Dear Chloe

Let me just start by saying how much I love you, how quiet and different life would be without you...I would be devastated if you were not here.

One day, I hope that you have your own children.  Not so that I can have grand children.  I am far to young to be wanting grand children, yet!  I would like for you to have your own child/ren, so that you can have a taste of your own medicine.  I am fairly certain that my mother felt the same about me.

Here is why I hope for grand children...so that every day you can:

• be whacked in the eye
• cracked on the head with a very heavy little head - at least once a day
• be awake by 6am...at the latest....EVERY day
• ...and be at the mercy of a fully wound child from the moment that her eyes open
• be elbowed in the boob, regularly
• mop water and milk off the floor every 5 minutes
• be screamed/head butted/pushed and pulled at while food is prepared - you have a bit of a see-food-want-food-now issue
• follow your child around - retrieving her from:
• window sills
• tables - including my sewing table!
• standing on and tipping little chairs over
• and stopping her from climbing into the bath full of water
• mop up the flood when the dog water bowl is tipped over
• rescue brushes, paper, clothing, hair clips... from the toilet
• change the poopy nappy of a baby that does not want to lie down
• clean the floor of food every single time your child eats
• ....especially the cheerios and milk that are dumped on the floor when you have had enough
• so that you can see what you are able to squeeze into that precious nap hour
• polish those dents in the floor, from whatever is is that you have just thrown, so that Daddy doesn't see them and get cross
• so that you can have a never-ending stream of teeny tiny clothes to wash and hang
• stop your child from acting like superman off of the couch and bean bag
• clean off food and drink that has been smeared into the couch
• have your furniture used as a jungle gym
• ...and have your protests and threats completely ignored

You are only just 16mths old, but - oh man! - you are the noisiest, most busy and active, destructive, messy and trouble causing little monster that I have ever experienced.  I thought that girls were supposed to be easy?

But then also, so that you have a little person to:

• sew cute clothes for
• hug and cuddle
• give you wet little kisses
• give pigtails to - that first pigtail is the cutest

Number Coins

Ava is really interested in numbers and letters right now.  She is getting pretty darn good at recognising letters too.  Numbers, not so much.  So, I made her these little wooden coins.

They were actually very easy to make.

I already had the coins and 5 colours of woodstain (suitable for being nibbled on / saliva proof).  So I simply brushed a few coats of the stain on with a soft brush.  I used an old dish towel as my working surface - I didn't fancy the wet coins sticking to paper or staining our nice table.

The stained coins were so pretty, I almost couldn't bring myself to write on them...

Anyhow, I let the coins dry for a few hours and then wrote on them with my white Posca marker.  The ink kept sinking into the coins, so I gave the writing a few coats - leaving each coat to dry for a little while first.  The white ink gradually built up.

There are 2 coins of each number.  On the 1 side I have written the number and on the other there are dots for her to count and figure out what the number says.  I should probably have done numbers 1-20, rather than 2 sets of 10...but how would I have fitted 20 dots on to the back!?

Robots on the Brain

Remember my post about my robots being available to buy on Spoonflower?

Well, my sample finally arrived the other day!  I am so pleased with how they look.  I chose to print my fat quarter on their linen/cotton canvas.  They say that this particular fabric would be good for tea towels, amongst other things.  Well, they certainly are right.  It has a gorgeous weight to it and is lovely and firm with a dense weave.

I just have a teeny tiny dilemma now....will I use my piece to make something to sell...or something for us...or for a gift?  Whichever way I go - how the heck am I going to decide what to use it for!?  Pencil case - cushion - back pack - pillowcase - ???

What would you suggest I make and do with whatever I make?  Any and all suggestions would be gratefully received!

A Teensy Bit of Craftiness

Somehow, *things* seem to be really busy at home right now.  A lot of it being mischief making, with these two monkeys.  But mostly to do with the building work going on - really just paving...but a whole lot of it - Flower Daddy doing some of the work himself, at weekends too.  All in all, I am getting very little time to be crafty.  It is sending me a little bonkers.

But, yesterday, Ava had an afternoon snooze which kind of co-ordinated with Chloe's snooze.  Ava sleeping during the day means a  v-e-r-y  very late night...so not a great idea...especially with the crankiness that follows the next day.  Anyhow, it meant that I was able to sew a little.

So...did I sew something useful...or something for me to wear....or something for one of the girls to wear...?

Nope!

I sewed a dolls nappy!  Ava keeps using Chloe's 4+ nappies on her dolls.  It looks a bit ridiculous - nappy to armpit...  The nappy fabric is my new dandilion print in gold.  Which I rather love.  It was a scrap test piece.  {I based the nappy pattern on this one}

Oh...my camera also broke.  So, pics are a bit ick from my phone.

I will be requesting some *me time* this weekend of Flower Daddy.  I have new fabric that needs tending to - printing and sewing, pj's that need making and general sewing space tidy-upping!

If my request can not be fulfilled... I might just spontaneously combust.

Lots Happening Here Today

While Chloe has a snooze and Ava is having a little quiet time...I am sketching a new design....Daisy is sun-tanning and the digger is digging (we are paving out the back of our house - and the front - and building a few outside walls).  The house is surrounded by very sticky mud.  Which means muddy doggy paws and tricky entering/exiting of the house with the girls....

Generally, it is pretty darn hectic at home right now.

It was definitely more peaceful at work!  Even although my 'week' was filled with deadlines!!

Later today, I am hoping to be allowed out the house to go and collect some new fabric - the fabric that I mentioned on Monday.

I would love to hear what you are doing today?

It's No Surprise

...that once again I am plotting and scheming....

I am a-l-w-a-y-s plotting and scheming new ideas!  This particular idea is for Christmas presents.  If it all goes well, there may be a few shop appearances too.

I am very excited.  But.  Then.  I always am when I have a new bee in my bonnet...

Do you see that pile of fabric up there?  Well, those are some samples from a few different fabric suppliers of various cottons/hemp/linen.  I have a plan for bigger pieces of a few of them.  A plan that involves screen printing.  A plan that maybe involves a little bit of leather.  Maybe I just gave the game away, maybe not.  But, for now, that is all I will say.

Don't hold your breath waiting for me to reveal.  We know that sometimes I take a little while to follow through on my plans!  I don't want you going blue in the face and keeling over on me!!

Happy Robots on Spoonflower

For the last few days I have been "in message" with a fellow fabric lover who asked for a bigger piece of my screen printed robots design....

Well, between the two of us we decided that Spoonflower was the way to go.   This is what we have finalised.  Isn't it just so fun?!



You too can order a Happy Robot panel as big as your heart desires and in whatever fabric floats your boat over on Spoonflower.

Oh...and if you reeeeeaaaaally need pink robots with blue shapes, or whatever, let me know and between us we can create your favourite colour-way!

A Skirt for Me!

Looky what I finished this morning...

A skirt for me!  It is a deep pinky-purply-fuschia-y sort of colour, in stretchy corduroy.  The pattern is from the latest Ottobre Woman's magazine and is pattern #12 .  You can see their skirt on page 4.

I must say that I am rather pleased with myself.  Especially after unpicking the zip and seams numerous times - I think that I cut it a size or 2 too big!  Also - little people distractions are not the easiest thing to cope with while trying to concentrate on cutting and sewing.

I used my new fabric designs for the pockets, pocket facings and waist facings.  Am especially pleased with the way the pockets turned out!  The raspberry poppy print is on a scrap piece of natural loomstate denim - wish I could find more of this fabric...

I think that I will be wearing my new skirt to work this week!