what should my banner look like?

What should I do?

I am now at the point where I have too many photos to have a decent looking banner, and in fact what I really want is a cute design that perhaps illustrates a little about me and what this blog is about... so, I have had a go here, and I am keen to for your feedback....







I will probably try a few here and will be keen to have your feedback over the next couple of weeks, so please let me know what you think! If any of you have any ideas, all thoughts would be appreciated!

Thanks everyone, chat soon xx

Oh! and I have just started a new monkey called Bob, who has a new home to go to in a couple of weeks... I will take photos in the morning when I have some natural light.

mmm...tamantha's banana bread...

Thankyou Tam for the terrific banana bread recipe..as you can see, it turned out really well! I LOVE this recipe, and it is so easy...(shh!)

Here it is for others to share...

tamantha's banana bread
100g butter
3/4 cup caster suger
2 eggs
1 cup banana mash (2-3 bananas)
2 cups self raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp mixed spice
2 tsp cinnamon

1. cream butter and sugar
2. add eggs, banana
3. fold in dry ingredients
4. bake at 180 degrees celcius (140 for fanforced) for 45 minutes
5. enjoy!

have a lovely week! xx

summer pickles to appear in a book!

VERY exciting, that some of my handmade items (which you can find at flickr and can have commissioned if you contact me via email) are soon to appear in a Chinese slow handcrafts book. I was contacted out of the blue by Affa Zhang who had seen my button necklaces on my flickr.
It is all very exciting... I am just now awaiting the edited pages, and then it is due for publication in September!
Have a lovely afternoon,
xx

frank the angel... a prototype

Have been playing around with the sketch I did in the dark one night, and trying to transfrom him into a softie... anyway, gave it a first shot after work this week, and have come up with Frank (the angel). I am not all that happy with his body, but I think that is more due to fabric choices... in my sketch his body was patterned, as were his legs, and I think that will add to him, next time around. Here he is for the very first time, comments are welcomed!!!



Have a fun weekend! (inaugural craft circle tomorrow.... any distance members feel free to sign up and email me your photos of you crafting!) xx

LOVELY weekend... fell completely in love with a very small boy!

What a lovely weekend with our gorgeous vistors!!! Have to admit that I completely fell in love with 8 month old Jye who is JUST divine (and who won amazing brownie points by also loving douglas the monkey). Have included a photo here.

We went factory shopping on the Saturday, Andrew's Hamburgers (Melbourne institution, highly recommended+++) for dinner, off to the St Kilda Markets on Sunday and then out for a lazy lunch of tapas etc on Sunday afternoon... just a great, relaxed weekend with my oldest friend on the planet (not in terms of her years, but in terms of lifetime friend... I have known her since she was born).

So, thankyou Fi, Pete and Jye for the visit.... we had a LOVELY time!!! More photos on my flickr site...
xoxo

ps for you crafters, I am working on a quirky angel (the one I dreamt about) so will post a photo as soon as I finish! xx

no crafting this weekend

On my lunch break from work, so can provide an update...

No crafting this weekend, as we have lovely visitors coming from newcastle, where all of the floods were recently. They are bringing with them their little baby boy, so I have been in a mad frenzy this week, cleaning, clearing spaces and trying to make it child friendly... finding buttons and cotton reels in all sorts of spaces around the house!

I was hoping to make something to give Jye, but sadly, douglas the monkey has some major room for improvements, so my plan to give him away have been ruined (first shot at the newly created pattern, so not beautifully executed). Perhaps I will get a chance to whip something up over the weekend, but I doubt it.

Oooh! Having said that, have just remembered a terrific baby cap pattern I found at economical baby, which I could probably put together and then throw some embellishments on.

I have though made some clips(again, first attempts, so please be gentle!) for a little toddler friend Cate, so will be posting those out in the mail very soon. Had chats with her over the phone the other day and she can now say my name, which is very exciting (apparently they have been practising!).

Anyway, better get this kitchen cleaned before the visitors arrive!

xx

dutch blue quilt - beautiful!

Just a quick one tonight... have just been browsing and stumbled across dutch blue and the most beautiful quilt... check it out she is amazing and this quilt is just divine!

This is my new favourite quilt! I really love the shapes of the birds (and being someone who plays around with toy making, this quilt makes me want to launch into a whole lot of bird creating!), and the colours are just beautiful. I think though I am incredibly impressed by the fact that this whole quilt has all been done by hand, which is just amazing.

If only I could quilt...

Chat soon,
xx