mummalu's artistic obsessions

Garage Sale!

2011-11-28T13:26:00.003+11:00

Garage Sale!, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

My little brand Encircled is having a little FB sale. Some cute upcycled dresses for sale! Please help me fund my Etsy purchases ;)

www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150435360013970.39821...

the safari sally dress

2011-11-27T21:49:00.003+11:00

the safari sally dress, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

You haven't seen me for a while. I have been busy studying Fashion Design at Tafe. This is my final project for my Cert 4 course. So glad this year is over!

Some stitching action

2010-12-08T15:42:00.002+11:00

An attempt at some hand embroidery!, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

I would love to try doing some more hand embroidery. This was done a couple of months ago for an "embellishment" project at Tafe.

Let's go shopping

2010-12-03T06:49:00.004+11:00

Well my heart definitely skipped a beat when I spotted this shopping cart on my brief visit to an op shop on Wednesday. I had to look around to see if some granny actually owned it and then I saw the price tag. $5!

I have been on a quiet hunt for a floral shopping cart for about 6 years now. I have only ever seen about 4 of them, and they usually belong to a granny. So you can imagine my delight when I found this one. It even came in my favourite colours.

Now I just need to go shopping! Tomorrow might be the perfect day to start at the Newcastle Art Bazaar at Civic Park, 9am till 3pm. There are 80+ stalls with around 100 artists on display! BTW, my fashion design class are having a stall there, so I should be there for most of the day.

The Christmas Tree is up

2010-12-02T06:37:00.006+11:00

The Christmas Tree is up. We have tried to keep it simple. It is covered in a silver tinsel that I had bought at the op shop years ago. In fact, it was unused and still had the 15 feet label wrapped around all 3 packs. So either they are very old or have come from the States!

Our parents have been in the habit of each sending us a Christmas decoration for the past 5 years, and along with a handful of other collected decorations, that was enough to fill our little tree.

There are no lights this year. I think we have decided to simply save some energy. I might keep an eye out for some second hand ones at the World's Biggest Car Boot Sale this Sunday on in Newcastle, Australia.

Homemade Christmas Cards.

2010-11-30T07:47:00.003+11:00

I let little miss 2.5 get involved in the Christmas card making this year. The painting got a little bit out of hand when she decided that she didn't want to put paint on the cards and would much rather put it on the table and all over her body. So I ended up having to finish some of the cards, I felt like a mother who is doing their child's homework for them!

I thought I'll bring her back to help me do some of the pasting, but she thought that it would be much more fun tipping out all the glitter and making a little mountain on the table.

I have been saving old Christmas cards from previous years to use for craft projects. I cut out all the existing sayings such as "Seasons Greetings" and "Merry Christmas" and have stuck them on the cards. I think I am going to sew a little border around some of them on the machine, just to add a little bit more interest.

Red Lantern Night Markets

2010-11-23T19:41:00.002+11:00

Mr. Rickshaw, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Last Saturday night was the first evening of the Red Lantern Night Markets. I had a teeny stall there and had a brilliant evening. I just loved the life that the market bought back to the mall. There were so many people, great music, fantastic handmade stalls, yummy food and the mall was closed off to traffic once again.

I'm unable to do any more stalls for the remaining Red Lantern Markets (27/11 & 11/12), but I am hoping that I can sneak in as a shopper and finish all of my Christmas shopping.

I will be making a small appearance at the Annual Art Bazaar in Civic Park, Newcastle on Saturday December 4th. I will be on a stall with rest of my Fashion Design students from TAFE.

Hopefully see you there! :)

Our Christmas Tree in the making

2010-11-18T08:06:00.003+11:00

I love a fresh Christmas tree, I love the smell, I don't like the idea of cutting down a tree that has grown for years and will only last a month.

So here is this year's answer to a tree. It is made from driftwood collected from the beach. I have a feeling that we aren't supposed to take these from the beach so sshh, don't tell anyone! ;)

Here is last year's Christmas tree. With a little toddler on the run we decided that it was safer to just have a 2D tree.

