Father's Day

Love this card from Myrtle and Eunice. Say's it all really. My daughter's are already busy making father's day pressies. Lots of glue, glitter and paddle pop sticks are involved.  For more quirky cards, stop over at this shop.

Spotted any great pressies for your father? I'm in need of some inspiration.

Dare to dream

When I go up, I want to have my own vintage/all things pretty homewares store. I've always dreamed of having my own store but it's always been just that, a dream. It's not that I'm fearful of change. I love change. But with a family to support, financially it's just easier to work for someone else and have a steady pay cheque each week. But one day, oh yes, one day, perhaps I'll make it happen. Sound convincing? Hardly! Until that day, I will live this dream through the eyes of others like Prairie Collective, the brain child of the makers of Design Sponge.

The making of a store... 

What do you want to be when you grow up?

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Handmade Christmas Challenge

Where on earth did August go? It seemed to be here for such a fleeting moment. I have all these Christmas crafty projects on the go, and started to panic that I'd get none of them finished. So I decided to knuckle down and start with my Christmas tea gift idea. If you recall a few posts ago, I shared with you the Christmas Tea Recipe. Well I went hunting for jars this week and found a couple of nice old ones to decorate. 

Here's my prototype. 

 
I'm still mucking around with it and would value your feedback on how I can give it a bit of a 'wow' factor. It just needs a homemade tag and then I'm done. I plan on putting on the tag the following phrase:

"Women are like teabags, they don't know how strong they are until they get into hot water". E. Roosevelt 

What wonderful creations are you making for Christmas? Have you spied someone else's creation that would be perfect for a loved one? Perhaps you need some help with a few ideas.To join in, just leave a comment and simply add your link below.You can join in anytime during the week. If you are new to this meme, click here for all the details on how to join in on this Handmade Christmas Challenge and feel free to grab my button.

My creative space

I think it's fair to say I'm an idea's woman. I enjoy inventing lots of creative projects. It's the follow through that's the issue. This week, I've bitten off more than I can chew! The palings are from my fence to make a rustic coffee table. The driftwood for a Christmas wreath. The gorgeous print from Ink & Spindle is to recover the foot stool. I'm very unmotivated right now. I need some divine creative intervention!

To view creative projects that are actually finished, head over to Kootoyoo.

Toilet Paper Perfection

There's nothing worse than going to the toilet and realising there's no paper left. But before you scream in frustration at an empty roll, just think of the possibilities!

When most people see a bare toilet roll, instincts tell them to throw it away. But as they say, one person’s trash is another person’s treasure.

French artist Anastassia Elias saw the artistic potential in toilet rolls, and proceeded to create intricate scenes inside of them.

Details and images via We Love Beautiful Things.

Handmade Christmas Challenge

The Handmade Christmas Challenge is certainly gathering momentum with new visitors each Saturday sharing their beautiful crafty creations. Selina has suggested running a handmade stocking christmas swap over here. Gorgeous felt decorations can be found over at Cat's place and for an eco-friendly, green Christmas, head over here.

This week, I'm thinking wreaths. I love the wreath in the top image and so too do my girls. We've decided to start searching our local beach to collect drift wood to make this gorgeous creation. Here's a few more wreaths, to wet your creative whistle's...

What wonderful creations are you making for Christmas? Have you spied someone else's creation that would be perfect for a loved one? Perhaps you need some help with a few ideas.To join in, just leave a comment and simply add your link below.You can join in anytime during the week. If you are new to this meme, click here for all the details on how to join in on this Handmade Christmas Challenge and feel free to grab my button.

My creative space - fence paling creativity.

I mentioned a few posts ago that a recent storm blew down part of our old fence. It was due to be replaced and with the wind's help, it kicked us into gear to do something about it. I've looked at the fence everyday thinking there must be something I can make out of those palings. The palings would be at least 20 years old and they've got real character. 

