Organic Creations

I was on the computer today, doing jobs and Benji decided he needed to make a t-shirt with Garfield on it. I would usually be all enthusiastic and help but I was already entertained, so I told him to draw it on a piece of paper.

Diligently he did as I'd asked, setting up his toy Garfield so as to draw from life. Once done he went over it in black texta. The other two also joined in so I have three boys lying at my feet drawing while I am consumed by my mac.

Once the initial drawing was complete, it was off to my stash for supplies. Funnily enough I had white tshirts for all the boys, as well as sharpies and fabric paint. I gave them each a tshirt and told them to put their sketch inside and trace it out with the sharpie.

 Then I set the fabric paints up on the table with some paint brushes and they had to simply colour it in. I had a variety of different ones, and as it turns out, some puffy paint as well. Left to dry in the sun and then ironed (and the puff came out in Spencer's to give the basketball an extra diamention - much to his delight. )

The boys were all thrilled with the results and couldn't wait to wear them, so proud that they'd really done them all by themselves.

Now the only issue is how to get them off these kids!

Paying it forward

So many people looked after us during and after mums illness. Upon arriving home we were often surprised with the gift of a meal being left for us. Some also cooked for mum and dad, meals that they could eat. It is during a crisis that you really are surprised by the kindness of others.

Now that we have got through that immediate period of stress I wanted to do something for those who had done so much for us. I talked about it with Dad and he was happy with my decision. Personalised casserole dishes. This way they could be used to share with others who needed nourishment, but also helpful to be able to return the containers - something that becomes very difficult over a period of time!

I bought the glass dishes with the matching lids as these would be the best for travelling with food. 

I cut the surname out in vinyl with the silhouette cutter. For all of these I used century gothic font as I like the shape of the a. Pedantic I know.

I removed the background to use as my stencil on the glass dish. The insides I used to label the lid. Both names line up and are set to the right.

 With the stencil I used a glass frosting paint from Pebeo.

 I painted a thin coat of the frosting medium onto the stencil and let it dry for 24 hours as per the instructions.

 HOWEVER, when I peeled off the vinyl stencil, the frosting also peeled off. GRRRR. At least I could simply wash the frosting off and start again. I did need to re-cut those names though.

 So, starting again I used the vinyl as the stencil but this time

 I used a sharpie paint pen to colour in the name. This one is silver but when it is drawn on it looks like frosting.

 All coloured in I let it dry completely before removing the vinyl. Sometimes there are overruns from the stencil and I removed these with nail polish on a cotton bud.
Once I was satisfied with the look I baked the bases in the oven for at least 30 minutes at 150 degrees.

Now I just need to deliver them with a little note. 

Leather

Mr P and I headed out to Leflers, the leather wholesaler in Melbourne today. I wanted to make some bags and he wanted to make a watchband and repair a bag.

There is just so much to choose from its incredible and overwhelming. Its kind of set out like Bunnings, but nothing has a price on it. That means you have to commit before you purchase. I found some hardware that I wanted - D rings and the like which I was pretty sure was reasonable. Towards the end I found the remnant bin. This way I knew that each square foot was $3.50 and each piece had a sticker on it for its size. Then I knew what I was up for. 

I hit the register and my pile was up to $115 which was when I found the smaller scraps - these were $5 per kilo. Oh oh ohhhhhh! 2 kilos later, plus another big piece, I walked out of there with a box full of things and head full of ideas.

Falcons Presentation Night

The Falcons held their presentation night tonight and it was a mighty production! There was lighting, stage and the kids were loving the disco environment. I had spent the day running around arranging the present for the coach - we didn't have a lot of money so we settled on alcohol- bicardi being his drink of choice. The big squirrel fashioned up a quick box out of fence palings he found on his way home and it came up pretty good. 

 It'll actually be a little sad that this team gets split up to different age groups as they really did form a lovely bond.

Re-schooling

All three boys were presenting their learning at school today. I was up their early in the day to see Alexander and the other grade 5's performing their skits and shows.

I was back up in the afternoon for the twins presentation - or flat stanley expo. They all had to sit behind their country poster and answer parent questions. What was lovely was to see how much work had been done by the kids. Benji did Russia and Spence chose Spain. I had printed out pictures for them but none seem to appear on their posters so I don't know where they came from! They were all so proud to be able to show off what they'd learnt and I was pleased that I could be there. Poppy also called in for a visit and was proud to come to the expo too.

The day was capped off by an impromptu dinner with some school mates at a local japanese restaurant. Exactly what I needed.

Bear

This lovely package arrived in the mail today from LeAnimale. It is a bear which is my birth token.

Birth Totem for August 22 - September 21

Bear

Personality traits: Productive, practical, introspective, humble

I loved the look of it when I saw it on Etsy and knew I needed to have it. I have had trouble being productive, and it will serve as inspiration. 

The boys all had playdates today, and they were all lovely. It is what I needed and what they all needed. I farmed out two and one was here with a mate and it was just lovely to sit back and watch them play. So innocent, involved and natural. 

A bit of shopping

Im responsible for the costumes for the school dance concert and thankfully there aren't too many to make this year, but I thought I'd pop over to my favourite spot to see it there was any suitable fabric. I was off to Glen Huntly Road. Darn Cheap fabrics was the first stop and I picked up some basic drill and some fabric for a birthday gift. Either side are two little shops that can't go past without a visit. Shu Mart has a range of school shoes all year round, as well as some little bargains now and then. I picked up both of these pairs for $10 each. I love a wedge and with summer coming these will be great. 

Studio Fashion is on the other side and this is where almost all of my jumpers come from. This one was full price at $45 (!) but I love the contrast. The front and sleeves are cotton knit and the back has an inverted pleat in the double georgette. Great dressy casual.