fiveandtwo

Gratitude

I'm immensely grateful for all your kind words of support. You are all wonderful.

I wasn't going to say anything, you know, revealing too much, going too far on what is supposed to be a craft blog, after all. Interestingly, I've found I have less time than before, although the no drinking change coincided with others that're labour intensive. I have an old Kenwood mixer from a garage sale, with a dough hook, and that makes short work of kneading the bread! The machine beavers away while I do other baking or prepare tea. Highly recommended, although I do knead it a little bit by hand at the end because I enjoy it. The Laucke organic bread flour I can get locally comes from Turkey! Rather more than 100 miles.

Not that much crafting has been going on. Hmm...could be I spend too much time fossicking in op-shops.

Leah had a netball game in Lakes Entrance on Saturday. With two oppys open and an hour to kill was I going for a walk along the beach? Not likely.

Buttons! And the bowl that they're in and the gorgeously soft charcoal wool fabric (with red embroidered dots) in the background.

Enid Gilchrist pattern books. How I love these books (no, love is not too strong a word). I have been using them for inspiration for my children's clothing designs. You know, that shop I'm going to have. You are all going to die of shock when it finally gets off the ground.

Old patterns are inspiring too. Interesting styles and design details. Little girl's dresses and skirts were  very short in those days. Well, except for the long 70's styles.

I think this comes from the days when many everyday objects had covers made for them. Baby powder containers and the like in this case.

Old cards. I particularly like "Jolly Birthday Greetings". I have a collection of old cards now. Like I really need another thing to collect...

I was very taken with this book. Clare and Ally don't like it and they usually like old how-to books. Mainly because the making materials are usually found lying around the house or in the shed. Materials usually don't have to be bought.

This book is full of interesting stuff. I guess I bought it for myself - I would've loved to have it when I was a kid.

  An old Sindy doll. My sister had Sindy and I had Patch (an English schoolgirl) and a trio called The Sunshine Family (mother, father, baby). Sindy today looks like a wannabee Barbie, sadly. My mum despised Barbies, hence the other dolls. I wasn't even aware of Barbie though, living in the boodocks without TV helped, and I loved my other dolls. I used them to play "Borrowers", I was very influenced in my play by the Mary Norton books.

And I have actually made something. This jacket for the new baby sister of one of Clare and Ally's friends. The pattern is from a Japanese book that I no longer have but was called something like "Organic Cotton Baby Clothes".

Must go and walk the dog !

Pink Clouds

Coming home from Net, Set, Go with my budding netballers yesterday it was hard to keep my eyes on the road. Look at these splendidly coloured clouds. So beautiful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now I guess this is where having Photoshop would be useful - I could edit out that powerline. Can you do things like that using Photoshop?

Now, why are my photos all this big regardless of how I resize them?

I obviously haven't had time to have another Typepad fiddle and investigate Typepad Help (usually quite good).

I've been fiddling around designing and drawing little dresses, skirts and tops. If I make a pettern for a basic A-line dress, a basic skirt and a couple of basic top styles then they can form the foundation to which various sleeve, collar/neckline, fastening and pocket styles can be added. The patterns can be cut apart to have contrast insertions and the like. I have an end roll of newsprint, the measurements for sizes 3 months to 4-5 years (beyond that young lasses get too picky), a how-to book of patternmaking, a long ruler, set square and french curve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ready, set, go! Cough...

Peg Bag

Old peg bag.

What a sad state of affairs.

New peg bag.

In the nick of time I reckon.

The pattern I used. Found at the good old op-shop in a plain envelope, along with tea cosy and apron patterns.  I always wonder about the women that  items like these belonged to.

Collections

Noticing a few collections around the traps lately got me thinking about what I collect.

A surprising number of things. Things in constant use that I've never considered collections would actually qualify.

Like linen tea towels.

Old beach towels.

Old bath towels.

These towels and tea towels, because they're used, get all raggy: wear out. So I'm always on the lookout for replacements.

