Happiness for 50 cents.........

Patchy Daisy pincushions have made an appearance.... 

After finishing off my latest tea cosy I was still enjoying playing with a mix of bright fabrics, so whipped up a couple of these to get it out of my system.

Polka dots have also been making an appearance this week......

This morning I headed off bright and early with a couple of friends to go on an op shop adventure.

Three towns, six op shops.....treasures to be discovered!!

I found this little beauty and couldn't resist its charm.

Happiness for 50 cents.......

I might fill it with doilies......or

some of my wool stash......

I did tell hubby I bought it for him to take his lunch to work in, but I don't think he believed me!!

At Red Ramia in Myrtleford I spied these wonderful cotton reels,

the perfect thing for storing some of my trims on.

 Might need a few more  as I have quite a stash of ribbons and trims.....

and there's plenty of room on the shelf for more ...

 Well I finally finished the tea cosy and I'm pleased with how it turned out.

It reminds me of Spring and all the new growth in the garden.

It's for sale on my Face book site, if you wold like to head over there and have a look....

Another bout of hot weather has arrived and it's a big job keeping the garden going......

The birdbaths are topped up every morning and sticks placed in them for the smaller birds and any bees that might need a drink.....

So girls, have you been on any adventures this week, or found something special to make you smile?.....I hope so...

Thanks for visiting and take care,

Claire X

In the Summer Time................

Summer is officially here, not that you would necessarily know it considering the weather we have been having, but it is starting to warm up and as they say "it's getting a little sweaty around the armpits".......

Friday I happened to be in town so thought I would visit a couple of op shops and hooray, after a bit of a drought I found some 'pretties' to take home.

The above tea cloth was purchased for the princely sum of $1.00.

Needs a little soak to remove a couple of marks, but apart from that is perfect.

The design is red and blue ! Tulips.

I was thinking maybe a bag or some such, but once I got it home and had a good look at it, I really don't know how I could even think about cutting it up.

I will pop it in the drawer with the rest of the tea and table cloths (which are actually starting to take up a bit of room...) and think about it for awhile.

When I say "think about it for awhile" I probably mean ..... put them away and forget about them until I need a table cloth, which may be quite some time.....

I also spied these doilies in another op shop and felt they really should come home with me. They were priced at $1.50 each which for this particular op shop is quite cheap.

Some lovely lady with alot of time on her hands had taken them home and laundered them and then carefully sewn them onto card to display them and keep them looking lovely.

I know there are bloggers in the UK who would pick up this lot at a car boot sale for as little as 50p but unfortunately I never see bargains like that around here.

After seeing such beautiful snow photos on blogs I felt I needed a little Wintry Wonderland of my own to enjoy.

You all know how much I love Red Robins..................... well, what else could it be but a beautiful little Robin sitting on a Holly branch fluffed up to keep warm against the falling snow.

This is the first embroidery hoop picture I have made and it was so much fun I made a couple more.

If you would like your own Wintry Wonderland to hang in your home, I have a couple for sale, just send me an email .

Here is a closer pic, just click on it to enlarge.



We have been having alot of tropical type rain recently and it has sent the garden into overdrive, which means there is plenty of weeding and pruning to be done.

The Lavender is in full flower and fortunately hasn't been flattened by the storms.
The Wisteria is sending out tendrils, which, if you stand still for too long, threaten to envelope you!

With the rain comes flooding and it's amazing to see nearby rivers and creeks overflowing. I mean this is December, quite unusual.

As I was reminded by my BIL (brother in law) this was pretty much normal weather back in the 70's.
He is a few years older than me, but I do remember quite a few major floods back then, in the Winter time not Summer!



The first Dahlia of Summer, alot brighter in colour than the photo shows.
Last year they never flowered at all, so it's nice to see a few buds.



With the warmer weather a certain four legged, furry person spends alot of time doing the above.
Doesn't seem to matter where he is, he can close his eyes and be oblivious to the noise and commotion going on around him.
Wish I had that ability.....

Well, that's just a little bit of what's been happening in my corner of the globe.
Sewing and gardening are almost getting equal time at the moment!!!

One of my chooks is sitting on a few eggs and by the end of the week there maybe the sound of some chickens cheeping away.

I have never had chickens hatch before, so this is all very exciting. I am in the process of fencing off an area for her and her brood.

We have crows that do a fly by the chicken run at feeding time and I can imagine a fluffy little chick, would be very tempting to them.

