The Friday Archives

I'm a bit slow to jump on this band wagon, but here I am now... I'm playing along with Loobylu's meme, The Friday Archives. This one's about dredging up a bit of art or creativity from the past... The first one I'll post here is a cheery little piece I drew in Year 11 (1992). It's weathered badly over the years, I should take better care of things...More cheery images next week! :P

(...and thanks for the lovely comments on my last post. Things aren't fantastic yet, but it's getting there slowly.)

trees please!

I've just listed the winter trees set on ozebaby. I like how this little set turned out, I'm loving how the dotty arms match the trees... yeah, they do clash, but in a good way I think. :o) I'm trying to get my act together to finish photographing and listing the little blue dresses too, but something always seem to happen to slow me down. In fact, life is super crazy at the moment, and not all in a good way. Which is why I'm not posting as much at the moment, or visiting other people's blogs as much as I usually like to. Hopefully things will settle down soon, and I'll be smiling again.

This is... my way of recycling

This week's this is comes courtesy of Angela's Mum, who suggested that this weeks theme be 'this is... my way of recycling'. I do a lot of recycling... not in a 'I must recycle!' kind of way, but more because I enjoy being thrifty, and attempt to tread lightly. I like to make do, and try and create something from what I already have rather than go buy something new.

In the garden, I like to use old milk cartons when I raise seedlings. I also like to use compost from our compost bins, and create edgings, stakes (whatever!) from what we have lying about the place. We garden organically, and to always go out and buy something new seems to defeat the purpose somehow!We also recycle a lot of water, especially in summer. The boys use very little soap in their water, so their bath water gets lugged straight out onto the veges. If it's soapier water, it goes into the washing machine, and then onto the lawn. If we've used the water to wash nappies, then it goes down the drain! (That's another thing I like to recycle- nappies! I love big cloth nappy bums on little people! So much nicer than plastic, and to wash your own uses a lot less water than most people are led to believe... I know! I have been washing them for seven years!!! Our water usage is about that for 3 people with a medium sized garden, according to our water bill. I think this is okay for a family of 5 with a large garden!)When it comes to sewing/crafting, this is where I love to recycle. I get a buzz out of making something from scratch with materials that have been exclusively recycled- be it thrifted, second hand, passed on, refashioned, or simply found on the side of the road! I was thinking of putting up links, but if you look back through this blog, you'll find examples of what I've done. Most recently, the coat and the silk screen. And finished as of today, this little set. The pants are made from a thrifted woolen skirt, and the sleeves are from some fabric I found in an opshop. The image I screen printed earlier in the week.

This is a great theme! Go check out other people's 'this is...' in the side bar over at Three Buttons.

Sunday

Tonight we went to have dinner at a friends house. They have a beautiful little girl who is just the right size for the size 3 version of the blue stenciled dress. After she warmed up a little to the idea of a million photos being taken of her, Sunday loved playing model. It's a shame that it was such a rainy day today- I would have loved to have taken the photos outside. It was lovely to see my dress on a little girl. I actually begged Ash to try the dress on for size- he did, but was pretty happy once it was off again. Thanks to his big brother, he now has a major aversion to anything 'girly'. Be it pink, or of course, a dress.

(The stencil dresses should be listed over the next couple of days on ozebaby and etsy, along with something else I have been working on.)

the coat

I've just finished my first attempt at a coat. Hooray, winter is not looking so cold! It has been so long since I have owned a winter coat... I tend to layer, and layer some more.

It was a bit hard to get decent pictures of this coat. It is pretty big and reasonably shapeless, so it doesn't photograph well- especially when you are trying to photograph yourself in it! (This is why I'm really only showing neckline pics, as this is where the interesting bits are.)
I wanted to add buttons, but I don't have the *right* ones, so instead I am fastening it with a large pin until I find some I'm happy with. I want to wait until they turn up at an opshop or something... One of the things I love most about this coat is that the only thing I have bought new is the thread. The overlocker thread was bought at a garage sale, but the regular thread from a store. The wool came from a garage sale, and the lining is from a country opshop.
I might have another go at making this again, but I think I need to try a smaller size. I might also try and give it a bit more shape. But for a first go, I'm happy. :o)

On My Desk :: Wednesday

On my desk this week... mess, and lots of it! I have managed to keep the space reasonably clean for a while, and now any cleanliness has long since fallen by the wayside. Maybe this is because I have lots of different projects on the go at the moment. Here you can see: green wool for the coat I am making alongside the spotty fabric which is for the lining. Also buttons I found the other day, and the white trees top which is waiting for some stripy sleeves. The orange and brown plaid is in the process of becoming a pair of flares with teal birds on leg and pockets... sadly the pocket appliqués are becoming frustrating - resulting in lots of this:

i won, i won! ;o)

Hooray for being a RRR subscriber!! I just won a double pass to see Architecture in Helsinki on Thursday! :o) :o) Now all I need is a babysitter.... *sigh* Let the begging of friends begin! lol