Voulez parti comme enfants Français?? Want to party like French Children??

Greetings all,

Just as i was wondering what to post about next . . . email inspiration falls into my InBox from Dorothee in France, asking about wholesale for her store My Little Day.  Did you know i used to wholesale my Edna&AliceMay Vintage Sensibility label in over 50 stores around the world??  Why yes i did!!  But since my children nudged high school, i stopped that part of my business - it was fun & my bitsy French came in handy!! 

The My Little Day website is all about delightful additions for the sweetest of children's parties.

Yo-yo-tastic!! 

 Dorothee's styling & taste is exquisite.

 Wouldn't you rather your children leave a party with a cute scribe like this Spectacular Circus Parade rather than a bag filled with nasty plastic lollies??

 Never complain again about boys being left out, super hero underpants anyone??

 Now this is a puzzle worth framing, what an adorable keepsake.

 Dorothee has a beautiful range of costumes, from cowboys to princesses, Sherlock Holmes to Little Red Riding Hood.

 Image what you'll discover on disposable cameras at a child's party??
EDIT: this IS a water pistol, thanks Monet Paisley, OMG, i'd get squirted with this 'prank' i'm so easily tricked.  Still . . . wouldn't disposable cameras be fun for children, imagine what they chose to take shots of & their angle of the world!!

 Just a taste of the fantastic party favours available.

 Or make your own up with cowboys & indians.

 Better yet, Dorothee also has a blog, it's GORGEOUS . . .

 & delicious!!

Oh do go & visit!!  I have to pinch myself that someone on the other side of the world in France, with incredible taste & styling at her finger tips, contacted little me, a housewife & mother of 4 in Australia.  I don't regret quitting wholesale or returning to sewing as a hobby, it was a fun chapter in my life but my purpose is to be available to my children, that is much more rewarding.  I did refer Dorothee to another supplier, this post was just for fun & to share the love.  Enjoy, love Posie

i'm grateful for 'new adventures'

Greetings all,
Thanks for the massive love & support on my new adventure.  The Handmade Hen's Night was in a gorgeous, classy, pretty, fun, crafty, exciting & . . . a huge success.  Let me take you on a tour . . .  

early afternoon i set up a display table at Shop Handmade as a teaser to our customers . . .

 then i set up the real thing & boy did it have everyone interested!!

 I raided the children's bedrooms of trinkets & accessories . . .

 DesignABunch florist next door gave us flowers for my milk bottles . . .

 i laid the centre of the table with vintage shabby trinkets.

 We borrowed a dozen chairs from Sour Cherry cafe on City Walk . . . 

 the Bs & Js were a huge hit, they loved & appreciated the details.

 Then the coolest thing happened, we learned it was a surprise Hen's Party . . .

 there are 12 ladies hiding in the Shop, can you believe it??

 The groom staged a plethora of bizarre scenarios to time their arrival just right . . .

 the friends put on a delicious buffet of food.

 After giggles, nibbles, champagne & reunions, we started the sewing lesson . . .

 they loved it, didn't want to leave, they learned new skills & did some shopping too!!

I had a ball, it was all about the right time (my children are older), right place (Shop Handmade), right audience (Handmade lovers), right stage (experience, confidence), right theme (vintage styling), right partner (thanks to Shop Girl Rachel who stayed on until 9.30p.m. after a long day & provided the screen printed fabrics we played with).  Some people are hungry in business, always moving onto the next thing quickly.  I do what i do because i have  'obstacles' - husband always away & moving, no family support, lots of busy children - so i'm very patient & let things grow slowly so when the opportunity arises, i'm SO ready.  I think it prevents me from ever getting overwhelmed, letting quality slide & my solid plans mean i can literally pull this kind of event out of thin air (we were asked if we could do it on Monday afternoon).  I'm very proud of what we've achieved.
So i'm very grateful for my new adventure, for the opportunity to decorate, teach & share my love for Handmade - its truly a way of life for me.  I hope this is the first event of many.  For more Grateful posts, check out Maxabella Loves.  Love Posie

step back in time . . . vintage finds (at the supermarket)

Greetings all,

Thought i might share this little beauty with you . . . i often see all these amazing vintage finds on blogs & well, can't ever find anything like it around where i'm living at the time (Sydney, Darwin, Canberra . . .)  So this is something for everyone - it's new, it's from Aldi & it's under $50!!  So it's retro styling with a current warranty, perfect.  Setting one is gale force, perfect for these ridiculously hot evenings.

