Skirting Inspiration

Front View - Frances is quite a bit smaller than me - hence the pins!

I promised myself before Christmas that I would use some of my holiday time just to make some things for me. I'm always sewing for other people, and hardly ever make anything for myself.

At the very top of the list was a skirt. After my previous disastrous attempt, I needed to just start again from scratch. I've been watching in awe at some of the beautiful skirts that have been popping up about the place, so I finally made some time today to have a go myself.

Rear view

I borrowed Sew What Skirts from Bec a couple of weeks ago (I've since ordered a copy from Amazon... just waiting for it to arrive).

I decided to make myself an A-line tablecloth skirt from the book, using a.......eeeeerrrr tablecloth suprisingly!

To make the front pockets, I just cut two feature pieces from the tablecloth, interfaced the backs of both for some extra strength, and then added bias binding around all four sides, before sewing them into place.

The method in the book for adding a zipper was pretty simple too.  Mine certainly isn't perfect, but it's completely functional.

I decided to topstitch both the waistband and the bottom hem using red thread for an extra highlight..... not that this loud print really needs and extra highlighting.

I didn't quite measure myself properly in the beginning, so I did have to make an adjustment to the side seams for fitment, and I wish I had made it a little bit longer (again my own dodgy measuring skills). I would have also preferred it to be a little more A-line. My hip measurement is not much different than my waist measurement which caused the lack of A-lineness problem.

This ended up taking me about three hours in total, but I learned a few very interesting lessons which will make it much easier to whip up a few more with the correct measurements from the beginning!

Time for another giveaway

Inspired by Sharon's wonderful giveaway over here at Handmaiden, I'm joining in with another giveaway to celebrate the launch of the new SEWN website....

You can also enter another fabulous giveaway at Sewn, sign up to have your own giveaway, and check out who else is having a giveaway (I promise that I won't be entering and winning all of them)!

I'm giving away one of my new flower brooches.... you may remember the crazy stitching from last week.

I've used it to make flower petals for brooches, and then I've stiffened them and shaped them to look more flower-like. This brooch is approximately 7cm x 7cm.

To win, you just need to leave a comment by June 8th - which is the official SEWN giveaway date.

Don't forget that I'm drawing the winner of my apron giveaway tonight too!

PS - There's another fab giveaway at What Katy Did

Swapsies

The fabulous thing about selling at a craft market is that you get to meet lots of other amazing crafters.... and you even get to swap your wares!

I was lucky enough to come home with some gorgeous Flickettysplits creations from the Made'n'Thornbury market, while Troischats went home with an IOU a Burnt Pumpkin Orange Corduroy Handbag from me.

We've been on the lookout for the perfect shade of burnt pumpkin orange corduroy ever since, but with no luck...... until she found this burnt pumpkin orange fuzzy fabric instead.

It arrived in the mail yesterday, and as today is Troischat's birthday, I went straight to work to whip up the handbag so that we could meet up at the Sisters Market thisafternoon.

The strap folds wouldn't even fit under the presser foot of my poor old Janome, so it was the trusty Vintage Singer to the rescue (after I printed out the instructions to try to work out how to change the bobbin, and then broke three needles).

Look..... no floppy bottom on this one!

I finished in the nick of time, and took a few quick snapshots in the morning light before I headed out to meet up with the ladies who lunch for a long relaxing brunch (I really didn't mean for that to rhyme)!

Then it was off to the market to check out all the gorgeous crafty wares on offer. It was crafty blog central with Bec, Fi, Justine, and Jay.

Such a perfect day....

Love Handmade Jewellery

I've realised lately that I have a passion (some may say addiction) for handmade jewellery.
I have a huge array from casual and funky, to formal and dressy, but I absolutely love all of it!

Usually the most difficult question I ask myself each morning is "Which pieces of jewellery shall I wear with my outfit"?

Following my passion, I bought myself a pair of these beautiful Belle earrings from Sharon at Handmaiden. They're a lovely silvery grey, perfect for an occassion where I need to dress up.

Sharon has just launched her Etsy store this weekend where you can find all of her beautiful creations.

I've also been coveting the lovely jewellery creations of Lauren Williams for quite a while now.

I was lucky enough to do a swap with Lauren and I received this gorgeous necklace and matching ring. The necklace pendant can be taken off and then it doubles as a brooch. Yah for multifunctional jewellery!

Lauren has a Made It shop full of lovely creations to check out.

Now..... I need to decide what to wear today!

Eye Spy..... a new development

Yesterday was another lovely day out at Amitie Upstairs for the Thornbury Craft Bonanza. I didn't really have anything crafty planned to do for the day, so I put my hand up to help Bev with some quilts that she was putting together for Handmade Help.

I have never ever tried to make a proper quilt, and I've never ever tried hand quilting.


