I spark joy with upcycling

Everyone is talking about Marie Kondo, and the mantra that items should spark joy in order to have a place in the home. If an item doesn't spark joy for owning it, then it should be moved on and the result is a lovely decluttered home that is easy to keep clean and has wonderful energy because everything in it brings joy. I think this is a wonderful idea, once it's been put into practice.

Of course, this has inevitably meant that there has been a rush of people decluttering their house and moving things on - op shops in my area are turning away donations and the buy/swap/sell sites I follow are overflowing with items. I love the idea of only owning things that bring happiness. This is something that I have practiced myself for a long time - considerate buying, and thinking about whether the item I'm purchasing is a need or a want. Often, if I walk away and think about it, I realise that I don't really need it after all, or I have something already that will fit the purpose.

The frugal Asian side of me also delights in a bargain, in fixing things that others might discard, and reusing or repurposing what I already own. I like to hoard things, just in case they might spark joy come in useful in the future. With that in mind, here are two of my most recent projects:

Dining room chairs
Our dining room set was a bargain. A friend was going to send it to the dump because she was redecorating and it didn't suit her new decor. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the set, so I claimed it and we suddenly had a new (to us) set for free. It's a wonderful solid wood table that expands from seating 6 to 10 comfortably. It also had 6 wooden chairs with plain upholstery. These chairs serve us well, but as the kids grow, so too did the wear on the chairs. There were stains I couldn't get out and holes in the fabric that my small man has been picking at so they were no longer discrete holes but great gaping tears.

Mr Fork wanted to get new ones. I convinced him that they had good bones so instead to come to choose new fabric so I could re-cover them. For $5/m (on sale!) and half a day of labour unpicking staples and re-stapling (we already had one, and staple guns are fun!) we have chairs that look just like new again (if perhaps a little crooked on the pattern).  $12.5 worth of fabric, a little bit of work and I saved 6 chairs being sent to waste, and having to buy new ones that would never match the table properly. Also, I love that no one else will have chairs like ours.

New fabric on the left, old stained fabric on the right

I even had some time to use the leftover fabric I'd bought to whip up a quick cover for the ottoman, and added some pockets for tv remote storage to help tidy things away. Win!

Reuseable makeup wipes
I just knew that my love of flannelette pyjamas and keeping my sewing scraps would pay off. As soon as I saw the tutorial on Fiona's blog for making reusable makeup wipes, I knew that was a project I could pull off. An hour later, and I had a tidy little pile of cute wipes. I won't go into the method as I pretty much just followed Fiona's guide. All my little offcuts and threads went into the compost heap so no waste here!

I've been using them for the past couple of days and they're just as good as the bought ones, and heaps better for the environment. I followed Fiona's tip to keep a delicates bag nearby and they go straight into that as I use them ready to be washed. During this process, I also remembered just how much I hate sewing curves though. If I make another batch, I'm doing square ones!

Busy, not busy

Just recently as I was leaving the office on the last day of my work week, a colleague told me to enjoy my time off. It really ground my gears. What is this ‘time off’ thing they speak of?! 

It was on the tip of my tongue to start a rant about how I actually work full time (and then some!), I just get paid a part time wage, but then I bit off my words and swallowed them back. I know that my days off aren't spent loafing around idly. I'm pretty sure my husband and family appreciate all that I do when I'm at home too. I guess that's the important thing, not what the people at work think (so I won't rant here about gender stereotyping or making assumptions or accepted inequalities).

Instead, here’s some of what I did on that “day off”. I woke up and made everyone breakfast (naturally, no one wanted the same thing as anyone else). I made nutritious school lunches - no pre-packed food either, not that there is anything wrong with that, but everything was homemade (although to be honest, I did retrieve some baked goods from the freezer). I washed and hung out a load of laundry, before making sure bags were packed and doing the school drop off. 

After that, I came home, cut out some pants from old clothes which Mr Fork had worn through. I had time to pin them together and start sewing before the small man and I left to meet a friend who needed to talk. I entertained and distracted small man while there so I could chat, then came home to harvest and tend the vegetable garden. A friend was dropping by to pick up some kombucha scoby, so I brewed up a fresh batch for me and portioned some out for sharing. I also needed to write detailed instructions for booch brewing. 

