The answer my friend, is blowin' in the wind.

In the middle of the chaos and crazy of my life, seizing the chance for a couple of hours of creative 'play' is magic. Today I had one of those days, and it was wonderful.

The boys and I made paper collages first. This was very relaxing. I really go into making mine.

 Dylan tried his hand at the scissors, and even tried chopping up our glue stick. (He's 21 months old now!)

 

Then I used fabric and trim scraps for a big project I've been contemplating for a while. 

It was really windy today when Mr D and I hung it up. I have about 100 metres I want to do, but covered about 10-12 metres today.

It looks really pretty, and gives me another thing to smile about when I come home.


By Sharon Newth

Latest Thrifty Goodness

The op shop gods have been looking favourably upon me lately and I've been lucky enough to score some pretty fabulous goodies.

The first two pics are some garage sale finds for $1 each. I already have a smaller one of these casserole dishes that used to be mum's, but this is the perfect size for my little people who are big eaters.

This vintage green Tupperware container is awesome! I have two tall ones that match it that I use for my flour, so I was pretty happy when I found it. I've been looking for a water jug for ages too. This apple one was too cute to pass up.

Fabulous overnight bag for the nostalgic among us.

A vintage suitcase in a gorgeous green. We all know how much I love vintage suitcases.

And you know how I feel about canisters. Imagine my joy when I spotted these lovelies.

Yes, someone is definitely looking down on me from up there, and I think I know who it is. ;)

More very exciting news to share in the next few days. 

And lastly, a bit too dainty for clumsy me, but I bought this tea cup set for a friend for her birthday next month. So pretty.

The sun is once again beginning to shine, spring is in the air, and my heart is singing a little happy dance.

By Sharon Newth


Shared with http://www.blackbirdhasspoken.com
 

Finding Magic in my routine days 15-21

Here's another week of magical moments in my life.

Day 15 - I was on school camp with Liam and the grade 3 and 4 students at his school for a couple of days. It was very cold and wet. We were outside all of the time in the rain with a top of about 5 degrees. This little splash of colour in a bare tree made me smile through my shivering teeth.

Day 16 - It's magical to see your child reach beyond their comfort zone and do something completely different. This is Liam on the flying fox at camp.

Day 17 -  I stopped on the side of the road to look at these cuties. Something about these birds on the old stumps caught my imagination.

Day 18 - A rainbow in a very gloomy week. It lit up the sky and gave us hope.

Day 19 - A loveheart gumnleaf, collected while out walking.

Day 20 - We had some friends over for a bonfire, and lay down and stared at the beautiful starry night. Stars did not come out in the photo unfortunately.

Day 21 - I went for a big walk in my neighbourhood and I was feeling really happy. I walked past a huge paddock full of clover, and couldn't resist the impulse to be like a kid and lie in the clover on the side of the road. It felt good, except for the slight embarassment when a car turned around and came back to see if I was ok.

Hope you found some magic this week too. xxxxxx

By Sharon Newth

Yarn Wrapped Balls

Hi lovelies. I've been having a little yarn love affair lately, so I decided to make some of these yarn wrapped balls with wool scraps and foam balls. Here's how it went.

(Oh and I have my computer back finally.....happy dance.)

By Sharon Newth

Book Week Costumes - Raggedy Ann and Willy Wonka

Once again my blog has been neglected! Computer sagas continue and life has gotten in the way. I've been sick, and on school camp, but I'll try to catch up in the next couple of days. Making stuff has been a little slow!

We've had book week in my part of the world, and most schools have a dress up day to celebrate books. The kids decided to go as Raggedy Ann and Willy Wonka. Raggedy Ann is a bit of a tradition in my family, and my mum used to make lots of Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls for people. I still have mine.

This is my brother and I dressed up many years ago. :)

My original Raggedy Ann doll.

I decided to make a costume for Juliet out of one of Nan's skirts.

I didn't have a pattern but wanted to do a smock style. Unfortunately I couldn't work it all out in my head, so I had to unpick, re cut and start again.

Here's how it ended up.

We dyed her hair red.

And put it in rags for the night.

Liam wore this circus ringmaster costume I had for a tap dancing concert a couple of years ago. So we just modified it a little and made some gold tickets.

So the only think I had to buy were the red socks and gold cardboard.

Here they both are. Cuties!

I love book week!

By Sharon Newth

Finding magic in my routine days 8-14

Here are the next 7 days of magic in my world. It's amazing how much magic you find if you stop to notice it.

Day 8 - I have always found a sleeping child to be one of the most magical and amazingly beautiful sights in the world.

Day 9 - The trees along my driveway are showing the most divine signs that spring will soon arrive in Bendigo.

Day 10 - When I got up on this morning I found Dylan had crawled into Juliet's bed for a morning snuggle.

Day 11 - Beautiful baby feet enjoying the squishy feel of mud between their toes. They never seem to feel the cold.

Day 12 - We went for a country drive to catch up with very old friends and stopped to admire a whole paddock full of newborn lambs.

Day 13 - This beautiful area of our backyard reminded me of a secret and magical garden from a fairytale.

Day 14 - I fell in love with the beautiful big brown eyes of this alpaca at an alpaca show we visited.

By Sharon Newth

Finding the magic in my everyday routine.

You may have noticed that I am not a lover of winter. I'm a summer girl, and although I'm a very positive person in general, it gets harder for me during winter. I am also not a lover of routine, and of course having four children necessitates routine.

I actually thrive in times of change and love new experiences, so I really feel the need to break out sometimes. This may be one reason why I keep making new things instead of actually mastering a craft. I find it extremely satisfying to attempt making something I have never made before, and may not have the skills to do perfectly.

Anyway, I saw this image last week, and it inspired me to be more positive about the mundane, to help myself to be more enthusiastic about the less exciting aspects of my life, so I am taking a picture each day for a month of some magic I find in my routine. Please excuse the photo quality on some images which are zooms on my phone.

Inspiration.

Day 1 - I went for a morning walk and noticed a little bundle curled up in the hole in this tree. (Possum most likely).

Day 2 - I looked out my bedroom window and saw these kangaroos, one with a joey in it's pouch.

Day 3 - The smile of my 'baby'
.

Day 4 - My anniversary ring that arrived in the mail finally, after waiting for three months, many many phone calls, emails and threats to the consumer commission (plus free earrings).

Day 5 - The beautiful wattles trees that seem to defy all winter gloom. I picked some and put them in my old wooden box.

Day 6 - A beautiful foggy morning. Some ducks that came to visit and flew off as I went to investigate them.

Day 7 - My parents arrived after 3 months away, and I captured this beautiful portrait of grandparent love.

Hope you find some magic in your day too. Share it with me if you do.



by Sharon Newth

A vintage stool renovation.

Here's what happened when my vintage stool met up with my vintage curtain. It was a marriage made in heaven, and they all lived happily ever after.

By Sharon Newth