Fairy stories, folk tales, myths and legends, nursery rhymes. I enjoy them all, in their myriad versions. Some of these were mine when a child, some I've bought for my kids, some given to them, lots from the op-shop.

Some things I buy sporadically, like the fairy tale books.

Old bottles, I have a collection of them that hasn't been added to for years.

When we did some renovating several years ago they got their own special shelf in the laundry. I had an "Angus" glue jar which I gave to a friend whose son is named Angus - how could I not!

Haven't come across any old scissors for a while.

Those tailor shears on the right are a family heirloom. Originally belonged to my mum-in-laws grandfather, who was a tailor,of course. They were passed to her when she began sewing from home for extra money. A superbly skilled dressmaker, I've learned much from her.

Those little blue-handled scissors toward the left: look closely - it's a rabbit!

Old keys.

Scissors and keys. Make what you will of that.

Wooden cotton reels. This collection gets added to from time to time. Well, they're not made anymore...

Continuing the sewing theme, old trims.

Oh, and the lace - old, modern. No synthetics allowed.

Bad photo, big shame.

How about buttons.

A mere portion of the button collection. This is a highly active one=actively seeking additions to the collection.

Baskets, those ones from the big basket making craze of 1955, or thereabouts. With the masonite or ply base, "cane" and some plastic-covered stuff. Called barsticks in this house. Toddler small fry's inability to pronounce basket.

The latest addition. A small one. Excellent to store the wool for a sudden interest in pom-pom making.

Can't explain my fascination with old maps, atlases and street directories. Collection added to sporadically. I'll use these. Circulating in my head are numerous ideas yet to achieve fruition.

The colours of these old maps are much more vibrant and distinct than the ones you can buy now.  I get all "arty" when I see them, but no artwork produced so far.

Happy collecting, people!

New Needlebook

My old cardboard needlebook was falling to bits. Plus I wanted a small project to actually finish.

A plain green leaf didn't look right, hence the stitching.

Inside I was able to use some of my collection of old flannelette. Leaf : flowers, goes together, right?

The leaf template came from a kid's sewing book that I picked up at the op shop recently called Busy Little Hands - Sewing, illustrated by Douglas Hall and published by Hamlyn.

There's also a pattern for a little hedgehog (echidna?) pincushion where the pins form the quills.

Clare and Ally have been inspired to sew. I must say it's easier to teach them now than it was even a year ago.

Clare's flower brooch and angel, Ally's bracelet. They used my felt and fabric scraps. I helped with needle threading and knot tying.

I'd forgotten how relaxing it is to sit stitching and chatting. Or to be lost in thought if I'm on my own. I think there's something magical about handwork.

Kid Sewing Finished.

All the clothes I had cut out - finally finished the last of them!

I think I'd be wasting my time, sadly, if I do any more in the way of clothes sewing for Clare and Ally.

The end of an era...sigh.

Fabrics sourced from op-shops, except for the skirt pockets. It's a quilting fabric but I can't remember what it's called or which of two local shops I bought it from.

Now I must make some warm weather clothes for myself - much harder than sewing kid's clothes. I did sort-of make a duct tape dress form. Well, the duct tape part worked. The idea of filling the "body cavity" with expanding foam did not. I ran out of foam, the two sides of the form sank together as the foam was setting...flattened my stomach but not a reflection of my actual shape unfortunately!

I'm glad, in a way, that it didn't work. As it sat perched on a kitchen chair (with a caricatured-face balloon for a head) awaiting filling, I began harbouring dark thoughts about it. Thinking perhaps I'd take it out the back and hack it to pieces. It was all a bit tiresomely symbolic.

Gone now, and I will muddle along with sewing for myself as usual!

Return From Unannounced Blog Break.

What have I been doing? Battling demons. With a bit of teen wrangling for light relief

What else? Walking. Changing the garden around - seem to do a lot of digging things up, moving them and changing the size and shape of garden areas when unwell. I think it parallels the changes I struggle to make within.

Two views of garden work in progress.

Doing what else? Sewing clothes for Clare and Ally to not wear.

