LILAC HOME & GARDEN

 

I'm getting scared now.... only two weeks till I open LILAC HOME AND GARDEN, on the 12th of May (Mothers Day) . I've been so busy making sure all my other work is up to date, and organising all the behind the scenes stuff for LILAC HOME & GARDEN. Now it's time to knuckle down and make some goodies for you all. I hope I've got enough time to get plenty done. I have so many ideas running around in my head.... hmmm where to start! Bunting, potted plants, furniture restoration, hankie boxes, cushions.....crochet.....painted glass..
candles...

 

Stay tuned, my next post will be about what I have for sale and what Barbara, Chris, Val and H will be selling as well. I should have my Logo and business cards soon, so will be showing them to you too.

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

(PS) In case you were wondering, I've finished my de-cluttering task for April

(the filing system).

Don't know if I will get much more de-cluttering done over the next few months, though I will be trying to finish the quilt for our bed, that I started four or five years ago!

 

Gotta run now!

xo

 

Sauce Weekend 9/3/2013

I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but every year on the Labour Day long weekend in March, some of our friends from Melbourne come to visit and we have a great weekend making passata sauce and instant pasta sauce. 

This year we had the most successfully sauce weekend to date!

We are getting the process down to a fine art, and the tomato's from Mary were the most beautiful Roma's. In previous years the tomato crops suffered from rain/storm damage so we didn't have good tomato's to work with.  This year they were perfect!

First batch of passata sauce ready to be cooked.

 



 

 



The  cutting begins.

 

 

 

 





 

 



This is how we cook our instant pasta sauce.

We're working on a better cooker for next year. 

 

 

The Girls!

The hardest workers on the weekend of course! 

Taking a well deserved dip, after a long hot day.

 

 

 The other Girls (Ginger and Cider)

 Doing Life Guard duty!
 

 

We are always sad to see our dear friends from Melbourne head home after our sauce weekend. We work and play hard, its a fantastic weekend that we very much look forward to each year.

(PS) I've decider my de-cluttering project for April is going to be the office filing system. I started changing over to a computerised system a while back and its been neglected lately so.... time to fix it up and finish it off!

(PPS) I'm not sure if this would be considered as a de-cluttering project to some, but to me it is.... so be it! :-)

Bye for now

xo

 

 

 



 



 









DE-CLUTTERING PROJECT

CROCHET GRANNY SQUARE BLANKET...FINISHED!

 

 

Finally Its done!

And after all this time of occasionally dragging it out of my sewing room to do a bit more, and each time I finished a square, throwing it on top of the pile with the other squares I'd already finished, I was thinking, this is going to be a nice sized throw rug! Hmmmm well as you can see it actually turned out to be more like a small knee rug....oh well, at least its finished, and I do love how it turned out and the colours are lovely. :-)
 

 

But now should I put it here?

 

 

Or here?

 

So... now to decide what my de-cluttering project for April is going to be!

I have to go now so I'll get back to you with that.

 

Bye for now

xo

 

 

 



Furniture Restoration etc.

 

LATEST PIECE OF FURNITURE RESTORED BY H AND MYSELF!

 

Sorry I've taken so long to get back on line. I've had a really busy few months getting ready for our sauce weekend, and with the closing down of STUDIO89, where I was selling my restored furniture and other bits and pieces from.I am now thinking on how to go about selling my goodies and am working on a few ideas I've had. So I'll let you know when I get myself organised.The dressing table pictured above will be one of the items for sale, along with other pieces I'm working on, plus home made candles, some china, etc. etc.
As for my de-cluttering task for February, I could tell you I finished it in February but haven't had a chance to post my report yet... but I cant tell a lie. I've decided to make it my task for March.. easy fixed, seeing as I only have to answer to myself :-) And myself said " No problem, it's only a month later than you planned and you've had other much more important things happening...don't be so hard on yourself." So now I feel much better, since the pressure is off. :-)

I'll be back soon.

xo

Unfinished Projects

OK, I've decided on my de-cluttering assignment for February!

My sewing room has several unfinished projects in it. I had already decided that one of my must dos for this year is to finish a quilt for our bed. A quilt that I started five or six years ago and every year since then I've been determined to finish it but haven't managed to :-/. So it's on my to do list this June/July. As usual, when I start on a project (or should I say get close to finishing a project) things get out of control....because of course once the quilt is finished the rest of the bedroom won't suit it so off I'll go on another tangent....I'll have to change the whole bedroom to suit hahaha.

 

 

 

This month I am going to finish a crocheted blanket I started about four or five years ago, I pick it up every now and then and do a few squares, but its time to finish it off!

Wish me luck!

See ya xo

Lounge and Dining area De-Cluttered

 



Only just made it!

Feels really good to complete the china de-cluttering on time.....just scraped in at 9 PM on 31st January.

This is where my china collecting began!

Can you spot the fault in this picture?

My Dad gave this beautiful Royal Winton breakfast set to my Mum on their engagement. After I was married and we built our first new home, they gifted it to me.
After a few years I noticed that the milk jug has a rose on the handle instead of

the tigerlilly flower that is on the tea pot and tea cup handles! "OMG" I thought! Someone else is out there with a breakfast set with the tigerlilly flower on the milk jug and a rose on the other pieces! So my search began to find a milk jug with the tigerlilly flower.I eventually found one in my travels.....can't remember where, but I do remember, my hand went out all by itself and picked it up (anyone who is a collector will know that feeling).My daughter J said..." But you can't change it over, you will spoil the history". Hmmm what to do what to do!  Look close on the tenth picture down, you will see what I've done :-)

LOUNGE DONE!

After



Before



I  know what you're thinking...

not much changed here!

Hmm... actually there is more china in the AFTER photo!

 

 

 

 

 

After

Before

OK, not much different...



Not even going to show the Before for this one!

 

I give up...only showing the AFTERS for the lounge from now on!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DINING AREA DONE!

Only AFTERS here too...not really sure if I'm de-cluttering or re-cluttering!
But at the least, everything is dusted and rearranged.

 



 

 

Once again, I know what you're thinking,I know there's still a LOT of china, but I did take out at least twenty pieces. For me, that's a huge achievement!(Love my china).Some of the pieces were damaged so I will make them into something useful, and sell the other pieces.......That is unless I look at them later and decide I can't part with them!

Gotta go now and work out what I'm going to de-clutter in February :-)

see ya xo