Thank you

Just wanted to say thank you to those who bid on items from my flood relief auction. I will be sending the winners an email to let them know that they've won. I didn't quite raise as much as I had hoped, but every little bit counts.

Queensland Flood Relief Auction

Thank you for visiting my blog! I live in Ipswich, Queensland and was fortunate enough to be spared the destruction of the floods. However, just 5 mins away many homes and business have been totally ruined. After counting my blessings I wanted to do something to help. When I read Toni's blog I realised I found the way I could help. With my husband home from work I've been able to spend the last few days at the sewing machine. I'm only a beginning sewist (sewer? that looks too much like another word...) but I hope you find something that you like :-)

Here's what I've got up for auction: (click on the link to be taken to the item for sale)

Girls clothes - Dresses - Size 1

- Size 2

- Size 3

- Size 4

Skirt - Size 5

Boys T-shirts - Size 3

- Size 4

Earrings for Sale

Thanks for your help!

Flood Relief AUCTION - Girls skirt - Size 5

Size 5 girls skirt. Made from the "Gypsy Skirt" pattern from Toni's book "Make It Perfect."

How this auction works:

1. Bidding will start at $15 (Australian).

2. You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address. Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.

3. Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4. This auction is open to everyone. Postage is FREE.
5. The auction begins NOW and will END at 9pm (AEST) on Monday 24th January 2011.
6. At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address). The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send me proof of payment via email. Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your skirt to you.
7. Thankyou for participating and happy bidding!

Flood Relief AUCTION - Girls dress - size 1

Size 1 girls dress with butterfly print. Shirred waist and broderie anglaise border.

How this auction works:

1. Bidding will start at $10 (Australian).

2. You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address. Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.

3. Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4. This auction is open to everyone. Postage is FREE.
5. The auction begins NOW and will END at 9pm (AEST) on Monday 24th January 2011.
6. At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address). The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send me proof of payment via email. Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your dress to you.
7. Thankyou for participating and happy bidding!

Flood Relief AUCTION - Girls dress - size 2

Size 2 red and white girls dress. Shirred waist, broderie anglaise border and yo-yo embellishment.

How this auction works:

1. Bidding will start at $15 (Australian).

2. You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address. Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.

3. Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4. This auction is open to everyone. Postage is FREE.
5. The auction begins NOW and will END at 9pm (AEST) on Monday 24th January 2011.
6. At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address). The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send me proof of payment via email. Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your dress to you.
7. Thankyou for participating and happy bidding!

Flood Relief AUCTION - Girls dress - size 3

Size 3 red girls dress. Shirred waist, broderie anglaise border and button embellishment.

How this auction works:

1. Bidding will start at $15 (Australian).

2. You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address. Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.

3. Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4. This auction is open to everyone. Postage is FREE.
5. The auction begins NOW and will END at 9pm (AEST) on Monday 24th January 2011.
6. At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address). The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send me proof of payment via email. Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your dress to you.
7. Thankyou for participating and happy bidding!

Flood Relief AUCTION - Girls dress - size 4

Size 4 purple girls dress. Shirred waist, broderie anglaise border, and button embellishment.

How this auction works:

1. Bidding will start at $15 (Australian).

2. You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address. Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.

3. Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4. This auction is open to everyone. Postage is FREE.
5. The auction begins NOW and will END at 9pm (AEST) on Monday 24th January 2011.
6. At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address). The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send me proof of payment via email. Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your post to you.
7. Thankyou for participating and happy bidding!

Flood Relief AUCTION - Boys T-Shirt - Size 3

Boys size 3 Navy t-shirt with reverse applique embellishment. Your little boy will definitely look "cool" with this shirt :-)

How this auction works:

1. Bidding will start at $10 (Australian).

2. You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address. Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.

3. Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4. This auction is open to everyone. Postage is FREE.
5. The auction begins NOW and will END at 9pm (AEST) on Monday 24th January 2011.
6. At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address). The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send me proof of payment via email. Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your t-shirt to you.
7. Thankyou for participating and happy bidding!

Flood Relief AUCTION - Boys T-Shirt - Size 4

Boys size 4 navy t-shirt with reverse applique embellishment. Your little boy will definitely look "Cool" in this t-shirt :-)

How this auction works:

1. Bidding will start at $10 (Australian).

2. You can place a bid by leaving a comment on this blog post with your bid amount and email address. Please make sure that your bid is higher than the previous bidder.

