Honi Design....by bec

Negleted

2011-09-01T17:18:00.002+10:00

If this blog were a child, I'd be hauled into the slammer for neglect with my child sent to a foster carer who would tend to the child like it deserved. Luckily this is only a blog, however but oh how I have neglected her and you dear readers.
I'll give you my usual spiel – work is nuts. But I don't want to go on about that. I've realised I need to either shut-up and get on with things or leave my job. But I don't want to leave so I will just shut up. I will however take less 'to heart' (a frustrating trait to mellow) and I have also stopped the late hours. The dizzy spells, daily sickie tummy, nausea, headaches and blurred vision were my bodies "slow down" hints.

There's been loads of crafting – jewellery making, gardening, knitting for Born to Knit – I even ventured into the world of Video Tutorials and have made several knitting and crochet basic lessons!! They've even been watched too! I did them for a few friends and was delighted to hear that 2 people have now learnt to knit from them!

So why haven't I blogged – well, bloggging seemed to consume me for a bit. I've been a little obsessed with Pintrest and Instagram (find me as honidesign ) as it's so easy to share. Couple of clicks and I've posted. Will I be back – yes I will for sure. Maybe I'll actually post more over at 'From Shirley Withy Love' – they label under which I've been selling my wares. Speaking of wares, I'll be selling some more of my jewellery soon. I'll let you know more about that when it happens.

For now, I'll sign off with a 'see you shortly' because I'll be back, I promise

EDIT: Here is the link to my Tutorials!

Glitter Shoes

2011-06-13T13:27:00.005+10:00

Wow - has it really been TWO MONTHS since I last posted??

I'm fickle with my social networking these days - at the moment all I really have time for is Instagram - which I love!! It allows me to post pictures of what I've been doing directly from my mobile. You can find me on Instagram under honidesign

Anyway I thought I'd post some pictures of one of my latest projects - transforming a friends pair of shoes that had been ruined by an ink stain..Here are the shoes before - Brown suede..

(BTW - i have noticed that a LOT of my 'crafting shots' have a glass of wine in the background!!)
And here are the shoes after!! Like a Blue Dorothy shoes, glittering like stars.

If you have a pair of old shoes that you like but are damaged, or you no longer wear them - i can transform them for you! Either like the ones above, or a variation of the fabric covered ones I made a while ago (image here) Just shoot me an email ( honidesign @ gmail . com - minus the spaces) if you're interested!

Sunday Frustrations

2011-04-17T18:18:00.004+10:00

A little multiple choice game for you this evening dear readers.... Tell me, which is worse:

A. Spending $170 at Lincraft only to realise you've bought insufficient fabric for not 1, not 2 but THREE dresses

B. Buying crapola pins that put awful holes in your new (but insufficiently long length of) fabric

C. Having your cat tear through not only the instructions but also through your lovely, neatly re-traced patterns

D. All of the above

ps - am TOTALLY addicted to Instagram at the moment (which explains the lack of blog posts).....if you're on it too then find me - i'm honidesign xx

Sunday Crafternoon

2011-04-13T09:57:00.004+10:00

Sunday afternoon – spent making Easter crafts with the uber inspirational Kelly Doust at the most wonderful craft shop in the WORLD (Calico and Ivy in Balmain) surrounded by really lovely, talented girls. I indulged in the afternoon tea; delightful orange cake and macaroons and earl grey tea served in the most divine Vintage tea set. To top it off, the rain fell dreamily on the tin roof. I was in absolute heaven! Kelly sharing her wisdom with the group Tea and craft - GORGEOUS Heather Bailey felt in the background Macarons and Kaffe Fasset fabric The Easter Finger puppets i made Me with Kelly A HUGE Thankyou to Amy and Sarah and Deb at Calico and Ivy, and to Kelly. I had the most wonderful afternoon and I left feeling so inspired and energised to create beautiful things!

I’ve had the time of my life…….

2011-03-28T09:45:00.002+11:00

On Saturday I went to the National Blythe convention in Sydney and had the most magical day! I was surrounded by beautiful dolls and very clever, talented and wonderful peeps. The work that people had put into customising their dolls and outfits was just incredible (see below for the “mini me” competition) and gave me some inspiration to custom my third girl on Sunday. I received a heap of goodies and bought a gorgeous wig for Trixie. Once I put the wig on her – I knew she had to have some work done. BEFORE: She was ‘cute’ as Nicky Lad on the far left hand side AFTER: but I think she’s quite beautiful now. I’ve sanded her face, given her brand new eyelashes, new make-up and I carved and painted her lips (this was VERY daunting!) Her hot pink glasses are now worn by Violet (in the middle of the trio picture) I have a LOAD of photos over at Flickr – I took so many photos and have forgotten who owned each doll so I apologise for not crediting the owners of each of these girls! I’d like to extend a big thankyou to all of the organisers for such a wonderful day – I had the time of my life!

Sydney Blythe Meet Up

2011-03-25T10:24:00.002+11:00

My Girls are all dressed ans ready for the Sydney Blythe Meet up tomorrow!! I am very, very excited!!

Will hopefully have a laod of cool pictures to show you after the meetup. Hope you all have a lovely weekend!

My Creative Space Thursday

2011-03-24T15:25:00.002+11:00

This is my WIP this week - a little lamb softie to donate for the Japan appeal (you can read more about this WONDERFUL idea here. If you're in Sydney you can drop softies off at Calico and Ivy in Balmain)

More Creative Spaces over at Kootoyoo!

Vintage Sewing pattern Book

2011-03-23T10:17:00.003+11:00

I am a very, very lucky girl!! I found this divine Vintage pattern book from February 1958 on eBay. It wasn't cheap, but after flicking through each glorious page – it was worth every cent! The Seller (The Retro Cave) has another listed on eBay- from February 1959 as well as loads of other Vintage Items.

My Creative Space Thursday

2011-03-10T08:52:00.003+11:00

I made this necklace on the weekend. I took a piece of pine timber and I whittled it away to make a branch. Then I used the hot tool to burn the wood.
Once it cooled I drilled a few holes to make it a necklace and also to dangle the Swarovski heart crystal..

Thankyou to everyone who commented on my blog last week – your comments overwhelmed me and were truly lovely. I will actually be selling some pairs later so I’ll post about it soon!

More Creative Spaces at Kootoyoo!

My Fabric Covered Shoes @ My Creative Space

2011-03-03T21:08:00.004+11:00

I decided to be a bit thrifty and make some new shoes out of some old ones i longer wore. I used some pretty fabrics and i covered my red shoes to make pretty new shoes!

i used some gorgeous tape measure fabric for the heels

and a bit of lace, buttons and hot-fix crystals to decorate! What do you think? I'm really happy with them!

Whats going on in YOUR creative space? Check out Kootoyoo for more Creative Spaces!

Snoop My Stuff

2011-03-02T10:34:00.002+11:00

This is my bookshelf....filled with crafty books and loads of art books filled with inspiration. The “Bride and Groom” mini easels were the name card settings we used for our wedding.

More pics you can snoop through on my flickr site – you can also play along here a Kootoyoo!

Pretty Dress

2011-02-03T12:20:00.003+11:00

Forgot to post about this one. I made a dress for Ditty's Blythe "Araelia Sakura".... I am REALLY happy with it. Am considering making these to sell.....what do you think?

I ammended a patten from the Puchi Collective website

Making Blythe Eye Chips

2011-02-01T08:43:00.002+11:00

I decided to do a little experiment to make some eye chips for Lilly. I took out her factory orange eye chips and used some two part mixing rubber to make a mould for the chips.

After I made the mould I mixed up some resin and let it set overnight. I wasn’t sure which side would work – the bottom half of the top half – I even thought of gluing the 2 together.

Once the resin had cured I painted it with some basic acrylic paints and I used a watercolour shimmer paint to give the opaque acrylic paint a metallic look.

There were a few “fails” along the way.
- I used to coarse a grain to buff the resin which scratched one eye
- The top half didn’t have the “depth” to it that the bottom half with the little knob did.
- The bottom half worked best, but had a very flat and reflective surface to it. I think I’d be best making a deeper mould and sanding it into a rounder shape.

Overall I’m happy with my first attempt at making Blythe eye chips – I will definitely persist with it till I get it right!!

