Record cover craft - quick and easy

Remember these?


Vintage record cover containing super-scratched record, became chookie goodness:


Record destined for this life:


Yay!

Thrifty Thursday

Purchased yesterday but thrifted wednesday has no alliterative ring to it...

Lovely vintage records from the 60s of children's stories, containing story books with lovely illustrations.



Vintage sheets that have been sewn together into a doona cover - will make a cute skirt!


j

Great things to do - where do I start??!

Just returned from a road trip of a few days, which started badly and ended up in delicious, warm and fuzzy relaxation.

I have perfected the art of knitting in the car, and so made a few crowns for dress-ups based on this pattern, but modified as I thought I could do mine without thinking...

I cast on 100 stitches, garter stitch (plain knitting) as many rows as you want the base of your crown to be. I did 6 the first time, 10 the second, and am thinking 12 might suit better. My needles are 6mm bamboo, which mean I knit quite loosely on these... Wool is scraps, generally 8 ply.

I then knit 20 stitches, turned the work, and knitted the same 20 again. Then working with k2tog at the start and finish of each row on the right side of the work until 14 stitches remain, then k2tog at the start and finish of each row. When 2 stitches remain, k2tog, break off yarn, and tie off. This is point one. Just keep this up until there are 5 points, sew in loose ends, add buttons, baubles as per original pattern, etc, and there's a crown! Mine are 100 stitches as Master 6 and his band of merry mischief makers have big heads.... Photos will come when they are adorned.

Also, found some lovely oppies on the road, where this little table cloth was found for $5.


I love it. It's destined to stay a tablecloth for the time being.


The pillowcase was 20 cents and reminds me of the Lovely Holly Hobbie and Mary Kaye designs of my fave swap cards!

LOVED a little town named Canowindra, where we came across the best country hospitality of the year. The kids were actually acknowledged, and we were able to properly relax. It was magical. We want to go back and stay here. Canowindra is Australia's hot air ballooning capital, which appeals to me too!

Came home to many blog posts to read, emails galore, and NO RESPONSE from Paypal or from the seller unfortunately. Lovely offer of assistance from Bells, just love blogland niceness. LOVE this mail from Shannon too:

It's being saved for a Special New Friend who loves red, knitting, and handmade. I hope it will be for a Project she is Working On at the moment...

Love the idea of a Knit Along - Bells alerted us to this here which is linked to the Tour de France, which I hope to join. There are only 108 places, so click the link here if you are interested in a reason to knit! (Just found out by email I am IN, and on TEAM QUICKSTEP, led by Angie from Riggwelter.wordpress.com!)

I have also almost finished the I-Spy quilts for the kids, now just waiting for the machine to come back from its service ($$$$$).

Another little game I am joining in on is Nicola's Week of Decoration. Following on from her gorgeous week of colour, she is hosting a week of decorations through photos we take daily. Today is spots, dots, circles, etc, and I am off to take some pics!!


Join in !!! These are all I had - I really need to learn how to do those photo mosaics Nic is so good at.

Phew! Busy morning...

x

Friday's 'frifty finds!

I am a huge fan of alliteration, so please pardon the bastardisation of the title to this post!

I have been very lucky in the thrifty stakes this week, but after another horrendous start to the day, I took myself and Miss 2 off for a little retail therapy to the local oppy, who happened to be reducing everything by half price or more....

Kiddy picnic basket which appealed to the Holly Hobbie-lover in me.


Little bakelite teacups to go in the picnic basket.

Wooden Bambi and Thumper puzzle

Another wooden puzzle (will be perfect for Miss 2's upcoming birthday!)

5 more vintage pillowcases!!

So with $3 spent (I am NOT joking), we went to a little-visited gem that I rarely get to. Miss 2 was happy with her 'teaset', and proceded to have a tea party while I collected...

Another beautiful wooden puzzle,

Table-cloth for my rosey collection,

Beautifully embroidered pillowcase which will end up on my bed!

Vintage Norfolk Island tablecloth which will become a few shopping totes,

And yet another pillowcase, this one a lovely little koala on quality cotton! The pillowcase fairy has been wonderfully good to me lately. Since Kirsty's Week of Pillowcases, I have 32. The quilt needs 36, so nearly ready to commence!

We celebrated with a fairy cake (there is such a thing as Too Much Cream!) and 'cinos.



Most happy with our purchases, we wandered home through the Autumn leaves, scuffing and singing.

Great pick-me-up, but I think the house is well past full. With enough to open a shop, I think etsy and I have a date...

Thrifty day finds

Miss 2 and I had a lovely morning, and stumbled over these...

With only $5 budgeted for op-shopping this week, (I don't NEED), we did rather well!


