Festive Buntings

When a collection of things are strung together and hung up, it always creates a festive mood.  After bunny one and bunny two, I decided that we needed some more festivity and this time I was going for quick.

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So, I sewed some buntings!  Bunting… such a funny word 🙂

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For this bunting (hehe!), I used scrap bits of patterned fabric for the fronts and backed them with a large red and white dot.

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Sewn onto a length of ribbon and up this went in Kiki’s room.

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For the larger, even quicker version, I used a bigger template and a few charm squares. I left the edges raw on these and didn’t back them with a contrasting fabric either.

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I think I’ll hang this above the fireplace in our family room… after she’s done twirling with it, of course!

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I have to add that I finished both of these in under an hour with the help of my triangle-sorting assistant who is home from school today. The plumbing at her elementary school is shot and so while they get that fixed, 500 kids are home today with moms scrambling to shuffle schedules!!

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Now that we’re set with festive decorations, all we need are some good tunes and maybe some confetti 😉

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Posted by & filed under Sewing, Sewn Finishes. This post has 7 comments.

Spring Bunny

Time to put away the warm woolies and dig out the gardening tools, spring is here!  I’ve made several trips to the garden center this past week.  It’s time to brighten things up and usher in some color!

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Spring is indoors too with this cute knitted bunny that I recently finished.

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It took me a whole day of seaming and stuffing all of the little bunny pieces.  I should have followed the instructions and stuffed and seamed as I went along with the knitting.  Lesson learned!

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Like my first knitted bunny, this one too is knit entirely out of stash bits and pieces.

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I used leftover Tosh Pashmina from my Soay cardigan to knit the face, ears and limbs and it does make her look quite different from her BFF.  Less fuzzy but just as adorable!

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I knit the little dress in the round and so I have a “jog” up the back where the stripes meet. Thankfully, she’s not a vain bunny and so she’s cool with it 😉

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That cute little button was just asking to be a part of this dress!  It’s an old one from my button stash.  Button stashbusting too?  Whoa!

Pattern details…

Bunny 1

Spring Bunny (Ravelry) 
Pattern: Bunny girl in a dotty dress by Julie Williams
Yarn: Stash
Needles: Sizes US 2.5 / 3 mm

Have a lovely, springy weekend all 🙂

Spring 1

Posted by & filed under Finished Knits, Rambling, Stashbusting, Toys. This post has 8 comments.

#touristinmytown

This post brought to you via iPhoneography 🙂

The kids have been on spring break the past two weeks, so it’s been a wonderful time of relaxing and sleeping in 🙂 Monday, is back to school for one last term which is always the busiest one. This lull before the storm was nice! We went on a mini vacation over the weekend, back to the Okanagan Valley.

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The landscape was such a contrast to how we remember it from the summer.  Don’t be fooled by that drab exterior, there’s plenty happening below the surface with the orchards and vineyards getting ready to burst into bloom.

Out here by the coast, the early plum blossoms are already displaying their splendor.

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Prithvi and I decided that we would be tourists for a day in our city, well not exactly in suburbia where we live, but right downtown.  It was so much fun!

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First, we took the cute little Aquabus across False Creek to Granville Island.

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We walked around the Public Market and worked up quite an appetite for a huge plate of fish and chips.

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With happy bellies we visited the various little artisan stores around the island.

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One of our favorite stores was Make with its quirky items made using recycled materials. Another one we liked was Ten Thousand Villages.  All that walking and browsing made us peckish for some sweet treats so back into the market we went.

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So many delicious choices!

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It was time to take the Aquabus back and wander down to the Vancouver Art Gallery with a quick detour to the MAC store 😉  Art expedition done, we each grabbed a cup of brew and headed down Robson Street for people-watching, selfie-clicking and window shopping.  The light was beginning to fade with the setting sun and of course, we were hungry again, hah!  We decided to end the day with dinner at one of our favorite Malaysian restaurants, Banana Leaf.

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It was so lovely to spend the day with my son, creating great memories that we will always remember!

#touristinmytown, you’ve got to try it!

Posted by & filed under Canada, Family, Food, Rambling, Travel, Vacation. This post has 5 comments.

