finger knitting is cool, ok!

Well we think so! Finger knitting is coooool... Just ask Lacie and her friends at school. Lacie does the one finger knitting chain and her other little bigger friends are doing four fingers across and making little scarves. I think it is awesome that the kiddies are playing elastics and being crafty with their wool. Just send me back in time to live the simple life. A house on a hill and a cow. That's all I want! Maybe a few other things... Check Lacie out leaving the house today with her hands full. Oh and please don't forget her own personal video tutorial she did at Christmas time on finger knitting!!

a mouse in the house!

A mouse only a mother could love! I made this little guy last night and was up till midnight waiting to meet him. When our eyes finally met, I wondered..... hmmmm, are you a mouse or a koala? Maybe a confused mouse? But there is no confusion that he belongs with us! Imperfections are perfections in my household.

introducing mouse

ahhh.. we love you mouse

meeting the family

I was messing about on the computer yesterday determined to make something. It seems to me that the busier I am with my day to day life, the more determined I am to have a few extra hours "just" for me at the end of that looong day. Even if those few house don't start till after 9.30pm! It's MY time :)

If you have fallen in love with my scary beautiful little mouse / koala animal, I found the free pattern here.

I bought the tweed fabric and felt from my friends at Peg's Pieces who are just the best!

Send mouse some love and leave him a comment here on my blog. I will be sure to pass it on!

remember playing elastics @ school??

Last night Lacie went a little mad with her skipping rope. She was skipping inside the house, on the balcony, out the back and in her room! It reminded me of being at school and the games I'd hang out all day to play with my friends in the playground... ELASTICS!!!!!!!!! It was the best fun ever. Hmmm I wonder if I have some elastic??? Err derrrr, of course I do (I said to myself). So, this morning I whizzed a few metres of elastic together, wrote her name in thick black texter (as I did at school), did a few practice runs, wrote out the song to sing as you jump along and popped it in her pocket, packed the elastic in her school bag and off to school she went!

ENGLAND, IRELAND, SCOTLAND, WALES, INSIDE, OUTSIDE, INSIDE, ON..

The Verdict... Well, Miss Lacie just got home and it was a HIT!! She and her little friends LOVED it.

Did you play elastics at school? Were there any other songs?

The other craze that some kiddies are doing is finger knitting!!! Any other games?

custom made seat belt covers

I've said it before.. you either love leopard print or you hate it! It's in your genes. My mum loves it, I'm a fan, so naturally Lacie should love it??!? My baby turned 5, so the perfect gift of course was custom made leopard print seat belt covers.. I made these for her last week and couldn't wait to give them to her. She told her Grandma that these were her favorite present of all! Wooo hoooo. I told you it was in the genes :)

I also made her this little card and sewed on the little garland flags of material. It was a poor effort on my behalf as I "was" going to make real life size ones for her birthday but just ran out of time! Maybe next year? 

 

I had to pick her cake for this year as she wanted a surprise cake. I bet she didn't predict a dinosaur cake?!? This was the easiest one for me to do, as again time hasn't been on my side over the past few weeks.

The Women's Weekly kid's birthday cakes
"huff & puff" page 42

I feel soo guilty that I didn't make more of a effort with the hand and home made little things for her birthday. Maybe next year! Happy Birthday Lace x

little trackie dacks

My Mumma would have been soo proud! My first pair of home made trackie dacks.. a good old family tradition continues on. Totally daggy but totally awesome!! I can remember clear as day growing up with my brothers and cousins and we all would have our own hand made tracksuits and pj's sewn with love from our Mumma. Tradition is something I want to hold onto as tight as possible in loving memory of our Mumma. She was the best.



I used a home made pattern I had and bought some School Grey Tracksuiting Low Pil material $12.94 p/metre and School Grey Ribbing $12.94 p/metre from Lincraft. Works out to be about $4-5 for 1 pair. That's pretty good I reckon.

too cute tunic dress

This is my latest dress from Pip Lincolns "Sew La Tea Do" sewing book. It's called the "too cute tunic dress" on page 54. It's a dress that you can have done and dusted in one evening sitting for sure! The patterns in this book basically has small to medium and medium to large. I assumed I was a small to medium... as I am usually a size 8-10. Once I had finished the whole thing the small to medium was perfect. I used a really really light weight cotton fabric that I picked up for $2 a metre. So $4 for my new top/dress. It's a bit see through so tights or jeans will be a must. I am loving making things for myself at the moment! Oh and this dress has pockets too!

