our creative space 'a hex on sewing'

Greetings all,

i have a new addiction to add to my crafty happiness . . . hexagons.  It's a hex, a spell, a new (to me) patchwork style i started last weekend as 'car craft'. 

As a self taught seamstress & designer i'm not so great at following instructions, as opposed to inventing my own method of creating something (i'm mathematical & spatial, why not??)  I rarely use pins or tack anything when i sew - it would make a matronly professional sewing teacher turn in her grave - yet i always have a neat finished product.  Bite me, you horrible year 7 non elective Textiles & Design teachers!!  They knew we didn't care or we would have done elective T&D in the first place!!  Guess what i grew up to do for a living??  Well ok, it was pharmacology, whatever, i've been sewing professionally for 10+ years now, so . . . let me share my speedy hexagon technique!!

Cut out lots of strips of pretty fabrics & a perfectly shaped cardboard hexagon - photo proof i didn't use 'the good scissors' on the cardboard mum!! 

 Fold & press down 2 sides of the fabric around the cardboard hexagon. 

 Fold & press down 2 more sides of the fabric around the cardboard hexagon.

 Fold & press down the final 2 sides of fabric around the cardboard hexagon.

 Open up a couple of sides to slide the cardboard hexagon out.

 Press the fabric hexagon with a hot & steamy iron (i have a $15 el cheapo iron from Big W & an $8 metallic ironing board cover from Coles in my studio - both work a treat).

 Voila, la hexagon goodness, no tacking required.  Repeat & make millions.

 I said millions, stack them up in same-fabric piles!! 

 Armed with perfectly pressed hexagons, tiny travel scissors, needles & thread, the next step was to start hand stitching them together.  I did glance at Cath Kidston's Sew instructions for hexagons, yawn, sorry Cath, i just made up my own attachment system, i think she recommends rows??  I was winging it, sewing on my lap, while chatting to my husband & taming 4 children in the back of the car for 700km.  I started with a hexagon in the centre, stitching another hexagon to each edge & growing out like a fan, or 'spreading like a virus' as my husband said so encouragingly.  He just knows this will be the first of many hexagon patchwork projects.

 Canberra to Sydney & back, this is what i had created in the car between 7a.m. & 7p.m.  Don't ask me how on earth i managed to make it a perfectly symmetrical finished shape??  I surprised myself when i laid it out.  I really like the pink, white & red clashing patterns which resulted.  Some sewing was done in the dark, so don't look too closely.

While i was taking the photos, my husband was making pasta in the background, keeping it real & homemade at our place.  He likes extra credit for his cooking, i'm his cheer leader & should have been helping.  Anyway, i can't wait to press this first hexagon effort & applique it to a simple cot quilt.  But wait, there's more . . .

 how lovely is this gorgeousness from Kristen Doran??  From her Gyspy Caravan range, these panels are about to be added to my range in both colour ways, on linen.  Then it struck me, oh, imagine some hexagon goodness as a boarder around a beautiful screen printed panel made into a sweet & simple quilt??  Hello!!

 Stay tuned, i have BIG plans & clearly, i'm not keeping them to myself, i'm here to share.  For hundreds more creative projects, check out our creative spaces each Thursday, still hosted by clever Kootoyoo.  Love Posie

PS feeling creative in a Lego kind of way - enter my Lego GIVEAWAY!!

Happy New Year & bring it on 2011 . . .

Greetings all,

“it’s another year over & a new one just begun” . . . Happy New Year!! 

This week marks 1 year into 3 years of living interstate from my husband.  Yes, shock horror, me, who loves her husband more than anything on earth . . . chose Canberra schools, Handmade & stability over moving to Brisbane with handsome soldier.  If we were actually living in Brisbane, we wouldn’t see him for about 22-24 months anyway due to deployments, exercises, courses & training.  Now we're going to buy a farm & build, we're never leaving Canberra!!   
This brings my solo parenting of 4 smart, sporty & social children into a new focus as we venture to high school – a whole new set of fun, fees & fashion.  Our sweet twin girls start year 4 & the boy goes into year 2.  After 3 long years in the junior corridor changing readers, canteen duty & helping with class craft, I’m out of there!!  I will still help with creative clubs & costumes for performances + P&C.

