An Easter Table

Greetings dear friends & readers,

I hope you are all managing to stay safe & well & are taking good care of yourselves?

About 3 weeks ago I had to go over to the city to Spotlight as I needed some ticking fabric to complete an Order.

I was in the curtaining department trying to find the ticking when I walked past this most gorgeous fabric

 that stopped me in my tracks.

I am not usually an impulse buyer but I just had to have a metre of it - I adored it so much 💕

It is a linen cotton blend with the cutest ever rabbits dotted all over it.

At first I thought I would make myself a cushion but decided instead to make a long runner for my coffee table 

& then perhaps put together a little Easter vignette.

I backed my runner with some calico & then added pink pom pom trim to each end - yes I have forgotten

to photograph this 😉

I found the blue wool blanket bunny that I made last Easter

This is a free downloadable pattern from twig and tale designs

I also sewed the two little girl bunnies above last Easter.

Once again, a free pattern from Tilda's World

(scroll right down the page for the rabbits)

The white porcelain dishes were picked up last year in half price sales after Easter - this is the first time I have 

used them.

Yes I do have to quickly hide the pink eggs when The Mr arrives home or I would have none left for my display 😉

I covered a few more polystyrene eggs to top my bowl up a bit - this is a simple & fun activity - done with Sid last Tuesday.

A small grouping of Easter Candles under my glass cloche

My only purchase this year (apart from my fabric) were these artificial eggs from kmart

I just LoVed their pastel colors - & purchased them online.

My little pewter rabbit clinging onto the bowl was purchased when the Hummingbird closed last year.

I snapped some pics last night with the fairy lights going - when I sit on the couch & do my knitting of an evening - 

this table sits directly in front of me

Pretty things to look at & scented candles .  .  .  .  .

Simple things that bring me much pleasure at the moment 💗

This pattern was purchased early last year, put away & never even looked at.

I pulled it out last week as I decided to make it up & knew I had a nice piece of blue wool felt in my stash that would suit it perfectly.

The pattern is from Jodi's RicRac Sews etsy store

Gosh I have only just noticed how I have completely missed the seam when stitching the nose on (!!!!)

Rather than sew, turn & stuff as the instructions state, I handstitched my rabbit as I rather liked the effect of this.

I used some Liberty cotton for trim on mine so I think I need to give it another name as "she" doesn't really suit Warren. 😉

Yesterday afternoon we were forecast thunder storms so I picked the last roses of the season & bought them inside. 

I waited with great anticipation as I do love a good thunderstorm but not one droplet appeared.

I snapped this glorious sunset out the french doors in our bedroom last night

Now dear friends - if it all just gets a little too much for you - take a leaf out of Pippi's book & tuck your head 

under the covers for awhile. 💗

Thanks So Very Much for your visits here today,

Take care of yourselves dear readers - be kind to yourselves & to each other,

With much love & friendship to you all,

Julie & the furry ones x0x0x

Staying in my Bubble ...............................................

Greetings dear friends & readers

As of midnight last Wednesday New Zealand went into Level 4 Lockdown due to the Covid 19 virus.

For us here this means everything is closed to the public except supermarkets, chemists, medical centres & 

petrol stations.

Our Prime Minister has said "we all have to stay in our bubbles in order to flatten the curve of this pandemic"

Personally I am more than happy in my bubble, but I know there are others that will really struggle with it & 

my heart goes out to them 💗

I have a new (step) granddaughter due in 2 weeks time whom we will not be able to visit until this is all over.

Over the past couple of weeks I have been doing some sewing for her just using up bits from my stash -

 I thought I would have no feminine fabrics but I was able to rustle up some pretty colourways.

I made 3 bibs using this free pattern from the internet - I have made these for my other grandsons & their Mum's 

tell me -  "these are the best bibs ever" !! 

I always buy white or cream towels when I see them on sale & use the toweling for the back of the bibs.  

