All Wrapped Up

The perfect gift for a little girl...

Another apron, see previous posts, accompanied by some wooden mixing spoons. Roll them up and tie the strings around and it is a ready-to-go gift for a little girl or boy. This one I made for our friend, Olivia, who is turning two soon.

Apron for Mummy

Last night's craft project. A half apron for me. (Large enough to fit over my big baby bump). Plastic coated to wipe clean. We'll give it a test run today I think...

Guest Crafter: Recycled Robot

Out of a stripey shirt her son grew out of, Priscilla made this cute robot softie. Great way to keep the things you love and no longer need. Very neat indeed. Priscilla also makes awesome hand-made, one-of-a-kind bags. Have a look at Maihjo's facebook page.

 Miahjo

Dreaming something up...

Dirty Shirt Project for kids

Exhibit A: One dirt shirt wherein stains have been made and unsuccessfully removed thus shirt ruined forever... or so it seems.

Exhibit B: One keen artist armed with stencils, fabric paint and brush.

Exhibit C: One cool shirt made by and encasing one happy child!

Fold Up Art Folio

I've seen it done before with pencils and knitting needles and paintbrushes, but I thought I'd attempt my own variation with a small A2 Art book and a pocket for pencils and paper clippings. I've always had these books lying around for jotting down ideas and sketching but pretty soon they get covered in pretty scribbles and glitter during my kid's own craft adventures. This project would also be a great gift idea for the budding artist and children alike.

I used leftover upholstery material and two A4 sized pieces of felt. A little extra material for the inside pocket, binding to cover edges and a button.

Sewing the two pieces of felt together at the width and then folding one in half to make a pocket for the book, I then traced around this to get the size for the front piece of material. After attaching the pocket about 3 cm from the pocket to allow for the ring binding I attached the hemmed pocket, sewing one straight line down one side to fit a pencil. I finished it off with brown binding sewn around the edges and made a loop at the flap to hook around an old button to fasten shut.

An Apron for Ruby-Sweet-Tooth

Lately, I have been finding Ruby venturing up the steps to join in on our cooking adventures, although all she is interested in is having a "taste", repeating this word over and over like a hungry seagull at the beach, squawking for more chips, making sure we get the message! She does tend to get very messy though and I figured it won't be long before she too is pouring and mixing and kneading hence it was time to make an apron for Ruby. This one was knocked up in an evening at craft night. The same pattern as previously used, but smaller at the neck, as it is for a younger child.

And here she is in action...Ruby-Sweet-Tooth, with a mouth full of cookie dough, getting in on the action with big sis as head chef!

Mother's Day Lunch Bag

After successfully, and without too many mistakes, making a lunch bag for my 3 year old daughter (who was very excited!) I decided to make another one for my mother on Mother's Day, (she was just as excited if not more). She takes her lunch to work everyday and this bag design is the perfect size for this. It's made out of oil cloth and the pattern is in this book, have a look.

There are heaps of easy craft projects that could be created by kids or for kids or for non-kids... Check out this crafty lady's website for more crafty ideas. http://thecraftyminx.com.au/

Teepee Revival

This project has been in pieces for months when I finally had my sewing machine fixed, it joined the list of things to finish. Several meters of brown binding were bought to hem the entire teepee and to use as ties at the front (brown to match the dirt of course). I made loops at the bottom evenly spaced out to hold each stick in place.

This was the simplest design I could find (no sewing necessary). It was cut out of on large piece of material. I found the pattern in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine. It is a big hit with the kids... a great outside activity and so easy to set up.

A Softy for Craft Night

So me and some local ladies kicked off our craft night this week. These softies (pattern found in the book 'Softies' shown above) were knocked up in a couple of hours in between conversation, cakes and tea brakes. A very simple project for beginners like me and great for practicing new skills like embroidery (thanks Allesa for the lessons!)

Purple one was made first and yellow one was made second, I think its safe to say, you get better as you go... thankfully, young kids don't care, as long as they cuddle good!

Easter Escape

Pom Pom Dress

I found this pretty green flower material and thought it would make a really cute dress for one of my girls. I've seen some really simple kids dresses and had a go at making one up myself. I traced around an existing dress that fitted to get the right dimensions.

 I used a contrasting striped binding to frame the dress and create  straps. (This is handy to cover all the dodgy sewing!) The mix of stripes and flowers creates a retro look, which I like. I added this fun pom pom decoration for detail at the front of the dress and more binding. I knocked this one up in one afternoon. I wish sewing for myself was this simple!

A Bib for Bub-to-be

This is a really simple project to knock over in a half hour or, if you're a super good sewer, less. Same idea as the apron but heaps simpler. One bib shape in material and the same in plastic and up to one meter of bias binding (thick). I chose black so stains can't be seen on edges. Sew the top edge first and then the rest can be sewn in one go leaving enough binding at each end to tie around the child's neck. SEW EASY! This one might have to be a gift, Just found out today I am having a boy!!!

The Dirty Shirt Project

I am the worst stain removalist on earth and my kids are the best at messing up their clothes and have a wonderful time doing so. So many clothes turn into to rags simply because of a few stubborn stains. There has to be a way to save the clothes from eternal ragdom...

Lusy Decoration $4.99

When I saw these little crocheted pieces at Ikea, I thought they would be perfect for covering stains and really quick and easy to apply to a shirt. So this is today's project.

Another shirt saved... mission accomplished.

An Apron for Chef Poppy

 I was given this cute cupcake material found at an op-shop. It was so obvious what I should do with it after   several cooking adventures that ended with Poppy covered in dough and pink icing... I saw some kids bibs at the market that were simple bib shape covered in plastic with bias binding sewn around edges to tie up at the back. I adapted this design to an apron shape, and did the same. I used velcro on the top left corner to adjust the strap around the neck.

It's a quick and easy craft project, which is great for gifts. I made a few more and rolled them around wooden mixing spoons as presents. Poppy loves the novelty of putting on her pretty apron when cooking and I love that all the mess wipes straight off afterwards... lifesaver! Now for some serious cooking...

And tada! Here is Poppy's masterpiece Barbie cookie! What a clever (and super cute) cook!

So this is my first post and I guess because I want to share my love of creativity with everyone I figured it would be important to first explain who we are and why we do what we do. The best way is to tell you what we value most.

This is a photo taken in Canberra of a man busking in the main street. I saw it and thought why I loved it so much. It's because it represents what I value. Confidence, self expression, art, creativity and a love of music. All this plus generosity makes life beautiful. What would life be without buskers and creatives who want to share? What do you think?