Out in Nature, for The Playlist

One of our favourite places to visit for an outdoors adventure is Kings Park, Perth's Botanic Gardens. But with CHOGM happening here this weekend, and 120,000 people flocking to the banks of the Swan River for a glimpse of the Queen (and a BBQ sausage!) we decided it was probably best to avoid the crowds and road blockages. But by no means was there a shortage of outdoor play, and exploring of our natural surroundings, at home.

Miss A is rather fond of little critters, and she showed me the little house she had made for her new found friend...

Little Baby snail!

She showed me her tiny new plant, in its pot decorated with leaves...

And when I returned home from a morning of shopping, a beautiful bloom was waiting for me...lovingly picked by Miss A and Master R, and popped into a little vase.

Master R and his Dad went out on their bikes to explore the neighbourhood, and had a not-too-pleasant close encounter with a swooping Magpie (thank goodness for the bike helmets!). 

And we all spent the afternoon just hanging out in the garden together, playing with sand and water, doing a little gardening and enjoying the warmth and sunshine.

For more nature play, or to join in with The Playlist, head over to 1000 Homes of Happiness.

Christmassy tags from scraps

What do you do with all of the too-good-to-throw-away outside rings leftover from die-cutting a stack of circles from Christmas card stock?

Cut out a whole stack more circles of course...until your arm is almost dropping off...

and make more pretty gift tags, feeling super good for using up those scraps!

These gift tags have a double sided adhesive attached to the reverse side so you can simply peel and stick them to a gift or gift bag...or any crafty project...and the Christmas design is so subtle I think they would be great for any occasion.

All of these designs are available in my shop, with still more Christmassy stuff to come!

A pocketful of vintage

It's been absolutely ages since I received a package full of pretty vintage fabric, from Zwizzle. I had immediate plans for it...the pockets on some tote bags, patchwork cushion covers, bunting for my craft room, and anything else I could use up the scraps on. But because I had other projects on the go when it arrived, I had to put it aside for later (well, I didn't have to, but I knew if I wanted to keep my sanity I really shouldn't be starting another crafty project yet).

Eventually I got around to making the pockets for the tote bags...but pockets were as far as I got, and the project was put on hold again. And then, FINALLY, last week, I got back to it and finished the bags...yes, a whole TWO bags! Hurrah!

So, the vintage fabric on these bags makes a handy pocket on the front

(I like patterns on a plain background...it lets the patterned fabric really 'pop')...

And when not in use the whole bag folds up into a cute little clutch that you can throw in your handbag, ready for shopping. And the pretty vintage pattern becomes the outside so it looks super spesh! These bags were originally inspired by a really plain boring fold-up shopping bag I recieved at the chemist with my shopping a couple of years ago. I ended up using the bag so much that it fell apart...and so I started making my own. These two bags will be listed in my shop soon.

Patchwork cushion covers are next on my list of projects for the vintage fabric. I wonder how long it will be before I get started...and finished...?

Do you have lots of projects on the go? How do you keep organised with your projects and get things done?

Rain - for The Playlist

When it rains, the first thing three year old Miss A thinks about is how happy the trees and plants will be. She loves to get out in the garden, just like her dad, and will always join him when there is planting to be done. On Friday, I captured them doing just that.

With perfect clear blue skies, warm weather, and no sign of rain, Miss A took to making her own rain, and gave those new plants and flowers a lovely big drink of water.

And with all that beautiful sunshine, who would've thought we would wake up the following morning to grey skies, thunder and the promise of rain? By late Saturday afternoon, the rain had set in, and when the kids went outside to give their pooch his dinner, there was of course no stopping Master R from running out from under the covered area and into the rain...

to run, jump, get as wet as possible...

And I even caught him trying to catch a few drops of fresh rain water in his mouth!

For more rain play, or to join in with The Playlist, pop over here.

Three little tees

I have been stocking up on summer t-shirts for my children...including plenty of inexpensive ones that they can play in, paint in or just get dirty in. I know how quickly their t-shirts get covered in stains...or a mysterious hole in them (which strangely often appears after some sort of crafty project involving scissors...hmmm.)

I usually buy inexpensive but good quality plain t-shirts for them, but my little girl, who is almost four, now refuses to wear a t-shirt unless it has a picture on it. So to keep her happy (and me too!) I have been adding my own embellishments to the t-shirts.

Three little hearts...one heart was cut from a scrap of spotty fabric, the other two from a pretty piece of floral fabric, picked up in an op-shop. The hearts were applied using an iron-on adhesive, and blanket stitch.

Three little owls cut from patterned fabric and ironed on...

And a layered flower, made from three fabric scraps, with a pink button sewn in the centre.

All of the embellishments were quick, easy and fun to make, and little Miss A is happy to have 'pictures' on her t-shirts.

Getting Sandy for The Playlist

This weekend has been one of the warmest so far for Spring...and we made the most of it by getting outdoors as much as we could. As always the kids gravitated to the sandpit...Sand will keep my children occupied for hours!

And why wouldn't it...there are so many possible games and adventures to be had in the sand. Sometimes they will be building castles, and sometimes tunnels and tracks for their cars...

...but when the weather is warm, like it was today...a little water is added and the sandpit becomes their very own beach!

This post was inspired by 1000 Homes of Happiness who have set up the Playlist, after this recent news article stated that kids need to get barefoot, wet and dirty to become smarter, wiser and more resilient adults. I love this idea, and if you would like to get involved in The Playlist, head over here.

Hope you have enjoyed the great outdoors this weekend!

Softies for Mirabel

Three unexpected friends have come together for a good cause. 

This is Rosie. She is a sweet little bear who loves cuddles and tea parties...

This is Merv, a cheeky monkey who likes nothing more than to monkey around...apart from eating bananas of course...

And he has a great smile!

And last but not least, this is Rob, a rather shy but SUPER fast and SUPER loving Robot.

These softies are eagerly awaiting their trip over to Pip at Meet Me At Mikes, who is going to deliver them to the Mirabel Foundation, where they will then be matched up with their new owner and hopefully new best friend!

If you want to make your own version of Rosie, you can find the pattern here. The Merv Monkey pattern was found in a previous issue of Get Creative. And Rob Robot was made up by me. If you want to donate to Softies for Mirabel, you will find more info here!