Lots of little people

There are so many precious little people in my life at the moment. You know, other than the ones I made myself.

And there are boys everywhere. My first nephew, Leo, and little buddy Tristan are almost 1; my very talented sister-in-law recently produced another nephew for me; and a long-time friend is due in October with another little bundle of blue.

Other than all of the cuddles and smiles, baby boys are a fun excuse for me to use the fabrics that aren't pink or covered in cupcakes :P

This series of bibs was a necessity. I HAD to have this fabric- Humpty Dumpty, what's not to love?! And I just happened to have the coordinating fabric and ribbon lying around.

I made 2 large and 2 small bibs. I have made a lot of bibs lately, so I am getting pretty quick and my top-stitching is pretty neat. I ordered a bunch of coloured press-studs in multi colours, so I should have one to coordinate with any project (I do so love it when things all match).

I just had to share, cause I was so pleased with how they came out- both the sewing and coordinating of fabrics. Very satisfying.

Love Gubby xo

Fathers' Day

My wonderful husband recently traveled for work- he was gone 5 weeks and left me alone with our 3 kids. But he arrived home in time for Fathers' Day... how convenient ;)

We helped my sister move house on the day, so Fathers' Day was pretty low-key, but I wanted to share a couple of ideas that helped make it a special day.

In time for his arrival home from his travels, I framed a gorgeous printable that I found (today's creative blog). I wanted him to know how special he is to us:

I had to prepare a fathers' day related craft for the MOPS group I attend. Cards are a good, simple craft and everyone needs a card at Fathers' Day.

Again, I found an adorable tutorial on The Gold Jelly Bean (seriously, what did we do before Pinterest?) and amended it slightly for a simpler, quicker design. My friend, Janine, used to insist that macaroni is not for grown-up craft, but I think even she would agree that this is an acceptably cute use of uncooked pasta... even for grown-ups!

So its late, but I hope that the ideas are fun, inspiring and useful.

Love Gubby xo

10 years and going strong

This April my husband and I celebrated our 10th Wedding Anniversary!

Again, the challeng of hand-making a gift for my most beloved exerted some real pressure on me. I wanted it to be something I had made (obviously), that expressed my love for him, that was significant enough for a 10th Anniversary and that was masculine.

I found this gorgeous idea for an embroidered 'love tree' (from Cat on a Limb). I used hessian and embroidery thread, and picked up the frame for $5 from Spotlight. I was really pleased with the result.

Hanging in the loungeroom- that's a good sign that he liked it :D

We enjoyed a dinner with family and friends on the evening of our anniversary and I surprised everyone by appearing in my wedding dress!!

As you can see, its been a busy 10 years for us ;)

Happy Anniversary to the love of my life- every day I am more aware of just how awesome this is :D

Love Gubby xo

Sharing the love

Last week I held another class. I really enjoy hosting craft classes for a few reasons:
1) I get to share what I know with people I like
2) I have an excuse to do some craft myself
3) I get to talk (and I really love talking)
4) I get to hang out with great people for an evening
5) I get a little pocket money to purchase more craft supplies

See? No good reason NOT to run classes more often!

This class was a 'Mothers' Day' theme, so lots of flowers and swirly things.

My lovely friend Marnie (Our Fields of Gold) took some photos for me to share with you all.

The first card we made was a real surprise. Looks like just a simple mothers' day card on the outside:

But open it up for a bunch of pop-up flowers (thanks to the amazing and talented Martha Stewart for that one)

The 2nd card requires a lot more precise measuring and cutting, but again, the effect is well worth it.

And neatly folds down to fit into a C5 envelope!!

(I will post a detailed tutorial for this one soon)

Marnie considers herself an inexperienced card-maker, but I think she's done an amazing job and there will be some very impressed mothers this weekend (perhaps she just had a really good teacher ;)

What have you been planning for your Mum this mothers' day? Or are you waiting to see what your own kids come up with for you??

Love Gubby xo

A special something for a special someone

My littlest person turned 3 on Easter weekend. With my committment to handmake gifts this year, I knew the gifts I made for my own family had to be super-special.

