This is... was a group effort & we've got a fair bit of banter this week...
This morning I asked the big girl to take a pic of me in my current uniform (trackies). I told her what it was for & she looked at me in the way only she can (picture eye rolling & raised eyebrows).
"That's not your style mum. It's your jeans, green jumper & snowgum jacket!"
So I logged the big & the small into Polyvore & they created the above sets.
Then we did a bit of "polyvore at home" and came up with this. I think that the girls have pretty much hit the nail on the head. I'm all about comfort at home & for work I mainly wear vintage dresses. This one is my absolute favourite & selected by my personal shopper.
I'd been thinking that This is... was going to be really tough & it turned out to be lots of fun & the big girl LOVED Polyvore.
Thinking lots about Christmas & giving & sharing & eating & drinking & making & appreciating...
I'm trying really hard to give handmade this year & I thought this might be a good way to spread a bit of Christmas Spirit around.
The Winner Takes it all!
Vintage Father Christmas pillowcase filled with great holiday gift ideas all handmade by me from mostly thrifted/recycled materials. I think that this would cross a LOT of people off your nice list this Holiday Season. You could win the lot! I'm happy to post anywhere! You can view this image with notes on Flickr.
I like to be organised...
Here's a list of places I've been & things I've seen to help me prepare for the upcoming holidays.
COPY FROM HERE:
Still feeling totally inspired by the handmade issue of mankind mag from my favourite design blog. Q What is the blog author's first name? ANSWER: use the first letter - LETTER:
We like to keep lunch casual, I've found some fabulous BBQ recipes for the big day. Q What type of meat is pictured on the rotisserie? ANSWER: use the first letter - LETTER:
Getting some great ideas for upcycling (my favourite craft) & enjoying the revamp over at this fabulous craft website. Q They list everyone's favourite Portland based author mama as one of their inspirational sites. Which Portland based author mama is she? ANSWER: use the second letter of her last name - LETTER:
Looking forward to being able to buy handmade at the shopping shindig with the craft book Queen. Q What type of car is pictured? ANSWER: use the first letter - LETTER:
All these letters unscramble to reveal: WHAT? is all you need.
STOP COPYING
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We all know I'm a huge fan of just about anything "on wood" but I had no idea just how much I was going to love the crochet table cloth hacked & tacked to a couple of pieces of thrifted furniture.
Things are coming together quite nicely in the new house. If you've had a peek inside my place you'd notice that there was only a tiny patch of our bedroom photographed. We've been looking for something nice & skinny for the TV to sit on. It's in an awkward place because it's very close to the ensuite door.
I'd picked up this glass fronted cabinet at the Op Shop (for $5) intending for it to be hidden in The Date's office & reserved for his "straight to the pool room" golf trophies & such. It looked ridiculous & he pitched it out into the hallway earlier in the week. I seconded it for this maybe temporary maybe permanent fixture in the bedroom.
I'm not a huge wrap for the basket shelves (which came out of this unit) I've fashioned below & prefer a more open look. I've got another idea for that (which will hopefully still hide the power cords). I'll keep you updated.
While I had the glue gun out I worked a bit of crochet magic on this sweet chair (also Opped for the princely sum of $5).
Beautiful floaty images by Bricolagelife.
So I think I've managed a pretty nice bedroom makeover for under $20! Unbeatable value & my very favourite ... reused, repurposed, recrafted, upcycled.
If you fancy having a go at this yourself it's just super-easy-thrown-together fun.
You'll need... double sided tape, spray adhesive, hot glue gun, a thrifted crochet table cloth ($2-$8).
For the cabinet... Using double sided tape create a frame on the inside of the door (as close to the glass as possible).
Then... Rough cut the table cloth to size. Keep all the motifs intact at this stage.
Now... Expose the double sided tape & position your crochet piece.
And... Use your hot glue gun to more permanently adhere the crochet piece.
Finally... Trim away excess fabric so that everything looks nice & neat.
Repeat for the other door.
