When boredom sets in....

Instead of packing..... you build a leaning tower of boxes, right up to the ceiling!

Two weeks and counting.

Edit: these are all still empty.... I haven't actually packed anything at all in them yet!

Sixth in the Sixth

I was tagged by Buttons By Lou Lou earlier in the week for the sixth in the sixth tag.

I decided to go with the 6th photo in the 6th folder from 2005 (I file all of my photos in date order, starting with year). This photo was afternoon tea at the Windsor Hotel in Melbourne on February 27th 2005. If you haven't been, then I highly recommend it.... just try not to eat lunch before you go, and leave enough room for the desserts (after the sandwiches and scones).

I was lucky enough to meet Lou a couple of weeks ago at a meeting for the Made'n'Thornbury Market. It was one of those things where you introduce yourself (with your real name), and then ask the normal crafty question, "So, do you have a craft blog?", and all of a sudden realise that you've been communicating with other in cyberspace/blogland.... it's all quite amusing!

If you're really quick, Lou has a fab giveaway ending today for a pair of her gorgeous button earrings. You can enter here....

Love Fridays...

Today I'm Lovin' Friday as I received an amazing package in the mail from Jess at Button Beauty.

I've had knitted washcloths on my 'I want to make' list forever.... I just never actually got around to it. Now I have these gorgeous washcloths (in my absolute favourite colours), and they're so soft and lovely.

There were also some fab vintage tea towels and hankies, a vintage pattern book, and some wonderful crafty bits and bobs that I can incorporate into my crafty creations. Thanks so much Jess.

I'm also lovin' all the updates over at Handmade Help..... so many crafty bargains for a great cause..... I just wish I could buy them all!

Check out the home of Love Fridays over here at Tinniegirl.

My Creative Space

Okay now, just stand back and take a deep breath..... I've been debating whether I should actually publicise the state of my creative space....aka my kitchen!
There's nothing like a bit of worldwide public humiliation to make me clean up.

I've been far too busy trying to whip up some items for Handmade Help. There's a little basket of baby clothes on the chair, and some kids t-shirts that I'm appliqueing on the ironing board (that all came to a standstill when I ran out of vliesofix).

The bench is covered in piles of fabric to make bags for the Rainbow Comfort Packs. I can't make it to Nikki's amazing sewing bee in Brunswick on Saturday, but I am going to use any spare time that I have on the weekend to make some bags, and then drop them off next week.

If you look even closer, you'll notice that even the Milo and the breakfast cereal didn't get put away thismorning...eeek!

....and on my ottoman, my poor neglected Toy Society Valentine. There's been a little bit more stitching (while watching So You Think You Can Dance) and a few more hearts added. This will definitely be finished tomorrow night so that I can whip up some softies for Handmade Help and The Toy Society.

You can find lots more creativity at Kootoyoo....

An Update and a Thankyou

A huge thankyou to everyone who has supported Handmade Help.

With my shop sales from yesterday and today, I have raised over $100 to donate to the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal so far.

I've also bought some lovely craft things, including one of these gorgeous Itti Pouches by Lisa from The Princess and the Monkey , from which the proceeds will also be donated....

...and of course I've been furiously bidding on all of the handmade loveliness from the Handmade Help Ebay Auctions. I wonder if I'll eventually win one!

Handmade Help

Just a reminder that 50% of all sales from The CurlyPops Shop will be donated to the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal.

Thankyou so much to the two lovely generous girls who made purchases today.

Head on over to check out the Handmade Help blog (thanks Cindy & Pip) for lots of crafty auctions and ways to help....

I also forgot to mention yesterday that if you have books that can be donated, Juddie is organising a collection. Head on over to Flightless Boyds or email - juddie1 (at) optusnet (dot) com (au)

The Toy Society is also still collecting handmade toys.... so keep sewing and stuffing!

Head on over to Nikki's You Sew Girl blog for details of her sewing bee this (EDIT) Saturday. It's a lovely way to get together with like minded people for a lovely day out, while helping at the same time.

A Crafty Community

Wowee it hasn't taken long for the entire crafty blogging community to get involved in offering some help for the victims of the Victorian bushfires.

There's a great post here from Pip regarding Childrens Comfort Packs:

You can drop any Handmade Help items at Meet Me at Mikes or Amitie Textiles to be passed on to relief agencies:

Silly Gilly is holding a charity auction (and is looking for handmade donations). I'm going to whip up a softie and send it south asap!

Cindy from Bug and Pop is also holding a charity auction (and is looking for handmade donations)... I think a tea towel apron might be heading her way.

Missie Krissie has just opened her new online shop and is donating 50% of the proceeds to the bushfire appeal until at least Wednesday.

