattern that may be a bit easier to use (I used this dress in the aforementioned ‘Poppy’ doll I made a few years ago!)

Here are sue pictures of how I attached her hair! As I said, please follow these instructions, but I thought I'd show these if you were interested!

And here's my finished little lady

You will see this tutorial linked up at these fabulous parties!

How to make a Reward Board for your Music Classroom!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 04 May 2014 14:07:00 +0000

As some of you may know, I made a massive change this year and decided to take a years unpaid leave from the school I've been working at for the past 5 years and decided to give Primary Music teaching a shot! This change for me was rather extreme, I mean, I had no idea what primary kids were learning, what standard or level primary children are at, what curriculum to follow….let alone the important things like how to make my room pretty!

I haven't set foot in a music room for over 10 years, and when my principal said "You're completely free to set the room up as you please, it's all yours" I felt just a teensie bit lost!

So, as any sensible teacher would, I hopped onto Pinterest to look up ideas for your music classroom and boy was it helpful!

One of my favourite ideas was a 'reward board' in which the children are rewarded for their good behaviour and can be used as an incentive for great behaviour so we can get on with more important learning activities in the classroom!

I came across lots of keyboard and guitar boards, which were really cool, (you can see these ideas here on my Pinterest Board!!) but I wanted something original, so I came up with these musical staff reward boards with fun colourful notes and the most important part…'super sparkly notes!'. Boy oh Boy do they work!

Along with these notes and the board, I also have guidelines that need to be followed in the classroom in order for the group to receive a note. They are also included on the wall along the Musical Staves.

These include

Come to Music class prepared with all supplies and homework complete

Participate in all Music class activities

Listen when others are talking or performing

Share and take turns

Keep your hands, feet and objects to yourself

Be respectful of each other and the school environment

Use kind words

As you can see, some of the grades are doing super duper well with this, especially grade 5, mu 'winners' for term 1!

My kids come in and immediately go "shhhh, guys! We need to get a sparkly today!!" Genius!!

This is how I did it!

A printer

Paper

A laminator (optional)

Laminating sheets (optional)

Coloured Paper

Scissors

A3 Poster Paper

Glue

To make the notes….

1. I began by finding an image of a crotchet and preparing a document that can fit in as many as possible. you can download the crotchet page here!!

2. I then printed this sheet out onto a different range of coloured paper. The crotchets will look like they are back to front but it will all make sense soon!

3. Laminate those pieces of printed paper

4. Cut your crotchets out and flip over.

You should now have a lovely rainbow pile of coloured noted to be adhered to the board we're about to make!

To make the board….

1. Print out this attached staff and zoom in to the desired size. You may need to have a play but mine required 3 sheets of A4 paper. It's up to you how long you want them!

2. Laminate your pages (that's 21 pages, make sure you have a cuppa nearby and lots of laminating pouches!)

3. Cut your A3 pages into strips the same width as you A4 sheets (about 25cm will do!)

4. Attach your lovely laminated sheets to your A3 strips. you could do this with double sided tape or adhesive spray, I used PVA.

Let them dry, then this is what you'll have!

Stick them up in your classroom and you will have the best classroom management system in town! (Remember, I've been teaching primary for 12 weeks….).

Let me know what you think!

What else works in your classroom?

Any more tips for a new primary music teacher?!

Thanks for visiting xox

This post has been shared at some of these fabulous parties!!

A Teepee for Ava

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 27 Apr 2014 14:02:00 +0000

One of the best things about being a teacher is school holidays.

Before Ava came along, I used to look forward to the sleep-ins, days on the couch in front of the telly in my jammies and endless hours of shopping and coffee catch ups. I may not get sleep-ins, but I certainly get to hang about in my jammies, not bother putting on any make-up or do my hair, and the endless hours of TV have been replaced with Giggle and Hoot and Peppa Pig. Holidays certainly aren't what they used to be anymore, but I am so grateful for the extra time that I get to spend with my little Miss, allowing me to feel like a stay-at-home Mummy again.

Holidays also allow me the opportunity to create! It took me awhile to get in the swing of things, but if I'm organised enough, I can manage to shop for supplies, set up, cut fabric etc while Ava's up to help me, and then do things like sew and assemble when she's asleep! I should really do this more often!

I have been eyeing off teepees for quite awhile now, seen them in boutique kids shops and online, and been desperate to purchase one for Ava, but really couldn't justify the $150 plus for a good quality tent.