After that, small man and I went and volunteered for an hour in preparation for my preppies upcoming school fete. After an hour, I got a message that our afternoon guests were running early and they'd be over shortly, so we came home to make lunch for said unexpectedly early guests that I wasn't expecting to feed.  Hurrah for always having homemade bread because paired with lots of odds and ends, it made for delicious sandwiches that hit the spot for everyone. The kitchen was tidied, and then I entertained small man for awhile since he refused to nap. We then returned back to continue the school fete preparations for a few more hours and stayed there until it was time to pick up the school child. 

We came home and I made afternoon tea. Folded the freshly washed laundry and started the dinner preparation. Oh, and I also finished whipping up those pants for everyone (I'll note here that both kids got a new pair of pants, and Mr Fork had his favourite jeans extensively mended and patched, so everyone except me got clothing out of it).

At this point, it was nearly time for Mr Fork to come home, so I stopped specifically noting my activities, but that certainly wasn't the end of my day. There was the usual night routines of dinner, cleaning, bathtime, reading etc etc.

Days off are so exhausting!

Here's a bonus picture of a focaccia I made on the weekend for a dinner party. While weekends are still busy (and also technically "days off") I'm particularly happy with how this bread turned out. I made two loaves, this one (grated haloumi, sun-dried tomato and oregano) and one plain - and therefore less photogenic! They were mixed in between swimming lessons, grocery shopping, errand running, a birthday party and various other tasks. The colder weather threw off my schedule so they also required some babying along with their own personal wheat packs to get some rise happening. Regardless, it was a delicious pre-dinner snack to share with friends. I've said it before and I'll say it again... I'm so grateful for the ability to make fresh bread and how with a little planning, I can easily fit the mixing and baking of it into my busy (not busy!) days.

Modern life is so busy, but things like fresh bread and good coffee are small treats that I always make time for. Do you have tips to share for coping with everything that needs doing?

Mama, you have to share!

When I was pregnant with Jimmy, we had a book that we would read regularly to Ellie, called "Share". It was a story designed to teach children how to share, and it was done in a really lovely way, with scenarios that children could relate to (and boy can I relate to them now!). Just as an aside, but pre-children, never in my life would I have thought I'd have to measure and weigh out cereal to ensure peace and equality, now I do it without thinking.

Anyway, the lessons from the book have stuck and now the constant refrain around the house is, "... but mama, you have to share!" when I try to hide my nice things away from small children!

I was cleaning out my closet recently, and had set aside a pile of clothes that no longer fit the same. Ellie happened to spy an old pair of pyjamas that she liked. They were nice ones and there was nothing wrong with them so I told her I'd cut them down to her size for her.

Honestly, with my rudimentary sewing skills, by the time I was done unpicking hems, ripping out stitches and pinning it all back together, it would have been much faster to use the material and start again from scratch. I suppose that's not the point though is it! Essentially, I shortened the legs, and brought in the outside hems, trying to minimise the amount of re-work. It backfired a bit as I ended up having to fiddle around with adjusting the waist, but it worked out in the end.

Ellie is just chuffed with her bee pants. I reused everything, even the elastic and the drawstring (which I neglected to iron before rethreading because I was lazy). I even saved the portion of the legs I cut down to make scrunchies for her hair... are scrunchies still a thing these days?

I never thought I'd be sharing clothes with my not-quite-yet-four year old daughter, but I guess since I am that means a few things:

• My taste in clothes is either immature, or hers is very mature
• I am destined to be the family midget

Here is another example, where I went to check on her after her shower, and found that she'd requisitioned one of my shirts for her own oversized nightie. Apparently nothing is off limits in this house. When I questioned her, the only response was "But mama, you know I like Elmo. You have to share!"

Well...ok then. Teenage years are going to be fun!

 

Anyone have any tips for helping teach personal space and things?

Santa sack

Nearly two years ago, I posted about how I'd made Ellie's Santa sack.

I know that it's Jimmy's second Christmas this year, but I was in newborn sleep deprivation hell last year and didn't even think about his. In fact to be honest, I'm not sure I got him a present anyway, although quite frankly, sustaining him with milk two hourly round the clock was a pretty great gift I think!!!