Does anyone else have a child who 'dresses' for dinner.  I mean, a fascinator with her jammies (after swimming, bleary eyes) then pearls??  I know she's been watching Mad Men over my shoulder but this particular daughter has been accessorising like this since she was 2.  Anyone else have a child who teams a wonder suit with a skinny belt, long socks over the top & an evening bag, to sleep in a cot??  All i can remember as a child choosing clothes - i wouldn't have worn ANYTHING that made me stand out.  Her twin sister is more conservative, however, she did ask last year how to make her public school uniform look more 'French' & started wearing a beret to school, much to the delight of the principal & hello, next school information booklet, there was a big photo of our 'French' exchange student in her beret, scarf & Mary Janes with tights.

This child frequently wears a change of clothes under her school uniform - yikes, like she's going to get changed & wag school.  She is definitely one to watch.  Wish me luck, only 10 years until she's 18 with a license, she's counting it down!!  Gulp, love Posie

things close to my heart . . . a trip to our national museum

Greetings all, welcome to 2010!!
We have kicked off the year with a list of family things to do & see around our nation's capital - Canberra. Yes Canberra is stiff & serious, everyone is very important with parliament & all the public servants, alas, it has incredible 'places of interest' & amazing weather (remember our last posting was Darwin, next posting is Brisbane, so we're enjoying Winter, ice & snow as a novelty!!). 2010 will be our 3rd & final year living here with the Army, so we're taking advantage of Daddy-on-leave & school holidays to tick things off our 'must do' list. Silly but true, when it's your own back yard, you don't appreciate your local landmarks.
So we started off with the National Museum which had a Water Exhibition for H2O (pay admission). I was recently quoted over at Australian Women on Line with my silly season tip for managing children as saying "Just Add Water" as my children love baths, swimming, sprinklers, water pistols, you get the drift - now for the science . . . this back ground is a projection onto mist you couldn't even feel. Needless to say, completley fascinating!! We also spent the afternoon swimming, of course!!
Who wouldn't love a house with genuine vintage posters on the walls?? The camera (bottom right) is the famous Damian Parer's, who took so many of those amazing images on the Kokado Track/ Trail, in PNG in WW2.
This was the sewing box & machine of a gorgeous Australian lady engaged to a boy who went off to WW1 & never returned. She had a collection of things she made 'for her marriage'. Heart breaking!! Her lace work was incredible & dainty. Apparently her family found calico bags filled with handmade goodness after she passed away.

Isn't this grand, a welcome to the Princess of Cornwall. My mother is British, but can't say she's a fan of the current Duchess of Cornwall. Just found the flags over oppulent & fancifull. I wouldn't vote for us to become a republic, i know my husband likes being part of a Royal Australian Army, not just the Australian Army, it's a tad ordinary to not fight under a crown.

Fantastic discovery - a softie, 1940's style. I'm going to covet & draw inspiration from this design!! I have so many vintage fabrics, since collecting them for over a decade, what better way to use them up. I'll leave the fancy pieced designs to One Red Robin & Allana C. I like styles young children could also design, this piggy is too sweet.

& who hasn't been caught watching a little cricket this Summer?? It's the Jane McGrath pink test in Sydney this test match & i wish them well in their fundraising. I know my late mother-in-law would have appreciated the attention breast cancer research & nurses are getting. If you pop over to the Posie website, the Art Viva Betty Jane knitting needles raise money for the Jane McGrath Foundation - if you're feeling like getting ahead of your knitting projects now - these Tasmanian Oak needles have pink boobs at the ends.

How much fun would this be, holidaying in this caravan. I actually set off alarms trying to lean over to get better snap shots on the interior. My son thought that was so cool & criminal. How fabulous is the colour & style!! Wonder how that would look behind my Landcruiser?? Somehow i don't think it would sleep 6.

So there you have it, my passions & interests, all wrapped up into one post. I have always loved cricket, i'm married to a soldier & am a tad obsessed with vintage ways, especially sewing & large families - i think i would have been just as happy living 50 years ago, except i guess i wouldn't have spent 6 years at Sydney Uni getting educated. As my children finish up at school & my P&C duties cease (in another decade) i'll switch to more charity fundraising. Love Posie