Wishlist Wednesday

2010-11-17T13:33:00.004+11:00

1. This would definitely suit my little babe for Christmas! From bohemian babes on madeit.

2. If I just shut my eyes I could just pretend that there's no nasty food colouring in this one. How amazing does this look! Found at Whisk Kid.

3. A Polaroid SX-70. I just love the rainbow colours that run through the middle of the camera. And I love bokeh! Image stolen from Brandon Warren on Flickr.

4. I first spotted these on someone's blog yesterday. Then I saw one on a friend today.
So in love! MadebyEmilyGreen from Melbourne.

5. So I have 3 tattoos that I got done in Mexico and Ecuador when I was much younger. I don't like them much at all now. I have been completely against getting any more tattoos until now! I saw a girl at work with a babushka tattoo on her leg and my heart started racing. It was just gorgeous.

(Don't worry Mum, I'm not really going to get one! I just WISH that I could!)

This one was posted by babushka_baby done by Marc at 2012 Tattoo, Newcastle.

Ta da! 36 hair clips done.

2010-11-16T20:29:00.003+11:00

I am currently without my good camera so please excuse the quality of the photographs. I have finally finished a round of hair clips. They are the first lot that I have made since last year! They are 'non-slip', great for babies' hair, all backed with felt. I made an effort not to put too many buttons on, so that I am not stressing about the littlies choking on them.

I have packaged them onto card leftover from the cereal boxes and glued old atlas pages on top. I printed a little blurb for the back with contact details etc.

Anyways, they are all for sale at the Red Lantern Night Market coming up this Saturday night.

How much would you pay for one of these?

Scrappy hair clips are back.

2010-11-14T11:58:00.002+11:00

I'm just in the middle of making a round of the scrappy hair clips that were so successful last year. There's not going to be many, so be quick if you want to grab one!

At the Red Lantern Markets in the Hunter Street Mall, Newcastle. I'll be there on the 20th November.

Encircled will be appearing at the Red Lantern Markets

2010-11-13T14:06:00.006+11:00

My little brand 'encircled' will be making an appearance at the Red Lantern Markets in the Newcastle Hunter Street Mall this coming Saturday night, 20th November, 4 till 10pm. I will be having a selection of girls dresses, pencil cases, coin purses and hair clips all made from upcycled fabrics and many items hand screen printed.

The initial Red Lantern Market will feature rickshaw rides, a body-painting exhibition, street performance, Earthen Rhythms African Drumming, ‘Efendi Jaenudin’ Indonesian Music Ensemble and a fire-twirling exhibition.

Additionally, ‘Livesites’ will collaborate with the Night Market and produce an evening of ‘Dancing in the Streets’, at the David Jones end of the mall’.

Stay up to date with the happenings of the market on their blog: http://redlanternnightmarket.blogspot.com/

I think I can feel another useless collection coming on.

2010-11-02T20:40:00.004+11:00

I have been seeing these gorgeous floral flour sifters at some of our second hand markets. I have been avoiding buying them, because seriously, why do I need another flour sifter? Well this time we were at the Wickham markets and I just couldn't help myself. So here I now have the most delightful flour sifter to add to my utterly useless dust collecting collection of "stuff". But I can tell you that I am in love with it :)

Trains, Art Galleries & Op Shops. Oh my.

2010-09-30T21:39:00.003+10:00

Yesterday we made the train journey out to Maitland to visit their fantastic art gallery. They put on some brilliant kids holiday programs. The theme for the pipsqueak littlies yesterday was to create some play food to coincide with one of the current exhibitions 'Lunch with the Trades'.

We made some sandwiches with cardboard bread filled with shredded coloured paper. A soft drink of red cellophane with a bendy straw (no ADD symptoms to deal with here!), Styrofoam cupcakes, stickered lollypops and cutout cookies. Junior Masterchef, eat your heart out!

I think I had more fun creating the food more than miss 2.5 did. The Maitland Art Gallery is well worth a visit. It has free entry & a fabulous gift shop. Some of the kids programs cost a little bit of money, but are cheaper if you are a member.

After all the fun and food, we took the kids to the play ground next door and wore them out. They crashed out in their prams and my friend and I managed to briefly raid some of the awesome op shops that Maitland has to offer. I think I could spend an entire day trawling the op shops of Maitland.

