do fun stuff!

I am a daily reader of Ryan's blog Pacing the Panic Room. It's a great blog because it is written by a guy. There are not many good guy blogs out there, so it is a refreshing and honest read.

Ryan and Cole's son, LB, has Smith Magenis Syndrome (SMS) and I can relate to so many posts about LB on Ryan's blog because some of the SMS characteristics can share a blurred line with Autism. Also stepping away from the symptoms....the fear of the unknown and worry that links us parents together.

In order to raise awareness about SMS, Ryan gathered up a posse of awesome indie artists to put out an album, Do Fun Stuff Volume 1 - A Kids Record For Parents which is available on iTunes.

We have had a listen to the album and it's wonderful. The music is perfectly in sync with a little child - fun and fast in the beginning of the album and soothing at the end. Audrey loves Ladybug, Elton loves Always A Blue Sky (which would please Ben because the band sounds like The Beatles) and I love Biscuits.....and I do love Biscuits. It's my thighs that don't.

If you click on the big green monster he will tell you all about the album and point you in the direction of iTunes.

I wish Ryan and his family all the best with the album because 100% of the profits are going to research into SMS.

C'mon Ellen! Take a look!

2 days and a night in Paris

My dream suitcase.
From Polyvore

bag lady

Besides brooches, I have been sewing lots of bags with left over scraps of material and some old vintage buttons. The fabric buttons were made with my fun little button maker.

Sometimes you don't want to lug around a big bag full of things, so these bags are in a whole range of sizes just for dashing out to the movies or popping over to see a friend when you don't need to have a whole lot of things with you.

They are lined with felt and are really simple to make. Just lots of folding and a good press with the iron.

sunny road

It is so cold at the moment. It is officially spring next week, but there is no end of the freezing weather in sight.

I am on the lookout for a lovely yellow dress for spring and summer and saw this pretty dress from Tea Street Vintage.

Until the weather changes, I will just have to look at pictures of sunny and bright dresses on etsy.

Have a lovely Friday.

Toodle-loo!

x

brooch diy

Being quarantined at home this past week I have had more time then usual to slowly wander around and look at things. Normally I am dashing around. Ben calls it doing trying to do a hundred things at once.

I can be doing one thing like vacuuming and then I....oh I should really straighten out the wardrobe but right after I......that pillow really is all wrong over there I will just pop it over ........I should get out of this wet towel though and put my clothes.......is that a cobweb? Where did I leave the vacuum again?

So I have had time this week, and last night I decided to make brooches for my cardi's, because besides my pendants and scarves, I love my brooches and I have been wearing the same old ones now for quite a while.

I gathered up some felt, brooch pins (from Spotlight for a pack of 8 for $2.70), superglue, embroidery thread, ribbon and scrapbooking embellishments.

I had lots of metal frames, wooden shapes and enamel embellishments and decided to make them wearable.

Also when placing an image under the frame, you want something heavy enough to support the weight of the frame, the weight of the brooch pin and then it being stuck to you all day with arms and gravity and movement flying about the place. Some heavy duty cardboard and good strong glue should take care of that.

You might also want to buy a product from a craft supplies shop called Glossy Accents. It forms a glossy seal over your image. Protecting it and also making it waterproof and strong.

This was made with a metal frame, superglue, brooch pin and the image is from The Black Apple. It was from her business card she sends with your purchase from her shop.

This is for my own personal use and in no way will I sell these or gift them. It is Emily's image and is not for me to make any money from her hard work as an artist. It is just used to show you that all those pretty cards you receive, gift papers or lovely material you have at home can be turned into something for you to wear. Recycling but in the best way possible, but also giving credit where the credit is due. In this case, to Emily.


Metal frame, superglue, brooch pin and ghost image from The Black Apple.

The next 4 images are all made the same way and the images are from the front cover of a Sketch Book I purchased from The Black Apple. The images are so pretty and too nice to have hidden away on a book.

Enamel scrapbooking embellishment, ribbon and brooch pin. I tied the ribbon through the holes where the brad pins would have gone.

I handmade some felt flowers, sewed them all together with embroidery thread, added some decorative pins and glued a brooch pin to the back.

Felt flowers, tied with a green felt ribbon and a brooch pin on the back.

Felt birdy with a brooch pin.

Flower circle, embroidery thread and brooch pin.

Wooden embellishment tea pot and glued brooch pin on the back.

Wooden birdhouse with brooch pin.

This was a Christmas tree wooden ornament. I cut off the tree attachment and threaded in new ribbon and glued a pin brooch to the back.

Now I have so many brooches I have no idea which one to......oh look a bunny.

the last room

The outdoor room.

This is the last post for Janel's Great Blog Home Tour and it has been great posting along over at Run With Scissors and seeing all the other homes. Everyone has their own style and put so much love into making a house a home. Thank you Janel.

Also it was great to have posts in my mind because we have been spotty campers here at the homestead. Elton, Audrey and I have hand, foot and mouth disease. I know. Sounds like something out of Little House on The Prairie. We are all highly contagious and haven't left the house since last Wednesday only to quickly vote in our election which was interesting. I was the only lady wiping her booth down. The spots haven't even gone yet. Still there with no end in sight. The good thing is that you don't feel sick, you are just spotty, a little off your food but still good natured.

So here is the final installment - our 1/4 acre bushy backyard. Our home backs onto a sporting reserve and we own right up to the tennis courts - the big clay slab in the picture below.

When I first came to live here, I took one look at our dirt road and tall trees and bush wildlife and nearly died. I was wearing heels. I didn't know how to light a fire or talk to possums.

Now I can light a fire and schlep wood around. I feed Captain (our possum) bananas by hand and I love our big trees. They are comforting and ever changing. All those wonderful colours. And who couldn't not love a purple cottage home?! Purple!

Our creek. It runs all year round.

Camelia's are our flower. We have seven trees of whites, pinks and red and they are so beautiful. When pottymouthmama comes down from Sydney one day for coffee, she is going to love it.

We love it here.

emma pillsbury style

Besides Emily from Black Apple and Some Girls Wander and beautiful Audrey H, I love Emma Pillsbury. This is how I try to put my wardrobe together. I wonder if she wears track pants on weekends?

I love watching Glee just to see what the stylists have dressed Jayma Mays in. All those cardi's and skirts. Dresses and brooches. This is definitely my fashion eye candy.

I mean just look at that bow and cardi combo. Amazing.

You too can have her style if you take a stroll through the treasures available on Etsy.

Like this enamel flower necklace from Zafirenia

Or this vintage yellow dress from Fluke Store. It's gotta be bright!

Pencil skirts in a whole variety of colours like this houndstooth number from bOmode

I purchased this pretty daisy cardi clip from lovely Amy at SweetnSalty. I can't wait to clip it to my cardi's to keep them from blowing away in the wind.

You need plain cardi's like this one from Betty Jean Vintage.

Brooches from Purple Deer

A Kelly Bag from Nick and Nessies

And practical kitten heels from The Ruby Kitten

You also need a stripy cardi, a novelty cardi featuring bows or eiffel tower images and an embroidered cardi like this one from Cats and Crickets

And last but not least....a bow blouse from Grace Vintage.

That's a start....for now.

:)

the remaining corners....

Second last day of pretty Janel's Great Blog Home Tour and it's the remaining corners of our little cottage home.

The Dining Room.

The Play Room.

The Laundry.

The Entrance.

The Bathroom.

The Craft/Computer Room.

We love it here.