Monday, November 8

At this moment in time, there are 4 things that are getting me through the day ... My family, my friends and this wonderful VIP ...


and this ....

Walk in the rain, jump in mud puddles, collect rocks, rainbows and roses, smell flowers, blow bubbles, stop along the way, build sandcastles, say hello to everyone, go barefoot, go on adventures, act silly, fly kites, have a merry heart, talk with animals, sing in the shower, read childrens' books, take bubble baths, get new sneakers, hold hands and hug and kiss, dance, laugh and cry for the health of it, wonder and wander around, feel happy and precious and innocent, feel scared, feel sad, feel mad, give up worry and guilt and shame, say yes, say no, say the magic words, ask lots of questions, ride bicycles, draw and paint, see things differently, fall down and get up again, look at the sky, watch the sun rise and sun set, watch clouds and name their shapes, watch the moon and stars come out, trust the universe, stay up late, climb trees, daydream, do nothing and do it very well, learn new stuff, be excited about everything, be a clown, enjoy having a body, listen to music, find out how things work, make up new rules, tell stories, save the world, make friends with the other kids on the block, and do anything else that brings more happiness, celebration, health, love, joy, creativity, pleasure, abundance, grace, self-esteem, courage, balance, spontaneity, passion, beauty, peace, relaxation, communication and life energy to...all living beings on this planet.

Bruce Williamson, "It's Never Too Late To Have A Happy Childhood", 1987





If i remember the above 4, this pain will pass and I will be happy again.

Tuesday, October 5

Birds of a feather flock....


.... half way there!! Loving the colours!!

Using spoolsewing's simple and quick bird pattern... Can't wait to have it finished and up in my spare room!! I had planned to walk my neighbourhood with Miguel this week to look for the perfect branch on which to settle them all ... but mother nature has decided to send us rain - the first in months!!

So these lovelies will have to wait a few days before finding their perfect roosting spot!

this is where you will find this very easy pattern, that looks so amazing ..

Tuesday, August 31

{embroidery quote]


embroidereading contest, originally uploaded by the_cleof.

when I get sad
I stop being sad and be
AWESOME
instead. true story

-Barney Stinson (how i met your mother)

{ CraftGossip : 3 Etsy shopping sprees >> EEEEEK!!}

Can you believe this amazing give a way via CraftGossip.com ... They are giving away 3 ETSY shopping sprees to the value of $100 EACH!!!  plus they will pay for shipping!!


All you have todo is make a wish list!!

well here goes, as you know i am always be moaning the face that here in south africa you cant find beautifully patterned fabric and when you do it costs the earth ... so there is little wonder about what I chose ... there are soooooooo yummy!!!!:

 


  


half yards of : 
Dino Fabric
M. Miller Snow Monkey Fabric
M.Miller Mermaids
Colourful Christmas in Red   (yummy bundle)


ribbons :
4 yards of Robot Ribbon  




then plushie patterns by the best plush pattern maker of all - the awesome Jodie from RicRacSews ....
Parsley and Beet Elephant    
Ernest and Pebble Turtle  
 

This awesome octopus pendant, i mean who could resist


well all i can do now is keep these fingers crossed!!!

Thursday, July 15

LEGO BIRTHDAY PARTY

Miguel turned 6 this week ... i just cant believe it!  what on earth happened to my baby?  When asked what theme he wanted i knew the answer well before the said it  .. LEGO!!!

So I got busy and ticked of the long wish list  ....  I thought that I would share with you what I made as well as the printable PDFs as I know from the many hours of searching on the net that this is a popular theme with very little info.

The first were  the INVITATIONS :



It consisted of 4 pages and a VIP tag. Page 2 was the actual invite with the party details on it. I had left the date blank, because I used a stamp with glow in the dark ink to add the date. The moms told me later that the kids were closing themselves in their closets to see the date magically appear, as they could not wait for night time!  Page 3 was the RSVP and map details, and the last was the biggest hit of all  ... design your own Lego man! You should see the amazing drawings we got!

Assembly is really easy ... each page is 4 up on a A4 [A4 paper is 6 mm narrower and 18 mm longer than the "Letter" paper size], the tag has 8 on a page. Print them and cut out on light grey lines. Take one of each kind, & stack together in the order shown in the photos above and punch a hole in a corner. Then using 2 inches of ball chain and a connector (the kind to attach a plug to a sink or bath and can be bought from any building/plumbing supply store - or use cord) thread through the pages and use the connector to join the two ends together. Finally I used a corner punch to round the corners, but it is not necessary to do so.

The link to download the INVITATION is  HERE
If you dont see the Green download button just click on a thin grey bar at the bottom of your screen and the menu should appear.


For Miguel's name I used a font called LEGO THICK that can be downloaded for free here (just scroll down).  {
{NOTE : for some reason because the lego font is not a true font it wont work in the PDF>> it just overides the settings and makes it Ariel, i have tried to fugure out how to get around this, but it wont let me  - the only round the backdoor way to get arpound this is if you have photoshop, you need to open the invite page in PS and then use the lego font to write the name. sorry I have really tried to fix this to no avail.}



PARTY PACK COLOURING IN BOOK  - NOTES:




The Colouring-in Booklet PDF is 5 pages. To make the cover, I printed page one on yellow cardstock only page one. The inside of the book consists of the 4 remaining pages which I printed double sided (but its not a train smash if u cant).  Cut the all pages in half on the lines provided.  Then put one of each page together with a cover on top - the order does not matter but just make sure that the maze page is in the middle as it covers 2 booklet pages.

