Lovin' Lalaloopsy (oh the girls are too!)

Well what can I say about Lalaloopsy that you cannot tell the moment you see them.  They are gorgeous!! And for we lasses that love to sew and create..(well for me anyway) they are just the perfect blend of personality, individuality, cuteness, sweetness and imaginative gorgeousness in one doll ( or what seems to be hundreds of them)

Needless to say I love them, each and every one and my 3 yr old  spends most of her time playing with them. My 6 yr old is also loving them. 

So we are starting to get a collection going...and since we already have a gorgeous dollhouse that Daddy made for his sweet 5 yr old a while ago...I didn't think it was necessary or budget friendly to buy one of the gorgeous treehouses, houses etc...I really really love them....but it is more fun to invest in the minis and DIY dollhouse. 

So after sewing a heap of new lalaloopsy clothes for my 3 yr old and her dolls I decided to make a dollhouse out of a flour box.  And sew....this is what we came up with after modge podge, hot glue, glitter contact and scrapbooking paper took hold...AND we got to reuse the beautiful handles off the packets.

                                      The little lala dollhouse sits neatly in the bigger dollhouse

                           Crumbs Sugar Cookie and Toasty Sweet Stuff enjoying a lemonade

                                   
                                    Jelly Wiggle Jiggle and Blossom Flowerpot enjoy a cuppa

The repurposed handle off the bag (I have also seen them used as handles on apothecary jars (DIY))

Marina in her little bathtub.

I covered the outside in fabric as I am hoping it will be more durable and help hold the cardboard together.

Bundles and Squirt enjoy a break from playtime

Eclectic Country Kitchen (Red and Blue)

Well since I am gradually falling more and more in love with the beautiful aroma of coffee, and the kids drink rooibos tea each day...I seemed to be forever heading in the opposite direction of the kitchen to get the cups, then the other side of the kitchen for the coffee and sugar and then back to the other side for the kettle.  So after recently accepting the fact that I live in an old country home and that I don't really need to keep the walls free from nic nacs, prints etc.  I do not plan to put in a new kitchen even though the one I have may be over 20 years old...it is soft blue, all hardwood and decorated with my kitschy reds and polka dots, I think it is cute.  I also can think of other things to spend my money on than a new kitchen. 

A vintage spice rack that had a ghastly fake leadlight front window and was brown.  I painted it, modge podged paper to the back and put in mesh.

A red vintage jug from an op shop

Anyway I have recently embraced the fact that my kitchen is little, cute, cosy and definitely has an eclectic feel to it with my vintage buys over the years and homemade decor......so I went ahead and screwed in hooks in every convenient spot.  I now have a wine rack above the sink so I can grab a glass with ease......a spice rack above the bench, my beautiful vintage silver serving tray above the door AND my tea/coffee station above the beautiful wooden chopping block, directly above the kettle.  It is not fancy and just a pine shelf, but I have covered it with doilies and it works fantastically and looks cute enough for me.

I also have had these for ages and painted them both creation blue and put them on the block too. 

So a Vinnies cup holder, painted blue and a Vinnie serving tray painted blue.  I (of course) also found the melamine sugar dish (I keep my garlic in it), the sugar dispenser and the red Harrods tin at Vinnies too.

The last two mornings my son has actually offered to make me breakfast in bed...so he is now enjoying the tea/coffee station too.  What a great job he did too!

More peeks of my kitchen...

A vintage jug, just the right size for berry sauce and a vintage money bank...

The bread bin that I grew up with, (below) was brown and very unsightly and I snatched it from mum before she threw it out....Phew...I modge podged on this paper, spray painted the ends red and added some scrapbooking stickers, and now it is perfect for my kitchen....a great size, great history and a great colour now!

Our mate's little doggie jacket (UPCYCLED denim vest)

Well our sweet little mate today was shivering, because it is getting quite cool.  I have been planning to make him a doggie jacket, and today was the day.  Going through my stash of fabric, I decided this 15 yr old vest of mine teamed up with jumper stretch fabric and an old mattress protector would be spot on.

I traced around the reindeer outfit that we bought our little mate for Xmas and used that as the pattern.

I had to adjust the pattern little bits here and there to keep the pockets on the vest in tact.

Yucky old mattress protector cut up.

