Apple puree and a splash of Vintage

Can you believe my little Laura is 6 months old already! It's not quite time to celebrate her birthday yet but it is the time to start celebrating FOOD! 

Yep!  It's time for solids!!

I find something very therapeutic about pureeing up babies food...and I just love to watch their little face when they explore a new taste or texture... I have always made my baby food with the exception of my first child when I was young, naive and thought baby food came in jars and packets!!!  Different world now, I can tell you.  One thing I have never done before though is to make bubs bibs, I can't help but be inspired by the lovely designs I have seen on so many blogs, and as I  just love to sew now it was quite fitting that the next step for me would be to craft up some lovely vintage love to splash across my daughters chest.  Simple and easy to create, I found that sewing machine, sorted out some favourites from my stash and I took the weekend off to create....

Pattern here

I varied the designs a little bit and used a thick toweling (old towel) for the backing.

Do you think I could be the Happiest baby in the world....

You bet I am ....   :)

Holiday Craft

  Take one packet of Wooden Pegs, 

some felt tip pens, fabric scraps, glue, scissors, 

and some balls of wool 

 

add a little bit of imagination

and Craft up together for some very cute little Peg People . . .

Enjoying Easter ...

Last Easter I made a decision to simplify Easter gifts, there was to be no more mad rushing around the supermarkets last minute spending $ on fancy eggs, rabbits and cheap nasty chocolates for the kids. Easter became part of my Handmade challenge.

This year I continued this new tradition. Having a new born in the house meant that I was a little more restricted with my time and patience and unfortunately we didn't get to make our own chocky Easter treats that we had planned, but there was still plenty of Craft, Baking and Easter fun to be had by all. . .

and much to the kids delight, that cheeky little cadbury bunny still managed to sneak his way in and drop off a little treat as well.

I managed a few quiet moments to make up a new little bunny for our new little Laura . . .  

I'm hoping to see a few more of these make there way into our home over the next few years of Easter celebrations. This is the pattern I used.

We made and ate Jelly Bunnies for dessert. 

and we even found our very own super sized Easter Eggplants growing in the garden.

The best part is we still have a whole week of holidays ahead of us.   

I hope you're enjoying your Easter Break...

Sew Busy

So while I've had my head buried in the books this week, 
(really I have) 
Someone has been busy crafting . . .

 

 

Cheeky little chook isn't she! 

A bag for every occasion

 

A Tote or two... from this easy pattern 

 

 Totally Dotti inspired!

This one could be just what I need for the Babies Bag. 

Do you think it suits me?

 I am so completely hooked on Sewing now,  I cant stop! I find myself sneaking into the sewing room any spare chance I get, rummaging through thrift shops for fabric scraps and feeding my new addiction for vintage fabrics via ebay!  I have so many little projects on the go at the moment, I can get myself into a bit of a pickle sometimes with my daily family schedule and need to be a bit more mindful of the dinner menu and housekeeping plan but at 7 1/2 months pregnant you can probably imagine, its all such a chore. . .

I find sewing/crafting/creating so theraputic - Soul Food!  Can you survive on that?  Don't worry the children are still getting fed, bathed and educated... ; )

Most of my sewing projects are for practical use, completely inspired by Amanda Blake Soule's  Handmade Home, and not to mention the many, many wonderful creative bloggers out there. I'm on a mission to create as much as possible for my home decor and organisation.  

So after the Totes were created I moved onto a few drawstring bags, simply made with a basic rectangle pattern, sewn up the sides and added drawstring, these bags are useful for anything and everything.  

Bags for the little ones to keep their dolls and dolls clothes together, teddies, puzzles, lego etc... anything that usually gets scattered all over the floor, I will be making a few more of these in different fabrics, the plan is that the girls will identify what toys belong in what bags and Pack Up time should be easier, quicker and maybe more fun?

A Library Bag for my new little School girl

And a chalk bag (of course) for the chalk!

Bags are fun and easy to make and such a practical item to use in the home, or anywhere for that matter. If your interested in some easy bag patterns bookmark this page now, It's full of goodies. And go here to see other great bags used around my home. 
Happy Bagging!

Slowing down....

With Christmas over and done with it's now time to rest...I'm looking forward to a New Years eve gathering with family then it's time to slow down the pace before the school year starts again.  With one starting high school, another starting prep and a new baby arriving early in the year there is going to be a lot of changes happening around here in 2012.

 My Christmas sewing has kept me quite relaxed over the past couple of weeks. . .

I didn't quite get everything finished that I wanted to but I was happy with what I achieved.  Little Pincushions were sewed and gifted....

Soap was cured and fitted into these snug little soap on a rope bags I had been crocheting of an evening...Lavender Bath Soap and 

Tea tree oil Garden Soap

Suitable also for some gifted jewelry.

Then there were the DOLLS . . .

  It was this time last year that Queensland was hit with a devastating flooding, many families lost their homes, their possessions and sadly their loved ones.The lovely Mrs Moo who has creatively inspired me on many many occasions was responsible for hosting the Queensland Flood Dolly Appeal and these lovely little dollies have been on my mind since then, I just didn't realise I had the patience to make them.  Dolly Donations  is an amazing website that donates homemade dolls to less fortunate children all over the world.  You may have noticed the special little dark skinned dolly in the group, I am hoping Sarah may be able to use this for an upcoming dolly drive.

My vegetable garden continues to supply us with a good picking each week but sadly it will need to be turned over soon and I don't quite know if I'll have the energy to continue it over the next couple of months.I'm sure I can round up a few little people willing to get their hands dirty.    : )

 I hope your enjoying the slower pace that usually follows Christmas
I'll be back again sometime soon . . . Happy New Year