For the chair... Rough cut the table cloth to size. Keep all the motifs intact at this stage.
Then... Spray the wrong side of the tablecloth piece with spray adhesive.
Now... Position on the chair.
And... Use your hot glue gun to more permanently adhere the crochet piece.
Finally... Trim away excess fabric so that everything looks nice & neat.
This is... hosted by Three Buttons. Theme from My Champagne Dreams.
It's really piling up now (& starting to feel intimidating).
I read Goodnight Mr Tom on the Darwin trip. I'm not sure how I missed this book as a kid/teenager. I remember it being a pretty big deal but I think I was all worn out after The Silver Sword (which I loved).
I confess to being a bit nervous about Mr Tom. I'm supposed to be reading it with Grade 5 during this term. There is one part (& you know what it is if you've read it) which was quite shocking & I think quite a lot to take if you're 10 but I really truly loved this book. It's a fabulous read.
I zipped through "Addition" in record time. I loved this book. Although I don't have an affiliation with numbers I could totally relate to the rule thing. This book served to remind me that really I'm just teetering on the edge. I'd only need a little nudge (that's not a challenge - just in case you were wondering).
The remainder of the pile is untouched...I think I'm going with "In Ecstasy" next.
This is a little something I made for a giggle & for you.
I'm hoping that I'll give Pickering (mine's safe for work folks - I promise) a run for his money & grace the back of toilet doors globally...nationally...locally...ok at least at Claire, Christie & Shazza's places because they encouraged me to take on this project in the first place.
I've been tinkering away on this for a couple of months...since you first got a laugh out of my noticing & beret shots. All crafty "disguises" have been fashioned by me, some especially for the project & some were just loitering about the house in various states of completion.
I dragged the little guy in to check out my "folio". He watched in horror as I flicked through the images & then we had this conversation...
Little guy: "Mum, this is terrible. Nobody is going to want this." Me: "It's free buddy." Little guy: "Even then Mum. Only your friends will look at it, because they'll feel sorry for you."
I'm confident that anyone who reads here regularly will enjoy the calendar & take it in the spirit in which it's intended. For any new-to-me folk who are saying to themselves "This girl's got a touch of the Warren Beattys about her." - well, there's something in there for you too. x
I know that a few people have problems with JS Kit & have had trouble with their service. Personally, I have had positive dealings with JS Kit support & am keen to continue with this system of commenting. Mainly because I think that the blogger comment system is less than ideal.
Why I like it...
-I like that I have the option/ability to respond to each comment. -I like that if used to full advantage I can click directly to a commenters site. -It's made me engage more with the folks that do leave comments on this site & afterall that's what it's all about eh?
I think that JS Kit is most beneficial if you actually sign up to it. It doesn't cost anything to register with JS Kit. They have a strict privacy policy & the site owner (me) doesn't actually have access to your email address...
-Then you have the option to receive my responses (or those of other commenters via email). -You can add a number of sites where people can visit you. It actually lists the name of the site so that people know where they are heading.
There are other options for logging in to leave a comment which are all fine but you may not see the benefits that I describe above.
Anyway, I just thought that I would include a how to as it seems a few people are stumped &/or confused when it comes to commenting using JS Kit.
...
I've said something or shown something that you'd like to make a comment about... Click "comment" This box will pop up. If you want to comment as a guest (& you don't have a blog) that's fine...just try to remember to type your name in the guest box so I know your name. <
OR you can sign in using one of the following in the drop down under the "From" Here's where you would choose "Blogger" or "my other site" or "JS Kit" . If you choose "Blogger" or "my other site", you still need to type your name where it currently says "Guest". You can also choose to upload an avatar but you won't receive email responses.
To get the most out of your comment... sign up to JS Kit (you only need to do this once)
If you do that your comment will look like this. I know it's Tania from Myrtle & Eunice before I even click. I recognise her icon (& I'm pretty glad she's stopped by). I can hover my mouse over Tania's name & I've got the option to visit her on her site if I like. You know I'm gunna because I'm loving what she's got to say & she's made it super easy for me. You should probably go & visit her too. She's good!
