I had a lot of fun painting these wooden bangles one evening recently, getting paint everywhere including my hair, and making a general mess. I found the natural wood bangles in a box at my local Spotlight shop (I think I bought the last 2 boxes sorry), sanded them a little, and used a thick…

I've been having some adventures in recycling lately. This bag and purse started out their life as a cotton eiderdown for a single bed- the kind that are less popular these days, lightly quilted and padded with batting. When I found the eiderdown looking sad at the second-hand store, I thought I'd give it a…

When I found this soft gingham cotton recently I knew it would be suitable for a come-on-blue-skies or hurry-up-spring kind of dress for K. And here is the dress it made. It's my own pattern, with big and stretchy side pockets and a loose-fitting style. And the bluest-blue cotton. The small girl is in a…

On Sunday, K went to visit my parents. She returned home with three straw and mud-covered eggs, a handful of small and perfect snowdrop flowers, and a tuft of sheep's fleece she found attached to a fence. It feels as though a warmer season is on its way soon.  My friend Lotus sent me the…

I was thrilled to 'embroider' the cover of the latest Extra Curricular magazine, which is fresh off the press this week. This issue has a stitch-making focus, so Ellie asked if I'd make a botanical winter embroidery for the cover design. I also wrote and drew a little stitch guide for beginner embroiderers, and a…

Louana gave me three of these small vintage linens a while back in the palest sea-green, each with a sprig of flowers embroidered on one corner. I copied the style of the original stitching and embroidered an all-over pattern on the linen, and made it up into a needlebook and matching pouch as part of…

I found the blue and cream dress in an op-shop back in the summer, and something about it was very familiar to me and I couldn't help buying it to alter. When I saw this post on Rummage (I love that blog) I remembered my blue dress languishing in the cupboard, and got cutting and…

We had the leftovers of an Antarctic storm blowing through town over the weekend, so it seemed a good time to settle in by the fire and do a bit of stitching. I finally finished this cross-stitch sampler that I started in the Christmas holidays and have worked on now and then since. I've learned…

I made a batch of russian fudge as a thank-you gift this week for a friend. Hooo boy is it ever sweet and creamy. Trying a piece made me think of my Dad, who has an amazing tolerance of sweet things and so I wrapped a batch up for him, too. I used this great…

Can you believe I was lucky enough to be gifted part of a hexagon quilt last week? Thank you again, L. This patchwork was made by L when her children were small, and it includes some fabrics I remember from my own childhood. She sent a note with the quilt saying that she'd used some…