yucky ...

... the weather that is.  It's windy and rainy and a tad chilly :)  My kind of weather really, but not so great for taking great shots of completed projects, so you'll have to wait to see pictures of my beautiful hexagon bag.

I haven't done a quote post for ages, and at sewing yesterday my friend showed me this brilliant site called 'be happy' where you can order products with your chosen quote printed on them.  Awesome if you're a quote collector like me!  She picked this quote for me and I'd like to share it with you too dear readers, hopefully it will make you smile like I did and set you up for the weekend  xxx

My kind of day

Yesterday and today have been spent hand sewing embellishments as well as trying to complete some upcycling projects from two books I borrowed from the library.  I've reached the maximum number of renewals so I'm aiming to finish my projects by Friday :)  Hopefully I'll have plenty to show and tell by the end of the week.

Flower on the left made from 'Recycled Chic' by Amanda McKitterick and the flower on the right from 'Custom Couture' by Helene le Berre

I've been perched in a little space all of my own - small but light, carpeted, comfy.  Our house is quirky and has three levels, with only 3 steps up to each level.  This precious space of mine is between our bedroom and the lounge.  It's lovely and light as there are gable end windows in the roof, I frequently take photos of completed projects up here. 

I love gathers ... great for making pretty flowers

Today I've also been shirring an old shirt into shape and practising blind hemming for a new job I start tomorrow.  I've got a job doing alterations once a week, so I get to make clothes wearable for their owners, alter pretty bridesmaids dresses for their big day and sit amongst lots of buttons and haberdashery.  I will be in heaven :)  My new boss is also a craft addict and at my interview we talked and talked about quilting, patchwork and painting.  It's my kind of job, I can't wait! 


Rowing today: 5 mins = 730 m

Escape from Muddle-Earth

Well, it certainly looks like Muddle Earth outside at the moment.  When I went outside to put the rabbit away for bed it looked all eerie and mysteriously misty - after a couple of spring days it's been raining again, but let's be honest we do need it and we'll be complaining again in summer about how dry it is.

But ... seriously ... 'Escape from Muddle-Earth' is the name of our team which has entered in the 'Run-A-Muck' event on September 22nd.  It's to raise funds for the WA Multiple Sclerosis Society and basically entails having to walk/run 5km of obstacle course through mud in the beautiful surrounds of Belvoir homestead in the Swan Valley.  So far only 4 of us school mums have officially entered, either we are especially charity minded or completely mad.  A little of both I suspect :)  Anyway, if any of you kind souls reading this feel led to donate a little something towards this worthy cause, please visit our team page by following this link.

Official logo from site - cool hey?  Wonder if I can make a button for my sidebar?
Watch this space ...

That also solves the mystery of the rowing - I hasten to add I'm rowing on a machine in our front room, not a boat on real water, (I don't do boats if I can help it) and it's all part of the training for the above event.  We do train at weekends too, but I've been up and down with that - literally - as I've been experiencing pain in my knees that have complained bitterly when I've tried exerting myself!  Anyhoo, a little scare later about the onset of osteo-arthritis and I've found that rowing is actually relatively pain free and I hate to admit, very enjoyable.  So, it's my exercise of choice at the moment, and I run around the school oval on a Saturday morning instead with the other mums, and thus still feel very virtuous that I'm moving rather than remaining a couch potato :)

Here's the official spiel from the event website:

"Run A Muck will be held in the Swan Valley in Perth, on 22^nd September 2013, at the picturesque Belvoir Estate. Competitors will be ‘at one with nature’ while fighting their way through muddy, dirty obstacles. We are all about fun, family, not taking yourself too seriously, having a laugh, getting fit, dirty and doing things you haven’t done since primary school, all while raising money for the MS society.

There are twenty obstacles in total, with a distance of 5km across the whole course. There is no time limit on the course, enabling people of all ages and abilities to complete it at their own pace. This race is about enjoyment and having fun rather than breaking any land speed records!"

I love the 'at one with nature' part - it means we are going to get seriously muddy.  There are some good pics on the site if you want a closer look.  I'm beginning to get nervous ...

Rowing today: zero - Sunday is my rest day!

Small things make me happy!

Yesterday I wondered around in the forest with my dog Charlie, it was a lovely spring like day, and I really enjoyed feeling the gentle warmth of the sun on my neck and back.  It was really dreamy :) 

To add to the joy we were fossicking about near the reserve for bits and pieces left from the days it used to be a rubbish dump; I don't know who was happier - myself or the dog, we both enjoyed sniffing around.  An artist I'd happened to meet walking her dog in the forest put me onto the site as a potential hunting ground for found objects.  I stumbled upon this piece of metal, it may not look like much but it caught my eye and I know I'll be able to use it in an artwork somehow!

Today we had an impromptu barbie with our lovely friend from across the road.  We told her she didn't have to bring anything, but she arrived with this beautiful bright and breezy mini bouquet from her garden.  Purple and red, currently my favourite colour combination!  I had intended to take the pic in the lovely sunny afternoon, however it was dusk when I took the camera outside and you can see the daisies closing up and going to sleep.  That still makes me smile even as an adult :)

So those are my happy thoughts ...

Oh and I rowed for 5 minutes and covered 700 m this morning (and nearly passed out with the effort!  Note to self; best to recover from a cold before getting too physical!)  I'll tell you what it's all in aid of next time I post - promise!

I only went in for one thing ...

We were bought a lovely gift the other day, a pot of honey from local bees, sold to us by an elderly couple who have been gathering and selling the nectar for 60 years.  This particular one is Red Gum honey and it's absolutely delicious, don't think the pot will last long.  Little Man has had trouble dribbling it onto his toast, he's tried twizzling the spoon but ended up saying 'mum, how do I make it stop!?' as he made a lovely sticky trail across the kitchen counter. 

So, to help a lad in need I went into First Avenue to buy this ...

... a simple yet aesthetically pleasing honey scoop

... and discovered to my extreme delight that they now stock T2 tea, so a box of that came home with me too.

Look at the beautiful sunny glow surrounding it - it's an almost ethereal, other-worldly feel, befitting the magical qualities of this beverage (I really love tea, okay?)

I also found this card:

and this one ... well, who could resist her beguiling face?

So much for a simple shop!  I don't think there's any such thing!

My mood has been up and down lately, so I took a break from blogging as I didn't feel like writing.  Sometimes you just have to follow your feelings, just as I did again today when I knew it was time to start writing again. 

You might remember I posted a pic of my hexies for my knitting bag laid out a little while ago, well here they are made up into a gorgeous fabric - I so want to make a skirt out of hexagons ... must put it on my wish list ...

One side of the bag ...

the other side of the bag ...

It always seems when there's a change in seasons there's always a plague of bugs and infections rampaging about.  Apart from the big boys everyone else in the family has come down with a nasty mix of sinus and ache-y symptoms.  Today I stopped trying to be supermum and sat down in my big red chair, listened to some Florence and the Machine whilst doing some handsewing - see I felt so poorly I didn't even want to get my sewing machine out!   But I did find rest and solace in my hexagons - and to think last night I was wondering if I was actually coming to the end of my hexagon craze (I was taking out the paper templates which I do find very boring).

I'm going to line the bag with this vintage curtain fabric I found in the local op shop - I think they might actually be fabric samples and I've been wondering what I could do with them ... this will be perfect ...

Hopefully I'll finish the bag in the next couple of days and I can post some show and tell pics :)