Impromptu dolphin

More and more, Piper pulls out the craft stuff by herself to create whatever she's imagining in her head. Sometimes it's bemusing not to be needed, now that she knows where the scissors are and is so adept at cutting the bits of sticky tape she needs. Yes, a lot of sticky tape gets consumed around here these days! But that's all good. I've been keeping many bits and pieces that would have ended up in the recycling bin, cos invariably they get used in the next creation, as a turtle shell, or a dolphin pool, or an aquarium.

But the other morning, Piper decided she wanted to make a dolphin out of felt, which required a bit of parental presence. I probably took over the project, like did the sewing round the edge really need to be blanket stitch, or could I have just let her at it and see what happened? It's hard for the perfectionist in me to let go...

Found a picture online and printed it off as a pattern/outline.

Me sewing the blanket stitch, cos Piper didn't want to.

Taking time to snap a shot of her brother...

Stuffing the dolphin.

A new creature in a new home. A satisfyingly felty finished product. What a pity I was grumpy by the end, and what a blessing that the doorbell rang just then, announcing a friend, and an instant change of mood!

First harvest

Our zucchini plants are producing prolifically, as zucchini plants always seem to! We really want to respect the abundance of this garden and use all that it produces, so zucchini has been, and will be, on the menu for a while at our place!

The vibrant yellow skin was a welcome surprise - I guess I should have paid more attention to what we were planting!

So, our first harvest from the garden becomes part of a thrown-together-with-whatever-we-had-on-hand Split Pea and Zucchini soup, consumed with family and friends. Lovely.

Dressing up

A pirate costume for a movie night with friends, coming together just from what we had. I love that.

Five years together

One shopping trip.
One Kids Movie night at Jane & Steve's.
One space to ourselves.
One game.
Two steaks, later.
One handwritten letter.
One movie: Slumdog Millionaire.
One full moon.

Five years together.

Friends for dinner

Friends for dinner calls for a session with the pasta maker...

...freshly picked flowers...

...chocolate cake...

...and consumption!

Photography: step 1

We were at some friends' place last night and I took the liberty of taking a few photos...

I'm aiming, in 2009, to focus on my photography and try and get to a point where I'm taking better shots. In particularly, I'm realising that there's an art to setting up a shot, stylising it, if you will. Not just taking a photo of a cake, but teaming it with some vintage loveliness in the background, say. So none of these shots are amazing, but they are a step - the first step of taking the camera with me and at least trying! And with two young kids, soon to be three, and the amount of stuff I already have to remember when I walk out of the house, taking the camera is a big enough step for now!

Christmas haul

Look how lucky I was this Christmas!

Three delicious craft books to peruse most pleasurably, with a cup of tea, perhaps... More Softies compiled by Viking, Last-Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts by Joelle Hoverson, and The Gentle Art of Domesticity by Jane Brocket.

Softies are new territory for me, but I'm eyeing off this little pup, by Myra Masuda.

And these scrapbooks...

... and this quilt - the colours of the fabrics don't grab me, but all those lines do!

The Gentle Art of Domesticity touches on a myriad of different topics and encourages all kinds of domestic artistry. It will be a total joy to read through it slowly... Lucky me! Thanks heaps, Kathryn, John & Anne, and Sharon!