Tis the season ...

The BrisStyle Christmas Market, held last Saturday was such a jolly start to Christmas! So many happy stall-holders and customers; the market had such a lovely vibe. Thank you to all the lovely BrisStylettes and the wonderful Helen for making it such a success!

The guitar 'boys' did such a great job - I was very grateful of my position at the market - right near the music and the food!

And like all the other BrisStylettes, my stock sold well - it's the best market I've ever been to - not only for the great sales, but more importantly because of the friendly and fun atmosphere! I had such a lovely, fun and happy day!


I was also able to do a little of my own Christmas shopping buying two lovely brooches, one for my Mum from Hayley at ReRead and one for my M.I.L from Helen at Ruby Red Studios ... oh, and a few other little bits for myself! :)

The lovely BrisStylettes got into the spirit of giving and donated goods that were raffled off for the Knitting For Brisbane's Needy charity with the lovely Tracy from Hey Harriet looking after the charity and promo table. Here's the raffle prize - chock full of BrisStyle goodness!

And, in the spirit of receiving, here are some lovely handmade goodies I've happily received in the past few weeks!

This is a cute little 'wallet' that came complete with pens, stamps, cards, notebook and stickers. It was made by a student of mine (she is only 13!) and I was so proud of her efforts! So much time and love in a handmade gift; I appreciate and treasure it so much! Vive la Handmade!!


This little cutie (with her expression of absolute bliss!) was a gift from the gorgeous Bel of EmBelISH. As you can see she is gracing our tree, enjoying the Christmas singing and checking out the pressies under the tree!

For our BrisStyle Secret Santa swap, Robyn from Hot Fudge made me this delicious apron! Apologies for the pic - my 4 year-old budding photographer took it this morning, just before cooking pancakes. (he also took all the market photos above, which I was quite proud of!)

And here is is hanging up in the laundry, ready for a wash (I knew I would get it dirty on it's first wear!!)


I feel like I own my very own Hot Fudge little girl dress now - I love the fabric choice and little details! Thanks Robyn!

Ooooh, I love Christmas time; I'm off to wrap some pressies then go for a swim!

Handmade Markets - Brisbane style!!

Only FOUR more sleeps to our BrisStyle markets - yipeeee!

I have been such a busy girl getting my stock and displays finished and ready for Saturday (and lucky I still have 4 more sleeps because I'm a long way off!) Here's some finished 'Little Jellies' waiting patiently for Saturday!


I have been so pleased by the positive reception our markets have been getting; from the local businesses in Hamilton, from the public and various media outlets about town! Very Exciting!!

Here are the details - come and do your Christmas shopping!!

BrisStyle Christmas Markets
Hamilton Hall
cnr Racecourse Rd and Rossiter Pde, Hamilton
9am - 4 pm

... there'll be food and live music as well!! (how great is that?!)

Check out the wonderful BrisStyle blog for more details.
See you there!

Christmas decos are go!

The first of December has rolled around which means we finally have our Christmas tree up and decorated... 'it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas' !! Here's the little angels at our front door.

I love Christmas time - I love the hot sultry days, thunder storms in the evening, visiting the council pool on hot afternoons, icy poles and summer fruits. I also love the anticipation of celebrating Christmas Day with special food and special people.

This year I participated in Em's (from EmBelIsh) Christmas Ornament Swap. My swapper, the lovely Lisa from Beetlehouse Designs was super organised and on the ball and sent me my ornaments early; they have been waiting patiently until Monday when we could put them up!


The kids especially loved the reindeer hanging and I think the little snowman is such a little cutie! Thanks again Lisa!

Here's the ornament I made for the swap. Her name is Joy and she's a little Christmas 'Jelly angel'. Joy made her way over to Marc from Daisy Jayne.


Thanks Em for getting us all in a Christmassy mood! :)
Enjoy December everyone!

Shadow Shot #21

I've had a busy week this week; busy at work, exhibition opening, BrisStyle meet-up and appearing on the front page of etsy!!

