Toppers

Some more wedding toppers
ready for the expo my sister has
at the vineyards this weekend...
I have made these very plain
as a bit of a standard set
and then they can
jazz them up like this set below...

thanks for all the sweet comments
about my art work...
I will try to be a bit more adventurous,
and if I make a mistake...that's life...
I will just start over again...

eska

some of you may have seen this pic before
but for those of you who haven't...
I did this last year
and would love to try my hand at more
but still feel uncertain if it's "working"
you know...self doubt and all...
the first one i "changed" in a word document of all things
and the second is a photo of the original...
love some feed back...
I called her Eska as it was based on the original
Alaskan sister i did last year...

I still really need some spare time for art classes
but there is no more hours or babysitters in the day
if you know what i mean...
I think the whole light and shade needs work...
or is that so important anymore???
maybe some collage work with paint and fabric...
sorry rambling now!!!
have a great weekend whatever you are up to...

Vintage plates

Here are some of my favorite vintage plates...
I have just bought a new J & G Meakin bowl
that matches the square plate i already have...
I found it on e-bay and was so excited as it seems to
be a really hard pattern to find..
I'm trying to get a mix and match of Meakin and Johnson
plain plates for everyday use and
it is really great when i find some...

My husband said in our next house (i so dream)
he will make me 3 kitchens...

A vintage one with plate rack and
curved timber shelves,white and pretty etc
just for all my "vintage" finds...

A seventies retro laminate one for all the quirky finds
maybe with that lovely shade of orange or green
they always seem to be in...

And a new one fully commercial with stainless steel
and plenty of bench space and cupboards...

It is a running joke in our family that I have never had a house
with a new kitchen...only old....and I'm talking primitive!!!

before we bought the pub we
fixed up the kitchen before we sold it...
so technically I had a new kitchen
for 3 whole months and then we moved out...
so I really can't be too upset...

And the fact that my husband
thinks up these things just to make be smile
is sweet...

Loving the vintage

The Frock

So ok here is the frock on...

Still really unsure about the look...
I feel a tad DORIS DAY in it
and unsure if my small town
is quite ready to see me in it...
But
it's kind of cute to do the house work in...
I still will probably do a crocheted edge on the bottom
when I get some cotton to match...
and a matching headband...
so that could tie the new vintage look together...
anyway It has inspired me to track
down a few more frocks and see what i can come up with...
Loving the Vintage

Vintage Theme

Following on with more vintage goodness...

I have made a very yummy burgundy collar
that I know will look great around one
of my very plain black dresses...
And here are some market and op shop finds...

Some fabulous ribbon that I really want to put into
a dolly skirt when I get around to making it...

Lovely crocheted Dollie that is handmade
and I picked up from the CWA stall....

And vintage blue dress with tie
that I'm hoping to make look kind of quirky cute...
I 'll let you know how that goes...

And some fabulous Marks and Spencer shoes
that will be perfect for a wedding I'm going to soon...
And yes I don't think I will wear "the wicked witch of the west" socks...
Love to but I wont...

Vintage Era

Begin ANZAC Day
I thought I would make something
a bit more delicate
of a vintage era...
something that really is a timepiece...
I love making things pretty like this
that you can keep forever
and is just so intricate and dainty...
I hope your ANZAC Day is full of memories
of people you love and remember...

Scarf

Now what was I crocheting

in front of the fire???
This of course...
Now back to some more wedding toppers and dolls soon...
well maybe after a bit more
Crocheting...

toasty

Don't you just love the
first fire of winter...
Feet up...Crocheting in lap...


Too good!!!

And yes the christmas decorations are still up
cause they look too nice to take down...

Raven

A new design added to my etsy shop
"RAVEN"

Thankyou to all the sweeties
who have ordered and e-mailed me
and bought from my etsy shop

Loving the Crochet love...

Etsy Shop UPDATE

SHOP UPDATE!!!
at bargain prices...
Take a look on my side bar...
Above new design...Georgina...

Crocheted Headbands

I thought a little bit of

crocheting was in order
lately...now it is getting cooler...
so I started on something small...
I haven't crocheted in ages
as i get really sore carpal tunnel...
so here are three I did last night and this morning...
The one above I'll call "Juliet"


This one I'll call "Josephine"


And the last one "Antoinette"

As you can see they go really well
with the Curlypops brooch cam sent me...

If I get organized and get some more finished
I'll put some in the shop...

Miss Mod Series

Here are the first of

The Miss Mod Series...
yep I was up all night...
and most of the day...
and after these pics were taken
I did add handbags to all the girls...


I have given them names to suit
their particular style...


Jackie-her parents were fond of American politics and the Kennedy's...
Audrey-her parents favorite movie is Breakfast at Tiffany's...
and
Janis-her parents listened to a lot of Joplin and wore paisley...

Now all I need is a new stock of felt
and a few spare days
and there could be lots more...

Miss Mod

Well here is a new range I have been working on...
I have called them the Miss Mod Series...



