Crafty!

When Jesse and I were in Durban for a few days last week, I bought scraps of fabric to make bunting for Jesse's birthday party. (I've started preparations early this year.) When I arrived home and lay out the fabric to start cutting the little flags out, I noticed how pretty all the rows of fabric looked side by side and I got thinking...

Which, of course, is never a good thing... Haha!

Because then suddenly your plans change.

As it happened, I had bought just enough of the scraps to make one single bed quilt with two matching pillow cases.

It was fate, I tell you.

So last night when Jesse went to bed I fiddled-de-diddled and this is the product of my fiddlings. (Sorry, my BlackBerry's camera really sux lately so the picture quality rivals that of Jan van Riebeek's camera.)

Me thinks Jesse likes it! (She doesn't have a bed yet, but she has some bedding now!)

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You might have noticed that I've changed the look of my blog a few times in the last couple'a days. Yay! I'm SO loving it. Before, I had to pay someone to do it for me, but ever since I discovered shabby blogs, you can expect a whole lot more changes in the future, because they've made it SO easy to do yourself, and get this, it's FREE!
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I was seriously considering taking all the credit for having a new PRETTY blog look, but then their linky appeared at the top left hand side of my blog page I thought better of it. Being the festive season and all. You know - generosity, sharing, caring, warra warra fish paste and all of that.
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Some more artsy fartsy stuff in the absence of news...

This is a portrait sketch that I did for my friends, Dewald and Chantell a few years ago. I've been updating my portfolio and thought I'd share this one with you!

Murals for Lindi's baby room

My friend, Lindi, is having a baby girl sometime in the first week of November. She asked me to paint a few murals for her baby, Annebelle,'s room. Thought I'd brag a bit! hehe!

Tips and Tricks, edition 3

I waited two months before attempting to do hand and footprints of my lil wriggly monster. And with good reason too. Never underestimate the power of a baby's clenched fist. Ever seen a thirty-something trying to uncurl a 2-month-old 4,5kg baby's fingers, while wielding a paintbrush in one hand and a cardboard between her teeth, all the while insisting to the Herculean babe that it would be fun without getting the cardboard speckled with spittle? The thirty-something would surely lose.

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I am still nursing my bruised ego.

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And scrubbing the metallic blue paint from my curtains.

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And that's all I have to say about that.

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Hence my reason for writing this post. If you are, indeed, going to attempt the impossible, allow me to offer a few suggestions that might aid you in acquiring the perfect little hand and footprints you so desire for your scrapbook.

Ready? OK, here we go...

1. Call in all of your friends to help. A team of about six or seven adults should do the trick. In the absence of reliable friends, proceed at your own risk. With caution. And a stash of caffeine at the ready.
2. Set your thermostat or heater on the highest setting possible if you're doing this in winter, as this will allow you to derobe. Blue metallic paint likes fabric, y'all. My curtains will never be the same. Neither will my eiderdown. Or my shoes.
3. Make sure you have the curtains drawn. Especially if your neighbours are peeping toms.
4. Now is about the time to get nekkid. Both you and the wriggly monster.
5. Talk sweetly in a soothing voice, so as to keep a measure of calm.
6. A tot or two of strong caffeine at this point should soothe the nerves.
7. Dip the paintbrush into the paint. Do not be tempted to put too much paint on the brush. It makes for glooby prints. And bigger paint splatters on your scatter cushions.
8. Prise open the fingers of the child. (It might help to wait until she's asleep. I didn't. That's how I know.)
9. QUICK! paint the child's palm.
10. Even QUICKER! remove the drooled-on-cardboard from between your clenched teeth and press against your child's palm.
11. Talk sweetly in a soothing voice, so as to keep a measure of calm.
12. Peel away the cardboard from the child's hand, which is probably already aiming for the tightly-curled-fist-position again, and place the smeared, barely recognisable handprinted painted cardboard on a flat, dry surface. Face up. (If you can do this while still holding your child's hand, this would be FABULOUS! If not, make sure you have a bucket of warm soapy water ready to wipe the blue paint from your child's hand. And hair.)
13. Talk sweetly in a soothing... ah, what the heffalump! Press speed-dial on your cellphone and instruct your husband to abandon whatever he's doing and come to help immediately! Believe me, it's all downhill from there. Once the child knows what's coming, there aint no way on this blue planet you're going to get another handprint, leave alone two footprints. And believe it or not, Dear Hubby won't mind rescuing two partially clad damsels in distress from a paint splattered room. I have it on good authority.

Now if only I can find a way to remove glittery blue paint from green gingham.