I found this tutorial online and if you're keen on making one of your own, I strongly suggest you follow this post because it really works! I've made a few adjustments (as I do) and I'll detail them further down in this post but head over to Strawberry Swing and Other Things if you'd like some more info.

So here's my finished product! I think it ended up costing about $60, plus the fun in creating such a cool little hang out area for Ava was pretty exciting too! Sure, there were times when it drove me crazy and some elements were trickier than others, but the end result is totally worth it.

As for my embellishments, it was actually my husband Heath's idea to add the fabric and leaves to the ends of the poles. This is great both because it covers up the not-so-pretty PVC pipe, but it also gives it a lovely 'woodsy' feel which I'm really happy with.

In order to achieve this look,

1. Cut out strips of contrasting brown fabrics

2. Sew them together to form 1 huge long strip

3. Wind your big long brown strip around the piping nice and tightly.

This also helped to bind the pipes together and hold the teepee in place. I would strongly suggest doing something along these lines as it becomes really hard to hold the 'sticks' in place and this really reinforces the shape of the teepee.

I also hand stitched some little felt leaves together and attached them to the branches with floral wire.

The other embellishment I added was some extra piping to the base of the teepee. When I was setting up the teepee originally, the shape would continually change and warp depending on what angle I moved each pole into. This drove me bazerk! I ended up sewing up some sheaths for the poles and attaching them to the base of the teepee, and now it stays in shape, even when lugging it up and down the hallway for photoshoots!

Firstly, you need to measure your pipes! I think mine are approximately 85cm long each, but please measure each one individually yourself, then cut each length as carefully as you can!

In order to make these sheaths,

1. cut strips of fabric that equal the diameter of the pole, plus 1/2 inch seam allowance for sewing.

2. Stitch the strip together with right sides facing.

3. Turn the sheath right side out by attaching a safety pin to one end and feeding it through itself.

You could make one long strip the entire outer length of the teepee, or each individual length, but ensure you allow enough of a seam allowance to attach them all together.

4. Slide the PVC pipe (or dowel) through the sheath

5. Hand-stitched the fabric to the base of the teepee.

This can be a really fiddly job, but it is worth it, trust me!

I think the family enjoy it!!

That's it! I think it took me a few days to complete, but I was working on it on and off during nap times and any chance I could be baby free!! I think if you could dedicate a weekend to making your teepee you'd be right though!

Please feel free to ask me any questions, or if you'd like more detailed instructions I'd be happy to post them for you.

This post is linked up at some of these fabulous linky parties xo

A refashioned dress skirt

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 25 Apr 2014 05:45:00 +0000

I know, it's been forever. Going from a full-time-stay-at-home Mum to a working Mummy has really taken it's toll on me! Sure, it's only 3 days a week but it seems that my creative time has really taken a backseat in the list of my priorities at the moment. Oh well!

I've been doing my best to get back into the swing of things, and recent school holidays and a patient and supportive husband has made that possible for me and I can honestly say that I'm finally feeling a bit more like myself again, which is lovely.

So! What to show you first?!

My major project that I completed on the holidays is pretty big and may take a bit to write up (please keep posted, though, because I promise it won't disappoint!) **Edited Here it is! **

Today is Anzac Day here and I have managed to fee up the morning to do a bit of sewing!

I was blog hopping last night and got really excited about this post by Tilly and the Buttons and I woke up deciding I would get straight into it, only to find I didn't have enough fabric (like, exactly half the fabric required…) and being Anzac Day, Spotlight won't be open til 1pm. Gah!!!

I scrounged through my drawers and managed to come across this dress!

I bought it on eBay, and, like most clothing purchases I make on eBay, it was completely unsuitable so fell into my 'fabric to use' pile. Unfortunately this amount fabric was also insufficient so I had the super thought that I could refashion this dress into the skirt I was dreaming of making. Ta Da!

I know I know, it's really pretty and I probably shouldn't mess with it, but it just looked horrendous on me! It makes me look about 4 sized bigger that I am (an sliiiight exaggeration maybe…) and does nothing for my shape, plus it's far too short.

So, I chopped it in half.

I cut up the middle to make plackets (a new word I learnt today!) to hold the buttons and buttonholes. This unfortunately took a bit of space out of the body of the skirt and made it unable to have pleats, but I love the effect of the button down front so I'm happy without pleats for this one!

I used the waist ties as a waistband, and attached some pretty blue buttons to the front!