A Little makeover

2011-01-30T21:13:00.004+11:00

Let me formally introduce you to Lilly. Lilly is a Bohemian Peace Blythe Doll, with an RBL head (which means she is super easy to do custom work to!) This is Lilly before I attempted any work

This is Lilly during work. Trixie and Violet looked away in disgust as I took Lilly apart. It took them a long time to realise I wasn't hurting her and it was for her own good.

And this is Lilly after!

-I gave her face a de-shine

- applied fake eyelashes

- corrected her gaze so she looks slightly upwards (although i did a tiny bit too much and so you can slightly see a black dot under the eye - where the next eye colour is)

Below is the small bar that you need to shave the tip off in order to make the eyes gaze upwards.

- gave her a nice hair cut, got rid of her "bum part" and gave her a fringe.

- replaced her pull-cord ring with a bead.

I have also removed her orange eye chips and am doing a little bit of experimenting and am trying to make some new ones from resin. The below picture is the "glue stick" method which is very quick and easy. You don't need to open the head in order to remove the eye chips. More pictures of that later though.....

And here are all my girls together. Violet and Trixie were sprung having a little 'gossip' behind Lilly's back....i think they're a little jealous of her sexy new do and her pretty beaded cord

More pictures of the girls and some more up close images of the custom work in progress on my Flickr site.

2 pretty girls....

2011-01-28T09:49:00.002+11:00

The quirky cute Nicky Lad and the hippy-cool Bohemian Peace arrived in the mail today! I am so darn excited! I plan on doing quite a bit of custom work on Bohemian Peace. More photos and names to come!

Sonny Angel

2011-01-27T13:00:00.001+11:00

My newest little purchase....

Pretty Stamps

2011-01-25T09:11:00.002+11:00

I’ve received quite a few lovely packages in the mail recently – mainly from Japan and Hong Kong and i've realised they have some really beautiful stamps over there!

I used to collect stamps when I was younger, but when we changed over to those awful (yet convenient) sticky backed stamps it took all the fun out of stamp collecting. There was something quite therapeutic about soaking the stamps and then ever so gently removing them from the envelope and setting them out to dry.

I have no idea what to do with them now, Oshiny on flickr suggested wallpaper! What a hot idea! It would take a painstakingly long time, but how cool would it look!

Vintage Liddle Kiddle

2011-01-20T19:53:00.003+11:00

Vintage 1967 "Liddle Kiddle" necklace charm. I saw here on eBay and just had to buy her. I like to wear one crazy piece of jewellery per day - and she will look just great on a necklace! You can also take her out of her little "jewel house"...too cute!!
(you can read more about them here. Plus there are a few on eBay if you want to own one too!)

To Open or not to open...

2011-01-19T09:47:00.002+11:00

When I was a child I had a mini vacuum cleaner that wound up and the little pads underneath would swoosh around in a buffing motion.

With my recent regression into collecting 'toys' – such as my growing collection of re-ment items, restoring old Barbies and fixing up my Blythe Violet I got a bit nostalgic about some of the toys I used to love as a child – long ago donated to charity or played with till they broke.
So I Googled ‘wind up vacuum cleaner’ and whaddaya know – I found it! I also found the mixer which I had forgotten about and a sewing machine too!!

The lovely Amanda at ‘Hey Yo Yo’ on Etsy put them aside for me and I snapped them up toot-sweet. (Amanda – if you’re treading this thankyou for guiding me through my first ‘reserved’ etsty item purchase!!)

Now, the only question is – Do I open them??? Or do I leave them in the packaging? Yes I know that they’re ‘worth more’ in their packaging – but I’ll never sell them. Like a child, I am DESPERATE to see the sewing machine work and to once again see the vacuum cleaner buff away… Tell me – what would you do???

Mini dresses

2011-01-14T11:32:00.001+11:00

Quick blog from the mobile today... I'm making some teeny tiny dresses for Violet.. with this hot sticky weather she needs a few summer frocks!

My new Pencil set

2011-01-12T22:32:00.003+11:00

May I share with you...my new colour pencil set. Not sure if any of you adore pencils as much as i do.... I cherished my Derwent pencils growing up, so I couldn't resist buying these...

They're quite special though...because when you put a $0.10 piece next to them you can see how tiny they are!

Yes, re-ment pencils!! Amazing! And each one is an individual pencil that comes out of the case. They're a special "secret " item from the My Favourite Stationery set.....i am just besotted with them!

Violet and her Re-ment shadowbox

2011-01-09T21:13:00.003+11:00

I made a shadow box the other day - from scratch using only hand tools (ie no power tools)

It's a little wonky - but with a lick of paint I think it looks a treat. And, when filled with some gorgeous re-ment items i think it looks just perfect!

Here's a close-up of some of my fave pieces

I also made this dress for Violet (pattern here) the sleeves are a little long but now that I've tackled my first "tiny outfit" I'm ready for more!

Waiting

2011-01-07T12:53:00.001+11:00

Waiting patiently for this package to arrive....filled with Re-ment goodies from the love Jane at Harapeko Doggy Bag..

From Shirley With Love

2011-01-05T21:17:00.003+11:00

Well this has all come around a little fast, but seeing as I got such a such a lovely plug from a really great gal – I just had to let you all know!

From today I will be selling my handmade jewellery on Etsy – as well as some Vintage items in time. You'll also notice when you pop over to the shop that the name of the shop is "From Shirley with Love". Well, the cats outta the bag and this is my new shop name – what do you think?

Shirley was my beloved Gram who passed away over a year ago now. Mr Honi and I live in her place which she shared with my truly inspirational Graf till he passed away more than 3 years ago now.

My Gram taught me how to knit and to sew and how to be a proper lady. Her famous line was "sweetheart, if you can read you can cook" which I still tell people today. She would sing "Alice blue Bonnet" to me when we went shopping and always had musk lollies in her purse.

This shop is dedicated to not only Shirley, but to all the strong women in my family whose influence have made me who I am today. To Shirley, Beryl, Doris, Anne (middle) and Diana (my Ma on the right). May the skills and crafts you've taught me bring happiness to others.

I'll still be blogging here, but also over here...

And now to all of you thankyou for your support. Whether you're just happy to read along, or you leave me absolutely gorgeous comments – thankyou. You are the ones who have made this all possible – 3 years ago I would never have dreamed I'd have so many lovely people reading my blog – and to be selling the "little knick-knacks" I make. Thankyou from the bottom of my heart. xx

My 27 'acheivable goals' for 2011

2011-01-03T18:50:00.002+11:00

Well hello....it's been a while, I know. Thankyou very much to each and every one of you who said they were still here reading along. I really, really appreciate it!

The end of 2010 flashed past me before I could blink. Work has been so unbelievably crazy, I haven't had time to be creative.

So, a fresh new year – a fresh new outlook on life and I'm back on the crafting and blogging bandwagon!

So I thought I would have the first post of 2011 with a list of my "27 achievable goals". Not resolutions as such, just things I want to get done in 2011.

In no particular order:

Buy less Crap
Save more money
Waste Less food
Make my own clothes – no 'new' items of clothes for 2 months (to start ) this DOES however exclude underwear. I must buy nice good undies – i just couldn't bear to make them!
Buy organic fruit and veg at the farmers markets from Jan 8 onwards
NO FAST FOOD – Including, but not limited to Maccas, KFC, Hungry Jacks and Pizza Hut / Dominos
Always use my enviro bags (carry 2 with me at all times)
Build a vege garden in January
Build a compost pile in January (i posted about this AGES ago and still haven't got around to it)
Try to always buy environmentally friendly products (washing detergents etc)
Use the stairs more
Floss every night
Plan all meals the week before and buy food according to what is needed for the recipe only.
Exercise for 30 mins each day (hmm....this could be interesting!)
Have shorter showers
use rechargeable batteries and stop using "disposable" products like razors and 'single serve" items which use up a lot of packaging
donate all "read" magazines to nursing homes (and also stop buying so many magazines!)
start selling the things I make
Get in touch with old friends
have dinner in a nice restaurant once a month
see live music at least once every 2 months
do the following courses: Silver jewellery, glass/ lampwork beading
be more patient
don't let the little things bother me
watch less tv
read more books\
drop at LEAST 1 dress size

So, what are your goals for 2011??

Playing with Dolls....

2010-12-08T10:04:00.005+11:00

Ms Badskirt has made me completely obsessed with finding all my old dolls furniture! I visited my folks the other day and found a portion of my treasure trove of vintage furniture. These were my mums pieces from when she was young. I love the bright pinks and greens. The wallpaper background is actually Vintage wallpaper from my granparents house. I would totally cover a wall in house with it if MrHoni would let me!

