Kelly Doust introduces readers to her wonderful world of reviving and customising vintage pieces, while bringing a modern and unique twist to wearing vintage clothes – Dita Von Teese
Show us your royal wedding sampler
Wills & Kate 4 eva, yah?
How can you not love a royal wedding? The princes and princesses, the pomp, the ginormous jewels? And the romance (naturally). I’ll be watching, big box of Kleenex at hand. It’s been a long time between drinks.
Here’s a sneak peek at UK mag CrossStitcher‘s royal wedding sampler, designed by Jacquie Pearce and on sale in next month’s 22 March issue (#238). It also includes a full alphabet and calendar so readers can adapt to their own wedding date.
Rah, rah – wave your Union Jacks, girls.
Crafty Mornings with Kerri-Anne – soon!
Oh dear, blogged too soon: I’ll be doing regular craft segments on Channel Nine’s Mornings with Kerri-Anne, but not tomorrow – the first appearance has been postponed.
I’ll be appearing once a fortnight shortly, doing craft segments for easy projects you can follow from home. Some will be familiar, and others brand-new… please stay tuned for more news.
Craft for fidgeters
Tea cosy one
I’m restless. As far as relaxing goes, I think I’ve lost the knack.
Behold, the evidence: two tea cosies salvaged from leftover Echino & Liberty fabrics, and a decorated doily thingummy for afternoon tea parties. I had the urge to make something useful – can you tell how I spend my time these days if these are the first items which spring to mind?
Sew be it
Tea cosy two: front
Tea cosy two: back
Calico & Ivy goodness
And a bag full of goodies from Calico & Ivy. Told you I was heading over there quicksmart. What a divine, delicious shop. And they were lovely to Olive, too.
Kitchen sink makeover
New year blooms
How to bring a neglected corner of the house back into favour:
After an enthusiastic dyeing session a few months ago, the kitchen sink was looking a bit worse for wear after being slopped with violet, cobalt and flamingo pink dyes (not to mention other wear & tear from numerous dinner parties). I’ve scoured, freshened up the paint and made a new curtain below from a length of lovely fabric, leftover from a previous bunting project. Good as new.
And a new kitchen curtain
Three of the best: lavender sachets
I’m totally inspired to make my own after being given these pretty lavender sachets recently.
One: from luxe Sydney homewares store, Edit
Two: Happ & Stahns sachet, from the retail geniuses at Anthropologie
Three: cute-as-pie drawer friend from favourite local childrens’ store, My Messy Room
Homely holiday craft
Goldfeather: a study in contrasts (or some such)
Happy new year to you.
After months and months of sewing pieces for the next book, and fun yet frenetic craft shoots for magazines, it’s been bliss doing very little over the last week. I love it when the three of us are here at home, with nothing much on the schedule. But I’ve been busy at one thing: painting and collage-making with my energetic two-year-old, one of the few activities which captures her imagination for more than ten minutes. I’m looking forward to a time when we can attempt something a little more ambitious together (a trip to Cirque du Soleil, perhaps?)
Here’s a couple of her creations, currently adorning the kitchen fridge:
Pastel configuration
Mixed media
Play of light & colour
‘Tis the season
Kawaii kids' poncho
Ah, holidays… we just spent the morning lolling under an umbrella on Bronte Beach reading and snoozing, before scooting home for a lunch of salad and chilli prawns. Perfection. When it came time to leave, this is what I used to bundle up the wee one – my terry towelling poncho, which appears in Australian Women’s Weekly‘s January issue (out today).
To make your own, purchase terry towelling on the roll from a haberdashery, or chop up a large-ish towel for pool and beach visits… they’re especially useful for chilly early-morning dips. Click here for the instructions.
Harvey time
A felt watch for Harvey
We have two childrens’ parties today – Enzo turns six, and Harvey turns two. You might remember Harvey’s 1st birthday gift from an earlier post, but I’ve made him a felt watch permanently set at elevenses this year. What better toy for a wee one that any felt frippery?
Child’s tepee in Australian Women’s Weekly
The tepee made simple
Now I’m quite impatient, so tend to make things as simply as possible in order to have them done all the more quickly… But after finishing the tepee in The Crafty Minx (which took a while – it’s one of only two day-long projects in the entire book), I found myself thinking I could’ve made it a little easier.
This month’s issue of Australian Women’s Weekly (October) features instructions for a new & improved version, with the image above taken in Olive’s bedroom.
Styled by me, photography is by the wonderful Dean Wilmot. Grab a copy if you’re interested in seeing detailed step-by-step shots on how to make it, or click here.
Gaby gets crafty
Gaby's Crafty Minx peg bag
From Gaby, who came along to one of the workshops at Shearer’s Bookstore late last year. Love her use of fabrics – Ikea really is producing some great designs at the moment:
“I just wanted to send you a few photos of the things I’ve made from your first book. Having recently learned to sew, it quickly became my favourite craft book because I could actually make all of the projects and they all turned out great… [I made] the Spring is Here Shopper Bag with Ikea fabric, the Just Married Patchwork Duvet Cover with Anna Maria Horner flannel, the Eye-catching Table Runner with more Ikea fabric, the Pretty Peg Bag, and the Bold Beach Bag with oilcloth from Prue Trollope. Thanks for the wonderful inspiration!”