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

My pretty little Easter bunnies

Further to my rant last week about Easter bonnet parades, I had the pleasure of watching my eldest daughter in her parade today. This is her creation:

The hat was a $2 purchase from a local Op Shop. She cut up an egg carton, cut the edges in zig zags to look 'cracked', painted them brown and stuck green and pink shredded paper inside the cups- pink for the easter eggs and green for the bunnies and chickens.

The birdhouse was a leftover from a craft book from last Easter and the ribbon was a couple of dollars from Woolworths.

My job was to handle the hot glue gun, but she designed and directed the whole thing.

She was disappointed that she didn't win a prize, but she was really pleased with her hat!

And I wasn't disappointed at all!! I loved watching her walk around the stage knowing that this was her very own creation. And there was enough chocolate going around today at school to soothe her (she's her mother's daughter ;)

Love Gubby xo

PS The little sisters had to be involved too, so I just stuck some bits on a hat for Beth. Her only real requirement was that it had actual chocolate on it (Penny is mid-egg, thus the screwy face ;)

All the leaves are brown...

This afternoon Rob and I were watching our littlest jump on the trampoline in our front yard, when he looked up and noticed that the leaves of the trees were starting to turn brown. When Francesca was little she used the term 'the trees have been autumned'- its one of those little kid sayings that still brings a smile to my face every time I see Autumn setting in.

And in honour of the Autumning of the world, I thought I would showcase my latest piece of artwork.

Beth keeps bringing home paintings from kinder. Some are filed away in the collection I keep for each of the girls, some are sent to Nannies and Mas and aunts and uncles and friends. Some are put on display... for a little while.

She recently brought home a large sheet of colour:

I wasn't sure what to do with it, but I wanted it on display somewhere. I was thinking of a mosaic or similar... and then a good friend reminded me of the frame that was sitting in the hall cupboard:

It was in the cupboard when we moved into the house and, its safe to say, it was not going to be on display as it was ;)

So I mixed a little drawing of my own with a little of Beth's artwork and created a little Autumn artwork for our house!

Have you displayed your kids artwork at home? Or found a creative way to amend it for display? Would love to see/hear about your combined creations.

Love Gubby xo

Easter bonnet parades... a modern day sham?!

My daughter is in grade 2 and so this will be our 3rd Easter bonnet parade.

As a crafty, I have SO many ideas for the kind of bonnet I would like to make- the internet is full of amazingly creative ideas for the kind of bonnet one can make, materials one can use and looks one can achieve.

But I try very hard to remember that my girl has ideas of her own. This is another wonderful activity for her to direct. Its relatively simple, has no life or death consequences, but allows her to work her creative muscles, direct a small project and then display her work in public.

I also understand that my job as 'Mum' is to develop lifelong independence. If I make all her choices and do all her things now, how will she learn what she dis/likes, what she is and is not capable of, what works and what doesn't??

And so I have (painfully) left it entirely to her (my only involvement has been sourcing goods and holding 2 things together so she can staple them herself... lop-sided, of course :P)

I must say, I am really disappointed that the prizes seem to go to the bonnets that are most obviously made by the mums.... NOT the kids. I am all for Mums being involved, but perhaps we should have a bonnet parade for Mums, so the kids can have this one back!

Do you struggle keeping your hands off your kids' projects too?

I hope many more mums will join me this year in allowing their kids the opportunity to create and display something that is their own making :)

Yours in indignation,
Gubby xo

All your cords in one basket!

Do you, like me, have all your power cords and chargers in one big box or basket? All tangled together? Unable to determine when one cord ends and another begins?

It's so frustrating! Especially when you're running out the door for a night or two away with your hubby and you realise you need a charger for your phone... and it takes you 20 minutes to find and untangle it.

Well, I found the best solution. Its pretty and practical. I love creating order. It makes me happy. It makes me even happier when it also looks great and I can make it myself for very minimal (if any) cost!

It started life as a very plain cardboard box. Any box that fits the space you want to store your cords will do- as long as it has flaps to close it. If its a large box, you might want to get some more cardboard to create more compartments- but my nice little square box lent itself beautifully to 9 even compartments.

Cut off the flaps. Mark into 3 even sections and cut about half way into the flaps at marked points (if you have a larger box or wish to use extra card to create more compartments, you will need to measure, mark and cut so that the pieces fit together- see below).

Start with one set of flaps (either the length or width of the box) and place with cuts up. Insert the other set of flaps, matching the cuts you have made (this time facing down). If they don't fit make the cuts a little wider. If they sit up too far make the cuts a little longer so they can reach all the way to the bottom of the box.

Then take out the card pieces and decorate the inserts and the external box. I had some wonderfully colourful papers in my collection, so it was easy to make it look great (you could also use fabric- a thick fabric would give this great support if your box will get a lot of regular use). I found a cute frame image online and used that for the big front label and the labels inside. The small interior labels were actually sized to fit the adhesive mailing labels that I always have at home. So I just had to print them onto the labels, cut them out, peel and stick!

So now, my obsessive tendancies are alleviated for a little while longer and I have a great and easy way to get to power cords and cables whenever I need them (and I used ONLY stuff I already had at home).

Do you have a favourite storage idea when it comes to all your wires? I would love to hear your tips for making sense of the cable jungle!

Love Gubby xo

You can view the original tutorial at the AMAZING 'i {heart} organizing' blog:
http://iheartorganizing.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/you-asked-organizing-cords.html