a belated friday archives...

Another shocking outfit for the friday archives. As you can see the true designer that I am... this one was re-worked & tweaked to perfection. Hee hee hee.

from initial drawing,

to the catwalk

loving...

I'm not a big fan of the colour pink... but I am just loving this image. Maybe it's the vintage table... maybe it's the gi-normous lamp... maybe it's the sweetpeas... who knows, who cares. Love it I do, just love it.

found here

a new month is soon upon us

I had another busy day today, set dressing. First thing this morning we were off to find books to fill bookshelves with. So off to the house of books (510 Whitehorse Rd Mitcham) we went, Mary was so kind to us and it really is a house full of books. All books are donated, the workers are volunteers & all profit goes straight to charity. So to show my support I purchased 7 books for myself. 6 of which will be re-incarnated into artist diaries (but more on that later) & one was a beautiful nature diary. Illustrated in 1905 by Edith Holden who met an unfortunate death drowning in the river Thames. She was picking acorns when she lost balance & fell in. Here is her title illustration for June.
I have a few other nature diaries that are equally delightful. All so far are based in England.

on my desk... on a wednesday

I have been a busy working lass this week, so there is not alot going on on my desk. These are my new tins, I'm storing my binding tools, buttons, sticky labels & other bits & bobs inside. Not very exciting I know.
However something that is exciting... I started a new job today... dressing tv sets. It's just casual at the moment, pretty much just whatever I can get, but so far I have enjoyed it & it ties in with what I have previously learnt in interior design & decoration. So I'll take it as it comes & learn along the way.
Hope everyone is having a pleasant if not fantastic week.

apricot loaf

If you too, would like some of this deliciousness here is the recipe.

1 cup dried apricots-chopped & tightly packed
1/2 cup sultanas
1 cup boiling water
2 tbsp butter
3/4 cup castor sugar
1 egg
2 cup self raising flour

-place apricots, sultanas & butter in mixing bowl, add hot water & stir gently until butter dissolves
-mix in sugar, egg & flour, combine well
-put into greased loaf tin & bake at 200 degrees celsius for 40 minutes

my weekend past

this is... something I own, but have never used

This is a good one. I bought this on sale for $4 for 2 reasons. One, it smells beautiful & two the packaging is just lovely don't you think. It just sits on the window sill in my studio & every now & then I pull it down to have a whiff. Please do not think I'm strange... I'm sure there are others out there just like me.
Pop over to three buttons for more unused goodness.

current flickr favourites

1. Bedroom, 2. my dresser, 3. Untitled, 4. BluebirdNB1 20070518P 001wp, 5. oranges, 6. Sam's former apartment, 7. Companionable sleep, 8. raspberries in glass, 9. Fly Agarica Mushroom

friday archives...

Please remember not to laugh
Another beautiful raceday outfit, crikey! What was I thinking? I really do hope the fashion & design gods forgive me for my teenage sins. & do you know what the funny thing is... one day I left my book behind in a class, so I went back to the art room to retrieve it & their was a girl in the year above me tracing over my designs!!! I mean, why would you... they're shocking.
This one, like last weeks is one of the first I designed. They do become more refined as I progress.
Thanks to loobylu for hosting.

"starry night"

delightful day

Day off today. I had a delivery to make first thing this morning to a friend Ellie, who I bound a series of books for. Ellie is a fashion deigner who repurposes & refashions second hand clothes into fantastic one off pieces. Check out her website here (new one coming soon...) she also sells through pussycat black & hunter gatherer. Her range includes the "shirt skirt", "shirt dress", "pant vest" & "t-laces".

Then I toddled off down smith st & made a few discoveries. First one was toolz, a cute little zakka-style shop specialising in simple womens clothing, many made from beautiful natural fibres. The shop was designed & built by a husband & wife team, I met the lovely lady Kayo today, she hails from Japan & has such a wonderful manner. I purchased a brooch for $9.50, It is handmade in melbourne & packaged with the utmost detail. There is a japanese saying that is "beauty in simplicity" & this store is the epitomy of this belief. I must now go back & try on some clothes.

brooch from toolz

I then went on to explore another new shop, the "smith st bazaar". It has been open only 10 days, but I'm sure it has alot of time ahead of it. Think Chapel st bazaar, without the chaos. A big open warehouse style space with a mezzanine level. Some things I spotted were these two carousel horses $125 each, a magnificent reconditioned wooden boat (not yet ready for sale), a great selection of hats & this lovely blue & grey scarf which I purchased for myself. There was also a workbench that took my fancy, I have it on hold & just waiting for Samuels approval before I make the purchase. More on that when it is in my little mits.

carousel horses at the bazaar

my new scarf

And then of course a regular stop in to the lost & found market, where I found this beauty. There is a song on here that will play a special part in my life shortly. So it's essential to own it on vinyl. I then went off to julio to have lunch with a friend. I had a fantastic pea & pea soup, good for the soul it was. Had a chat, shared a laugh, then went to visit Otto. He is a 14 month old weimaraner. He is part mine & I do love the Otto very much. Here he is below, looking handsome as a puppy.

Otto dog

on my desk... on a wednesday

Some recent deliveries from the postman... fabrics bought on ebay, the first issue of mixtape zine, I did't own the first or third issue so I ordered them through the shop. & some super cute wallpaper from the 50's, there is baby deer, raccoon, squirrel & bunny. This might have to be made into some books...