Not sure where Maitland Art Gallery is? Here's a map.

Some quiet days at home.

2010-09-22T13:01:00.003+10:00

Yesterday afternoon was spent in the backyard digging for worms. We have transferred some earth worms over to one of our veggie patches that was just waiting for some wrigglies. E loved watching them burrow into the soil, but was not so keen of the squirming feeling in her hands. She now has a very small corner of the garden to dig holes and plant twigs in so that DP doesn't have a meltdown everytime a seedling gets squashed. :P

This morning we baked a carrot cake. A healthy one of course... It has carrots, it must be healthy? E and I were fighting over who got to lick the icing out of the bowl. Don't you just wish you were a kid again? Remember the magic of being able to lick the beaters after Mum had whipped up something yummy.

Upcycled Ladybirds in the making.

2010-09-18T16:12:00.003+10:00

Upcycled Ladybirds in the making., originally uploaded by [mummalu].

These are currently being made by me. They are little ladybird purses with a zip through the middle. The dots have been screenprinted onto the fabric of old shirts. The little eyes have been sewn on using a free machine embroidery method. I can't wait to see them finished.

What do you call them: ladybirds, ladybugs or ladybeetles?

Weekend treasures.

2010-08-30T15:12:00.004+10:00

Did some hunting at the Wickham Markets in Islington yesterday. It's always a fave. I came home with a few treasures:

1. The mushroom jars, two for $1. I don't know what I'll be putting in them yet. I just thought that they were cute.

2. The rusty enamel teapot, $2. This won't be getting used for anything, it's going up on the top shelf in the kitchen to gather dust with the rest of my teapots. I loved the retro pattern and couldn't pass it up for only $2!

3. A Paklite vintage suitcase, $10. I have been looking for a vintage suitcase to keep Miss 2.5 dress ups in. It has been hard to find one that doesn't smell like a cross between talcolm powder and mould. This one is just gorgeous, it is almost like new.

Check out some more Flea Market Finds from the weekend here.

Circles by Encircled

2010-08-30T14:44:00.004+10:00

I am currently working on some circular coin purses with a zip through the centre. My niece is in love with ladybirds at the moment, so the plan is to do some screen printing and make some ladybird style purses very soon.

Yes, I'm still alive.

2010-08-18T07:58:00.002+10:00

softies, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Here are some little softies I made a few months back. It's not the best photo, but I am quite proud of the screen printed fabric. I did a photo emulsion of some lace on to a screen. I can now jazz up some old fabrics with a bit of lace texture :)

The Envelope Project

2010-06-22T22:59:00.003+10:00

Here is my contribution to the Meet Me at Mikes's Envelope Project. It was so much fun picking out the little treasures from around the house and creating my envelope. I made the envelope from a stash of my favourite vintage wallpaper, threw some little goodies in there, chose $1.1o worth of stamps and sent it on its way.

A little update

2010-06-15T13:46:00.007+10:00

Although things have been fairly quiet around my blog, my real life has been very busy. I am now back at work, hmm a real job, I am studying 2 days a week, helping a friend out with her ladies 2nd hand market and juggling a very active 2 year old.

School (TAFE) is moving along very slowly, but that's what you get for only going 2 days a week. This semester we had a good play with some screen printing which I have been loving. The last couple of weeks we have been doing up some screens with photo emulsion. I made a screen with my label 'encircled' on it so that I could use them for tags on the items that I am creating. The sushi fish was part of a project that had to be japanese inspired. We are in the middle of making a skirt that had to have one of our screen prints on it.

The pillow is made up of lots of upcycled fabrics including parts of my favourite pair of jeans and many men's shirts. I did some self cover buttons and attempted some piping for the first time. The circles pattern was made using some fabric paint and printing bubble wrap onto the fabric. I then free hand machine embroidered over the top.