this is the actual photo in the book

My sewing and blogging and my life in general has had a slight shift lately with my husband being on crutches and 100% out of action. My mind has been chock-a-block full of stuff. I have still been sewing but just not posting them on my blog so quickly. I have finished hemming some things and making a few little things for Lacie for her birthday, and cause my mum is visiting I have sat with her and crocheted some more granny squares..

i sang

I sang today. I sang very loud. Bon and I gave each other a concert and we sang and we sang.. Rip your heart out ones.. A bit of Barbra Streisand's "Memory" (for you Mumma) and "When I was walking in Memphis" and "Someone like you" by Adele. Bon thought I sounded great! If you sing directly in to the speakers it's pretty loud for one thing, and you blend in a bit and sound like your singing with the singer! It also probably looks a bit funny too.. My microphone was an over sized basting brush and Bons was a spatchelor.

I'm pretending to prepare for a fun family concert that we are having in May for a farewell to my Brother-in-law and his girlfriend. It's compulsory for each family member to sing one song!! We can't wait... the girls will be singing Baby Baby Baby ohhhh and Heath is thinking Jon Stevens "Take Me Back". Heath and I just had a quick conversation right that second as said that we are already nervous and embarrassed, but we will sing!

Music in my brain HAD to continue tonight as I have loads going on and music takes me away to Sarah land. I also HAD to get rid of some way over loaded energy, so I ran to the gym once the kids were sorted and pumped music in to my head. I escaped for an hour and it felt fantastic. After a run and a bike ride I laid on the floor flat on my back, by myself, closed my eyes and stayed there for a few more songs. I'm home now.

my own skirt design!

10pm last night all was quiet. Just me and a family block of Kit Kat. I had had a pretty busy mum & wife day. It was time for me to relaaax... So that meant sitting and looking in my magic cupboard for something to make! As the butterflies jumped around in my stomach with the idea of making something. I decided to "wing it" and make something for me, free hand. No pattern. Hmmm I thought.. let's see. Perhaps a skirt? Can't go tooo wrong here??!?

I used up the left over fabric from the dress I made for work the other day and whipped up a kind of A Line skirt that has a double sided waist band that's thick and stretchy enough not to need a zipper or additional elastic. Need to tuck in the mummy tummy as much as possible. (Oh yeah, the fabric is called Ponte De Roma..)I like it a little "harry high" just over my belly button. I tried it on last night with a little black top to see if I could get away with wearing it to work??? I think I'm happy with it. Actually it's awesome to wear!! Sooooooooo comfy. And I'm a bit proud. Bad photos but it was nearly mid night. 

I still need to do something with the length as it's a bit tooooo long.. I was thinking of gathering up just one side and making it a little more fun, but still work like.... I was just a little excited to share my new creation.

Soooo, because I thought I was a legend last night (in an overtired delirious sense) I headed over to Pitt Trading with a friend today and bought some more material to make some more "work" clothes.

I also bought myself a little pink flower today for a pot that my sister-in-law bought me at xmas. It's now sitting on our little wooded table on the porch. I can see it right now. Hello there flower!

Is anyone interested in the pattern??

new dress for work??

I'm on count down to returning to work from maternity leave :( So I thought I'd try to see if I could make something wearable for the business world. I found this heavy, with a bit a stretch camel coloured fabric from Lincraft yesterday. It was only $12 a metre, so it cost me about $20 in total! I used my trustie Coastal Breeze pattern that I have used before in my all dressed up post, cooking, kids & sewing and a lesson. This is my latest work one!

I made the neck binding a bit wider than what the pattern says and I still need to hem it to finish it off. Just need to get some matching thread.

Maybe with my hair done, some makeup, some accessories and heels etc it could be a work dress???? What do you think?

crafting kids non stop!

"Make" must have been in the air yesterday, cause I had three good friends (not including my 2 girls) call me to discuss their creative ideas for that afternoon! I loved it... creativity is contagious! One friend took herself to a fabric shop I frequent to pick up some material to make a pram blanket for her new nephew. By the way, this friend has only had one sewing lesson (with me of course) and whipped it up all by herself! What a legend.. My other friend popped over with some beautiful fabric at hand and borrowed some sewing books for some inspiration. I can't wait to see what she came up with (she just bought herself an over locker, so looook out!). My other friend was needing me to justify her buying a new sewing machine. She has a gorgeous 9 week old baby girl and wants to make frilly pretty things. My response was that I have the cheapest sewing machine on the market!!! Seriously! It cost me about $179.. It hasn't skipped a beat yet. AND sewing is a skill for life. And plus... the $30 she spend on a little laced up frilly singlet and bottoms would cost her about $10 to make. Hey, so she'd be saving money!

