TropicalSoup

The thing about rabbits...

 

...is there's never just one. These little cuties were made for some favourite people, to pop in with their Christmas love. Immy insisted on determining which bunny was for whom, and how each bunny's ears should be  -so some are tacked down whilst others are pert and alert. They're about 4" excluding their ears, with linen bodies and teeny floral ears, felt tails, embroidered faces and a wee love heart to remind the recipient how we feel (Immy also imbued them with snuggles!)

And they make me smile.

 

 

And I'm starting to get in trouble that the additional bunny I promised to make for my own special girl hasn't yet materialised. oops.

 

Immy's quilt

The new quilts for Cole and Immy's beds seem to be painfully slow in coming together, but I'm trying to focus on progress being progress...at least I'm heading the right direction, right?

I only have another 2 or 3 rows to add before this quilt top is complete (yay!) and thankfully it has received the nod of approval by my small pink-lover...she did however ask if that was *all* the pink I was planning on including (no such thing as too much pink in Immy's world!)

I'm quite tickled by the fabric - it is mostly Out to Sea by Sarah Jane, with plenty of stash included. Cole's quilt (his top is finally completed!) is from the same line. Mermaids, narwhals, pireates...it's hard to wring there, and Sarah gets it very right - happy and child-friendly, without being too juvenile. I think these will still work well in their room(s?) in a few years' time. Then again, who am I kidding - I'll either not have finished them before then, or be ready for another change, ha!

(I have to say, I am ready for a few smaller projects next!)

13/02/2013

Immy found what I thought was an interesting little stone on the footpath at school yesterday, and it was only when she picked it up that I realised it was a tiny eastern long-neck turtle! (And it is properly tiny - that's Immy's hand above!) The little critter was promptly rescued and relocated to Cole and Immy's classroom's fishpond (how cool is that their class has their own fishpond!?!) and we spent plenty of time watching him (her? It?) swim around in glee, and building a driftwood gangplank so the wee fella can get in and out with ease.
I have been promised an update on the new addition to the class this afternoon!

Teacher gnomes

To thank Cole and Imogen's gorgeous kindergarten teachers at the end of the year, we gave them each a strawberry plant, so that they would have something sweet to nibble on over the holidays. I couldn't leave it at just a plant though, so I made these little gnomes to add, and hold the thank you notes. They measure 3" to the tippity tops of their pointy hats, and they crack me up. (and yes, the dying outer leaves drove me a bit batty too, but I was forbidden from doing an aesthetic tidy up before the gifting - *mum, that's mother nature's way of recycling!*)

 

Making these little people was so much fun, and I have since completely depleted my peg people stash, by making little gnomes for all and sundry! A little felt, a little embroidery, a hot glue gun, and voila, magical little beings that just make me smile every time.

Now I really should make some more for home!

I'm linking up at SkiptomyLou, and Craftastic.

Candlestick Makers' aprons

Thank you so much for the lovely messages and kind words on condolence following Mahe's death. Cole and Imogen are doing very well, and we are working through this grief together. Cookie is getting plenty of cuddles and there has been lots of reminiscing. Lots of tears too of course, but Cole has made sure to drop the hint once or twice that another cat will be in our future...you know, so Cookie doesn't get lonely!

~~~~~~~~

 

This is the sum total of my stitching or craft work for the past 7 days. It's a set of 24 drill cotton aprons for Cole and Immy's class. I was actually just sitting in the class with Samantha (their dear teacher) when someone volunteered to make the aprons on a really quick turnaround, and it was only later that I realised it had been me - ventriloquist volunteering strikes again!

And I was obviously really feeling the effects of 2 nights spent working on them until after 3am when I snapped this yesterday morning before piling intot the car - this is my only photo of the finished articles - it didn't even occur to me to take a photo of an apron so that you could actually see the apron, ha!

They're quite similar to butcher or baker's aprons, but not an exact replica of either, so I have nicknamed them candlestick makers' aprons instead. They came together really quickly - I'd say less than 20 hours all up, including drafting the pattern, all the cutting, sewing and pressing, and making up a mere 50 metres (!) of double binding for the apron straps.

This is the second 25m of binding, when I finally finished it and could see the finish line (finally!) for the whole project!

Although it was tricky timing - of course last week I ended up with extra work to push through at my day job, as well as the (sadly unexpected) role of gently guiding the children through this path of grief with Mahe's death, plenty of Mahe-centric ceremonies, getting everyone ready to start back at school and so on and so on. Still, I do love being able to do this sort of thing - and I was so thrilled yesterday afternoon when Samantha invited me up to the classroom's verandah to show me the aprons, all tied and immersed in dye baths, and when she told me how thrilled the children had all been with their new work aprons, and how seriously each had taken the job of choosing their colour dye! 

I'm not actually sure whether the point of this post is about my ventriloquist skills, making aprons, my silliness in photo taking (or lack thereof) when tired, or school. I *do* know that this school makes us all so very happy, and it is so lovely to be able to help a little.

And now, I'm off to the sewing room to make up for lost time!

RIP Mr Mahe

We lost a dear sweet member of the family this morning, when Mahe - Cole's beloved cat, and constant companion to his little-sister-cat Cookie was run over. We are all very sad - Mahe was just one of those truly awesome felines, and D and I often used to comment how lucky we were to have gotten this particular duo when we visited the RSPCA that day.

Cole and Immy are bereft and poor wee Cookie is more than a little lost, looking around and calling out for her brother - her cuddling buddy, playmate and partner in all crimes yarn-related.

RIP Mahe, thank you for giving us 3 wonderful years.