Raid My Wardrobe

2010-05-19T14:04:00.004+10:00

Raid My Wardrobe, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Finished screen printing the t-shirts for the Raid My Wardrobe event on this Sunday in Newcastle, Australia. It's a second hand ladies clothing and accessories market. There are going to be 40 plus stalls. Come and check it out if you can: http://raidmywardrobe.com.au

Fairies in the garden?

2010-04-28T19:58:00.002+10:00

Fairies in the garden?, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Paul got in touch with his creative side over the Easter long weekend. With a bit of extra time on his hands and armed with PVA, he created these "fairies" made from champagne corks, googly eyes, scrap fabrics, a shell and a wine cap.

Instead of chocolate on Easter Sunday, Eliza was presented with these gifts. She now has a collection of 5 "fairies". They are definitely flavour of the month, playing in the garden and in the doll's house. Now you are probably thinking, "wow, they must be getting through some wine!?" I am actually collecting the corks from my workplace where they usually just get thrown in the bin.

I am so proud of my manly man for having a go and getting crafty all by himself!

Renovations Complete.

2010-03-13T21:21:00.004+11:00

We finally got around to renovating Miss Two's new, preloved doll's house. Mr Practical Dad actually did most of the work. I just did the bossing. He sanded back all the timber and gave it a varnish, gave the roof a new coat of paint. We laid down some fresh carpet in the bedrooms and some lino in the wet rooms. Mr Practical Dad found these in the skip at a job site. And my favourite part is the new vintage wallpaper on the bedroom walls.

Miss Two is loving her new house. I think that there is in fact too much furniture in the house at the moment and she tends to get a bit overwhelmed and just throws it everywhere.

What a fabulous birthday present! Best $30 spent in a long time. Check it out before the renos.

A needle case that makes me feel like a trashy sunday morning.

2010-03-04T21:26:00.002+11:00

needle case, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Well I may have forgotten to tell you that I have started back at TAFE this year. It all happened very suddenly and I am now doing Certificate III in Fashion Design & Technology. Thanks god it's only 2 days a week as going back to school after almost 10 years is hurting my brain. I'll say by the end of the year I shall be a professional crafster.

The course is truly basic. We are learning how to sew from scratch basically. We will be doing some pattern making and my favourite part is the screen printing.

Today we had a play with some "Solvy". A water-soluble stabiliser. I just "chucked" a whole load of fabrics and fibres and even attempted to add some bubble wrap too. Place the layer of Solvy over your mess. Sew all over the top. Rinse the Solvy away. And ta da, a very cheerful, messy piece of art. This needle case, I have to admit, does look A LOT better in real life.

Introducing our new mate Trep-Trep.

2010-03-01T21:59:00.003+11:00

Introducing our new mate Trep-Trep., originally uploaded by [mummalu].

This fella was kindly donated to Eliza at the second hand markets on the weekend. She has named him "Trep-Trep". As much as I love trash and treasure, we always seem to get given other peoples unwanted crap toys. "Oh here you go, have another unwanted McDonalds happy meal toy." You can keep your crap thanks, I always think but am too polite to ever say.

This guy is kind of cute. He is slowly deflating so I don't think he is going to survive the week out.

Sunday Treats.

2010-02-08T22:15:00.006+11:00

Sunday was a trip to the Adamstown Markets in Newcastle. It was fairly quiet, but full of casual stall holders, so it was a great for a change of scenery. We picked up this gorgeous wooden doll's house on the way out. It was $30 and included all the wooden furniture and dolls. Apparently it had once belonged to a preschool. I love the idea that so many little hands have once created magic in this place. I am looking forward to renovating our new house and hopefully having it finished in time for Miss almost 2's birthday. It definitely needs some new carpet!

I love the dunny!

Come and share your Sunday Flea Market Finds over here.

Sunday Treats.

2010-02-01T12:46:00.005+11:00

Yesterday was a quick trip to the Wickham markets. It was raining on and off so there weren't many marketeers there. We only had $15 with us so I had to be careful what I was going to spend my money on. In the end it came down to these 3 treasures. I bought 2 biscuits tins ($4 each) to keep some crafty "stuff" in. I am slowly trying to organise my creative space and moving the old shoe boxes into some more appealing containers. I am even tempted to get myself a label maker just to make sure that everything has its place. :)

I also bought this wooden shadow box for $5. My intention is to give it a paint, maybe even a bit of mod podge love and use it to store my spools on.

