I'm ready for my close-up

The front

The latest camera bag is finally finished...yippee!

Zippered pocket on the back

I had my carpets steam cleaned yesterday, which led to furniture re-arrangement, and of course, a complete and utter mess. After two solid hours of cleaning up aforementioned mess thismorning, I couldn't take it anymore and I retreated to the sewing machine......

Side view - with adjustable strap and antique brass hardware

.......where I put all of the jigsaw pieces together and sewed them into place.

Adjustable padded inserts

I just have to finish off a little bit of hand stitching on the couch tonight while I watch a DVD, and I can pop it in the post to Michelle.

Then tomorrow, it's back to the dreaded mess!

Clicketty Click

My new shoes arrived in the post yesterday.....

In fact, I nearly tripped over them. I'd forgotten to put my garbage bin out on the street the night before and I heard the garbage truck hurtling down the street, so I grabbed a bag of rubbish and headed out the front door.

My lovely postie had jammed the postpak between my flywire door and my heavy door, and I wasn't watching where I was going (and I was wearing moccasins) ..... and it was very nearly an absolute disaster.

Today I'm celebrating not ending up with a broken ankle by wearing my new shoes - with trackie dacks (as you do).

My Creative Space

 My creative space is still all about Michelle's camera bag (it was her birthday yesterday too).

It's on the home stretch now...

There was one final choice to make - antique brass or silver hardware. I've never had such a dilemma over the hardware colour. With most fabrics, it's quite easy to plainly see which one suits better. But, with the linen, the grey and white floral, and the gingham, both colours could have been used.

I'm going to keep you in suspense 'til the end to find out which one Michelle chose!

All of the pieces have been made now, and it's time to fit this jigsaw together.... but first, I'm off to do a little bit of voluntary community service.

I'll catch up on Kirsty's big list once I get back home thisafternoon.

Creative Peeps Interview - Kris from Missie Krissie

All photos and creations remain property of Missie Krissie and have been used with permission

Name

Kristie/Kris

Blog

Missie Krissie

What is your favourite creative pursuit? 

Well, I have many but my current crafty flavour is definitely jewellery design. I love learning new techniques and watching how the metal reacts and forms. Then being able to use a new thing like riveting (recently aquired skill) to make something pretty is exciting.

Mastering the setting of stones is going to take a while, still it takes hours of adjusting and re-adjusting to get them to sit right! And there are still accomplished jewellers who break diamonds, so if I break a moonstone or two, it's not so bad :)

 I also love to make jewellery trees from old silverware. They are fun to make (sometimes tricky/dangerous) and it's a way of giving old things a new and useful life.

 

 What is your earliest creative memory?

I think it's my Gran teaching me how to sew a pin cushion and stuff it, perhaps when I was about 5? I was so proud that she trusted me with the sharp needles. The cushion was a bit wonky and the stuffing poked out the side but I was really excited at having constructed something. I gave it to my mum and she still has her pins in it.

Any other crafty memories would have to be painting or drawing which I was addicted to from a very young age according to my Gran (who still keeps a lot of pictures and talks about it often, lol)


Who inspires you?

Many people. With regards to jewellery design, I constantly trawl the Flickr photos to find other jewellery designers to be amazed by. There are so many talented people! One in particular makes me want to move to the US to be his disciple. Scott has been a professional jeweller for about 20 yrs (I think) and his works take my breath away. You can find him here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/two_claws_jewelry/

With regards to my every day life, I would definitely say my Hubby, Jem. Everyone who meets him can't help but like him. He has the gift of the gab, which I'm sure will enable him to be a great Police Officer. I'd like to have his confidence in talking to strangers, but we'll say I'm still working on it. Jem is a very loving Husband who leaves little notes for me and is the best Dad any little boys could wish for. I am very glad I got my claws into this fish! :)

My two little men (Aus 3 and Noah 1) stress and inspire me in equal proportions every single day. The way they play together and show love for each other, their Dad and Me is just a huge boost to my 'Mummy Morale' and gives me strength to get out of my nice warm bed every morning. 

My parents have also always been hugely inspiring and influential to me. I have a close family and I'll give everything I've got to make sure my little family stay the same way.

What are you currently working on?

Many things at once. Right now I'm in the process of completing a custom graduation set (necklace, ring, bracelet & earrings) part of the WIP can be seen here: 

I love custom works because its such a challenge to create something that will stand up to the customer's expectations. It's so exciting and terrifying at the same time! 

Also the freedom of just fabricating something entirely made up in my own mind is very fulfilling. Seeing the work rough, with fire scale or flux all over it, then turned into something that shines and sparkles gives me happy shivers!

What is your ultimate creative dream?

What I dream of every single day is my own big studio where I can experiment and create beautiful jewellery. I'd love to quit my day job as a Building Designer and just hammer and solder and melt things all day, every day! I think I will eventually get there, but I also need a balance between family life and work. So it may take until my little men are at school during the week to really have the time for growing my business. Until then I'll just use every spare second I have- mainly when kids are sleeping- to indulge my jewellery designing obsession :)

Is your work for sale, and if so, where can I buy it?

 
You can visit my Etsy Shop for my jewellery already for sale and enquire about custom jewellery.

And you can see the jewellery trees and also enquire about custom jewellery through my Missie Krissie blog.

Do you have any upcoming events planned (exhibitions, markets, interviews, courses etc)?

 

Nope, sorry. But I'm hopeful that in the future there will be many :)

Do you have any advice for others who would like to follow their creative dream?

I think you have to love and harbour a burning passion for what you do. As long as you have that, nothing can deter you from success! There will be flops and failures, but if you have passion, you'll continue and get it right.

