Attempting to quilt

I've been telling Roxy for ages that I am going to make a quilt for her bed, and on the long Easter weekend I finally made a start.

My finished block is a bit wonky - not all the squares line up - and it still needs a good press, but I'm happy with how it turned out. At least it will have a handmade feel. I keep telling myself to embrace the wonky and let go of perfectionism. I wanted to do a heart and the way I designed it means that my finished quilt block measures 16 inches. As far as I know (and I know nothing about quilting) blocks are supposed to measure 12 inches? Not to worry! 

So that's one down and 23 to go! Then I have to figure out backing, binding and lots of other things I know even less about. Ask me in a year if it's finished...
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Inspiration :: living small

I'm loving this great use of otherwise wasted space as book shelves.

Image Source: Apartment Therapy

When I saw this photo it got me thinking about small living spaces and reminded me of the smallest apartment I've ever seen. Take a look at the clip below. Measuring just 12 x 7 feet this Manhattan studio really is tiny. But with a rent of just $700 a month it makes for affordable living in an expensive city.





While the idea of trying to live a more streamlined existence with less 'stuff' appeals to me, I think I'd go insane living somewhere like that. I have seen larger (read: normal) size studio apartments that have been very cleverly designed to maximise space with clever storage solutions, so although small, the spaces don't have a cramped or cluttered feel.

At the other end of the spectrum, I'm I just can't figure out the McMansion trend of recent years which is all about bigger being better: huge characterless 2 story homes built with the maximum allowable footprint, double garages out front and an excessive amount of huge rooms. It's sad to see our suburb losing it's lovely character when the older homes are bulldozed and replaced my these monoliths.

I love our perfectly comfortable and cosy single story 1940's house. After all, the bigger your house the more space there is to keep clean and tidy! Even if I could afford a huge home I honestly don't think I'd want one... unless I had 4 or 5 children of course. We are lucky to have a lot of built in storage as well as a big attic space which I couldn't do without. I do have a lot of 'stuff' but it's well stored, organised and arranged so that our space doesn't look cluttered (I hope!).

Do you like to live in a streamlined way, or is clutter or controlled chaos more the order of the day? What about living space, could you live in the tiny Manhattan studio? Or would you like to have a sprawling home with more rooms than you could use? Do you think bigger = better? Or possibly, like me, just somewhere comfortable that's in between...
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online shop discount

I've been meaning to direct you over to Make It Perfect, where Toni made an Ooshka and an Ooshka Boy wrote a lovely review of them. She also featured some of my other products in her blog post.

Image Source: Make It Perfect

I'm offering Make It Perfect readers a special discount in my online shop for the next week. So if you've been thinking about buying anything from the red thread, now's the time!
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before and after :: TV cabinet

You might remember back in January I bought this fabulous vintage sideboard for a mere $80. I had a definite idea about what I wanted for a TV cabinet and this was exactly what I'd been looking for.

I painted the timber laminate top and sides in gloss white and the door and interior in semi gloss colours. I'm really thrilled with how it turned out. The aqua and orange bottles are mineral water bottles that I painted with the left over paint, and the two vintage stools are roadside finds which I covered using fabric from my stash. I framed vintage fabric in embroidery hoops as a bit of a stop gap until I work out what I'd like to hang on the wall. What do you think?

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My Sweet Prints

Sydney mum Janette Baker is the creative force behind My Sweet Prints. Janette, a graphic designer, started her business after the birth of her son as a creative outlet. Her range of prints are a whole lot of fun for children's rooms.

I'm loving the personalised Puzzle Print and the Sleeptime poster is a sweet twist on the bus scroll concept.

Images: My Sweet Prints

You can see the entire range at the My Sweet Prints website, and also shop online.
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Freedom Giveaway Winners

Thank you everyone for entering the Freedom giveaway. We enjoyed reading all your comments and seeing which pieces inspire you.

And the winners are....

Amelia's winning comment was:
Inspiration is the Old Orchard Mirrored Hallstand: Where have you been? Where are you going? And all the possibilities in between.

And Pepper Stitches inspired us when she said:
I love the multi-purpose stool, the sweeping curves makes me feel the poetic artist perching at my studio desk, creating art to change the world!

Amelia and Pepper I have emailed you both. Congratulations!

Thanks again to everyone who entered.

Now... back to the Easter eggs...

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Enjoy your easter break!

It's a glorious day here in Sydney... I hope its the same where you are. Perfect weather for a few days off.

this is the sweetest little bunny - from Freedom.

Don't forget the fabulous Freedom giveaway ends tonight - don't miss out on your chance to win a $500 or $250 voucher to spend at a Freedom store.

Enjoy your Easter and the chocolate!
x
Lisa

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scenes from the school holidays

The school holidays are in full swing and we just got back from a few days blissful break away from everything.

We had some friends staying with us last week and we spent the morning in our local park. National Park that is. We live less than 15 kms from the heart of Australia's biggest city and we have a national park just 5 minutes drive from our house. You've gotta love that!