If you sign up to JS Kit you also have the option to change your avatar from your "comment box".
I hope this was helpful & I hope it might make commenting on kootoyoo a more valuable/fun experience.
A couple of months ago I picked up an Avant card for Do it with Denim, a competition run in conjunction with Jeans for Genes & in support of Children's Medical Research Institute. The Institute is celebrating it's 50th birthday this year.
I got all inspired & made this to enter into the competition. It's what the broomstick needles were fashioned for & what this tease was all about.
My dear sweet friend modelled for me & I got all my stuff together ready for the entry...
Hausfrau I have taken my inspiration from housewives of the 1950s for this project.
This garment has been constructed entirely by hand using handcrafts employed by a 1950’s housewife. The garment itself is knitted from hand cut strips of denim jeans (6 pairs) & the gold detail is crochet.
Many supporters of charitable organisations have been & continue to be housewives. They give their time to assist with labour & fundraising. I am proud to represent this group.
"To be a housewife is a difficult, a wrenching, sometimes an ungrateful job if it is looked on only as a job. Regarded as a profession, it is the noblest as it is the most ancient of the catalogue. Let none persuade us differently or the world is lost indeed." Phyllis McGinley Denim jeans are such an everyday garment & I wanted my recreated jeans to also be an everyday & loved as much as the original garment.
Hausfrau is a vest that can be worn at least 4 different ways.
....Then I re read the terms & conditions.
"Kirsty needs to read the question carefully before beginning a task" (quote taken from EVERY school report I ever received).Yikes! The competition is really for budding designers...that's not me! I'm just a girl who likes to make stuff.
So, I haven't entered. BUT...Hausfrau will be worn to death by me & maybe Trace too. It wasn't a complete waste of time.
It was so nice to have a bit of time to myself yesterday.
I've had a few emails asking for pointers on stem stitch & again I think that this is the kind of thing best learned by watching & listening rather than still shots or sketches.
I stitched a bit of lettering & thought that I'd share the video. I've kind of adapted my traditionally taught stem stitch over the years. Vick...if you're reading this - click away now. This is my "go to" stitch. I use it for lettering, for outlining & for anything with a curve. I love the flexible nature of this stitch. You can very easily rocket ahead on straight sections & then slow right down & do teeny tiny stitches around sharp turns. It's a forgiver...I like that.
Hoping that this helps you out & you become a (sort of) stem stitcher too.
Now that I watch this video...is it any wonder my stitches are so tight. Just look at how I "correct" each stitch.
We've got busy kids so that means there are lots of gym coach & swimming teacher types who need a little something.
This is what I'm gifting this year.
Morning Fresh Tissane A beautiful blend of calico & soap. This tea bag is designed to be left steeping in the shower with the soap inside. Flavour & performance improves overtime. A joy for the eye & the senses this blend will invigorate & revitalise.
The best part about this tea bag is that it can be filled with all those otherwise useless endy bits of soap.
Product currently being tested by me.
This girl is trying something similar for her washing machine & I'm bursting to hear the results.
I responded to a request from Kami this week & it really got me thinking & then I found this...
The value of the collective and the community in the continuation of successful practice
Presenter: Carole Hanson Epp Verge: 11th National Ceramics Conference Brisbane, Australia 10th - 14th July 2006
"I have found that working within a community of artists or collaboratively can be a means, in particular for emerging artists, to gain valuable experience, access to opportunities and an awareness and understanding of the role of the community in support and critique of ones work. When we leave our academic environments to set out on our own as craftspeople we are still in need of a community of like-minded, inspirational, challenging and active producing artists around us. Academic programs can instill such skills as self-criticism and personal motivation, but it is through the community that we evolve and build upon that foundation...
...Only through active involvement will we as practitioners see the growth and development of these organizations and the artists they support. Attendance at events, membership, financial support, volunteering of skills and time, are all means towards common goals."