This week I shall be trying to stay cool as the temps. rise, but there is more rain forecast as well......

Windows need cleaning too, so that can wait for a nice cool day.

Might rope No 1 in to help, certainly handy to have a 6' high fella around to reach those corners you can't.....

I'm sure he'll be more than happy to help out !!

Well, wherever you are and whatever the weather, look after yourself and thanks for stopping by for a visit.

Big thanks to all those that leave a comment, always lovely to hear from you and what's going on in your corner of the globe.

Till next time, take care,

Claire X

It Won't Hurt A Bit I Promise!!

Scissors at the ready, will I won't I?!!

It didn't hurt a bit, honestly. Make sure you use doily's that haven't been handed down from your great great great grandmother! Can't remember where this one came from, but it does have some mildew marks on it. I should be able to get another cover out of the other end. The embroidery was lovely and I am more than happy with how the cover turned out.


Here it is front and back, once again using the fabric from the Butterfly Journal Cover. I thought it was a nice match with the embroidery.

Ah, Violets, "how could I " you ask, "quite easily" I reply. Love the colours, purple and green two of my favourites and throw in some polka dots and there you have it. Wasn't sure about all the blank space on the doily, but I decided to leave it alone and not muck about with it.

Two together, I think they look quite nice and certainly a different use for a doily. Instead of having them in a drawer being eaten by silverfish, or worse still completely forgotten, give them a new lease on life.

Thoughts please, do you like them or not, be honest now.

Aha, recognise the flower variety, I hope so!! Zinnias, I love them, the gorgeous colours they come in ,light up the garden in summer and it's soooo nice to cut a bunch and bring inside. "Earth laughs in flowers" is the quote.

Front and back view

For those living in the Northern Hemisphere where it's a little chilly at the moment, I thought you might like to see what 's happening in gardens down south. I hear your Spring is on the way, so be patient. All good things are worth waiting for. These are Belladonna Lillies or Naked Ladies, usually you see the pink variety but these are the white ones. They are veeeeeeeery special, dug up from my mum's garden after she passed away. She loved her garden and as we were going to sell her unit, I didn't' want everything to be lost if the new owner was a non gardener!

I dug them up and gave them a home in my garden, it has taken three years but finally they have flowered.

Haven't they put on a beautiful display, the perfume is divine and off to the right is "Curtsy Girl" also belonging to mum. Don't know if that's the correct name for her or just what mum referred to her as.

Mmmmmmm, delicious colours, so bright and clear. Love the yellow around the centre. Zinnias are so cheery and hardy, they make me feel happy and it's always a surprise to see what colour the first flower on the plant is going to be.


Oops, I clicked something and the photo has completely disappeared, so you will just have to take my word for it (hmmm, scratches head thoughtfully!)

Another cheery, happy flower, Sunflowers with the Zinnias in the background. These are a small variety of Sunflower but still lovely and the chooks love the seed heads if the sparrows leave any for them!

Speaking of chooks, my rooster and Mrs Rock were happy to pose for me unlike the other somewhat camera shy girls.

It has been awfully humid this past week, which is not the usual summer weather. It is usually a very dry heat here, but there were tropical type storms brewing, so what do you do, grab your didgeridoo and go outside and play it of course! You can see the storm off to the right, someone is already receiving a good downpour. Our air conditioner is now fixed, hooray. We are soft aren't we, but being a winter person, I dislike the heat and humidity.

Mind you I decided to clean windows during the week and the perspiration was just pouring off me. Once I get an idea and am in the mood it's better to go with it and get it done than to put it off .

We have just had another down pour this afternoon about 6pm. Down came the rain in buckets, the tank was overflowing , the garden certainly got a good watering which is fabulous. In about 10 minutes or so we received 10.5 mls. Nothing to compare with the downpour in Melbourne last week, but we are grateful for every drop.

So what does the coming week have in store? I am planning to make a crochet hook roll, to keep all my hooks in one place. I have nearly finished one wrist warmer/ sleeveless glove, (you choose) I am very happy with how it is coming along and have managed to do quite a few rows whilst waiting to upload all these photos to my blog!! No doubt there will be more book covers in store. I must hand sew some brooch backs onto some sweet little "Kombi " brooches. I think that's enough to keep me going for a while, don't you?

Whatever your week has in store for you I hope it's a good one and you find time to create something that makes you smile and your heart sing.

Chocolate cake does that for me every time!!

Until next time

C X