Pillows

had some pillows needing some decoration....

and something to keep my fingers busy...

found some clothing at a nearby op-shop....

got the scissors and started cutting...

no machine so needle and thread would have to do...

"Does Your Mum Like To Knit Too?

having a bit of fun mixing the old with the new.
 it's hard to tell what these two are really saying or thinking.
i couldn't resist colouring that jumper with fluoro  pink & orange.
found a couple of old knitting books at the op shop.

layered the old photo from the knitting book over a page of knitting instructions from a new  magazine, painted with acrylic & water soluble crayon.

stamped a border using a cork &  fluoro orange acrylic....

went over the orange with some fluoro pink & olive  green stamped  with a hex nut & a palette knife.

the joy of wool?........i say the "joy of paint"!
(raylee).

From the Lake to the Garden.....

 we live close to a lake where a lot of leisure time is spent.

 we go out in an old boat that husband has restored.

 he likes to go fishing, i just like being on the water.

 sometimes he brings home fish or mud crabs.......
but this one time he brought home a chair that he found in the lake almost submerged. being the inquisitive type he had to investigate what was sticking up out of the water!
it was muddy & yukky, but after a good scrubbing & some new cushions made from fabrics that i had unpicked from a couch cover, a piece of floral curtain fabric(found in my art tutor's rag box for cleaning oily paint brushes) much too pretty for that!, & trimmed with some piping i found at the op shop.

 the chair now  looks quite comfortable in the garden.

 i had to save this floral piece from being destroyed by oil paint. it just happened to be the right size for the chair seat cushion.

(raylee).

Chenille Pillowcases With Applique

 after reading "Alabama Style Studio" by Natalie Chanin, which i found at the library i was inspired to do a little bit of hand stitching. also trying to decrease my fabric collection.

 this old piece of chenille had some small rust stains, the rest of it was in good condition.  instead of trying to remove them  i made french knots with embroidery thread on top of the stains in a rusty colour to blend in. (you can see a stain in the centre of the photo  if you look closely).

 cut some petal shapes from scrap floral cotton, machine stitched them around the french knot centres, then hand stitched the petals with a running stitch.

 two new pillowcases from old fabrics found at the op shop.

included in the book there are tutorials & patterns for projects & clothing, & recipes.
 Natalie Chanin is a very generous author. lots of hand stitching, reverse applique, embroidery, ideas for using leftover fabric, easy to read & lots of descriptive photos.
you can see her here.
(raylee).

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

our backyard is surrounded by greenery so i thought i would show you some......as it is St. Patricks Day .
there are lots of trees so there are lots of birds. rainbow lorikeets are the most colourful.
a couple of recycled projects, the tablecloth i made from a  hand painted cloth that had seen better days, added some pieces of of old patchwork from bed covers & stitched embroidered doilies over the holes.
a work in progress on a used canvas.......creating a  textured surface with moulding paste, stencils & stamps, buttons, & acrylic paint.
enjoy your day whatever you are doing!
(raylee).

Cool Summer Dresses For Little Girls......

........machine stitched from embroidered table napkins & a doona cover, bought from the op shop.

 a pocket on the front.....the napkins came with the green border trim & the embroidered flowers.

 .....this green  pocket was a hankie....a lace trim stitched around the hem.....

.......the back of the dress.....

......& the back again.
this is my version of the pillow case dress, a very quick & easy dress to make for little girls.
 a sheet could be used to make the same style dress  for older girls.
(raylee).

Roses......

"I'd rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck" - Emma Goldman.
(raylee).

Old Chairs - New Look

do you like this look?....... you don't have to spend a lot of money to smarten up old chairs.

 the chairs came from the tip shop & the calico from the op shop & the hessian was left over  from a previous project 

 i bought the spotted fabric draped over the chair on the left thinking i would recover the chairs the right way. but when i wrapped them in calico for a garden wedding i liked the look, so will keep the fabric until i think they need a change.

 the blue cushion courtesy of simonne. the picture on the drawers  is a collage from the 365 creative challenge 2013.

  liked this one so stuck it onto an old book cover & then onto a small canvas. still going strong with the challenge, thanks to ihanna for setting this challenge.

the paper flowers i made from rusty wire, book pages & paper doilies, & metal container, another garage sale find, & the table made from wall boards from one of our old houses we renovated a long time ago.these  have been previously  posted  on our blog, from way back, i can't remember when.

under the covers...... what the chairs look like ......really.

early morning sun on paper flowers.

i would like to say thank you to the graphicsfairy for some of the images i used to make the second wedding guest book recently. there are some photos on the previous post

a couple of links to some very impressive paper work: annawilihighfield

& papercouture.

.

for the wedding i wrapped & knotted the calico & tied the hessian strips around the chairs to keep it all together & finished the look with pieces of old lace tablecloths draped over the backs of the chairs.
 have i inspired you to try a no- sew new look for your old chairs?
(raylee).

Boots & Vests for Country/Vintage Style Wedding

some more photos of the table setting.........roses in jars decorated with brown paper, hearts cut from old books, lace curtains & doilies from the op shop, hessian & tied with string.

i have made a few wedding dresses in the past........but this time i had a change & made these vests for the groom, the best man & the ring bearer.
these photos were taken by my sister cathy.
(raylee).

Vintage/Country Style Wedding

 setting up for the wedding........

(raylee)