Pine Cone Gnomes

Really? Its been a month already? Wow, guess I'm not one of those people who can amazingly trade sleep for the love of some crafty goodness. Nope, in the craziness of motherhood sleep wins hands down every time for me!

About 3 or so weeks ago we took a walk to the park and this is what we found...

It had been raining pine cones! Great for 2 reasons: it provided us with an additional activity that day of hunting & gathering, and we now have a great stash for some Christmas craftiness!

Wondering what to do with our new stash I stumbled upon this super cute idea over at We Bloom Here. Pine Cone Gnomes! How simply adorable!

Here's how mine turned out...

I changed up the shoes a little to give them a curled up toe and just lurve how they turned out!

These little guys will be sitting in our entry way this festive season, hopefully putting a smile on the faces of any guests that walk through the door. I love how tiny they look next our Buddha, a little magical don't you think? I would have loved these as a kid, thinking up make believe happenings with my little gnome family and I hope my little guy gets lost in his imagination too.  

 I did use a 5c piece to balance the pine cones up as they can be a little wobbly and it worked a treat.

 
Ok so technically there are no Christmas Gnomes right, just Elves? But I think these guys give off a burst of that childhood Christmas magic that I so fondly remember as a kid. Just add Christmas deco or two and they sure do look the part.


Stay tuned for some more pine cone craft real soon - we have a whole bundle to get busy with!

What will you do with your Pine Cones this Christmas?

Cushioned You Just Snuggle Them??

Is it just me who takes a simple task and makes it sooo much more complicated than necessary??! Ok, so maybe it is just me. Right. Moving on.

So these are as basic as sewing two panels together with a zipper thrown in and yet in the process I think I cursed more than I have in a while. I won't bore you with the ins & outs but it did involve a bit of unpicking, putting this in the "tomorrow" pile several times and giving my machine a good ear-bashing!

Tomorrow has come! Yay! And I now have some lovely bright cushions greeting my guests with a big fat HELLO! when they come through the door.

 Hello, colour!

 Extreme Close Up - 

loving these Japanese Sateen Cotton prints!

New cushion loveliness............

So...looking much better than the blandness that previously graced my couches, yes?..... 

 Blah

If you are looking for a colour injection in the form of some new cushions but don't want to fuss with making your own - head on over and see Kelly at www.colourtherapydecor.com. Kelly has some amazing products made from the most delicious designer fabrics that are sure to boost anyone's happy-metre!


Now, if you do so happen to be a house guest of mine just be sure to briefly admire - my zipper insertion does leave a bit to be desired! But hey, these are made with love...not perfection! 

So Bloomin' Cute!

My boy lived in onesies and singlets as a bub during the scorching summer heat and I'm guessing this summer won't be much different for our little lady. This time around though I thought I'd jazz that nappied-bum right up!

I recently stumbled upon this tutorial and with the weather warming up its perfect timing to give these bad boys a go!! Aren't these just the cutest?

I found a pile of blue floral in my stash which was screaming out "pleeease make me into some cute little butt bloomers!!" And so, I did.

Here's how they turned out...

Ruffly florally goodness. Can this butt get any cuter? I think not.

Tanked Again!

Seems I got singlet fever following my last post - perhaps 'cos I got summer fever with these glorious warm days we've been having of late!

I picked this up at a thrift shop ages ago and really had no idea what to do with it. In fact, I'm not even sure what drew me to it in the first place. But after singlet success last time this immediately became my next candidate to get tanked!

I know you're thinking it's kinda daggy, right? But I saw potential in this seemingly tragic tourist get-up!


Again, just following an existing tank and adding some ribbing - which I should add is also thrifted - we end up with this.......

I'm loving the superb retro vibe this is giving off! Oh, and the hem - or lack there of - is intentional. I entertained the thought of hemming it but I think the rolled edge adds to its character.

The beauty of refashioning mens' tees for little peeps is that the text or images become the main focal point - don't you agree that it was a little lost in the 'before' pic?

I'm yet to snap the little guy wearing it but a pic will be sure to follow once I do!

This tank is screaming lazy summer days...... oh yeah.

Get Tanked

I (embarrassingly) have had this shirt for about 10 years, and although its had a good innings as a bed shirt its really time to boot it out of my bedroom!

So what does one do with such a shirt? Refashion it into a tank for a little guy, of course!

Poor old Apex shirt has had its day...

 ...but has new life breathed into it!

I pretty much just traced an outline of an existing tank, added some ribbing to set off the text on the shirt, sewed it all up and bang! A brand new tank ready for summer.

He loves his new "soccer shirt". Not too sure where he thought that up given the big basketball on the front, but hey, he's given it a good wearing already.

I'm thinking a few more of these will be in order very soon...I can smell Spring just around the corner!

He's Got Undies on the Outside!

Its no secret around here that this kid loves a good dress up. Fireman Sam has been given the flick in favour of Superman, and man o man, Superman has just about moved in.

What started out as an innocent Superman t-shirt purchase soon turned crazy when this kid saw his first Superman movie - thanks Dad! While I'm all for a good role play and imagination building things weren't so good when the t-shirt was being worn in icy winter temps WITHOUT a jumper-slash vest-slash anything slightly warm- as it was covering up his "badge" (aka Superman logo)! Even a mere suggestion that he should put something warm over the top would prompt a tantrum of massive proportions!!

So! A plain blue jumper under the t-shirt solved this prob but now he insisted on wearing his red undies on the outside of his pants! Ha! Cute and all, but made toileting a nightmare - off with the red undies, off with the pants, off with the underneath undies! Phew.

So out came some plain blue tracky daks and some red fabric scraps which would create some faux undies! Ta da! It worked, he loves them and even lets me wash the outfit once a week. Yup, once a week. Eew. Oh well, who am I to get in the way of his massive imagination?

 Red scraps....

...plus tracky daks

= faux undies! 

Genius! Sometimes the battle just isn't worth fighting with the little people so rather than resisting, a little imagination on my part works wonders! 

Park-ready winter Superman comin' at ya! 

And just for a giggle, on that one day a week where his outfit is having a wash and he reluctantly dons plain clothes - do not dare call him Ollie - no no - "I'm Clark Kent!"

Oh bless the little people! 

Hats & What Knot

Sewing projects are of the super quick variety around here at the moment which translates to super easy. This one hits the mark and is also super cute! Its a baby knot hat - check it out....

 Knottin' but cute!

There are a few templates floating around out there - single knot, double knot - take your pick. This is a double knot number which ties up to give the little "rabbit ear" appearance. Love!

And these can be whipped up using the smallest amount of fabric for teeny little heads - perfect for reusing old t-shirts destined for the charity bin!