living on the crafty side of life

a dress for phoebe

2013-05-01T12:25:57+10:00

Every now and again I remind my girls that I can sew. I have actually been sewing for a very long time. I made many of their little dresses and clothes when they were younger, have made the concert costumes for their pre-school and school concerts and musicals, and even further back... made my clothes before these two girls were even born! These days I tend to sew "things" rather than clothes.

So, when my girls talk about buying a dress... describing the style... I say, you could make that (they both know how to sew themselves) or I can make that for you... my comments usually fall on deaf ears (accompanied with a roll of the eyes).

When Phoebe recently chatted about a simple dress she liked AND actually mentioned that I maybe could make it for her... I jumped at the chance. Then it dawned on me that it had probably been 10 years or more since I'd made her a dress (concert costumes not included).

The pressure was on... mess this up, and I'd probably not be asked again :)

She picked the dress pattern and the fabric. I made the dress and, thankfully, she's happy with it!

Here is the dress with Phoebe on their first outing.

The fabric she picked was a lovely cotton quilting fabric, Suzani by Michelle Marvig for Charles Parsons.

The checked bias binding was used to edge the neckline and sleeves.

The pattern we used was a Very Easy Vogue Pattern #V8805.

I'll leave you with one last shot of the new dress and it's owner. And yes, there has been an indication that I might be allowed to make another dress.

Thanks for visiting.

Cheers

Fiona

13 years of school photos

2013-04-12T14:19:22+10:00

My gorgeous girl came home with her school photo the other day.

While looking at it, it dawned on me that this would be the last school photo she brings home to us. She's in her last year of school... THERE WILL BE NO MORE SCHOOL PHOTOS of her.

So here's a little trip down memory lane....

The photos were taken at a similar time each year, from Kindy up the top left corner to Year 12 down in the bottom right.

That's my gorgeous girl... 13 years of school photos.

Thanks for visiting

Fiona x

[This collage was made using PicMonkey.]

new crochet ripple blanket

2013-04-02T23:48:17+11:00

I've taken a short break from my New Zealand wool ripple blanket to crochet a blanket for someone special. In preparation, I had bought cotton yarn in two colourways, one for a boy and one for a girl, waiting the news so I could make a start.... girl or boy, can you guess????

I've used one of my favourite yarns [AGAIN], Morris and Sons Avalon cotton to make this one.

I've almost finished, only a few more rows left. Then I'll have to choose a simple edge to finish it off.

Here's the details of the yarn I have used...

Morris and Sons Avalon 8 ply cotton:

#4803 Moonstone (Off White)
#4834 Rose Quartz (Light Pink)
#4836 Carnelian (Rose Pink)
#4838 Spinel (Dark Pink/Red)

I'll be back shortly with a photo of the finished blanket.

Thanks for dropping by....

Cheers

Fiona x

and the winning pinner is....

2013-03-28T14:39:27+11:00

Thank you to everyone who created their "Happy Birthday Ribbons Galore" pinboard. I've loved looking through the pinboards and seeing your favourite Ribbons Galore products. It's been a fun way to celebrate Ribbons Galore's 7th birthday.

So now onto the winning pinner...

Congratulations Bec. Thanks for entering, you have won a $70.00 gift voucher to use in the Ribbons Galore store.

If you'd like to join Ribbons Galore on Pinterest, please visit HERE.

I hope everyone has a happy and safe Easter break.

Cheers

Fiona x

ribbons galore is 7 years young, and we're celebrating on Pinterest

2013-03-21T14:50:01+11:00

March is Ribbons Galore's birthday month.

Seven years ago, I opened the virtual doors to a new little online store selling a small range of brightly coloured ribbons. Seven years on, I'm very happy to say, we're still here with a new Ribbons Galore website and over 500 products. I'd like to thank all my customers for their support during this time.

To celebrate our birthday, I've organised a little "pinning" fun sweepstake.

If you join in you could have the opportunity to win a $70.00 gift voucher to use in the Ribbons Galore store.

The sweepstake will be run over on Pinterest.

Here's what you have to do to enter the competition:

Subscribe to the Ribbons Galore newsletter, (you can skip this step if you already subscribe).
Create a Pinterest board with the name "Happy Birthday Ribbons Galore" (this is very important, as this is how I will be able to find your Pinterest board, and verify your entry).
Pin 7 (seven) of your favourite products from the Ribbons Galore store. You can pin more if you'd like, but a minimum of 7 products are required.
Include in EACH pin description the hashtags "#ribbonsgalore" and "#ribbons".
Send me a message just letting me know you've entered (so I have the contact details to advise the winner), please do this via the CONTACT US page, or you can leave me a message here on this blog post.

The rules:

Anyone can enter. You will need to have an account with Pinterest to play along.
You have until next Wednesday to create your board. Competition closes on Wednesday 27 March 2013 at 7:00pm (Sydney time | Australian Eastern Summer time).
When the competition closes, all "Pinners" who have completed the steps above will be entered into the sweepstake and a name will be randomly drawn.
You will be contacted via email if you are the lucky winner of the $70.00 store voucher.

If you would like to see examples of a Pinterest board, I have created one HERE and HERE.

Have fun, and thanks for the last 7 years!

Cheers Fiona

striped grosgrain ribbons now at ribbons galore

2013-03-11T12:16:55+11:00

This new collection of grosgrain is beautiful, I love everything about them, the colour combinations, the thickness and quality of the ribbons....

They are available in a variety of 9mm, 23mm, and in some designs 38mm widths.

They are a lovely quality for sewing and to finish off your packaging beautifully....