Helping Mum make Olive bread.

2010-01-16T14:12:00.002+11:00

Helping Mum make Olive bread., originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Yesterday I had no meal planned (as usual) and decided it was important for me to use what I already had available in the house. I ended up making a chorizo and chickpea stew with lots of tomatoes and veggies in it.

At about 3 o'clock I thought maybe we can eat this with a loaf of crusty bread, but I don't want to drive all the way to the shops just for one item. My bike tyre was flat, so we weren't going to do any riding either.

And then, I remembered, I know how to bake bread! It's been a few months since I have baked, but within a few hours we had a delightful olive and rosemary bread. Miss E had a great time helping Mummy knead the dough.

I was proud that I could switch my brain to remember that I can make things from scratch!

Wishlist Wednesday.

2009-12-09T22:45:00.006+11:00

Well obviously procrastinating getting any of my own work done and truth is I should probably be in bed, but I just thought I'd give you some of my favourites from this week.

Gorgeous skirts by koosi from the Netherlands.

I think I need a Moleskine journal to keep all my ideas in. I'm thinking this one is pretty funky by tamptation in Sydney.

I love the work by local Newcastle artist sketch & jones. I bought Eliza's Christmas dress from her on the weekend at the Art Bazaar. Her prints are gorgeous. These softies are just gorgeous but unfortunately not a necessity around here at the moment...

Well I gave into this wish and bought myself this bag. I have been eyeing this one off for ages. I love fellow DUSTer Penny's prints from pocketcarnival.

The postman woke the baby.

2009-12-08T20:14:00.004+11:00

But all was forgiven once I opened my parcel!

I was a winner in the 'Lil Sonny Sky blog giveaway by the ever so talented and generous Lisa Stubbs. There was a massive amount of gorgeous cards, pins, tags, prints and mini chupa chups! arriving all the way from England. Too bad I had already posted out my Christmas cards this year, let's just say that I am already looking forward to next Christmas so I can post out some of these sweet ones. This little tree card is my favourite :)

I have also been working on a temporary business card that I can just print out a few little ones onto photo paper to hand out at the Red Lantern Night Markets this Friday.

What are your thoughts?

Wearable photography.

2009-12-07T12:06:00.007+11:00

This is a sneak peek of my latest project, and as you can see I like to get around a bit and jump from one craft to another!

These are brooches made from upcycled scrabble tiles and bottle caps. I have downsized and printed my photographs so that they fit into this space. Poured some resin over the top, wait a day and ta da, we have some wearable photography.

I had to experiment with the paper to see which would work with the resin the best and I found that the photographs printed on the photographic paper came out the best. They were still bright and the contrast was still good. The ones that were just printed onto colour paper tended to go a bit grey.

All of my Newcastle themed brooches were quite a hit at the Red Lantern Night Market on Friday night so I was quite happy with that. Now I have to get busy and make some more for this coming Friday night market!

Toodooloo :)

Recycled Paper Christmas Garland

2009-11-30T13:48:00.002+11:00

recycled paper christmas garland, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

I saved the paper that was used for our crackers at the early family christmas lunch yesterday. I punched some circles out of it and now I am sewing through them to make a lovely garland!

Our Handmade Christmas Tree.

2009-11-28T14:41:00.002+11:00

Having an almost 2 year old and not a huge amount of space meant that this year's tree is a bit of paper stuck to the window. It's up high enough that little E is not going to pull it down. We have used sticky tape to attach many of the sentimental Christmas decorations. I'm looking forward to next year when E should hopefully have a bit more respect for a real tree.

A few finds from the World's Biggest Car Boot Sale!

2009-11-27T21:57:00.008+11:00

Although it's a few weeks late, I just thought that I would share with you some of my treasures from the World's Biggest Car Boot Sale! I believe this event needs an exclamation mark! I'm not 100% sure if it is officially the "World's Biggest" but it did have around 400 stalls and is definitely one of my most looked forward to events of the year.

