Good Neighbours, Mums & Op Shop Treasures

Greetings dear friends & readers 
Just trying to squeeze in a post before we wave Goodbye to August . . . I did not mean to be gone for so long !!!

After 16 years of living across the road from me in our rural community, my neighbour is moving to town.
Lea has been a good neighbour ... the kind that is always there if you need them but doesn't live on your doorstep.
Immediately after selling her property, she left on a trip to her homeland of Holland ... she issued an urgent plea for some kiwiana teatowels to take with her as host gifts

 Luckily I had a good stash of brightly coloured teatowels & was able to embellish some for her ... I do love the kiwiana fabrics, especially the native bird ones.
Wrapped in cellophane with some ribbon embellishment, these were ideal as they sat flat in the bottom of her suitcase.

Lea held a Garage Sale two weeks before moving & I was able to lend her a bit of a hand in setting it all up.
She presented me with a stash of unsold junk treasures when it was all over ... these two items below were some of the treasures ...

Lea had made this ceramic casserole dish herself many years ago at a night school class
I decided to plant it with some small succulents I had in my garden .  .  .

In the $2 shop I found tiny wooden mushrooms which I hot glued onto some wooden skewers .... I felt they complimented the mushroom theme

Lea was going to toss this wooden frame with no glass or back - but I grabbed it instead !!

I removed the wire, painted it pale duck egg & then lightly sanded the edges
I screwed a tiny hook inside the frame & added a $2 shop glass tealight holder
I found a scrap of white vintage lace which I dunked in my cold cup of tea !!! 
Then I popped some dried lavender & a scrapbooking butterfly into the jar . . .

These two items are going for sale in my Cottage
(if I ever manage to get it open again that is !!!!)

A surprise package arrived in the mail from Kiwikid Sue - gorgeous doilies & thread - totally unexpected & SO delightful !!

Mum .  .  .
 After Mum had been living with us for a few weeks & she begun getting good food, rest, love, care & the right medication, her health began to improve dramatically.
This improvement in her health, naturally bought with it her desire to return home again.
Mum has lived in the family home for 55 years, it was her greatest wish to return there to live.
I began to make inquiries with the appropriate agencies to see if I could implement this for Mum
The short version of a very long saga is that I have taken Mum home again.
I stayed with her for a week to ensure that all the help I had organised was put in place
Although I came up against some strong opposition within my family, I feel in my heart I have done the right thing

A small highlight of my week down at Mums came about when I took her for a hair appointment
Knowing I would have a 1 1/2 hour window of time available I contacted my friend Carolyn who travelled down to meet up with me
I gave her the choice of us going for a coffee or a meander around the Op Shops . . . thankfully she chose the Op Shops !!!
This little outing with a friend was such a bright spot in what was definately a difficult week . . .

These items above were some of the treasures I found on our jaunt -
the small glasses to use for candlemaking were just 4 for 50c.

The tablecloth above was definately my bargain of the day!
 Huge in size, handmade with dresdens appliqued onto it, in immaculate condition .  .  . & all for the princely sum of $2.50 at the S.P.C.A shop !!

My last bargain to share with you (again at the S.P.C.A shop) was this bag of teeny tiny hexies ... someone had lovingly handstitched all these tiny hexies - 26 of them.
This find made Carolyn & I stop in our tracks & have a bit of a discussion about whether or not our handcraft stash might very well end up someday in an Op Shop ??!! Doesn't bear thinking about !!!

Finally friends, for those of you that asked for the hedgehog instructions in my last post .... as I am unable to get my scanner to work I have photographed it for you - just click on the picture & it will enlarge

If you wish to give your hedgehog some knitting as Miss Pink has in my photo below .  .  .

.  .  . just cast 8 stitches onto a pair of small size needles, knit a small square until you are happy with the size, then slide the piece onto a pair of toothpicks to which you have glued a wooden bead to each end.
No I do not attempt to knit the piece using the toothpicks!!
Please don't hesitate to contact me should you have any difficulty with this pattern.

Antique Pansies planted at Easter time happily flowering away on my deck.

Have a lovely rest-of-the-week dear friends,
Thanks so much for your visit today - I am slowly getting around to visiting you all at your blogs again !
with much love & friendship,
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x0

Teaching

End of Week Greetings dear friends & readers,

 Very early in the New Year a lovely lady (Jean) rang to ask if I would be interested in teaching a craft class?

The class was to be part of a Rural Womens Institute Craft Day, held yearly in the middle of winter ...  the ladies would learn card making in the morning & I was to take the afternoon class.

I jumped at the chance & said "Yes - definately!!"

As she ended the call Jeans words to me were "the class is months away yet so you have plenty of time to think what to teach"
Me - being me .... promptly forgot ALL about it !!!*!!!