I also found these old dolls which belonged to my Aunty. This girl I believe is called a Tressy doll – and was made after the popular Crissy doll. She has a button on her belly that you press and her hair grows! She’s in a vintage Barbie dress (which I need to do a OT of repair work to) and a matching Barbie headscarf.

This gorgeous girl has 1963 stamped on her, and a lovely set of real eyelashes. She needs a lot of work done though as her face has discoloured during storage and she has an awful case of “sticky legs” (you know when old dolls turn sticky?? Eeewwww…..) Anyone have any tips on restoring Barbie?

Anyway I am rather delighted with my finds – I think finding old things packed away after years is like going thrifting but without spending any money!!!

Chrissie Lights

2010-12-07T13:22:00.003+11:00

Mr Honi loves putting up Christmas lights - which is great because I love looking at them!

This is from the outside

and this is from the inside - i said it feels like living in Avatar!

Introducing Violet!

2010-11-29T08:47:00.004+11:00

After reading all about Amy’s beautiful Smith, I decided it was time to resurrect my Blythe and finally name her. I adore her, but she simply sits on a shelf in her factory clothes and make up.

So I decided to brave it and do a bit of custom work on her, as her original make-up as seen below left her a little too bronzed with a frosted pink lipstick reminiscent of Collette (of ‘ring my bell’ fame)

(this is going to be my Christmas card this year...)

I started with a de-shine I was so nervous about it though. After the first few scrubs I regretted it, but the more I did the better she started to look. I used a spongy nail buffer (you know those square 4 step ones?) which worked a treat and didn’t leave sny scratch marks.
Then I decided to spunk her up a little bit with some cutesy freckles and a lick of pink lipstick. I still need to do a bit of work on the lips though. And for the finishing touch I added some false eye lashes and viola!

She looks fresh faced and cute as a button! And, she has a name……Violet.

Here she is with her viewmaster

and here she is with my viewmaster reels.

Brown Owls catch up

2010-11-15T09:37:00.003+11:00

What a perfect way to spend a Sunday morning. 1 Cup of coffee, 3 cups of tea, a bit of crocheting and some lovely friends!

This is the wonderful "Coffee and a Yarn" cafe in Newtown

Plus I finally got to meet our newest little owl - and she is a complete doll!

Want to join the Sydney Brown Owls? send me an email at honidesign @ gmail . com (without the spaces) and include your name, preferred email address and a little bit about you and what crafts you like to do (and if you have any skills you could teach the rest of the group.)

London Toy Museum

2010-11-12T09:36:00.003+11:00

As I’m keeping a few crafty pics to show you a bit later I thought I would post some more pictures from our trip overseas. These are from the Toy Museum in London….seriously the most magical place on earth (along with Disneyland…) The museum was a rickety old 4 story house that was completely filled with toys!

Mr Honi was too tall for some of the rooms!

It had the ORIGIANL Sooty, Sweep and Sue puppets, dollhouses galore, stereo viewers and a million more beautiful dolls.

This hand decorated babies pillow was beautiful – except for the spelling of “stranger”....

Tell you what, I am LOVING dollhouses at the moment (well, I've ALWAYS loved them actually)

Does anyone else lust after this little house and the outdoor furniture?? (incluiogn the outdoor piano?)

You can click through my flickr account to see the pictures in large size..

…..This issue of Frankie has a great article about a girl who furnishes doll houses. I had a ripper when I was a kid – I’m thinking about resurrecting mine….

Hooty

2010-11-10T09:33:00.003+11:00

A few of you may have already seen this pic on Facebook, but i thought I’d post it here too. This is Hooty the baby Tawny Frog Mouth that fell out of a tree and into my heart……(wow how corny did that sound!)

Anyway, little Hooty’s mama left him there so Mr Honi and I took him to the vets. He’s now being looked after by a WIRES carer and will be released back at our place when he’s old enough to fly.

He was the cutest little bugger ever. Masses of fluffy feathers and a beak. Apprently it's common for them to fall out of trees - this little guy was just lucky he landed on our balcony and not onto the crazy cat lady's balcony a few doors up!

It will be mine...

2010-11-09T08:41:00.006+11:00

A couple of you wonderful girls emailed me with a link to Melody Miller’s website. Seems this uber creative girl has made some fabulous fabric that sends my heart a flutter….check this out!

The 'Ruby Star' Range also includes vintage transistors, retro crockery and some lovely vintage ladies too. You can see all the range on her website.

I am hoping to purchase some if I can – and if I’m feeling clever, I might make a pattern from my new very favourite dress below and re-make the dress in the viewmaster fabric!

ps - seems i under estimated myself - and THREE of you are still reading along ;) thanks for the comments girls it really lifted my spirits xxx

EDIT: The dress is this season from Target

Drowning not waving....

2010-11-08T15:36:00.002+11:00

Hello dear readers (well, all 2 of you who are still here, checking it to see if I’ve posted!) Despite promising in my last entry that I’d be back posting regularly, it seems that I have again been subject to a blog/craft hiatus.

A very dear girl sent me an email asking if I was ok and if I needed to be recused from any potential piles of fabric that may have fallen on me – causing my blogging /emailing absence. This made me laugh – but in a metaphorical sense I guess a big pile of fabric did land on me - stifling me completely.

You know you need to take a step back from the rotary cutter when you become physically anxious over the amount of fabric you have lying around the room. When you hide a fabric purchase from your husband like an acholic hides their gin. You also know it’s time to take a breather from reading 80 different blogs when the sight of ‘1278 unread posts’ gives you cold sweats.

Its funny how a ‘crafting passion’ can cause you be exhilarated, gleaming with elated pride over what you’ve created and then all it takes is one or two ‘craft fails’ to render you crushed and completely de-motivated. Or when the excitement of finding new inspiration turns to a dreading fear that you’re ‘behind the times’ in the fast pasted craft blog world.

After a good clean out over the last few weeks, I can feel my creative juices flowing again. I am looking ahead with a positive outlook and I will not let failed sewing attempts beat me. I will not fear my fabric hoard, but embrace it for the beauty it beholds and the projects it will deliver.

Also, I will not worry that I am a “jack of all crafts, master of none” instead I will rejoice in the fact that I am kinda cool at lots of things.

So thankyou for your patience and for returning here. Obviously I’m doing something right for you to come back! I’m in a good headspace now - let the crafting begin!

Image of a my half finished summer frock that I will start sewing again :)

Viewmaster Collection

2010-10-05T07:39:00.003+11:00

Remember a while ago I showed you a little bit of my viewmaster collection?? Well, it got a bit bigger...

and so has my mini viewer collection....

yikes! Does anyone else have an 'obsessive' collection??

Back!!!!

2010-09-14T22:04:00.003+10:00

Well Hello....is there anyone still out there? I'm sorry to abandon you for so long.

We've returned from Europe and have finally got back into the swing of daily life again. I haven't seen my beloved Brown Owls in a long time and crafting has been very minimal.

I have however, been working on something new. A new direction, a new blog, a new design, new things (and plenty of old vintage things)...and it's all a bit exciting. I'll hopefully be able to show you more soon.........i promise I'll tell you more when I can!

But for now, here are a few "self shots" of Mr Honi and me galavanting through Europe!

ps - I'll be blogging regularly again now. If you've stuck around....thankyou! xxx

Rome

2010-08-08T19:37:00.001+10:00

Fricken hot and very old. Am loving Rome- its so pretty! Will be size of house if I ate all the gorgeous food though!

Vienna

2010-08-08T00:47:00.001+10:00

Worlds largest macaron in Vienna. Seriously this thing was almost the size of a cheesburger!! Vienna is beautiful and up there with Berlin in regards to 'trip highlights'. It's clean and well maintained and the people are quite friendly.

We went to a 'wine garden' last night and had traditional Vienese food and wine (which was LETHAL!) Off to Slovenia tomorrow which I'm really looking forward to! Xx

More of Prague

2010-08-03T04:37:00.004+10:00

Prague has definitely been all I expected it to be. Amazing old buildings that are hundreds or years old. Kind of hard to conprehend that a building is 3 times as old as Australia! Xx

Prague

2010-08-03T04:37:00.003+10:00

Water and Lights show in Prague. Was a little creepy cause it was in an old 1800's 'exhibition centre' that felt like an old deserted carnival. Am VERY tired today. Loads of sight seeing!

