It's so nice to be back!

Wow, it's been almost a month since I last had a chance to do a post and I've missed it.  So I warn you, this post will probably be long as I've got lots to catch up on.  The days have been absolutely flying by recently.  It has also been the school holidays here so my small folk have been keeping me rather busy.  Both children were sick over the holidays which wasn't much fun.  At least the weather was rubbish so it was ideal to be tucked up on the couch, watching DVDs and resting.  It did mean that I was able to get my hook out a few times during the day which was lovely.  I made a collection of tiny hearts for my wee girl and made them into a garland for her bedroom. 

She is very particular, just like her mother, and they had to be in a certain order.  I am going to have to make more of these as they are just so cheerful.  I can see garlands popping up all around the house (anything to add some colour to these gloomy winter days).

Then there was a bit more heart creating.  I had bought a battered old book of sheet music at the op shop a while back so I got it out while the kids happily played (not fighting for a change!).  With the help of some thick double-sided mounting tape, these layered hearts turned out really well.  Perfect to fill an empty spot on the wall.

 Side on you see the 3D effect.  And while I was taking a photo of these, Miss 5 made this one ...

Too cute!  I didn't realise she had even been watching me make my one.  I think she did a fab job!  She went on to make about 6 of them which are now on her bedroom wall.  Mr 7 was also busy making things - but his makes were Lego.  He is obsessed with Titanic and made a great selection of Titanics and icebergs!! I must get a photo of them.

I also finished my cat from Annaboo's CAL!  I'm so happy with him - I will definitely be making more now that I know it's not as hard as I thought it would be.  I overstuffed his poor head a bit, but hey, he's still cute.  

I also stayed up too late at night having a play on my sewing machine.  My fear of zips and buttonholes were holding me back from making cushions, so I decided to do a flap/envelope back instead and I love the result.

I had been collecting fabric for a while but then I spotted this fabulous length of fabric at Stitchbird.  One length made two cushions and I absolutely adore this bird print.  I had planned to use a plain backing but at the last moment changed it to the green and white spots and I love it!

 I was so pleased with the result, I couldn't wait to make a few more.

 Here's a pic of the back.  Nice and neat and not a zip in sight - yippee.

Here are the next two I made.  I was all set to make some square ones next until my brand new 22 day old sewing machine decided to sound like a helicopter landing in the living room and promptly died.  I know it wasn't a super flash machine and I did get it at a cheap price, it was still a decent machine at a fairly decent price before the sale.  Grrrrrrr.  And because it was outside of the 14 day period I wasn't able to get a replacement machine.  So it is currently away being repaired and I am missing it.  Fingers crossed it gets fixed soon or I will be turning into a super-grump.  I had also started altering all my jeans which I am eager to continue with.  All those jeans that have wider legs have started to be taken in so they are nice and lean.  I used to do this all the time as a teenager and can't believe I haven't done this sooner as an adult.  This way I end up with jeans that actually suit my figure and fit me perfectly.

Big news too - I have finished my giant blanket!  Here's a quick pick of it before I did the border - I had just laid it on the floor to look at it and of course Bella appeared and wouldn't budge.  I'm not going to show you until my next post as I am determined to have every end tied in before I take photos of it.  I know, I know, I said I would tie them in as I went but clearly I am a big fat liar!!  I got carried away and after the first 10 were made and tidied as I went, the next 26 squares were left.  I am absolutely kicking myself now as it's the bit I really dislike and now I have to sit for hours with a needle, sewing the pesky things.  In saying that though, I adore the blanket and can't wait to have it on my bed!!

I had a lovely letterbox treat last week, my book arrived from the UK.  I had read it from the library and had to have it.  So many ideas, so much colour - I love it.  I am a little addicted to Book Depository - it is soooooo much cheaper to buy books from the UK than it is to buy them here.

I love all the mismatched furniture, china and colourful bits and pieces throughout this book - definitely the look I want.

My biggest bargain last weekend was these pretty sneakers for less than $10.  I bought them at a children's shop as I have ridiculously small feet.  The lady in the shop asked me "how old is she" presuming they were for my daughter.  I replied that she was quite old, 41 in fact!!  Oh well, at least my feet feel young.  

