Sweet Mary

Packing up for The Hereworth Gala this Sunday - see top left or here for details. Alongside my regular Sweet Mary handmades I have also added a few extra lines: bunting, Easter egg cups and cozies, lavender bunches and ribbon hearts. See you there !

I have just finished a couple of noticeboards for Melanie of Driving Miss Daisy. Mel needed somewhere to pop all her notes and cards and thought these boards would be just the thing. Click here to find out about this great personal driving service.

Manly Beach We spent a week in Sydney recently, mainly for a family celebration but also interspersed with a few beach forays. Our twenty year old son was with us so we stuck to iconic Sydney beaches. There was some shopping done too but I don't have any photos of the mall! It is only half an hour on the ferry to the city and one that is full of sights. Daily commuters on the Manly ferry hunker down with a book or tap away on their lap-tops. Tourists, as we were, sit right up the front exposed to the sun and wind and snap away. The Opera House and Sydney harbour bridge with walkers right at the top. Not something I fancy doing but a lot do, including my boys who are really keen. We caught the bus from the city to Bondi Beach travelling the scenic route through Paddington . From memory this is the sea water swimming pool at Curl Curl beach where some of the locals like to "chain" surf. Look at the photo below and you will get the idea! We returned to autumn in Hawkes...

Tuesday morning - I put these photos on my blog two days ago thinking that I would get back to them an hour or two later to put in the words. Well, I obviously haven't managed that and now I am off to Sydney for a week. So its just a quick scroll down today. My ironing board cover was in a terrible state so this very bright stripe (from Ikea years ago) was the replacement fabric. Its a very thick cotton and is proving a great backing for the relaxing job of ironing. Two new pillowslips for our bed from my Cath Kidston stash. One filled lavender wheat bag and 30 unfilled ones . Two dozen "Heart of the Home" teatowels and a stack of Sleep Hearts. Five bunting strips. Easter chicks on egg cups ready to go. Peg bags all in a row. Nearly ready for my Sweet Mary stall at the Hereworth Gala at the end of March !

Without realising it until now, I seem to be having a blogging break. However I will be back very soon with photos of all the "stuff" I have been making in my sewing room.

Click here to find the recipe for the most delicious Rock Buns by Jane Brockett. Make them this weekend ! You will enjoy her beautifully written and photographed blog too.

Today is the last day of Matinee Idle on Radio NZ National after 4 weeks (I think) of fantastic afternoon entertainment of songs weird and wonderful. I find myslf laughing out loud, dancing around the house and looking for things to do that keeps me near the radio. So, today, the last day, I decided to avoid needy jobs and embellish stuff instead. First up was the pretty rose covered tablecloth found in a second-hand shop on our road trip to Taranaki. The minute I bought it I knew I wanted a red pom-pom trim for the edges. Next up, the black and white stripe trim for a plain tee-shirt was sewn around in a trice. I bought this cheap food cover because of the red spotty fabric but didn't like the nylon lace edging it. Rustling through my basket of lace trims produced a couple of metres of white cotton broderie anglaise - on it went. This photo is for Mutti to see the red Ric-Rac trim that I have sewn on to the beautiful silver grey linen tablecloth that she gave us last year. It ...