Project 333 – Wardrobe Gaps

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There is nothing like a change in the weather to help identify gaps in the collection of clothes.  After a long, hot summer that I thought would never end, the weather has turned quite cool.

My cool season selection is somewhat depleted with the departure of three tops at the end of last winter.

2012-08-11 05I had this red/white striped 3/4 sleeved one as well as two black/white ones of the same style.  They were at the end of their life so I wore them to death on our holidays and then sent them to the op shop when we arrived home.  However, I have yet to replace them.

I am not sure what I want so I expect I will need to make a concerted effort and have a look around.  I also need another pair of trousers for work as I have one pair of black trousers.

Then there is the small matter of a coat.  I have a long, navy overcoat which is over 20 years old but in perfect condition.  It is more than I need in Queensland so I am thinking of parting with it and getting something more suitable.  I envisage a hip-length coat, preferably charcoal grey or black.

I have been so busy at work for the past couple of weeks that I have barely had time to keep up with the basics of washing and cooking, let alone considering changes to my wardrobe.  I hope to make time this weekend to look carefully at what I have and what I need.

Just Another Day………..

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You may or may not have noticed the lack of ‘Sew My Stash Sunday’ post yesterday.  There was not much use posting as I had not done any sewing.

A busy week at work followed by gardening on Saturday and guests for lunch on Sunday put sewing firmly on the backburner this week.

Today was not quite ‘just another day at the office’ as it was my birthday and of course that was a great excuse to have cake for morning tea.

2015-04-20 01GMan happened to have the day off today so it was lovely to come home to dinner prepared and ready to be served.

I am feeling very loved thanks to all the messages, phone calls and cards from my family and friends.

Salvaged and Spread

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Now that the weather has finally moderated it is a great time to be out in the garden.

2015-04-18 01We took the ute up to the neighbour’s place to collect the first of 2 loads of mulch that they had kindly offered to us.  This was from when they had some trees trimmed and mulched about a month ago.  Although we have had some light rain in the past day or two the ground was not too wet and GMan was able to bring the ute close to where we wanted to use the mulch.

The newspaper collection has been replenished somewhat, thanks to the generosity of friends and also some that GMan collected from his office.

2015-04-18 02Once again, the newspaper and mulch covered pretty much the same area.  We now have more than half of the front garden deeply mulched.

2015-04-18 03Here are the first of the sweet pea seedling peeking their heads through the soil.  There are also some almost microscopic seedlings which I suspect are the snapdragon or heartsease that I sprinkled in front of the sweet peas.  I am very excited at the prospect of growing some old-fashioned flowers.

2015-04-18 04These are some of the flowers on one of the hibiscus shrubs in the front garden.  It is in the part that is yet to be mulched.

2015-04-18 05It was 4.30pm and I had just finished photographing the garden handiwork when I noticed that this sunshower.  It is the regular rain and relatively warm climate that we enjoy which keeps everything lush and green.  Of course, the rich, volanic soil helps, too.

Little Bits

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If you haven’t already gathered from the lack of blog posts, this has been a busy week at work.  The next couple of weeks don’t look like being much better, either.

I have been getting along by just doing a little bit each morning and evening.  There are no major achievements but at least the household hasn’t fallen into complete disarray.

2012-01-20 04We have managed to have a home-cooked meal every evening, packed lunches and a healthy breakfast. I at least partly make the lunches the night before while dinner is cooking.

2012-05-05 04The dishwasher is loaded every day thanks to GMan and it only takes a few moments to unload it.

The washing is done and I have ironed enough clothes to see us through the week.  There are a few extra items that I will need to do on the weekend.  Having the clothesline on the verandah means that I can quickly hang washing out or get it in when we arrive home.  It is then folded and put away.

2013-02-15 02Everything has stayed tidy because there is no-one here to make a mess.

I hope to have something a bit more exciting to share with you on the weekend.

Breast really was the best

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This is a newish blog that I have just started reading. There are lots of great posts but this is a really special one that deserves to be shared.

Thank you, Anne.

Anne's avatar

My favourite breastfeeding photo. My favourite breastfeeding photo, graduating university and feeding my daughter

About 28 years ago I was privileged to become friends with a fantastic group of women.  We were all new mums, learning the tiring, challenging and beautiful art of mothering together.  We were passionate about our role as mothers and were all members of the Nursing Mothers Association, now the Australian Breast Feeding Association. I can’t remember what I learnt at our regular meetings but I well remember the support, understanding and bond I shared with these women.  On the days that I doubted my ability and when I felt as if I was going crazy from lack of sleep they were the ones that made the tea and passed the tissues.

We all breastfed our babies.  The five of us suckled 14 babies.  We weathered

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Sew My Stash Sunday – 13

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The black lawn to line the yoke of the blouse has been bought, cut out and pinned to the yoke pieces.  That is where the sewing stopped for this week.  A birthday celebration and houseguests, including grandchildren put paid to any more sewing.

However, there has been some activity in the sewing room.

I found a use for this set of mini-drawers which came from my mother.  They are now on my sewing table and contain various small sewing items.

2015-04-12 01Next, I repositioned this chest of drawers to sit under the table.  I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of that before.  I previously had to move them, and they are very heavy, every time we needed to pull the trundle bed out.

2015-04-12 02Finally, I did do some fabric work this afternoon, although it was not strictly sewing.  I started cutting some old t-shirts that i got on Freecycle into strips.  My plan is to make a plaited floor rug like this.

I have plaited this piece which is about 8 metres in length, so far.  I will need quite a bit more before I have enough so keep watching for the finished article.

2015-04-12 03The stash has grown rather than shrunk this week as I was given some fabric by a work colleague.  More about that another time.

Flashback Friday

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Here is one I whipped up earlier.  Four years ago, in fact.  This post with a video of how to fold plastic bags is one of my favourites.  Please let me know what you think.  Do you use this method?  Will you give it a try?  I find one of these takes up next to no space in my handbag and it is useful to have one on hand.

In the first days of this blog I posted a link on ‘How to Fold a Plastic Bag’ Here it is again for anyone who missed it.  This really captured my interest. I have two bags hanging inside my laundry cupboard where I store reused bags which I use constantly but I had another lot in the cupboard in the spare room which needed a better way of storing them.

2011-03-25 01I decided to try my new-found skill on this lot.

2011-03-25 02All folded on the bench – now for how to store them.

2011-03-25 03The only thing left to do is to put the box back in the cupboard.

Celebration Central

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April is quite a month for celebrations in our family as it was our wedding anniversary earlier in the week and will be followed up by my birthday later in the month.

It is my brother’s birthday today and we will be going out for a family lunch on Saturday to celebrate.

This year is a milestone birthday and here are some past photos of the birthday boy.

Owen Owen2 Owen1Wishing you a wonderful birthday and best wishes for the future.