Pass it Forward - Handmade

When Kaite asked for volunteers for Pass it Forward- Handmade, I quickly put my hand up.  The idea is that once Kaite had her pif partners she had to make a gift for each of us, and in turn, we will Pass It Forward too. Well, my gift has arrived!

........prettily wrapped in pink, with a cheeky card...

and look, the most gorgeous little basket, knitted from fabric strips.......... 

a look inside



see the pretty beaded embellishment....

Then I popped it on the bed to answer the phone and turned round to see this......

my baby checking it out........





must be something in here for me?

She didn't hurt it, just sniffed and looked and loved it up a bit, tried to get her head in there.....perhaps she could smell your little dog, Kaite? 

Thankyou so much Kaite, I love it.  You couldn't have chosen a better gift to make.....I love baskets, but I also love tiny things....this is tiny.....fits in the palm of my hand, is about 10cm across (3and a half inches)  7cms high, and the colour is perfect too, these berry shades are my favourites, it feels lovely, soft and tactile.  Kaite did ask about our preference for something personal or for our studio/sewing room and fave colours etc. and went from there.   See the other gorgeous gifts Kaite made here

Now it's my turn to fulfill my promise to pass it forward (PIF).  I'll send a gift to three people who comment here and agree to play, and who also promise, when the time comes, to pass it forward to 3 more people after you receive your gift from me. Those 3 will send on to 3 more, and on and away it will flow. All being well, I would hope to have your gift to you in 3-4 months.

It was lots of fun getting to know Kaite, and I feel I've made a new friend,  then there was the anticipation of knowing a gift was being handcrafted just for me and the teases on her blog.

Come on, come play too.







On my mind - op shop gleanings

Joining in with Rhonda Jean at Down to Earth .................

Looking forward to playing with these lovelies.



a trip to the big smoke

A friend and I headed off early yesterday for the hour + drive to Brisbane for the Craft and Quilt Fair.  Nothing exciting purchased, just a new ergonomic rotary cutter, I'm hoping it will help with the rsi in my elbow from having to fiercely drive my 10 year old one.
After a poke through the stalls all wanting to convince us we must have their fabric, kits, patterns, beads or can't do without the latest product, we took ages to browse the inspiring displays and exhibitions of quilts on show.

These ones from the challenge to depict The Seven Deadly Sins caught my eye.  There were quite a few that showed Adam, Eve, serpents, and others with cakes, chocolates and sumptuous food to interpret themes of gluttony and lust.  I liked the ones that were less literal in their interpretation.

 Beautiful art quilts in the 'Essence of Australia' challenge.

 A section of indigo art quilts.....my favourite of all those there I think

 This beautiful quilt was on display on the Bernina stand, made by Kaye Haerland who also won Best of Australia for NSW...so much detail in her quilts. See the tiny mouse peeking out of the flower!

 This small art quilt was made by my friend Lajla, entered in the "Found Objects" challenge.  She used feathers she'd found while walking at the beach.

and I really liked this one too, also made for the 'Found Objects' challenge, she has used her found objects as dye resists...very clever and I love the colours.

I'll leave you with this cheeky fellow who turned up amongst the quilts with a warning.......

On my mind - knitting and stitching

Joining in with Rhonda Jean at Down to Earth today and her weekly feature of 'what's on my mind '.  After a very busy week of being out and about  every day, on my mind today  is relaxing in the garden and working on making brown skinned dolls and knitting beanies in Aboriginal colours to donate to The Footpath Library 
I hope your day is relaxing too, where ever you are.

lock the gate>open the gate

Two very different outings on the weekend.  A friend and I packed up our placards and headed off to the local park for the rally against coal seam gas mining, organised by the Lock the Gate Alliance and Northern Rivers Guardians.  The mining companies use a process known as 'fracking' to release the gas from the coal seam, pumping toxic chemicals into the ground with water, causing the  rock to crack open.  Once the mining companies set foot on your land, they can start digging wells without your permission.....hence "Lock the Gate". 

Many of the unwanted hydrocarbons brought to the surface are carcinogenic, and the excess saline water taken from the coal seam poses serious threat to fresh water aquifers and there seems to be no safe or practical way to dispose of this waste water.  Clearing the land to set up the infrastructure and dig the wells destroys native habitats, and the dissolved salts ruin good farmland.  If you'd like to know more go here  

We don't want the mining companies in our back yards!

After listening to interesting and informative guest speakers, signing petitions and eating some seriously delicious food provided by the local Hare Krishna community, we headed 20 minutes up the road to Nunderi, where the gate to an open garden was wide open. 

It took us about an hour to wander through this colourful sub tropical rainforest, along paths that opened out unexpectedly onto views of the dam, secluded seating, and quirky garden decorations made from all sorts of recycled "rubbish".  The owners obviously have good imaginations. 

wide lawns to stroll across

a jazz band to enjoy

interesting patterns in the peeling bark of the paperbark tree



roots of an old Moreton Bay Fig tree

......and of course, at the end of all that exertion, a good pot of tea and cake in the shade.