Unopened pattern for a Winter coat for Miss 2

Bundle of DMC thred, zips, linen and calico


More patterns!

A HUGE piece of seersucker perfect for a Summer dress, a pinny, and some bias edging!

Lots of beautiful things, total: $2.

Sew before I went to Melbourne...

...I had some tasks I had to get finished. Bibs for Mum for the Granny's Pressie box. They are kinda small in the neck so newborn only - some tweaking needs to be done... The press-studs were thrifted - a pack of 6 sets for 50c, all fabric is thrifted, and I'm very happy with the result!



Then...


I tried my hand at some more selvedge stuff for my messenger bag (thanks for sharing the selvedge projects Jodie!). Using thrifted denim, I made a spacious bag which is still unlined as I can't quite decide what I like for this...

In the meantime, I wanted an apron for every day, and have to get a few under my belt this month for the sassy apron swap, so made this from a rather pink teatowel, and scraps from the peg bag I made for Mum:



Then sorted, washed and readied 26 pillowcases for the pillowcase quilt I posted about earlier! These are some of the more recent acquisitions, some of which are very lovely!


These are some faves that may have to be front and centre in the quilt, or left whole and actually rotated into use!


This last one is from childhood (thanks Mum) I love flanellette pillowcases when I'm under the weather!

Finally I have been soaking and laundering this hand towel that I will be sending down to Melbourne to the lovely Brown Owls for letting me visit the clubhouse while I was down! Thanks ladies!!!




x

.

A week of pillowcases day 3

I love pillowcases. Thanks Pip and Kootoyoo for this week!

Oh my, these pillowcase ideas have pushed in to my 'things to do' pile, relegating things that have been Waiting Patiently to later in the month.

Love this quilt made from pillowcases - my kind of quilt!! Found here at Vintage Chika. I will need some lessons from Curlypops so I can make bias edging. Miss 2 actually ATE the instructions.



And I am really wanting to make one of these bags, done here by jupiterbuttons. Apparently it's a Martha idea, but she did her own version, which just looks like something I will have to make for Christmas presents for everyone I know!



On a sad note, my poor little Janome has packed up, and needs a good service. I will be without her for at least a week, so have decided that a week away from blogging may also be in order!

A 100th post holiday. Ten hours in the car with Miss 2 and Master 6 to drive to Melbourne, but it will be worth it to meet some of the Brown Owls gals, visit Mikes to drop off my first (of a few) Softie for Mirabel, visit Carl and Geniene at Little Salon, have a cold hot chocolate at San Churro, buy lots of lovely wool at Sunspun, visit family, drink cups of tea with Mum, visit lovely friends, and see Places of Note. Mmmm.

x

That was a quick rest!

I got some lovely comments thanks ladies, and have decided that the blog thing IS ok. I'm not really just blowing my own trumpet or anything, I am quite happy with the way it's going, and my self-conscious moment was just that. A moment.

So now I am back and will post a tutorial or two of things I am doing. I love tutorials, as I can see how things are constructed. It often inspires me to do more as when I see a good tutorial I think: I CAN do that!!

So a few days ago I was on about the Tetra-type juice packs. This has opened my eyes to just how much packaging there is in kids' lunch box snacks as well! Each box or bag contains all those individually-wrapped bags or packets, and so many of them are silver-lined to keep them "fresh", but this impacts on their recyclability. Eilleen at Consumption Rebellion has again wowed me with talk of constructing a solar oven and stove, and this HAS made me see silver everywhere E! Check out her pic here of a reusable sandwich pouch rather than using zip-lock bags. I also LOVE LOVE LOVE the idea of the fruit and vege bags, which I will be making from tuille that I have heaps of. They weigh nothing and are reusable!

So now I am looking now at 3 of the 1 litre juice packs, and 2 of the small lunch-box ones, and have decided to have a go at making a tote to take to the supermarket to keep cold things cool until we get home. All have been washed in warm water with soap and dried thoroughly in the sun to kill any bugs.

A tute of this is a bit tricky, as I have no idea how this will come about...

First I cut all the boxes so they were even.
I then cut one of the large ones in half to use as the sides of the bag. The small ones would be the base.
I zig-zagged the pieces together end to end so I had one really long piece of cardboard.
Sewing in the base was fiddly, as my machine has knobs and handles that got in the way.

After breaking a needle, jamming the bobbin, and sewing through my finger AGAIN ("no honey I don't need stitches - I already have them...) and FORGETTING TO TAKE PHOTOS (so no tute huh?),

We got to this:

Pinking shears evened up the top section which doesn't need a seam as it won't fray!
A hole puncher and some old cord from a pair of pants knotted through the holes, and I am off to market!