A Simple Christmas.

photo source Pinterest.

No matter how organised, relaxed and optimist you are, December often means one thing: Christmas.
It's hard not to fill the crunch. I've avoided as much as I could the crowded malls and emptied the letter box from all the junk mail (=Christmas catalogues) before it even reach our front door. A lot of the presents were handmade, simple but well targeted. I was so much into my sewing that I hardly took apictures! A sacrilege in blog world I know.

We headed of to our cherished South Coast and  aimed to have a simple and lovely Christmas.
The first stop was the Christmas tree farm, where we spent a good hour choosing our tree,

enjoying the first vibes of the summer break.

We made salt dough ornaments,

and even a gingerbread house.

Nothing too stylish or elaborate, because this year I wanted to focus on what Christmas feels like rather than what Christmas looks like.

We celebrated Christmas Eve with a delicious supper under the stars

And a Divine Pomegranate Pavlova made by my sister in law.

Santa came when all were asleep.

And all were happy to discover their presents in the morning.

Amongst them were the Princess and the Pea set,

the "army" tent

It was a lovely Christmas, full of the good stuff.

The rise of the toys and tea in Berry

Yes. The time has come and they are all around us; Toys! All saying "Pick me, Pick me, Pick me, I'm the right present to give!"

Stressful?

It can be. I know it is for me. So before it all starts becoming completely crazy, I went, in good company, to Berry for a nice tea and plenty of pretty things to see.

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The Tea Shop. A must see and taste in Berry.

There are a LOT of nice boutiques in Berry.

Most of the time I forgot to take pictures!

It certainly was a lovely trip, stress free and very inspiring. 
Now I'm back in my garage/studio, sewing, crafting and trying to get il all done for Christmas.
Most of the presents will be handmade this year. I can't wait to show you what I have done so far. Pictures to come soon!

Quick Fix with Deep Gathered Pockets

A while ago, during an Op Shop trip, I had found this vintage night dress. Funny enough it was
 put in the fancy dress section; I guess the long white gown is a little ghostly.

Still, the cotton was lovely and so was the smock,

First it needed to be shortened, so cut it just above the knee. Then it needed a little touch of colours,

 

 and some big, deep gathered pockets:

I really like this kind of pockets. They really work well on anything ample; like A shape but also on skirt. There is a great tutorial for deep gathered pocket at  Made. Click here for the link.



 

A very easy transformation for a great result.

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween everyone! Our street has never been great for Halloween, too much traffic, not enough children or playful spirits around ... Some argue it is an American tradition (Irish I think  to start with) and therefore shouldn't be celebrated here in Australia. I think it's too much of good occasion to dress up and quite frankly, the children simply love it. Why missing out on a great time and later on on great memories? So we ignore our sad street and walked to the next block where Halloween is celebrated for all the good reasons;  neighbours chat and share a drink, children excitedly fill up their bag one lolly at a the time with lots of smiles and thank you. The way it should be.

If I don't go to great extents to decorate the house, I make sure I have a little surprise in store.

And of course we dress up.
Mia wanted to be an owl this year. I wasn't going to argue; inspired by  great pics from My Owl Barn, (you should visit, the calendar is printable and free!)

 I knew just what to do.


 It started with many layers, a simple draw-string dress, a pair of wings,

and of course, a mask.

She might not have been the scariest,

but she sure was pretty!

Louis was scary for both of them anyway!

Boo!

"I really don't get how you fly with these wings!"

Happy Halloween!

Week end project : Long Chairs Quick Revamp

This year, we are working hard on the garden. We love tropical gardens and since our trip to Bali we are longing for palms and bamboos, lush greens and vibrant colours.

We are still a long way from a tropical retreat, so while the plants are growing, I thought I'd add instant colour with a long overdue long chairs revamp.

The existing canvas was still in good condition, just stained and quite boring. So I simply stitched over the right side.

We also had this "Thomas the Tank" long chair found at a garage sale. It was time to say goodbye to the smiling engine too.

The chairs could have done with some sanding and oiling but sometimes you need a project to happen fast. I would have had simply no time to do it all. So I settled for new covers only and I'm glad I did! The job was done in a couple of hours and the chairs look great in the garden!