I still plan to make the original skirt, and I envision that I will absolutely fall in love with it and make it in about 40 different colours (wow, I really am in exaggeration mode today aren't I?)

Until then, here's this pretty little thing! Please excuse the model, she just hopped out of the shower and was too lazy do do her hair or make-up!

Check out the original pattern over here for how to do everything, Tilly describes things much better that I can!

Thanks for visiting!

This post is linked up at some of these fabulous linky parties xo

Lined Bookshelf Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 30 Sep 2013 07:53:00 +0000

How easy is this! I think the pictures tell a lot of the story here.

This is Ava's new Hemnes bookshelf from Ikea and I thought I'd give it a bit of a facelift. So effective and SO easy!

Wallpaper/scrapbook paper/wrapping paper

Masking tape

Cardboard (the bookshelf packaging came in handy!!)

Measuring tape

Bookshelf

I firstly measured the spaces at the back of the bookshelf, then cut out my cardboard in the correct dimensions.

I then cut out my wallpaper allowing about an inch around the rim

Lay your cardboard over the back of your wallpaper then tape it down.

Pop it into your shelves and....you're done!

A pretty handy nap time project!!!

~This post is linked up at these fantastic parties!~

...Kaleidoscope Quilt Tutorial!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 26 Sep 2013 01:19:00 +0000

I seem to be on a run of finishing all of those projects that I began a few months ago and failed to complete due to my craft crash that occurred a few months ago.

This quilt was the only thing that kept me going for awhile, I kinda gave up everything else but I was fascinated to see what would come of this pile of colours...

I was inspired by a kaleidoscope quilt that I saw pinned by Cluck Cluck Sew and thought I'd give it a shot myself. There was no pattern, so I set off on a search for a template. Oh my goodness!! Type in kaleidoscope quilt into a google image search and you will be wowed by the results!!

A variety of fabrics (I used 8 colours)

Sewing Machine

Scissors

Pins

Thread

Paper

Pencil

From what I could see, there wasn't much on offer template-wise, so I made my own. It's pretty straight forward if you work out exactly how big you want each square and then do some clever ruling! Each of my squares were about 10 inches long.

Once you have your template, make yourself a 'kite' shaped template cut out from the original.

Trace these onto your fabric (as pictured) and cut them out. The amount you need may vary depending on how many flags squares your quilt will be.

As my quilt is 4x4 with alternating colours on each square, I cut out 8 of each colour.

Note how I have my fabrics pinned together to save cutting and ruling all strips!

Once you have all of your kites cut out, you will need to assemble them. This is quite time consuming, but it's also exciting to see them all come together!

Next, you need to cut out all of your white triangles. This part seemed to drag the most for me, maybe because of the lack of colour!! Make sure that you are including at least a centimetre seam allowance!

If you are doing a 4x4 square quilt, you will need you will need 64 white triangles. See, boring!!

Once again, I pinned about 4 pieces together at a time to save ruling and chopping time.

Now sew your white triangles to your assembled kite squares (I'm SO technical, right!?). It takes a bit of practice to get the angles in the centre right, so see what works best for you. Have a seam ripper nearby in case you go too far!

Here are my squares assembled...starting to make sense now?!

Join all of your squares together to form your quilt top. this is where you can see all of your hard work pay off!

So, I was completely stumped for how I wanted to border and bind my quilt. I had so much fabric left, and loved the idea of a large combination of colours that I decided to make a pieced border out of triangles. Crazy lady!!

So I ruled up lots of triangles, doubled my fabric and got cutting....

This was a lot more fun than the white though-like I said, it must be the colours!

Here they are all piled up in order!

This is the pattern I chose. No particular reason really, but having them sorted before you start sewing is a handy way to make the piecing and assembly a bit easier.

I'm so glad I took this picture! I love how it also depicts the mayhem and mess in my loungeroom at this time! Please note that on the other side of this table was my husbands entire office all set up on the dining room table. We were living in piles of fabric, baby food (note the high chair on the right), paperwork, builders bashing away down the hall, plasterers, plumbers.... and I'm creating even more fun here. Very funny to look back on!

So this is where I stopped. And this is how it stayed for about 5 months. The above photo was taken on the 5th April! Gee whiz!!

I have no more photos of the process, but from here I sewed on my rainbow snake border, quilted it by going around each of the crosses to make a similar pattern on the back, and then used this amazing tutorial for my binding.

I hope you like it!