Dresden

2010-08-03T04:37:00.001+10:00

Wow- what a place! Had heard that Dresden was the 'most miserable place in the world' but I beg to differ. It was absolutely gorgeous (and quite hot) Most of Dresden was demolished during the war but they have painstakingly restored a lot of the historic buildings to their former glory. Next stop tonight is Prague and I am uber excited about that! Love to you all x

Berlin

2010-07-31T21:23:00.003+10:00

Roof of the 'broken church'. A million tiny amazing tiles - simply breathtaking. The church was bombed during the war but was one of the few still standing. They haven't restored it but allowed it to remain as a relic.

Berlin

2010-07-31T21:23:00.001+10:00

Massive bridge in berlin

View from hotel in berlin

2010-07-31T17:08:00.001+10:00

Hi all! Sorry for lack of updates! Am in berlin now after spending 2 days in london then a ferry from dover to calais and then a bus through belgium to amsterdam. Amsterdam was ok- wasn't a massive fan of the main town but the canals were very nice. Voldendam in holland was Gorgeous-just like what you expect 'holland' to be like with windmills and quaint little houses. Love to you all- will try for more updates (jen- I might need a raise to pay for my roaming charges!!)
Xx

My Creative Space

2010-07-15T20:39:00.004+10:00

This week for My Creative Space I've been painting/drawing again for the 'Cos We Can' group. Having fortnightly deadlines and a theme is really inspiring for me. It challenges me to get going and create something that I normally wouldn't set aside time to do. I'm having great fun doing it too! This week's theme was play......and here's my drawing

Check out all the spaces at Kirstys Blog Kootoyoo..

Have I told you….

2010-07-12T11:58:00.003+10:00

That in 13 days Mr Honi and I will be travelling through here

...and here....

...and here...

for a whole month!

We start in London and go through Belgium to Amsterdam then to Berlin onto Prague then Vienna then Slovenia, followed by Venice then down to Rome, up to Florence, through the French Riviera and up through France via Arles, Avignon, Lyon and Paris then back to London for a week.

To say "I'm excited" is a dramatic understatement!! I've never been to the UK or Europe before, but I already have the feeling it's going to be VERY hard to come home!!

A bit of inspiration to warm the cockles*

2010-07-09T14:39:00.002+10:00

I’m not one who normally posts “oo look at this cool thing” posts (although I do rather like them on other people’s blogs – as I like being shown many different inspiring things)

So to hopefully inspire you my dear readers, I just had to share with you the work of Emily Martin. Most of you are probably already familiar with her work as “The Black Apple” – she even appeared on Martha a while ago.

Her works are gorgeous eerie oil paintings of times gone by and peculiar whimsical characters. Her recent collection pays homage to the Carnival with the inspiration coming from a line of a song “lost on the mid way”. It reminds me greatly of the TV show “Carnivàle” which I simply adored (and was sadly cut waaay to short)

Do yourself a favour and check our The Black Apple and the collection “Lost on the Midway”

*my Mum always used the expression "to warm the cockles" and it has always tickled my fancy!

My Creative Space

2010-07-08T11:47:00.003+10:00

Hands up who likes 'travelling crafts'?

I do- I love them! Something you can just whack into your handbag and take it with you anywhere. And when you have a spare minute you can just whip it out and stitch away! (this post was also done on the run via my mobile)

This week MyCreative Space is my travelling case where I am working on another hexy baby quilt-from gorgeous Beatrix Potter fabric.
I bought this great carry-all at the Craft Fair and its perfect for travelling as it keeps everything neat and tidy and very safe.

Checkout more Creative spaces over at Kootoyoo!

EDIT: A few of you have asked about my "traveller" case. I bought it at the Sydney Craft Fair at Darling Harbour this year. It's made by a company called Yazzii and details can be found here.

The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

2010-07-05T09:46:00.002+10:00

This week’s sewing attempt was definitely a “back to the drawing board” effort. So I thought I’d give you a little bit of a rundown of The Good, The Bad and the just Plain Ugly.

The Good: The Business Shirt for Mr Honi that I’ve been working on. From a distance – it looks REAL good (unless you’re a tailor and you’ll probably be able to pick up the MASSIVE mistake pretty quickly) This is the first pattern I MADE MYSELF – so am super proud of that. This is a Good.

The collar is also Good as I managed to make those little holes where the bits of plastic slide in to make the collar sit nicely.

The sleeves are also Good as I managed to line up the stripes of the yoke, so they run nicely in a continual line.

The Bad: My Sewing machine decided to have a little ‘spack attack’ and I was left with nasty loopy thread all of the cuff.

The Ugly: The interfacing on the cuff bubbled and warped dreadfully. Like when you’d put contact on your school books and if you rushed it – you’d have nasty bubbles everywhere. Luckily this was on the inside, but it still looks just awful.

And MOST Ugly – 2 MAJOR flaws with my pattern making.

1. I made an adjustment to the front panel and committed a cardinal pattern making sin and forgot to adjust the collar. So I had to fiddle with the front panels again – but this just made it sit very awkward.
2. MAKE YOUR NOTHCES people!! I didn’t and hence the lovely French Cuff Sleeve now sits toward the front of the shirt, rather than the side.

Overall - i'm happy with this shirt and know what I need to do for the next one I make!! But this is a lesson for all of us. Make a mock up garment in calico or scrap material first if you're trialling a new pattern!!

My Creative Space

2010-07-01T21:38:00.003+10:00

My Creative space this week is my stable table on the lounge in front of the heater. Too cold to sew-my fingers don't move properly in this cold!! So, I decided to do a little painting (also part of my fortnightly 'cos we can' art project)
Check out more spaces here at Kootoyoo!

Frosty

2010-06-29T09:46:00.003+10:00

Walking to work this morning, Mr Honi's phone said it was 5 degrees. The chill made my cheeks flushed and I could see my breath escaping from my mouth like puffs of smoke. The grass on the soccer field was frosted an icy shade of white and the leaves on the ground had tiny icicles scattered along their edges. You can just see the ice glistening in the sun in the picture below. I love these frosty wintery mornings!

Vintage, 1977 Lounge For Sale

2010-06-28T08:51:00.002+10:00

I’m not normally one to spruik goods on my blog, but this one is for my Ma - plus it’s vintage so I’m sure it will grab a few readers attention!
For sale is a vintage velour modular lounge in an Olive colour (circa 1977). There is a 2 Seater (165cm Long x 90cm wide x 80cm high)

and a 3-4 seater lounge (260cm long – same height and width as the 2 seater) and a square ottoman (not pictured). It is excellent condition – with only some small marks on it. $250 for the lot- and you’ll need to pick it up. If you’re interested – email me honidesign(@)gmail.com

I had my cake....and ate it too!!!

2010-06-21T10:19:00.003+10:00

What does a 30 year old crafter, who's never grown up, have for their birthday cake??

.....a Dolly Varden cake of course!

Made lovinly by my Aunty - thankyou so much Aunty!!! (she actually even piped each sugar flower!)

The Big 3-Ooh!

2010-06-18T08:03:00.001+10:00

I swear I saw another wrinkle appear this morning. The day dawned and I got another year older. Mr Honi totally spoilt me this morning with an overlocker!! If you're reading this- Thankyou my love :) I'm a very lucky girl.

Hope you all have a great weekend- I know I'm going to!
(Ps sorry about the poor pic I took it hurridly- and am now posting from my mobile, on the bus)

Vintage Viewmaster Love

2010-06-15T15:31:00.005+10:00

When I was younger my childhood friend-down-the-road had a viewmaster with 2 divine sets of reels- “The Wizard of Oz” being one and “Winnie the Pooh” the other. She must have got so sick of me saying “can I play with your viewmaster?” every time I went over to her place.

My parents didn’t see the value of a vewimaster so wouldn’t buy me one (please don’t read into this as an “emotionally damaged child” story or anything!!) But one day when rummaging through a church fete sale, I came across a 50c viewmaster with 1 reel and I was allowed to use my hard earned pocket money to purchase it. I think I managed to look at that 1 “Ghostbusters” reel a million times. I never bought any other reels…..until now.