I have work in the 'Renaissance' exhibition that's on at Reverse Garbage in West End; it runs until the 24th Dec. The works exhibited need to have at least 75% reclaimed materials content and fellow BrisStylers Beckybean and Ruby Red as well as djbebe. There is some really beautiful work on display, so if you're in the West End area, pop over for a look!

Our BrisStyle meet-up yesterday was very fun - meeting people I've only ever 'talked' to on email and putting faces to names was really good. The lovely girls from EmBelIsh set up the tables in festive frivolity and we shared our 'Secret Santa' gifts. We also drew the winners of the BrisStyle blog giveaway ... stay tuned for the announcement! Lots of fun!

And here's the shot of my front page appearance on Etsy (I'm botton left)!! artdecadence has such a knack for snaring treasuries and I'm so glad one of hers made it to the front page (and just happened to have my little book in it!)


Finally, happy Sunday with this little shadow shot of one of my jade trees that I grew from cuttings from my grandma's plant.

Head on over to Hey Harriet for more shadowy shots!
Happy Sunday everyone.

Shadow Shot #20

"When each day is the same as the next, it's because people fail to recognise the good things that happen in their lives every day that the sun rises." Paulo Cohelo, The Alchemist

... and every day that the sun rises, there's the perfect chance of delighting in shadows!

We had a little park picnic yesterday and it was a very hot, sunny day - perfect for shooting shadows!


(It was so very hot and sunny!)

Head on over to Hey Harriet for more sensational shadows!
... and, if you haven't already, head on over to the BrisStyle blog for your chance to win some very cool goodies!

Happy Sunday everyone!

party frocks

The best things about kid's parties is seeing the looks of complete wonder, excitement and joy on their faces! And not just the birthday girl - all of them!

Here's Miss Two ... the looks of excitement and joy were yet to come ... it was just wonder at this stage!
She is wearing her pretty party frock that her Aunty made for her using a delightful little blue rose old fabric and a cute little EmBelIsh clip that the lovely Ruby Red bought for her.

The course of the party went very well with cousins laughing and running and playing, party games, balloons, yummy food and of course the cake!


I has so much fun making this little bunny cake ... but it was rather frustrating - the icing just didn't want to do as it was told! So, as a result, he was smothered in the stuff (mmm yum!)
I also had a bit of trouble with getting his little face right - I think he looks a bit scared, poor thing - perhaps he knew what was coming: "I want the tail!", "I want that ear", "Could I have a whisker?". He was so very yummy!

By the next day (Emily's actual birthday) she was a pro at this birthday stuff - opening presents etc. Here's a shot of her illustrating the "looks of complete wonder, excitement and joy" I referred to earlier as she test drives her new stroller!

This dolly stroller has barely left her sight ever since!
It started life as a hideous 'Bratz' stroller and, as I cannot abide by these 'dolls' for a two year-old (or for any age, really), I went about changing it!
Here's the before shot ...


And the after shot, complete with a lovely vintage fabric with purple and blue flowers on it! Ahhh, that's better!


After this alteration, I'm so glad the stroller was a hit with her! ... I'm now looking forward to the wonder, excitement and joy of Christmas (but no more fancy cakes for a while!!)

Shadow Shot #19

Happy Sunday everyone!
Firstly, thank you for all the lovely comments you left for my SSS #18 - it was nice seeing my picture through your eyes - I like it even more now!


This week's shot is taken on my walk to the train station once again. (I love the clarity of the spring morning air!) I had taken my camera with me to get a shot of the 'Keep Left' sign from last week because someone had run their car into it and it was looking rather different! (I thought it would be an interesting progression of shots... ) BUT, the good 'ol Brisbane City Council had it fixed up before I could get a shot!! (just my luck!) So here's this one of the trees along the road instead!

Head on over to Hey Harriet's blog to see more great Shadow Shots!

Happy Sunday everyone - and don't forget to head over to the BrisStyle blog (if you haven't already) to go in the running to win one of THREE very special packs of BrisStyle goodies - what a very special start to Christmas that would be!!

this is fantasitc...

The fantastic BrisStylettes are having a fantastic blog giveaway - with not one, but THREE fantastic prize packs!!! What an excellent (fantastic, even!) start to Christmas!!


