Busy Bee

My winter knitting hobby is gaining momentum.  Two sweaters down and now a handbag (or knitting bag) on the go.  I redesigned my crocheted bowl to include handles.  My friend Natalie has started on our gorgeous knit top vintage fabric baby dress.  We will make 2 matching ones for each of our littlest girls.  I have yet to learn the cable knit technique but one project at a time for me.  Perhaps for my upcoming trip to California I should be working on a knit bikini!

Clean Scrubs

I constantly keep an eye out for new facial scrubs that are truly "clean and green".  I don't want to put my face through some sort of chemical wash each and every day.  A simple pure non creamy facial scrub is my preference.  Acure organics sea kelp scrub is the one I really want to try but with shipping costs higher than the actual product cost, I will have to wait till I am stateside to try it.  In the meantime I picked up a local Australasian brand that contains no icky ingredients.  Unfortunately it is another creamy scrub that leaves my face feeling moisturised rather than cleansed.  Browsing the supermarket a few days ago I found St.Ives green tea scrub which is new in their range.  I used to use their apricot scrub until I decided to forgo the chemicals for something more natural.  This new one claims to be on the "eco-friendly" side.  I found out otherwise on this website.  It's really worth checking your products on this sight to see how much exposure you might be giving yourself to nasty and unnecessary toxins and dangerous chemicals.  Now my dilemma: what do I do with my 2 brand new scrubs that I am really not satisfied with?!   Any suggestions on good scrubs or facial wash products would be much appreciated.

Finishing Touches

I am still working on the finishing touches in our new rumpus/guest/yoga/movie room .  Two of the majors I finally completed were adding a bit of color to the room by painting the manrobe and a leftover free desk that we inherited.  For the desk I knew I wanted some sort of cool handles and pulls to add that perfect je ne sais quoi so I browsed Etsy and came up with this gorgeous handmade hardware from VintageSkye. 
Now I just need to find a good chair for the desk and perhaps a colorful cushion for the bed and voila...fini!

sorry, the photo is a bit dark and I can be bothered trying to fix it!

Another Project Complete

It's not perfect but I am quite pleased.  Pleased that I knitted someting that I will probably actually wear and pleased to have it done finally.  I've already got the next project in mind, just waiting to have enough cash for the wool.  Deceptively expensive, this knitting hobby!

Finished Projects

I am on a mission as of late to finish all outstanding projects in the house.  In the past few days I have managed to tick off quite a few.  First the new room, then a pinafore sewing project and finally my crocheted house jacket.  Some of my crafty projects have been a success and others not so much. 

reversible pinafore for messy projects

goofy model

the ugliest jacket in the world!  how grandma-ish; will I ever wear it!?

Now I can carry on with my knitted cardigan (I think it's actually going to be quite pretty and usable), the repainted manrobe and a desk rescue project.  I must keep repeating the mantra "don't start the next project until you finish the current one".

Browne Family Guest Quarters.....Open For Business

It's official: our garage conversion project is finally finished.  We have already had our first weekend of visitors and it is a total success.  When are you going to book in?
Of course I am still fiddling around with the decor.  The manrobe will soon be repainted a vibrant shade of blue and a red desk and sleepover ottoman will also make their way into the setup.
Until then the children are already enjoying the space as their private home theatre.

Remember what it looked like before?

A Perfect Moment

Yesterday as the baby took her afternoon nap, I retreated to my bedroom to read a book.  Gazing out the window, I was overcome with contentment at the scene below.  The girls played happily together practicing on their balance beam using Rex as a stabilizer.  Beyond them, the sea was blue, the sun was shining and a boat sailed past.  It was the perfect moment.