Sometimes projects are just an angels breath from completion.  These little pegs had been sitting painted for a while, waiting for wings, skirts and faces.  I imagined skirts made from slices of lightly coloured vintage embroidery and paper doily wings.  Consulting my drawers of damaged, vintage embroidery, I found other ideas. 

A hand embroidered table cloth, too long in the napisan was waiting for me.  It had been so long bleached that the thread work and hems were dissolving, but still not long enough to remove whatever the tenacious stain had been.  The white on white details remind me of feathers and so wings they were.  The tattered edges became an underskirt for each modest angel, with just the smallest whisper of cotton lace over the top.  My very own mini host of mini angels.

The strangest things rise to the surface when parents start clearing out spaces.  I spied a pair of these glass domes on a shelf in Dad's garage.  At first he though they might be old valve domes, but closer inspection and splashes of white paint suggest they were outdoor light bulb covers.  With $2 of thrifted decorations,  they look grand. 

The kids are latching on to the idea of treasures under domes.  I found a little match box house hiding under a crystal glass (you can see it if you squint).  I just couldn't resist playing with lego trees and a sugar bowl.

Stir it up Sunday is something my grandmother introduced me to.  Before launching into all the rush of Advent and associated Christmas preparations, we have Stir it up Sunday.  It takes it's name from a 1549 prayer

"Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people; that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded;"

While this could trigger all manner of contemplation, this talk of stirring and fruit sounds suspiciously like pudding. Since the 1800's Stir it up Sunday, has been known as the perfect time to be making Christmas pudding.

Gran took great pride in sharing traditions with me.  As she told me all about this day, she smiled conspiratorially, and told me she had already made her puddings.

Given the day and all it's traditions, it could only mean a trip to Grandma's, my mother, for the girls to Stir it Up.

Measuring

Making bread crumbs

Cutting liners

Stiring it Up

And finally - the first cooking

I may be many things, but a bird fancier I am not.  Instead I am content to admire these sweet and proper budgies.  I picked up the books from the local church fair for their illustrations.  

There's a certain poetry to the collective nouns of birds.  A chatter of budgies or even a chattering.  The canaries, I have been told, like to hang out in an aria or even an opera.  It has me wondering what names I would choose if given a chance to name, say, a group of collectors, sewers or thrifters? Given a weakness for simple alliteration I'm thinking perhaps a clutter of collectors, skein of sewers, and throng of thrifters.

 These ladies have been waiting a very long time to get their skirts.  But don't they look so happy now?  They were left in painted on hot pants for over a year, as I tried to work out how to make them stand up.

The original plan was to hand turn some wooden bead and route out a centre that let each doll stand.  The problem was I haven't touched woodwork since manual training and have no idea where to find a freindly wood turner.  In the end, it was air dry clay to the rescue with hand molded bases holding each lady.  They look just about ready to start singing

A little stitching, a little pattern and I now have my very own La Cigale.  It's a lavender filled cicada, to fill a wardrobe with summery fragrances and memories of a lovely Le Rouvray.  The pattern went together beautifully.  I think the next one deserves some sort of hanging loop as well.

I'm busting out the fabric stash.  Aunts, avert you eyes as your Christmas presents may be looking a lot like this.

One day I will concoct a dish that uses as many vintage utensils as I can find.  These two followed me home from the church fair.  This little grater was fantastic for grating hard cheddar for over our spaghetti*.  As for the baking molds, I have no idea.  They are not the little shells for madeleines or log like ginger gems.  It appears there are still novelty pastries out there for me to discover.

*The kids were stoked to use the grater, but rather disgusted when they tasted the strong cheese - I wish I had taken a photo to record the foul look I got.

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There's always so much going on during Labour Weekend.  Tomatoes to plant, visitors to entertain, church fair and activities day at Cobblestones, our local museum. 


 

My kids love riffling through timber offcuts, looking to repurpose bits and pieces.  We have rectangles of wood hand drawn buttons and imaginary touch screens.  I thought I would get in on it too.  This piece of wood looked too much like a blank canvas to leave alone.

E thinks her hair is the bane of her life.  Knottier than her sister's and more than a little flyaway.  I like it.  I might be her Mum, but I think she looks like a roman goddess, only with a bigger smile and more clothes.

Once upon a time souvenir spoons were proof that you had been there, done that.

I'm not so sure about now.  I haven't a wall or rack filled with glued on mementos.  I'm always on the look out for the ones with vintage enameled insigna.  Especially, it is from one any of the places we visited on our honeymoon. The rest, I keep and give to people when they return from theirs.


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Putting it simply, this book is brilliant.  It takes a lot for me to rave about a craft book and Christmas Crafting with Kids, by Catherine Woram,  has a lot. 

It caught my eye on the library shelf and jumped in my bag. The title tells a lot.  Unlike some deceptive grown up craft books masquerading as a kids book - this book contains projects that with a little guidance, kids really can make.  There is baking, decorations, gifts and cards. 


We poured over the pages and decided to give the peg dolls a try.  Miss H was keen to make them her own way,  using the paper doilies as wings rather than as a dress.  We had a great time painting up the pegs. Two were left unpainted for E to make later, much to the concern of her sister.  She was very worried about the dolls being "naked".