So many of the BrisStyle members have donated their goodies to go into our Christmas blog giveaway that there's over $300 worth of value!! And what's great also is the fact there's no catch, nothing hard, just a simple question to answer to go into the running to win one of our great giveaway packs!! Very exciting!

So! Head on over to the BrisStyle blog to put yourself in the running for some Made in Brisbane goodies!

And a BIG thank you to the lovely Bec-elf for all her Christmas spirit x

Shadow Shot Sunday #18

Wow, I'm up to #18! That's 18 weeks, 4 1/2 months that I've been taking more notice of the shadows! This week's shot is another taken on my my walk to the train station.


There's something about road signs that appeals to me; something about obeying the 'rules', the simplicity in their design, and they also remind me of Jeffery Smart's works - which I love.

Head on over to Hey Harriet for more info on Shadow Shot Sunday and to see the other great shots!

Happy Sunday everyone!

twenty-four months

My little girl turns TWO in less than two weeks (and time flies by...). On the weekend she was very lucky to receive an early birthday present from her auntie and uncle. It included this gorgeous wall hanging/mobile:

Isn't it so pretty and girlie?! Her auntie sells these in her etsy shop masalachai and although she hasn't had any sales from etsy yet, she has had loads of orders from friends (I think that's why her shop's empty at the moment!). They are really sweet little things and Emily's looks so pretty in her room - what a lucky girl!

Now I have to put my thinking hat on to decide on what sort of special birthday cake to make for my girl ... stay tuned!!

Shadow Shot Sunday # 17

I love these spring mornings with the big and boundless sky ; the blue goes on forever.

This lovely old tree lives at the top of the hill. It has little holes in it where the parrots and cockys nest.

Thank you again Hey Harriet for inspiring so many people to take joy in the simple magic of shadows! Check out the other SSS participants here at Hey Harriet.

Happy Sunday everyone!

Bronty Baby

This week I needed to do something else; not related to my etsy shop, or getting ready for markets, or thinking about work, or cleaning the bathroom (eek!). So, inspired by one of my boy's drawings (I do so love young children's drawings - such candor and innocence!) I set about making a little softie - his name's Bronty ... because he's a brontosaurus (can you tell?!)

He has already made himself at home, as you can see playing with a puzzle!
The original drawing is of a brontosaurus and a triceratops eating a tree; you can see the long neck of the brontosaurus and the three 'horns' on the other one with a large leafy tree in between! I then adapted this gorgeous creature into a paper pattern for the softie.

I used an old sheet with a delightfully-coloured flower pattern on it as well as some plain green for his face, 'spot' and tail. I love him! ... and he may just turn out to be a prototype for more little 'Brontys'!!


*PS The lovely Leah from Moxie Photo and Design featured little ol' me on her blog a few days ago! Check it out the post here. Also take a look at her great etsy shops while you're at it! Thanks Leah!

Shadow Shot #16

Happy Spring Sunday everyone!
This week's shot was taken on my morning walk to catch the train this week. I love the early mornings, particularly now that spring is here; the air is so clear and the sky seems so big. And I love my walk to the station - it's like this little avenue of trees all the way ... and I have my iPod on so I can block the busy road right alongside me!

Head on over to the fabulous Hey Harriet for more Shadow Shots!
Happy Sunday!

Arty weekend

The students' exhibition at school was a success! We had such an easy time hanging and displaying it all only to have a power black-out on opening night!! A dark art exhibition is not such a good thing, but the drink was still flowing and people still munching on the delicious food! While it was looking a bit worrisome for a while with Art teachers carrying around torches waiting for the 'emergency lighting' to fail, the lights did come back on eventually and the night was a very busy and happy one!

One of my year 7 'nests'
It's such a relief knowing that it was a success. It was also lovely watching the parents come in to admire their child's work and then comment on how great it is!

A lovely giraffe from the junior school


The students' works looked fantastic; from the monsters that the Prep kids made right through to the beautiful drawings and other works of the seniors.