I had an end left over from a white towel so I made two burp cloths & bound them with pink bias binding.

I knitted two pink organic cotton washcloths using this free pattern 

I made a flannel wheatbag & the bunny rattle is made from a vintage wool blanket - I tucked a rattle into 

the bunnies tummy before stuffing with fibrefill.

I found a length of fleece large enough to sew two cuddlies.

The little cloth doll is called Maisie & is a pattern by Kate Henderson of never enough hours blog 

I packaged everything up in pink tissue paper & The Mr was able to deliver it over to the city before the lockdown came into force.

Once we were in lockdown I decided to spend some time giving my sewing room a good clean, tidy & sort.

This was looooong overdue dear readers. 😉

It was lovely to give it all a good freshen & a fluff up & when I was finished I thought I would sew a new 

ironing board cover. 

Whenever I do this I just take the old cover off, cut the elastic & pull it out of its casing, open the fabric out fully & lay it on the new fabric on the floor - cut around the shape, make a casing, new elastic & voila .  .  .  .  .

This fabric is Cath Kidston & was purchased a couple of years ago when Mystyle first closed its Cambridge shop. 

I originally planned to cover a chair with it but used something else instead.

Last month my friend Gail turned 70 & had a small party.

Although she said "no gifts" I wanted to give her something but was not quite sure what as Gail has everything 

you could ever want  😉

I had this vintage cane dolls pram in my sleepout so I lined it with a black rubbish bag & planted it up with petunias for her.  On my way to her party I stopped at the Variety store & purchased a helium filled balloon that said 

"Happy Birthday" & tied this to the handle.

Gail said it has continued to flower away beautifully & she was thrilled with her gift.

Like alot of you I am sure, every now & again I feel this tight knot of anxiety about this horrid pandemic in our world -

 I worry for my children & grandchildren & what the future holds .....

When I feel this happening I try to distract myself with some home remedies

I play with Pippi alot - she is a great entertainer & very much lives in the moment

Blackie has been bringing in on average one mouse a day (!!) lately so he prefers to maintain a social distance 

as Mum is none-too-happy with him 😐

I burn lavender oil in my diffusers as I find this helps to calm me

I knit dishcloths & I stockpile dishcloth cotton yarn in lovely colours 😉😇

I try to cook good nutritious meals & I spend some time outdoors each day if the weather allows.

I find if I keep my hands busy then my mind stays on track so I try to keep creative & do things that bring me pleasure.

I am thinking of you all at this trying time dear friends

Take care of yourselves & each other & stay in your bubbles,

With much love & friendship to you all ! 💕

Julie & the furry ones x0x0x

Keeping Busy

Greetings dear friends & readers

These are troubling times we are going through currently so - as my blog title suggests - I am keeping busy.

I saw this verse on Instagram yesterday & asked if I could share it - I loved it & felt it was appropriate for these uncertain times

And then this one below which made me smile .  .  .  . 😊

I have never had any problem isolating myself - in fact, I am probably the opposite in the respect that I often 
have to make myself attend things & could quite easily hermit myself away.
But I know there are many out there who are struggling with isolating themselves while this virus runs rampant
& I really feel for them. 

I finished a Tilda Hanging Lambs order for Maria last week - she called unexpectedly to collect it & I had taken 
no photo's so I quickly snapped some while they lay on the bed - not very good ones either 😉

These are a pattern from the Tilda Book Homemade & Happy
The green set above were for Maria & the blueish ones were to go to Australia.