This is as far as I got....... but, my new development is that I actually enjoyed it. I'm usually the queen of the quick (less than two hours) and easy (meaning machine sewing) project, but in the last week or so, I've actually been craving for some sort of craft where I can snuggle up on the couch and relax and watch telly. The best bit about hand quilting is that you can snuggle up with the quilt while you're stitching. Who knew it could be so relaxing? Ok, so you probably all knew that already, but I didn't.... I'm such a duffa!


Here are all the girls hard at work


and Anabel modelling her quilt

Bev made delicious Zucchini and Cinnamon cake...

and Sharon made delicious Carrot and Walnut cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting (so I bet you can guess what I had instead of lunch)!

We finished off with a lovely dinner (albeit a bit noisy) in Black Rock.

For those that know me, no I don't eat seafood.... I actually forgot to take a photo of my own dinner!

Thankyou Christina for this weeks Eye Spy theme and to our lovely hostess Cindy.

Eye Spy....something delicious

Eye Spy some delicious scones (made by Liesl) that I bought home from yesterdays Thornbury Craft Bonanza at Amitie....

I haven't felt much like blogging today. I spent the day packing linen and kitchen items, with Sky News on in the background, updating the Victorian Bushfire crisis minute by minute. It's now 9.20 PM, and the latest news is that 76 people have lost their lives, and there are still more missing.

Apparently, the best way to help is to send a donation of money, or to donate blood (as there are many burns victims who will desperately need it over the next few weeks). The Red Cross Bushfire Appeal information can be found here, and you can find out how to donate blood here.

As I was packing boxes in the afternoon, there was a woosh of wind in the tree outside the kitchen door and then a big thump. This poor little Mama possum had fallen out of the tree and landed on my concrete patio. She was still alive and had a little baby in her pouch who was sucking away trying to get some milk.

I tried calling all of the wildlife rescue services, but I'm sure that they have been inundated with the bushfires, so I called the local Vet hospital instead. I packed her up in a box and took her along to the hospital. The vet was going to have a look at her and then call someone who looks after native wildlife.

Apparently, she was the fourth possum taken to their hospital today.....

Watcha Wearing Wednesday

I'm heading into the city for lunch with Tinniegirl, Handmaiden and Taccolina today so I thought I'd test out the gorgeous earrings that Sharon made for me.
It's really quite difficult to take a clear photo of one's ear!

I've teamed the earrings with my Tiffany pendant..... again blurry.... Whoops!

Head on over to Dear Fii to play along.

Better Late than Never

You may remember this fabric from a little while ago....

I finally finished Sharons apron and popped it in the post so it was ready and waiting for her when she arrived back in Melbourne.

I tested out a new idea this time - I've used snaps to make the neck strap adjustable.

I can see lots of yummy baked treats in this aprons future!

Ready for my soiree

I received a lovely little package in the mail on Friday.

Inside were these absolutely beautiful earrings from Sharon. They're part of her new jewellery collection. These ones are named 'Cristel' and they have Swarovski crystals and Swarvoski Pearls and white gold fish hooks. My photo really doesn't do them justice as they are so much more beautiful in real life....and sparkly too.

I was also the extremely lucky winner of Sharons giveaway....

So I also received this amazing 'Celine' bracelet with gold Swarovski crystals and bali gold clasp. Again, you really can't see this in the photo, but the crystals have the most amazing sparkle. I can't wait for an occassion to dress up and wear it.

Sharon has these, and other beautiful pieces of jewellery for sale on her Handmaiden blog...just check out her sidebar. My next favourite piece from the collection are these Belle Earrings.

Thanks so much Sharon!

The Land of Topsy Turvy

Do you ever feel like you're living in the Land of Topsy-Turvy? I feel like that a lot lately. It seems that whenever something happens that's not so good, ten good things happen to counteract the not so good..... strange.

Take yesterday for instance... I won not one, but two fantastic blog giveaways! Thankyou so much to Handmaiden and Missie Krissie.

So now to reset the balance, I'm having my own giveaway. The winner can choose anything they like from The CurlyPops Shop. I'll draw a winner at 8PM on Saturday 6th December (Melbourne time). Good Luck!

Late for a very important date!

A long long long time ago (I think it was August), I organised to do a swap with Sharon. I've been on the lookout for the perfect fabric in black / grey / neutral tones that isn't too floral or fussy.

I just so happened to find this one which will be perfect for an apron. I should have finished it by now, but my normal procrastinating ways took over.

Anyhow, the most exciting part of the story is that I'm swapping my gift for a gorgeous pair of Sharon's handmade earrings. But even more exciting news is that Sharon has now launched her Silver Soiree Jewellery Collection and is having a launch giveaway just in time for christmas!

Just head on over to Sharons Handmaiden Blog and check out all the details.

This is....my favourite kitchen gadget

Sharon has picked a great one this week....I've wandered around the kitchen and had a think about it. I was thinking that the food processor might be my favourite. I can mix a cake batter in it, grate vegetables to hide in other foods (yes I have to hide the vegies for myself or I won't eat them), it can mince things up to a pulp, and I can throw it all in the dishwasher at the end.