Blogging Anyway

I’ve heard it said that when you don’t know what to blog about, blog anyway.  So, here I am blogging anyway 🙂

I’m so thrilled with this kitchen adventure.  I found a recipe in an old magazine for lemon curd cheesecake.  Just reading the recipe made me drool and so I just had to make it.  I went on the hunt for lemon curd and didn’t find any at the store.  I did find Ina Garten’s recipe for homemade lemon curd, yummy!  The only hard part about making this is the whisking.  I convinced Vineet to help me whisk and so we took turns, him whisking and me dunk tasting and then switching roles 🙂

Lemon Curd Yum

This recipe is a keeper.  Even for eating straight out of the dish while it’s cooling (guilty as charged!) or smeared onto warm scones, mmm. Getting back to my cheesecake, I’ve baked it and left it to set in the fridge.  I can’t tell you how tempted I’ve been to attack this deliciousness with a spoon.  If I give in to temptation, I think the family will notice a big gaping hole in the middle.  So, I must resist!

Oh, oh I have to show you what I made a few days ago.  But you know me, there’s always a back story…

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I have this little pouch with needles, tiny scissors, a tape measure and other bits and bobs. As much as I tried to contain the needles within the plastic-disc-holder-thingy, I would always have a few strays drop out. Every time I reached into the bag I would get stabbed by one of those errant needles.  I got to thinking that there must be a better way to contain these without having to use strong language before I used them each time.

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What do you know… needlebooks are meant for this very purpose!  I looked for a tutorial and found tons, each needlebook was cuter than the next.

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I had a hard time deciding but I picked this one because the instructions were very clear and Amy’s stuff is always so charming and adorable.

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Here’s my Inspired by Nanacompany Needlebook.

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Now all of my needles have a place and there are no more nasty surprises lurking in my pouch.  I love my little needlebook, everything that’s scaled down in size is always so much cuter 🙂

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Posted by & filed under Food, Rambling, Sewing, Sewn Finishes. This post has 6 comments.

Remember The Time

My dear friend, Kim, who was battling cancer, passed away on Saturday.  We will all miss her terribly.  However, she said so many times that we weren’t to dwell on that.  She wanted us to remember only the fun, good times.  To honor her wishes, we are celebrating her life.

She loved people, she was passionate about everything ocean, she made amazing quilt after quilt and was always upto some crazy adventure. Her zest for life was just so contagious.  Knowing her has made my life so very blessed!

Cheers Kim

Cheers, Kim!

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Friday Frivolous

I should be getting my hat done.  Actually, I should be finishing our taxes (ugh!) instead, here I am knitting something absolutely frivolous and so much fun!

April Bunny 1

Every year once we get our taxes filed just before D-Day, I vow that I will be better at being organized with next year’s paperwork.  And every year I fail miserably!  So as a picker-upper, I pulled out Julie’s bunny pattern and some stash yarn and got knitting.  Grin 😀

April Bunny 2

I think Dottie needs a playmate.

I accomplished so much last week with life stuff and crafting stuff.  This week, I’ve got zip-nada-zilch!

Last week I finished and handed off these coasters.  They were well received and I’m so grateful for that order.

Tangier Ikat Coasters

I finished these placemats for two little girls too 🙂

Pink Placemat

One of them loves pink and the other loves red.

They also each got their initial monogrammed with some handstitching.  Dots make everything extra cute, in my opinion and so I used them quite liberally.  I think I need more dot fabric in every color in my stash!

Personalized Placemat

I’ve got a large-ish order going for various items but with a relaxed deadline so I haven’t had much time to actually list stuff for my empty-looking etsy shop right now.  I will in time, I promise.

Off to knit another bunny ear before I get back to wading through paperwork.  Talk soon 🙂

Posted by & filed under Etsy, Rambling, Sewing, Sewn Finishes. This post has 6 comments.

Think Pink

Today is Pink Shirt Day.  Click here to read how this tremendous movement came to be.

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I’m sure most of us have experienced bullying to varying degrees.  Bullies aren’t just limited to the school playground. Adults can be bullies too.  My first recollection of being targeted was when I was in kindergarten and not by my peers but by my teacher.  You see, she was reading us this story about a rag doll and his friend and one of the kids piped up and asked, “What do you mean by gollywog, Miss?  What does he look like?”.  She was quiet for a moment and then I distinctly remember her saying, “A gollywog’s hair is like Preeti’s”. Hence came to be my nickname through most of elementary school, “Gollywog”.

This story has a happy ending because I now have come to accept and embrace my messy, tangly, unruly mane of hair but through most of my childhood, I wished I was bald!

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I hope you’ll wear pink today to take a stand against bullying.

