lovely autumal happenings

 I have my first sour dough starter up and going. every day I had a spoonful or two of flour and a splash of water and it seems happy enough bubbling away. I'm making a loaf of simple no-knead bread once or twice a week now and it's something I look forward to every time.

this weekend I was treated to a night away in the lovely little town on Mildura. we stocked up on plenty of fresh produce from the roadside stalls along the way and the Farmers Markets had plenty of delicious home grown goodies too. time flew by and I'm already planning for the next trip there.

 these two pillow slips were my only op-shopped find while in Mildura. the perfect little $2 souvenir of our trip away.

I received my copy of Hundreds and Thousands mag and it's filled to the brim with cute articles and photos and all things handmade. you too can purchase a copy here.

thank you to all those who signed up for the Vintage Sheet FQ Swap 2015 and have sent a parcel off. there's still a couple of people who I haven't heard from so i'll give it 'til Monday and start swapping the FQs on Tuesday and post them back. you've all sent such beautiful designs it's going to be a struggle not keeping them all for myself.

and lastly to my little autumn give away...
Naomi of Look See is the lucky winner of a copy of Pip magazine and a handmade wall hanging.
if you could email me your details I will get your give-away gifts in the mail on Tuesday.

 

 

any sour dough starter tips? what other goodies do you make other then bread?

 

what lovely things have been filling your autumn days?

vintage sheet FQ swap 2015

I've found some beautiful vintage sheets lately and am also in the process of making a quilt. this got me thinking about when I last hosted the vintage sheet FQ swap. looking back through my blog it's been well over a year.. September 2013 to be exact.
it was such fun swapping all those vintage sheets with others who have a soft spot for pretty florals so I'm hosting another.

to get involved simply leave a comment with your email address. alternatively you can email me at zara-117(at)hotmail(dot)com and let me know that you're interested in joining in this swap.

i will email all participants as you sign up with more details on the swap.

please have your vintage sheet FQs in the post to me by the 31st March, 2015. this gives you a bit over a month to source/raid the stash for vintage sheets. i will aim to have the FQs swapped and in the post by the end of the following week.

you can choose to swap as many or as few FQs as you want. the number of FQs you send will be the number you receive back.

place your FQs into a pre-paid parcel satchel. also include a self-addressed pre-paid post satchel so I can send your newly swapped FQs back to you.

pre-paid post satchels can be purchased from the post office in 3 sizes:

small satchel $10.55
holds up to 500g
35 x 22cm

medium satchel $14.80
holds up to 3kg
40 x 31cm

large satchel $23.60
holds up to 5kg
51 x 43cm

(Australia Post prices)

the small sized satchel will fit approximately 15 FQs and the medium 3kg satchel will fit 50+ FQs.

now for the important details-

- a fat quarter (FQ) measures approximately 50 x 56cm. these can be ripped or cut to size from the sheet as long as they meet these measurements.
- sheets should be washed prior to being sent
- ensure FQs are free from marks, stains, rips or holes. please only send sheets you would be happy to receive
- please only send cotton or cotton blend sheets. no flannelette or polyester. do not send sheets with cartoon characters or any solid colours

due to differences in how prepaid satchels would work for posting/returning of prepaid satchels overseas, this swap is only open to those living in Australia. sorry.

please share this swap if you'd like. the more involved the greater the variety of sheets you will receive.

if you have any questions please ask.

 

 

i'm really looking forward to this swap, and cant wait to see all the pretty florals you find.

suitcase treasures

a little collection of my latest thrifted finds, all from the tip shop...
tin, floral tablecloth and Johnson bowl ($2)
the cases were a lucky find indeed as they were found atop a trailer heading for the garbage pile (free)
milk glass ($2)
the cutest little childrens-size chairs ($10)

Lately.

I've had some lovely finds at the local oppies...

 tooled leather clutch with the cutest coin purse inside ($4). This brings my collection to a grand total of 3.

