And to the other side, almost.

Christmas Eve kicked off the festivities with the kids making sausage rolls having been taught by their Nana last school holidays..

The afternoon was all about stress management.. how to contain an 11 y.o who was counting down the hours.. catching up on the Lord of the Rings Trilogy just about took care of that..
Then to THAT day..

There were surprised (and relieved) faces. Elvie (that's the fluffy white one) was more than happy with the Christmas Cracker box which provided hours of entertainment...
Meanwhile having been conscious of having reached that moment when I was the one responsible for the whole Christmas catering business..i pushed on.. And i have to say it did go well! The local butcher had stuffed a small 'rolled' turkey with pine nuts, apple + thyme. I roasted some spuds, carrots + pumpkin. Secured the last box of gravy from the supermarket. (Separate empty shelves story there)... Made Christmas trifle (in memory of my father) but evolved these into individual cups... lovely. And Voila!

Then Miss R and her friends headed to the sales... what for? you ask.. For jodhpurs all round. At $20 each that was a bargain. None of them are likely to actually have a horse.. so they made do having a photo shoot in the garden..aahhhh..

And so we have made it to the other side of Christmas, not quite the usual sun, sand + surf of summer in Sydney.. instead 3 days of rain..
I'd say that's perfect crafting weather wouldn't you? holiday bliss.. my sympathy goes out to the campers!
Hope you had a great one too..

Deck the Halls...

Actually I'm trying to tidy the halls, and the bedrooms and the SHED! I'm trying to de-clutter. To restore some order. Reconnect with my home after all those hours at work, each week... Mr R did Mr R jnr's room, I tackled Miss R's.. It took both of us 6 hours each..
Then i arranged some 'festive' nature..

strung up some paper pom poms ..
like big fluffy snowballs..

while Miss R created these.. which we'd better start on soon..


And so to Christmas Eve ... It's been an amazing year. Thanks to all of you for visiting and I've loved hearing from you. Happy Holidays to you all! Rest up a bit ... indulge a bit, laugh a lot! xxx
maybe I'll see you next week...

market-ing 101

So Dudley did the market last Saturday and was reminded of stall holders 101..

1) the weather always wins.
2) 'negotiating' with those around you may occur.
3) coveting neighbour's work is likely... ie: you'll want to spend your money..
4) impossible to tell what will be your best seller that day.
5) nice to chat to interested folk.
6) some people just don't get your stuff.
7) endurance is mandatory.
8) probably helps if you have other forms of income...

So yes, it was a long HOT day. But enjoyable, lovely to see those that said hi/popped by/met Dudley for the first time. Yes I did wish i had bought a gorgeous Shagpile brooch. And my best seller was my little wooden picture/card holders.. NOW for the holiday..

Speaking of buttons...

On my recent travels (sick of hearing about it yet?) I found some sewing notions you might like.. selected some combos + added a few inked stamps... and voila! I also scouted around for some 'random' vintage japanese buttons .. of which i have also packaged up..

Then my friend said she was having a stall at Glebe market on December 19th. Woo Hoo!. Yes, I'm crazy, i thought, let's do that! So these goodies will be available there ... plus i haven't really been able to actually find my desk in the shed for a while (separate project). BUT i cleared away a tiny space and painted these:

and then these..

oh what a fun way to spend an evening!
best to pace myself for festive revelry.. oh! and that early morning start next Saturday..
So come and say hi to Dudley and Talk to the wind and Sun.. she has a whole range of wonderful little things.. like this hand cut stamp..

Saturday 19th December, Glebe market, would love to say hi - if you are in Sydney...

Buttons

I love buttons. I know some of you must do too. How sweet is this idea - a card i picked up at a stall in Design Festa in Tokyo.. as were this great selection ...

I had seen the stall - but due to dehydration/starvation because i couldn't tear myself away to revive.. my concentration was flagging.. then my (japanese) friend pointed out that i could fill a little plastic bag with whatever i liked for 1000 yen (about $12AUD). The Japanese crafters were not shy here AT ALL... with lots of stuffing and jiggling of said bag! They laughed at me as i asked "is this enough?" as they gestured for me to keep going... now to find a project..
In Nippori I discovered a gorgeous little button shop, sadly no official photography.. just imagine a 4 meter square room with middle cupboard and every surface presenting gorgeous jars + baskets of buttons, beads and felt bits from all over the world. All shapes, sizes and colours .. with some great combinations and displays.
I did gasp... They are called L'Musee - their website is here.

These i may need a hand in actually doing something with ... but i couldn't just leave them there.. could I?

What's on my desk?

This is! It's Elvie... lucky i wasn't actually there as he would've been shoved off.... photo courtesy of Miss R.
Oh yes i've been meaning to get back to my desk - and can just about smell the summer break around the corner.. This bit of japanese loveliness was also on my desk..

as are some little wooden items.. while in Tokyo and looking for 'city in a bag'

(which i now realise is only sold prior to Christmas) i came across London Transport in a bag.. too cute!


After a quick burst of Christmas shopping + wrapping, I made it to my desk at the end of the weekend to belatedly work on a Christmas card. Inspired by the simplicity of Japanese design and the whimsical nature of the way they use English i sent this off to get printed.. fingers crossed it arrives in time..

Take a breath and sniff the air ... holidays are on the way folks!

Shameless self promo

You know how i like stamping? And how basically no surface is safe from my hand carved bits of rubber... well, I thought you could do the same! Look what i found in Japan, lovely little desk bits..

A little assortment of goodies that i selected 'specially.. The best bit is that they are blank. They could be yours to embellish, stamp on, paint or decorate.. then wrap up and give to a friend.. i thought it seemed like a good idea.. what do you think? I also have the bookmark + little calendar in black.. it also comes with a natural blank postcard in a gift bag..

this set can be found here or here..

As time goes by..

Great colour combos. Great style, loose sketchy but engaging. Not mine. Snapped while walking around Design Festa, Tokyo (see previous posts). Shame the weekend whipped past before i got chance to get out the inks, paints or fabric. Sigh. But i did add a wire to a pendant i also picked up while at the same design show..
How cool is this?

I was feeling a little fragile, and a teeny bit suspended in time when i bought it (having just been made redundant) but i still love it! ... here are the awesome artists: Tamunade

Zooming in..
more of their work..


Brilliant.