The wonderful world of eBay allowed me to purchase my very own “Wizard of Oz” and “Winnie the Pooh” reels which are just as magical as they were when I was 5. I’ve actually purchased about 30 sets of vintage reels ranging from Vintage Disneyland scenes to Mary Poppins, to Christmas favourites such as the Little Drummer Boy and Rudolph (see my previous Rankin Bass post)

In fact eBay has allowed me to purchase many favourite childhood items – such as my Vintage viewers, (which were in Frankie!!) books, and other “3D Viewers” that I have always been fascinated with.

What favourite childhood items have you bought on eBay??

Spider Flower

2010-06-14T20:50:00.001+10:00

Have you ever seen anything like this? Mr Honi and I found this flower on a tree during our walk this afternoon and named it the 'spider flower'. Maybe not so anatomically correct, but appropriate don't you think?

My Creative Space Thursday

2010-06-10T08:56:00.002+10:00

This week for my creative space, I managed to leave the work laptop at home at headed out to enjoy some time with the Brown Owls. We went to a new venue this week which was great. We used the sewing machines there and walked through this tutorial on how to make the perfect zippered pouch. I only managed to get through a bit of mine as I spent more time talking.
It was great to get out and get a bit of my crafty mojo back – in a very creative space!

What has become of Vinnies?

2010-06-09T14:01:00.008+10:00

Japanese donkey S&P figurine - hidden with my other treasures

I know I’m selfish and a hypocrite but I loathe it when “MY vinnies” (well, my local one) becomes a hot-spot for every man and their dog when they have their 50% off sales!!

I adored my Vinnes a few years ago. Quiet, cheap and a cornucopia of precious items from local deceased estates. I’m an area that is evolving from an aged population to a younger, trendier one- a population that is cluey on thrifting.

Gone are the days where I would spend an hour trawling through wonderful linens – cross stitched table cloths and floral printed sheets. I was in my own little sanctuary with the only interruption from the kindly man from the front desk asking me if he could be of any assistance. Last weekend there was a QUEUE to look at the linen section – people were actually looking at their watches whilst make coughing noises in an attempt to intimidate me to move on.

I watched as people picked up delicate plates and then chucked them carelessly back on the pile. Another woman knocked over a whole basket of items simply scooped them all back up.

True, I managed to score these 3 treasures – and it WAS wonderful that with %50 offer they came to a total of $20 but I left the store sad and disappointed that my little treasure trove haven had been ‘raped and pillaged’ by vultures with no care for what they man-handled.

"Enchanted" patern Royal Albert Teacup (with my Gram Shirley in the background"

1973 Simplicity pattern

A third of my Life...

2010-06-08T10:46:00.003+10:00

Yowsers – It’s been 2 weeks since my last post. Work is sucking the life out of me at the moment. As I come closer towards the big 3-0 (gasp) I realised last night that I have been at this company for a THIRD OF MY LIFE. Yes, ONE THIRD. Kinda scary actually.
I’m working late into the night most nights which means no craft time – hence the lack of things to blog about! However, my pattern making course is going really well and I hope to get some serious sewing done this long weekend.

I also have some grand plans for a new project - it's in very early development at the moment, but I'm excited.

For now, I’ll leave you with a picture that makes staying up late to finish presents worthwhile. Remember this quilt? I'm so glad to see that it’s appreciated and loved…

Whatcha wearing Wednesday

2010-05-26T08:55:00.003+10:00

This picture is actually from last week when the sun was out-and-about. This week has been so wet and cold – but I’m LOVING it! This kind of weather means nice scarves, knee-high boots, winter hats (I’ll have to do a hat post next) and hot water bottles.

I had a little splurge the other day and bought myself a few new winter dresses as I was desperate! I also invested in a few pairs of tights including this funky red pair. The Mary-janes are old – but definitely faves! Altogether this is my new favourite outfit! What’s your favourite Winter outfit?

Little Miss Neat Feet

2010-05-21T11:53:00.002+10:00

Steve just LOVES to sit in awkward places and positions. I think all cats like to do that though! This morning, as the shine streamed through the window, Steve (aka Buttons) decided to strike a ballet pose on the end of the bed.

And no, this image is not doctored in any way – that was just the light this morning!

Hallway prettiness

2010-05-21T08:41:00.003+10:00

When Mr Honi and I moved into this place, I promised myself I would always have fresh flowers on the hall table. And to date I’ve kept my promise. I adore having fresh flowers in the house – I generally have 2 bunches at least.

Last week I felt like I was challenging Jessica from “Such Pretty Things” with my little display of roses in crystal glasses on a silver serving tray.

My Creative Space Thursday

2010-05-20T10:22:00.002+10:00

This is my creative space this week (after a long hiatus!) I’m currently in a pattern making class, where we make patterns from existing garments. It’s not just “tracing” but working out how to position darts, button holes etc. It’s very interesting, and will mean that I can re-make some of my favourite clothes that are now stained/worn etc.
Pop over here for more Creative Spaces!

Serendipity

2010-05-19T15:31:00.002+10:00

I know that the true definition of serendipity is “an aptitude for making desirable discoveries by accident” But I like to use it when something happens magically – ‘cuase it’s a kinda magical word. Like when things happen for a reason, or simultaneously – I call that Serendipity.

This morning I had serendipitous moment. My iPod magically found, out of 20GB of music, the song “Somewhere over the Rainbow” at the EXACT SAME MOMENT that I looked up to see this.

click on the link above to hear the most wnoderful version of "Somewhere over the Rainbow"

Walking to Work Tuesday

2010-05-18T09:02:00.003+10:00

A while ago, I decided to play the game “30 days of the everyday” and take a picture every day for a whole month. It was loads of fun and it made me look at what was around me and enjoy my travels to and from work. Mr Honi and I go in to work together each morning, but this morning he had to be somewhere else so I decide to take some piccies. I think I might kick this little photo project off again….

These were my pictures this morning....Some beautiful red leaves

Speed signs on the road. I love the "Vingette" appliction on my HTC dream phone - you can get so creative with it!!

My fave building - it reminds me of something you'd see in America in the Deep South (not that I've ever been to the Deep South!"

What do you see on your way to work?

Crocheting Myself a Winter rug

2010-05-04T12:23:00.004+10:00

Just a few piccies of my crochet squares - taken with a cool app called Vingette on my phone (the HTC dream) It gives you all these funky 'Toy Camera' effects (doens't beat the real thing, but it's fun)

This one is my fave Square. I got inspiration from another blogger who did a cushion from these colours, but I compltely lost the URL - if you did it, let me know and I'll link you!!! Sorry!

So much to talk about!

2010-04-29T14:46:00.006+10:00

Wowsers has it really been a fortnight since my last post? Thankyou for all your great ideas on being greener and for composting ideas! I’m on a mission for a Bokashi Bin for the kitchen.

“So Bec, how have you been green this week?” I hear you ask. Well, after inspiration from an article in Frankie Magazine I’ve been trying to use as little plastic as possible.
Bec's Green-ness for this week
1. I pack lunch in a Nude container
2. Not bagging fruit at the supermarket (I’m still yet to venture regularly to the Farmers Markets)
3. ALWAYS remembering my green bags at the supermarket.
4. Selecting item that don’t use plastic packaging which is a really, really hard thing to do! In some cases, I simply had to opt for the item which had the least amount of plastic.
5. I have also stopped using “single use” items such as face wipes, or cleaning wipes. They seem handy at the time but man what a waste!! Especially the cleaning ones – vinegar, bi-carb soda, a bit of lemon juice and some elbow grease end up doing a MUCH better job than disposable wipes or harsh chemicals that make your eyes water when you use them – plus they’re much more environmentally friendly!

It’s also been quite a while since my last “crafty” post. I’ve been participating in a game called “Cos we Can” which is a group on Flickr where you simply have to submit an artwork every fortnight. It forces me to be creative and has also meant that I’ve been doing a lot more water colour work lately which I’m really enjoying. You can have a little peak here.

Oh, and I've signed up for a "pattern making and garment reproduction" course and I am sooo excited!! Hopefully I'll have LOTS of pics to show over the next few weeks.

Lastly darling readers who are still reading along (think this is the wordiest post I’ve had in a while- I just have so many things to say!) I’d like to leave you with a few pictures from my 1st Wedding anniversary. Ever the romantic, Mr Honi planned a surprise SUNSET helicopter flight over Sydney along with dinner at Altitude and a night at the Shangri La! La-di-dah indeed! It was just magical. I highly recommend Blue Sky Helicopters if you’re thinking of surprising a loved one with an unbeatable view over Sydney!!

