monday

It is 3:50 in the afternoon and I am drinking my fourth coffee for the day in anticipation of a wildly productive evening with the sewing machine. My amazing mother has made space for me in her painting studio. A very generous space. I am so grateful that she is here to help me out. I achieved very little work over the weekend. I am feeling optimistic however as I found a daycare close-by with spaces available where I will enrol little Z tomorrow. I am really looking forward to having some structure back in our week.

Although I didn't get much work done I did have a really enjoyable weekend. Brisk walks on stormy beaches, vintage markets, home-made dinners, late afternoon naps, tip visits and a few cheeky drinks with a favourite person....

A fabulous weekend really, made all the better by the news of a new arrival who I can't wait to visit and squeeze!

The shop has re-opened and I am already practically sold out! In case you are chasing a custom spot I have two annie dresses available right now, and 3/4 tunic dresses will be made available on Saturday morning.

Hope your week is off to a flying start!

Bec x

Hello friends, new and old! In case you didn't know, miss Sophie of Her library Adventures is hosting a naughty shorts give-away on her blog. Head over there to enter! She has sent a whole lot of lovely new readers my way,  so if you are new here I would like to welcome you to my little corner of blog-land. I am so happy to have you!

I have driven nearly 1500km's in the last two days!! I am pretty happy with myself. A solo adventurer. Although I did have a raucous toddler in the back seat. At one stage she stuck her fingers in her ears and yelled at me to stop singing! Oh no, I thought. It has begun already.

I am exhausted, but I am also completely inspired. I have a notebook that is spilling with ideas from the last week. Great ideas that I can't wait to see in action.

Tomorrow I will be opening the shop with a limited number of custom spots available. Please remember that it will be a first in best dressed scenario... If you have any questions please feel free to shoot me an email.

I am off for an afternoon nap with the small person. I am hoping to stay up late and sew all night...

bec x

the end of one chapter...

Yesterday I found myself with the an itch to sew and I just had to scratch it. I unpacked my machine from the car and my basic supplies and got to work on this little number. I am so happy with how it turned out and the whole process was just what I needed to settle my pre-move nerves.

So now, once again, my belongings are riding the back of a moving van - this time Southbound for Perth. My car is packed to the roof, a tank full of fuel and snacks at the ready. It is a 10 hour drive to Geraldton. We are leaving first thing tomorrow morning. 

Farewell Pannawonica! I have had some pretty amazing experiences out here. Some good and some bad. I have seen mother nature in all her fury. I have met some truly gorgeous people. 

But the truth is, I don't think I am going to miss this place.

The end of one chapter. The start of another.

Bec x

We are enjoying a very lazy Saturday around here. The house has been silent, no tv, no radio... 

We started the day with a lap around town with little Z on her trike. 

Once she was tuckered out I wrapped her up in the folds of my cardigan and a snuggly blanket and we settled into the couch for a cuddly sleep. It brought back all the gorgeous memories of when she was teeny tiny and just slept on my chest all day long.  So lovely. 

Now its time for cupcakes, tea, the latest real living magazine and maybe a nap... 

Taking it easy. Oh yeah.

Bec x

pictures from today...

I am finally making progress with the packing. Its such a funny process. I have been rediscovering lost treasures and trying to decide what we will keep and what I can bear to part with... The car is already packed to the roof and most boxes are taped shut... The removalists will now be here on Tuesday, which means we will hit the road first thing on Wednesday morning and make the ten hour drive to Geraldton. We will spend the night in a hotel and then make our way to Perth and the comfort of my mumma's house on Thursday...

Bec x

wrapping, packing, thinking, stressed....

I have spent the day sending out orders and trying to finish what I can before the move. 

The removalist will be here on Monday and all of a sudden I am freaking out. 

I think that I have tried to do too much all at once and right now, I know I need a nap. 

I will tackle more once my brain has returned... 

All will be well...

today....

I have been working so hard today, and I am ready to put the finishing touches on the first 8 of these pretty little 3/4 sleeve dresses... except I realise they are more 1/2 length sleeves now... hmmm. But that's fine. The good thing is I am gaining confidence in my new skills and  I am finding myself lost in the moment, just stitching away happily.

Tonight I am selling the Kantha quilts on my facebook page. I have pre-market jitters. Wish me luck!!

Bec x 

Good evening bloggy friends! Happy Monday! How was your weekend?

Our weekend was nice. We enjoyed a few adventures with camera in tow and I have a stack of photos to edit and share eventually...

The weather was beautiful so I indulged in a small amount of backyard nudity, making the most of the milder dry season sun. This is something I do not do regularly but I will only have the luxury of a very private backyard for another week or so...

Today was all about play-dough, arranging day-care in Perth, booking a removalist and sorting out my Kantha quilts for tomorrow nights market. If you are planning on joining me for tomorrow nights market it will be commencing at 6pm Western Australian time... If you have any questions please feel free to message me on facebook. You can read a little more about what I have to offer here

Vintage kantha quilts...

I have a memory as a very young girl, walking through a tiny store in Fremantle with my mum. This store was packed to the rafters with incredible treasures. Old and new, from near and far. I remember how enchanted I was as I carefully crept around the small amounts of available floor space. Every now and then reaching to softly touch something that was begging to be mine...