I need your help. If you've got any ideas or can point me in the direction of some paling inspiration, please share. I don't want these palings to go to the tip but if I don't come up with an idea good enough to convince the husband that I need to keep them, that's where they'll end up. 

I do have one idea that comes to mind - a coffee table! Like this one, I could mount the palings onto an existing table or cane basket and put it on wheels.

Decisions, decisions. Look forward to your advice!

For more creativity than you can poke a stick at, check out Kirsty's.

Crafty creations

So much inspiration and yet, only a few hours in the day. If only I could craft to my heart's content (although I doubt it would ever be content). Some inspiration for all crafty genres.

Paper art mastery

Gorgeous table settings

Crochet love

Sweet garlands

 For all the softies out there 
(quite apt given all our rain here)

French Larkspur delights

and one for Kate at Fox's Lane!

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A random act of kindness

Many of us use blogging as a way to chronicle our lives of crafting, family, aspirations and dreams. When we create a masterpiece, we blog, when our loved one's enrich our lives, we blog about that too, and sometimes when we have a rough day, we share it with our blogging friends. 

And so last week I had an absolute horror of a few days and I blogged about it. I usually post about beautiful destinations and crafting mastery of others and don't tend to share much about my family. But on this day, I had had enough of trying to swallow my anxiety, willing the lump in my throat to go away so I shared it with you all. Two days later I received the most beautiful sentiment in the mail. A gorgeous handmade card with an original photograph and a lovely little butterfly (my post had mentioned that butterfly's make me happy). This gorgeous creation and the touching words of support and empathy, came from Cathie at m.e.

Cathie is an amazing woman. Her photography is beautiful and if you've ever visited her blog, you'd know that she is an absolute demon in the kitchen. Anyone familiar to her blog I'm sure would agree that there have been moments when you've had to wipe the saliva off your keyboard from drooling over her decadent chocolate cupcake triumphs. Cathie cooks from the heart and for her family and friends. It astounds me that she's never eaten a cupcake! That's love for you!


Thanks again Cathie for your beautiful card and touching words.


Trace x

Handmade Christmas Challenge

The one thing I love most about Christmas is styling a table for a huge Christmas feast. This year I'm going to aim for a fuss-free Chrissy with simple groupings of natural objects, crisp linen and a dash of crimson red. For more styling ideas, head over here.

A couple of weeks ago, I headed over to Katie's place from 5 Star Baby to support the wonderful sale she was hosting. I walked out of there with my hands full. Perhaps the most astonishing piece of sewing mastery I spied was this handbag. 

It's gorgeous don't you think? I have bought it for my cousin for Christmas. She's a little bohemian so I know she'll just love the colours and design. So here's the astonishing part...Katie's 8 year old niece made it. That's right, a child. A child who knows their way around a sewing machine! I can't even darn a hole in a sock. Had she made more, I would have bought the whole lot. There is hope for me yet that perhaps I too will sew something worthy of this calibre one day. 

What wonderful creations are you making for Christmas? Have you spied someone else's creation that would be perfect for a loved one? Perhaps you need some help with a few ideas.To join in, just leave a comment and simply add your link below.You can join in anytime during the week. If you are new to this meme, click here for all the details on how to join in on this Handmade Christmas Challenge and feel free to grab my button.

My creative space

Oh my goodness, did anyone else in Victoria feel like their house of bricks were going to fly away last night? Actually some of it did! Our fence that we share with our neighbour has blown away! I've had no sleep worrying about my poor little guinea pigs outside and whether they made it through the storm. The wind was angry my friend. Still is.

Come school drop off time, I'll be heading back home with my takeaway coffee to bunker down and get in to the warm, comfy zone of my creative space. 

Speaking of comfy, don't you just love this fabric? I just bought it. Happy days! This gorgeous Red Orange Kanagroo Paw print with the snow drop background comes from the very talented girls at Ink & Spindle. I'm using it to recover these old foot stools that I bought for a song at my local op shop. 

