Lucky Penny November!

Wow, its very nearly November! And that means on the first Tuesday of the month its Lucky Penny Day! Lucky Penny is a monthly craft-friendly social event run by the lovely Heleen (Ruby in the Dust) and me! The next event is on the 3rd November, 7.30pm onwards at mezze Bar, Durham Lane in Auckland. There you go, just like the poster above.

catch you there!

fading beauty

For a week now I have been watching these flowers. When my flatmate had brought these ‘magnificent’ peony roses home, they were a dark, bright pink. Over several days the buds opened, and the intense colour that the flowers had began to fade, from hot pink, to coral, to a soft blush pink, then cream. It is quite remarkable. Such perfect photo opportunities! Sigh.

marvelous

Couldn't resist taking a snapshot of these cookies, fresh from the oven! Recipe found here.

horse parade two

I just love taking pictures of my niece's many, many horses. Sometimes they are in a perfect arrangement.

Also: Kraftbomb is on this weekend! Sunday 27th September in the Grey Lynn Community Centre- yay!!

traditional and monograms

So, I’ve hinted at this for a while, and just had to wait a little before I could blog about it. For a few months I have been chipping (ok. embroidering) away at a set of super-matchy-same-initials- monogrammed pillowslips for my sister and her husband as a luxe wedding gift...

Never having worked in a traditional manner before, I found it a bit of a challenge… you have to be careful when you work light-on-white (white-on-white was just a little too scary). The piece was worked with a design traced onto it with a water-based disappearing marker, then the outlines were backstitched on, then finished off with a whip-stitch, which really polished off the look! Part of the effort involved was keeping away bits of fluff and fibres which would get caught into the stitch-work. Particularly difficult when working in the presence of a very fluffy black cat…!

I was able to take a few pictures upon completion. I really love the crumpled up-look of the just-washed-pillowslips, particularly as they catch the morning light.

Once I had ironed them- starch spray is your best friend when working with good quality cotton. I folded them into a box, tied a bow, then added a gorgeous Rob Ryan card.