This ladder above was given to me by my lovely friend Sue on one of her visits way back in December 2014 !!
Here in New Zealand we have an advert for Mainland Cheese & it says "Good things take time"

Well, like the advert good things do indeed take time because I pulled it out of the sleepout this week & painted it - Gosh it has only been 6 Years !! 😉

I decided to hang some of my beautiful vintage linen tablecloths on it that had been shut away in a drawer. 
 This way I can look at & enjoy them 💗 


  I have had a large bucket of hydrangea's soaking in water for about two weeks now so I displayed them in my vintage cane trolley as I like to do each autumn

I have never had green ones before but I have a creamy coloured bush & when I looked around the back I found 
the green tinged ones tucked away


A lovely & dear friend who lives away, lost her brother in a motorbike acccident on Waitangi Day.
I could not stop thinking of her & how sad she would be feeling - so I decided to send her a little Easter Package

The Bunny Teatowel above & the Rabbit Bag below are all free patterns off the internet if you would like to make any.
The Bunny teatowel download is  * Here *
The Rabbit Bag download is  * Here *

I used some of my treasured Tilda fabrics as I know she is a Tilda lover also.
I included lots of little extras, choccy eggs, lavender hearts, nests etc ........
My friend rang to thank me, told me she cried when she opened it but she could feel that I was thinking of her 💕
& it brightened her day

Last Friday night while I was sitting on the couch knitting my dishcloths I snapped these pics of Pippi & Blackie within the space of about 10 minutes - they are right beside me
Our evenings are cooler now & they have returned to the couch where they tuck up together in a little nest of blankets

It seemed quite appropriate then when this appeared in my inbox this morning - sent from The Mr 😊

Have a wonderful weekend dear friends - thanks for your visits here today,
Take good care, be very kind to yourselves & to each other.
With much love & friendship to you all,
Julie & the furry ones

Plodding ..............................................................

Greetings dear friends & readers

Thank you all So Very Much for the kind comments you left me in my last post.
Everything you wrote meant the world to me ... I was so encouraged by your words that I shall endeavour to keep plodding along with my blog & trying to post a bit more regularly

In fact it has been a week of plodding ... some Orders were finished up & I have been waving my paintbrush 
around again

My sister-in-law Leonie gave me a piece of fabric & a chair pad she wanted covered - I forgot to take a "before pic".

As there was a piece of fabric left I stitched up a small plump cushion to go on the chair & covered a button for the cushion centre.


It is almost a year now since Leonie's Mum Dulcie passed away.
Dulcie was a friendly, happy lady who loved clothes & loved bright colours.

The fleece coat above left was one of her favourite garments - Leonie had it hanging in her wardrobe & asked me 
if I could make some lavender filled hearts from it - for her to hand out on her Mum's anniversary.
Originally I was to make 6, then 8 ...... then this grew to 12.
I am sure that due to the drought we have had this summer, the oil content in the lavender is high because these hearts smelt SO fragrant ... just divine 💜

These wooden items have been sitting in my Cottage waiting for me to upcycle/revamp them for over a year now.
Finally I hauled out all my left over colours of chalk paint.

Top shelf                                                                            Lower shelf

This old wooden trolley has been painted in Sandstone & the stencilling done in Duck Egg Blue - I only own 
one stencil so you get varying versions of the same thing 😉

This small wooden cabinet had been gifted to me years ago & - at the time - I stripped & oiled it.
Now it too got painted in Sandstone & lightly stencilled

The oak bedside cabinet above got painted in Old Linen - I love this colour as it has a faint bluey/grey tinge.
Some leftover rub-ons got applied to the door.

This small polka dot suitcase got a freshen up with some pale duck egg - I don't know why I bothered masking 
up the handles as I ended up painting them anyway 😉

Some time has been spent with my beautiful grandsons who are growing up so very fast!

They both came for a sleepover at Granny's - we had a wonderful time together but one of us (Yes, you can guess) was shattered at the end & needed a nap to catch up again  !!

I still enjoy knitting at nights  - these cotton dishcloths are made using all my oddments of bamboo/cotton yarn - they are real scrap bag cloths.   But they are fun to do & don't require too much concentration - which suits me just fine of an evening.

Thanks so much dear friends for your visits today,
I hope the rest of the week is good & kind to all of you,
Thanks again for all your kindness & encouragement in my last post.
With much love & friendship to you all,
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x