~This post is linked up at these fantastic parties!~

Little Girl's Apron Dress

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 17 Sep 2013 12:59:00 +0000

This is an adorable little pattern I stumbled across on when looking for a girls pinafore. It's a little apron dress that can be made reversible, PLUS it can become a top as your little one grows bigger and bigger! How adorably convenient!

This is how it looks at the back. I'm yet to try it with a top underneath yet, but I'm sure it would look cute over a long sleeved top or little tee!

This top allows a lot of movement for little ones on the go, and could be worn throughout the year-all depending on what you match it with!

I'm planning on making a few more in different colours!

Find the pattern here and enjoy making one for yourself xox

...Hall Table Redo

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 10 Sep 2013 12:01:00 +0000

I found an old hall table at a local Opp Shop a few months ago and ummed and aahed about buying it as it was $45. A few weeks later, it was up the front of the shop in the 'clearance' section for $20!

It was meant to be!

This is what it looked like before....pretty hideous, hey?! I especially love the brown glass tabletop. Pretty.

An old piece of furniture in need of some TLC

Sand paper

Ruler

sharp stanley knife or exacto knife

Mod Podge

Pretty wallpaper/wrapping paper/fabric

Sponge roller

Sand paper

Brayer

1. I sanded back the hall table. This took a few goes but I eventually got most of the varnish off, at least roughened the surface a bit so that the paint would stick and not peel off.

2. I then washed the whole piece down allowing a clean work surface

3. After that, I painted the wooden parts in a colour called Simone Weil by Dulux. It's the same colour we have in our bedroom and we had some left over in the tin! Very convenient!

4. I then measured the top of the table where the hideous glass is as precisely as possible. This step is VERY important!

5. I then cut my paper to size being very careful to ensure it was as precise as possible.

*Note* I am being super tight about this as I actually stuffed up this step and as I didn't have enough paper to redo it there's a dodgy patch on my table (not in photos...) so PLEASE be careful!!

6. With a sponge brush, spread a medium layer of Mod Podge over your surface. You don't want it to be too lumpy, but you also don't want it to be too sparse, you need your paper to stick smoothly.

7. Lay your paper down and with your brayer (or ruler, or rolling pin...or hands....) smooth it down as well as you can. I have a fair few bubbles spring up so I was really tight about getting them down and persisted as much as I could. You could use a pin if they are really bothering you, but I was determined that they would stick! Which they did...eventually.

8. Spread on a layer of Mod Podge over you perfectly smooth paper with a sponge brush, allow it to dry according to instructions, then spread on another layer.

Pretty!

I love this flourish on the front, I think it came up really well with this colour.

This project has been posted at some of these awesome parties!

...inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 14 Aug 2013 05:35:00 +0000

Just a bit of inspiration I whipped up for the day- a quote from Ellie Barrett.

Whatever you're currently aspiring to achieve in your life, always remember this

xox

...Diy Stencilled Wall

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 12 Aug 2013 13:13:00 +0000

During our renovation, I was lucky enough to have my own custom made dressing table nook built into our bedroom. Very fancy!

I received a beautiful dressing table from my husband for my 30th birthday. I've been holding off setting it up though because I wanted to pretty-up the wall first! I have been on the lookout for wallpaper for awhile now but I just couldn't find the right one...then I considered stencilling.

I bought this gorgeous book a few weeks ago.

It contains a heap of different die cut stencils and this is where I picked my 2 from. I think I'd still like to add to it in the future, but I haven't yet found the right stencil to include but I'm very happy at the moment!

Contrasting paint-our wall was in Simone Weil so I used a Simone Weil half sample tin

A roller

Stencils

Pen

Paper

A ruler

Masking Tape

Tape measure

I ruled up a sample page with a guideline of how I'd like my pattern set out. Firstly, I drew up a grid with a division matching the measurements of my wall, then drew the pattern in the squares. this was really helpful to get an idea of how it would look and make any required changes!

Rule up your wall with little x marks to guide where to line up your stencil

Lay it on with some masking tape, then gently roll over the stencil, aiming to hold it down as closely to the wall as possible.

Peel it away gently and check out your lovely handiwork, then tidly up any smudges with a cotton wool bud or a tissue. Or old undies, like I did!

Check it out!

Here's my finished set-up! The chair is a gorgeous gift from a group of special friends for my birthday too, I'm a very lucky girl!

What have you stencilled? What are your future projects?

Have a go yourself and let me know how you go!