From this book (ISBN 978-4-579-11132-9)

In a past life it was a linen shirtdress from the op-shop.

Used the same pattern for the "Lady" jackets  for the Book Day costumes.

Little top, cute bumblebee fabric (from Spotlight, as with apple fabric, below)

From this book (ISBN 978-4-579-11954-4)

Heh, could've ironed it! Lovely green linen from the op-shop.

Old Burda pattern (9995) with sash added. Fabric is two vintage pillowcases. All from op-shop.

Clare actually wore the one below..!

Used Ottobre Design's "The Best T-shirts" pattern for these, all op-shop fabrics. The stencil came from Stencilry, loads of stencils you can print and use (personal use only, of course). I used freezer paper for the first time and was very pleased with the result.

A couple more things to sew up and a couple needing buttons. I want to make some pants and skirts for summer. Thinking of making a duct tape "body double" to help with fitting, perhaps then there won't be so many duds - look terrible/don't fit properly.

The Japanese pattern books come from Yesasia. They have free shipping.

Seeds and Sewing

Planted seeds today. Lettuces, tomatoes, chillies and capsicums.

Even labelled them, to avoid, "Hmmm, it's a tomato, but which variety I can't remember".

The large punnet has coriander seeds. When I dig over the vegie patch I'll direct sow more lettuces, coriander and some rocket. I just need to remember to bring the trays inside at night!

When I was carrying the trays to the front of the house (warmer north facing deck) I noticed the daphne flowering, and an iris.

And some hellebores. I wanted to turn the flower up to show the delicate colours, but my hand and arm just didn't look right.

They're very tough. During the last really big bit of renovation here several plants were dug up and dumped unceremoniously in a pile of dirt and forgotten. Some months later they sprouted forth. Only received rainwater (and that was minimal). I was very impressed. All my plants came from a friend's self-sown crop so I couldn't tell you the variety.

Next I did some mending. Man, I can't believe how hard this family is on clothes! Buttons to be re-attached, tears repaired and patches over the worn through knees of jeans (Clare and Ally the culprits there). After polishing my halo (feel free to retch) I sewed the new bag.

Havn't shown the inside. It's lined, and has a double pocket. One side for a phone, the other for lippy, pen and, for me, flash drive. Not for any of my data. Whenever I do stuff at work, I do a backup. One goes into the safe over there, one into my bag. Heh. Business security revealed! I'm really pleased. On Saturday I'm going on the train to Melbourne with Leah. My sister will be there. She's coming for a lomg weekend from Singleton (NSW) to see a musical just opened...sorry, can't tell you which one. Last time we caught up in person was four years ago. Up in Buderim. Phew, whole family together in one place. Difficult to achieve since we finished school (20 years ago!). I'm in Victoria, Cathy (sister) is in NSW, parents in Qld, brother in UK. I think this kind of dispersal is fairly common. DH's family is all still here in this town, and I really enjoy that (well, pretty much, most of the time). I can't imagine my family living all in the same place, but I think it'd be good. Plenty of conflict though, like DH family!

Enough of that. After sewing the bag, I went on to the already cut out jackets for Clare and Ally. Dismal, dismal. Hazards of pattern books in a language you've got no idea about. My struggle with the hood of said jacket was fruitless. I don't have any Japanese language, the illustrations didn't enlighten me. Jackets have been turfed. Heck, I'm glad the bag worked out!

Went and sulked with Harry Potter 5 for twenty minutes until I needed to pick up the small fry from school.

Bags and More Pruning

That camp bed fabric I got from the Oppy last week, half of it has been cut out to make yet another bag. Truly, I've lucked upon some wonderful fabric over the years, and often my first thought is, "That would make a great bag!".

The pattern, which I've used many times (even enlarging it to make "school" satchels for Linsey and her best friend), is Nicole Mallalieu Design. I got it a few years ago from Perpetual Patterns, however, I've seen it in a number of quilting shops since.