My gorgeous friend Ange gave me this most amazing recipe recently and I have to share it with you.  Ginger crunch is a popular slice here in NZ and one I make often.  This recipe is for a fancier version which is beyond delicious.  It's easy and the outcome looks much more difficult and will guarantee to get lots of oooohs and aaaaahs.  If you're able to stop eating it, you're a stronger person than me!

Oaty Ginger Slice

3/4 cups sugar
1 Tbspn chopped crystallised ginger (or substitute with 1 tspn ground ginger - works perfectly)
7 Tbspn golden syrup
250g butter
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup sliced or chopped almonds
3/4 cup self raising flour
1/2 cup desiccated coconut
4 tspns ground ginger
2 cups icing sugar
3Tbspn chopped pistachios

Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius.  Line a slice tray.  Combine sugar, crystallised ginger, 2 Tbspn golden syrup and 150g butter over a low heat.  Stir until melted then add oats, almonds, flour and coconut.  Mix well then firmly press into slice tray.  Bake for 20 minutes then cool.

For the topping, put remaining butter, golden syrup, ground ginger and icing sugar in a pan over a low heat and stir until smooth.  Pour over base and sprinkle with pistachios.  Allow to set then cut into slices.

Enjoy!

Have a fabulous week - see you again soon.
Leah
xxxx

Chilly Tuesday

It's been a long week so far and it's only Tuesday - aargh! I have come down with a nasty cold and am feeling a bit sorry for myself. So combined with the husband being overseas all of last week, not a lot of crochet has been done - well not as much as I'd hoped anyway. I have been making lots of wee hearts to turn into a garland for Miss 4's bedroom. They all look so darn cheerful sitting in their little tin - I don't want to take them out just yet!!

And I did manage to finish off another scarf - and just in time too! It is a gorgeous wintery Wellington day today, absolutely freezing right now, but the sky is clear and it should warm up a bit soon (hopefully!). Perfect timing to keep my sore throat wrapped up nice and toasty. I love this scarf pattern and have previously posted about a blue version. I have more to make for friends who have placed requests too now that we are starting to feel the chill of winter.

Before I got all sneezy and horrible, I did manage to get lots of baking done. Banana cake, choc chip cookies and afghans are now in the pantry. I think I may have got a bit carried away with it all so will have to send some into husband's office tomorrow. Miss 4 also helped me make some yummy shortbread. She was chief cookie cutter and was adamant she wanted to prick the holes this time. She took her fork pricking duties very seriously and made sure they were all nice and centred. It was a long, slow process but I'm all for good presentation!!! Very cute.

My lovely friend Ange gave me this fabulous kit for Christmas and I have been bursting to find enough quiet time to sit down and concentrate on making it. It's the coolest kit and even included a banana flavoured chocolate bar - how perfect!! 'Included' is definitely in the past tense - the chocolate didn't last very long at all!

I hope to have 'monkey' finished by the end of the week so I can show you soon. I have done all the body and just need to sew on the mouth and eyes. My hand sewing skills are not exactly great so I might need to undo him and try again. But then again he does look pretty darn cute so far so maybe I should just leave him be.

I really, really want to get cracking on another blanket. I have fallen in love with Pixie's hexagon blanket and am determined to find the patience to make one like it! It will take me forever but looking at hers, it will be so worth it. I think it would be impossible to have a bad sleep when you have something so beautiful covering the bed.

Have a fabulous week!

Hearts and other Bits and Pieces

This really melted my heart(!) last week. It's one of those proud mum moments - but I hopefully won't bore you. We were at a cafe last weekend when Mr 6 asked if he could have the camera to take a photo 'of that heart up there'. We were all looking around trying to see what he could see. It turned out the heart was a blob of moss on the plastic awning outside the cafe! It didn't appear as a heart from any other perspective except his chair. He knows how much I love hearts (remember the heart shaped cornflake he gave me?) so he was determined to get a pic of it. I think he did a fab job! It has all these lovely textures and shades of grey all around it so it looks really cool. I surprised him by printing the photo and framing it so he could see it as soon as he walked in the front door. He loves it and so does his mum!