Hollie from Hokey and Vegan and Vintage is donating 50% of the sales in her Etsy Shop to Wildlife Victoria for February

Liz aka Betty Jo from the Lino Forest is donating the proceeds from a gorgeous lino clock here

10% of all proceeds from Georgie Love for the month of February will be donated to the bushfire appeal.

Rach from Grandy and Baa is collecting handmade kids clothes (I have some tees which will be appliqued asap).

I hope I haven't missed anybody who is offering help.

Finally, I'm donating (to the Red Cross Appeal), 50% of any sales in the CurlyPops Shop from now until Sunday (15th Feb).

A little way to help - updated

It just gets worse each time I turn on the news.

There is a small way that we can use our crafty skills to help. Sarah from With A Cherry On Top and Bianca from The Toy Society are going to try to find an organisation who will take handmade toys to distribute to children who have lost everything in the bushfires. Rach from Grandy and Baa had the same idea too.

If you think you can help, please email thetoysociety@gmail.com

Updated: Rach from Grandy and Baa is collecting handmade clothes (appliqued onsies, t-shirts and skirts etc) - head on over if you can help out.

Sparkly Green Knickers is going to donate the proceeds from her Etsy Shop to the Bushfire Appeal...

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.....

The forgotten one.....

I'd completely forgotten all about this until I read this post over at Kitty's Kaboodle.

Do you remember a couple of weeks ago when I mentioned that I'd left something behind at the op shop and regretted it as soon as I arrived home?

Lucky for me, I went back 2 days later and it was still there. Sorry about the photo which is showing the underside of the tv in the kitchen (lovely I know).... but I think the mirror is beautiful.

Hmmm now where to put it....

Pay It Forward Update - Updated

Thanks so much to the six lovely bloggers who signed up for my Pay It Forward:

Amity Ville Boronia
Prue - Citrus Daisy
Dee - Dee in Da Light
Sharon Y - Roman Young
Jan - Sewjourn
Michelle - The Super Monkey Blog

When you have a chance can you please email me your postal addresses so that I know where to send your suprise parcels sometime in the next 365 days! My email - mscurlypops (at) gmail (dot) com

If anyone else would like to sign up for a Pay It Forward, there's another one right here and right here too: and another one here

Love Fridays......Love Mail

I love when the mail man delivers pretty packages to my door....

....like this beautiful Itty Pouch from Lisa at The Princess and The Monkey......

I was soooo excited about the pending arrival. It's just perfect to fit lots and lots of my business cards (no more cluttering up my purse), and it was wrapped up in a lovely piece of fabric too!

Lisa has an Etsy Shop and a Made It Shop where you can find these gorgeous Itty Pouches. They would be a perfect gift for someone special.

Just to make the day even better, I received an email last week from Peta.

Peta's grandmother Pearl had received these tea towels from a friend who went to Malta. Peta had no use for them so she offered to send them to me. How sweet is that?

A huge huge huge thankyou to Lisa and Peta for making my Love Friday

Pay It Forward - Edited

The most amazing Pay It Forward gift arrived on my doorstep last week.... all the way from sunny Queensland. I signed up on Bec's The Small Stuff blog a while ago, and then had promptly forgotten all about it!

So many little brown paper packages tied up with string.... but what was inside?


Vintage tea-towels, a relaxing oil blend, and my favourite chocolate (luckily it arrived just before the heatwave hit and the chocolate survived perfectly)..... although it's already been eaten now of course!


There was also this gorgeous market bag which is the perfect size to sling over your shoulder and head to the shops. I've always been a huge fan of the way that Bec takes unusual / reclaimed / recycled items and uses them in her bags. This is definitely a favourite as the bag has been embellished with a mens tie.

But there was even more....

I saw these beautiful little purses on Bec's Flickr and commented on them a little while ago....

.... and now I have one of my very own. It even had 20 cents inside for good luck!

Thanks so much Bec for such a wonderful Pay It Forward gift. Bec's new range of bags are available in her Etsy Shop.

Now it's time for my own Pay It Forward.

I'm sure everybody already knows the rules but: The first three people to leave me a comment will receive a handmade gift from me sometime in the next 365 days. I can guarantee that you definitely won't receive anything in March or April.... but sometime after that! The only other rule is that you must have a blog and you must agree to spread the love by paying it forward to three other people sometime in the next 365 days. Simple really!

Edited: I actually need 6 people to sign up because I've signed up for another one over at Thousand Threads!

My Creative Space.... and Mikes Felt-a-long

More heartfelt creations (bad pun intended).....


My creative space - me on the couch - my creation on the ottoman - lots of hand stitching to be done.... hmmm wondering what's on telly tonight?

This is going to be my Valentines weekend drop for the Toy Society.

Mini Shop Update

Made It is upgrading the website very soon so I've just popped a few new things in The CurlyPops Shop.