The Good Life

2010-04-13T09:18:00.004+10:00

I have about 100 blogs that a read regularly – some are connected to each other by friendships and some I’ve simply stumbled upon. But one common theme at the moment across most of the blogs is “how to be greener”. In the media it’s the “hip” thing to be. But the crafty community is really inspiring to be “green” and not just trying to appear green. I’ve been reading some wonderful articles on composting, wardrobe refashioning, eating and growing organic vegetables and generally trying to live a greener and hopefully happier life. I am genuinely excited by the thought of trying to live a “simpler” life through being greener.

I’m looking forward to making jumpers and snuggling up rather than cranking the heater up. Fewer lights and more candles. I’ve also been trying to eliminate processed foods from my diet in the hope of feeling generally better. I’m not ill- just “not right” and sluggish. I’m pining over a bicycle (she’s just like Edna that I’ve been coveting for a while!) My sewing class achievements mean that I can now make myself some lovely clothes and not feel like it’s “home made”. I’ve asked Mr Honi to build me a compost (and I now plan my weeks cooking and buy only what I need for each recipe which means I am limiting my waste). I’ve also asked him to make a hose from the washing machine to use the grey water in the garden. Plus I’m saving money – I bought ink refillers for our printer which literally saved me about $40!!! I’d love to have a chook or two for fresh eggs each morning. And If Mr Honi weren’t highly allergic, I’d keep bees too. I love the thought of only buying fresh fruit and veg at Farmers markets every Saturday morning – and never really stepping into a gigantic shopping centre again.

Can anyone recommend a good Farmers Market in Sydney? I’ve heard a lot are dodgey.

I’m setting myself a challenge to change at least one thing each week to make our household a happier, cheaper, greener home. I’ll keep you up to date on what I do!

images from one of my fave old TV shows - The Good Life

Vintage Ephemera Night

2010-04-09T12:52:00.002+10:00

What a lovely night I had at Brown Owls on Wednesday. We all brought along items to make collages with and some girls were VERY generous with what they brought to share! Thankyou to Lisa, Amy, Vanessa and Jordan for all your gorgeous things! Here is my little creation - awaiting a frame to be hung in the hall. I just ADORE all of the images!! (sorry it's slightly blurry - it wasn't sitting flat on the scanner.

The Birds...

2010-04-07T10:46:00.002+10:00

Last night I felt like I was trapped in a Hitchcock movie. As I got out of the car at the Gym, I noticed the roof ahead of me was lined with birds. As I walked towards them to get to the door a group of them flapped and squawked and flew about. They were only sparrows – not the nasty crows and gulls in the movie, but it still creeped the bejeebers out of me! Click on thr image to see a larger version. Each balck dot is a bird, all the way down the line.

The Boy knows what I like!

2010-03-28T22:13:00.002+11:00

Mr Honi came home yesterday with a random "just 'cause" pressie - a replica radio of a 1950's Bush Radio. It went straight to the craft room and was tuned into 2CH for some old time music (seriously, I'm a closet 2CH listener!! It's on the alarm every morning. And you just can't beat Bob Rodgers on a Saturday night! God, when did I get old??)

I definitely scored the bestest hubby ever!!

Pays to Concentrate..

2010-03-22T08:32:00.003+11:00

This last week has been completely draining- mentally and emotionally which has meant a bit of a blog hiatus and a bit of a crafting break too. Work has been all consuming, then my car gave up the ghost and the little thing I had removed from my face turned out to be a squamous cell carcinoma so I had to go back in to the clinic to have it all cut out leaving me with 3 stitches on the side of my head.

As you can imagine I was well in need of some therapeutic crafting so I decided to lock myself in the craft room and make a shirt I've been planning for months. I've had the material sittting there waiting for me to transform it for a year I reckon!

I was so gosh darned proud of my effort. It’s Simplicity pattern 2807 – one of their Project Runway ones. I’ve made a few of my own alterations which look great considering it’s the first shirt I’ve ever made! It still needs a good press and some buttons.

Everything was going smoothly until I tried it on and realised that I have sewn the sleeves on INSIDE OUT!!!!

So, tonight will be spent doing some therapeutic unpicking….

Last one.....swears.....

2010-03-12T14:28:00.004+11:00

This is the LAST pack of glitter I'm buying. I swear. (except if I find the iridescent one in Australia!)

This came from a lovely eBay Seller who has a LOT of lovely Martha things!! Check it out

Ps - Apologies for my tardiness in posting. Also, I try to email each an every one of you back when you comment, but I've been very behind on that too I'm sorry.

xxx

Macaroon Magic

2010-03-08T09:33:00.002+11:00

After many months of lusting and fantasising over Macaroons (the brightly coloured chewy ones - not the icky coconut ones) I decided to attempt them myself. I have heard that they are difficult and fiddly and temperamental, which has put me off making them earlier.
However a good friend (and amazing photographer) gave me a really good recipe which he claimed, turned out perfect Macaroons.

And he was right. Oh god they are scrumptious!!

In following with the recipe, I will detail for you a few things I've learned.

Aging Egg whites:I didn't age mine and I think they worked out fine. I will try aging them next time to see if they turn out differently. I did make sure they were at room temperature though.

Size: I rolled my eyes when the recipe said "draw circles on your baking tray to make the right size" "pppffftt I can totally size them without lines" I thought. Wrong! Hence not many tops matched their bottoms.

Filling: Ganache needs to be made to the right measurements or your end up with a slippery goo that holds nothing together

Clean -up: Holey Moley they're messing to make. I ended up with sticky gooeyness everywhere when my piping bag had a blow out. Ensure you PLAN when cooking these and have enough space to make them.

Oven temp: Mine was too hot and they cracked a little bit. Don't just turn our oven up if you don't see 'feet' appearing!

All in all they were quiet simple to make and not that fiddley either. If you've been put off before by recipes that seem over complicated, give this one a go and tell me what you think!

Now this is just too far

2010-03-05T08:51:00.002+11:00

I'm all for wildlife - I'm an animal lover through and through. I've posted before about how much I LOVE all the animals that surround us...but when this little fella decided to slither into our house last night I felt it was pushing the boundary just a little!

Yes, that's a RED BELLY BLACK SNAKE in OUR HOUSE!!!! He was only a little guy (around 20-30cm or so) but I've heard some neighbours have seen his Mama and said she's HUGE. Fingers crossed she doesn't try to find him.

I'll remind you that we're 15 mins from the city, not some hick town in sticksville!

This is me...

2010-03-04T09:39:00.004+11:00

....begging each and every one of you to get your skin checked out.

I'm not yet 30 and I had to have 2 sunspots burnt off my face the other day and I had a nastier one CUT OUT of my head! Yes I have fair skin, but I've always been good with wearing sunscreen and staying out of the harsh sun. I shudder to think of what I might look like had I not been lathered in 15+ as a kid

Don't let lumps, bumps, marks, spots or anything go - get yourself to a doctor and have it checked out.

It’s beginning of the end for clutter!

2010-03-01T12:40:00.003+11:00

Vinnies scored big-time this weekend with about 30 pairs of shoes, 20 or so handbags and wallets, 10 pairs of jeans and 3 boxes of other clothes and towels. I have started my “de-clutter = de-stress” project and it feels sooo good!

Now, my shoes all fit on my shoe rack! (click to enlarge image -I ADORE this vintage floral carpet that lines the cupboard. My grandparents brought it with them from their old home)

My bedside table is now visible, and not strewn with tarnishing $2 jewellery, bobby pins, magazines and newspapers! My African Violet also has a chance to survive now!

I was watching the Foxtel show “Hoarders” and I had a sickly reminder of myself (ok, well not nearly to the same extent) I keep EVERYTHING and it’s bumming me out big time! I didn’t realise just how much the clutter was stressing me out. I want a nice, clean house, where everything has a place- not just shoved somewhere random. It made cleaning a hassle and putting things away a nightmare.

