Tuesday 24 May 2016

My new favourite skirt ( all.kinds of awesome!)

Fabric purchased at Roxy Super Cheap fabrics last week - I ducked in to the shopping centre at lunchtime in search of a sausage roll. Then I walked past Super Cheap, so I thought " ok, one quick lap around the shop"  I grabbed a couple of bolts of fabric on my " quick lap" - and then found out that everything in the store was $3 a metre!.  So I bought a couple of bits of fabric ( and then bought my lunch!).

I had a sewing day yesterday and made a couple of tops- the Sew Different 2 hour top free pattern, not quite finished, not sure if I want bias binding or facing on the neck and hemline.

Then I played around with an idea for a skirt. I remembered the hidden front pockets on Vogue 1247, seen over on  Thornberry  a while ago.  I folded the front piece to make a couple of pockets, then carefully sewed in white on the white part of the fabric in between the print. The fabric has enough stretch and didn' t need a separate " yoga" waistband- in fact I had to add an extra dart in the back.

I wore it to work today and had sooo many compliments! (I work with the best people!) and it was sooo super comfy. After a rather crazy stressful day - password on computer playing up, arguing on the phone over equipment orders,  visits starting late & running over time, lunch at 3pm, leaving later than planned ( where did that last hour go?!) I could have been getting grumpy, but everytime I looked down at my funky new skirt I couldn't help but smile! I think it might be my new favourite skirt!!!

Monday 23 May 2016

Day trip to Labassa historic house

My lovely friend Fiona phoned me around lunchtime on Saturday and asked if I wanted to go out for an afternoon mini road trip. Labassa historic house in Caulfield was open for a fifties themed open house event   I had about half an hour to eat a quick lunch (toast!), get the last load of washing  sorted, mix up some hambugers, and get ready to go out! ( oh, and phone my H to say finish fishing & head home ASAP!)

So putting together a 50's style outfit came down to my black & white striped mandy tee, denim skirt, vintage red cardi, black mary janes ( even the teenager said the shoes were right "like on call the midwife mum, is that in the 50's?").

Plus extra mascara, eye liner & plenty of red lippy! (of course we forgot to take a photo of us, sorry we are not the selfie generation!)  But I did take lots of photos of the house!


And we had afternoon tea - divine chocolate cake for me, devonshire tea & scones for Fiona. A lovely finish to a lovely day out!


Tuesday 17 May 2016

The highs and lows of op shopping

You know I totally love op shopping right? I mean I am the op shop queen! Every time my lovely work colleagues compliment me on something I am wearing it is always with a bit of an eye- rolling- tongue- in- cheek " I suppose you made it yourself" or " you found it at an.op shop- I so need to go op shopping with you!". 

And ok, I was feeling a bit exhausted and crap by the time I finished work on Friday, and a road work traffic detour did take me in the vicinity of a great op shop I don't often get to, so of course I just had to visit ( there was a car park right at the front door, how could I say no?!).  AND there was a box of lego in the window. I KNOW- unheard of!!!




I knew I could NOT come home without the lego, so straight away I asked for it to be put aside while I kept browsing. I found 2 gorgeous shirts ( something spotty  & something floral had been on my radar to look for).









And I found this great craft book-


I spotted some red jeans on the half price rack out the front, I tried them on &  bought them too, although they are too long - easy fixed with overlocker & sewing machine to the hems- and a bit wide (hoping a couple of darts in the back will do the trick there).
But when I got home & started washing my new found treasures (though not the book obvoiusly!), I struck my pet hate.  The one big downside of op shopping. The smell.

In Dawn O' Porter's TV series "This Old Thing"  seen earlier this year on ABC2, journalist Dawn was trying to convince fans of high street fashion to try shopping for vintage clothes instead.  The biggest issue most people on the show had was getting over their idea that vintage shops - and the clothes in them - would smell unpleasant. Like "old people" or decay, or mothballs.

So ok, sometimes there is a mothball smell, which I am not particularly fond of (camphor balls people! Just as effective, much more pleasant on the nose!).  But for me the far worse smell is stinky perfume/ laundry detergent.  Yuck yuck yuck! When I wash my clothes I do not want them to come out of the machine smelling of anything - other than " clean" . Like no smell at all! Why do most laundry detergents STINK! Floral perfumey or artificial soapy toilet cleanery smell! Phewey! Pepe Le Pew! When my favourite non scented detergent disappeared from the supermarket, I had to hunt around to find something suitably non-scented to replace it. I never thought I would use a big brand like OMO, but their "sensitive" range works for me.

But - back to op shopping. The red jeans I bought with plans to adjust to fit me are yet to make it to the sewing machine- thet have been through the washing machine, soaked overnight in vinegar - twice; dried overnight in the cold outside; soaked overnight in nappy soak -- and they still smell florally perfumey! I have had the odd op shop purchase in the past that I have washed and washed but just not been able to get rid of the perfumey stink, so have had to reluctantly give in and send them back to the op shop.  So annoying!
 Really hoping the jeans are ok, the bizarre thing is they still had the remnants of a label on them & really don't look like they have been worn, so how they got soooo stinky is beyond me! I mean I washed cloth nappies when the kids were babies, and they were stinky in a whole other way, but always came up clean after a soak and a wash! But the perfumey- detergent stink in some op shop clothes is another beast indeed!

Thursday 12 May 2016

I can knit a rainbow, knit a rainbow too

Buoyed by the sucess of my first ever knitted blanket, I had an idea of knitting something bigger, something brighter...like a rainbow!
When I was pregnant with the Jedi Kid years ago, my cousin gave me a brightly stiped " ripple blanket" ( long before I knew they were called that!)  it has been in contast use ever since. It was used for middle of the night breast feeds, for toddler snuggles on the couch, for making indoor cubby houses
In fact the boys still use it now for Saturday morning tv watching, and especially when someone is not feeling well - the call goes out " I need the rainbow blanket".
So I got to thinking...maybe I can knit a rainbow blanket too!  Here is the progress so far-

Tuesday 3 May 2016

Coburg yarn & craft market

Just remembered- while knitting- that I saw a flyer at the Coburg library the other day advertising the Yarn & Craft Market in Coburg. Must go and put it on the calendar!

Monday 2 May 2016

Tis the season to...start knitting!

I have been knitting up a storm lately. I kind of lost my knitting mojo last year, both due to unfortunate beanie incidents... And I havw been trying to find a crochet class but they are always either full or clashing with other dates. I sooo want to crochet a ripple blanket. I even tried a knitted one but couldn't get into the pattern ( found on purl soho) and it was not going to be a fast knit ( and for a blanket/ throw it needs to be fast because of the size!)
I looked for some easy baby blanket patterns, and decided on an easy version of a rib blanket ( also purl soho I think). My H"s cousin is having a baby in a few months, so I thought I would knit a pram rug/ knee rug. In practical washable acrylic in non baby colours. And I finished it and gave it to the parents- to- be last weekend!