...Getting Organised-Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 07 Aug 2013 03:44:00 +0000

Right! That's it! I'm getting organised!

I finally have my beautiful new extended house, yet I'm still feeling like it's a cluttered mess. Quite the dilemma when you double the size of your house yet still feel like you have no room for stuff, right!

Well, it's time to make some changes and I'm using my blog and my followers to help me out! Who's with me?!

I have been pinning so many wonderful tips and tricks for organisation, (Seriously, check out my organisation board-it's full of the stuff!) but have been putting off these projects for months.

I am getting started today!

I will be posting a series of projects on here to get my house into shape and I would love for you to join me! Share your ideas on here, let me know what works for you and let's share our beautiful organised houses! Sound nice?!

Here we go!

Today I started small, but I believe it has already made a wonderful impact!

This is what I started with

Pretty belch right? And this is a new cupboard too! Shameful....

Pretty Paper

Glue

Scissors

Empty Toilet Rolls

Nice Baskets (Mine are from Ikea)

Mark a line on your pretty paper showing the length of your toilet roll

Cut out your paper, glue it on and....

Ta Da!! Pretty cord holders!

Then roll up your cords, shove them in (Gently) and look! Super Tidy Hair appliances!

After that, divide your lovely products into categories (I did mine in 3, you may have bigger or smaller baskets, so it's up to you!) Then pop them into baskets.

This is how it looks at the end.

Aaaaaah, much better! All thanks to 2 little tricks!

Alright- my next challenge is the wardrobe.... wish me luck!!

...Miss Ava's First Birthday Party

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 30 Jul 2013 13:44:00 +0000

I can't believe it, my baby girl is now 1! How did that happen?! So many people tell you how fast it goes, but it's not until you experience it for yourself that you realise!

So, to go with my love of all things vintage, as well as pretty pastels and delicious sweet food, I decided to throw Ava a Vintage Tea Party and I had an absolute ball planning and making it the special event that it was.

Here are some pictures from our special day!

Just a few of the 60 or so pinwheels that I made!

My husband Heath made the cake, unfortunately I don't have a pic of the inside of the cake-it was in alternating green layers, and really tasty too!

Here are some pretty petite fours I made, I was pretty stoked with these babies, and they were super tasty too!

I'd like to thank all of those wonderful people that helped out with food preparation and serving it up all afternoon, especially Mum, Bec, Leanne, Lisa Heather and Mez.

We're so lucky to have such amazing support from our family and friends

xoxo

Long time no see...

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 23 Jul 2013 12:41:00 +0000

Well...this is awkward...

I can't believe my last post was back at Easter. I really dropped the ball didn't I!

I've been thinking a lot about this blog recently, how much I used to love hopping on every day and showing you all what I've been up to, the processes of my creativity etc, and it mad me really sad to think why I would stop so abruptly.

I had a big think about why I stopped and I guess there are a lot of reasons. Our home renovations-which have resulted in a major lack of space in which to work, Ava's reduced sleeping times, a lack of time in general really, but I think one of the main reasons-and it embarrasses me to say this- is simply due to the fact that I have let other people get me down and make me doubt myself. Seriously. How lame is that?!

Why do other people have to make it their business to make you doubt yourself? And why do we take things so personally?! Well, I know I certainly do/ The worst part is that I have let other people's opinions and criticisms get in the way of what I want to do creatively and now that I have worked this out and literally typed it out, it makes me so angry!

I could rant and rave but really, that's not going to get me anywhere really now, is it?

I think it's time I move on and get back on track with my creative tasks and making sure that I post them up here again. Perhaps not every day.... but at least once a week to get the ball rolling again.

I might start with some exciting room revels from our new renovated house! Keep your eyes peeled...

I may just be back, baby!

...Lemon Meringue Pie

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 11:31:00 +0000

Look at our special Easter dessert! Yum, right?!

My sister requested that I made a Lemon Meringue Pie for dessert. I'd never made it before, therefore wanted to ensure that I made it as wonderfully as possible, especially as it was a request. Plus, I have had a fair few slices of LMP in my time and have pretty high expectations so I made sure I made the best possible version.

Well, believe it or not, I actually didn't get to try it! Oh no!

The recipe required you to make the base, curd and meringue from scratch. A lot of 'Chill for 2 hours' and 'refrigerate covered overnight' was going on so I'm pretty glad I started on Easter Saturday!

Here are some pics of the process!

