This month





 

This month.....

• included two weeks of school holidays,
• we went on a family holiday and stayed at a divine cottage in Nornalup for three nights (thank you, Aunty Jan!)
• the girls all had their first fishing expedition - it didn't last long but it put smiles on their faces!
• we visited quite a few artists who were showing their work as part of the Southern Art Trail (it was awesome!!) These paintings are by Serena MacLauchlan at Hotchin Gallery.
• I got a crocheting bug - three cowls later.....
• I managed to finish another little oil seascape painting - yay!
• my love affair with the Schoolhouse Tunic entered its seventh episode, this time with a gorgeous purple linen,
• my football team did NOT win the Grand Final, but I still love them!!!
• Miss M started to learn how to use the sewing machine - she has yet to earn her learner's permit (which means she can use the machine without me having to constantly supervise), but she is almost there,
• I experienced my first ever blogger/insta-meet - I bumped into Kate from 2littlebanshees while we both happened to be browsing the fabric racks at Albany Spotty at the same time.
• we celebrated Miss M's birthday with a BIG party and the most decadent ice-cream cake of all time!! Happy Birthday, my girl!!
• I have (obviously) had a break from my blog.

And it is good to be back.

 xx



Saving the (Birth)day!!

My twin girls had their birthday last week, and as usual, in the lead up to the Big Day, we talked about the Birthday Cake/s they would like me to make for them. 

 

I thought I was so clever.

 

"Girls, this year for your birthday, you can share one decorated theme cake or you can have an easy cake each." (FYI, an Easy Cake = coloured icing with Smarties and Freckles on top, my supposedly failsafe, go-to method for cake decorating)

 

"Easy cakes, Mummy!!" they shouted.

 

 See? Easy!

 

 

Until Miss J, on seeing her baked, circular and cooling-on-the-rack cake, burst into tears.

 

"But Mummy, my cake is meant to have straight edges."

 

What??

 

"And where is the beach and water going to go? I had a dream about my cake. And what about the boat?"

 

Er... what boat, my darling?

 

"Izzy's!!!!!"

 

Er... who is Izzy?

 

 

 

Izzy, it turns out, is the girl character in Miss J and E's current favourite licensed animated series which includes automated sailing ships, a captain with a hook, and a cheeky flying boy in green clothes who helps to save the day.

 

Quick! Grab the DVD cover, copy it twice, cut out, laminate, trim, and stick into icing on cakes between some Smarties. Phew!!

 

And of course, in the midst of all the birthday party craziness, the only photo I managed to take was one after everyone had left. Not an Izzy to be seen anymore, but I remember what the cakes looked like.

 



 

In fact, I'm thinking I will never, ever forget.

Do you have a favourite cake decorating moment? Or technique?
Do you have any stress/time saving ideas for kids' parties? Successful and not so successful ideas (like mine!) are most welcome - I have another party to organise in three weeks and I could do with all help I can get!!

Have a great week!

 xx

Building

 

 

My honey is happy. He has built himself a wall.

 

This has solved a number of problems.

 

First, the new wall replaces the old retaining wall that just wasn't retaining much at all. Second, G has saved us some serious money by doing it himself. And third, but most importantly, it means he can now plant the vegie patch he has been planning.

 

He has missed his garden. He has missed growing his own food, working in an organic manner. He has missed pottering about in the patch, getting up early or staying out late into the evening.

 

Now that he has his new vegie patch to plan, plant and prosper, he is a very happy lad.

 

 

Do you need to have projects to keep you happy?

What project are you working on right now?

 

Happy, happy Spring, everyone!

 

 

xx



Easy Folded Poncho #2

I finished this new Easy Folded Poncho on the weekend, knitted with a secret recipient in mind!

Pattern::   Easy Folded Poncho by Churchmouse Yarns
Yarn::      Malabrigo Silky Merino in Blackberry bought from Suzyhausfrau
Ply::         8ply
Needle::   4mm
Yardage:: 750 yards

No modifications this time.

So simple to knit, so easy to wear.

I'm already making another one!!


xx

Granny Square Hot Water Bottle Cover

 

 

In recent weeks I have been trawling the net, looking for a crocheted granny square hot water bottle cover pattern to no avail. So, I made one up!