If you’re short for time, you can stop reading now, as the following is just a bit of a rant…..
I’m also trying to buy less useless junk -do I REALLY need an avocado cutter when I own a knife? And why do I need a swiffer, a dustbuster, and a pusher thingy when I own a vacuum cleaner?? I find myself sucked into buying items that will reduce time, make my life easier when in reality all they do is clutter up my home after only being used once. I hate the fact that we live in such a “disposable” and “single purposed item” world – disposable wipes for your bathroom- MULTIPLE cleaning solutions that do the same thing 1 bottle of cleaner for shower, 1 for the sink cleaner another bottle for tiles. I’ve started to use a mixture of Lemon Oil, vinegar and bi-carb soda and it cleans BETTER than said cleaners. I think that’s why I hoard things though – because I hate to waste anything. But if I BUY less, then there’s less to waste. I know, I sound like a hypocrite when I’ve just posted the other day about buying copious amounts of glitter – but I make those things last and don’t waste them. Case in point: I still have my Derwent pencils in used, but perfect condition, from when I bought them from my hard earned pocket money at 13 years old.

This is thw pile for Vinnies and some recycling too..
If you’re still with me, thankyou for reading my rant. I feel a lot better now! Moral of my story
More quality + Less Crap= No clutter and LESS STRESS!! YAY!!!

I am….a glitterholic

2010-02-26T09:48:00.001+11:00

Hi, my name is bec, and it’s been about a fortnight since my last purchase of glitter- although I’m pretty much using every day. I can’t stop. I literally dream about it every single night. I get withdrawals if I don’t use it. Sometimes half an hour will fly past and I’ll I’ve done is stare at my glitter, and rearranged it into different colour combinations. I’m afraid the dreams won’t end until I have purchased every single colour. I’ve never required “Black Onyx” glitter, but I know I need to have it – just in case.

As you can see I gave in at spotlight the other day and added “brownstone”, “malachite”, “amethyst” and “carnelian” to my collection the other day, and they WEREN’T on sale. But my justification to my husband is “as I no longer smoke, I have an extra $10 a day to spend on craft items!” (I quit a year ago, so that’s a lot of saved cash!!)

My Creative Space Thursday

2010-02-25T08:04:00.002+11:00

Just a bit of a sneak peak at the Skirt I'm making for my sewing class. It's good because I'm learning how to sew properly- losing all the bad habits I've taught myself, and finally finding out exactly what on earth a 'nap' is; and no, it's not a short sleep!

The Skirt is a cotton sateen, Simplicity pattern #2807 and is sitting on beloved dress form that Mr Honi bought me.
In the background you can see a glimpse of my inspiration wall too.

For More Creative Spaces, pop on over to Kootoyoo with a nice cuppa and enjoy!

Next cab off the rank

2010-02-23T11:33:00.004+11:00

Another dear friend has just had a little girl. This is another appliqué blanket (like the hexagon one)

It’s my own design of a large rose, in rose patterned fabric with a raw edge on the applique (i just zig-zaged around the edge).

To do the zig-zag edges, I used some very cool Gutermann metallic thread in a bright pink and an ocean blue and a multicoloured sulky Holoshimmer thread. These are mainly used for embroidery stitching, and I’d never used them before – but I will totally be using them again!

The metallic thread was a little hard to use as it was quite coarse and not smooth like normal thread. The Holoshimmer was like a shiny, smooth metallic thread with a small amount of stretch to it. I used this one for the leaves and it worked wonderfully.

Pick yourself up a reel when you’re next in spotlight and have a go!

My Creative Space Thursday

2010-02-18T14:02:00.002+11:00

Can you believe I actually had too many creative spaces this week to choose from! I've got the Crafty mojo going on, and I'm loving it. Normally when the inspiration overflows I get "Craft Jam" where I have too many ideas to action any of them. But planets have aligned somewhere and I'm in the groove.

A quick run down of current projects include:
- continuing with my 200 crochet blocks
- another baby quilt- an appliqued one I'll show you soon
- some "light up" jewellery
- a skirt (Miss Luzi and I are doing a sewing class together)
- a drawing project
- some vintage lace headbands
and a couple of other BIG ideas bubbling away in my head

So rather than pick one of these projects, I thought I’d share some of the creativeness that’s been a’happenin in the kitchen. I’ve started to review cookbooks and plan our meals – which leads to planned shopping which equals less wasted food AND no last minute takeaways which also equals a better diet and losing weight!! YIPPEE!!

One of this weeks dishes above was lamb chops with melted goats cheese served with steamed asparagus, sliced home grown tommies a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and slithered almonds. Takes 10 mins to whip up and is tasty and healthy.

For more creative spaces, pop on over to Kootoyoo!

Whats in a name..

2010-02-17T08:42:00.003+11:00

My nearly finished name tag for Brown Owls tonight. I just need to cut it out and add the pin. I tried to use all my fave things - crochet, buttons, cross stitch, flowers, fimo, embroidery, bunnies, Japanese dollies and tea in a nice cup and saucer.
I used 3 layers of cardboard as the backing, and then used mod-podge to glue it all together. Mod Podge is wonderful stuff. It is a clear drying glue that acts as a bit of a lacquer and it doesn't warp paper

On a Roll

2010-02-16T13:23:00.002+11:00

"Square Target" block#3 - I'm loving the colours in this one.

Still a little wonky around the edge, but I'm definitely getting the hang of the hook size and yarn type. Never realised how much of a difference pure wool makes!!

By George, I think she's got it!

2010-02-12T09:15:00.004+11:00

Well, it seems the crochet gods heard my prayers, and delivered me some words of wisdom through the divine Amy!

I have improved my counting skills and have also worked out when I need to crochet into spaces, and when I need to crochet into those little chain loops.

My attempt at "Lacy Cross" wasn't too shabby at all-

Thos holes are a little skewiff but otherwise ok

But I am mostly impressed with my Briar Rose!!

Here's how it should look...

And here's my attempt!!! One of the spoke is a little wonky, but other than that I'm very happy with it! Especially as it's a harder one than the others I've had a go at!

By George, I think she'

2010-02-12T09:15:00.001+11:00

My Creative Space Thursday

2010-02-11T08:58:00.002+11:00

The other day I finished off a baby blanket for a friend of mine who is due in a couple of weeks. I am getting MUCH better at planning my projects and making sure I finish them by a due date (rather than 6 months after the baby is born!!) Plus I am forcing myself a bit more to only work on ONE project and finish it before I start a bazillion others!

The blanket is a cotton flannel, with English paper pieced appliquéd flowers across the top, with matching binding around the edges. The spotty material is from spotlight and the centres are Japanese fabric with monkeys, deer and mushrooms.

This is a picture of the hexes before I sewed them onto the blanket.

Is there anything cuter??

2010-02-10T15:36:00.004+11:00

Honestly, this is the cutest thing I have EVER seen. Japanese Amigurumi playing ukulele’s and singing funny little songs!

More here

Love is all you need

2010-02-09T09:56:00.003+11:00

Well, the time since my last post has been filled with crazy workloads, a little crafting (more on that tomorrow) and nursing Mr Honi through a fun little trip to the emergency department. His groin wound split open and….well, I don’t think I really need to give you any more information!

It’s been a pretty tough time, but I like to find pleasure in the simple things to keep me going – like this little heart that appeared in my shoe AGES ago. It’s still in there and it makes me smile every time I put these shoes on.

What keeps you going in tough times??

My Creative Space Thursday

2010-02-04T11:06:00.002+11:00

It seems that most of you were tickled pink by my craftastrophies!! So, by popular demand here is the first train-wreck (this one was much better than the blue attempt- not so much hideousness!)

This is AFTER being blocked too!! I’m still puzzled by the “growth” in the top left corner. The whole block reminds me of those tests that were done on Spiders under the influence, and the webs they built…

Thankyou all - especially Amy for your help! Turns out I TOTALLY miscounted from row one, putting the entire thing out of whack.

But I do feel that I need to show proof that I CAN do the granny square. So for my Creative Space this week (which happened to be the lounge) I channelled the uber-creative Kirsty and attempted her “mini granny” (as seen here)…..

Turned out pretty swish I think!

I LOVE Martha.....

2010-02-03T16:56:00.004+11:00

and her AMAZING range of glitter!!!

There is a limited range at Spotlight and they're a bit exy at $12 a jar, but oooo i just LOVE them!! With names like "white gold", "smoky quartz" and "lapis lazuli" who can resist them!!!

Sadly, the massive range as seen here at "Such Pretty Things" isn't available in Australia, AND Amazon wouldn't let me buy it.

Not as easy as it looks….

2010-02-02T09:54:00.002+11:00

After looking through this Flickr pool, I was possessed to purchase the 200 crochet blocks book. “Pfft…I can totally do these” I naively thought.

