Bits and bobs

I'm loving the instant books, I made another one for a friend who just had a baby...

Tahi's hoodie fits perfectly, now I just need to add some fun to it (I was going to try making a dinosaur stencil, but it might take a while...).

I finally took some photos of Miro's other sleeping cocoon, a warmer version made with an upcycled woolen top and lined with organic cotton.

The busy season

Summer is a busy time in the garden and the kitchen for us. I went through a jam making phase: strawberry, plum and rhubarb. Then I decided to try and pickle gherkins! We didn't actually grow them, maybe next year... our local green grocer sells them in buckets of 5kg, so I got one of those and tried out three different recipes... verdict in 6 weeks!

We've also just harvested our pumpkins... 24 of them! Hopefully this year they won't rot like last year. We probably ate about a dozen pumpkins in 2 months so they wouldn't go to waste!

mini art journal challenge: weeks 48

This week's challenge: "Ideas". Well, I don't know about you, but I feel like my head's always full of ideas... it's just finding the time to to bring them to life that's hard! My inspiration can come for very random places, which is why I chose to remind myself to keep my brain busy! Read books, observe my surroundings, live in the moment and cast a candid eye over everything!

Board shorts

I saw some very cool board shorts a mum had made for her son on the Celebrate the boy Flickr group, and I thought they'd look perfect on Tahi (him being a beach boy and all). I do have a decent collection of men's shirts in my stash of fabrics, and it didn't take ling to find one that would do the job. I love upcycled men's shirts, there are so many possibilities. The result is pretty satisfying, oh he looks so cute!

We went for a play to the beach the day Tahi wore his board shorts, so for once I got some really nice shots of my handmade stuff... should do that more often!

Tahi and his friend Mia spent a good half hour jumping from a log, it was so funny, I wish I was that small again and everything seems huge!

A book on books

I've been wanting to learn how to make books for ages, but like many of my "wants", never get round to it. I saw a book at the library the other day that reminded me of this interest of mine, so next time I went in I got a few out. I really liked one of them in particular, aptly titles "How to make books" (that's pretty straight to the point isn't it?). It looks cool (yes, it is important!), has funky illustrations and simple explanations with step by step instructions. It also has photos of some artists' books (great for inspiration). There are several techniques explained, ranging from super simple to more elaborate.

I made my first "book" in 5 seconds with a page taken from a kids' book that has seen better days (or been too loved?). I'm excited with the result!

Now I can't wait to have some spare time (spare what???) to try other techniques.

Inspired

I don't get much time to sew these days, although I'm incredibly lucky to have my mum staying with us (she's been here since mid January and is leaving at the end of the week). This means I've been able to spend some time with Miro and every now and again I've also managed to sneak into my workshop and make stuff. I made some pants for Miro, and ironed some felt letters on the back of one of the pair that spell out "Miro".

And I made three circle skirts, using this super easy tutorial at Dana Made It, one for a friend's daughter's birthday, two for my cousin's two daughters.

I'd also made a dress from an upcycled tee shirt for another friend's daughter's birthday but was in such a rush that I forgot to take a photo...

Lastly I made a pair of board shorts using an upcycled men's shirt. I've been wanting to make a pair for Tahi so this pair was my trial one.

Next I'd like to make some pants and a hoodie for Tahi... winter's just around the corner!

mini art journal challenge: weeks 46 and 47

Week 46: "rejuvenation". I feel like I definitely need some of that! Traveling is a great way to relax and see things from a different angle for me, and since Tahi was born I feel we haven't done that enough. apart from the occasional trip to Wellington for Josh's work, we haven't been out of Gisborne much. We spent two days and one night up the coast at some friend's farm, and we all loved it. So I'll be looking forward to some more of that!

Week 47: "Your happy place". I kind of already journaled about that on week 40's card, so I deviated from the theme a bit and the "happy place" idea became my "place to escape". Even though there is no physical place, books have always been a great escape for me. I love reading a good book and feeling like I am there, part of the story and living it. I used to lock myself in the toilet for hours when I was younger, and every now and again I tend to linger in there with a book or magazine in hand. Tahi seems to show the same interest in books, and both Josh and I are glad he does. He can remember phrases from a book after having read it a couple of times, and often I can hear him repeat whole phrases while playing with his toys. It's so cute!