What stole my heart away more than anything else in that magical shop was a stack of hand stitched kantha quilts, made from vintage saris and cottons by craftswoman from India.... Each one randomly yet artfully pieced together and painstakingly hand sewn with thousands and THOUSANDS of teeny tiny stitches. Each one a unique piece of art with a delicious, soft, bumpy texture and decades of history all wrapped up in a blanket! Perfection.

It was then and there that I decided that I would have my own store, one day. Full to the brim with whatever takes my fancy. I imagine that would be the ultimate in self indulgence.
This year I planning on making this dream a reality. Or at least I am going to make a start!

These kantha quilts are the first of many treasures to arrive to live with me at naughty HQ...There is just one problem. They have arrived at an inopportune time as this is a period of transition for me. Next week when we stack up the car we will have room for only essential items. I have considered my options and I have decided that it would be most convenient if I can find new homes for these treasures before I leave...

The RRP for these quilts is around $139.00, but to move them along quickly I am going to offer them at the intro price of $100 including free postage Australia wide. I will sell them via facebook in a market night later in the week!! So keep your eyes on my facebook page as I upload photos and details of what will be available...

if you go down to the woods today...

Photographs by Maddie from etta photography: Styling by Whimsy Petite Styling

A short while ago a gorgeous customer (and now friend) of mine sent through a few pictures from her 'teddy bears picnic' themed family portrait session. I was completely smitten with the sweet vintage styling of the shoot and the fact that she chose to wear one of my creations was just the icing on the cake! 

Tash Kimlin is creative hand behind Whimsy Petite Styling. Miss Tash is available to style shoots with professional photographers if anyone is interested in adding a special touch to their investment {whish is really what a professional shoot is isnt it!}

This is what she told me about the shoot -

we wanted a family shoot that captured our personalities, the things we like and the importance of family in our lives.  I love vintage, op shopping and treasure the many lovely pieces we have had handed down to us from both sides of the family.  From the day I got my first NS dress I knew I would be wearing it in our fmaily shoot...so it all came together beautifully!!  What transpired was a vintage picnic {or teddy bears picnic} in the woods one beautiful late summers afternoon...Sharlize enjoying some of my favourite childhood books, Syrahna playing with The family heir loom teddies and Grandmas knitted doll ....and Byron and I simply enjoying one anothers company and watching the children {even the tea cups and cameras are family heir looms too}.

 Thanks so much for sharing miss Tash. I am so honoured that you chose a naughty shorts dress for such an occasion. Mwah! 

Bec x

rise and shine...

Last year I found myself getting really run down. I was sewing till past midnight, waking three times a night with a restless baby, forgetting to eat breakfast and surviving on coffee and cake... Not really the recipe for healthy living. My clever mum suggested that I started having a healthy smoothie for breakfast every morning. It has been perfect for me because I don't have to think about what to eat and I never skip it!

My smoothie has -
1/2 cup whey protein isolate
1 tablespoon of vital greens
2 tablespoons of yoghurt (with live cultures)
1 tablespoon of Udo's oil Omega 3/6 blend
1 tablespoon of psyllium husk, or lately 1 tablespoon of Coles fibre mix...
1 cup of water and a few pieces of ice...
1 frozen banana

The end result is a delicious, green-looking banana smoothie. Not quite as sweet as one made with ice cream but still totally yummy. And even though its made with water, the oil and yoghurt make it a nice creamy consistency...

And Zavian loves it too....

dresses: handmade by me, shoes: lotta from stockholm, tights: country road

Hello lovely friends. Happy Thursday! I hope you have had a productive and inspiring week. It can be so SO hard to get back into the swing of things after an extra long weekend. Never fear! The weekend is almost here again. 

I have been sewing. I made up the folky print version of the new style dress while I was grading the pattern, and I am happy to tell you that I think I have the fit spot on. I am always nervous when I am rolling out a new style. I have made a little bit of progress on my first orders, but I am working slowly as the details in this style demand my full attention, and you know my mind has been elsewhere of late...

Yesterday I finished of the sweet little kitty dress for a favourite customer of mine. I don't always love a children's novelty print, but this one in particular has stolen my heart. It is the perfect blush pink and the kitty has vibrant blue eyes and soft little details. It is kitsch perfection.

As you can see by the pictures I am getting pretty excited about migrating South to the cooler weather. I broke out the cardigans and stockings for the photos, but I had to rip them off as soon as we were finished because it is still so hot up here.

Thanks so much to Levi for taking a handful of pictures for me.  As much as we are going through a difficult time it's so nice to know that I can call on him to give me a hand when I need it. No nastiness here...

Bec x  

making plans...

Well, I can't actually believe it, but I am in the process of rearranging, sorting and packing my stuff to move back to Perth. At this stage I think that Zavian and I will be loading up the car within the next couple of weeks and making the drive down together. Once we get there we will be living with my mum  until we figure out a more permanent arrangement.

I have a handful of orders that I would like to finish before we are in limbo again. Once again I would love to thank all of my beautiful customers and supporters for such kind words of encouragement. You all make me feel like anything is possible.  

2012 - this has been a crazy year so far. It has not been all roses, but I have a wonderful feeling that this year will prove to be the start of an amazing journey. All shall be well!

I hope you have enjoyed a fun filled Easter long weekend. 

With love, Rebecca