New addition to the easy wear skirt range

Hello everyone here is the finished piece...

I really love these rich, warm colours matched with this wide natural look cream coloured lace.

Have a close look at the lace detail in the photo below - the way the shadows cast through it - beautiful...I also sewed a couple of wooden buttons onto the front to embellish the already fabulous patterns.

Thanks to the fabric artist for the inspiration. I will do a few more skirts and other wares in this range. Keep an eye on my coming website, and Made It online shopfront.

These Easy Wear skirts are great for girls to wear whatever they are doing - whether its helping with some carpentry or wearing to a party! 100% cotton is comfy to wear and long-wearing and materials are sourced locally...

Fabulous Fabric Find

Back to some textile activity...
I went to the Caloundra Quilters Show today and really enjoyed it. Some really talented people and great quilts and some wonderfully inspiring materials. I picked up this beautiful fabric and this cotton lace. I am really looking forward to creating a piece to add to the range I am taking to a new store on Tuesday, looking forward to it.


This fabric comes from and awesome range of Australian fabrics I have just come accross - (great I have been looking for some Australian fabrics not sure hwere its made yet - will look in to that) . This piece is called Spinifex the artist is Marie Elena Ellis. The range comes from M&S Textiles Australia , they specialise in Aboriginal fabrics. Check out their website http://www.mstexaustralia.com/index.shtml to see their beautiful and evoking range - wow inspiring...I am excited to make a range of wares in these beautiful fabrics...paying homeage to Aboriginal heritage. Here are some others in their range - its like walking through an art gallery : - ) . If you try some out - send me a post I would love to see what you come up with...Hope you like the link.

'The Arch' handmade outdoors

'The Arch' as we affectionately call it has finally began. We have a wide block and the sunroom on the front of the house makes the front look a bit boxy...the only entry is through the driveway which doesn't help with its design appeal.

Being a landscape designer I have been busting to design up a new look for the front of the house - and open it up - via chainsawing a large hole in the front fence and adding a garden trellis and front gate, with garden path to follow.

Instead of the standard 1 metre trellis I went for a generous 2 metre wide trellis & 1 metre wide gate. This width better fits the scale of the block & house. The trellis takes the eye away from the boxy look of the front of the house...and the change in energy in opening up the front is amazing, it was as though it was blocked.

Instead of new timber, we used recycled hardwood - great to be re-using wood and not chopping down more trees & its great quality old timber. We are still to complete it but I am really happy with how its shaping up. I will post a piccie of the completed arch and gate when we finish it. Thanks so much for my wonderfully talented hubbie and F.I.L for doing the hard yakka.

I love working between making pretty little girls skirts & tackling house / fence painting / landscape construction... It puts life into a wonderful perspective for me and why be limited in what we can achieve : - ) I love the practical hands on work. It has also been really nice for me to get back to some landscape design, which I love but haven't done for some time.

From Sewing machine to Paintbrush

I have neglected my blog for a little while. Apologies to my two wonderful followers -OHMG one day I will reach more ; - ) and my other readers...I have been busy doing lots of 'outdoor' handmade activities.

Over the last few weeks my wonderful hubbie and yours truely and some other happy helpers have painted the front of our house & the very long front fence. Has anyone had experience in painting VJ's & weatherboards - whoaa - so much more time consuming than plasterboard & render. But, hey I really really love the old Qlder...Well done - fantastic job...& thank you to my wonderful hubbie for his wealth of practical handyman skills... and humour : - /

I love the calming new colours, such a refreshing change from the bold old apricot, red & greens... feels like new life has been breathed into this lovely 1940's home...

The paints are from Porters Paints - their paints are gorgeous & once you have used them you will become addicted, we have used them on our last two houses! They have a life of their own & bloom in a way I haven't seen in conventional paints...They are organic - low fume - awesome.

Check their website http://www.porters.com.au/ Laura from Paint City at Coolum has been such a help. I love working with her. She provides wonderful colour advice and are the stockist for Porters on the Sunshine Coast, thanks Laura coolum@paintcity.com.au

Mamma's been busy

I have been busy sewing some lovely kiddies clothes, scarves, bags, floral fabric hairclips etc to go on display at my local vintage handmade store. Can't wait to finish them off and see them on display...