*so-I'd never heard of blind baking before...I have always noticed those beads at The General Trader and had no idea what they were for and upon reading about them I see how they could be useful!
Fortunately, it's possible to use plain rice to blind bake soI layered the prepared base with foil, then filled it with the white rice. I then folded over the foil and popped it in the oven for 15 minutes.
Really easy!!

Like I said, I didn't really get to taste it as I was so full from an enormous and delicious roast dinner, but my husband and sister said it was delicious, Phew!!

Happy Easter everyone!!

...Ava's Easter Tunic

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 06:21:00 +0000

I came across this adorable tutorial at Craftiness is not Optional (where I happen to get all of my girls dress patterns now...) and I thought it would be adorable to make for Ava for Easter!

I went along to Spotlight the other day and spent a small fortune as they had 40% off and stocked up on my fabric for the winter. I'm planning on making lots more dresses and tunics for Ava's winter wardrobe and I'm currently really inspired to get sewing-which is good as I've been at a bit of a loss of late...

I'm not going to put up step by stem instructions as the above link is just great if you're interested in making the same pattern, but here are some photos in case you want to do some of the same tricks as I've done!

Fabric

Embellishments (ribbon etc)

Blank paper or baking paper to make your pattern

A button

Sewing Machine

Thread

Trace a top that currently fits bubby. To ensure it's the right size, make sure the top's a bit bigger rather than snug as the fabric will be different and make end up being a bit too snug!

Cut out your pattern pieces (please don't just follow this, SO many more details over at this tutorial)

Cut out your fabric on the fold like so

Add your embellishments

This part is tricky but absolutely worth it!

And here it is!!

Depending on what day it is, you may find this post linked up at any of these fabulous parties!!

Pretty Please Follow Me !!!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 23:06:00 +0000

Hi lovely readers!

I'm so sorry I've been missing for awhile, I've been really busy working on my kaleidoscope quilt with a spunky pieced border, as well as being a bit obsessed preparing for an audition too! (Oh yeah, I sing as well...) so I've been flat chat, but still creative. Which is my goal!

Also, I wanted to let those other newbie bloggers like me about the big move over to Bloglovin'.

It's an amazing place where you can follow all of your favorite blogs in the one place and check out all of the wonderful things people have to offer!

PLEASE follow me, it'd be great to generate a heap more traffic on my blog, and I'll definitely post more often and not take as big a break as I did this week, I promise!

Follow me at Bloglovin' here

If you have a blog of your own, join up! Get in on it! Then comment below with your user name so I can follow you too!

I'd also love it if you could follow my facebook and pinterest pages too- those icons are just over in my right hand side bar -------->

Thanks for popping by and I'll keep you posted soon...

...Copycat Geometric Leafy Print

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 10:33:00 +0000

Ok, so I'm a complete copycat! I have been inspired by these two wonderful posts here and here and decided to have a go myself!

Upon looking back at the above two posts, mine's pretty crappy in comparison! Oops....

I had a LOT of trouble with colours and actually applied a few new layers on the purple, magenta and orange. Dramas!

This was for a birthday present for my friend Leanne. I feel terrible that it's not perfect, but she seemed to like it.

I'd really like to do one again to put on a wall of prints in our new bedroom!

A blank canvas in your desired size

A base colour

Sponge Roller

Small Paintbrush

A variety of acrylic paints

a circular stencil to trace your circles (I used a medicine cup!)

Paint your canvas with a roller. Make sure you do 2 coats!

Measure the diameter of your circle stencil, then halve it. Mine was 4.4cm so I needed to make 2.2cm squares. Rule up your grid! Lightly...

Then, using your grid as a guide, draw your circles

Here they are all drawn up, now it's time to paint!

Work one colour at a time, be random and have fun!

I'll do it again...it's pretty cool, but I'd like to change up my colours and background colour and have it to match my new bedroom....stay tuned!!

Depending what day it is, you may see this post featured at any of these wonderful parties!!

Petal Onesie Tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 02:54:00 +0000

I've been away at a wedding all weekend so haven't managed to keep up my challenge to the full extent I would have liked! Bummer!! Oh well, I've still been creative thorough it all, thank goodness, I've just been without my craft supplies and sewing machine!

Seeing as I was having withdrawals, as soon as I got home I got straight into this gorgeous little project!

I found the idea at Southern Lovely (tutorial here) and thought I'd put my own little spin on it...I couldn't resist!

Felt in a variety of colours (or one..if you like)

A onesie

Pins

Sewing Machine

Scissors

Small circular item to trace (optional!)

