Vision Board...FUN!

A couple of months ago I did a fantastic vision board workshop with Kaleidoscope Events It was a wonderful afternoon of sitting around with a bunch of great girls in beautiful surrounds

having some champas and nibbles.

I went through magazines and found images, quotes and words that meant something to me, or that I hoped and dreamed to have oneday.

I've put my vision board right next to my sewing machine where I spend most of my time and I find myself looking at it alot, it truly does inspire me!

I think doing a vision board with a group of friends, or even just like minded people really helps get the creative juices flowing, so many things on my board are of images that some of the other girls passed over the table to me because they thought of me when they saw it.

If your on the Sunshine Coast Kaleidoscope is planning another vision board workshop in January, click here to find out more details.

I think everyone should have one, it makes a huge difference to your life if you can see the big picture and see your ideas right there in front of you all the time.

to market to market

Finally, I did my first proper market and I loved it!

I had so much fun on the day and all my hardwork paid off. The next Kaleidoscope market is on the 2nd December and I can't wait!

I must apologise

Firstly because my blog is so boring at the moment.
Secondly because I'm just too busy to put anything of value on here.

Little Star Design has gone crazy, I've got orders coming left right and centre (not that I'm complaining!) and I'm sewing around 10 hours a day at the moment and feel guilty when I'm not. Like right now I 'should' be sewing but instead here I am on the computer and thinking of going to bed instead of heading to the sewing room.

This Thursday is the Kaleidoscope Markets, cannot wait!

names names names

I haven't forgotten you dear blog, I know it's been a long time, I've just been busy.

Little Star is going crazy with cushions and santa sacks and getting ready for the fabulous Kaleidoscope Markets that I haven't had a chance to update in a while.

I currently have 74 different items that need sewing and to be honest, that is a little overwhelming! This isn't even a quarter of them (and yes I know riley isn't spelt like that!)

Here are a few orders that have gone out lately.

Ottobre "one fine day" patchwork ruffle skirt 1/2009

Massive twirlability here!

A few weeks ago Zoe informed me that I never made her anything anymore and that I only make things for other people, well didn't that make me feel guilty! I gave her my Ottobre mags to told her to choose something. Of course she chose the most difficult and time consuming thing out of all the magazines that I have! The One Fine Day patchwork ruffle skirt from Issue 1/2009.


After getting my head around the pattern, which took quite a while I must say (#1 I'm not good at patterns & #2 this is pretty complicated) I got started, and really it wasn't that hard. Used up lots of cotton and brain space, but gosh it was worth it!


And I got it finished just in time for her 6th birthday party!

I changed the pattern a little bit by using commercial binding and I added a panel to the top of the skirt as it was a little too short for her.

What do you think?

I would have loved a skirt like this when I was six!

Little Star World = busy times

Things have been rather hectic around here lately, lots and lots of sewing has been going on with not much blogging. I've got a few spare minutes before the children are home from school and the afternoon/nightime craziness begins.

I'm getting extremely excited about the launch of the Kaleidoscope Markets on the 4th November at the Kawana Community Centre here on the Sunshine Coast, I have held off doing any other market as I'm pretty sure these ones will be the best! Actually I know they will be, my good friend Fi is doing a wonderful job of making sure there are lots of wonderful stall holders for both kids & mums & some fantastic activities to keep the little ones busy. I'm busy getting my stock organised and have come up with a great design for my stall, trying to think outside the square and do something a little different!

Today I was able to finish off a few orders, a very cute Magoo monkey for a gorgeous little boy named Xavier, I love knowing that he will have his Magoo for years and maybe he might end up being his favourite snuggle for years to come.

Monkey time around here

Lots has been going on in Little Star world, lots of monkeys!

After posting the Melly & Me Magoo a few weeks ago on my Facebook page, I received orders for 12 yes 12! Magoo's. I couldn't believe it, I never had any intention of selling them, but it seems everyone fell in love. So all I have really been doing is sewing Magoo's with a few cushions and bags thrown in for good measure.

Hanging about with Magoo

Today I decided I needed to sew for fun, I stayed in my pj's and hardly left the sewing room, luckily Mr Sam decided to have a massive sleep so I got to finish Magoo!


Now this pattern was fantastic to make and so easy to follow, lucky for me because Jack & Zoe saw him and have declared they want one too!

The pattern was designed by Melly & Me and I bought it from a wonderful shop called Fabric Patch that has all the Melly & Me patterns in stock and a whole lot more, not to mention lots of beautiful fabrics.

I couldn't resist putting my Little Star label on his pants :)

Here is my little monkey loving his new Magoo!

Getting ready for the markets

Yesterday I decided to make a banner for when I go to the markets, I'm so pleased how it turned out, it's bright and cheery and showcases some of the fabrics I use on my cushions.
Can't wait to do the markets now so I can use it! For now it looks cute hanging in my sewing room :)

gifts

Sometimes I think there is nothing nicer than receiving a gift wrapped in simple brown paper, like the saying 'it's whats on the inside that counts'.

Inside this little brown paper parcel was a gift for a very special 14 year old, make that two very special 14 year olds!

