Pretty Prints

Last Friday I received a parcel in the mail! I was so excited because I LOVE getting mail and inside the parcel was my gorgeous tote bag that I ordered online from http://www.mozi.com.au/ !

This site is super cute with great products including my large tote bag with this really pretty pink print (also available in different prints and great colours!). The site sells all sorts of things for the house like pretty tea towels, aprons, oven mitts as well as other stuff like lotions and laptop slip cases!

One of the great things about the site is that the designers and creators try to design and use environmentally friendly products and means of producing their stock so as well as scoring awesome and pretty buys you are helping the environment too! :)

Also this week I've been working on a few crochet projects, I thought I'd better post some updates! I started working on a face washer (or could be used as a dish cloth) using a really easy and cute pattern from www.designspongeonline.com . I'm really liking how its looking, I want to make a few for around our home. I think they look so cute all folded or rolled up and tied with some nice ribbon or yarn and given as homemade presents!

I'm still working on the Baby Bear Beanie #2, but I'll post some pictures soon as I need to purchase another skein of wool tomorrow to continue working on it. Pictures coming soon though! :)

Ellie x

Baby Bear Beanie # 1

Yep, here it is - I've finally finished the first Baby Bear Beanie!! I'm so excited to have finished it, it looks sooo darn cute and I LOVE it!! The colour and Shiloh wool turned out so beautiful and makes the perfect little baby beanie!! I can't wait to send it off to Roger's baby cousin Mateo! I hope it fits his head!!

I've got to make one more for baby Emmanuel also in another gorgeous colour and because I've already made one hopfeully it wont take me too long to get the next one done!!

The gorgeous pattern is by Mia Zamora Johnson, and she calls it the "Osito Baby Hat". I'm so proud how it turned out!

Here's hoping the next one is also a success! :)

Ellie x

Homegrown!

It's veggie patch harvest time (for my rocket seedlings any how!!) How exciting! I cant believe I grew my own veggies from tiny seeds and now I can eat them! lol

The rocket looks sooo good in the veggie patch and looks even better on top of our homemade pizza's that I made Rog and I for dinner tonight. Mmmm yumo!

Here's my recipe for a yummy homemade pizza:

- Tortilla wraps (I used 2 "Mission Wraps" in zesty garlic and herb flavor)
- Tomato paste
- Sundried tomatoes
- Pitted kalmata olives
- Fresh rocket (or baby spinach)

- Crumbed fetta
- Shredded cheese

I combine all on a tortilla wrap and bake in the oven on about 160 degrees. I dont usually time the process and just "gestimate" as to whe to take the pizza out. Usually once the cheese has meted and the tomatoes are starting to crisp or lightly blacken you know its ready!

Yummmm! Roger was very pleased with how these pizza's turned out, and I was too, they were soooo yummy! You can also add whatever you like on the pizza's, and instead of using store bought tortilla wraps you can make your own usins flour and water and frying in the pan.

I hope your dinner tonight was as yummy and filling as ours!

Ellie x

Friends and a weekend away...

This past weekend I had such a nice time spending it with my two closest girl friends in Bathurst! Because my two best friends live in other towns we rarely get to catch up and just chill out!

It was a girly weekend with lots of yummy wine, food (thanks to Teegs and her bf Leigh slaving over us in the kitchen! hehe), cosmo cocktails, shopping and LOTS of chatting which I love! I miss being able to have some "girly" time with friends every now and then! Roger has moulded himself into the couch since the World Cup Soccer is on so he spent his weekend watching the TV! lol

Not too much to report on the crochet front due to my weekend away, except I have ALMOST finished one of the Baby Bear beanies!! How exciting! It looks sooo cute and the colour is just gorgeous! I was following the pattern and getting a bit lost at first but ended up figuring out my way there and have finally made the beanie part. All I have to do is make the two ears and sew them on!! I can't wait to post finished pictures of it!!

More updates on the finished project soon! :)

Ellie x

Hey Sadie the Cleaning Lady!

I love a clean house however I'm not one to enjoy the housework (I don't think many people are!?) but I'll never say no to some awesome tips and tricks when it comes to cleaning funny things in an around my house!

After moving out of my parents home and in with my boyfriend I think I have learnt to appreciate why my mum use to get mad when we left stuff lying around the house! lol Housework is no easy feat!

I just stumbled across some great cleaning tips on the http://www.homelife.com/ and they've called it "The Top 40 Best Ever Cleaning Tips", and I have to agree! Some of their tips are so quirky and clever, it's stuff that I would have never thought of!

I thought I'd share them with you and you might find them of use as well!

The link is http://www.homelife.com.au/cleaning/2075/top+40+best+ever+cleaning+tips

Happy Cleaning! :)

Ellie x

The Loosey Goosey Scarf

I just finished crocheting the "Loosey Goosey" scarf! It took me a little while even though it was a super easy pattern (I blame uni study stealing my time for this!)

I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out, still deciding who to give it to or whether to keep it to myself! I couldn't get a great photo of myself wearing it (damn selfie photo's) but I think you get the idea.

The yarn looks lots different to how I imagined it would turn out, but nonetheless, its done and I made it! I love that feeling!

On to the next project... Roger's headband thingy, and the baby bear beanies for Roger's new cousins! More updates soon!!

Ellie x

What I'm reading now...

Today I swung by the local newsagent and noticed a magazine advertised that I'd never seen before, I popped in to the shop and bought it! It was called "Notebook:" magazine. In between study procrastination and actually doing some reading up on my exam topics I read through the mag and fell in love instantly! Where has a magazine like this been hiding?!