Just before I had to go down to Mums Jean rang & asked me if I could "drop off my samples please"
"Oh yes, nearly finished" I lied replied
Rummaging through my craft cupboard a large bag of dried teasel thistle heads fell down .... perfect !!
I hadn't made teasel hedgehogs for about 17 years .... now might be a great time to give them another whirl !!

I quickly ran up my samples using fabrics I had plenty of in my stash 
 I named them "Miss Pink" & "Miss Lavender"

Last week, before my teaching day, I spent a rainy day working at the table with Mum & Miss Pippi's help, putting together my kitsets 
 As there were no sewing machines at the venue, I sewed the lace onto the bonnets before kitting them up

When I was almost finished, Blackie & Pippi had a brief conference to make sure I had everything in order & meeting with their approval .  .  .

Jean asked me to bring 13 - 15 kitsets in a mixture of both colourways

My kitsets all ready to go

I also had to type up a pattern & instructions, & then fill my car up with all the paraphenalia we might need to complete our hedgehogs, pretty much including the "kitchen sink" !!

The mornings class had made two cards & then each decorated a candle using hessian, bark & miniature cones ... the ladies work looked wonderful
I had originally put my name down for the morning class but decided to pull out when Mum came to live here as I felt the entire day was too long to leave her on her own.

The day was stormy & wintery so several of the ladies didn't turn up & I only ended up teaching 9 ... what fun, delightful ladies they all were too.
Though I forgot to snap pictures while they were all working on their hedgehogs, I did remember to get a photo at the end ... 5 Miss Pinks & 4 Miss Lavenders
I took along my lavender & cottage rose oils & the ladies got to scent their bonnets at the end ... the classroom smelt rather heavenly.

Let me know if you would like the pattern for this little sweetheart & I can scan & copy it, & add it to my next post?


On an earlier visit to Mums - last March in fact - I brought home a large cardboard box filled with all Mums knitting wools & oddments
Mum can no longer knit due to her macular degeneration so she asked me to give the wool away for her.
I decided to gift it to my friend Joyce for her crocheting & then Joyce could pass on any unwanted wool to the Church Op Shop where she works.

To my surprise & delight, Joyce turned up last week & presented Mum with this beautiful knee rug she had crocheted from all the oddments of mohair wool that was in the box.
It is beautiful & light but Oh So Warm & Cosy.

My lovely friend Carolyn was up this way & we caught up for a coffee at the Hummingbird.
Carolyn gifted me this cute little knitted vintage golly ... I thought he made a perfect companion for the golly 
Carolyn sent me in this post

We had a family lunch last Sunday when my brother & his wife travelled up to visit with Mum, & my boys & their families came to join us.

I love this photo of Mum playing with Alec on the floor ... & then this one below is my older brother with Sid.
It was rather special because my brother (who lost his arm in a motorbike accident at 20) doesn't hold babies Ever!!
And yet both He & Sid looked most comfortable with each other ......

Have a wonderful weekend dear friends - it looks like a wet one here - July has been such a wintery month
Thanks so much for your visits today - you bring some sunshine to my world.

with much love & friendship
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x

Small Steps (really small) ........ & some advice please

Monday Evening Greetings to you all dear friends & readers
Welcome to another bright shiny New Week !!

Thank you all So Very Much for all the kind & caring comments & emails you left me after my last post

I would like to say Mum & I have been ticking along nicely but to be honest, it has been difficult
There have been lots of tears (mostly mine) & tantrums (mostly Mums) as we navigate our way through this tricky time 
 We continue to take just one day at a time taking very small steps

Precious moments of stitching & creativity are such good soul food ..... & even though I emailed a dear friend threatening to throw my sewing machine out the window this past week .... I still managed to complete the little stitchery I was working on & make it up into a wallhanging

As I save every single scrap of Tilda fabric, I was able to use my offcuts to frame the stitchery panel
This gorgeous pattern is from Jenny of elephantz design

Really hard to photograph on this dull day !!!
I found an old black wire hanger in my craft drawer that was the perfect size so a quick warm up by the fire (the hanger that is - Not me!!) & a blast with a can of cream spray paint

I always had the idea in my head that I wanted to hang this from the wall unit that I revamped last year in this post

As there seems to have been lots of sitting & drinking tea while I get Mum settled, I decided to pick up my knitting needles again.

I found this ball of super soft cotton in a bag of wool oddments while at Mums ... so I was able to knit up a couple of small face washers with it ... & might still have enough left for one more



For as long as I can remember there has been an Antique Shop on the corner of the main road, one block away from where my Mum lived in our family home    . . . Ethel Anne Antiques

While down at Mums recently I drove past this store many times on my way to errands & appointments.
I noticed a big sign painted on her window  "50% off all stock"
Gosh that sounds like me !!!!
So - on my birthday to be exact - I took myself off & spent a good half hour browsing at all the goodies & drooling
Normally these shops are well out of my budget but because everything was half price, a few treasures came home with me

The two china soup bowls were $7.50 each, which meant I got them both for $7.50 ... & the sweet little china butter dishes were $15 each, which meant I got them both for $15