This year particular year it was stinking hot and I had a tired and cranky almost 2 year old toddler on my hands. She did finally fall asleep in the pram which gave me about an hour to myself to race around and look for goodies.

I bought this sweet Minolta SLR to replace my old Minolta that is now filled with mould after it experienced the 2007 floods. I haven't had a real close look at it yet but I would like to throw a roll of film in it over the Christmas break.

I grabbed this roll of retro wallpaper with the intention of using as a bit of a backing on Eliza's toy kitchen, which is a work in progress.

And this gorgeous kids book for 20 cents, it is falling apart, but I am probably only going to cut it up anyway!

I forgot to take photos of the safari beige old school telephone I grabbed too. I didn't tell the collector that I wanted to give it to my daughter as a play toy. Hehe.

UPDATE : Here is the photo of the phone -->

Smocking, the cheat's way.

2009-11-24T21:57:00.005+11:00

I have been wanting to give this technique a try for ages. To create a smocked look by sewing straight lines with your sewing machine and some shirring elastic . Lucky I didn't attempt this on my own. I originally thought that you put the shirring elastic on the spool AND in the bobbin! You basically just have to hand wind the elastic onto your bobbin, not too tight and not too loose.

This dress that I started last night is made from old t-shirt that I scored at an op shop in Mullumbimby whilst holidaying a few months back. It was only $1. The print is on both the back and the front.

I tried it on Eliza and I am going to have a lot of trouble parting with this one. The colours are just so gorgeous. I really need to keep all my stock for my upcoming markets at the Red Lantern Night Markets. I am doing 3 markets in a row and currently don't have a huge amount of things made. I haven't been putting much on my Etsy because I just want to concentrate on the market for now.

:)

Upcycled bottom!

2009-11-22T16:07:00.002+11:00

Upcycled bottom!, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

This is yesterdays creation. Made from 2 old t-shirts and is now 1 cute pair of bloomers!

This is the first time I have worked with stretch fabric. Having the ballpoint needle makes such a difference.

Looking forward to making a few more of these :)

tied up with string...

2009-11-16T13:42:00.002+11:00

tied up with string..., originally uploaded by [mummalu].

I made a couple of sales on etsy last night and I had so much fun today packaging the items up to send. I used a page from the index of an old atlas to wrap the purchases in, topped with some thrifted ribbon and a homemade gift tag punced from a vintage storybook.

I also created the envelope that is being sent in with an old calender page that has a photograph of Melbourne on it and I used the sewing machine to zig zag down the edges to seal it.

Now all I need is a few more sales so I can have more fun packaging!! Hint, hint, nudge, nudge! :P

Succumbed to the Facebook Fan Page.

2009-11-11T12:12:00.003+11:00

Just a quick post to let you know that I ended up going all out and getting myself a Facebook Fan Page.

Here is the URL for you to add me if you wish! http://facebook.com/encircled

Off to pick my bro up from the airport now, we have only seen him twice over the last 2 years as he has been off gallivanting. We are super excited.

:)

My first Etsy listing in awhile!

2009-11-09T23:33:00.004+11:00

My first Etsy listing in awhile!, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Eliza is having a big nap and I managed to do some quiet work and got some of my new heart shaped button clips listed in my Etsy shop. The Down Under Street Team have a November Sale for Stocking Stuffers (these clips are perfect fillers!), so I am offering FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING and to all the Aussies (in Australia) pay only $6AUD with free shipping included if you pay by Direct Debit.

Update: Eliza ended up having a 3 hour nap. I had to wake her up so that we could go do some grocery shopping! I'm just hoping that she can still sleep in in the morning!

Oh so professional...

2009-11-07T21:32:00.006+11:00

oh so professional..., originally uploaded by [mummalu].

I have moved up in the world and now am the owner of some personalized embroidered ribbon.

I also started working on some more clips last night and got myself a little production line going. I am really happy with the way the heart clips turned out.

Thanks tillytom for a beautiful skirt!