Complete article here
What does this mean for me? How can I nurture the relationships I've been building with this craft community & particularly the Melbourne girls?
Support the community in which you hope to prosper whether financially or otherwise. Get around - have a chat.
If you enjoy a blog, admire a piece (or collection) of work, got inspired, had a laugh, shed a tear, made your day, touched your heart - support them!
Buy their work, leave comments, shop in their store, celebrate their wins & take an active interest in their journey.
Everyone has to buy stuff sometime. Before you head to a nameless, faceless, bigger than Ben Hur store owned & run by a man in a suit you'll never see - consider buying from someone you "know" & who you KNOW will appreciate it.
Put back what you take out and then some.
I'm trying really hard to live this rather than just think it. A community is a powerful & wonderful thing. So to all who take the time to post, make, create, share or care - thank you.
This post has been rather more deep than my usual drivel so I'm going to finish on a totally tacky low note...
Mike Brady in the Brady Bunch Movie: Alone, we can only move buckets. But if we work together, we can drain rivers.
Betty the Geek chose a great theme for This is... this week.
Surprisingly, I found this quite hard. I show my crafty creations on the blog already & the creations I'm most proud of are emotional & hard to photograph. I think it was the tenderness of the image of the hands cupping the earth that threw me off.
So...my offering this week is a pair of knitting needles I've fashioned myself today. They are made out of broom handles & I've got some rather exciting plans for them. They need a bit of a sand to get them in tip top shape but I'm confident that they are up to the task.
As for my most treasured creations I'm just going to list them:
three wonderful children, a happy marriage, a house filled with love, enduring friendships & unfailing support of & from my family. Luck may have had something to do with all this - but I work hard too.
I reckon I'm OK with the pictures but the words don't come as easily. I really enjoy the words written by this clever girl & the wordy posts here are my favourite mikes updates.
What I really like is to take a nice long leafy walk down memory lane. "School lunches" has given me the chance to do just that.
I could blather on about this kind of stuff for hours. My mum was a bit of a control freak when it came to food so when she started working I took full advantage.
This was my regular order at the school canteen (written just as it would have been in year 8). I'm not sure about the pricing but you can be sure I was a cheap date.
No nutritional value whatsoever & this lunch order paved the way for Mars Bar breakfasts on the way to school...yick.
I devoured this "lunch" in about 5 minutes flat & then spent the rest of lunch time starving & staring longingly at the salad sandwiches prepared for my lunch buddies.
I've still got no self control when it comes to Nutella.
PS. I really enjoyed this wordy post & I think that I shall be a regular Lingo Franko visitor.
This week in the space I've got the beginnings of my long term (very) quilt plan. I've had this idea kicking around in my head for ages but have put off making a start because I know how long the whole thing will take me.
Time to dive in ... rolls of brown paper rescued from under a nice Edwardian that was being renovated, huge t square Opped for $5 & my quilting ruler.
My favourite space this week wasn't on last week's list but I'm obsessed with her space & thinking about it constantly...
the shed
Last week was our biggest creative space yet. It's great to have so many players but I'm trying out a new visiting "system" this week. We'll see how it goes...
Don't forget to pop in & add your link if you're playing along this week.
. This girl & I were chatting about how frustrating it is that we haven't been able to share HTML on our blogs without that pesky (but cute) button popping up in our posts. We know the Typepad girls can do it - surely there must be a way!
If you've got some HTML you'd like to share on your Blogger blog this is a step by step how to share the code without having that oh so cute button appearing in your post or sidebar.
First things first: You've got a brilliant idea/game/meme that you'd like displayed in sidebars all over the place.
Then Re-write your code replacing the <a the >< & the ></a> as pictured above in red.
Copy & paste this code into your compose window in Blogger. Blogger will convert it back to useable code for use by others. Like this:
I haven't been doing very much in the way of creating this week. I've been doing lots of preparing though...
planning, decluttering, thinking
This upturned chair is part of one of the crafty plans I've been working on in my head.