3. Your bid must be in whole dollar increments.
4. This auction is open to everyone. Postage is FREE.
5. The auction begins NOW and will END at 9pm (AEST) on Monday 24th January 2011.
6. At the close of the auction, I will contact the winner (please make sure your bid comment includes your email address). The winner will pay the winning amount directly into the Premier's Flood Relief Appeal and send me proof of payment via email. Once proof of payment has been received, I will post your t-shirt to you.
7. Thankyou for participating and happy bidding!

Flood Relief SALE - Earrings

The following earrings are for sale:

The roses are approximately 1cm in diameter, the ice cream ones are about 1cm wide and 1.5 cm long. Each pair is made with stainless steel posts (allergy-free)

Cost - $5 donation to the QLD Premier's Flood Relief fund. If you would like a pair, simply comment which ones you would like to purchase in the comments, along with an email address to contact you on. I will email you to confirm that you are the winning buyer. Then make your donation to the Flood Relief fund, and email your receipt number to me, along with your address so I can post them to you.

Thank you!

How sometimes two wrongs (or three or four...) can turn out right

I recently hit the Boxing Day Sales where I picked up some plain polo shirts and a plain t-shirt from Rivers for $3.90 each. I decided that I wanted to embellish the plain t-shirt a bit, but still be able to tumble dry the shirt (due to all the rain we've been having). So I decided on reverse applique. And that's where things started to go a little pear-shaped... :-) Here's what I did.

Here's the original shirt. I love the blue, but it was just a little plain. My first problem was that the shirt didn't lie flat - it has a slight twist. I don't know if that makes it drape nicer, but it made the whole process a lot more challenging.

I found this tree design from LollyChops and thought that it would look great on a t-shirt.

Then I decided to try and use the freezer paper stencilling technique... Unfortunately I don't have any freezer paper, so I thought greaseproof paper would work as it is shiny on one side. So I traced the design and cut it out.

Then I tried to iron on the greaseproof paper. And found that its not the same as the American freezer paper. It just wouldn't stick. So I ended up having to trace around the stencil with a fabric marker.



Then I tried on the shirt and found that I had placed the design crooked and the trunk of the tree was pointing diagonally to my right hip. So I decided to just forget about sewing the trunk!

Next I pinned a remnant of white knit fabric to the inside of my shirt. Make sure that the knit fabric covers your front design.

Then I started sewing. I used a stretch stitch and my applique foot on my sewing machine.

This next photo is sideways but you get the general idea...

Then I trimmed the knit material to close to the sewing. Knit fabric won't fray, so you can leave it unhemmed, but it would probably look better with overlocked or zigzagged edges.


Carefully trim the top layer of fabric only around the design.

Ta-da! I'm really happy with how this turned out :-) Especially after all the stumbles along the way :-)

A little bit of bling...

One of my goals for 2011 is to finish projects. I have so many UFO's (unfinished objects...) around the house that I really need to complete before I start anything else. I have had some jewellery kits sitting on my desk for over 6 months now so I decided it was time to do something about it!

First up... these glass tile pendants: I bought this kit from Annie Howes just after baby no 2 was born in April. And then they just sat there on my desk :-) The kit comes with all the adhesives etc that you need - the only thing it really doesn't come with is a chain. These pendants are about 3cm in diameter.

Next up are these earrings and necklace. The earrings are from a free kit that came with (I think) the September issue of Better Homes and Gardens. When I received a matching kit for Christmas I decided to use that kit to create a matching necklace.

This next pair of earrings are from a kit from Signature Beads. I don't actually remember when I bought these... possibly over a year ago!

Next up are some necklaces for my sister. My sister is into things that are a little bit gothy, so when I found these on Snapcrafty I knew I was onto a winning Christmas present (even though they arrived from the States just before New Years ;-D)

And finally, some small earrings, again from Snapcrafty. Snapcrafty have all the cabochons, posts and earring backs and all you have to do is glue the post onto the cabochon (the resin flower things). These are about 1cm across. I really like the ice cream ones!

So... what is your favourite?