Watcha Wearing Wednesday & Mikes Felt-a-long

It's a two-in-one meme special today!

I've been playing around with lots of felty bits and pieces for Mikes Felt-a-long, and this is my latest creation - a felty beaded heart brooch with a bit of crazy stitching.

Today I'm wearing the brooch, along with the Elk necklace that I bought at the Design Market.

Late Mail

Well actually, the mail wasn't late... I'm just very late in posting some photos!

I received some lovely packages in the mail last week. First up, a giveaway that I won on Bec's A Deed Without a Name blog - this fab shopping bag which has been made from a recycled pillowcase. There's also a link on my sidebar to the tutorial. I'm eventually going to get around to making enough of these for myself for grocery shopping.

Secondly, I was lucky enough to win one of Kirsty's Deal or No Deal giveaways. This fab ladybug tablecloth and napkin set. It's just sooo cute!

Thanks so much!

Conspiring

Do you ever have one of those days when you feel like the whole world is conspiring against you?

After the six hour blackout Friday night, I then had no power at home for another four hours yesterday (some sort of fault with a high voltage underground transformer apparently).

So I thought that things would be better today. I tottled off down the street to post some parcels (no queue at the post office - fantastic), and then headed to Aldi to buy some groceries. I really wanted a tuna sandwhich for lunch, so I had the tuna in my trolley, and was heading for the bread aisle when....... THE POWER WENT OUT!

Everyone had to leave their trolleys and go home......

In desperation, I got back in the car and headed for Macca's drive through, and ordered a chicken fillet burger. The nice lady asked me whether I would like seared or crispy, and I ordered crispy...... what did I get?????

Saturday at Sewjourn

After the power blackout Friday night, Tinniegirl and I packed up our crafty baskets, and headed to Lancefield to spend the day in air conditioned comfort at Sewjourn.


Everything was absolutely beautiful....


There are handmade quilts...


Gorgeous chandeliers...


Craft tables in the studio made from reclaimed timbers....


....and personalised crafty touches

There were a huge range of crafty works in progress, from a bit of quilting,

to a bit of softie making and felt work,

photo albums and collage,

more quilting,

pinboards,
embroidery
more quilting
The day was filled with lots of fun and amazingly delicious home cooked treats. A huge thankyou must go out to Jan for her generousity and hard work in making the day so special for all of us.

We're definitely heading back for a full weekend later on this year. If you're looking for a weekend getaway or somewhere for your craft group to meet, then Sewjourn has everything a crafty girl could ever possibly need!

Moo Moo turns Two

It's Moo Moo's birthday today so I whipped him up a pair of superstar shorts.

I found this great corduroy at the oppy last week, and I used a bit of vinyl offcut for the star.
He opened up the package and was much more interested in the Freddo Frog that came with them!

And the skirt goes to:

There were 28 unique entries for my blogaversary prize.

Drumroll please........

The winner is number 7 which is Clare from Clare's Craftroom. Congratulations Clare - please send me an email to mscurlypops (at) gmail (dot) com with your details and I will pop your prize in the mail!

Lookout later this week for another giveaway.

Sunday Stash & a quilt update

Todays Sunday Stash.... little monkeys from Amitie. As per usual with my fabric shopping habits, I have nothing specific in mind for it. I just bought it because I thought it was cute!

Do you remember the gender neutral baby quilt dilemma? I just happened to mention to my girlfriend that I was planning on making her a gender neutral gift before the baby was born, as she wouldn't open the secret envelope with the answer inside! She then informed me that she actually love it if I wouldn't mind waiting until the baby was born, because she would prefer if I could make something specifically for a boy or a girl. So my plan for using the fabric that she had purchased and given to me went out the window.

After having a re-think, I'm now going to use it to make a cushion for her 2 year old son's birthday in March. I've booked in to do a cushion making course at Amitie, so I'm now going to make a patchwork cushion panel using the clown fabric, before the class. I'm thinking the clowns, red, yellow, and the stripes will be perfect a little boy.

Tune in for the winner of my giveaway later on tonight!

Eye Spy.... a small object

The theme was a bit challenging for my frazzled brain today. I couldn't seem to SPY anything small, as most of the little fancy things have been packed away for the move.


But then I remembered that I hadn't packed up my little inspiration shelves in the spare room. I have these little objects sitting side by side.... Mini Collage by Tinniegirl and Walter the Birdy by Ric-Rac

As you can see, the shelves were not really installed to the appropriate measurements.... postcards only fit sideways! I'll be making myself a wonderful inspirational wall when I move (where my inspirations can live right way up)..... I get a bit dizzy looking at them sideways.

Thanks to the Crafty Librarian for this weeks theme and head on over to Bug and Pop to play along.