flea market finds

I am a self-confessed squirrel - buying lovely things at the op shop and putting them away "until later"... a bit of a forgetful squirrel too, often struggling to find my treasures when I'm finally ready to use them...

so I'm especially proud of myself this week - picked up this little spice rack one day, and hung it up and filled it with threads the next...

visit Sophie for more lovely finds...

my creative space

I've started making a "creating" space... in the belief that a dedicated space - even if it is jammed into our little bedroom - might help me escape a little creative rut.

It's still a bit messy (and one day perhaps we should think about painting the walls!), but it is filled with pieces I love - thrifted and inherited pieces, that gorgeous bag, and a bunch of early photos of me and him (a nice reminder as our "first date anniversary" - our 12th! - is fast approaching).

So far, no great creative output to show for it... but one day...

Kootoyoo is the place for creative space inspiration...

our creative space

Sometimes, when I am knitting (which is not so often lately), I have a 3.5 year old knitting companion - she uses these giant needles and this old yarn... and she knits amazing animals (in her imagination).

The other day, she announced she wanted to do "real knitting" - and that she wanted to make a caterpillar (and that we had to use HER needles and HER yarn too).

I operated the needles, and she did the "wrapping around with wool" bit... and we made this:

(maybe a caterpillar's old discarded skin?)

Undeterred, we reached for the yarn needle, and she did her first bit of "real sewing" with a "real needle" - in and out, up and down, around and through and generally any which way she liked (with a few strategic stitches from me to kind of pull it into a kind of shape).

Finally, we had finished - our first toy that we knitted* and sewed* together.


Meet Wooly Bear, the caterpillar - she is very talkative and loves to tell jokes, and is just the right size to cuddle up in a little hand.

Visit Kootoyoo for more creative spaces...

*not sure if this qualifies as real knitting or sewing, but I'm definitely sure that it really doesn't matter in the end

an embarrassment of riches (part 1)

My guess is that pretty much everyone who reads this little blog would already know about the amazing array of auctions and "giveaways" held by so many talented and generous people to help raise money for those affected by floods.

Given that I'm a SLOW maker, I decided to focus on donating instead of making, and soon my "receipts" folder in my email account was filled with little donations as I entered some lovely giveaways.

I feel almost embarrassed to say I won... not one, but two glorious prizes.

Nova's Dr Seuss cushion cover - I love the way each piece of bunting lifts up to reveal a surprise - like a giant lift the flap book...

right now it's hiding in my secret present drawer, awaiting the arrival of a new nephew - I have to keep myself from pulling it out to look at it in case I change my mind and keep it!

I also won this beautiful laptop bag from Nikki - I don't yet have a laptop, but it is motivation to get one - hanging up near my bed reminding me of my dreams and plans for further study, and in the meantime, holding my "low tech" paper copies of the research and journal articles I'm reading.

If you want to make your own bag, you can find the patterns here... and see Tanya for some inspiration!

Thank you Nova and Nikki!

(and yes, the part 1 is there for a reason - I will be back someday soon to explain the rest...)

cover version

Is anyone else excited that Spicks and Specks is on every night - straight after the kids' shows?

(yeah, yeah, I know it's not really a kids show, but I try to sing loudly to block out adult content, and well, she developed a Spicks and Specks love in utero, and always managed to wake up for a feed in time for the show when she was tiny...)

Video made a bit over a year ago - this "piano" was one of her first completely independent duplo creations (another was a "Spicks and Specks set" but maybe I shouldn't mention that in case you think we're completely crazy...)

Hope you're having a happy Wednesday (and staying safe too).