my creative space . . . 'craft retreat'

Greetings all,

I strongly believe the nicest community in blogland is we crafty folks.  Sure there are those protective of their images, patterns, products, & others who complain about people stealing their ideas . . . yet for most of us, we blog to share.  Even better, lots of us attend all manner of blog based events focused on craft, like Sew It Together.  It's positively the most pleasant way to meet fellow crafty bloggers, sitting at classes & around tables with our needles & fabrics, crochet & knitting, chattering away.  Shock horror, the average age is below 40!!

When SIT was in Canberra a weekend ago, i sat next to Julie from Relish, a fellow Canberra girl whom i'd met briefly at handmade markets - too busy to chat - so this was my chance to talk her ear off.  I couldn't help but covet this pretty hexagon pencil case which she received in a swap (craft swaps are amazing, they even involve a dance!!) 

 At the bigger craft retreats/ events, there are sponsored goodie bags & lucky door prizes.  Last year at SIT i was one of the last pulled out of the hat, yet thrilled to pick up a prize from pin-up-girl Gillian of Silly Gilly - vintage sewing goodies - this year i hit the jackpot & scored a 'Wendy' Polly Pratt dress ($176) which basically voided the cost of the craft weekend, as i was going to purchase a dress anyway.  

If you love a beautifully made dress in stunning fabrics, check out Anna's Polly Pratt blog & sale, with dresses at $100, starts Friday night: ends Sunday 8p.m.!!  Thank you Anna, love you & the generous pretty fabric donation to Aussie Hero Quilts for our girlie soldiers serving overseas.    

The Saturday night of SIT included more pop up shopping stalls (including a $2FQ clearance sale from me, that was like Boxing Day sales, thank you ladies!!) & i picked up fabrics from other stalls, sharing the love, along with more of Claire's Craft Schmaft patterns.  FYI Claire is looking for pattern testers right now!!

 The Sunday of the SIT weekend was a paint & stencil class.  I was so impressed with what Sheridan of Sew It Together had learned from Lotta Jansdotter herself, i quickly ordered the same Lotta hard plastic stencils on line & they have already arrived!! 

 I had a little stitching planned for today, however, i just did a big slip over at the shops this morning (while holding my husband's hand, i slid down his side, he let me go) in new ankle boots from the Trenery sale, damn new leather soles & jarred my tennis elbow.  He just stood there looking at me on the floor, trying to work out what happened . . . especially confused as i was laughing.  So it's an icepack, Mollie & Frankie for me instead.  

 So do consider joining in a blog event that suits your interests, you're guaranteed to meet lovely like minded folks & enjoy.  For more creative spaces, check out Village Voices My Creative Space today, love Posie

things i'm loving . . . 'lazy days at home'

Greetings all,

Sick of my carpal tunnel issues yet??  I am, why did i wait 8 years for it to be THIS bad.  A new low today, my hands have swollen & i can't wear my wedding bands, sigh, they are on my pinkie, it's just not the same.  I've never suffered swelling, even 9 months pregnant with twins in tropical Summer!!  Um, it even hurts my hands to turn the pages of magazines, yes, Princess Precious!!  I'll see the surgeon soon & then book surgery, thank goodness for private health insurance & speedy waiting lists.

 So this week Things I'm Loving with PaisleyJade is to really step back & rest my hands, with some quality magazines, turning pages with my left hand (i'm right handed, my right is worse).  This lambie is pictured on a lush Christmas Tree farm in Tasmania, of course!!

 I even bought Little One magazine, despite an article on horse face Catriona Rowntree.

 Sometimes dinner comes in a frozen box via the oven, not often, my children don't like plastic food, but this calamari, spring roll & beer battered fish combo saved me mid week. 

 I'm forcing my love of dill & coriander on the children & they can't say there wasn't anything green on the platter??!!

Chocolate money is not a tradition from my childhood but they remind my husband of his late mummy.  How cool they now make Australian currency & notes!!

I'm trying to train my tomatoes to grow on the hedge this Summer of maximum sunshine. 

 The agaves are flourishing in their new leaky champagne barrel, perfect!!

So as i'm sorting through Christmas lists & parcels to Afghanistan, i'm taking care of myself too.  Love Posie

i'm a bit late to Mollie's party . . .

Greetings all,

Last Friday my lovely newsagent rang at 8a.m. with the exciting news she had finally secured ONE copy of Mollie Makes magazine.  Her darling husband spent hours on the phone trying to source one.  I ran in after the school drop off & collect my bounty & high-5 my newsagent Rosemary, who admitted she had a peek. 

Not only am i a tad late to the world wide Mollie Makes party, starting with issue 4, but . . . to my crafty unholiness & complete disrespect to my handmade sisterhood . . . i didn't open it until last night.  I know, i'm shocked myself, but i wanted to savour it. 

