a year old already?...

I can't believe that my little Tilly has turned one! Just over a year ago I was waddling around, hugely pregnant and longing to meet my new little bub, and now that baby is cruising the furniture, making us all laugh and even having the occasional tantrum. Do I feel just a bit guilty that I haven't had the time to take as much video or as many photos of Tilly (as the sixth child) as I did of the first couple? Absolutely. But I have been storing up many precious memories of snuggly cuddles, slobbery kisses and drop-dead gorgeous smiles in my mind. Tilly is one very loved little girl.

my little sis...

A huge happy birthday to my wonderful sister, fellow mondocherry-er and best friend, Joy, who turns 30-something today. Unfortunately her hubby has to work late but she is celebrating in style with a big chocolate birthday cake that she cooked herself and games of "What's the time, Mr Wolf?" with her two little children!

Here are 8 things you might not know about Joy ...

1) Joy once received a Principal's award while in Grade 1 for 'sitting nicely on the mat'.

2) She is terrified of mice.

3) Joy has a great sense of style and has the enviable ability of being able to walk into a dress shop and immediately see the one thing that would look best on her.

4) Joy used to change her clothes multiple times a day as a toddler, and collect things from around the house to keep in her 'handbag' - one piece of puzzle, one dolly's shoe, a ribbon etc.

5) She was incredibly messy while we shared a room, but is now almost obsessive (in a good way!) about keeping her house clean and tidy.

6) Joy was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she was 17 and her family has always been amazed and proud of the way in which she deals with her daily injections and blood tests, and how she coped with two difficult pregnancies and has never let her illness interfere with her life.

7) Joy used to earn extra money during Uni holidays by going fruit picking - hard work!

8) Joy is usually the life of a party, but is actually pretty shy.

Hope you had a great day, Joy.... and that you are still speaking to me! Love you lots.

much love...

We always get such a kick from seeing our artwork and other mondocherry products in other people's homes, so you can imagine how wonderful it was to stumble across Anna's gorgeous blog and spot our little bird decorations. Her Much Love blog is full of creative ideas and we just love the way she has used our vintage map bird decorations on her pretty garland. Settle down with a cup of coffee or tea when you follow the link because you will find lots of inspiration!

Our decorations/tags are available on our website as a pack of 7, and also come in butterfly, heart and flower designs. Apart from displaying them on a garland as Anna has done, they also look pretty hanging from branches or twigs in a vase, on a Christmas tree, or simply as a gift tag on a present.

they are keeping me smiling...

Sweet peas are definitely one of my favourite flowers. In a week in which my house seems to be falling apart (broken dishwasher, leaky pool filter, washing machine that only works with a few items in it, horrible smell of damp from recent flooding... agghhh!) this display is my little spot of serenity. Do you have a bunch of flowers at your house that are making you smile today?

making a mess...

One of the things we most enjoy about our business is sitting down with a pile of damaged books and experimenting with new designs and colours. Joy had a very productive and creative day as Melbourne's cool, rainy weather made staying inside a great option. While she made a mess, cutting, stitching and perfecting a new flower design, her children made just as much mess painting. 4 year old Harvey has just entered the fascination with dinosaurs stage so I'm sure this great painting of a t-rex will be the first of many.

Are you planning on making a mess this weekend, or cleaning one up?!

big and little...

It is feeling pretty quiet around here with Mum and Clare gone after our busy weekend at the Melbourne Finders Keepers Markets. We had a crazily busy few daysand so didn't get to spend any time browsing the gorgeous shops and rummaging in favourite op shops.

In the last few weeks I purchased these two vases in local chairty shops. The big one was a bargain at $5 and the little yellow one was just too cute to leave on the shelf at $2. As a reminder of Mum's visit, I have put in the yellow one a couple of the four-leaf clovers she found while popping up the road to buy some milk. Clare and I have always been amazed at her uncanny knack at finding them. She can honestly spot a four-leaf clover in a massive patch of clover within a minute. And while she is definely not superstitiuos, she still loves the thrill of finding something that is considered so rare.

my dining room display...

My dining room is a bit of a thoroughfare. With stairs on one side, the kitchen on another and large french doors opening out onto our deck on a third, the room only has one wall. To give the room a display area, we put up a couple of the IKEA floating shelves. They are wide enough to hold photos and a vase of flowers, or a few side dishes and a bottle of wine, but narrow enough not to take up valuable floor space.

At the moment the items on the shelves have a fairly muted colour scheme (black, white and browns), in contrast with my living room which is currently a riot of colour. Next month it might be different!

We use old scrabble letter to spell out message on the shelves - happy birthdays, welcomes, special congratulations etc.

I love the shape of these scissors. Far too beautiful to keep hidden away in a drawer.

I am always on the lookout for old spools and this is my collection so far. The cicada skin is waiting to go into school for show and tell!

woodland series...

We have been very busy working on new designs to take to the Finders Keepers Markets in Melbourne this coming weekend. All three of us will be there (Sue has flown in from Dubai and I will be travelling down from Brisbane) which always makes for lots of laughs and a few late nights as we chat as much as we sew.

Here is a sneak peak at some new cards and tags in our Woodland series - both beaded fabric and from our vintage range. We love their retro feel and might have to make a few extra for us.

Come and visit us at Shed4, Docklands, on the 9th and 10th October from 10am to 5pm!