Make sure that when you fold you make a nice solid crease. I then used my sewing machine to stitch the pages together. See sewing isn't just for old ladies making doggy coats! You can do all sorts of cool stuff with them!!  If you don't have machine you can use a stapler just as well.   Now just trim the edges of the booklet so that all the pages finish neatly together.

The link to download the COLOURING IN BOOKLET is HERE




LEGO BUNTING :
Bunting is one of the easiest things to do to make an occasion festive.  I will use any excuse to make and string up a gorgeous bright row of bunting!!  ANY EXCUSE ... Easter, birthdays, Xmas, Friday  .... Sunny weather, cold weather ...

Bunting is a string of flags all sewn together on a fabric line.  I made a awesome string of bunting for the party .. with loads of Lego pics and bright blocks of colours inbetween  .. but in my old age I forgot to take a photo of said wonderful bunting, so you will have to believe me when I tell you it looked amazing flapping in the sea breeze!


I made a really long bunting - about 7 meters, so I printed the pdf out 3 times. The pics are 2 up on a page. Print and cut in half.  I also cut out card stock of the same size in yellow, blue and red. The order that I put them in was, one pic and then a card stock - but any order will do.  You will also need bias tape if you are sewing or just some cord or string if you are not going to sew the bunting.

I am not going to bore you with a tutorial as there are many out there.  Here are two really good ones...  
Scissor Variations - has one showing you how to make paper bunting if you don't have a sewing machine.
Katie from Explanation Required  a brilliant tute on sewing bunting - except instead of using fabric flags you will use your paper ones.

The link to download the BUNTING PICTURES is HERE

{EXTRA NOTE :I have a Bias binding foot for my sewing machine and it is worth every cent i paid for it (though they are not particularly costly).  If you use bias banding a lot you need to go and buy this foot!! the reason why i say that is that you don't have to pin your bias! Yip it just feeds the tape it through the foot, folds it in half and you just need to hold your center in the gap provided on the foot!  I LOVE IT! To sew 6 meters of bunting it only takes me about 15 minutes.}

I do have one little tip for sewing loooooong strips of bias though.  It can get twisted as you sew, so it can cause quite a bit of teeth gnashing and hair pulling to keep having to un twist it so that it feeds though nice and straight.  I buy my bias on rolls that are 25 meters long, all I do is thread the roll onto a stick (or on my case a baking spoon -a very necessary sewing tool) hold between my knees and off i go!! 

                                             

The last but most certainly not the least, the THANK YOU's for the party packs. Print onto A4 adhesive sheets.  Cut them out on the lines. For the pack I used clear packets for the party bags, which after filling with a few tasty treats I simply folded over and closed using the sticker that I had made!!


The link to download the THANK YOU is HERE


The last thing I made for the party were chocolate Lego blocks ... yes i know I'm a HUGE sucker for punishment!  Actually it was really easy to make, i was really surprised and I am sure that I will do it again!


I used a food grade silicone (it will come with instructions so you'll be fine!!)  I glued some Lego pieces right side up in to a disposable foil baking tray. I then poured the mixture over the lot, making sure that it covers the Lego about 1 inch. I let it set overnight, but check your instructions as different products may require different curing methods. The Lego blocks being plastic just slide right out the set mixture, so there is no need to put any lubricant on them before casting.

I then melted milk chocolate on my stove in a glass bowl sent on to a pot of hot water and let it slowly melt (not boiling water as it could burn the choc). When it was melted I used a spoon, scooped some out and poured it into the mould, put it into the fridge and on 40min .... da daaaa yummy Lego blocks !!


Well i hop that some of this was useful to some one out there in desperate mommy party land!  If you have any questions at all just let me know and I'll do my bst to help out ... Have fun!!

{EDIT : 26/7/2010 - I cannot get comments to work - if anyone can figure this out please let me know - I have tried everything  ... thanks ... cleo [at] techgear.co . za  GOT IT TO WORK! WOOOHOOO}

Tuesday, May 11

Grosgrain 'Oh Dear' frock Giveaway

The frock is dark navy blue. The material is thin and finespun. It is gorgeous and worth wishing for... go and check it out here http://grosgrainfabulous.blogspot.com/2010/05/oh-dear-frock-grosgrain-giveaway_10.html

look at how gorgeous this is !!

Thursday, April 15

Grosgrain: Romeo & Mae Sewing Patterns GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Grosgrain: Romeo & Mae Sewing Patterns GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Check this awesome give away : "Just in time for the warm weather, Romeo & Mae is offering 5 of their springiest patterns to one lucky Grosgrain reader.The cute little dress to the left is their Madeline Knot Apron Dress. Knot dress are great for growing kids since you can tie the know wherever you need it. Pair the knot dress with boots, tights or even my ruffle pants!"


go go now and have a look see!