A journal each covered in the most delicious fabrics. Somewhere to write all their hopes & dreams.

Happy Birthday Maddi & Tayla, love you lots xo

Website - done!

It's about time I gave my poor neglected blog some love, I've been so busy sewing and building my website, and making some cute birthday gifts that I haven't been able to get in here.

So finally my website has been launched, and I'm proud to say I built it all by myself, with the help of a fantastic dreamweaver tutorial that you can find here if you would like to build your own too...it was fun and easy in a frustrating kinda way :)

Add it to your favourites, it will change all the time as my product list grows and evolves.

Check it out! http://www.littlestardesign.com.au/

Art & Craft Day

I have just purchased a fantastic book online with all kinds of fun art & crafts to do with the kids with things you already have laying around the house.

It's called Little Kid Crafts for All Seasons and it looks great, check it out for yourself.

Will report back with our creations :)

Redecorating Day

Today we decided to recover our tired old chairs, we bought these chairs for $20 each about 4 years ago at a sale and the cushions have definitely seen better days, plus I had always hated the fabric that was on them anyway, boring, boring, boring.

All you need is a square of fabric big enough to wrap over each edge, in our case we needed 60cm square (2.5m total for 8 chairs), a staple gun, a drill to remove chair pad from chair frame and in my case a handy husband!

I love the fabric, and I really love how inexpensive it was. $2.52 per chair!

$20.20 for 8 chairs...imagine how much it would cost for a professional to do it.

the finished product.

Ninja Fly!

Ninja fly! That's what Jack has called himself :) He has a bug ball on this afternoon at school to celebrate the end of term. The costume was very easy to make once we decided what he was going to go as, first he wanted to be a scorpian, then a spider, then a crab, and luckily we ended up a fly cause that was the easiest.

We already had the suit, it's a skeleton costume from halloween that I have turned inside out. I bought some shiny fabric from Spotlight, made a little pillow and have sewn some little ridges across the front. The wings were a little girly, bright yellow with sparkles so I spray painted them black, put on some knee, elbow and wrist pads and some big sunglasses and there you have it! Easy peasy.

One happy boy :)

Nanny has been knitting!

My Mum is a great great knitter, I wish some of it had rubbed off on me, but for some reason I just can't get the hang of it, I think because I have the inability to read a pattern! I can crochet but only if I invent something myself, same as sewing, I cannot for the life of me read a pattern!

Mum knitted this gorgeous beanie for me (although I will never look that gorgeous in it!), this picture has come from here

I just love the twoandsix blog so many beautiful things, do yourself a favour and check it out.
I'm going to crochet myself this beautiful wrap next.

Two new cushions

this cushion was ordered through my Made It store for obviously a little boy named Daniel! I really love how the different combinations of reds & whites look on the denim. It's one of my favourites and is a best seller.

this one was made with pink & white polka dots and Art Gallery 'girly girl' fabric. So so pretty.

It matches this bunting that is also in Emma's room. Emma's Mum is a beautiful lady who looks after my very lucky little boy Sam at daycare.

its all about bags

This bag was ordered through my facebook shop, by a lovely lady who loves bags! She gave me a list of fabrics that she loved and left me to come up with how to use them, this is the finished product. The three flowers were made from berry ta dot, gothic flower and candy ta dot, I love how they all went so nicely together.

I used the gothic flower for the inside flap and front pockets and candy ta dot for the inside pockets. I can't get enough of gothic flower, I will cry when they decide not to print it anymore.

A bag for me

this was meant to be for my store, but once it was made up I fell in love, this fabric is so beautiful that I couldn't help myself. I'm loving making these messenger bags, the pattern I designed is super quick and easy to make up and I have so many ideas you will be seeing alot of them.

I'd love to use this fabric and make the bag out of brown cord instead of denim, it would look awesome! Now to find the perfect brown cord, it will have to match the colour perfectly.

In a few days I will be able to post a custom order that was sent off last week, the lucky recipient doesn't want to see it before it arrives, so I better not put it here just incase she reads my blog!

a LIST FOR MUM

My Mum is heading off on holidays for a couple of months this week, I'm getting together a list of knitting projects to keep her busy. I've stumbled across this beautiful blog she does the most stunning knitting I've ever seen.

I'd love this scarf, you can find the pattern here

and this one

and this one

Mum is going to be busy!

An Apple A Day

On Saturday I decided to spend the day sewing something different, I've had so many orders since opening my facebook store that I just needed a change, on Friday I had a stack of beautiful fabrics arrive from Above All Fabric and I was dying to use some of it, this is what I come up with, you can find it here in my facebook store or here in my made it store..


I have so much fun making these bags that I'm going to do a whole range of them eventually.

Mothers Day Fun

Jack, Zoe & I spent the afternoon doing a canvas for our wall. They have been asking for ages for me to paint with them and I thought it would be a lovely way to spend Mothers Day.

They both decided they wanted to draw our home and family so that's what they did! The only thing I did were the trees, the rest is their master piece :)

Now we just have to get Dad to hang it on the wall for us, they are so proud of their work.

And this is the knitting bag I made my Mum.

Happy Mothers Day Mum