Pleats & Tucks

I love a pleat and a tuck.
I haven't made one of these aprons for a while so am happy that this one is done and looks so lovely.
It is sitting in the shop for now … although I may just pinch it for myself.

Kiddie card making and peace in the house

Today I stood in the post office and looked at the pack of 50 cards for $4.95 and was very tempted.
What a simple easy way to cover off school kid christmas cards.
Yep, easy but just not quite right at this moment in time.

Instead I headed to Riot Art & Craft.
From some pre-packed blank cards, stamp pads, stamps & stickers we had almost 3 hours of squabble free time -PRICELESS!

They laughed, stamped, stuck stickers and - good grief - even shared.
I nearly passed out from shock!

But being a mature, modern woman I know that it was a temporary moment.
Normal squabbling progamming has been restored.
Aaahh the peace was so nice.

Positivity

Even the tiniest of good things is worthy of our attention.
There is always something positive in our day.
Some days we forget to notice them.
We can become drawn into the negative and lose sight of the good things around us.
Sometimes we just get lost.

This is when I need a gentle reminder to refocus.
Take time to enjoy the good things even if they are tiny.

In our house we have what we call our "positivity cushion"
 - a little hint that there are always positive things in our world … somedays you just have to look a little harder than others.
They are there and they are worth finding (even if it just laughing at the snoring dog at my feet or loving the fact that is Friday and is lounge room picnic & movie night).

This positivity cushion has just been finished for a lovely friend who is such a strong and positive woman that she doesn't really need it - she just liked the look of the cushion so we made one for her that is exactly the same as ours.

Hoping there are lots of positive things in your day too
Cheers
Jenny

A not so grand re-opening

It has been a very long time since my little Ohjoh shop has been open.
We've had much bigger fish to fry over here so it has been packed away for almost a year.
Today, however, (insert drumroll) … I've popped a couple of things back in the shop.
Just baby steps as there is still frying of a few fish in these parts.
More bits and pieces will be added over the next week so watch this space.
Hope you're all having a lovely week. xxx

'Tis The Season (almost)

It has been a long and tough year around these parts so we have made a unanimous family decision to start our festive bits early.
We're in need of some Christmas cheer.
Normally we wait until 1st December but not this year.
Our decorations and festive bits will be up and about tomorrow - yep, halfway through November.

Today I finished a Christmas Santa sack for a nephew which will soon be in the post.
Isn't Santa a clever old chap.  He remembers each family's particular tradition.
For us it is santa sacks at the end of the bed,
For others it is stockings in the lounge room,
For some it is wrapped gifts under a tree.
Friends of ours each have a Santa chair where Santa leaves unwrapped gifts for them.
I love the little family traditions that Christmas brings - it makes it even more special.

So tomorrow we will find the decorations (hopefully), dust them off and decide how we will decorate this different house in a different part of the country.
We'll smile at all of the handmade kinder decorations that are placed on the tree every year even though kinder was years ago.
We'll remember each decoration in the box.
The kids will know who bought what and when as each year they choose one new decoration to add to the mix.
We'll laugh at the fact that ours is not a coordinated, decorated or well designed christmas but rather a mismatch of every Christmas that we have had together.
And we like it that way.

I hope there is some cheer (be it Christmas or whatever else you celebrate at this time of the year) at your place too.

Cheers
Jenny x

Art

Did you see on the news that a work of art by Francis Bacon sold for more than US$142M?

Oooh that is a lot of money for a work of art.

So, thinking about art, I thought I would share what hangs on our walls.

Our resident artist, the 7yr old, likes to make the most of any spare hooks in our house - and being a rental there are lots.

New pieces are added all the time without fanfare.  They just appear.

She is also the curator and works are often moved or re-moved depending on her mood.  

But like any good gallery visitors are only allowed to look not touch!

Do you have art in your house or a resident artist?

Almost Vintage

Well, not really but it feels like it.
I started this dress 3 or maybe even 4 summers ago and never finished it.
I have started each summer season with good intentions.  I would do a little more and then get frustrated/disappointed with it and throw it back in the depths of a cupboard somewhere.

It hasn't been the pattern - it was fine.
I think it was the fabric and maybe the gathers not being it quite the right spot but being too lazy to unpick them and do it again.
And perhaps the fact that it doesn't quite fit like it would have when I started it - something to do with eating vast quantities of cake.

