Coburg Yarn & Craft show- and other upcoming craft events.

At work yesterday I was looking up some information on the Moreland Council website, when I saw a listing of upcoming events, and discovered that there was going to be a " Yarn & Craft show" at the CoburgTown Hall today.
I went along with a friend and had spent about an hour admiring all the lovely wool for sale. I could have spent even more time sifting through the amazing collection of vintage buttons for sale at one stall (damn, forget to get a business card!). Reminded me of looking through my Nana's special button tin when I was little!
I did buy some wool, looking through a "bargain bin" these 3 caught my eye, they were made for each other- ( to be made into a scarf or cowl).



The Pascoe Vale Spinners and Weavers annual show is coming up soon, next weekend in fact! Have a look at my post from June 1 last year for photos of some of the woolly loveliness!


Plus there is a weaving open day and exhibition next Saturday in Carlton. Maybe if I went along I could pick up some tips/ get inspired to try out the weaving loom kit I found at the op shop last year! ( ' cos I soooo need another craft project!)





I picked up a flyer at the yarn show today for a new "Natural Fibres Market" happening at the Queen Vic Market in July.


( Info via the that's Melbourne website - bit more detailed than the flyer)

Of course the amazing Bendigo Sheep and Wool Show is on again in July too-


If you are heading to the city tomorrow, the Markit it on -


And last but not least, I have just learnt about a new craft market in Essendon



Phew! Looks like a busy crafty time of the year!


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A t-shirt or two: May sewing round up.

Making the most of the lovely sunshine we have had over the last couple of days, I quickly snapped my most recent t- shirts/ tops. I have been trying ( unofficially) to complete "Me made May" for the first time, and have usually managed to wear a top and/ or skirt I have made each day of May so far, usually with a me- made necklace too.
*** Well almost each day, when I woke up last weekend with no voice and feeling none too brilliant, I grabbed the closest warm comfy (read "daggy") clothes I could find without giving much thought to what I was wearing!***

Mandy boat tee - the fabric ( Super Cheap in Brunswick) has a lovely neat finish on the selvedge edge, so I cut the sleeves out to use the selvedge as the cuff edge.


There was just enough fabric left ( actually a nice dark cobalt blue, weird how both photos look very different yet only taken 5 minutes apart!)- to make a kimono sleeve top, to wear over a long sleeved t- shirt.


Mandy boat t - woven knit from Super Cheap I think, or Anne's - bought last year. Sleeves are too long & fabric too heavy so the neck stretches & hangs too loose BUT I will wear it as a comfy jumper top over a t shirt!



Long sleeved t - fabric from Super Cheap I think, or maybe an offcut from Rathdowne remnants. I like the colour and the crinkly look. Plus a scarf sewn from a pattern found online when having a random net surf last week.


Yet another Skirt as Top scoop neck t- this time with a slightly longer sleeve drop, higher neck and wider neck band. Yet to be worn this one, still deciding if the leopard print is me or not!


And another 2 scoops- ( actually made back on March & April these 2) brown floral print from R R; blue an op shop remnant, had to piece it together at the back to squeeze enough fabric out!






The system of cutting a couple of tops out in one session, then sewing 2-3 up another day, works quite well - feels more productive to be able to just sit and sew, plus easier to work around the rest of the household.

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Chicken soup...

...and honey, lemon & ginger drinks.

Yep, that's the kind of week I have had this week. Made a batch of easy peasey chicken noodle soup on Friday because some of us were in need of chicken soup. Then I woke up Saturday morning with no voice - for the next FIVE DAYS!!! Lucky the 11 year old knows some signing & is pretty good at reading finger-spelling ( he was actually disappointed yesterday when I picked him up from school & said my voice had come back, because he wanted to practice more signing to get a Scouts badge!).



This is the world's quickest & easiest chicken soup, loosely based on a Donna Hay recipe. No special ingredients- everything came from the fridge/ pantry/ freezer.