Ok, back to my crafty kids. After sport activities yesterday morning the showers came down. So inside activities for all! Fairy Led Lights for the girls and some caramelised red onion jam for me to make.

  

And at about 7am this morning, this is what the girls whipped up. It was kind of fun actually. It's this thing called Magic Fabric. No glue or sticky stuff. Just peel fabric stickers off and put together then roll and their stuck!

You'd think that would have been a big enough "make" hit for the girls this morning??? But no... not for Lace. She stole some newspaper from her daddy and found a page with some school kids and some string and made herself a newspaper school mask?? Bon was the photographer and this is what Lacie made as well this morning... She looks a bit scary!

After a busy morning of craft (and it's only 9am!) the girls have had their cup of tea and wheat bix and are running around mad! What have I created??!! I secretly love it :)

washing machine top cover

Don't worry I know.. it's official... I am a dork! A washing machine cover?? I have also asked myself the same questions. What on earth am I thinking? But apperently I needed one. So I thought anyway. I was actually cleanig the laundry which is a first for me.. and I was sick and tired of the lint catching, washing powder grabbing top thingie. So I decided that I needed something that I could just wipe clean. Ah ha.. ta dahh..

And yes of course I had this material and plastic in my cupboard already!! I had made a bag out of it months ago and loved it sooo much I bought a few metres. Isn't it groooovy!

You could actually use this for more than just a washing machine top cover.. what about a messy mat for the kids play dough / painting / cooking or under a high chair etc etc..

It was very easy so I thought I'd share how I made it:

You will need to measure your washing machine top or figure out how big you want your messy mat. Below are my measurements.

24'' x 22" piece of clear plastic (table cloth plastic from Spot Light)

24'' x 22" piece of top material

24'' x 22" piece of bottom material (I didn't use any bottom material, but not a bad idea to use it)

2.5" strips for the binding

some bull clips to hold plastic and material together

scissors & sewing machine etc

• Once you have cut everything to size, lay plastic down on table then lay the wrong side up of top material (if you are going to have a backing lay this on top right side facing up).
• Arrange the bullclips so that it stays together.
• Halve your long 2.5" strips length ways wrong sides facing and match raw edges to start your binding.

• You might want to google how to do the binding of corners if you havent done it before. This is what the back looks like once you are half way with the binding.

• Once you have sewn all the way around, now it is time to turn th binding over to the front of the mat and sew it together. As in below picture. 

•  Your done!

It's DVD date night with hubby so I will catch ya later :)



quilted purse pressie

It is my best friends birthday today, so that meant I had to get cracking and make. I have had this little quilted purse pattern from SEW! by Cath Kidston that I have been wanting to make for a while now. You can't see it that well in the photo, but I took the time (yes I took the time) to hand quilt tiny stitches all over the purse in all different colours using Rajmahal Silk Threads. It took me for ever! Next time I make one, which I will do, I will use lighter coloured material so you can see the tiny stitches a bit clearer. It's a cute size and has a little press stud on in. Talking about press studs, I only just figured out how to do them and have made a tutorial that I will upload soon. Very easy once you figure out how to use the little tool that comes with the pack. Anyways.. here it is. Oh yeah... it's leopard print! You either love it or hate it. I think you are born with the gene or your not!! I was.. and I get it from my mum.

I never go out to buy wrapping paper or cards.. never really have. What a waste of $10!! So instead I use my trustie roll of brown paper and what ever else I have in my cupboard. Today I found some scrap bits of red paper that we used for some valentine craft a few weeks ago and some tangled art silk that was at the bottom of a box. So we made some little red balloons with string and a simple piece of cardboard with a birthday message. Easy peezy and looks a bit fun. Make the most with what you've got!