Huge Happenings

There is so much going on here right now, and I really don't know if I should tell you about it. Ah, what the heck. Why not? We all know that I'm about as good at keeping things from y'all as I am at making babies.

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OK, so there is another Maybe Baby looking for a home. She is a 4week old little girl. The third child to be removed from one mother. I don't know any details right now. Which is probably better. I am a mix of emotions. Trying my very best not to Hope. But praying like a banshee! The social workers have said that we can come and visit the little girl already. Oh my heart! Only thing is the baby is in Johannesburg (about four hours drive from us here in Dundee). So, Robin and I are thinking of taking a few days off from work and driving up to go and visit.

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Oh my.

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I can't afford to Hope. Please pray with us about this. As always, we would do anything to have this baby. As in ANY. Thing. My friend, Riana, is going to visit the baby today for me.

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Processes in South Africa are so very frustrating and unique. Adoption in this country poses a multitude of huge boulders to clamber over. If at all you are even considered as adoptive parents, the adoption could fall through at any given moment depending on which person happens to be behind the counter at the time the papers are submitted.

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Of course, I'm skipping way ahead already. We are nowhere near that stage yet. First things first. Let's pray. OK? Of course if we are given the opportunity we will grab the baby and run. But it's not that simple in this country.

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So, we could use ALL the prayers we could possibly get!

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Oh my word.

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My heart's pounding.

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And just as well my hubby set up a nifty studio for me, because I spent most of last night glued to the canvass trying to keep busy and not dwell on this Maybe Baby. Here's my progress so far. Nowhere near finished yet. But I'm having so much fun!

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I love the art deco style - especially artists like Tamara de Lempicka. The very thickly made-up women with crisp curls and flamboyant outfits reminiscent of the thirties era. So I'm going to paint a few in that vein. Need to keep busy! And some extra dosh in my pocket wouldn't hurt either! c",) Hey - maybe I could auction them on my blog? Woot woot!

Inspiration

Just look what my awesome gorgeous and sexy hubby did for me! Now tell me how I couldn't be inspired with this waiting for me at home. I'm so excited I can barely stop fidgeting in expectation! Yay! A few blank canvases and a whole SHELF FULL of paints waiting for me! Woot woot! I have my very own art studio!

P.S. I'm so glad I nabbed my hubby before someone else did!

working working *updated*

I was so looking forward to blogging. But I am sooooo busy at work today. I have to finish four pamphlets before this afternoon, advertising camps we have in June, as well as our conference facilities etc. And what with my pc being away for some tweaking, I was unable to work on them for a few days. Now my deadline is looming! yikes!

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busy + coffeeless + dragon pills = grrrr

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Anyway, I thought I'd show you the poster / pamphlets I'm working on. So, you see, I actually do work around here! Sometimes.

This is the cover:-

And the inside of the pamphlet:-

(You should be able to see it bigger if you click on it)

And in other news, my poor hubby is sick. And as you know, when men are sick, they evolve into babies. Please spare a thought or two for him.

Sick + wife on dragon pills + nobody else to commisserate = poor, sick, v unhappy hubby.

Keeping busy

So it's been a few days of creative endeavour and I've been LOVING it. Here is the birthday invitation card I designed for my godson, Caleb:-

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Front cover:

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Inside left:

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Inside right (with blurred details for privacy):

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Back of card:

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Anything to keep my mind off of the two week wait!!!

The Granny Club

Just call me granny. I don't mind. Because see, since Robin's been away, I've taken up a new hobby. Chrissy, you're going to love this. You do the quilting, I'll do the crochet'ing. And together we can make the Rocking Wrinkle Raver Club. I've crochet'd two scarves, well, actually one and a half, since Robin went to Dundee. And today I went to the wool shop and bought bunches of new balls of wool. Enough to keep me out of packing crochet'ing till Robin gets back. Even as I sit here typing I'm wishing I could rather be crochet'ing. With my cat, a cuppa tea and a good movie in the background, of course. It's a package deal, see?

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Clearly my life has been exhilirating since Robin's been away. And you're all wishing he'd arrive back already so I can get my groove back, right? Me too. But at least I'll have a scarf to match every outfit by then!

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Painting pictures

One of the blogs I read everyday is Moments amid Messes. Amberley (the author) and I got chatting just yesterday and I mentioned to her how much I love to paint... And to paint just about anything on just about anything. So I thought I'd share some murals Robin and I painted in the children's rooms at church. Not that I'm bragging or anything. OK, maybe just a little. snigger snigger!

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(In case it's not evident, it was a Noah's Ark mural!)