(Above image from Cookie Dough Biscuits, thanks Lisa for letting me use your photo.)

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

Fiona x

ripple crochet blanket with ripplealong

2013-03-10T22:15:10+11:00

It's not like I needed another crochet project, but when Mel Goodsell announced she was hosting a RIPPLE-ALONG... I just felt I needed to join in!

While I have been happily crocheting my african flowers, Mel had been posting pictures of her ripple blanket she's been crocheting on her blog and intasgram. It was gorgeous!

After signing up to Mel's "ripple-along", I had to choose the wool for my new project.

Last year (January 2012) I was holidaying on the beautiful South Island of New Zealand. We had a few nights in Dunedan where I found a few crafty shops selling gorgeous New Zealand wool. I bought a few balls back with me, buying only one colour of each. These are the wools that I decided to use for my ripple blanket, it's going to be my New Zealand South Island inspired Ripple Blanket.

So here's my wool selection...

Random Dyed Tekapo 8 ply wool

Colour "landscape" (shade #062) by Ashford.

Why I bought this wool: During another holiday on the South Island of New Zealand, we stayed a couple of nights at Lake Tekapo. It snowed while we were there, the first time my girls saw snow. The colours of the lake and the surrounding mountains was amazing, like the colours in this wool.

Merino Possum 8 ply wool

Colour navy by Merino Possum

Why I bought this wool: Curiosity, to be honest. Possums are a protected animal here in Australia, they are a pest in New Zealand. Introduced from Australia a long time ago, they loved New Zealand (who wouldn't), and spread, and spread and became a pest. They are "harvested" for their fur. The fur is mixed with merino wool resulting in an incredibly soft wool.

Rare Earth 8 ply wool

Colours "old snow", "champagne" and "camel" by The Rare Yarns Company

Why I bought these wools: The softness of these wools, they are beautifully soft being made from alpaca and merino.

Starting the ripple

Two days ago, during soccer training, I finally made a start. I'm using Lucy's pattern from the Attic24 blog. Lucy's instructions are very good, with lots of photos.

I started with 199 chain stitches. The first row was the hardest and slowest. It got easier after that.

I'm 14 rows into the blanket so far, and I fear I'm going to be running out of wool some time soon. I'm already researching how I can buy more of my wool... I might have to plan a shopping trip back to New Zealand to stock up :)

If you'd like to play along with the ripple-along, visit Mel's blog for details.

If you'd like some inpiration and ideas for a ripple blanket, I've been adding ripple blankets to my crochet board over at Pinterest.

Will be back soon to share my progress.

Cheers

Fiona x

the NEW Ribbons Galore website is open

2013-02-11T17:46:15+11:00

After many months of development the new Ribbons Galore is now open for business. I'm really excited with the finished website, and I'm still learning how to "drive" it.

Here's just a few new and improved features you'll find....

You'll now find better quality images of our products.
There's an improved shopping cart and checkout system.
You can now buy whole rolls of grosgrain ribbon in RG WHOLESALE.
Over the next few months new craft products will be added to the CRAFT STORE, these products will compliment our ribbons.
There's a new HOW TO'S section, where customers can follow crafty tutorials (and there's more to come soon).

If you'd like to keep up to date with our news and specials, and received discounts, please sign up for our newsletter. Hope you enjoy browsing and shopping at the NEW Ribbons Galore.

There's other ways to stay in touch with Ribbons Galore too:

Instagram (take a sneak peek behind the scenes of Ribbons Galore). Search ribbons_galore on Instagram on your phone, or you can now follow Ribbons Galore on Instagram on the web.
Pinterest (I love Pinterest), not only can you find Ribbons Galore images, but you can find fabulous ideas for ribbons from others. Or you can share images from the Ribbons Galore website to your own boards.
Follow Ribbons Galore on Facebook.
Follow on Twitter.

Cheers

Fiona

welcome 2013

2013-01-01T19:21:24+11:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Here's wishing you a happy, healthy and creative 2013.

The Sydney new year's eve fireworks did not disappoint this year. We watched the 9 o'clock display and the midnight show from Lavender Bay.

Before the fireworks got underway, we enjoyed a beautiful sunset over the harbour. The night was clear and still, so perfect for fireworks. Lavender Bay (and the rest of Sydney Harbour) was filled with boats.

We had a great view of the fireworks from my parent's apartment...

Then there was the midnight display, which featured the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It's always spectacular...

We are certainly very lucky to live in a beautiful city, and to see in a new year in such a spectacular way!

Last week we enjoyed some time away up at Hawks Nest. Just thought I'd share one of my favourite photos... Phoebe teaching Bella to "surf". Not sure how Bella would cope if a wave actually came her way, but she was still very cute sitting up on the board.

I started a new crochet project while I was away... I'll be back very soon to show it here :)

'til next time, thanks for visiting, and enjoy your new breaks break!

Cheers

Fiona

merry christmas

2012-12-24T11:43:27+11:00

I'd like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a happy and safe 2013.

Thanks for dropping by my blog in 2012. In 2013 I hope to share more ideas and crafty-ness with you.

RIBBONS GALORE NEWS:

Thank you to my customers for visiting and shopping at Ribbons Galore throughout 2012.

Ribbons Galore is now closed for a Christmas/summer break. The online store will remain open during our break and you can still place orders. Orders placed during this time will be packed and posted from Monday 21 January 2013.

2013 will see Ribbons Galore open with a brand new website. I've had the website and online store completely rebuilt with many new features and I look forward to sharing it with you when Ribbons Galore reopens later in January.

Cheers

Fiona xx