 

Now that I have finished my hottie, I now know why a pattern is so elusive - each hot water bottle is different, and each crocheter's tension is different, so a one-size-fits-all granny-square-hot-water-bottle-cover pattern remains a non-reality in most cases.

 

In spite of this, here are the links to my inspiration starters, together with the individual ideas and techniques that went into my hot water bottle cover recipe. It's worth giving it a go.

 

Inspiration from Foxslane, here*.

Granny square tutorial from Little Tin Bird, here.

Join as you go tutorial from Attic24, here (just scroll down to the end).

Construction and shaping ideas from Snaffles' Mummy, here.

Bobble shell edging tutorial from Attic24, here.  

 

• Throughout I used 8ply yarn with a 3mm hook. I tried a 4mm hook at first but the squares were too big.
• I joined the squares as I made them -  "join as you go".
• The panels of 3x4 granny squares were worked separately.
• When adding the red border, I made up the shaping, using a series of slip stitch, single crochet, half double crochet and double crochet stitches to gradually increase or decrease the height of the rows.
• I made sure to include five buttonholes evenly spaced in the final round on the base of the front panel.
• The panels were joined using slip stitches but leaving a gap for the neck of the cover to be crocheted. 
• The neck was worked in the round, increasing at the sides in a similar manner to that used by Snaffles' Mummy in her gorgeous hottie cover.
• I used the bobble edge border as demonstrated, once again, by Attic24 (she's so clever!).
• I sewed in the ends and added five red buttons on the back panel so the front would overlap the back when the buttons are done up.

 

Ta Dah!

 

 

 

Yay!!

 

I'm glad I took notes as I worked, but given that the other hot water bottles in our house in need of covers are different sizes to this one, I'll be using similar techniques to get the new covers to fit them, tweaking as I go.

 

Have a great weekend!

 

xx

*I didn't set out to copy the red on foxslane's hottie cover - Miss E decided red was the perfect colour, so red it is!

Walking

We have had lots of trips to different beaches since we moved down to the South Coast, but on Sunday we decided to take the girls inland a bit, to the Porongurup National Park for a barbecue and bush walk. 

 

G and I are a bit partial to a bushwalk. We met on one. And even though I am in no way as fit as I was, we still like to venture out now and then. But for some reason, I don't think the girls feel quite the same way.

 

Walking up the hill among the karri trees, the girls whined all the way to the top. Not even our usual silence saver, "Shhh. Whisper or you will scare the fairies" worked its magic. Whine, whine, whine. Throw in a sulk. Maybe chuck in a tantrum, too. Throw oneself down on the track and refuse to move. Charming!

 

 

 

 

But then, when we turned around to walk back down, well, that was when the magic really happened.

 

"How was the Earth made, Mummy?"

 

"How did the fish start living on land?"

 

"How did animals grow fur?"

 

"How do trees grow?"

 

Wow!

 

 

In the end, a magical wander and wonder!

xx

Commission + Crochet

 

  

Oh, it's been lovely! I have been lucky enough to have a painting commission to work on for the last couple of weeks, in the days when all the girls have been at school.  It's a seascape of a local area - hooray - and I would love to show you how it's progressing, but this little painting is intended as a surprise so it will just have to stay under wraps. Just for a bit.

 

Instead I am delighted to show you the progress I have been making in my most recent of yarny undertakings - a granny square hottie cover.

 

Inspired by the colourful crochet of Kate at www.foxslane.blogspot.com.au/ and her granny square hottie which you can see here, I have been playing with my many small woolly scrappy bits and creating a hottie cover that is in high demand among a certain group of young girlies. Miss E will be the ultimate recipient of this piece as it's HER TURN!! Apparently!

 

 

I'm making it up as I go along - free(yarn)balling, as it were! There are a couple of other crochet creatives who have written 'recipes' for their hottie covers, but it is generally instinct, misguided or other, that is directing me in this. And it's fun. Of course!

 

 

Finally, I'm hoping this finds you all well because I know there are some who aren't. And I pray you will become well once again, Mandi. Love and strength to you and yours.

 

xx