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In other generalness (yes, that’s totally a word), the earth went bwahahaha because after I posted the picture of our crocuses from last week, we got hit by a freak snow storm. Say wha’?

Snowy 1

No white-out conditions or anything dramatic like that, not even that cold really.  Just pretty white flakes that fell softly, magically for three days.  It was like winter’s last hurrah.

As I type this, most of the white fluff has melted away.  It was so lovely while it lasted and we didn’t even have to shovel 😀

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Then, this bunch of loveliness arrived in the mail! I am undecided about what I want to make with these.

Scrumptious Bundle

More floral loveliness. I’ve got spring fever, maybe?

Lecien Bundle

For now, I’m just happy to pet them and smile 🙂

Posted by & filed under Fabric, Rambling. This post has 7 comments.

Coasting Along

I could be knitting my fingers to the bone to get my Ravellenics project finished before the Olympic flame is extinguished on Sunday.  However, it looks like I’m going to have to bow out gracefully before the finish line.

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First, I’ve got to get all of the straggly threads knotted and buried into these coasters before tonight so that they can be shipped out pronto.

Coasting 1

Sewing these together was quick, it’s the finishing that’s going to take longer.  That said, it’s all about the finishing and we crafters know how important those details are.

Coasting 2

I’ve also got to finish up another project that has a fast approaching deadline.  Since I took this picture last week, I’ve worked exactly zero minutes on it, ack!

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February is moving swiftly to usher March in.  While I was determined to try snowshoeing or at least take the kids tobogganing again this year, that will have to wait because just like that, the seasons are rolling over too!

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I know that there’s plenty of snow on the mountains still, but spring is almost here and I’m feeling all giddy just like these pretties that obviously love coloring outside the lines 🙂

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I want a spring sweater to be on the needles asap.  Also, I’ve got a bunch of happy fabric all cut out, waiting to be pieced together.  I’m even thinking paint, staple gun, upholstery fabric to makeover a couple boring chairs we’ve got.  I’ll let you know if I’m brave enough to try since I don’t know the first thing about furniture redo!

Coasting 3

Busy as a bee it seems and I’m not complaining because that’s just how I like it 😉

I’m ready to play with some spring projects.  Do you feel the same?

Posted by & filed under Hats, KAL, Sewing. This post has 5 comments.

All Kinds Of Crafty

When you’ve got to motivate your 6-year-old to make 22 valentines for her class and you don’t want to opt for the generic box of candy from the grocery store, where do you turn? Pinterest, of course.

I came across this pin last week for non-candy valentines and jumped all over it.  I had the necessary supplies to pull this off :: construction paper, cute pencils, Exacto knife… check, check, check.  I even had said 6-year-old eager and willing to get going… HUGE check!!

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The entire thing took us less than an hour and it was so enjoyable to work on it together.  I will definitely look out for more crafty projects we can make.

Crafty 1

A couple things to note, I changed my printer settings to print out the template onto cardstock.  There are lines printed on the template where you cut slits to slide the pencil through.  I needed to extend those lines to be longer so that my pencil could fit through without ripping the paper.

We stuck a handwritten, heavily-stickered note to the back of each heart and we were all set.

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Her best friends get a little something extra, namely, rainbow loom bracelets.  Tell me that it’s not only at my house that there’s this Rainbow Loom mania going on 🙂

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Valentines craft complete, now, I’ve got to go bake a couple dozen cupcakes!

Posted by & filed under Gifts, Kids, Rambling. This post has 6 comments.

Treat Bags

I received a custom request for a set of gift bags for Valentines Day.  These little bags were so much fun to put together.  Filled with little candy and treats for the fast-approaching ❤ Day, I’m sure these are going to be loved :: for the giving and the receiving.

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They can be re-used to store little treasures or filled with lavender to freshen up any space.

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I made the bags using linen (of course!) and pretty fabric for the trim.  The part I enjoyed the most was the applique of the hearts, you know how I love me some hand stitching 🙂 The hearts are totally appropriate for the occasion, no?

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The bags are unlined and the edges are finished with a zig-zag stitch all around to prevent fraying.

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They’ve gone into the shop.  Yes, the shop is open, yay!  It’s got only the one item listed so far, but I’ll be adding more lovely things as I make them 🙂

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❤

 

Posted by & filed under Bags, Etsy, Gifts, Sewn Finishes. This post has 9 comments.