If my calculations are right, I should have a bit of material left over to make some cushions as well. Wish me luck!

For more creative spaces, head over to Kooyooto.

At my house

At my house today I'm recovering from a sore back. We've had quite a few tense moments in our house this week waiting on medical results for my eldest child and today we were told the results were all clear. My back on the weekend finally decided that it couldn't take any more tension and decided to pack it in. But I'm on the mend and in a wonderful state of mind knowing that my child is going to be OK. Plus butterflies have always made me happy so I thought I'd cut some more out using my youngest daughters finger paintings and add them to our welcome wall in the hallway. I've decided to continue the butterflies around the corner to the next wall for people to follow. I just love them.

What are you doing at your house? Why not join in over at Lou Lou's.

Infant art

Just when you thought, babies = feeding, burping, sleep deprivation and snuggles, along comes a family who celebrate this gorgeous gift with some amazing creativity and a great sense of humour to boot. I think these images are an absolute classic! Far better than the pixie photos!

Images via We Love Beautiful Things

Shadow Shot Sunday

Sometimes in life, it all gets a tad overwhelming. When I feel this way, I head up my street to the beach. As I pass others walking along the sand, I wonder, what's on your mind?

Happy Shadow Shot Sunday all. Head over to Hey Harriet for some gorgeous shadow shots.

Handmade Christmas Challenge

A very simple yet rather symbolic ritual in our house at Christmas was when Grandma would pull out her beautiful old crockery and make us a big pot of tea to have with our plum pudding. I have continued the tradition although I really do miss the elegance and warmth in which my grandmother would pour us tea. 

Inspired by this memory, I thought of a perfect gift for some of my girlfriends which involves vintage jars, filled with a heady aroma of tea and Christmas spices. I plan to decorate the jars with personalised gift tags and my favourite quote:  

"Women are like teabags, they don't know how strong they are until they get into hot water". E. Roosevelt

I have found a great recipe for making your own Spiced Christmas Tea and thought I'd share it with you all:

2 Tablespoons of strong full-bodied tea

1 tea spoon ground ginger

1 cinnamon sticks broken into pieces

1 whole clove

1/2 teaspoon cardamon seeds

1 teaspoon vanilla sugar

What wonderful creations are you making for Christmas? Have you spied someone else's creation that would be perfect for a loved one? Perhaps you need some help with a few ideas.To join in, just leave a comment and simply add your link below.You can join in anytime during the week. If you are new to this meme, click here for all the details on how to join in on this Handmade Christmas Challenge and feel free to grab my button.

Flea Market Find

I'm late, I'm late for a very important date. I've had so much fun over the weekend though. I may be late joining in on Sophie's Flea Market Finds this Sunday, but I was suitably distracted with the hustle and bustle of Melbourne city life. For all the wonderful advantages that the beach life brings, I still have an affinity for inner city living. Little things like getting a REAL coffee or walking down a whole length of a street, browsing the shops. The exhaust fumes are a killer but every once in a while, you don't mind breathing in their toxic if it means you can drool over your favourite shops....like Meet Me At Mikes!

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It was so wonderful to see the Envelope Project in all its glory, spread out across their window. I hovered around for ages, looking for mine but in a sea of envelopes, I couldn't find it. A lady from Canberra delivered her envelope in person on Saturday which is a mean effort! It also signals the last day of the envelope project so now we must wait patiently to see who is drawn to receive all the goodies.

Just before I left for Melbourne, I managed to stop by my local Oppy and found a vintage suitcase with quaint international vintage airline stickers still in their place. The lady at the Oppy said to me "you know, apparently these suitcases are worth a bit particularly when they have stickers on them" and with that she charged me a whopping $3!!! I love Op Shopping!

I also found this gorgeous vintage sheet which I'll put to great use recovering something in my home. 

For more Flea Market goodness, head over to Sophie's.