Firstly, trace your petals using a circular item the desired size. Mine was a bottle of fabric glue!
Have a play with the petal sizes and see what suits you!
Do this in your different colours until you feel you have enough. I used a lot of guess work.

Pin all of your petals onto your onesie ensuring that colours aren't touching and they are evenly spaced.

Sew your petals on starting with the top layer. This was a bit tricky and I was concentrating so much that I didn't take a picture, sorry! Just make sure you follow the line and keep them as aligned as possible. Also, make sure you're only sewing though the one layer of onesie too!

Here is is!

Ava is wearing it with a little skirt by Sooki Baby-I'm hoping to make a matching skirt or tutu one day soon!!

Depending what day it is, you may find this post at any of these wonderful parties!!

...Metallic Marker Fun!!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 06:44:00 +0000

I've seen heaps of Sharpie projects on Pinterest of late and have always wanted to give them a go.

They are so quick and easy, and if you happen to have the right markers lying around, plus a few old mugs and bowls, why not have a go at jazzing up some old and unloved pieces!

An oil based metallic marker (or a few different colours!)

a mug or bowl

Electrical tape

hole punch

Oven

Then, make sure that you bake your projects in a 180c oven for half an hour

Here's a few of the pieces I ended up with!

Add your own quotes and phrases to your mugs! There are HEAPS of ideas on Pinterest.

The main idea is just have some fun and be creative! Do what you like, have a play, and if your markers are anything like mine, you can actually scratch the pattern off and redo it if you make any mistakes!

...Personalised Etched Drinking Glasses

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:19:00 +0000

I'm in the middle of a few different projects at the moment-hence the lack of posts for awhile!

I recently came across a blog where a girl had attempted glass etching for the first time. I fell in love!

I promptly attempted to but some etching cream, but found it super hard to find here in Australia, so I bought some on eBay! As it was from the states, I needed to wait awhile for it to arrive...bla bla bla, FINALLY I was able to use it!

This project I already attempted during the week...and failed... so I gave it another shot this morning and seemed to do a bit better!

This idea was COMPLETELY stolen from this site, but if it ain't broke, right?

Armour All Etching Cream

Contact paper (PLEASE get a good quality one, mine's crappy and I regret it HEAPS!)

Printer

Printer Paper

Paintbrush

Hole Punch

Water

Rubber Gloves

Long Sleeves

Print out your letters. I did our initials with 'Janda Elegant Handwring' font

Stick these printed out letters (not yet cut out) onto your contact paper THEN cut out all together. I used double sided tape to attach them

Punch out the shape you desire. Mine is the Fiskars flourish Hole punch

Clean your glasses really well leaving no fingerprints.

Carefully apply your punched shape edges, then your letters inside as pictured

Ok, this etching cream stuff is crazy scary stuff to use. You only need to read the bottle to see how insanely toxic, corrosive, harmful...etc it is. so PLEASE be careful.

I was so careful I didn't even get a picture using it. The above link does though if you need to know, otherwise, here's some really great info on the Arnour Etch website. Please read it. Now.

Use gloves, only leave for a few minutes (the brochure says 1, the other blog says 5....up to you)

And check these out!

I mean, we all need personalised drinking glasses, right?

Our Renovations...so far...

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 23:18:00 +0000

I feel like things have been a bit quiet on here lately, I've been linking up like a mad woman left right and centre, as well as working my way through my new quilt project...'a ha! That's what the answer to the hint was..."I hear you say!

I thought I'd give you a bit of insight into what's happening at my house.

Well, in one word, mayhem.

We are extending. Like, almost literally doubling the size of our home. Why must the timing be when I'm a full time at home mummy?! Crazy!

So we have at least 3 builders here a day, banging, sawing, drilling, ripping up my house and adding bits here there and everywhere.

We FINALLY have one room ready...well, all it needs is a coat of paint, so we're really close!

This is what it looked like. Yep, it was Ava's beautiful nursery

Then it looked like this. I cried :(

Now, it looks like this!! Our new ensuite!

Here are some before and afters of the rest of the house...a big change!

Now look!!

I'm really looking forward to decorating the new rooms being built, re-doing Miss Ava's bedroom and just having some space where Heath and I are no longer living in each others pockets!

...what is Emmie up to?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Bubby us currently teething, so I've been relatively short on time quite recently, this doesn't mean I haven't still been working away creatively!

Here is a sneak peek of what I've been up to!

