bliss

This morning I woke to the soothing sounds of Angus and Julia Stone that my beloved had playing in the background....a far cry from the sounds of COD which is normally going! I was immediately inspired to open up the french doors in my bedroom and whist sitting there with my cup of tea and taking in the warm breeze I was looking at my wardrobe and realised I really need some yummy skirts for summer. I rummaged through my shelves of linen and found a lovely yellow number which I could use and finished a green vintage retro cloth skirt which I wore today. The other pictures are random photos of some of my jewelry boxes which are in great need of sorting and re-modelling at a later date though!

this one's for me

One of my dearest friends is moving to Sydney tomorrow and now that the word is out regarding my label

Elk and Antler, she gave me a fabulous leather bomber jacket which was made in Argentina. I could hardly contain myself as I was walking out of her door at 3am on Saturday morning. I just wanted to go home and sew of course but the effects of Captain Morgan were taking their toll and who knows what may have come into fruition. Needless to say the days have rolled by but I managed to do this one this morning before the creatures in my household arose. I've decided to keep it for myself...for the time being anyways. The gorgeous floral detail was the upper arm or sleeve, very wide as they were in the 80's, so I still have another sleeve to make another bag. Yay for me!

are you tempted to try?

prickly pear cactus mojito (recipe below)

exploration

Whilst visiting my nanna yesterday I momentarily was taken back to a fabulous afternoon in Lake Tahoe, California where I had my first encounter with the prickly pear! You see my grandparents have a property which has a very inspiring market garden, almond groves, peppercorn trees galore, grapevines and fruit trees and amongst all of this some fabulous succulents and a prickly pear cactus which is one of my favourite cacti.

If you get a chance to venture abroad or find a store which stocks Prickly Pear Cactus Syrup you must try this mojito.
                       It's 1 1/2 T of prickly pear cactus syrup
                       8 mint leaves
                       juice of 1 lime
                       2 ounces of rum
                       ice
                       2 ounces of soda water

It's the perfect partner to have with your favourite Mexican fired meal as it has a fruity, tangy almost bubblegummie flavour and I am absolutely hooked.

in the letterbox today

I've never expressed this in so many words, but I love going out to the letterbox to see what has arrived for me that day. (childlike I know, but hey....) Most days it's just the regular sort of mail, but sometimes I get lovely little surprises like today from a friend I only meet ever so briefly but has spoilt me with her lovely, kind comments via email and treasures in the post. I must have expressed to her that I liked, no not liked, adored birds, birds in flight, ducks crossing the road with their ducklings, kookaburras singing, magpies on the balcony waiting for a feed of red meat, peacocks on the gravel driveway, seagulls wanting your hot chips, swans on the lake, finches collecting grass seeds I've just planted, even cheeky keas in the mountains pulling to pieces my frozen windscreen wipers!

Me being abstract in thought and mind loves the plainest outline of the birds. Anyways, here is what came for me today and I feel an urge to start sewing a comin on! Thankyou Cherie......I feel blessed to have a friend with such a kind heart! xx

Wordless Wednesday

first charcoal

Today I'm

Today I'm going to be fluttering around the house like a butterfly in full flight as I feel very inspired to get some of my projects finished that I have started previously and seem to be pulled away from! My first one is to finish off Ky's cushion for his room which I am making out of this linen tablecloth I found with the map of NZ. You see I bought him a ticket to Wanaka last week and he is heading off in February so we are keeping with the theme and doing a few kiwiana things.

 This one is a vintage blanket I cut out a few weeks ago and placed a crochet runner over the top. That's how far I got but today I'd like to sew it together somehow (haven't worked that part out yet) and construct a market bag. These "blanket" bags are my favourite, something about the smell of the wool, the softness and the weight of the bag when it's finished and I love the overall rawness about it. Actually I'm really excited about this one. I think it's going to be a beauty!

 This week Avy and I went shopping....at DFO and we got some fabulous silk tops and skirts but we still needed a bit more of a buzz so we headed to the op-shops and found some beautiful tablecloths, vintage dresses and shoes and here is one of the cloths I am making into a skirt today. It's ever so soft and just what I need for those warm summer days and something I will feel comfortable in!

 I'm loving the retroness about this little number and have cut the general shape out and thought I would trim in a cotton cream lace for a little added girliness. To my like-minded girlie friends it's vital we stay playful, young and vibrant! I know some of you KNOW WHAT I'M ON ABOUT!

And this one, well the navy and cream's just did it for me, kind of like the waters in NZ hitting the volcanic sands on a stormy afternoon and the sea foam on top. It's really large so I'm going to use just the bottom half to make a skirt, which I will need to take in by running down the side seams then adding a few darts into at the top.

So, that's my day today and inbetween all of this activity I'll be recharging myself with fresh vegetable juices  and a broccoli soup for lunch. Yum!

Leftovers

These are a few ideas I executed today with the leftover pieces I had in my basket. I'm quite happy with the clutch and it was fun to make and quick. It's a lovely rose pink suede. It looks quite small but is 30cm wide and 15cm deep.

This one is for the men-folk, being a deep port wine colour and the leather is quite durable. Great for passports, ipod, cell phone.