2009-11-06T08:47:00.002+11:00

Thanks tillytom for a beautiful skirt!, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Thank you to tillytom designs for sending us out this gorgeous skirt. We were lucky enough to win a $20 voucher for becoming a fan on her facebook page. I had so much trouble deciding which skirt or dress to choose. The fabrics are just beautiful. Thanks again!

I also appliqued this little singlet last night. It's hard to see the detail but I accidently sewed it under the sleeve (I was too lazy to use any iron on stuff), the outcome actually looked quite cute. It made it look a little bit different from everything else that is out there. Don't you just love some things that come from mistakes!

Hat.

2009-11-04T20:41:00.003+11:00

Hat., originally uploaded by [mummalu].

I whipped up this hat the other night. I cut a pattern from an old hat of Eliza's. It didn't turn out quite right.

I got impatient and ended up going to Spotlight to buy a bucket hat pattern so I could hurry up make some more!

A plan.

2009-11-04T20:24:00.004+11:00

A plan., originally uploaded by [mummalu].

After many months of searching for the "right" toy kitchen for Eliza's Christmas present I have come to the decision to make it myself. I was completely obsessed with buying a second hand kitchen and they seem to be hard to come by. When the do appear, they are never quite right. Too plastic, too faded, too dirty, too toxic.

So here we have my little plan for a toy kitchen. We have a scrap yard not too far from ours where I should be able to salvage most of the materials.

Now let's see if I can get this all done by Christmas...

My favourite one so far!

2009-11-02T12:57:00.002+11:00

My favourite one so far!, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

I like this one because it's a bit more bright and cheerful than the other ones I have done. This was once a ladies shirt and the sleeves were once old curtains! Ha, I'm having fun!

Ta da! Another dress, Could I be on a roll?

2009-10-29T23:30:00.003+11:00

Ta da!, originally uploaded by [mummalu].

Now that I have a goal, that being my market stalls at the Red Lantern Night Market over December. I am actually a little bit more motivated to create. This new dress was made using an old pillowcase. Now my biggest issue is not wanting to part with any of my creations and keeping them all for Eliza!

My other issue is do I attempt to sell online or do I just save everything I've got for the markets? I've got a feeling they are going to be busy.

Upcycled Shirt Dress

2009-10-28T19:37:00.004+11:00

This isn't an original idea, I have seen these dresses made from men's old shirts on others blogs. I'm not sure who to credit in this case but I can tell you that I did score this pattern from Whole Grain Baby on Etsy. I popped into my fave op shop the other day and managed to get 8 shirts into my "fill a bag for $3"! I also had a chat to one of the girls at my local op shop and she is going to save me some more shirts that are not suitable for sale over the next few days. I would much rather chop some of the more stained and torn shirts, than to chop up a decent one that could be sold to someone who really needs it :)

This is not the best photo, but Eliza was doing the the full on model pose for me! She was walking back and forth with her hand on her hip, it was beautiful.

I have just been accepted to have a stall at the Red Lantern Night Market in Newcastle in December, NOW I just need to go and make some stuff!!

I didn't realise that roses really do have thorns.

2009-10-20T21:54:00.002+11:00

You can tell I don't get flowers very often! Paul was home for the weekend and said he would like to buy me some flowers while we were at the Farmer's Market. So I thought I'd try something different and got some roses... never again! I ended up with some so many scratches and bleeds! And I have decided that I never want to be a florist, not that I ever wanted to be one anyway.

I don't own any vases but I do love my reused tomato passata jar!

Peas on a stick.

2009-10-20T21:11:00.003+11:00

I came across this blog post by Weelicious and thought to myself "too easy, let's give it a go!". So the Pea Popsicle was a great success. It looks so cute and was so simple to make.

All you need is some popsicle (icy pole) moulds, frozen peas, water & a freezer!

1. Place frozen peas in popsicle moulds filling to the top.
2. Cover with cold water and place sticks in the molds.
3. Place in freezer for 3 hours or until frozen.
4. Serve.

We got given some of these moulds from a friend who bought them through Tupperware. I love the fact that I can give Eliza some tasty & healthy treats. We just recently finished off the plain frozen blended mango pops. I am looking forward to having a go at layering some flavours!

Friday's Finds.