On Monday morning at the crack of dawn (or so it seemed) we headed south to Canberra. It was the most gorgeous autumnal day and after a visit to Shop Handmade we had a picnic lunch by the lake. Then we walked (I walked and Roxy ran!) across to Questacon for a few hours of fun.

Then back in the car to drive to Berry where we'd rented a gorgeous little cottage at Berry Orchard for a few nights. It was the most perfect place for chillaxin' which is exactly what I needed.

The next day, after a leisurely walk to a cafe for brunch and a spot of shopping, Roxy and I spent a lazy afternoon laying on the daybed reading in the sun. My sweet girl is the best! I'm so lucky to have such a great little buddy who just loves to hang out with me.

This morning we met up with a friend that I studied design with at uni and hadn't seen for years. It was lovely to renew our friendship, and for our girls (who are almost the same age) to play together.

We headed home via the coast and stopped in at Kiama for a paddle and a play.

We've only been away a few days, and although I did a lot of driving I had the best time relaxing and recharging.

I hope you're having a great week too!

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365 Grateful

This is lovely....



365grateful.com from hailey bartholomew


Found via Meet Me at Mikes.

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cannelle et vanille

Have you taken a peek at the glorious blog cannelle et vanille lately?

All images: cannelle et vanille

Happy Monday - it's going to be a lovely week!
Edit: Oops... it's 11.50pm on Sunday and I just published this ahead of time... happy Sunday night!
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Freedom Giveaway

When Freedom contacted me about having a giveaway here on the red thread my answer was a big 'yes please!'. As you know, I like to keep my blog ad-free and I only write about things that I genuinely love and that are in keeping with my aesthetic. So accepting Freedom's generous giveaway offer didn't require a second thought. I am a frequent visitor and browser at the the big new Freedom store near me, (It doesn't hurt that it is right next to Bunnings either!) and I love the diversity of styles in Freedom's furniture and homewares. I had so much fun going virtual shopping and putting together these montages.

So... the giveaway...

One lucky winner will receive a $500 gift voucher to spend at Freedom, 

with a $250 gift voucher for the runner up. 

All you have to do is go over to the Freedom website, have a browse of the new Autumn Catalogue and choose your favourite item. Then pop back here and comment, answering the following question in 25 words or less: "What item from the new autumn collection inspires you and why?". Easy huh?!

The good news is that you may enter as many times as you like. Each entry must be a separate comment, and must be about a different item from the collection... I'm sure you'll find lots to love, so multiple entries will be easy. The giveaway is open to residents of Australia or New Zealand only. You can read the full terms and conditions here.

Edit: 23 April - the giveaway is now closed.
The giveaway is open now and will close at 11.59pm on Friday 22nd April. The winner will be chosen by the lovely folks at Freedom in conjunction with me. I'll announce the winner here the week commencing 25th April. Don't forget I need to be able to contact you - so your name must link to your blog, or include your email address with your entry.

I'm so excited to be able to offer you the chance to win these awesome prizes. Good luck!

Have a lovely weekend.
x
Lisa

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what are you reading?

I'm looking for a new book or two to read. 

I've recently finished and loved these.

Have you read anything that you'd like to recommend?

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loving :: Carolina Herrera Spring 2011

Gorgeous.

Found via kris atomic. Image Source: style.com and Vogue Collections.
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Shanghai :: Part 2

More photos from our trip to Shanghai. There was so much to see, do and explore. We had such a lovely time.
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Shanghai :: part 1

 
 Images taken by me late last year in the amazing inspiring city of Shanghai.
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Life's A Stitch

Actually it was more than a stitch last week when my Tuesday migraine turned into a Tuesday to Friday migraine which came and went on various days only to be replaced by a very bad headache until Sunday. That equated to a few days of hibernation in a dark bedroom and nothing getting ticked off my to do list. But it reminded me that things get done and deadlines are always met regardless of how much time you have. Or think you have.

So, onto a new week and hopefully some more frequent posting... I met the lovely girls from Life's A Stitch at a market sometime last year, and as I often do I put their business card aside and forgot to blog about them. Sisters Sarah and Julia hand make their fabulous felt play food from their homes in the Blue Mountains. The colours are vibrant and the food is so much fun.

Image Source: Life's A Stitch

How great is that sandwich? And the fish & chips in newspaper! Pop on over to Life's A Stitch get yourself some lovely, yummy, felt goodies. 

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Getting crafty with Ann Wood

Time on my hands is something I don't have at the moment... school holidays are looming and I have a very tight deadline with a lot of design work to be done in a short space of time, orders to fill (including one for over 1,000 products... eeek!), and add to that a migraine this morning and I'm almost, nearly, sort of, keeping my head above water. And then there's this poor neglected blog!

But, if I did have some time to spare I'd be making these sweet papier mache cups by Ann Wood. Ann's tutorial is very detailed and the finished cups are gorgeous. I'm hoping to have a craft day with Roxy during the holidays where we can try our hand at these.

Image Source: Ann Wood
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