One of my year 8 artist's books on the theme of 'metamorphosis.

Stitches

In a busy, not particularly nice week, I've been looking for the little things that make me happy. Last night I sat down to do the little stitches around a nightie I made for my girl - sweet blue like her eyes! This made me happy. I made a rubber stamp of the little bird (a willie-wagtail) and stamped it onto a white fabric circle, added a floral and blue circle and stitched them all on.


Next Friday is my students' exhibition at school - many, many works (from prep to year 12!) and lots to do! So I've been busy preparing work, sorting name tags, mounting works ... Here are two little 'stitched drawings' from my clever year 7s - the idea came from this experiment I blogged about a while ago. Their images came from close-up drawings they did of plants.

Tomorrow I have my St Williams market (at Dawson Pde Grovely) and my littlest nephew (7 months old) coming for a visit. This will be a nice end to a not so nice week. Here's to the weekend!

PS head on over to TwinkleStarArt's blog for your chance to win one of Amanda's gorgeous prints ... hurry, you've only got 24 hours left!!

Shadow Shot #15

The Jan Power's market today at Blackwood St was a successful morning for me - lots of 'admirers', some customers and a great vibe. Hopefully I'll go back next month, that's if they don't up the stall fees again (not too happy with the lack of prior warning!). Anyway, it was fun - it's always nice when others like your handmade work enough to pay money for it! My picture of my market table is a bit hard to see because of the bright sun and the shadows ... could've been my shadow shot for this week!

My 'Little Jellies' loved their sunny outing, a couple even found new homes! Happy.

My Shadow Shot for this week is of my new market umbrella (pretty green, brown and blue stripes) with dappled leaves shadowed on it against the hot blue sky. (The light 'glare' on the brolly is actually a stripey glitch in the camera ... might have to invest in a new one!)

Visit the amazing Hey Harriet for more details about Shadow Shot Sunday and for other great shadow shots!

Happy Sunday!

Beautiful Images

I just wanted to share this gorgeous site with you; 'Gracia + Louise' are a pair of Melbourne artists who make the most beautiful things (artist's books, zines, collages)!

Their images; the juxtaposition of the different elements and the materials really speak to me - love it!


Other gorgeous, but completely different images can be found at TwinkleStarArt. Browse through her etsy shop and then head on over to TwinkleStarArt's blog for your chance to win this gorgeous 'Beep Beep' print!


Enjoy your weekend!

October pumpkin

October is here! And while I am enjoying glorious (warm) spring weather, I am thinking about Halloween, 'Fall' and pumpkins .... Well, it's no wonder with this top being one of my latest creations!

Yes, the picture is very bad, but I'm afraid it was the best out of very bad lot!! I made this using a 1976 Simplicity dress pattern and a thrifted old bed sheet (Bec, I actually bought the pattern from the Dorrigo 'Vinnies'!). The tie was a necessary inclusion to prevent me appearing to have the shape of a pumpkin, as well as the colour! And despite it reminding me of a Halloween costume, I rather like it!

This Sunday morning, I will be at the Blackwood St (Jan Power's) Markets in Mitchelton - if you're in the area, drop in and say hello!

Enjoy October, whether it's autumn or spring!

Etsy love

My little jellygnite etsy shop has been a bit neglected of late so I thought it was high time to give it some love! I re-photographed my Little Jellies and uploaded those - hopefully they look better now - more irresistible to potential buyers! ;)


I had a little helper while photographing too!

I also 'slaved' over the sewing machine today making a new bunch of cutie Little Jellies - I love watching their personalities emerge when I pop them the right way out!! (if you look carefully, you can see two mini Little Jellies sitting in on the shot too!)


And then I went cruising on etsy and found myself some new favourites! This is from my good friend's very new shop masalachai - it's a great idea and I really hope she does well.

And these are some great artworks I found:
This great plane image is from greentrikepress

Graceful giraffe from CitrusTree


Sweet berries at michelemaule shop. Lovely composition and sweet layout like an old Polaroid pic.


And this great bird collage - love the papers and stitching that's been used: racheltobertson

Happy etsy-ing!