More Town Bags

Hi Everyone,

 I hope you have had a lovely weekend.  Hard to believe Easter is so close.  I have had a few projects on the go this week, and have just finished some more Town Bags .  Do you find that every time you  make something, you tend to have your favourites that you want to keep!  I tried that once with a patchwork pincushion.....my mother claimed it!....lol

If I don't get back to blogland this week, I hope everyone has a lovely Easter.    Happy Crafting,  Jenny

Reading Material

Hi everyone, how are you all?
I know,  I've been a bit slack the last couple of weeks with my READING  MATERIAL.   I recently mentioned I was reading Dan Brown 's book, The Lost Symbol.    Given the wet weather we have had, I managed to get it finished, and a book by Jesse Kellerman.

Admittedly I read it (The Lost Symbol), and The Da Vinci Code, because of the media hype and opinions surrounding them, and wanted to find out for myself.    It didn't keep me enthralled or  wanting to cheat by reading the last page before I got to it, but I did finish reading them properly.   I think the books are basically saying  'what if...'  ,   not who is right and who is wrong.  That's my feeling, anyway.    I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think The Lost Symbol would be better as a movie.

The Jesse Kellerman  book was called  Sunstroke ,   and the main character (Gloria) travels from Los Angeles to Mexico.  It is a murder mystery with a twist.   A bit slow, but you do have to finish it!

Jesse Kellerman is the son of Faye  and Jonathan Kellerman,  popular authors of murder/mystery books.  

Anyone who has looked at my list of   Favourite  Authors    ,   I have now linked the names to their websites  (yes,  I have finally learnt how to do the links...yaaay!!) .

You are welcome to email me, or leave a comment about any of the books I mention, or about what you have read recently.    I'm also trying to read books by authors I haven't tried before.

Enjoy your read,   Jenny

Followers....and then there were 10 !

Hi folks,

how has your week been?   Cyclone Ului  'hit' the Mackay/Airlie Beach area during the early hours of this morning, and my thoughts are with them.  There will no doubt be a long period of recovery, but to date, I haven't heard of any loss of life.  We are overcast, and getting drizzle rain, but that is all.

Okay...onto my Followers!  This post is dedicated to them....without them, I wouldn't have continued this far with blogging......some may be regretting it!... lol .  I have even been used as an example of blogging....I enquired if I was the what NOT to do when I heard of this...but with great laughter.  I actually feel quite honoured to have been used as an example, and honoured to have reached the total of TEN Followers!   Thank you greatly.

As a sign of thanks, I am listing below the links to each of my Followers  (in no particular order) for you to visit their blogs and see who my Followers are.

Chris  is involved with the craft magazine  The Chocolate Crow Trader, along with a number of other blogs/sites, and her love of primitive crafts.

My sister Robyn, ( Sugar Pie Prims ) , is listed in The Chocolate Crow Trader, and has some of her craftwork for sale in my shop.  With 10 children, time is limited for her to be able to get into her craft, etc., but with her wonderful husband, she manages to.  When farming commitments permit, her husband  (R) organizes the kids for dishes duty, and bedtime,  so that Robyn can get things finished in time (or close to! lol )  R. also gives a hand when crafts need stuffing, etc.  I don't know what to say about R.....he is one in a million!

Keren is my first Follower from overseas.  I was thrilled to go overseas....and not need a passport  lol !  Keren's site is like opening  a pandora's box  for ideas needing little fuss in relation to craft materials, but managing to look expensive when finished, which make her projects great for gifts and party trimmings.   Keren also does a number of themed parties.  The last one I recall was the Very Hungry Caterpillar.  I'm sure many of you are familiar with the book.

Pam  loves to use a variety of craft techniques, and is also involved with The Chocolate Crow Trader.  Her love of craft includes dolls,  collage, etc.   From her blog, you can also click on the link to her website.

With Carmelina 's blog, you enter a world of colour.  Carmelina has an art journal/diary, in which she does beautiful artwork with paints, charcoal, etc.  It is a real treat when she posts something from her 'vault' of finished art work.  Carmelina also loves to experiment and design crochet patterns......a word of warning....her offer of a cup of tea could leave you a little parched!  :)  lol.  Sorry Carmelina,  I couldn't resist!

Another lover of crocheting, isChars , who also likes to do cross-stitch, knitting, etc.   Chars also likes to experiment with making her own designs.


Do you ever have those days when you just want to scream, or nothing can go wrong, or it needs a silver lining?  Marie has a lovely blog for you to visit.  You rarely leave her site without thinking of something that has happened to you lately for which you are grateful for....even if it is just taking the time to visit her blog.

SALLY is the sanest one of us all....lol !!  Why?......Sally doesn't have a blog.....(not when this post is being done at least!)..lol .   Her visits are still very much appreciated, and emails help too.

Renee  is another blog to visit when you have had 'one of those days'  .  Renee also enjoys crafting, quilting, knitting, etc.   Her photos are also lovely, whether it be of craft, her garden, etc.

Remember, everyone, we all started somewhere in the world of blogging.....whether we took the right road, the wrong road, a shortcut, or even the scenic route, we all get to our destination eventually!  Joolz is a newcomer to blogging, and has posted photos of bears which have been beautifully dressed.  Some of the outfits have been made from old lace and doilies.  Julie is in the process of making her own bears at the moment, which will no doubt be worth the wait!  Good Luck with the blog, Joolz!

I feel honoured to have you all as my Followers, and the friendship that has developed via blogging and emails. I also want to thank you for the blogging tips you have offered along the way.  For that alone, you deserve a very big thank you!

