local crafty knick knacks

I don't mean to bang on about the joys of living near some major towns now that we have moved home to Gippsland, but seriously - when we lived at Ythanbrae the hour and a half round trip just to get to the nearest crummy town with an equally crummy Target (Target Country no less, the horror), was doing my head in for just general supplies. Let alone craft supplies.

Now whenever I go to nearby Warragul (our nearest 'big' town) I stop in almost every time at Yarragon, a smaller town on the way. You see, Yarragon has the sweetest little patchwork, quilting, fabric and craft store. It's down a little laneway and is full to the brim with oh so many fat quarters, lace trims, cute buttons and delicious craft books just begging for me to take them home. I always go in there 'just for a look' and come out with an armload of things. Not for any specific purpose or project. Just some pretty things that caught my eye, and just because I can. How indulgent is that?!

My most recent loot included some fat quarters of pretty girly fabric I am thinking of making into a cot quilt for some impending babies in my circles (and hope like hell someone has a girl?!) I also scored some vintage wooden buttons, some resin roses and swallows to make into bobby pins and a lovely Scandinavian book featuring lots of home projects and embroidery. Hence the pretty shades of embroidery thread. I don't even embroider! That's how 'retail blind' I was. 

 

I'm looking forward to sitting down in front of the fire to attempt some embroidery and cross-stitch this week. I've also vowed to really get knitting this winter (same as last winter, and the winter before...), so we'll see how that goes. Perseverance is not my strong suit.

Now just to sort out the mess of my sewing room and I will have somewhere to put all of this...bringing more in is definitely not helping to clear the clutter! 

Images by Emma Durkin for Cinderella at Brindabella.


P.S. As much as I like the 'civilisation' here I do miss the quiet of living in the middle of a 1200 acre property with a five kilometre long driveway. You win some, you lose some I guess.

diddly dee: getting in early

As part of the Blogging Your Way e-course which I am taking part of this month, the lovely and uber-talented Leslie has been giving us some pointers on photography, styling and building colour stories. I have been playing around in my makeshift studio (read: my Ikea table next to my sewing room window), bouncing light around and screwing my studio photographer's head back on after a long hiatus. 

From this little Catholic potato farmer of Irish descent - oh the cliche - I wish you all a very hearty, merry, jiggy and jolly St Patty's day for tomorrow. I will be wearing my leprechaun earrings like I have been for the past 20 years on the 17th of March (yes those earrings are that old, I did get my ears pierced when I was 4 and I have re-possessed the little green men off my mum) and my 'Kiss Me I'm Irish!!' badge. Diddly dee indeed! Now where's the green Guinness...

ava's tea party

Yesterday was August 22nd. Not an overly memorable day on my radar. Nothing on really, still recovering from my cold, worked at the gallery, the day before Mr M's birthday...

But for one family yesterday was harder and more special than most. It was Ava's birthday. To read about Ava's story you can go to the Ava's Tea Party website, Ava's memorial page or become a fan of Ava's Tea Party on facebook.  

And so I set about having my own tea party for the superprincess. I didn't think Monty would be much into making pink cupcakes (more of a smash tonka trucks kind of kid) so I quietly made cupcakes by myself this morning and sat down with a pot of tea.

Pink of course was the order of the day. I didn't have any little girls to share it with (bummer), no spotty plates in the house as was called for (maybe next time) but I did find the icing of the 24 cupcakes I made therapeutic almost and tea is always a bonus in my books.

And then I went for a spin on the lawn. Barefoot. In a pretty dress. Tessa looked on in amusement. Any excuse to wear my pretty crinoline and one of my favourite vintage dresses. I think Ava would have liked the pretty satin sash ribbon.

 

To see more of Ava's Tea Party you can visit the flickr group Ava's Balloons, see some images from Ava's Tea Party 2009 or visit Ava's mum Sheye's blog. 

Now just to do the dishes.

{ Interior Styling - April Challenge }

I said I would be back with another dandelion...I aim to please :)

Our lawn mower is broken at the moment so dandelions are abounding in our jungle. Actually, this afternoon I am going to erect a little fence and put the sheep in to munch away at it over the weekend. Tessa always finds this practice quite amusing and/or alarming. 

Happy Friday - hope you have a relaxing weekend doing whatever it is that you are doing. What are your plans? Mine are not many. 

{ Image by Little Miss Emma - for Interior Styling April Challenge }

{ Happy Easter }

Have yourselves a happy little Easter...

My March Interior Styling challenge (yes it does take me 31 days to wrap my little brain around a styling challenge). Stool from Ikea, shoes from Rubi Shoes, bowl from Target, 'Easter blessings' card from my Nana, purple silk flower from Sportsgirl, Easter eggs in my tummy!

{ Image by Little Miss Emma }

{ New Singer Baby }

On the weekend (after the market and the sitting in flooded traffic for 2 hours) Mr M got me a gift: a bright and shiny new Singer sewing machine! As you might remember, my machine which my mum bought me when I moved out of home died a sad death last week. Now, the new Singer isn't anything fancy but it goes forwards and backwards, which is the general needs for my sewing skills!

And do you spy the fabric samples? I ordered them last week from No Chintz to get some inspiration for my #1 project on the to-do list: curtain for my exposed shelving in the cottage kitchen. I initially liked the candy stripe blue and white, but the blue is not how I imagined so I am swaying towards something like the plain blue linen or the blue stripe on linen (very top sample). I am definitely ordering some of the plain linen for another project on the to-do list. Stay tuned ;)

This image is also my (very late) entry for the Interior Styling February Challange. Click on over to flickr to see some of the other entires, I am starting to get ideas for the March challenge, perhaps I will have that one ready in June?!!

{ Image by Little Miss Emma }

{ Interior Styling - January Challenge }

Better late than never? It's still January! This is my entry for Holly's January Challenge in the flickr group I am a part of, Interior Styling.

I was in the kitchen drinking my 11th cup of tea for the morning, and thinking "I really must take some photos for Interior Styling" - no better time than the present, Emma! So I gathered some of my favourite baking pieces, my Donna Hay sifter, my little pastel blue measuring cups, my recipe file with the photo of cupcakes on the front and sprinkled some hundreds and thousands about. I was going to go for something quite crisp and clean light, like a lot of Holly's photos, but I quite like the pastel vintage wash this has, imperfection is perfection sometimes you know?

I am really looking forward to seeing how my styling develops and {hopefully!} improves with these challenges. New Years resolution - tick!

{ Photo by Little Miss Emma }