Anyway, I finally got inspired and finished of Jimmy's sack last week. I bought the fabric from Spotlight (a pre printed Santa sack and 75cm of some contrasting Christmas fabric) and followed the instructions from here. It's about the size of a pillowcase, plenty of room for whatever Santa might deliver (which in Jimmy's case this year, I strongly suspect will be daycare necessities and maybe a new toothbrush)...

I think it turned out pretty well. Sure, I got distracted talking to the kids and had to unpick a few seams, and while I was re-sewing I wondered (as I always do when my sewing projects go awry) why I didn't just buy the silly thing. In the end though, I'm glad I persevered. 

How's your Christmas preparations going?

Sewing a new wheat pack cover

My beloved wheat pack was getting rather threadbare, but when I finally found an actual hole in it, I knew something had to be done, because I really would rather not wake up in a sea of wheat.

Fortuitously, Mr Fork had alerted me that a pair of his flannel pyjamas had busted a seam recently, and close inspection really deemed them beyond all hope of repair (I had already fixed them a number of times but they were a favourite). So I took these two events as a sign that I should make a new cover out of his lovely soft monkey pyjamas!

It was a relatively simple project that really needs only very basic sewing skills.

The old wheat pack was cut open and the (well roasted but perfectly useable wheat) was decanted into a large bowl.

I took the pants legs, where the material was still nice and thick and cut four rectangles from the bottom, a little larger than the size I wanted the wheat pack to be. My old pack was lined, and I saw no reason to deviate from that, hence four rectangles.

I hemmed it all together around three edges, then turned it right way out. In this case, it didn't really matter so much because I did the lining the same as the outside so I didn't have to be overly concerned about how the material was facing.

The wheat was carefully poured back in via a stiff piece of card which acted as a funnel. I then just turned the ends in on themselves and sewed across the opening a few times.

And it was done! I now have a funky new flannel covered wheat pack with happy monkey faces. My achey pregnant self is grateful! I'm thinking of taking the tops of the pyjama pants and making mini pants versions for Ellie and Attila.

Have you saved anything from being thrown out lately and repurposed it?

Easter happenings

On the weekend, Ellie had an Easter egg hunt with some of her friends. It was going to be in a park, but miserable rainy weather caused a last minute change of plans and we de-camped to a house instead. The hunt didn't suffer at all due to some ingenuity and the general age of the huntees meant they didn't know any better. In fact, I think the parents enjoyed it just as much - there was plenty of lovely afternoon tea to consume, photo taking opportunities, conversation with other adults (bliss!), and helping our small people to find eggs and play nicely together.

Putting on her serious look

I don't think Ellie is at the age where she can appreciate chocolate yet, so yesterday, while she was napping, I helped myself to some of her loot. What is it about Easter chocolate that makes it taste so much better than regular chocolate? Those simple, solid little Cadbury eggs are pure evil wrapped in coloured foil. I took to Facebook to confess my guilt about raiding my child's egg stash, and I was assured by other parents that I should take full advantage while she couldn't count how many were missing. I suppose that is one way to look at it. After her nap, I was on the phone for no longer than 5 minutes, and when I'd hung up, Ellie had climbed onto a chair and was reaching for the bowl of her eggs on the dining table. She also figured out how to peel the foil off and discovered the chocolate deliciousness inside. I suppose that is pay back for eating her stash. We then had to deal with a child on what can only be described as a sugar high come bedtime. So not fun.

Instead of giving Ellie more chocolate at Easter (because I know that her grandparents will have her well covered in that regard!), I took advantage of one of her day time naps to whip up a pair of bunny flannelette pyjamas (using my lounge pant method) and a matching drawstring bag. This cute little set took me about half an hour to complete and I was able to raid my fabric stash so I didn't cost me anything except some time and effort. I think being able to sew some basic clothing items is marvellous, especially because as she grows, Ellie doesn't really fit standard sizing. Her legs are so long but her waist so small that it's near impossible to get pants that don't show her ankles yet stay up at the waist. I'm sure day care think she has no clothes as I'm constantly using nappy pins to hold her pants up! Hopefully these pyjama bottoms do the trick and keep her warm at nights!

Flannelette bunny cuteness

Have you started eating those chocolate eggs yet? Do you do egg alternatives?