So I put it out to the facebook community and got some great ideas. In the end I decided on a baby carrier- she really loves dolls and soft toys at the moment.

My very creative friend at Stitch'd lent me a pattern and I found a super-cool set of fabrics at Spotlight.

I had to unpick and restitch a few things that I wasn't happy with and when I make it again I will add some card/plastic in the base and some kind of stiffener in the sides so it holds its shape better.

It is the first gift I have made with such love and effort for any of my girls, so I was a little nervous, but I think she's happy with it :)

Love Gubby xo

No place for a sandwich...

I own a large number of Tupperware containers, including quite a collection of those cool, colourful sandwich keepers. I like being able to send my kids to school/kinder with no throw-away wrappers of any kind.

When it came time to choose a new lunch box for school this year, my 7 year old chose a very groovy one with lots of little compartments. Perfect, I think to myself, no wrapping required, everything has a home. But apparently the perfectly-sandwiched-sized compartment is for the little drink bottle to live, once its been filled with water and frozen overnight (can't deny the benefits as a lunchbox cooling device in the warmer months ;)

So the sandwich has to go in the large compartment in the bottom, where it slides around and the ham and bread say their final farewells before slipping in different directions. Of course, this compartment is too big for a sandwich, but not large enough for a sandwich keeper, so we have been using ziplock bags or gladwrap.

Until my very dangerous trip to GJ's Discount Fabrics!!

I had had a vague idea in my head about making sandwich pockets from oilcloth, but had not had time/money/opportunity in correct quantities at the same time. But Mum and I saw the most beautiful oilcloths- pricey, but beautiful and she offered to purchase some for me even though the price tag said $46 per metre!

These are the pieces cut up, but you can see why I fell in love with it!!

I know that sounds mad, but I only need 30 cm, which made it around $14 and I was able to get enough for 4 sandwich bags, so I figure that's around $3.50 for a bag that will get used every day, and then it doesn't sound so bad (plus, my mum paid for it, so I just have to shower her in love and gratitude and that I can afford :)

Front, back and gusset pieces. No template, just made it up by measuring the bread we use

A perfect fit!

Now she can eat lunch and be inspired at the same time!

I used stick on velcro to seal and although it clings to the oily side perfectly, once the cotton side gets wet the velcro just peels off. So I have added sew-on velcro on the flap side and left the sticky velcro on the oilcloth.

The inside of the pocket can just be wiped clean and left to dry between uses and can take a thorough washing if needed- just hang upside down on the dishrack and allow to dry thoroughly between uses!

Your environmentally friendly crafter,
Gubby xo

How to do it all! (and other modern-day myths)

I love craft.
I do a lot of craft.
I probably do a lot more craft than a mother of 3 should.

People often ask me where I find the time. How do I maintain a home for 5, cook healthy meals, clean, do washing/dishes, post regularly to facebook and do so much craft?

The short answer is: I DON'T!!

I craft because I choose to. I prioritise my time and it always seems to find its way somewhere near the top of the list.

I can't remember the last time I cleaned the shower;
and I could just quickly spray those small weeds that will eventually grow into annoying tree-like shrubs that I will have to dig out of the ground;
and I could grow/pick/prepare/cook fresh vegetables for my kids instead of cooking frozen vegies from the supermarket.

Somehow those things never move higher on the to-do list than:
sew a new baby doll carrier for Penny's birthday;
make an Easter garland to decorate my home;
sew a cute little apron for a good friend who lives interstate;
handmake a card just to let a friend know I love her.

Supermum doesn't exist. There is no-one who really has it all together. Don't get down on yourself when you see others doing things you feel you 'should' be doing.

Remember that creative Mumma who produces sewn/baked/paper goods at a rapid rate is currently squelching along her sticky kitchen floor to make a cup of tea to accompany her creative endeavours :)

(PS This was me recently writing my blog. Decided I could let them lol all over me and then I could check off 'spending time with the kids' as well as 'updating my blog' ;)

Yours, in squalor,
Gubby xo