The December wrap up ...

Happy Christmas all - hope you got festive. Christmas day turned out to be a very cruisy end to what has been a rather crazy December. After markets and visits from friends and family it was lovely to kick back on the actual big day and down a glass or two of sparkling burgandy with the man, the girl and the Loz. But December was a goody ... we had our first craft night - a meeting of the dark arts of craft - talk about the full body craft massage ...so so relaxing - Eve hosted the evening and has us hooked for life - she made marbled cake and orange flavoured biscuits and poured us cups of tea whilst we beavered. Mrs Smith worked on her quilt; Marree sewed beautiful tree decs and Eve origamied a little corner of paradise ... so much so that Mrs Smith crossed the floor and got a little instruction in the dark paper arts.and I did a new lino cut for gift tags ... no photo ... It was hard handling a camera and cake and tea, and not cut myself with my sharp tools ...you know what I'm saying?? I walked out of there so relaxed ... maybe a craft option should be supplied in the day spa package. Needless to say we've booked in another session.

and then I have been part of a chutney swap. I got this awesome chilli jam from Bianca over here. thank you x. I could get used to this kin of carry on.

The rest of December saw me hunched over Helga the Husqvana madly sewing stock for markets and getting those xmas orders sorted. These guys (below) were special orders destined for flight across Bass Strait. Felt good to make something new


I hand delivered the final two dresses on the 23rd here. We got a tour - it was amazing... I want to stay there. I would be happy just to eat in their beautiful barn.
Job done and thoughts turned to xmas - our xmas. Edie's second and our first in Tassie and our new home. So special. Watching Edie with her presents was just so lovely. She's book mad, so everytime a book appeared we had to read it there and then.

She was curious about everything...

and lunch under the hollyhock (which flowered especially for Xmas) in a makeshift bedouin-esque tent went down a treat.
I wish you all so much for the festive season and beyond. May we all continue to follow the paths that make us most happy so that that joy may be in turn passed on one hundred fold to those we love and those we meet.

Baby loves Babycino; Mumma loves Vintage

Ah... her first babycino at the lovely Hobart cafe Tricycle at the Arts Centre down Salamanca way. She hoed in with her vintage Canberra spoon whilst my needle gently sewed some final rosettes for the Mother's market. She has a Black Eyed Susie clip in hair. She doesn't know it's there. I tricked her. Otherwise she'd have pulled it out. Her cast is now off. It was more of an ordeal than the injury. The rotary saw me-jiggy was sooo loud as it ominously approached, spinning like something a Mad Max movie would strap to the side of a vehicle. Edie was screaming, and I mean screaming. I had to hold her little arm down, Dunc held her ... neither looked at each other for fear of bursting into uncontrollable sympathy screaming. After being so happy in the waiting room, when we finally reappeared sans cast but with very post-distressed wee one everyone's faces seemed to share the trauma.

Anyways I have been remiss. I have not been sharing. I am in the naughty bin. I have had so many amazing little vintage finds, gifts and swaps and I have not shown them. But this is changing. It starts frtom today - each post I'm sharing the vintage love. Starting with this cheeky tip off from the lovely Phoebe. She's into roller derby. They are starting a league in Tassie. More on that later. She emailed me to go get some. Orange and blue, she said. Go and check it out. So I did. Below.

...and some cheeky Esk Market finds. Love the caravan curtains. Makes me feel like a road trip, sipping a travel mug of tea whilst the traffic banks up.
Will post more soon - I have been given some vintage treats from very generous people.

Meander

I love the ocean. Now that I live away from it, when I glimpse it my heart jumps a little. Ocean air makes me feel all relaxed and I feel the clarity creeping back. Lazy drives with friends and family. Inspiring meanderings. New oceans and places bring new thoughts. Recharged.

Thank you windy

Many thanks to all who dropped by my stall at Hobart's Mother's Market with kind comments and happy smiles. Up on that breeziest of hills it was lovely to meet you all. And to those who took away a little something, before it blew away...thank you again. Excuse the blogging break, just filling a few orders and enjoying family time x

Finding your Niche

Ok ... I am a little stretched preparing for the Mothers Market. Let's just say I am taking a little sewing break to pop a few thoughts here before heading back to Helga the Husqvana (Jan the Janome is on the blink ...but there my friends is another story) I keep speaking softly to Jan who is now in the other room so she doesn't feel like I've abandoned her for Loz's machine (which luckily just happened to be down here!!) Anyways no time for whit ... just a little pictorial tour of what was just a lovely, lovely weekend and market... walk with me...
Here is Niche in all its splendor in the fabulous UTAS School of Architecture

Here is the lovely Selena, organiser extraordinaire of Niche in a lovely dress with a lovely little girl - hey, that's my daughter!The 'Green Forest' dress on the left is the dress I swapped for ...This amazing purse! Score, my friends, score! I love it - I held it in front of me like skippy the kangaroo for alot of the day - thank you, Rachael.

Here is Rachael's stall full of Franrosie goodness. Salivate.
Here is my new dress I made especially for Niche ... but now they have all gone so none to take to the Mother's Market ... but they get another new guy - so even, OK. But enough about me ... here is a whirlwind of some but not all the stalls - I always got a little side tracked when taking photos...

Rebecca Roth's beautiful resin rings
A tantalising morsel of Tara Badcock's amazing goodies ... just a little tea cosy snippet. Look at those beautiful flowers from her mother's garden!

Cupcake goodness with Naomi and Brendan from Mrs G. Yes I got my rocky road... it was better than I remembered.
Jo Pinckiewicz from Perfecto Interiors - her prints were just so so lovely.
The beautiful Vee with her softies from The Purple Finch

and here is Nadia from St Giles manning (or womaning) Hideyo's warren of bag, print and origami joy.
these were Ann Youl's most divine ribbons. OK so not everyone - I didn't even mention the plum puddings, Indeco, children's hats, chocolates by Kate ... aaah! ...but a good snippet, no?

It really was such a lovely market... I was so thankful to be involved. It just had .... well a beautiful energy created by stallholders and customers alike. I cannot thank Selena and the team at St Giles enough. It was an absolute pleasure to be involved and to feel that I helped out such a worthy organisation just a wee bit.

I must fly. I have procrastinated enough. I have to get back to work...get these fingers stitching