Here's a few more:

I have some others made from different patterns that I use off and on, but the long strap so I can wear it across my body is the clincher. I have sloping shoulders and short-strap/one-shoulder bags just slip off. If you're having a good rummage at the op-shop you need both hands. None of this hanging onto bags stuff! As well, when I'm out with Clare and Ally I need to grab a hand of each  child when crossing roads.

Note ubiquitous bag-on-door-handle photos and, yes, the paint is coming off our loungeroom wall (those yellow patches). When the small fry stop sticky-taping things to the walls (which rips the paint off when removed) I will repaint.

And I think I need to learn that mosaic thing to do with photos so it's not an endless scroll down to see every picture.

On another tack: the prunings pile grows ever larger.

I've even needed to start another. The fruit tree prunings I'm going to turn into kindling for next year or the year after like Jenny. That's what the second pile is for. I'm pretty much done, just a few more snips here and there. I was taking advantage of the gloriously sunny winter weather we're having. Perfect for garden exertions. I try and do all the major digging, shifting hacking back etc in cool weather. Next up is the changing of a brick garden border to accommodate a new bit of dog fence. I am pleased with this = an opportunity to make another garden bed. Yay!

After not much deliberation I bought this book:

I had the earlier edition, but lent it to an acquaintance...who moved. Bye-bye book. I used that book extensively when I was tossing garden ideas around in my head (this place was just grass when we bought it). I was quite obsessive about this place being as sustainable as I could possibly make it. Jackie French was an even greater influence. Her books remain extremely useful references.  Jackie's book "The Wilderness Garden" was kind of formative for me. As a result, all the trees in our yard are fruit-bearing - Trevatt apricot, nectarine*, Buerre Bosc/Williams double-graft pear, in-one-hole Prune d'Agen and Greengage European plums, Golden Queen peach, Coe's Golden Drop European plum, 20th Century nashi, in-one-hole Geeveston Fanny/Northern Spy apple, Five Crown apple, Irish Peach apple*,Peasgood's Nonsuch*/Cox's Pomona apples(in-one-hole)apples, Stayman Winesap apple, Bruno kiwifruit on the side pergola and Black Muscat grapes on the front pergola. Those with an asterisk are not doing well or are too young to decide (nectarine - replacing a not-liking-it peach). Two Eureka lemons in barrels. These trees aren't commercially productive. Nor do I want them to be, I can't use/process that much fruit. Bear in mind, with my naming fruit varieties, that these trees are growing in my area. Others may grow better in other areas. Pick the brains of locals, reputable nusreries, catalogues of plants which can give you climate specific information.

I am very pleased with my ornamental/productive garden. It works pretty much as I anticipated. My kids are less involved than I hoped. Enthusiastic as little tackers, can't give a damn as tenagers.

And these big kids now require (demand) computer time.

Sewing

Look what arrived in the mail yesterday! This:

And this:

From the lovely Victoria, whose blog I enjoy. Lucky me is all I can say. I read a plea for love heart fabric on her blog and, having some, sent it off.

Unfortunately not before I'd cut up most of the doona cover...Here is part of it.

More is cut as lining for two jackets yet to be sewn up. This top, and the next two are from this book:

Really pleased with these. The small fry even consent to wear them!

I'm also pleased with this pinny.

The pattern was from a copy of the Japanese magazine "Come Home!" The little girls like this less unfortunately. A form of peer pressure I suppose. A little friend of theirs slept over last night. She arrived with "Bratz" pyjamas, slippers, dressing gown, pillowslip and overnight bag. I was speechless...Also the pickiest eater I've ever encountered. We had pasta for tea - "I don't like this, it's disgusting", repeated at intervals between pushing the food around her plate. "I only like pasta with sauce", I was unable to glean what this sauce might be. This  morning it was, "I don't like cocoa", "I don't like your vegemite", "I want a piece of cheese". I guess the cheese was unpopular too, because I saw her feeding it to the dog. Man, it was all quite stressful!

Here's a bit of light relief - some normal eaters doing a spot of baking.

And finally, the purses sewn up while I was away. I was rather ambitious cutting out and have this many again to sew up!