Today it has been finished.
Now it will hang in the wardrobe.
But it is finished.
And I expect in a long hot WA summer it will probably see the light of day and I will wonder why I took so long to finish it.

Do you have protects like this hidden at your place?

Comfort

Comfort
Found in the pages of my late mother's cookbook.
Found in every swirl of the pen,
every splat on the page,
every worn edge,
every familiar recipe
and every warm memory.

Quilt Number 7 - DONE!

A quilt for the little man that entered the world in the back of an ambulance in his parent's driveway - almost 18 months ago.

Finished at last.

Being delivered this weekend - complete with it's own little ambulance and racing cars on the back.

A quilty update

Starting to come together.

The plan was for it to be borderless but I think it is far too skinny (surely that was obvious on paper but I didn't pick it up)
I think I will have to either factor in a border in another colour or a spot or something.... (I'm open to suggestions quilty girls ...)

Not quite making that quilt ...

My smallest was home sick today (yes we use the term loosely - she has been bouncing off the walls all day) so instead of continuing with the quilt she voted that we should make cushions.
So we did.
Fabric from Ikea.
Other bits from Spotlight.

Zips were popped in with a flap to cover the zip - except for the last one. I cut it before I folded it - oops.
I was obviously too excited as it was the last one.

The helper lasted almost one cushion then became very busy making her frog.
She is very clever.

Getting started

There has been thinking
There has been planning
There has been scribbling

and today there has been cutting
combined with a whole lot of hoping....
hoping that it all works out
hoping that I can get this quilt finished in time for an upcoming visit back east
hoping that I can deliver it to that cute little nephew myself.

At last ... something

Sewing mojo missing in a box somewhere.
Possibly in the same place as Martha The Mannequin's legs - she's not as helpful without them .... Can't find them anywhere after the move.  The poor girl is legless AND has no pants on - we all know that is a recipe for disaster.
But today, at last, I made something.
Just tea-towels for a school fete.
But at least that is something.
Who knows what may follow ???

Turtles (or is it a tortoise?)

Nothing to do with sewing or anything crafty ....
We went for a Father's Day picnic at Lake Joondalup and found these two little fellows strolling along a bike track.
How cute are they???
They're now safely back in the reeds & water away from bike tyres, crows and an enthusiastic 7yr old who was insisting that we bring them home.
They made our day - especially when one of them pooped on Dad's hand! 

Thinking

Thinking about lots of things here.
Not much doing but lots of thinking.  If that balance is wrong I get a bit frazzled, a bit down and a bit frustrated.
Too much thinking isn't always a good thing.
So as the Perth rain pours down outside I'm going to DO.
This will of course require me to stop cruising on the mac.
Stop flipping through Pinterest, Facebook, blogs and the many other time vacuums that I have been letting suck up my day.

It has been a while since I've thought of really starting a new quilt....
My recent 18 month quilt for daughter number 2 which is now finished (kind of ... in a throw on your bed and I'll hand stitch some more on it later kind of way) has really upset the momentum of quilting.
It took a LONG time and to be honest I didn't really enjoy it.
This next one will hopefully be quicker.
A cot quilt for a cute little nephew who is has turned 1 already (crikey, how did that happen?).
I'm thinking crosses or squares in plains ... maybe
Inspired by some clever people found on Pinterest

Now that I've told you guys I will have to do it - right ??

Hope you are "DOING" lots
Cheers
Jenny

Legs

My smallest is not so small.

She is still quite young but is tall and skinny with the longest legs.

Her jeans are way above her ankles long before she has outgrown them around her middle.

Snip, stitch and press and now we have denim capri pants!

I'm feeling chuffed and pleased with myself  right now- yes, I should get out more ....

Apparently these pants are very good for jumping.
Styling by the 7yr old.

Quilt No 6 Finished ... sort of....

Way back in another year (crikey, Jan 2012) and another state (ie we lived in Vic not WA) the second child chose the fabrics for her quilt at Amitie with the help of Lucy.

She has been very disappointed with the progress of HER quilt for quite some time.  Regularly suggesting that it will "never, ever, ever (insert sigh, pre-teen humphing and eye roll) get finished".

Ta da!!! Now it is finished  ....  sort of.

Finished enough to be on the bed and the couch and dragged around the house.

Finished enough to make a quilt ninja.

It still needs some more hand quilting in spots but that can happen another day ... or not.


The 2nd child is happy and now I can think about the next one .... which will hopefully not take quite as long.

Hope your projects are quicker than mine!

Cheers
Jenny