My cushion is now all joined and ready to be backed. The raised seams look great and feel really nice too. I think I should probably have a go at blocking it as I have never blocked a project before but have read a bit about it lately. Probably not too vital on a cushion as it will be pulled into shape once the insert is inside but I'd like to try it out on a smallish project just in case I make a mess of it!
The chair with my cushion on it is my latest bargain purchase. It was $20 on Trade Me and I've been looking for one of these old lovelies for ages. Just what I needed to finish off my mix and match dining chairs - yay! I'm really looking forward to taking to it with some steel wool and furniture oil to breathe new life into it. It is solid and sturdy but in need of some TLC. I have popped another pic a bit further down of a gorgeous tray I bought recently and did the same restoration on. It's such a lovely, simple process which can make the cheapest op shop treasures come to life.Isn't this so pretty? I absolutely adore the colours on this piece of china. I wish I had some fabric like this - I can think of a million things I'd make with it.This gorgeous old cake plate is one of my favourite, favourite things. It's really quite old so I am terrified I'll break it every time I use it! But it was just screaming out to be used ...Yummy chocolate chip biscuits made for afternoon tea and for a lunchbox treat tomorrow when the small folk start the new term after a two week break. Two weeks of rotten, wet weather so we were stuck inside most of the time and wouldn't you know it, today the sun comes out just in time for school tomorrow. Aargh.
Here's that tray I was talking about earlier. $5 at the local Salvation Army store - talk about a bargain! It was in a terrible state but I could see that it had potential. This pic was taken after I had given it a huge clean as it had clearly spent it's previous life living next to an oven as it had oil splats all over it. An hour of steel wool, furniture oil and elbow grease and here she is ...How cool is that? I'm thinking it's the perfect tray for bringing me breakfast in bed for Mother's Day next Sunday! I might have to drop a few large hints I think. Although yesterday when Miss 3 was being chef in her toy kitchen, she asked me if I'd like an onion smoothie - mmm lovely! So hopefully she won't be in charge of the Mother's Day menu!! One last pic I wanted to show you. This is a wee ceramic brooch I bought at the Craft 2.0 event last weekend. I love it so much. It features the Maori koru just like in my Dad's 70th birthday tattoo (it still cracks me up that he did that).

Have a fabulous week all! I am just about to pick up my hooks and start a new project. A fabulous cowl I have designed so fingers crossed it works. If it does I will definitely share it with you!

PS: I am having a nightmare with line spacing on my posts. It all looks fine until I publish it. Any ideas/help gratefully received!! It's driving me crazy. I like my spacing to be nice and even and when it decides to do it's own thing I go mad.

Feeling The Love

You know your week is starting well when your 6 year old son brings you a cornflake shaped like a love heart! He had his little hand behind his back and brought it over to me saying "Mummy I've got something you will love". Heart-meltingly adorable!!!! He knows I love collecting heart shaped rocks whenever we walk along the beach, so he thought I'd like a heart shaped cornflake to add to my collection! Gorgeous wee man.

There was certainly a lot of love in Wellington yesterday in support of our recent earthquake tragedy in Christchurch. We have a fabulous cricket ground called the Basin Reserve which is near my home. It is in the funniest spot, right in the middle of what is basically a giant roundabout so cars are constantly driving around it. Over the last week a group of cricket superstars put their heads together and organised a truly amazing 20/20 game of cricket between Wellington and Canterbury with all proceeds going to the Christchurch quake appeal. It was the first time we had taken our children to 'the Basin' and we all had a ball. The afternoon started with a bit of excitement ... we caught a taxi as it was just a bit too far for little legs to walk (and parking is a nightmare) and our lovely taxi driver decided he'd drop us off in the main entrance which is usually only for important folk. And important folk indeed were using it - as soon as we got out of our taxi we looked behind us and there was our Prime Minister getting out of his car!! That's my lovely wee Mr 6 in the cap at the bottom left of the pic and John Key our PM behind him (with bag over shoulder). Now I don't think there can be many countries where you can rock on up to a cricket game and get that close to your country's leader!! Very, very exciting.

It really was a perfect Wellington day. Gorgeous clear blue skies, lots of sunshine, a 10,000+ sellout crowd and over $350,000 raised for our Christchurch folk. The atmosphere was truly amazing - I was a very proud Wellingtonian and Kiwi.

Here's our Prime Minister facing his first ball from Shane Warne, the Australian fast bowler. The banter between them was hilarious.

Ooops I fibbed - there was a cloud in the sky!

I still haven't had a chance to get those backs on my cushions so fingers crossed I can get them done this week ready to post soon. I keep getting sidetracked with the other 3 projects on the go. I really need to get them finished - it's driving me nuts.

Have a fab week.