I also bought her a really nice smelly candle that has a scent of "fresh linen". I have this one and when ever she comes over she loves it! It creates a false perception of slaving over the laundry and spring cleaning!! That's why I have my candle burning every day.. It even tricks me to think that all the washing is done and the house is sparkling clean.. My Aunty-in-law makes them and she is selling them in some shops now which is great! If you are interested in creating a false perception of house work being done, let me know and I can put you in touch with my Aunty-in-law. $10 small candles and $30 extra large candles...

creative monsters

I have created "creative monsters".. My fault 100%! Not one day or night goes by where the kids don't express themselves artistically. From drawing green crayon on the walls "because it looks better that way" (so I was told) or getting dressed in odd shoes and socks for the day, painting their beautiful dolls faces with my nail polish, sewing buttons onto socks, cutting every piece of felt I own into sticky taped masterpieces, cutting and cutting what ever can be cut, drawing their little people on cards, sewing together bits of material.... and last night making beaded bangles! Of course they are?! That's what happens when you have a whole fishing tackle box full of everything you need to go crazy with beads and bits and pieces you need to make what ever you want!! It has been waiting for them under my bed for ever.. until now. They didn't even take the time to get it out into the lounge room, they just HAD to start right there and then, right next to my bed!

impatient little people

finally onto the craft table, i mean dining room table

my new priceless jewelry
and well deserved glass of wine!

Lacie wanted to capture her new bangle with some action model shots! She was the photographer and I was the model. This was the best that we could come up with!

me the model

I wonder what tonight will bring?

all-in-one jumpsuit

I was majorly determined to have some "Sarah time" last night when all were sleeping. This meant a very late night. But worth it to unwind.

I bought this Jack & Jill All-in-One Romper pattern via email ages ago. It is only US$5!!!!!!!! I really wanted to make Mitch something other than little shorts and also wanted to check out how an email pattern thingie worked. Once you purchase it online, Benita from Bettsy Kingston emails it to you and you print it off! How easy it that. There are a few different versions for US and AU printing options, so make sure you let her know you need the AU A4 version (if in Australia). Once I stuck the pages together, the perfect little pattern was laying there waiting for me to get cracking. My friend Lisa gave me a tip to use light weight interfacing to trace patterns if you think you might use them again and again. It is sooo much easier that using tracing paper! Light weight interfacing is less then $2 per metre. Cheap as and worth it.. Anyways.. Hmmmm what material to use. Making the most of what I have, I used some stretch knit by Patty Young that I was going to make some tights out of for the girls, but thought it would be perfect for Mitch cause it is soft and bright and fun. Here it is below. Lighting pretty bad as it was about midnight!




Lucky for me Mitch woke up as soon as my head hit the pillow (weee hours of this morning) and I decided that he really really needed to put on his new jumpsuit! Woo hoo, so yes truly for real.. lucky for me. I was sooo excited it looked sooo good and it fit him too! Back to the pillow and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz for me.

This is Mitch when he woke up in the cot this morning. I couldn't wait to see him up and about his his new outfit. Sooooooooooooooo cute. Oh how I love this little man. Totally cutest ever.

please tell me this is cute!!



I will definitely check out the Bettsy Kingston site again to get more e-patterns. Oh and she also has a great blog with great tutorials. Her latest one is some too cute Baby Ballet Slippers.

dear diary...

This blog thing is kind of like therapy on ones hectic life. So here I go..

Last Thursday night I got a phone call from my husband to tell me I had to take him to emergency cause he snapped his Achilles tendon playing footy with his mates! The poor thing was in agony to say the least. I packed the kids in the car and off we went... well kind of.. after Mitch somehow poohed out the side of his nappy on to the wall, I somehow lost he keys in the car and had to run around mad searching for the spare set (mind you, this is while Heath is turning green with pain and about to pass out), when we were finally on our way I had a huntsman spider (I thought it was a trianchela, but my husband corrected me) as big as my hand sit on the other side of the windscreen and stare me out the whole way... we arrived. Long story short, he had operation the next morning and in a cast for 6-12 weeks! So for me, in short, I now have 4 babies to look after..

My patient has been very good (so far). I get text messages and emails from him from the bedroom if he needs anything.. After bacon & eggs on Sunday I got the kids out of the house and took them to the movies to see Gnomeo & Juliette. We loved it! Yesterday I did some cooking. Heath is a mad raspberry fan, so I found a recipe for White Choc Chip & Raspberry muffins from Julie Goodwins cook book and whipped some up for the patient. They were scrummo!




My kids went a little nuts over my sister-in-laws humus the other day so I made a big batch for them as well. I tried a little too hard on presentation for this picture! ha ha.. that's paprika and a bit of olive oil drizzled on top.. Little Bon is getting into some right now with some carrot and biscuits. If you can smell garlic?? Well, that's coming from my house..

I go back to working 3 days a week in April so I need to get some child care sorted pretty quickly, so in between cooking, nursing and stuff, I drove around my suburb checking out child care... How disappointing. Out of the 70 million I looked I would only leave my children at 2 of them. I need to reassess my situation.

You may hear a little less from me over the next few weeks, or possibly may get swamped with dear diary stuff.. ??