This tray was my bestest find .... not photographing terribly well but it is a gorgeous tray with copper surround & a doiley set under a glass top ... would be beautiful with some vintage glass perfume bottles sat upon it (a shame I don't actually own any)
I was thrilled with my purchases & as Mum had given me some birthday money it felt even more special,

On Saturday evening after Mum went to bed, the Mr & I stood at the kitchen bench & bottled the wine we had made with our grapes from the summer of 2016 !!
This batch had actually sat in the glass demijohns "brewing" for a good 18 months !!
(Incidently my stepson & his girlfriend walked the length of the city street they live on & pinched acquired glass wine bottles from folks recycling bins in order to gather the amount we needed!!!)

We ended up filling 24 bottles which was quite impressive I thought .... & even though I was sorely tempted to drink/ taste test every single bottle .... The Mr would not let me !!!!!!!!

Some advise please dear friends & readers .................
I gently handwashed my wool felt penny rug in cold water & the colours have run badly as you can see below

Mostly the black has run into the cream of the felt tongues .... does anyone have any suggestions of what I might use to "un dye" this mess ??
Any ideas would be greatly appreciated as I am unfamiliar with any products that are out there but thought some of you may have experience with this.

As I sit on the couch typing this post tonight I have lit my candle that I made in this post here .... the smell is lemongrass & green tea ... just the gentlest fragrance is wafting through the room
And these two - tucked up beside me on their granny blanket - never far away

Have a wonderful week ahead dear friends,
I hope you find some creative time in your week as I hope to

Thanks again so much for your visits, your friendship & your kind words & thoughts,
with much love & friendship,
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x

A bit of a Curve Ball

Friday Greetings lovely friends & readers
Gosh what a fortnight it has been!!~!

Sometimes when you feel you are ticking along nicely, not too many expectations on yourself & life in general, not thinking too far ahead, just focusing on the immediate task at hand ...... life can come along & throw you a bit of a curve ball
This is pretty much what happened to me in the last two weeks.

If you look up the meaning of a curve ball you will see it states "to introduce something totally unexpected, surprising or disruptive"

Mt Taranaki (Egmont) was indeed wearing her winter coat while I was down at Mums !!

My dear Mum is most unwell.
She has lots of things wrong with her .... things that have been brewing away for quite sometime but have gone undetected due to Mum not letting on.
The outcome of all these things going wrong in her 88 year old body, is that Mum can no longer live alone in the family home.
The short version of a very long week involving many Doctors consultations is that I made the decision to bring Mum back home with me.

This Verse hangs on my Sewing Room Wall ... I have always loved it & thought how very true !!!
(Click on the picture to enlarge it if you are having trouble reading it)

This leads me to two questions ...... did I envisage myself caring for my aged Mother ??  Not really - No !
Secondly ...... did my Mum envisage herself living with me here ??  100 % most certainly Not !
So we have quite a period of adjustment ahead of us both.  While Mum still believes "when she gets well again, she will be going home" ... I know this will not be the case.  But I cannot look too far ahead at the moment & am just trying to take one day at a time as I muddle my way through.

There are only two things bringing a smile to Mums face these days .  .  .

Her great grandsons Alec & Sid ... Mum had not even met little Sid until this week
And .  .  .

the never ending antics of these two above !!

While I was down at Mums another birthday slipped on by 
I was lucky enough on my return home to be greeted by some wonderful handmade gifts from treasured friends

My dear friend Leeanne lovingly stitched me this beautiful cushion after me moaning telling her via email recently that I was "over winter & couldn't wait for summer !"

My dear friend Carolyn sewed me this gorgeous gardening apron & filled the pockets with seeds & tools 
 I have always admired these handy aprons & never ever owned one (til now)

And my dear friend Donna handknitted me this stunning selection of flowers & leaves & issued me a challenge 
"to see what you make with them" ....  along with the wonderful felted bird that was tucked into the parcel.
Thank you all So Very Much my lovely friends ... your thoughtfulness meant the world to me.

 This little wooden Tea Chest was sitting in Mums shed along with some other things to be taken to the dump.
As I consider myself "the local dump" (!!!) I bought it home with me & sat a delicate fern in it.

And so dear readers, in times of uncertainty I find the one thing that always brings peace & structure to my life
 is creativity .  .  .

It seemed appropriate then that I picked up my stitchery again .... a design from my friend Jenny of elephantz ... because Yes indeed, we all do need a home !
I hope to show you it complete in my next post.

Birthday Basket of Polyanthus from my sister in law .... Op Shop basket .... just the way I like it !!!!!

Thank you so much for listening today dear friends,
I must apologise for not replying to comments or emails from my last post & I have not had a chance as yet to visit you all at your blogs
I hope to remedy this very soon !!
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend 
Be good & kind to yourselves & to each other
with much love & friendship
Julie & the furry ones x0x0x