I'm drafting a pattern and making up my own process for a new project... But what could it be?!

Stay tuned....

...Baby Shower Gift Set

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 11:22:00 +0000

My Cousin-in-law Michelle is having a bubby in May and she had her baby shower today!

Michelle and Juan have decided not to find out what they are having, which if great, but never know what to buy for a neutral baby shower!

I asked what she'd like, and as they've already received a lot of stuff from others, Michelle asked for 'handy stuff that is practical and we found useful'.

I have seen a lot of little sets on Pinterest of late and decided that it may be a good idea for this shower!

These burp cloths were an absolute Godsend for us with Ava as she was a chucker. BIG time! I whipped up a heap of them after she was born, they were great for possets, as well as a liner for her feeding pillow-the perfect shape!

The bib and onesie I figured will come in handy, and they match too! How could you go wrong?!

I decided red was a good neutral colour, working well for both boys and girls, and as they're accessories they'll match everything!

Patterned Fabric

Towel fabric (I used an actual Towel)

cotton of a contrasting colour/pattern

Fusible webbing

cotton

Sewing Machine

General sewing bits and bobs (scissors, needle, thread etc)

I traced a burp cloth that I had made in the past. I really didn't need to do this in hindsight as the shape is really up to you, but this shape is great to go over your shoulder, plus it suited my feeding pillow perfectly!

I then cut out my bib front and pinned them both to my towel before cutting them out

Both the bib and the burper were made in a similar way-

here's how I did them-

Put towelling and front piece right sides facing then sew all the way around, leaving about a 2 inch gap.

Turn out, press, then top stitch around the entire piece, tucking in the hole and sewing up the 2 inch open seam. If you'd prefer to hand stitch this for safety, feel free!

Ooooh, I almost forgot (both when sewing and when writing up this tutorial...) Make sure you include the ribbon in the top parts of the bib! Tuck them in so the long bit is on the inside and there's only a smidge poking out-as pictured!

I quilted it so it doesn't come apart from the towelling and gape, but that's up to you!

The onesie, was easy. attach some fusible webbing by ironing it to the back of your contrasting fabric, cut out, pin and applique to your onesie. Then you can add an ear and and eye. I forgot the eye.

Here's the set!

Jazz it up how you like and you're sorted! An adorable, handmade, personalised present!

Add an elephant book and then you're done!!

...Thrift Shop Purse Revamp

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 03:45:00 +0000

I was out and about opp shopping recently and came across this purse for $1. Pretty cool. It's an old Sportsgirl clutch and it's in my favorite colour! Score!

A few weeks ago I made some show flowers-you can see the tutorial here- and I decided that perhaps a similar addition would be nice on this purse!

Fabric Scraps

A button

Needle and thread

Scissors

An old purse

I collected my fabric scraps in a range of different colours that complimented the purse

I found a circle shape that would be a good size for my biggest circle. This Dulux paint sample tin did the trick!

I then cut graduating circles out of my fabrics and put them in place

Before sewing your button on, pop a couple of stitches through your flower, just to hold the 'petals' in place, then sew on your button!

You could glue your button flower on, or sew it, like I did. I figured it's be fastened better this way

Here it is! SO easy!

Depending what day it is, you may see this project at any of these fabulous parties!

...Owl Cushion Toy!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 11:04:00 +0000

It's my niece Stephanie's birthday tomorrow and we had a birthday dinner for her tonight. So cute-a pink party!

Pink hats, pink drink, pink food, pink cake...fun!!!

We were shopping a few months ago and Steph pointed out an owl toy at Cotton On Kids that she liked! I asked her if she'd like me to make her an owl toy for her birthday and she seemed pretty stoked! So I scoured the internet for a cool owl toy pattern and I came across this gorgeous little fella which also doubles as a cushion. Cute!!

Here's the pattern, it's super easy, and clearly quite cute...and big!

You'll need

Sewing Machine

6 different fabrics

Fusible Webbing

needle and thread, scissors etc

I made a few little changes to the above pattern, I decided to use fusible webbing behind the wings to avoid fraying when I cut the fabric. I ironed it by covering it with baking paper (so it wouldn't stick to my iron!) Then I cut it out. I was really happy with the result.

I also decided to use felt for the eyes and beak as it doesn't fray! I used a zigzag stitch on the big part, then hand stitched the pupil.

Here it is!

Who's eyes are bigger?!

Depending what day it is, you may see this project at any of these fabulous parties!