2009-09-26T12:15:00.005+10:00

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Yesterday we made a brief trip to my favourite op shop. I don't get much time to peruse the goods instore because of a smaller hanger on called Eliza (DD). So with a quick scan of the shop we found these:

Vintage Scrabble Tiles: My plan is to have a play with the epoxy resin I have bought and also using my own original photographs to create pendants and brooches. I know that this is fairly unoriginal, but I am having trouble with ideas for another medium to use for the base of the pendants. So for now, this is great.

Kids Dustpan & Broom: I have been on the look out for one of these for a while. I have been so proud of myself that I have not purchased any "new" toys for Eliza in over a year. All of the toys (which is not many luckily) have come from garage sales, op shops and second hand markets.

Christmas Storybooks: Due to be massacred to create christmas cards and gift tags!

These are the gift tags I have been busily punching out over the last few nights. Planning on listing them in bulk in my etsy store once I am back from my Melbourne trip.

x.x.x.

More clips and if only there were more hours in the day

2009-09-12T22:03:00.004+10:00

So I did fall asleep on the couch in front of the TV at 7pm. Had a kip for an hour and then managed to get myself up for a minute. Deciding that it was too early for bed I have sat here in front of the computer for the past 2 hours, editing photos and getting ready to do a batch upload for my etsy shop. I had hoped on getting them up tonight, but it's now 10pm and at the speed my computer works, I just don't think it's going to happen. We will just have to wait for tomorrow evening.

I went to a seminar today on Toddler Tactics. I had very different expectations of what I was going to come of the course with, but I just ended up hearing everything I'd already heard before. The speaker was fantastic, animated, humorous and enjoyable. I just had gone there thinking that I would find all the answers to deal with discipline techniques in real life scenarios. It was not the case, the talk was good, but not worth $35. On the upside there was a lovely cheese platter for morning tea!

x.x.x.

A moment to create

2009-09-09T20:59:00.009+10:00

Instead of falling asleep in front of the tv at 7.30pm or sitting on the computer till late, I ended up setting up the sewing machine and got creative. I made 4 small non slip hair clips made from scrap fabrics. They were lots of fun to put together. I was wearing one as a brooch today and it fell off, oh well I'm sure I can make another one!

I am a little bit confused with the whole CSPIA laws that are now in place in the USA when it comes to selling products marketed at kids under 12. But from what I can gather, as a small time manufacturer (that's me) and from Australia, I don't really have to do much, possibly just keep an inventory of stock purchased and used. It is basically the discretion of the buyer or importer to make sure that my products have been tested for lead.

This is the most exciting blog ever!

2009-09-01T20:00:00.009+10:00

I am beginning to wonder if starting a blog was the best idea. I sit here now, with my head swollen with mucus and once again I have not much to report. Eliza and I are both sick. I managed to get her to sit down and watch a play school dvd for 30 mins this morning while I lay next to her and drifted in and out of sleep. 5am starts are just beginning to get a little too much after sitting up till midnight.

Grandfolks are arriving tomorrow. We're looking forward to it. x.x.x.

10.20pm, knackered and my etsy shop is officially open.

2009-08-30T22:19:00.007+10:00

My computer has been horribly slow this evening and I have just spent the last 4 hours listing only 6 items into my etsy shop. I'm not sure if just me, but is there an easier way to upload listings that are similar? It's like they need saved tags, as it was being so slow everytime I had to add a new tag, even though all my listing were pretty much the same...

So yay, first day as an etsian shop keeper! Hip, hip, hooray :)

So this is my journey and it all starts here.

2009-08-29T10:23:00.000+10:00

I have decided to start a blog to accompany my etsy shop, because that's what all the good etsians seem to be doing! I don't have all that much to say right now, but I'm looking forward to be able to follow my process as a part time crafter & hobbyist.

I am finding that I have too many projects on the go and it's now time that if I want to keep spending money on sewing machines/overlockers/fabric/scrapbooking junk/resin stuff, then I am going to have to start making some money to cover my costs.

So this is today's project. Resin filled beer bottle caps with fabric and vintage storybook pictures. I am currently attatching the brooch backs so that I can sell them as pins.