A reversible drawstring Santa sack

So the next time I say, "I can make that!" followed by "wouldn't it be neat to make that reversible!", somebody remind me of this Santa sack. Especially if I shun a pattern and say "how hard can it be?" thinking I'd just do it myself. Somebody remind me of this Santa sack!

I thought that I would be crafty, and make Ellie a Santa sack.

Aside: I was gleefully showing Mr Fork the end result feeling really proud of myself until he asked me what on earth it was. So for those who don't know, the Santa sack gets left at the foot of the bed on Christmas eve for Santa to put the loot in. Mr Fork said he didn't get Santa as a child... which makes me sad. However, he did perk up when I mentioned Santa gets some milk and cookies left out. He suggested "Santa" might prefer rum instead. Right. 

I also thought it would be really neat if I used opposing fabrics and switched the top panels. You know, for a bit of a challenge... WHY DID I THINK THAT?!?! Why did I shun the pre-printed Spotlight material that just had to be cut out, given a seam and a drawstring?

Anyway, it took me a long time (much longer than I think it should have) to figure out how to do it all. I was going to do a tutorial, but I didn't take pictures along the way and I don't have it left in me to make another. Maybe next year.

In the meantime, this is what I've been making! One gloriously festive, pillow case sized, multi panel, reversible, drawstring Santa sack. I'm pretty proud of it too, if I do say so myself!

Santa sack, in all its glory

What have you been making lately?

Eco heroics

Recently I was a finalist in the ettitude eco hero awards. I lost my category by one vote, which was disappointing, but it got me thinking about my eco footprint and I thought I'd share a little about how we live.

I don't really think of myself as an eco hero, per se, just a regular mum who sets a good example for her family. As you know, I use cloth nappies on our daughter and when we wash, its full loads only. Speaking of cloth things we are also big users of cloth for washing dishes, drying dishes and cleaning instead of using paper towels. Living in QLD, I don't own a drier as we get plenty of sun and I think laundry smells nicer dried in fresh air. We meal plan to avoid food wastage, and any food scraps are composted or fed to the dogs. Any paper scraps are likewise shredded and composted. We recycle, freecycle and bicycle as much as possible, and buy second hand where feasible. We have solar panels and our lights and appliances are off when not in use (although I think that's just financial sense!). I also sew, so old clothing generally gets upcycled into something new.

One of the big things that I think makes us eco friendly (and definitely helps the budget) is that I grow as much of our veggies as possible. We don't have a huge yard, but I try to make it as productive as I can - we have a dedicated veggie patch and a fruit section too, which hopefully should start producing in a year or two. Everything is looking lovely after all the rain we've had so I seized the opportunity for photos.

As well as flowers, our front garden has a basil plant which is so top heavy I needed to stake it, as well as that glorious purple chilli plant you can see there. These two are decorative and useful, especially for pasta dishes!

Wider view of the front - the garden behind the hedge is lime, lemon, mandarin and passionfruit vines which I'm gradually training along the fence. This is a slightly old photo and everything is a bit larger now. Mr Fork was a bit vigorous trimming the hedges, so they're looking a little worse for wear.

Here's the raised veggie patch, looking sparse at the moment as lots of it is still underground. There are some rangy cherry tomatoes climbing around the fence, some eggplant, some cucumber, celery, leek and a few other goodies hiding in there.

Beside the house is an area which we don't use very often so I'm making it productive. This boring looking patch actually has some galangal growing beautifully (yet invisibly) along the fence, and then in the mound beside it I've planted sweet potato. Sweet potato is awesome because you can eat the leaves above ground while the potato does it's thing growing underground. Very useful!

Gardens aren't restricted to just the ground either, you can grow lots of things in pots and containers! Styrofoam containers are great for growing lettuce - I plant a variety of types and just harvest the leaves as we need them.

In a sunny place under the stairs I have spring onions in a pot. Fabulous and pretty much ever lasting - I snip them off as I need them. Occasionally I'll do a huge harvest and chop and freeze them in bags for cooking with later. Also some pineapples. These babies are slow growing - it took a year to get my first one, and this is year two, when I get another two! These are seriously the sweetest pineapples I've ever tasted. There used to be rosemary in another pot. People say it's easy to grow but I just can't seem to keep my rosemary cuttings alive at all!