But then I had a think about the most essential thing that happens in my kitchen on a daily basis....drinking coffee. I have this whizz bang machine on the bench but I'm usually too lazy to actually use it.....

So, the hands down winner for me is the humble coffee plunger. Single cup size when it's just for me, multi-cup size for when I have company...along with my favourite coffee...Vittoria Espresso.

It means I can make good coffee in a flash...and that's a great thing!

For more players, head on over and visit Angela....and a huge thanks to Sharon for being a fabulouso fill in hostess.

This is.....show off time

Wowee Katie picked a hard one this week!

I've been trying to think of something that's sort of arty or crafty related.....this is a little bit lame but it's the best I could do.

Twenty years ago (sheesh I'm feeling old right now), my design was chosen as the front cover of the annual school magazine. This was back in the days before computers, and in the days of the very old photocopiers so everything had to be hand-drawn in black fineliner pen.

1988 was the bi-centennial year, hence the tall ship and the whales. I find the whole thing quite amusing now....I still have 2 copies of the magazine that I been dragging around for the last 20 years.

For more of This is, check out Angela's blog...and of course you should go and visit the lovely Sharon who has been doing a fabulous job filling in while Angela has been away.

This is......what I do with a spare 10 minutes

If I have a spare ten minutes and if I'm not blogging, or reading other blogs then........

.....you'll find me sitting at the kitchen bench cutting things up and glueing and stitching things together. I have lots and lots of projects cut out but not many actually sewn together (that's when I start procrastinating).......
The kitchen bench is now constantly in a state of disarray, but it's extremely handy because I can instantly plop myself on a stool and get into something crafty immediately.

Thankyou Liesl for such a fab theme this week, and to Sharon for filling in while Angela is on her overseas jaunt!

Oh...and I'd probably have a cup of tea in that 10 minutes too!

This is....my favourite band of all time.

Oh where to begin.... we could be here for a while!

So I will begin at the very first memory....... it was 1987 and I was in Year 8. My best friends older brother had a licence, and was allowed to drive his mum's mission brown station wagon to pick us up after school. Each and every day, he had the same tape playing in the tape deck.... INXS KICK.

At that stage, I was actually infatuated with Bros (does anyone actually remember them), but it didn't take long before I headed down to the local record shop (before cd's were invented for any youngens reading along), and bought my first ever album with my own money....

So that's when my secret infatuation with Michael Hutchence began, although Jon Farris was (and still is) also a hottie.

Above photo is me with my albums in 1991

In 1990, INXS realeased X (which I also bought on record) and that was probably about the time when I decided to go backwards and collect all of their earlier albums too. It probably took me a year (mainly because I lived in a country hick town miles away from anywhere) so it was only when I was in big towns like Bendigo or Melbourne that I could search the record shops for old albums. I eventually found all of them except for Dekadance.

I also bought anything else I could find relating to members of INXS like the MaxQ album, Dogs in Space movie, video specials, books etc.....

Photos of my bedroom wall in 1991 or 1992 when they were covered in INXS posters.

But of course, the best thing about an obsession with a band is the very first concert. My first ever concert was Jimmy Barnes at the Glasshouse (that's if you don't count Humphrey B Bear back in the 70's) and my second was INXS at The Tennis Centre just after my 17th birthday.

I had to make a deal with my best friend at the time who hated INXS. She would only come to the concert with me, if I agreed to go to see AC/DC with her. We lived in a country hick town with no way of even buying tickets for the concert, so luckily my auntie who lived in Melbourne agreed to buy the tickets for us. We had to catch the V-Line train to Melbourne (about a 4 hour trip) and we stayed at my aunties house.

Original 1991 tickets are still in the photo album..... Looking at the tickets now, I'm just realising what crappy seats we had for INXS (upper KK) when compared to AC/DC (lower E). I was so excited about the concert that I never even realised.

My second INXS concert was 3 years later....Mr CurlyPops and I went to see them at Festival Hall in 1994 (obviously ticket sales had dropped quite a bit to go from selling out 4 shows at the Tennis Centre in 1991 back to 2 shows at Festival Hall in 1994) .

We were planning to buy tickets for the 1997 concert but never got around to it.... then of course, the tour was cancelled a week before it started .

What came next was Rockstar INXS in 2005 and the band chose JD as their new frontman. We went to the concert at the Palais in September 2006 (can't find my tickets) and then again in March 2007.

Of course it's not the same without Michael, but JD is still a great frontman.

I even managed to find my old concert t-shirts (with paint splatters on them). The one on the left (1991) is now 17 years old and the one on the right (1994) is now 14 years old.

I've moved over 20 times and de-cluttered every time but the only collection that I've ever kept are my INXS goodies.

Thankyou to Sharon for filling in for Angela and letting me choose this weeks theme....it was a lovely wander down memory lane for me. I'm heading off to check whether I'm the only obsessed music fan in blogland!