How do I get through a whole year without a husband??  That little business I started back in 1999 has grown beyond a full time job & welcome distraction so I’m streamlining, focusing on Shop Handmade where I absolutely love working giggling supporting small businesses + the Handmade Market.  I’m going to take time while the children do homework to focus on fitness (Yoga & running), plan my hand sewing for relaxing evening lounge craft & treat myself with foot spas & candles. 
I have to be hyper organised, a dedicated housewife, present at both schools & if/ when my husband calls/ turns up on the doorstep – i'm able to drop everything & pretend he’s the only person in my world.  Pressure & stress don’t agree with me (migraines) so i wander around in a bubble that is free of worry.   
Some family highlights in 2010 . . .

 This amazing brainiac made it to state level in sports, was house captain & won the school's sports prize.  She met the prime minister, governor general & more at special events she was nominated for.  She's starting at a lovely private girl's high school & continue Japanese.

 This gorgeous girl made it to state level for athletics, continues to excel in every aspect of academics & her wonderful teacher taught her to Zumba.  She wants to grow up & join the Air Force as a doctor.  She made it through a whole year without a concussion!!

 This quirky one, not so lucky in the trip & graze department!!  She excels in all arts, crafts & sports, making it to state for cross country.  She loves her friends & plans to move to Italy for University (in 9 years).  She also wants to be a chef, a model, a vet, a mummy & a farmer.

 This little fellow was lucky not to be kidnapped by his teacher this year, she loved him & his dimples!!  He blew us away with an amazing school report of academics, behaviour, sports & extra credits for caring about his class mates.  What more can i say, he's my only son!! 

C'est moi!!  Biggest highlight of the year . . . personally - meeting up with my husband on war leave & going on a 2nd European honeymoon, including a Greek Island cruise, glorious!!  Professionally, anything & everything to do with Handmade Canberra.  Family - no broken bones, happy healthy children who did not have a single sick day between them all year!!

Back to reality . . .

so while being organised sounds as boring as a night in on NYE, it honestly leads to the most stress free happy family life.  I never fail to get the children to school on time if I’ve been up exercising before they wake up, we always have all the ingredients for dinner when I plan & write them on a shopping list, I’m always prepared for markets when I pace myself making stock & I just know I’ll sleep better, be healthier.  It’s time to stop sabotaging myself & my success by letting my studio get messy, pretending the clock is mysteriously 10 minutes fast & thinking that skipping a meal will make me lose weight!!  Now you can see the trained psychologist in me, I know my demons!!  I’m turning 36 this year which sounds very grown up & sensible age to start taking serious accountability. 

I start the new year with a tidy studio, organised laundry & storage for things like Christmas decorations, a new collection of recipes, the best intentions to do my tax, my only credit card at a $0 balance, even a new dog lead!!  I have to be my own cheer leader for 2 more years, so here goes nothing, bring it on 2011, I’m ready!!
Thanks for reading/ following/ stalking/ supporting my blog - if you're up for some freebies, check out these two giveaways, both open for a few more days.  Just follow this blog & comment at the post here for an IKEA lifestyle book &/ or here for chance to win Tangled movie tickets!!  Good luck & Happy 2011 everyone, love Posie

entertaining your parents with car craft

Greetings all,
Thanks for the loving & kind response about my parents recent visit.  It was fun, exhausting, wonderful & incredibly sad all at the same time.  My mother's Alzheimer's is hard to pick at times as she cleverly plays along, then she'll ask the same question half a dozen times in an hour.  Very proud of our 4 children who were quite fantastic!!  She remembers our eldest quite well & she took a lot of responsibility by spending time answering her grandmother's questions over & over. 
Also had the chance to show off Shop Handmade, so my father was thrilled & very impressed with the life i've managed to create around a soldier husband & raising children.  He saw the farm we want to buy, the Shop where i spend so many hours, the Handmade Living book i contributed over a dozen pages in, our current home (this was their first visit to Canberra in the 3 years we've been here) & our children's school + next year's high school!!

Knowing we had a bit of a drive on our hands to our chosen lunch spot The Poacher's Pantry, i took along car craft!!  My father thought this concept was sheer brilliance & told everyone (wait staff, my brother, my nephew, school principal . . .) that i was hand sewing while my handsome soldier drove.  Clearly my life would be easier & more productive with a permanent chauffeur!! 

 On the way to school i was sewing in the front & ooppss, had a button accident.

 Gorgeous grounds of Poacher's Pantry.  Remember this girl had a tumble at school & we collected her from sickbay along the way.

 Having the time of her life, she thoroughly enjoyed her own lamb chops while the adults tucked into Poacher's Meat Platters of all sorts of game, stuffed tomatoes, olives, dips, mushrooms & breads. 

 Amazing preserves, sauces & gourmet goodies in the Pantry.

 To the right is a cool room filled with smoked meats & fish.