He is happy, the kids were excited to see him all dressed up when they got home and he sure got plenty of cuddles from my littlest sweetie in his new toasty warm coat!!

Easter Hat Parade

In honour of the Easter Hat Parade, I tried to keep things simple and small this year, and I think they turned out better than ever.

The chef hat, was part of this weeks work at school, so we incorporated it into the easter them....hat already made!!!! Just add easter pictures, glitter and bow and YUM!

Lovin' Vintage and Thrift

We went on a little trip recently and as I put this outfit together...it turned out to be nearly all vintage and thrift and hopefully feminity combined..

Here's the list

The scarf I upcycled from muslin and lace (see previous post)

The apricot shirt is last seasons but this week I sewed on a square doily and little lace rosette that I made

The denim and apricot headband I made a year ago

The necklace is a teaming of my childhood necklace, some vintage hearts and a ribbon & rosette I sewed on

The jeans I found at the local Vinnies store

The bangle is some sort of copper (I hope real copper) and it is just great

And that about sums it up.

DIY jewellery

I had a bit of a blitz this morning since it is a rainy day.

I reglued any girls clips that were broken and finished a few projects.

I wrapped this bracelet in a lovely apricot ribbon, bit looked a bit plain, so I glued this lace on.

A dodgy old retro geometric design hairclip, now has a pretty appeal.

And some sweet little gold glittered shoes, now had a pearl addition.

DIY cake stand - using an overlocker spool

Well this is one I haven't seen anywhere else, but it looked perfect for the job.....

I made a cake stand using a stovetop element cover, an overlocker spool and a japanese dish....

So, I spray painted the cover all pink. Then placed a paper doily down and spraypainted over it white.  The overlocker spool was already the matching colour pink...so I painted the little dish white. Let them dry and then glued them together.

Such quick projects like this are so much fun.

The glass plates in the front are a DIY I did last week on an older post.

Birthday preparations

Well what I got up to today, is nothing that tricky or delicate, but it is practical and going to be great.  I recycled some timber used for packaging as a base for a wooden train track for my little sweetie.  I even screwed the castors on myself...as I said, nothing tricky, but a small accomplishment that will hopefully deliver a hugh HAPPY SMILE and hours of enjoyment to my darlin'!


                                         This is the board screwed together with primer on it.

I superglued the sparkly water down and had planned to screw the track down so it doesn't get knocked about, but it really does take the fun out of designing tracks, so I just grabbed some sandpit trees and animals and added them to the assortment and glued trees, dam and river to the painted board.

5 minute bow bracelet

In my efforts yesterday to pick up all the bits and bobs around the house (there is defintely something to be said for those fabric bags hanging on a door knob to place all the bits and bobs around the house) and I came across a short silver bit of chain....no idea what it was for, but taking a second glance I knew I could make it into a bracelet by threading ribbon through.  I went for a beautiful romantic cream and I reckon it is nicer than I even planned.  Sooo easy!

Sorry for the wait

Wow such a long time since I have been on, and not a great start to the "supposedly" consistent posts...but I have been doing lots....just haven't got it up yet.

Am making some bath bombs as gifts for ladies and kidlets at my Xmas party coming up and just had to share this great site Craft Bits with fabulous recipes for DIY crafts of all sorts including sherbet bath bombs, bath icecream, it all looks so good, even the bath cuppacino!!!! Wouldn't be wanting this at nighttime, but if you are an early riser, what a treat to soak in a cuppacino bath before the day begins.....

Or what about this Pina Colada bath bomb...might get you in the mood for partying...

Bath Salt - Pina Colada

 

For all the recipes visit this site ...Craft Bits

Things I am loving this week!

Well, to start with can I say, I love a LOT of stuff on people's blogs and this past week I have tried these sugar cubes....they are so cute, but you have to be very careful with how much water you put in to join the sugar cubes. I thought it would actually be (not just pretty) but a very practical thing to make a coffee in the morning.

DIY Sugar Cubes at "Nifty Thrifty Things"

I am also loving these chevron (zig zag) themed walls, but especially these quartrefoil stencilled walls are definitely my favourite and I am keen to give it a go in my bedroom.....one day!!!

Aqua stencilled wall at I Heart Naptime

Also these lovely Ice Cream Labels at Eat Drink Chic and all their other beautiful stuff.