Also included in this image: more stackers, a lovely gocco which may look familiar to some of you & a photo reminder that the Melbourne Girls are really very special.
Housekeeping: Just a reminder that if you're playing my creative space you should post & then pop into this post to include your link in the auto link list. This makes it super easy to get around & check out everyone else's posts for the week. You need to make sure that your link is right...I fixed up a few last week but I won't be able to do that every week.
Mr Linky reminds you to leave a comment but please don't feel you have to. It's just to make sure that the player list is current - it's not for comments.
I told Lara I was going to put this on Flickr "for her eyes only" to say thanks for being super specially good. BUT this girl said she'd post it on her blog if I did! You know she'd do it too. Safer here where I have some control!
It seems my big fat bogan wedding has been an item of interest to a few lovely folk.
This is me with my "I really (insert expletive) hate you" fake smile. My beautiful friend thinks that they taught fake smiling at my school. One of my very good friends from school is on Melbourne Radio & Trace reckons we have the same fake smile!
Reason for fake smile: Casual, relaxed, natural photography brief. Photographer turned up with an ironing board & tulle & made me do this!
Points to consider when critiquing the event.
1) I was 23 2) I was 23 3) I was 23
Thanks!
See more bogan shots here & here.
PS: I'd be pretty happy to trot the wedding dress out if anyone wants to host a wedding dress party!
PPS: I'm going to get the wedding video out - that's a real comedy!
Today I saw Handmade Nation! This documentary was so beautifully put together & just an absolute joy. It's made me want to spread my crafty wings a little wider & made me proud to be a maker of things.
In the true spirit of handmade this music box is constructed entirely by hand. There are numerous steps involved in the making & each one is taken purposefully. The only new component used in the construction is the music maker.
I hadn't planned on sharing any of the finished music boxes I've been making in the last couple of weeks. I thought you'd all be bored to tears with them, but this one's a goodie.
This box was a "something special". The order came from a wife for her husband's birthday gift. She told me that he was into tech gadgetry & music. I loved making this. I was given the opportunity to stretch myself a bit & I'm really very pleased with the end result. Embroidered detail is a mouse wire that I stripped & then stitched into the base cloth.
PS: Hoping to catch up with all the my creative space posts tomorrow.
There has been a bit of layering happening on my desk this week. All the stuff from last week is still there but there have been a few additions.
Grey wool for a new softie project. Inspiration 3 which I printed this morning & read while I ate my toast. Erin has done a terrific job. This gorgeous Yellena print which arrived in the mail this week is resting up against the pile of craft books from last week. She is currently at Poppytalk Handmade with lots of lovely prints to buy. This is my favourite. The packaging from my most recent online purchase. They know a thing or two about presentation - let me tell you!
If you are new to On my desk...let me know so I can stop by.
This is the finish of My Creative Space for 2009. I figure we could all use a bit of a break so the space is officially on holidays. My Creative Space will fire up again on Thursday 28th January. So mark it in your diary, write a post it note or set yourself an alarm on the iPhone - I'll look forward to seeing you back here for more Creative Space action in 2010.
It's all about finishing off for me this week. Finishing off & posting out the music boxes I've been making this week. Printed fabrics by: Kristen Doran & Aunty Cookie.
I didn't get around to everyone last week (it's that time of the year) so no favourite this week but I thought you Thursday folk might like to take a look at my new craft space. Tour my house here.
Don't forget to pop in & add your link if you're playing along this week.
![scheDUEL [handmade holidays] ...](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw8bDBMioGUFuA28gG-X91S3qdyxN-tOei3YaGBrjJqFNi3R8D2kWLzDqJHiCxm5rX0Fn60bb2Yh6EzOxHC3ELuEzngqiINcQi8yopqTEemnIZfLZbCL-15Eaj9-MX5p2ohbHos7yFppo/s1600/ScheDUEL_handmade_holidays.JPG)