Heat 1litre chicken stock in large pot/ saucepan.
Add a cinnamon stick or 2, a big spoonfull of minced ginger ( or fresh, but like I said, this is the easy version, we always have a jar of garlic & a jar of ginger in the fridge).
Bring to boil for 5 mins, then add 1-2 chicken breasts ( fresh, or quickly thawed from the freezer!). Cook 5-10mins til chicken is cooked.
Remove chicken, shred, return to pot with finely chopped carrot (1 or 2) and a couple of chopped spring onions. You can add in other veges, like a grated zucchini, frozen peas & corn, beans etc. But I didn't have a zucchini so just used what was in the fridge - carrots & spring onions!
Return to boil & simmer 5-10 mins or until carrot is cooked/ people are getting hungry/ noodles are ready.
Meanwhile- boil kettle & soak / cook 1-2 noodle cakes of 2-minute type noodles.
When noodles are ready, place a serve of noodles on bowl & ladle soup over. I find if you put the noodles in the soup to cook they go too soggy - especially if there are left overs, the noodles soak up all the broth. So I put the left over soup (not that there was very much!) into a separate container from the noodles to store in the fridge until the next day.

Plus - on Doctors orders! I have been drinking a few of these-


I don't drink tea ( yuck!) or coffee ( although I love coffee flavoured cakes etc.) but I found this at the supermarket a couple of years ago. There is NO TEA in it - just ginger & lemon peel! I have to add a good spoonful of honey ( home grown & harvested my in laws) and I usually have to add some cold water to cool it enough to drink! And how cute is the little red bird on the tea bag tag?! It has certainly done the trick - after 5 days of no voice, aching legs, tiredness and not doing much other than sitting on the couch (with a little bit of sewing & knitting to keep my brain ticking!) I am definitely feeling better. Maybe even ready to tackle a brand new sewing challenge...

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Remembering Mum...

Love you Mum. Can't believe it has been 3 years. Miss you everyday.














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April sewing Pt 2

Oops - I am falling behind with taking photos of my latest sewing. Have made 2-3 new tops ( including a new Mandy boat tee) but still need to take some pics.

Another sewing project I did remember to photograph was a special birthday project for my niece's 12 birthday. She requested a new iPad case - in purple- which I bought from e-bay (her iPad is an older iPad 2 like mine, and most bricks & mortar shops tend to only stock covers for current models & minis). But of course, just a cover was not enough. I figured she needed a bag to carry it in. Also purple of course. And I decided that a bit of bling wouldn't go astray, so...





The main body of the bag is a dark purple velveteen furnishing fabric found at Rathdowne remnants. The " bling" came from an Indian fabric shop in Glenroy - bought a while back for another project, but hadn't used it yet. Added in a couple more bits of braid from GJ's. There is a zip pocket inside - yet to master zip pockets, so it is far from perfect but does the job hopefully. Strap is made from bag webbing bought from You Sew Girl back when Nicole still had her studio/ shop in Northcote.

I also made a pinata for the birthday party - hmmm, can't find a photo here at the moment... Have to transfer one from my phone later. But basically, I made a giant Wonka chocolate bar, since the party had a Willie Wonka chocolate factory theme!

And last but not least, I made a new knitted necklace - based on a pattern in a book from the library.






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April sewing part 2

Here is the Mandy Boat tee I made last week-


I like the shape and style BUT I am just not quite sure about the neckline. Most of the tees I have been making have lower/looser necklines, I can really just get the Mandy tee over my head, and can feel the tee sitting against my collarbone. Having said that, I have already cut out another one - but with a slightly wider and lower neckline.




I also FINALLY got around to making a new bag. I made a green and navy one last year http://coburgcraftstuff.blogspot.com.au/2014/03/finishing-some-ufo.html
- which I use all the time, but since I tend to wear a lot of blue and green (and sometimes both together!) I really needed a similar bag but in another colourway. So I made this new one in black with a cute red & white polka dot lining.
I put a zip pocket inside, and made a new sunglasses cover and mini pencil case too- I had 2 days of PD in the city this week, so thought it would be nice to have a new bag to take! The pencil case will be handy to take to craft group too.



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