 I look forward to continuing the journey and hopefully meeting more people along the way via blogging, and invite anyone else who may like to come along for the ride to sign on as a Follower.  You don't have to limit yourself to only following one blog.

On that note, I think it is time to sign off on this post, and wish you all 'Happy Crafting' !  All the best,  Jenny

Hi everyone,

I hope your week has been off to a good start.   I have been busy this last few days making String Bags .  This link will take you to pictures of the bag, and to my new blog too!

Yes, believe it or not, but I have also started a second blog.  The new blog  is where I will have more photos of what crafts I have to sell.  I still intend to keep this blog (my first one) to say hi, and let you know what I have been up to, but the new one will just have craft items available for sale.  This new blog is still a 'work in progress' , but you are welcome to check it out now.  This new blog,  http://jennysplaceonline.blogspot.com.au  , will only be added to as I make new crafts.

Happy crafting,  Jenny

Hi everyone,

how is your weekend going?  Ours is still rather wet, and very windy the last couple of days.  I have a sign outside my shop promoting a Wind surfing event coming up in Burrum Heads on the 27th-29th March.

Given the wind we have had recently, I am sure there will be plenty out for a trial run this weekend!  Nooooo,  I  don't wind surf.......only when trying to get the washing of the line on a windy day (ha ha)!

The three day event will be set up at the end of Torbanlea Street in Burrum Heads.  The main events will be held in the afternoons...low tide.  Apparently this is the best time, however there is a possibility of a high tide event....I will try to keep you posted.

Enjoy your weekend,  Jenny

My Little Sewing Machine

Hi folks,

how has your week been?  I have had a number of people asking me about the little sewing machine which features on my blog  under the heading...... ' Comments Welcome '  .

Unfortunately I don't know the history of it.   Sally (one of my Followers), sent me photos of her machine.  The only difference between them, is the timber used for the base!  My machine didn't have a needle, but I have finally perservered, and managed to insert a new one.   As to the threading of the machine, I am a little stumped.  I have got the machine threaded, but seem to be missing something for the tension.  I can manage to get two stitches, but then a tangle!  Does anyone out there have one threaded properly?

I have tried to make a 'button' out of my picture.  I haven't been successful with this yet, but that is something else to try in the world of blogging.

While on the subject of blogging, a very big thank you to all of my Followers for signing on......I hope you haven't regretted it!

Happy crafting,  Jenny

How long is a piece of string?

Hi folks,

are you willing to admit to trying to make a continuous ribbon when peeling fruit or vegetables?  I recall a period when people used to do it with Minties wrappers!  I tend to do this when I am cutting out my material.  When I recently made fabric bootees, I managed to have only one piece of scrap material....

                                                          

    108  INCHES !!! 

Isn't it great when something so trivial can be so much fun

Yes, I was working, and did finish the bootees (ha ha)!

Happy crafting,  Jenny

Here, Chickee Chick (Chicken Scratching)

Hi everyone,

yesterday, I had a lady enquiring about the style of embroidery sometimes referred to as Chicken Scratching.   I am now able to let her know about a site I found, which looks good for anyone wanting to attempt it for the first time.    For the un-initiated,  Chicken Scratching is often done on gingham fabric using white thread to stitch on the coloured squares of gingham.  

The site is called needlepointers.com  .    This site also covers a variety of crafts involving threads, and also has a newsletter you can sign up for.   When the site comes up on your screen,  type Chicken Scratching, or whatever you want to look at into the Search bar, and a number of links will come up.     To look  for basic Chicken Scratch stitches , I liked this link the best.   If you want a   couple of projects , this link will show you something to practice on.

I hope this is useful to others.  Happy Crafting,   Jenny

Tsunami ? part 2

Hi everyone,

thank you for the comments and emails enquiring how I was coping after the tsunami alert.  We were fortunate not to get any damage from it,  but we are still getting quite a lot of rain and wind.   A lot of Queensland is currently affected by flood at the moment, particularly areas out West.  It is amazing some of the news footage we are getting of these areas, as they have been drought stricken for many,  many years.  I wouldn't be surprised if there are toddlers who haven't experienced rain before Boxing Day 2009!   

Burrum Heads is approximatey 20 odd kilometres from Hervey Bay.  If you  use Google, click on Maps, and type Burrum Heads into the search box, it may put it in perspective for you.  If you 'pan out' to the right along the coastline, the towns of Eli Waters through to Torquay  etc., are referred to as Hervey Bay.  There are some low points on the road between Burrum Heads and Hervey Bay, but we haven't been cut off this time. 

I will sign off for now, and answer your emails ASAP.    Happy Crafting,   Jenny

Tsunami ?

Hi everyone,

how has your weekend been?  We had a tsunami alert along our coast on Sunday.  It initiated from the earthquake in Chile.  The news footage from Chile is quite hard to fathom, so recent after Haiti.     Fortunately for us, there wasn't any damage or large waves here.  It was also full moon here Saturday night, which is usually accompanied by king tides.  These tides cause the problems of beach erosion, as the high tide line is quite extreme in height.

In relation to where I am,  the photos from the stairs looking to the left of them are looking down the Burrum River.  There are actually some houses on the coastline on the horizon of the photo.  The high tide photos I have here, were taken about 8.30am, and the low tide photos were taken at lunchtime.

The two photos below are looking at the mouth of the river.  If you follow the shoreline opposite around the bend, you will be at Woodgate.  This township/village is now referred to as Woodgate Beach.

I know dates can be a nuisance on photos, but I left them on because of the tsunami alert. 

Believe it or not, but it is raining here again.  Fortunately no storm damage or wind behind it, just lovely, set in, good book reading rain.  I hope you have a lovely week what ever the weather.  Happy crafting,  Jenny