 After picking up our injured daughter . . . i was demoted to the 3rd row of the car so she could sit next to Grandma, so i happily stitched away in the back of the car.  Clearly it doesn't matter where i am, i'm able to spill buttons & hair clips repeatedly. 

We picked up some fancy chocolates for my brother who i love & adore, his doctor's conference was great, lots of freebies which he shared with my children who love a good plastic heart & lung system you can pull apart like a puzzle.  Check out this delicious Snag Jam (a smokey sausage sauce) from Poacher's.  After last night's juicey butterflied leg of lamb which handsome soldier BBQ to perfection, we opted for BBQ sausages in rolls for dinner tonight.  I highly recommend the Snag Jam!!
If you're cruising blogs, check out my giveaway & the blog tour for Handmade Living where there are more chances to win this incredible book!!  We've hit over 100 entries so the prize has increased to over $200 value, good luck!!  Love Posie

i'm grateful for . . . my husband & children & flexible life

Greetings all,

Joining in with Maxabella Love's I'm Grateful For this Saturday . . . i know it's a cliche to be grateful for your husband & children but man, the way my husband handled my parents yesterday was a dream. 
We had simple plans to take them to The Poacher's Pantry, world famous smoked game shop/ restuarant/ vineyard/ beautiful farm outside of Canberra, then Shop Handmade, simple, non??  Then my Dad jumped in the car & straight up said "show me this land you want to buy".  So we started the trip, only to have the school ring at 10a.m. "we've had a McClelland take a tumble, she's in sick bay" so we turned the car around to scoop number 3 up.  Turned into a 250km trip but my husband kept driving & driving.  I took car craft, thank goodness, i made over 40 headbands in the 3rd row of the car, i know my place!!

 We tripped out to the farm we want to buy, THEN onto Poacher's, which i can assure you, Miss-Grazed-Hands-Elbow-Knees was not disappointed.  She's our meat lover & ordered lamb chops for lunch, as you do when you're 9, then ate all the rabbit, kangaroo etc off our platters. 

 When we found out the year 6 dinner/ dance ensemble now required a mask (kill me) my husband & big girl started creating this, just the two of them, with enamel paint.  Nothing like watching handsome soldier with his girls, sequins, glitter & feathers!!

 She even let me (as she decided i too could be useful) to make her dress for the dinner/ dance.  I only stuck 2 pins into her directly, we're still on good terms!!  This is saving me $200 on a new dress which wouldn't fit her properly as she's so petite.

 I mean, who wouldn't be extra grateful for a husband who leaves your stove top looking like this after each meal??  He also polishes my leather shoes, ahhh, love some aspects of Army & it's anal cleaning ways!!

 Check this out, my girls are great mates (this won't change in their teens, i've ordered them not to ever stop loving each other) having a sleepover at home!!

I'm truly grateful for my flexible life, i've withdrawn from today's market, so i can spend more time with my family, take my parents to see our beautiful Shop Handmade & help my brother out.  It's stressful, it's hard, it's sad, Alzheimer's just sucks.  Have to say, having a child with us yesterday was a nice ice breaker, as she's by far the sweet one, she played along with being called the wrong name all day & never stopped smiling at her grandmother. 
Lots of follow up posts required on the dress, mask, Poacher's Pantry & healing those grazed body parts!!
To hear more grateful people appreciate how lucky they are, check out Maxabella + don't miss out on a super cool giveaway below!!  Love Posie

my creative space 'car craft'

Greetings all,

Yet more travelling around the countryside this week, this time . . . in the hope of finding some land to buy.  Still a pipe draem but if/ when you leave the Army, you lose your Army house, so if/ when handsome soldier discharges, we need a back up plan for our big family. 
So i took hand stitching (which was hard to focus on as my husband likes me to pay attention to him & i had wide eyes looking at the big chunks of Australia i could imagine raising our children on) but also sent some emails for my husband as things popped into his head.  Such multitasking, we women can do anything!! 

I like this property, over 100 acres (tick), within an hour of Canberra (tick), electricity connected (tick), wind break (tick) . . . my list is pretty modest.

Anyone else gone house or land shopping & tried not to let their dreams, heart, head run a mile a minute?? 

My husband is having heart palpitations at the thought of leaving his career to try something new, house a growing family (no more children, even more scary - teenagers!!) oh & we're about to toss a private high school into the expenses & build, oh that's right, we'd have no where to live in the mean time??  Yikes!! 

For less stressful creative spaces, check out those who worship Kootoyoo here.  Love Posie