Thanks so much for the wonderful interview Kristie - I'm always interested in finding out just a little bit more of how others are inspired. If you like what you see here, then why not pop on over to Missie Krissie and enter the giveaway for this gorgeous Rustic Ruffled Sterling Silver and Amethyst Ring by July 31st.

My name is in the barrel and I have my fingers crossed!

One of those days...

I was expecting to have a nice quiet weekend at home.... no real plans, just a bit of sewing.

But the stars were not aligned somewhere along the line, and things started to mysteriously go haywire.
It all began on Saturday when Bec ran out of petrol in my driveway and had to wait two hours for the RACV.
I did at least take advantage of the situation by letting her sort out my big tub of tangled up ric-rac!

Then on Sunday, we decided to have a little crafternoon. For some reason, everything I did, or was trying to do just went horribly wrong. I made an error with my calculations for the camera bag flap and made it too large. So I unpicked it all, and made it smaller... problem fixed. Then it was time to sew the clip onto the flap, but I couldn't find it anywhere. I searched and searched and searched - then after half an hour, I remembered that I'd clipped it onto the body of the bag so I wouldn't lose it...deeeerrrrrrr!

The final straw came when I was using my lovely covered tape measure to find the centre point to attach the flap. One minute I was using the tape measure.... the next minute it had disappeared!

By this time, I thought Bec was playing tricks on me by hiding things on purpose..... only to finally find the tape measure inside the bag body.

I think somedays we all should just give up and go back to bed!

Fleamarket Finds

I haven't been anywhere near the oppy this week, but I did receive something lovely.

My mum found this little sleeve press at a garage sale in the country. It still had all of the padded covering, but she said that it was in really bad condition, so she took it off and cleaned up the wood for me.

It's hard to tell from the photo, but it's quite a bit smaller than my other vintage sleeve press.

I have a question though - what should I cover it with? Any ideas?

For more fleamarketeers, pop on over and visit Sophie.

Microsoft Office Home and Business 2010 - Winner

Thanks so much to everyone who entered my giveaway.... and now to the exciting part!

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the boy would love me forever! and well it would mean id love to use his computer ha ha! thanks! - Visit I need this software! I have a very old system on my computer and it is slowing me down! Help me become speedy and efficient! - Visit Id love to win this Cam, it would be ace for the whole family xo - Visit I have to upgrade my 5 year old laptop and it would be ace to not have to outlay the moolah for some software! - Visit Great give away Cam. - Visit My poor retro pc is chugging along with Vintage OfficeXP so I would be SUPER EXCITED to try such a new fangled version!! - Visit Oh please count me in, I bought the student version last year & it doesnt have outlook *sob* DH wont let me buy this one :( - Visit Oooh it would be great to have the business component and Id love to upgrade the Office. Thanks Cam x - Visit My computer does email and internet but not much else. I think this might just improve things a little! - Visit Id love to win this bec. our computer needs to be "dood-ed up" with useful programs- its embarrassing! - Visit Wow, wouldnt it be nice to be up to date!! - Visit Wow, wouldnt it be nice to be up to date!! - Visit Id love to win this Software because Ive just started my new business, getting a new computer and this is just what I need. - Visit What a great giveaway! I would donate it to my local fire brigade (I am the secretary so know it something we need!). - Visit Oooh I would really need to win this - Visit Honestly, I think the newest version we have is 2005 - this would be a great update for us that we really cant afford! - Visit wonderful Cam! thanks - Visit Seeing as my old version is not doing too well on Vista, I would love to enter. And youve got to be in it to win it, even - Visit A very generous giveaway! Hope you pick me! - Visit Oooh a giveaway!!! Im about to update my computer... so winning this would be fantastic!!! - Visit I scraped and scraped to buy a PC, to find it had no msoffice. A single mum with a toddler my pc keeps me company at night. - Visit This linky list is now closed.

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 The winner is number 32 - Abbe from Copper Patch.

Congratulations Abbe - can you please email me your address and I'll pop your prize in the post first thing Monday morning!

Flashback Friday Fashion Fail - The Debutante Edition

I just have one question that I should have asked a 16 year old me - What on earth were you thinking girl?????


I'm quite sure that you won't be able to actually find me in that see of white puffy meringues (although it might be fun to play 'spot the white puffy Wally'). I'm blaming it all on the 80's..... the decade that fashion most definitely should have forgotten. It was the 16th May 1989, and I was in Year 10 at the time.

It was a year when jeans had to had cuffs, and Doc Martens were the footwear of choice. I was listening to a very strange mix of music - INXS, The Smiths, Motley Crue (Ok - Motley Crue was totally due to peer pressure).

I loved the dress at the time - it was white taffeta with ruching down the sides and back, a lace overlay at the front, and a hoop underneath to add the poufiness.... oh, and matching white satin gloves of course!

I carried that dress around for years and years. The cat ended up using it as a bed in the bottom of my wardrobe at my old house, so I finally threw it out when I moved last year. I've only just realised that I'd been carrying it around from 1989 - 2009.... that's 20 years!

I hated my hairdo. I lived in a little country town (which I'm certainly not going to mention) and the local hairdresser gave me that horrible puffy blow wave, and then used half a can of hair lacquer to stiffen it. I didn't have time to wash it out and start again, so I just had to go with it.

Ahhhh the memories...... I think it might have even been the first time that I ever had far too much to drink.

If you'd like to play along and show us all your fashion fail moment, then please do! It doesn't have to a debutante ball. It could have been a wedding, a formal, a party anything! Just pop in your link so we can all come and visit.