I started to feel a little bit festive on the weekend and started to think about wrapping for our gifts this year. While I was making these tags I started to think about my wish list... all those things I'd like to do to make the festive season special. I love the idea of delivering presents in linen tote bags this year, library bags for the little ones and shoppers for the grown ups. I'm also looking forward to making some decorations with Miss A and {of course} a spot of baking. No doubt the list will be edited as Christmas approaches but right now seeing a tick beside tags is making me happy...
on again this saturday 17 november 2007
9am - 2pm
delightful things direct from the artists
st francis theological college
233 milton road, milton
(entrance via baroona road)
umbrella collective
oh week, where did you go?
there are so many things I wanted to tell you about...
like how I love taking polaroid photos of the sky,
about how exciting it is to be in this book {a post of it's own soon I hope},
and how we went strawberry picking and made strawberry jam,
and how I love these gorgeous cards from the talented and delightful tiel,
about the summer bed,
and spring magazines,
good things...
Hello friends,
I do hope you have had the loveliest of weekends.
As always, I have lots to catch up on in this space, hopefully this week!
{fingers crossed}
See you soon...
How lucky we are to celebrate these first days of spring with wonderful new friends... we have had a lovely day filled with pretend picnics, painting, peas in a pod and mulberries from Momo's garden.
Simple pleasures...
by the sea shore...
I thought it was high time i popped in to say hello.
Don't you just love the promise of a new season? I do, the garden at the mountain house is filled with wild violets and tiny snowdrops, the scent of jasmine is not far away. At my back door the lime tree is filled with new shoots and blossom buds, it's time to fill the basket for a picnic and go outside to play...
reorganising miss a's room has been on my to-do list for some time now,
you can see that the granny squares blanket is not actually finished, but i'm halfway there...
the solution in the meantime is a rather sweet and worn bought quilt,
add some pieces from ikea {have i mentioned how i love ikea}and it's starting to come together...
and i figure you are never too young to start an inspiration wire,
so it's back to the granny squares, more room pictures here...
happy friday!
it's a lovely rainy morning, perfect for magazines and music...
and melt & mix in my favourite blue striped bowl...
inspired today by orange with touches of blue,
what a lot of fun there is to be had...
{on a wednesday}
and
vessel wednesday
I must confess that I'm struggling with this not so little blanket. It's probably something to do with the riot of colours and having to surrender to what I think should be the random nature of it {for it to have a truly vintage look and feel} In any case I'm pressing on because I'm enjoying having a little bag of crochet always at my side. I'm comforted by the rhythm of the stiches and I like the overall effect when I blur my eyes, and really overall effect is where I'm at with this one so it's all good.
I try to take at least one photo every day, the act of which cements a moment in my mind. The way the light falls, the memory an object conjures.
Of meaning to me and yet open to interpretation in a wider space.
This is Saturday...
a late entry- japanese teacup, beautiful to hold and lovely to drink from...
egg dyeing in the afternoon,
the details,
happy easter...
our days are still decidedly warm, but finally there is a crispness in the air and the april/may issue of donna hay magazine to savour over a cup of tea and cake...
finally making a post in time for vessel wednesday,
over the last couple of years little groupings of vessels have been growing around our home, this one from the seam collection by anne black...
update... I mostly get my Green & Blacks from the food section of David Jones Department Store, they seem to have a good range most of the time...
At the end of this week I will be making one of two buying trips that I make each year. As you can imagine, these trips are one of the highlights of my job and it's great fun... and a lot of work.
I love that there are so many elements that go into making a buying trip successful. That some of these elements I can control and others I can't.
This post by Alison got me thinking about the hidden aspects of my work. About how the work I do before a trip is integral to the final outcome. I've also been thinking how similar the process is to that of making a piece by hand. It starts with an idea, a pattern of sorts, is informed by many outside influences, the old and the new. Although I have a vision of what the final work might look like, in reality it will probably be quite different... but the threads of the original design will still be evident.
The hidden work begins for me at the beginning of January, thinking about the season that has just passed... about what we did well, about where we can improve. Thinking about colour and form and trends, about what our interpretation of these things might be. Making notes in my little books about desired items, textures and ideas, visual signposts for the journey that will follow.
And on the ground the seen work begins, absorbing the vision of others, putting together orders, making actual selections for the season ahead. Trusting my instincts. Balancing the essentials with an element of surprise. Making sure I find the things I know for certain that we need, the things that our customers expect to see. And all the time watching for the unexpected because it is these pieces that help us create a story that's all our own.