 The inside pages are delicious, not too much advertising, plenty of handmade eye candy & beautiful rooms, real designers studios & interesting 'how to' projects.

 I would love a kitchen/ breakfast table & formal dining table in my homestead (greedy, gimme) if so, this is exactly where i fancy myself eating porridge . . . blue & white, mix match & simple.

 How about some Summer lazy afternoons under a make shift tent, lit by lanterns - as you'll still be there after dark.  Dreamy!!  Love a grown up cubby house.

 Don't you LOVE Anna Maria Horner??  She is the queen of colour, pattern & modern bohemian style.  I worship Amy Butler but Anna doesn't play it as safe, she's more daring, i like it!!  This is her studio, filled with everything a designer & mother of 6 could dream of.

 I couldn't devour the Mollie magazine in one evening & wanted to view it in a different light, so i took my stack of unread magazines on an excursion to Commonwealth Park this afternoon (between dropping off my son's forgotten lunch & school pick up, i had 2 hours to kill in the sunshine as i was not going home again).

 When i looked up, this was my view.  Lake Burley Griffen, Old Parliament House, Parliament House, yes that is a bloody huge flag pole!!

 Some of the locals came to say hello too.  They were so close, i wish i had some bread, i'm sure they don't survive on 'nature' as this is a manmade lake & they were SO tame.

My eldest daughter thinks the clouds look fake.  It was gorgeous, relaxing, i could have happily dozed off here & forgotten i had children or anywhere to be.  Still getting through the magazines, The Block is really interesting, i enjoyed the television series; i flicked through Frankie - although i consider this one of their least inviting covers, smile darling; Vogue Living will have to wait; & Country Style just makes me want to cry i'm not already living in the country.  Oh it will come, not soon enough though, give me space, freedom, a home of my own.  Love Posie

our creative space . . . 'dedicated to all the horror sewing teacher experiences from school' & a 400th post crafty prize

Greetings all,

My, how the craft world has changed??  Mollie Makes anyone??  I've subscribed.  When i talk about how 'craft' never went out of fashion, it was always groovy . . . to anyone who will listen . . . almost everyone has a horror story or harrowing experience from a nasty, spinsterly, creepy or just plain scary sewing teacher from school.  I'd like to thank Jodie from Ric Rac (the famous designer behind such greats as Ernst the turtle & Fiskars the Viking, pure softie making genius) for inspiring this post, when she sent an email today saying "my textiles teacher had no eyebrows - she was terrifying".  This inspired post is dedicated to those of us who made it through the other side of school sewing classes!!  You will be graded & there is an award.
My first 'formal' sewing experience came in the form of my year 6 non elective Textiles & Design teacher, Mrs Mack, who straight up took a dislike to me as she loathed my big sister in year 9, i never stood a chance.  Not only was she a control freak, man hating, bitter, stressed out mother & could not stand imperfect stitching, or teaching, she was just the right kind of woman to be teaching skills for our married future!!  Right??
She would take over our sewing projects; shield her precious Bernina machines from us; hide pins, scissors, rulers, needles (in hindsight, anything we could fashion into a shiv) & even take OUR sewing projects home for her to finish at HER house.  I wonder how she graded her own work??

OK, so i went on to study pharmacology & psychology at Uni, NOT sewing or design but it's amazing what 'nesting for a baby' does to you & unleashes your skills (which my mother taught me, NOT Mrs Mack).  Let me dust off the psychology credentials . . . welcome, relax, tell me, why didn't you like your sewing/cooking/ design teacher??  Has it ruined your desire to ever own a sewing machine or to darn a sock??  You're in a safe place . . . the best comment will win an awesome crafty prize as it's my 400th post, yahoo!!  Just follow this blog & comment here, drawn Sunday 14th August 9p.m.  Did your textiles teacher have eyebrows??  Good luck, extra entry credits for sharing this giveaway on FB, bogs & Twitter. 

By year 9 i was thrust into non elective Home Economics, with the rest of the maths/ science stream, with Mrs Mack AGAIN!!  My strongest memories included her constantly referring to everything we cook "for when you are flatting with friends" which made us cringe, seriously, we'd have to cook when we grow up & leave our comfortable North Shore lifestyle, noooo . . . & she called 'kebabs' . . . 'kebobs', every time she said it, the entire class hushed 'kebabs' in unicen, it was brilliant.  Teen angst & dislike, the tables had turned on this woman.  She also wore an apron with "Natural Gas" on the front, say no more, made us giggle & make farty noises every lesson!!  Happy creative spaces everyone, love Posie 
EDIT: the prize is not a bunch of half used reels of cotton, it's a really good surprise prize!!  I am loving the comments/ entries, some of you are pure evil, clearly tortured or have coped quite well considering what these teachers put you through!!  I have to say the funniest stories are coming from the co-ed schools, those boys were all such bad influences & i ate an ANZAC biscuit made with salt not sugar in class once, it was revolting, damn girls!!