Friends

Belated thanks, very belated in some cases given the first couple of these are from last years birthday bounty.  Lucky for me friends are allowed to be late with things like this :)

Emily, thank you for the mug and the tea selection.  You may notice that not all the tea is pictured, but I have already mentioned how long ago my birthday was so this is not surprising!

Mandy.  I cannot tell you how much I love this Zero Japan tea pot!  LOVE it.

Emma, I am still trying to find the perfect project for this beautiful 4ply.  It is just the sort of thing I would have bought for myself, I love the blues and greys together.  I love the project bag too :) 

And Kylie, who just sent this lot of goodies, not for my birthday, but because I sent her 5 balls of cotton so she could knit Baden a vest.  I think I ended up with the better end of the deal.  There is a blanket Possum has given to Dolly, a pair of shorts that I have to add elastic to for Blue and some Merino and Silk blend for me to play with on the spinning wheel.

Spoilt?  Perhaps I am...

Flea Market Finds #5

My fifth week of Flea Market finding.

We don't have a garbage service here so once a week I have to take our rubbish to the tip.

Our tip is small and does not have a tip shop, so when I spotted this wheelbarrow I asked the tip man (bet he loves that tag) if I could take it.

It just needed a spot of weld on one handle, an easy task for the handy Mr.

One recycled, and free, wheelbarrow!

It has already been busy in the garden helping me get ready for Autumn planting.

My Creative Space ~ Soap

I have been fiddling with the soap recipe I found on the Jelly Wares blog awhile ago. I tried less oil, more oil, less oats and more oats.  I have decided I like no oats as it is a nicer, softer soap with just the bran.

Even the Mr likes this batch best so this is the version I shall stick to from now on.

3 cups lux flakes (or grated soap flakes)

2/3 cup milk

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/3 cup milk powder

1/4 cup bran

zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp lemon essential oil

Add lux, milk and olive oil to a pan, heat SLOWLY.

When the soap has melted add the milk powder and stir.

Add bran, essential oil and zest and mix well.

Put in a greased tray/mould.

Allow to set and cut into squares, allow to dry before use.

EASY!!  For more creative spaces visit here.



Fig jam

2kg of ripe figs

3/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 tbsp sweet sherry

1 kg of sugar

50g Jamsetta

Wash and dry figs, remove stems and chop finely.  Place in pan with juices and cook until soft.  Stir in sugar and stir until disolved.  Add jamsetta stirring constantly, bring to the boil for one minute and then stir in sherry.  Bring back to boil and boil rapidly for 5 minutes.  Test for set.  Remove from heat and stand for 5 minutes before filling jars.

A Fowlers recipe.

Fig collection is not made easier when your cow gets in the orchard and eats most of the figs before you head out with your bucket.  I managed to make up numbers by stopping at the fig tree on the road down near the bridge on our lower boundary.  I also had to climb our tree to gather the figs the cow couldn't reach and the cockatoos hadn't yet eaten. It was worth the extra effort.

Flea Market Finds #4

More flea market finds for this week :)

$33 worth of clothes which included a skirt and 2 shirts for me!  There were also 8 shirts,  4 pairs of shorts and a rashie for the children.  Such a great haul of clothing for next to nothing!

I also found an old flour bag. 10 cents! 

I love it and have plans to frame it one day so I can hang it up somewhere and smile whenever I see it :)

Happy shopping :)

First Haircut

This morning:

This afternoon: 

There was something about his first haircut that I was putting off.  I think I knew I would be taking my baby into the hair dressers and coming out with a small boy.  He looks perfect, but part of me misses the baby curls.

Colour inspiration needed!

Green

White and Yellow

Blue

Red

I am surounded by colour, but I can't decide what colour paint I want!

My Creative Space ~ SIT Swap

I am clutching at straws for this creative space and pulling this photo out of the archives to show it off.  I know the package I sent Esther has arrived so it should be safe to show the whole photo now.

This is for the Sew it Together name tag swap.  I can't wait for March when I will get to catch up with friends, and meet new ones too.  The shopping and crafty side of it is a bonus too!

I may not have been creative in the crafty sense over the last week, but I have been busy cooking, busy with the house as well as busy in the garden. 


More creative spaces here!

Flea Market Finds #3

More flea market finds this week.

Tupperware and Pyrex, you can never have too much.

Especially if it is orange!

Not bad for $3 each.

Fruit Chutney

To use the tomatoes that we picked from the garden I deided to make chutney.

I had to modify a few reicpes to suit the ingredients I had here and the end result is really good so I will share what I did here.