2nd prize

I received a letter in the mail yesterday... It had a little bronze medal inside, stating that I had won second prize in the animal category for my photo "Alley Cats". The competition was through picture.com & you can see my image again here. I'm really quite chuffed, actually, don't know quite what to make of it all. Anyway, sleep now.

recent swap card finds

hoot hoot, it's wet outside

A little birdy pointed me to this blog where he'd seen this lovely creature & just knew that I would adore along with my brown owl friends. He is such a lovely owl & so very useful in such inclement weather.

thrifted tuesday

Until last week, I was without laundry basket. Which was ok, because the apartment is small, I used to simply take the drying rack to the kitchen, pull the clothes from the machine one piece at a time, hang them on the rack, then carry the rack to the balcony. Let's just say I coped. But now, after buying this small, perfect, just right little yellow basket... I just pop them in there then off to the balcony I go. I don't care what anyone else may believe... a yellow laundry basket from the late 70's bought for a dollar, really does make for a happier day! I think this lady would agree too.
And how cute!!! 4 winnie the pooh miniture books from 1968. A bit ragged around the edges yes, but it just means they've seen alot of bedtimes. These were from mecwa in windsor & the basket was from the salvos in windsor. I popped all my treasures from the day into my basket & toddled off down chapel st to home. Who cares about fashion anyway...
I also managed to find a 1926 copy of gentlemen prefer blondes & it has the cutest art nouveau illustrations throughout it & it is in perfect nic too. But such a silly book, I'm still unsure if the author was trying to sound ditzy with bad grammar for the purpose of the character or if the author was just plain ditzy themselves??? If there's any bookworm out there that can answer me this I'll be much obliged.

more from kitty's kitchen

Baked apples stuffed with dried figs, mmm. Would go well with custard methinks, or ice cream...

tangy lemon squares

I was in the mood for baking yesterday afternoon. So I sat on the couch, cup of tea in hand & flicked through the options in my womens weekly cookbook (the big red one released last year).
I've never made these before & they are really quite easy & very tasty. The recipe says "to be enjoyed with earl grey tea" well I don't know about that, because I'm an english breakfast girl myself. I'm taking half into work with me this morning (to bribe the chefs) & the other half is for my boy to have at the workshop & share with his neighbours & random drop-ins (that is if he doesn't eat them all himself...
For those of you who don't have the book, I'll update with the recipe later today.
Off to the work now, enjoy your monday everyone.

Update 20th may for sherrin
Ingredients:
125gm butter
1/4 cup icing sugar
1 1/4 cup plain flour
3 eggs
1 cup castor sugar
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind
1/2 cup lemon juice

Method:
1. preheat oven to 180 degrees (160 degrees for fan forced). Grease 23cm square pan tray, line base and 2 sides with baking paper (oops, I didn't do this part. No wonder I struggled when they said "lift slice out before cutting!)
2. beat butter and sifted icing sugar in a small bowl with electric mixer until smooth. Stir in 1 cup of the sifted flour. Press mixture evenly over base of pan. Bake, uncovered for about 15mins or until browned slightly.
3. place eggs, castor sugar, remaining sifted flour, rind & juice in a medium bowl, whisk until combined. Pour egg mixture over hot base. Bake, uncovered for about 20mins or until firm. Cool in pan on wire rack. Lift slice from pan before cutting (this should only take a few seconds... not the 5 minutes it too me) Dust with extra icing sugar if desired.

These squares are also delicious made with orange or mandarin juice... apparently... it's just what the book says... I'm not actually in the know on that info... I'll give it a go... maybe next week... when I've jogged this one off... I don't jog...

this is... my way of recycling & a new mode of transport

I do like to recycle, renew & re-use. There are many ways that I do these, just like most others, recycling is a part of everyday life. My favourite however, are these two things. 1. covering shoeboxes & re-using them for pretty storage &
2. keeping paper packaging from shops, florists etc, to re-use for the wrapping of presents. I don't like the whole david jones look, I prefer the vintage style paper & string look.
On another note... very exciting... I had my first motorbike riding lesson today... & I'm a natural. I was't afraid at all & I rode around an empty carpark, changing gears, stopping & starting & the like. This is the bike I was on, a 1972 Suzuki GT 185. So much fun & I am quite proud of myself. Now just to keep practising & go for my learners, then bye bye stupid trams.

rainy day country sing-a-long

friday archives

Warning: this image may upset some viewers...
When I was in my last year of highschool, I was quite into "fashion" design. I was always to be found drawing up some new outfit. I was inspired by the melbourne cup & how dressed up people get . So I designed whole outfits, shoes, hats & often bags too. They are all outrageously ridiculous, so please forgive me for my fashion faux pas. I have a few, so each week I'll post one.

I title this one "flamingo dream"

sweet caroline doo doo doo, autumn never looked so good

These were taken yesterday afternoon, walking down caroline st.
It is really such a lovely st, especially in the autumn.
I love to have such everchanging colours around me.
To walk down caroline st is taking the long way to the workshop, but it sure beats punt rd grossness.

on my desks... on a wednesday

So much mess and going ons. My new fangled guillotine, Walter the singer,

A book press handmade for me by a friend, my paper roll dispenser,
stacks of fabric, spools of wool, boxes of paper, heaps of books,
tins of buttons, a row of bearbricks,

trusty printer and computer duo and many many pictures on my wall.
Let's just say I'm not a minimilist!

a grand opening!!!

The fred & george shop is up and running!
Please find the link on the right, to lead you to fulfil your stationary pleasures.
All books are handmade by moi and are designed to envoke playfulness and nostalgia.
Thankyou to everyone out there who has given me such wonderful encouragement.
Here below are my current listings.




I had such a great night at brown owls last night, so much chatting, jokes and naughtiness. It was great to watch others work away on there little projects too, such diversity. We are all same same but different & it's a lovely feeling. Kirsty has published a lovely post on community, do read it.