I think that most generations have gone through
a mod faze at some stage...
I know I did...
Lots of black, bob hair, mary-janes...sunglasses
oh hang on I think I still wear all that now!!!

my mother went through it in the 60's
black turtle neck, tartan skirt, mary-janes (pointy) and sunglasses
and very big hair...
she still is very fond of the "look" she had going at the time...

And after watching "The House of Elliot"
I think some of that mod look even went back to the 20's...

I personally "LOVE" it...

I know this is a sneak peek and more pictures
very soon...
And at least one more...
Well maybe two if i stay up all night...

I heart flea markets

Sophie over at
Her Library Adventures
sent my lovely little brooch
in the mail
after i nabbed it on her etsy shop...
"I HEART FLEA MARKETS"
It was packaged beyond belief
and is so nice...

I teamed it with some op shop style
the checked skirt $3-00
the grey top $3-50
and a black lace singlet under $2-00

bargain!!!
and just great for the colder weather...

I hope everyone had a great Easter break
filled this lots of
chocolate, children and friends...

Do You Want To Swap?

After much thought I decided to make up a button
to use whenever there was something I had handmade
that I was willing to swap...

I'm hoping it works like this...

On one of my posts I will put a picture of an item I want to swap...
then the "swap" button...
you will be able to add comments to this post
if you would be interested in a swap for something you have made...
of course a time limit would be necessary...
(I really don't want comments a year down the track)
and once the time is up then I can go through all the comments
and find someone I would like to swap with...
It would be good if the comments included a link
or idea of what you have you want to swap...
and it really can be something totally different
fabric,cushions,aprons,softies,patterns,bags,quilts...etc
I like lots of handmade crafts...
And if for some reason i did not pick your item to swap with
please don't feel discouraged...
Leave a comment the next time I put one up, and the next,and the next...
As there is only one swap at a time, only one person can be picked...
so sad I know...

And then the rest is "history" as they say...

Now I would LOVE it very much if you really like this idea
that you save the "button" to your computer or blog
and use it as well...
feel free to put it up on any posts in the same way...
and cut and paste my above description as well if you need to...
and you really don't need to link back to me...

Now I just need to go through my "dollies"
and see who I can part with...
Stay tuned!!!

Etsy Shop Open

I have just opened up my etsy shop
again and have put two sweet
Chicago sisters...
they are in American dollars
so at their price they will be a bargain
for my overseas friends...

Charlotte and Betsy
will come packaged to you
in one of my
"royal sister" bags

Now to all my Australian friends
as I'm not sure how to change the price and refund etc
i will give a bonus
of my sally sleeps-a-lot pattern
to any Aussie purchase made...

and you have the added bonus of cheap postage!!!

At this price they will still be a huge discount...

over the next week i will be adding more sale items so please keep
checking out my side bar for my etsy shop
listings...

little black fringe

I'm a tad obsessed with ideas for these
wooden dolls...
and i wish i could do them faster than i can
but they do tend to need time and re-coating
to make them so lovely...
they would be great on top of a birthday cake
but i think they will look just as nice on a little shelf...

as you can see i still like the little black fringe...

and little caplet hood...

and i have added a little "selvedge" dottie trim...

in a range of shades around the bottom...

now it's back to painting and more ideas!!!

Wedding Toppers

Here a a few pictures
of some wedding toppers finished...
My sister will be getting some other wooden shapes
from America
in the next few weeks
so we can trial a few different styles...

they are very cute but do need a lot of work...
my next post i will show everyone the cute
little "girly" versions i have made as well...

And a very big thankyou for all the lovely
comments on the tea set...
Jodie has put some more patterns in her etsy shop
so don't forget to pop over and take a look...

add a little lace

now i did buckle today
and bought a pair of very mass produced
gloves..."best and less" no less
but there was a good reason...
to show everyone how to dress up
your winter woollies...
now i know there is quite a few knitters out there in
blog land...so for those of you who knit...
whip up a pair for winter and add some cream lace...
and for those of you like me who are not quite at the level
of knitting gloves...
buy a pair of hand knitted ones and add some trim..
I'm lucky enough to have a lady in town who knits these type of
gloves with the fingers in them so i will be asking her
to make some like these without fingers...
handmade(and much warmer ones)

and adding some myself...
the more vintage lace the better, i say...

hope this gives everyone a bit of inspiration...

Tea set

I received some fantastic mail this week from
Jodie at RIC RAC
her amazing tea set pattern
and like any totally obsessed crafter
i sat down straight away
and sewing like a mad women...
and I'm glad that i did...

I will be making another cup and saucer
but the weather was so nice
i couldn't help myself
and had to take some pictures right away...
this set will be a mother day present for my mum
and she really likes these colours...
the pattern was easier than i thought
as I'm not the greatest sewer
so anyone that loves this set as much as i do
go to Jodie's etsy shop and grab a pattern
It is really worth it...
Just think of the great colour combinations
you could use...
I am already planning to do another set,
I'm thinking really bold red and white...