half triangles quilt

I started this many many half triangles quilt last year (**cough cough**) so much for getting it finished in 2014. But you know what- that is okay. I love how this quilt has turned out compared to my original vision.

The random patterns created are fun and striking.

I hand quilted it is simple lines of cream, white, teal, green and navy.

After finding a large piece of fabric from my stash for the back, it has been a perfect choice with the colours from the front of the quilt.

Finished quilt size is 41'' x 53''

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liberty + doll's house

I have a small love of doll's houses after I finally got my very own a few years ago and enjoyed renovating it.

I'm pretty sure most basic doll's house furniture comes accessorize'd with polyester, plaid or any other random off cut of fabric they can find. It's only cute because it's so small but in the long term you ideally want cute and wonderfully made doll's house furniture accessories.

This is where liberty saves the day! I was asked by a friend who suggested liberty quilts for her daughters doll's house furniture. I of course jumped in and said yes!! This gave me the chance to use the small cotton batting off cuts to make mattresses, chair and couch inserts, pillows and of course quilts.

Hand stitching 1/2'' hexagons together is the easy part. Making anything this size is a challenge when only using 48 hexagons- who can honestly say they have fully hand stitched and hand quilted, made binding and then hand sewn on binding to a quilt no larger than 6'' x 5'' .....the answer now is me!

Hand stitching has thankfully become easier and the process become pretty quick when you are making more than one of anything.

How adorable are tiny 1'' square liberty couch cushions?

This was a labor of love, and...........I may have gone a little over board but something tells me these dolls house accessories are going to be loved for many many years to come.

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I finally have an online SHOP!

I'm so very excited to have finally (with the help of my wonderful husband) set up an online shop. 

This has been a long time coming but so great to have my creations available for others to purchase and enjoy!

Please go and have a look at my online shop http://shop.creativemama.net/

and of course I have a handy link to the shop from my blog 

And great news- for customers placing orders in March - Shipping is FREE everywhere!! 

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8 years old

Master B is 8 today! I look at my baby and wonder when he got so big and grown up.

Every morning when you wake your hair looks so messy but you don't mind at all.

You have started avoiding having your photo taken which of course makes it more fun to try and take your photo.

You are so adventurous and will give anything a go- even a waterside down a hill head first!

You have grown a few cm's over the holidays- its all the food, and sunshine!!

One day very soon you will be taller than me!

You are loving scootering and biking everywhere at the moment and enjoying the responsibility of using your very own lock.

You love to create everything you can with cardboard, glue, paper, tape, pens and paint.

I love finding your amazing lego creations in strange places around the house

I love the serious faces you pull even when I try and give you hugs and kisses.

I treasure our random assortment of family photos.

You make me laugh so much when you make yourself into a robot!

You are getting so good at playing UNO.

I love listening to you read aloud.

You are enjoying all the captain underpants books. 

We hope you enjoy all your birthday lego and will be waiting to see what awesome creations you come up with. 

Happy 8th Birthday Master B. We love you to the moon in back in a lego spaceship xxx

you can see the 5th, 6th and 7th birthday posts.

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to market to market on Sunday

Creative Mama will be at the Monster March Market with Les Pommes Rouges Creations on the1st March 10am-3pm.

Very excited to be showcasing some very cool hand stitched Embroidery Hoops I have been working on the past few weeks.

Check out the facebook event!

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my happy place

I'm a very easy going gardener. I enjoy gardening and this could just be possibly because the garden does its own thing and I get to enjoy it. Yes I know we have weeds in our lawn- but the clover brings the bees to the yard and dandelions make awesome fairies when you blow them.

Our garden has been through a lot in the past 6 years we have lived in this house. We had so much liquefaction from February 22nd. 

 Every year since, multiple times a year we get flooded. Enough water to fill the back yard with more than ankle deep water. Its frustrating seeing pea straw floating from the garden, and tide lines as it takes a few weeks to receded. (the boys do think its pretty awesome having their own backyard pool)

But I'm pretty stubborn so we found Macrocarpa planter boxes for sale- my grand plan was to raise the height of the vegetable gardens. High enough that we can grow our own food and move the plants from the areas we know flood. My grand gardening plan is -if it lives it can stay.

This has of course taken longer than anticipated as we were waiting to fill them since they had no idea where to dig up the sewerage lines *sigh*. We have now filled them all and given the whole garden a nice pea straw topping to help with the lack of water this summer.

We now have a productive garden. We have fruit trees- to my count we now have 25- an assortment of plants like passionfruit, feijoa's, apple's, peach's, nectarine's, lemon's, blackcurrants, boysenberries and also strawberries, tomatoes, pumpkins, celery, lettuce, corn, onions, cabbages, beetroot, peppers, rhubarb, courgettes, potatoes, peas, basil, mint, rosemary.

I am enjoying going out and weeding, watering and admiring all the growth the garden in the evenings. The smell of basil and tomatoes when you water them is amazing!

So in 4 years I think I have experienced every emotion possible. 

To see all our hard work taken away in just a few seconds- is enough to bring a grown woman to tears.

 It feels so good to actually be in a better space in 2015, to be able to embrace what I can change and enjoy where I am and the decisions I have made to get here. 

So welcome to my garden. A place of growth. The boys are enjoying all the bugs and birds and I'm just winging it (I have actually been reading many garden books to gain garden knowledge) and when you accidentally plant all your tomatoes too close the upside is the bird's can't actually see all the fruit- gardening win!

Here's to another year. Learning from the past. Embracing the future.

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