Its fresh and quirky with awesome "How-to's", book and movie reviews, crafty bits, homey bits, fashion and advice, its like your usual girly mag but sooo much better! It talks about tax and health and gardening (which I love) and all things fresh and lovely! I can't believe I haven't noticed it before! This months issue also came with an adorable little makeup bag - bonus!! I sound like I'm working for the magazine in the marketing dept., but honestly I recommend to check it out!

As I read through the pages I noticed they mentioned their website which is super cute and helpful too! Its http://www.homelife.com.au/ and has a link to the website's "blog" which is www.notebookmagazine.com/blogs/handspun

Also, (before I quit ranting and raving about my new favourite read) the magazine "Craft Room" is a group that organises awesome craft classes for readers and creative interested people to attend in Sydney and Melbourne, including crochet classes! Naturally I'm bummed because I can't make it to the classes (cake decorating, jewellery making, quilting ... the list goes on) because I'm ages from the city, but I just think that its so cool that there are so many crafty people out there! I love it, homemade is so the way to go!

Sunny Winter Days!

Today was such a nice day here in town, the sun was out and warm (for the most of the day) and we haven't had nice weather like this in the last week or so! Roger and I were up relatively early (for a saturday... I like to sleep in, especially on a long weekend!) and we took the new (old) Merc for a drive. Roger picke dup my little cousin Jack to go for a spin in the car and he loved it! I think he really enjoyed crusin' around with Rog in the old school car listening to old school music on the radio. He even scored a pair of Rogers old sunnies to wear while we were crusin around! It was sooo nice driving around town with the warmish sun and the windows down... sounds so corny, but it was a great start to our Saturday!

After a beautiful start to the day catching up with some of the family, I made it down town for another crochet class! I'm about halfway through my black lacey cowl and it is starting to look really good! I can't wait to finish it! I'm hoping to get it done by this week if all goes to plan with my study and my second uni exam on tuesday (*sigh*). I also went a little crazy and stocked up on some gorgous yarns to get startd on some new projects! I just love seeing (and buyin) all of the gorgeous fibres that Jodie has stocked in her shop. I can't help it that every time I go in I end up buying something!

Firstly I purchased some gorgeous Shiloh Wool skeins of 8ply hand dyed wool. Ahh I just love the colours these skeins come in, especially the minty green colour and this beautiful "citris". I'm going to be using these skeins to make 2 baby bear beanies using a super cute pattern which I will link to in my next post! I can't wait to make them for Roger's new baby cousin's, baby Mateo and baby Emmanuel. We haven't met the new additions yet but we are heading back to Syndey in July and I'd love to be able to give them a small handmade gift when we get there!

Next I purchased a beauitful skein of Heirloom Alpaca wool (8ply).

This stuff is sooo nice and soft! I love Alpaca's! I've always wanted one, but I'll just settle for their wool for now! lol I'm going to be making Roger a wide hair band to keep his dreadlocks back in place. I've started it already and its looking great! I think he'll be pleased with his first homemade project!

I've got so much going on at the moment and I just can't wait to sink my teeth into all of these new projects (and current projects that I'm still yet to finish!)

Ellie x

Love, Love, LOVING...

Ahhh, I cant tell you just how much I love good music. I'm not one to be too fussy about the type that I like, infact I'm into most genre's (yes even a bit of country! - I can't help it! I was raised a country girl!! Thanks Dad)

At the moment I am absolutley LOVING the new self titled album by "The Court Yard Hounds". If you haven't heard of them, google them and check them out! They are the two sisters (Emily and Martie) that are also apart of the Dixie Chicks (whom I love and have been a dedicated fan for many years now!). The girls have recently branched off and done their own on-the-side project and it sounds so great!

If you're into great acoustic, beautifully sounding, easy to listen to tunes, with a bit of a Sheryl Crowe feel, you'll love this album. I know I do! Check it out for sure!!

Goodies...

This past week has been a HUGE one! I've been all over the country (and city) side for work and am now sooo glad to be back home! Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the city but it's always nice to come home! In the flurry that was the city, I also had to spend every inch of my leftover time studying for a uni exam that I have to sit tomorrow :S argh! (Fingers crossed I can get through it! At the moment I'm not feeling very confident!!)

Besides all of the work and no play I've been doing I've have some goodies to report on! Last saturday for work our business hosted an auction and a clearing sale at one of the local historical buildings in town. I was lucky enough to get to have a good squiz at all of the old furniture that they were selling and the other bits and bobs that we auctioned off. My partner Roger got (in my opinion) the bargain of the day! He purchased a 1971 model Mercedes Benz! It was super cheap, registered until next year and still in pretty good nick! Roger is stoked, and loving it. He's already decked it out in Socceroos flags! lol

After the sale I made it down to Jellywares for another crochet class, and I'm so glad because I am sooo hooked! I've made a good start on the black cowl that I mentioned in a previous post (using a pattern supple=ied by Jellywares) and I've also started on a new scarf, just for fun and to experiement. I'm calling it the loosey goosey scarf because I've been using a large hook (10.0mm) instead of a smaller one which instead of making the scarf nice and tight its a bit looser, I'm liking how its turning out though. I'm using a very basic treble pattern from a beginners crochet book by Patons (book 1257) "Learn to Crochet". At the moment its only a short in lenght but I'll get there eventually!

At the moment the cowl is looking like a flat circle but soon enough it'll be looking like a proper scarf.

I've made a few mistakes here and there but I'm getting there! Still yet to have made a start on my pot holder but will try to get it started this week!

Ellie x