fiveandtwo

From The 1970s, I Think.

A knitting and crochet magazine from the 1970s. From the oppy, of course.

The first image was what made me buy the magazine. A Coles/Embassy publication. Clare and Al reckon her hair is just like mine. The second pic. is kind of current somehow.

Nylon nighties? No thanks. I can only imagine the static and the sensation of wearing a plastic bag as nightwear.

Still collecting my thoughts concerning the above pics.

Some childrens' wear.

What a cutie!

I am so glad no-one ever made anything like this for me. I doubt they would've, I lived in the tropics for the first twenty-odd years of my life.

Oh my...

Oh my...again.

Gorgeous eyeshadow. Very current.

Such an innocent-looking picture. But I think that little girl is evil. One bite of that Cadbury White and all hell will break loose.

Watch Out.

My Brain Was Boiled.

Truly. It was SO HOT.

 Yesterday we moved Linsey's stuff from Armadale to Clifton Hill. First round was her car and our car loaded up and then unloaded. Next round was our car with Linsey and Roger doing a second load and me with twins in tow doing a "provisioning shop" at Northcote Plaza, using Linsey's car. I sort of knew where I was going, but from a different direction. Needless to say, I spent a bit of time driving around Northcote, and even Thornbury, trying to get my bearings. The air conditioning didn't work in Linsey's car. Clare and Al were supposed to be navigating; I cast my eyes over them at one stage and they were all wilted and gasping. "Drink some more water!", I said. We three boiled. Thank goodness shopping centres are air conditioned, and there was a shop to treat Clare and Al with a cold drink.

So, we provisioned her, except for things requiring refigeration. No fridge until today, and that a bar fridge. A full sized one will be next weekend's project. Collecting one Linsey has bought. A job for her and her boyfriend.

Gosh it was hot. I could harangue you with the trial of the dodgey motel we stayed in Saturday night; nah, boring. We went to a pub for tea. The "Post Office" Hotel. It was quite good. The Mister and I could have stayed all night talking to Linsey, but the small fry were really tired.

I like visiting Melbourne, off and on. Forces me out of my comfort zone. And Melbourne is a wonderful city. Once-upon-a-time I loved Sydney the most. Now, since living in Victoria for over twenty years, I love Melbourne the most.

Gosh it was hot. I fear my brain will never recover.

Coffee Cup Paintings.

A new obsession. Like I even need a new obsession. However, it has to run its course. I have to paint coffee cups until it wears off. Otherwise I will become a tortured soul.

A quartet of cups. They're small, only 14.8 x 14.8cm each one. Each one works as a painting on it's own, or with one, two or three companions. Top left is one of my favourite cups for a coffee fix.

1960s Japanese mug. I have several of this ilk. At the moment they're "out of circulation" in a high cupboard. Until the kids leave home and any breakages will be my fault.

This is an unfinished one (I've finished it now though, pic in a later post). I like the yellow/blue-grey/black colour combination. Not one I've experimented with before. I've two more partially finished paintings, and five more in sketch form.

I'm considering another etsy shop for art work. Separate from the sewing stuff. What do you think?

That Old Gas Stove.

Remember this old stove? Stove-top worked fine, oven door had a tendency to fall off (despite much repairing).

Behold its transformation:

A barbeque! Truly. It works splendidly. The cover and side thingies are pirated from our old rusted out BBQ. In the "oven" is an old saucepan which collects fat from the hotplate. Mister Resourceful welded the hotplate together to create a gentle slope to a hole in the middle that drains into said old saucepan.

There's still the four burners, and they're regulated by the original knobs.  You can see the burners above, in operation. We light them with a striker tool. No electic ignition now.

Mister Resourceful is competently resourceful. Modifying a gas stove to a BBQ requires...I don't know. Understanding of the workings of these things. There was a point when I was , umm, a small amount concerned about the outcome (not wanting him to be blown to smithereens).  He somehow knew what gas bits to buy, and did the usual spray bottle with detergent thing to detect any gas leaks. This is what the gas bottle deliverers do when they fit the replacement bottles.

It works splendidly. It looks...unusual.

Spider Web

I'm really a top house cleaner. Really I am. Actually, I pay Clare and Ally to clean the house. They do a reasonable job. Doesn't run to brushing away spider webs.

One of many webs. I'd really like a dusted, de-webbed and sparchy clean house. Windows, skirtings and all. I have stuff, family members have stuff; and mess abounds. Why is there a mattress upright in the hallway? Why is the table on the deck covered in paint tins/brushes/etc? Why do I sleep in the sewing room?  Why are half-finished paintings on the kitchen table? I guess this explains the mess and stuff. Half finished projects everywhere (doesn't explain the mattress, however). I have to compromise with my inner spartan all the time. If all the surfaces are swept clean every day it is difficult to have projects-on-the-go (unless you're blessed with a work room). When I die I don't want to be remembered for a very clean and tidy house. Other things, I hope. Heh, this is my excuse (and I'm sticking to it!).

Now, gratuitous photo of cute kitteh having a sleep.

So, how do you people handle the house work dilemna? Give me your hot tips.

 

The Almond Crop

Considering the tree is a youngster growing in gravel over clay; on the nature strip where watering is rainfall; I think nine nuts is a terrific effort.

Micky investigates. Being a cat and all.

Oh yeah, there's his stitches from the dog bite. The drainage tube has been removed but the insertion sites are still a bit icky. Still not sure what to do about Suska. I think, given the opportunity, she'd attack Micky again. Micky is very cautious now, so opportunity hasn't arisen. But...

I think there's an element of self interest. I really don't want to dig a greyhound-sized hole. It would have to be in the driveway where it is compacted gravel over compacted clay.

I have a muzzle for the dog. We'll see.

 

Bits And Pieces

First day of school last week and the three youngest are not overjoyed.

Leah refusing to join Clare and Al for a photo. She's begun year 12.

Clare and Ally jumping for joy. They've begun year 6.

Here's Linsey in a splendid dress made by Jack's Daughter. A local etsy seller! Linsey chose the fabric for two dresses; this one has little cowboys on it, the other dress has green leaves fabric and a fuller skirt.

This was before attending a wedding on a boat and getting terribly sunburnt. And before indulging in rather a lot of free champagne. Always good to get a before photo.

I bought some exclusion bags from Green Harvest for the grapes. I've started putting them on.

This way we might actually get some grapes. The birds have eaten every single one the past two years. The birds had started eating the not-quite-ripe ones. I'll leave some for them.

I haven't finished painting the pergola (on which the grapes grow) but today I bought an extension ladder (from The Reject Shop, of all places) that goes to over 3 metres; so I should be able to reach the parts I need to work on now.

In the meantime I'm transforming a vanity unit I bought at a secondhand shop. It's "1980s Country" I think.

The top will remain timber. The rest will be painted. I got a white porcelain hand basin (that fits!) from the tip shop. I also got some white tiles that I may paint, if I can't find the right tiles to replace the existing ones. The Mister can handle this, but transforming a chest of drawers into a vanity doesn't even make the priority list (a bit like scraping/sanding/priming/painting parts of the house that require it).

I finished The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins; I've had it on the shelf for a couple of years. First one: gripping, second one: gripping, third one: not so much. I found myself reading ahead quite a lot in the third book. It became static and repetitive in parts although when I did finish it I saw that the boring bits set up a background for what was to come.