Now, I can say that I think I have mastered the Granny square – but that’s where my crochet talent ends. Attempt one was so disgraceful, I couldn’t even photograph it. Working in rows isn’t my bag it seems.

So, with my head hanging low, I’ll show you attempt number Two. It’s EVEN WORSE than attempt one!!

What it SHOULD look like (another fine example of it here)

What it DOES look like......Oh god! It's hideous!!!!

I think I have tension issues. I’m worried I’m not holding the hook right, or weaving the yarn around my finger right. I have a feeling I crochet into the wrong holes. I think my yarn and hook choice are mismatched and I know for sure I can’t count stitches properly.

Oh help me crochet gods, help me!!

First Batch of Tommies!

2010-01-30T15:45:00.002+11:00

Our first successful batch of Tommies!!! After the miseries we had a year ago with possums, it's sooo exciting to pull in our first crop!!

Some of the got a little burnt with the hot weather we had recently, but we've got enough here to make a nice bruchetta for dinner tonight.

I'd love to grow more things in our backyard. We've got rosemary and mint and chives, but you just can't beat picking your own food and eating it - it tastes a million times better than store bought, plus knowing you nurtured it from a seed makes it all the more satisfying!

My Creative Space Thursday

2010-01-28T15:46:00.005+11:00

My creative space this week has been sitting in the waiting room at the hospital.

I'm playing Nurse Nancy to my dear Mr Honi - and before you ask; No, there are no costumes involved!!!

He had surgery yesterday to strip the bad veins from his legs. This picture doesn't look nearly as bad as it looks in real life - so many little nicks and cuts, and they're all sticking to the TED stocking. Poor Mr Honi.

So, sitting in the waiting room at the hospital yesterday was perfect time to work on a bit of crochet. I've started on my first attempt of the 200 blocks - seems i need to brush up on ending my rows though, as I've not quite mastered that yet. I'm fine with Granny squares, but working in rows is a new skill for me.

Oh, and I was getting a hand cramp the other day, and rather than go out and buy a new hook, I fashioned myself a wide grip from Fimo - and viola no more cramping!! What do you think?

Jump on Over to Kootoyoo for more Creative Spaces!

I just had to get it...

2010-01-26T12:40:00.001+11:00

Still not feeling 100% right but needed to get out of the house so Mr Honi and I are going to the movies! Am just sitting outside (posting this from my wonderful phone) and waiting to go into the cinema.....after a quick stop into borders to buy this!

It was a splurge, but after reading badskirts posts (and many others) I'm dying to venture past my granny squares!!

New kid on the block

2010-01-25T10:52:00.002+11:00

Well, I spent most of the weekend on the couch with a charming little stomach bug. I had grandiose plans for sewing and crafting, but I felt so rotten that I couldn't even muster the urge to crochet .

Great way to lose a few kilos though! (ah, i kid, i kid. it's been hell)

So for a lack of my own crafty exploits, I thought I would share the link of a new blog that is sure to add a smile to your face. It's written by a very good friend of mine, whom I live through vicariously and details her horror stories of the dating scene. I guarantee you'll laugh and cringe at her tales.

Go check it out - Of Many Men

Tense moment

2010-01-22T16:04:00.006+11:00

Mr Honi and I witnessed a bit of a tense moment in our backyard where we could see Daphne (the lizard) thinking "hhmmm.........should I go for the baby turkey.........nah, he's a wee bit big ..."

click the image for big size..

My Creative Space Thursday

2010-01-21T08:52:00.005+11:00

Wow. It’s great to be participating in My Creative Space again. I find it gives me a bit of direction, a focus, something to work towards – a goal to finish a project so that I can blog about it.
EDIT - just checked Kirsty's site - is it still MCS happening??

I’ve got 2 things to show you this week. Firstly, I gave myself a little bit of colour therapy and colour co-ordinated my fat quarters. I’ll have to take some pictures of the cupboards because they look AWESOME now!! (click on the image to see it properly. Darned blogger cuts the edges off my pics!!) I can now easily create colour schemes for quilts etc.

The second thing I have to show to you is a little electrical experiment. I have always adored “mini” things - like little scenes, doll houses, viewmasters – little things that you can imagine yourself inside. I should post some pics of my glorious childhood dollhouse. I still dream about living inside it! Plus I have my little collection of Mini viewers.

So, I decided to make a prototype for a little mini viewer.

I bought a collection of mini circus people from Vinnies and have been thinking about what I can do with them. So I took an old film canister, some LED lights, electrical wire and a battery and created a little mini light box with a light-up scene showing a little sword swallower.

What do you think?? (click on the images to enlarge!)

This is a close up of the little guy using a flash

The blur that was Christmas...

2010-01-20T09:18:00.002+11:00

Well Christmas whizzed past so quickly and next thing I know I'm back here at my desk at work. As I was on a big of a blog hiatus I thought I would share a few pics from the festive season. I found a cool application for my HTC Dream phone, called “Toy cam” which is AWESOME! Jess has a similar one for her iPhone – and I agree with her statement that you can’t beat a film camera, but this is still pretty darn cool

As mentioned Mr Honi and I drove up to QLD which was lovely. We saw the big prawn

And the big banana

Drove on dirt roads

And saw some cool things being towed

And we saw quaint little country homes that I would have KILLED to go into! I bet if Id’ dropped in we would have been served fresh scones with home made jams and tea in fine bone china teacups with matching saucers (well, that’s my little fantasy of country life!!)

We also got a bit festive at work and I made some HUGE spindles and baubles to decorate our team area

Bag Lady

2010-01-19T09:58:00.004+11:00

Apologies for the teeny tiny pic - for some RANDOM reason I can't get the URL for my flickr pics unless I click on "all sizes" and then the pictures are rotated back to the original format. ggrrrr. So click over to flickr to see it properly if you'd like to.

*deep breaths*

Anyway here's a little look-see at my latest creation. I used my own pattern, IKEA fabric and I made the wooden handles myself too. I slaved away in the work shed with a hand saw, sander and lacquer. Am VERY proud of myself!

I've always loved wood work ( I grew up with a carpenter dad AND grandfather) and I'm keen to get back into it again.

It was meant to be a pressie, but I loved it too much!! I'll have to make another one for you Auntie!!
x

Well hello 2010...

2010-01-18T10:34:00.003+11:00

Well hello 2010. You look nice - promising, adventurous and full of opportunities. I’ll try to make the most of you and get all I can out of you. I won’t waste you on sleeping in, watching TV, driving around and around in shopping centres or buying cheap crap.

I will instead try to spend you doing the following:
- cooking new and different meals each night, all from scratch. All from fresh ingredients
- buying as much organic produce as I can from small, local grocers or farmers markets, AND attempting to grow some of our own
- making clothes for myself and buying less. Especially from places that specialise in what feels like “disposable clothing”. A few nice new pieces here and there but NO poorly made rubbish.
- walking more (and hopefully losing 10kg!!)
- educating myself (I’ve already signed up for a learn to sew class)
- seeing more of our friends and entertaining more
- de-cluttering our lives. Clothes, bags, bits and bobs and just general crap that is cluttering up our lives. Both Mr Honi and I are over it.
- flossing EVERY day (dental hygiene is VERY important!)
- writing letters rather than emails
- taking more photos
- being more patient
- enjoying more of the outdoors
- crafting lots and lots
- getting honi design to where I want it to be (I’ll tell you more about this later)

Dear readers I know this is a bit of a belated “resolutions” list, but I’ve had to spend a bit of time away from my blog to realise what it was that I REALLY wanted out of this year- especially for honi design. I have a good idea now and am busting at the seams to start. There’ll be lots of stuff to show you in the next few months

I’ve missed you all dearly though and hope that you continue to come back and share in my adventures of 2010!

ps - I took this pic on my mobile at a roadside stop on the way up to QLD for Chrissie. Isn't it the most relaxing, peaceful scene?

Belated Merry Christmas!

2009-12-27T08:48:00.001+11:00

Merry Christmas dear readers! The last few weeks have been very draining workwise and I haven't had time to post on my blog nor read any of your wonderful blogs either. The man and I are currently visiting family up the coast and I am really enjoying the much needed time away.

So I just thought i'd do a quick post via my mobile to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Oh and the pic is of my brand new dress model from Mr Honi! (How good is he!)

Lots of crafty love to you all- be back in the new year! X