 2 tier Johnson cake plate. Still in it's box ($5)

pretty florals

 

this year has seen me sign up for a Diggers Club membership. Looking at all the seeds available is like being in a lolly shop trying to pick which ones I want. Have you ordered through the Diggers Club before? Any varieties you can recommend?

I got to meet up with a lovely blog friend, Jane of A Shady Baker. I've only met with one other blogger before, Susan, so it was a real treat to meet another. it's like we already new each other, which I suppose reading each others blogs for a few years is not surprising.
we talked all things op-shopping, collections, old churches, gardening, sourdough starters, farmers markets and Kitchen Aids.
Jane gifted me this beautiful pastel Johnson ware and some homegrown, homemade treats. thank you Jane.

what have you been up to lately?

milk glass, florals and yellow

a collection of op-shop finds from the last couple of weeks. I've visited a few different op-shops of late, some in Kiama, yesterday saw a drive to Canberra so of course that meant a sticky beak around a couple of oppies there, and then today around the local ones here in town.

milk glass- 50c to $4 each
a sunny yellow chair to add to the mismatched collection that surround the laminex kitchen table. I only discovered the Australiana design while giving it a scrub when I bought it home ($5)
pretty florals ($8 for the both)
a huge Pyrex dish ($6)

have you discovered any op-shop treasures lately that just had to come home with you?

home life

 my latest reads. mezz and tazz's Hundreds and Thousands mag is onto it's third edition. you can purchase a copy here. I've also found this op-shopped copy all about bee keeping very interesting.

a new op-shopped Johnson plate ($1). another design to add to the collection. 

pretty Pyrex ($4) in a buttery shade.

floral sheets ($2) 

 little Mitten

banana and hazelnut cake. a couple of pieces for now and the rest packaged up in greaseproof paper and washi tape and popped in the freezer to see us through the week.

I tried this recipe for salted banana caramel mousse which was just delicious. it's refined sugar free, gluten free, dairy free and vegan.

 

a parcel filled with handmade goodies arrived in the mail this week from the lovely Tracy.

 

 

what loveliness has been filling your days of late?

op-shopped

Fire King mug in a design I haven't seen about before now ($1)
pretty little teaspoons
mustard floral tablecloth ($3)
Actil sheets ($2 each)
3 new scarves for the collection. 2 Ken Done's and one that reminds me of a Liberty design ($1 each)

x

thrifted thursday

 

sharing this weeks op-shopped goodies...
pyrex- $1 for the small, $1.50 for the medium and $2 for the largest.
3 pillow slips (half price sale at Vinnies- 25c each)
double bed sheets in a sunny yellow floral ($4). this is my current favourite design
pink floral sheets (half price at $3)
and 2 woollen jumpers. one for me and one for my love ($3.50 each)

x

cushion give-away

looking back it's been over a year since my last little give-away. so I think it's about time for another.
to thank you for taking the time to read and comment on my blog I've made a cushion cover just for you.
in my usual style.. constructed from a tea towel and backed with a vintage floral sheet and thrifted zipper.
this is one of my favourite tea towels from the stash. its pure linen, Made in Ireland and the most vibrant sunshine-y design.
simply leave a comment and i''l draw a winner at the end of September.

florals, milk glass and bark cloth

the past couple of weeks has seen some rather good op-shopped goodies...

another still in its packet Brazilian sheet set. in a rather different design to those already in my collection ($2)
a silky bird scarf ($2)
two floral tablecloths ($2 each)
the softest flannelette sheet. this one went straight on the bed. I may as well get some use from it while the nights are still cool ($4)
fancy binding tape (50c a packet)
I almost squealed when I spotted this stack of milk glass at Vinnies. 7 little bowls and the pear dish for $5
when I first spied the label entitled 'retro fabrics' I must admit I was a bit nervous as to the price they'd attach to it, gosh was I happy when it was $3. inside were 2 sets of hand sewn curtains. one in the prettiest of bark cloths and the other a sunny retro print.