Here's the compost bin. Not very exciting, but it does make exciting things for the garden. I move it to a new position every time it's ready and full and the old position gets used to plant something yummy. You can also see some aloe in a pot in the background. It used to run wild in the garden, until it really did run wild and amok requiring much effort to control, so now it's contained safely in a pot for when we get sunburnt.

So that's some of my gardening and eco heroics. Do you try to be eco friendly or sustainable? I'd love to hear about it (or see your garden if you're keen to share that too!)

Fabric balloon balls

Ellie still loves to put things in her mouth. Seriously, it feels like every time I turn around I catch her eating something she shouldn't be. Most things are fairly harmless - various toys, books (this I'm trying to curb, telling her that we respect books in this house!). Some are gross - my slippers, the hound's pork skin chew toys. Some are just plain dangerous - the dishwasher tablet wrappers and small rocks and other things unidentified.

That being said, she also loves balloons. However as we all know, balloons can pop quite easily. Add an inquisitive toddler with sharp fingernails, an insatiable need to put things into her mouth and an inquiring mind into the mix, and I'm just not comfortable letting her play with these things unsupervised. Enter, the fabric balloon cover!

I'm a little chuffed with this sewing creation, as it lets me tick a few things off my 101 things list, it lets me be crafty and it lets Ellie have some sensory fun.  

What is a fabric balloon cover I hear you ask? Simply that, a cover that allows you to enclose a normal balloon inside. This results in several things:

• If the balloon pops, no problem! All the pieces are contained inside so exploratory small people can't eat them
• The cover gives the balloon really cool properties - one being, they now bounce!
• For extra sensory and educational fun, I like to add some dried beans to the balloon before I tie it off inside. This makes it roll in unexpected ways and makes the entire item into a giant maraca
• The covers are washable and easily portable for instant amusement  

It took me a long time to get the pattern right for these covers. I can't even tell you how many attempts I made! Some shapes were too big for the balloons, some too small. Some were the wrong shape entirely and some didn't fully enclose the balloon when tied up, negating the purpose. I even tried different materials until I found ones with the right properties.  But! Trial and error paid off and now I have a pattern I'm happy with (and Ellie has lots of draft covers to enjoy too!).

The covers here are off to a new home soon... I hope their new owner loves them.

What about you? Made anything crafty lately?

Tutu crafty

Let's talk craft. As soon as I saw them online, I wanted to make Ellie a no-sew tutu. I had in mind that she could wear it for her birthday, and then we also got an invite to a fairy party as well. Sweet, I thought! I went and had a look at the local fabric places, but at $5/m for tulle, I wimped out when I figured out how much I'd need for a decent tutu. Then I checked out good old eBay, and found I could buy tulle by the roll. $5.96 and 25m of tulle purchased later, I was back in business! Of course, I did have to pay for my cheapness by needing to wait 20 days for delivery but I wasn't in a hurry.

Almost 20 days later exactly, my tulle arrived and I set up shop. I sewed a loop of elastic. I had a book of appropriate size ready so I could wrap the tulle around it and cut it nicely without measuring properly. I had scissors and everything at the ready.

And it turned out pretty well if I do say so myself.

Except Ellie hated it. She screamed as soon as I put it on her, and the screaming continued until I took it off again. She kept pulling at the tulle strands so I will need to sew them on anyway. Stupid no-sew tutu my butt.

Who can resist a little tu-tued behind?

Wouldn't even look at the camera

I suppose it's a good thing she is asserting her independence and choices. So, without the tutu, we went to the fairy party in a plain gingham dress. Although I was allowed to put a flower clip in her hair for the occasion.

Have you made anything crafty lately?

Make your own lounge pants

I was feeling crafty on the weekend so I decided to put these feelings to good use and do some sewing. Mr Fork had been complaining that his pyjama pants were "old" so being the thrifty sort I decided to make him a new pair. For fun, I figured that I'd also make Ellie a pair with the leftover material too.

Big and small pants

I'm not much of a seamstress but I can do the basics so I wanted a fairly simple pattern. Google came up with the goods and I based my pants off this very simple tutorial. Here's what I did.