And, if I'm lucky, I'll finish in time to go shopping...
Lately I am captivated by the thought of living life slowly, with simplicity and intention. So when this book arrived at the shop yesterday, I couldn't resist!
Skye Gyngell writes so beautifully about cooking with the seasons, her words and recipes are an inspiration. And it's the little details that I love about this book... it's perfect size, the matte finish of the pages, the three ribbon page markers (yes three!), the extraordinary photos and the fact that it looks so wonderful on our dining table with my Shannon Garson bowls...
A year in my kitchen by Skye Gyngell and photography by Jason Lowe is published by Quadrille (isbn184400337x)
The lovely Liana tagged me to reveal six things not yet mentioned about myself, i was so relieved that it wasn't the weird things meme and that i wouldn't have to discuss the matching pegs...
So here goes (apologies to those of you who already know these things.)
#1 I used to sing in a band, fleetingly, seems like such a long time ago now. I have always loved to sing and one of my greatest childhood experiences was being part of a school choir. Our teacher was so wonderful and she imparted such a love of music to us all, it was a great gift.
#2 On the rare occasions that I am home on my own, I like to listen to my favourite music really really loud. The last time it was Stereolab "Mars Audiac Quintet"
#3 We have a fledgling collection of Dinosaur Designs pieces. I've always been a fan, stamp-boy was convinced after we visited the retrospective together a few years ago.
#4 I'm not a morning person. 3191 makes me wish I was.
#5 Last year I was on the local news in a story about the benefits of counselling for young women with breast cancer. I can't say enough about how counselling sessions helped me to cope with my experiences in the last year. I have learned things that will guide me for the rest of my life.
#6 One of the reasons the blog has been so quiet of late is that we are quite busy toilet training Miss A. It's going very well but I feel like I'm at the potty every five minutes! The big-girl bed is next, our baby is growing up!
You can see that I got some of Liana's wonderful vintage knitting needle bracelets for Christmas, love love wearing these!
Happy weekend friends!
it's summer!
days stretch into weeks, stretch into months... almost! i've been enjoying an unscheduled break from this space, taking life slowly and relishing the promise of the new year...
taking time for baking & nests for clothes-peg birds...
playing with buttons & making lamingtons (messy, messy)
and do you remember the lime tree?
this is our first harvest...
Thank-you for all your kind words after my last post. There are lots of things I should write about today, wonderful playdates, lovely mail and melodies... still no baking or bon-bons, maybe tonight. Life is such a precious gift and it feels good to be moving forward to a new year. Wishing you all sweetness and light in this most beautiful of seasons.
I come from a family of shopkeepers and for a long time I was determined not to be one too. Then one day I woke up and it was all I wanted to do. It was as simple as that. Fourteen years ago my family opened a little gift store in an old house with a shop front. Back then our dream was to create a place where people felt comfortable. A place where even if they only had a little to spend, they would find that special something. It would of course be beautifully wrapped. Years later our little shop has grown and changed but I think we have managed to stay true to our vision. Along the way we have made some wonderful friends and hopefully made a few people happy. We have watched children grow and have had the privelege of sharing a little part of peoples lives. 
I know a lot is said about the commercialisation of this season. It's certainly the busiest time of the year for us, but it's still a thrill for me to see people taking pleasure in the simple things... writing cards and letters, buying a box for handmade biscuits, choosing an ornament for a favourite teacher, taking the time to travel across town to find the perfect treat for someone they hold dear. We have worked really hard over the years to build relationships with our suppliers, a mixture of importers and smaller local companies. Selecting a collection of goods for each season is such fun. Of course a great deal of hard work goes in to making it seem effortless, but it's a challenge that I love. And then there's that great moment when it all comes together, when someone gets what we are trying to say and it just works. Those moments are really special.
For me, blogging has primarily been about own my personal journey into motherhood and finding my creativity within that realm. One of the most powerful things about this community is it's the ability to foster connection among people. I spent a lot of time thinking about this post. Revealing things about myself doesn't come easily to me but recently I have found myself wanting to write about my experiences as a shopgirl. This might be a one off post or maybe one day I'll write some more. I guess what it comes down to is that I've realised again how lucky I am to do something that I really love, something that allows me to connect with others on a daily basis. That our little shop still exists is testament to the support of many people over many years, testament to the power of the smallest exchanges. It's something for which I'm incredibly grateful.
miss a and i have been having a lovely time at our local playgroup, this week it was our turn to prepare the craft activity...
miss a loves stickers at the moment, so we made red spotty star garlands...
and angels,
that ended up covered in glitter...