1kg tomatoes, skinned and chopped

2 large onions, diced

2 large apples* peeled and diced

700g sugar

3/4 cup sultanas

pinch cayenne pepper

1 tbs salt

1 tsp whole cloves

3.5 cups vinegar

Combine all ingredients over a low heat in a heavy base pan. 

Stir until sugar is disolved and simmer for about 2.5 hours. 

Pour into sterilised jars.

*The apples on my tree are still a bit green, so I used apple puree that I had instead.

My Creative Space ~ Cardigan #2

If you are a regular reader, or even semi regular reader of this blog you have probably seen the original cardigan I put up for the Flood Appeal auction.  What you may not realise is that Esther asked me to knit an extra cardigan for her other daughter in return for a double donation. 

Esther chose the colour Leaf Green, which did not photograph very well here. It is actually a brighter shade of green than this shows. This is a size 18-24 months.

I used more wonderful buttons from Jo at The Bird and the Fish.

I love these buttons!!

I think Esther's two girls will look super cute in these this Winter!

I posted these yesterday so that wraps up my Flood auction efforts.

I still have to knit the replacement cardigan for Possum, but first I have an urge to knit something for myself.  I have ordered wool and am just waiting for it to get here so I can cast on!

For more creative spaces visit here :)

Little Helpers

Yesterday we went for a drive to help the Mr on a job in a nearby town.

It wasn't all sunshine and puppies but the tears didn't last long.

We came home with a lot of sand...

Mostly, they had fun.

Spotter's Fee

I won't really charge Ellie a spotter's fee for this :)

I hope this is the sort of thing you are looking for, let me know as I am happy to keep my eyes open down here if you let me know exactly what you would like to add to your lustreware collection.

This serving platter is 30cm across the diameter. 

The colours remind me of blowing bubbles with the children.

If Ellie doesn't like it I would be happy to keep it here ;)

Hope

Hope softies have been posted this morning.  I wish I had done a better job painting their little faces, new brushes are on my shopping list.  I am sure someone will love them anyway.

The pattern I used was for the Black Apple doll.  This is why we call them all 'Miss Apples'.

Flea Market Finds #2

More Flea Market Finds this week.

I picked up this colander a little while ago.  I didn't really 'need' it, and at $6 is seemed a bit expensive but I wanted something to sit on my dresser to hold my current knitting project.

The wool wasn't included, the green I am slowly turning in a short row shaped scarf and the Blue was a beautiful birthday present from Em. 

These four mug were a better deal at just 10 cents each.  They are stamped Japan on the base and the work in well with the renovation environment we are living in at the moment.  Actually, one of the green mugs is stamped as being made in China, but it matches so well you wouldn't pick it unless you looked.

I can't claim to have 'needed' new mugs either, but for a total of 40 cents the term 'need' doesn't really come in to it.

Knit Night

Last night was knit night.  I don't normally travel to the monthly evening catch up because knit night is an hour and a half away but this time I craved the company so took a drive up the mountain.

I can't show off any knitting because I ripped out more than I knit.  I worked on some softies to send away and we sat and laughed and chatted and snacked.  Just what I needed. 

I took up some figs, and some eggs and bought back lots of fresh zucchini, jam and Johnson Brothers.  I was tired after the late drive home, but it was worth it and I should make the effort to go more often.  Next time there might even be cheese cake ;)

My Creative Space

I have already shown off the first Minnie Me skirt I did as a test knit, but this pattern was so good that straight away I cast on another so I could test the flared twirly version.

This one is the perfect size for Possum whenever a cooler day shows up.  The full body allows for more drape into the ruffle making this a soft and sweet.

You can buy this pattern here on Ravelry.  I can't recommend it enough, simple, well written and two great skirts to choose from with the one pattern.

And here is a sneak peak of the name tag I made as part of a swap for Sew it Together.  We had to use the colours orange, yellow and brown.  I had some handmade clay buttons from Jo at The Bird and the Fish that matched perfectly.  I am the first person to make my tag so far, I must be excited ;)

Visit more Creative Spaces here. 

Hot

We have had no rain here for what feels like ages.  The paddocks are drying off and there is a lot less 'green' about.  The temperatures have varied from 37-42 degrees and that is too hot for comfort.

Possum asked me if she could play in the sprinkler.  I asked her if the water play table would be enough but she told me 'all my body wants to be wetter'.

Playing in the sprinkler is almost a water sport when your sprinkler is run by a fire fighter pump.

I think they both enjoy it :)