• Make your pattern. I used wrapping paper as the base because it was what I had that was long enough for the length of Mr Fork's pants. Grab the pants you want to make the pattern out of, and fold them in half lengthwise. Make sure that you pull the crotch straight. Draw an outline around the pants. If they have an elasticised waist, be sure to stretch this out for the purpose of the pattern. When you have an outline, draw around this again to make the seam allowances – I allowed 2 inches at the waist and ankles and half an inch on the leg seams.
• Fold your material along the leg seam and pin the pattern. Cut it out. Do it twice. I'll be honest, I didn't use the 1/2 inch seam allowance on the fold of the material because I thought it was overly generous and the pants I used for the pattern were a loose fit anyway. It depends on how you want the pants to fit. I also am not fussy with how my material matches up. On Mr Fork's pants one leg has the monkeys going vertical the other has the monkeys going horizontal. It depends how much material you have and how fussy you are with these things.

Cute monkey material!

• Pin the material cut outs with the right side together from ankle to crotch. Sew your seam. Mr Fork is rough on his pants and Ellie's fluffy cloth bum means her pants take a beating too, so I did a double line of stitches to reinforce everything. I suppose if you have an overlocker you don't need to worry about doing that.
• Turn one of the legs right side out and tuck it into the other leg. Line up the inner seams and then pin the crotch from there. I did a double line of stitches along this seam too.
• Turn the pants completely inside out. You should have what looks like a pair of pants with raw edges on the waist and ankles.
• Fold a small seam, and then a larger fold to tuck all the raw edges in and create a nice 'tunnel' for the elastic of the waist to go into. It's not necessary, but it makes it easier if you iron those folds before sewing (I'm lazy and I didn't). Be sure to leave an opening (about 2 inches) so you can insert the elastic!
• Measure your elastic, making sure to stretch it appropriately and leave a small amount for an overlap. Attach a safety pin to one end and feed it through the opening you left in the last step. Make sure not to twist it! Continue to feed until it comes out the other end. Use a wide zigzag stitch to join the overlap of the elastic ends, and then close the gap in the waist seam.
• Fold a small fold and then a slightly larger one to finish off the ankle seams neatly and sew those up. Again, an iron will make things easier but isn't essential.
• And, you are done! Loll around in your lounge pants!

Mr Fork is like an Oral B dentist. I'm not allowed to show his face!

What about you - have you done anything crafty lately?

Home made pillow covers and wet bags

Ellie uses the Ikea Antilop highchair and tray, with the matching Barnslig supporting cushion.  While I love that the chair and the tray themselves are all plastic and easy to clean, I find that the cushion tends to get coated with whatever she is eating.  She also has a tendency to chew on it as well, which doesn't bode well for the cushion's life span.

Antilop highchair with Barnslig cushion - naked 

As with all Ikea products, the cushion really just performs the basic task of a cushion. It doesn't have any fancy bells or whistles, so there isn't a case that I can take off and wash when required. What better reason to set up my sewing machine and take a trip to Spotlight?

Turns out, Spotlight had a whole bunch of fabrics on clearance, so I walked out of there with a bevy of goodies!  The top three fabrics are 100% wool felt, marked down to $4 a metre. The bottom fabric is a plain cotton but the little blue mice couldn't be resisted, especially at $3 a metre! I also picked up a couple of zips which were going for $0.50 each, because who doesn't need zips sometime?

Spotlight haul

The felt was very quickly turned into simple pillow cases. I know that felt is most often used for craft projects but for what I wanted it for, it was perfect. No fraying and a nice, warm cushy fabric to sit against. There are no buttons or zips to complicate things, although I did make it so the pillow can be tucked in at one end to neaten things up.  I also sewed some loops in so that the highchair seatbelt could hold the cushion in place with the cover on. Including cutting and pinning time, the cases probably took about 15 minutes each at the most.

While I was on a roll, I used one of the zips to sew another wet bag with some PUL waterproof fabric that I already had. These bags are super handy - we mainly use them to store dirty nappies in while we're out as they hold in smells and wetness, but they're also great for when we're swimming, as all the wet clothes get put in to be dealt with later.  This took me a little longer as I'm not the best seamstress, especially with slippery fabric and zips to deal with, but probably only 35 minutes all up.

Cushion covers and PUL wet bag

So, all in all, with very little work, I have three unique home made items which make my life easier and add a little colour into Ellie's day.  

Antilop highchair with Barnslig cushion - covered

Have you made anything crafty lately? How do you add colour into your day?