Format - The book is hardcover, 125 pages with 35 projects.  the projects are divided into decorations, gifts, cards and wrapping.  The materials used are relatively straight forward.  you may need to duck out for airdry clay, fimo or sequins for some.  With a little thought, most people should be able to find some projects that don't require additional materials.  Each step is illustrated with photos of real kids making things.  While the finished products often look like they have had some older hands helping, I'm sure little hands would add their own magic.

Who would I recommend it to?  The projects look to be for about ages 4 and up, and will require some adult guidance.  Consequently, I'd recommend it to people wanting to take the time with children, to make something special for Christmas.  Thinking about it, I might just be the author's target market.

Would I buy it? If it wasn't already in my local library - YES, I would buy it in a flash. 

Disclaimer - I love books and devour them with cups of tea and gingernuts.  I also love honest book reviews that let you know what is in store. This book was kindly lent to me by my local library, because that's what they do.

Adventures are just waiting to happen.  There is a small patch of native forest on the edge of the park and a winding path through it.  Granddad Bob took the opportunity to show the girls how to make whistles out of grass blades. There was much huffing and puffing, giggling and general light-headedness.  The perfect end to an afternoon at the park.

Collections often start with regrets and missed opportunities.  This collection began with one simple little jug.  It matched some cups I already had.  My godmother lovingly packed it and sent it from Scotland for me.  It was beautiful.  It still is beautiful, but in transit a small shard broke from the rim.  And so the collection began.
I started to look through trade-me to find another one, with it's pale blue interior and curved belly.  Feeling a little like goldilocks the collection grew in no particular order,

Together they look beautiful.  I feel temptation should be spelt P-O-O-L-E to match the china I keep gravitating towards.  Sometimes they hold milk and little teaparties.   But best of all, they hold flowers, spilling over the top, hiding the little shard that started the whole process.

The Printed Zipper Pocket Tutorial is ready to go. The instructions include how to print on the fabric and sew it together. You can download it by clicking on the link below.

Printed, Zipped Pocket

These pockets are the result of an afternoon of printing with kids aged between 4 to 8. Armed with painting shirts, and precut fabric we were able to make stamp pads and explore printing with everyday objects.

Each artwork was then turned into a zipped pocket.  I have simplified the steps and used pinking shears where ever possible, to streamline the construction.  It took about 3 hours to sew all 12 pockets together (only 15 minutes each!).

I am planning to enlist the kids to help me make some more for Christmas presents for their friends and teachers.

We had a great time making them.  If you have any questions, suggestions or even photos of the ones you have finished, please drop me a line - seven.stitches.amy(at)gmail.com .

A few notes to start

• The images display best in Adobe Acrobat.  They show up a little blurry on Google Drive

• The measurements have been given in imperial first with metric in brackets.

It must be spring.  The picnic basket is dusted off.  My family has returned from holiday, just in time to enjoy the last few days of the cherry blossoms.  There was muffins, sandwiches, cherry hair clips and much running.

Miss H is wearing a dress smocked by Grandma for Aunty E.  Little E on the other had was not going to dress up, no way.  At least she was well dressed for tree climbing.

I have been putting the finishing touches on lots of little sewing projects.  An afternoon of kids printing onto fabric has been turned into a dozen little zipped pouches.

I think I might have got it down to a fine production line*.  I am sucked by the bright colours and expressiveness of their little art works.  I think we may need to make some more for Christmas and end of year teacher presents. However, the next task is to match each pouch with its maker.

*I sometimes wonder if the wed needs yet another zippered pouch tutorial, but I am sorely tempted to write one, including measurements, printing techniques, ink setting process.  What do you think? Should I? Would you use it?

I think I might be the sort of person who would buy a Ferrari, just because it matched a spare tyre I was given.  In this case,  I picked up an oven to go with my speckly enamel ware.

This little beauty is a NZ made gem - a bench top oven by National Electric and Engineering Company (NEECO).  While I can't determine where in New Zealand this was made, one of the manufacturing branches of NEECO was in Temuka.  Their insulator kilns had a handy sideline in ashtrays that grem into Temuka Pottery*.

While the oven is decidedly stylish it screams fire trap.  The top plate is used to heat the oven as well.  There isn't a skerrick  of insulation to the door or sides.  I could imagine it in a workshop, being used to keep the kettle and pies warm, though a jug and a trip to the pie shop might be a little safer.

*A very brief history.  you can read more here.

My favourite part of a blanket would have to be the satin along the edges. These cushions celebrate blanket ribbon in all it's hues and leave the satin edge free for little hands to explore.

Growing up, we only slept with blankets when were at my grandparents. There is a certain security in going to sleep with the satin edges clutched between fingers.  For me, it means that, even though I'm away from home, I've been tucked in by someone who cares.

These cushions are made out of a collection of blanket samples for Onehunga Woollen Mills.  Each came with its name written on a small adhesive label.  In stops and starts I have been sewing the name of each colour onto it's respective sample since 2010.  We have everything from the blues of  seascape and navy, to the very pale whites of natural and eggshell.

And as an added bonus, they are nice to snuggle up with too.

This weeks thrifty find isn't mine.  It's my daughter's.  She spotted the little pirate toby mug and exclaimed "just like Mum's!".

The shopkeeper carefully wrapped it for her and added "It's always good to have collections," before handing it to my beaming 6 year old.

Their providence is nothing exceptional.  A simple "Japan" back stamp. They both have little chips.  However, they make me smile and they make my daughter beam.

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