anita meade - simple.creative.life

My Creative Space - a longstanding UFO finally finished.

About four years ago (yes I said four!) I started to make this Christmas tree skirt. It was intended to be a "practice project" that would be for the kids Christmas tree in the rumpus room (We have two trees - see this post from last year for an explanation).  Anyway, life interfered and every Christmas since then I have sworn that I would finish it. Yesterday I finally dragged it out and finished it off. After all this time I'm not sure I even like it any more! My fabric choices would be very different now, but it's complete, it's festive and the kids like it.

Corey is always enthusiastic about whatever my latest project is. Here he is checking it out. He thought the name "Christmas tree skirt" was quite hilarious! Fancy a tree wearing a skirt! lol!

 

I have been making more items for my new Etsy Christmas store "The Making Merry Shop".

Here are some of the latest additions:

These are gift tags. I'm putting them together in a pack of five.

 

 

And these cards, in a set of four, will be added to the store today too.

 

 

Of course, my creative space wouldn't be complete without a knitting or crochet project to take along to swimming lessons or school pick up or basketball training etc. At the moment its another dishcloth in lovely green using my favourite waffle pattern.

I don't think I've shown you this little basket of homemade goodies which I recently gave to my friend Kellie who'd just given birth to her third precious daughter Mataya. It contained two crocheted beanies, a little pair of booties a little tree ornament (or door handle decoration after Christmas) with an "M" on the front and "2009" on the back, and a pretty pink fleece blanket.

I have so many projects buzzing around in my mind at the  moment that I don't know where to start. I think I need to get better at keeping a notebook of my creative ideas. Some of them fly out of my mind before I can write them down.

And there's always more inspiration to be found over at Kirsty's blog Kootoyoo. Pop over there and check out lots more creative spaces.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great Thursday. Love Anita. xxx

My Creative Space

Ta-dah!

Excuse the blurry pic (taken by my seven year old!), but here I am with my completed granny square blanket. Lots of lying around on the couch recovering from my op has given me the chance to finish it off this week. Here are a couple of closer photos:

When I got out of bed this morning I found Jayden lying in the beanbag in the rumpus room watching TV  with this blanket over him. That brought a smile to my face - it is keeping my boys warm and cosy already :)

I'm also in the process of making a gorgeous bag (from a pattern by Anni Downs). Here are a couple of craft room pics so you can see it in progress. The appliqued patch (with the flower basket) is going to be the front pocket on the bag. The main fabric is red - my favourite.

 

It's wet and wintery here in Melbourne today. I'm staying tucked up at home playing with my crafty stuff (and avoiding my ironing!) I feel sorry for the teachers from Jayden's school who are taking two busloads of kids to Healesville Sanctuary for an excursion today. What rotten weather for a day out! On the up-side, at least the rain is falling steadily over Melbourne's water catchments. Yay! That's always something to celebrate :)

Thanks for visiting today. Hope your Thursday is a good one.  Love Anita. xxx

PS.  For more creative spaces, head over to Kirsty's blog Kootoyoo. You'll be glad you did!
 
 

For lovely Laura

    Just a quick post to show you the card I made for my lovely sister-in-law Laura who celebrated her birthday yesterday. We had a fun evening with her and her family last night. Happy Birthday Laura.....hope you enjoyed your day. We love you. Mwah!

 

    The light wasn't great for taking this photo unfortunately, but I think you get the idea. Laura loves all things soft and pink and white and floral. This new stamp set called Great Friend was perfect for her. The butterfly and sentiment have both been stamped in pigment ink, then embossed with 'heat'n'stick powder' and Dazzling Diamonds glitter. Very pretty I think!

    I have also been wanting to post a pic of the ripple scarf I crocheted for her.....now that she has it I can! It is made with cotton yarn and will be perfect for those nippy spring mornings coming up as it is not too heavy.

 

I'll be back tomorrow with my Making Merry Monday post so be sure to stop by.

Hope your weekend has been fun. Love Anita. xxx

My creative space.

Joining in with the girls who post their creative spaces on their blogs every Thursday. You can check them out via the links at Kirsty's wonderful blog "Kootoyoo". 

Here's my creative space this week....on my coffee table. More luscious cotton dishcloths. I have given away stacks of these as gifts lately and the recipients have all been really pleased. I know a couple of dishcloths might not sound like an exciting gift, but they really are so lovely. Cleaning up just doesn't seem such a chore when you are using a lovingly handmade dishcloth!

 

Somehow sitting on the couch watching evening TV doesn't seem like such a waste of time when you have some knitting or crocheting to do. I can generally whip up one dishcloth in an evening. Looking forward to one of our favourite TV shows "The Amazing Race" tonight. Is anyone else out there seriously into this show? Or is it just me and my lovely hubby? This season is being shown at 7.30pm, so the kids are up to enjoy it this time around too. What shows are you addicted to? I'd love to know.....

Thanks for stopping by today. Love Anita. xxx

A new hobby for my boys....

Here's what they were up to while I was cooking dinner the other night......

 

Jayden playing his DS - not so unusual. Corey absorbed in his new hobby - knitting - now that is something to behold. I had an insane moment last weekend and offered to teach him to knit. I thought it would keep him occupied and therefore I could knit in peace. But no! Every 45 seconds I hear "MUM! I need help, I've got a hole" or "my stitches fell off the hook" or "I need you to start off the row" or just "I think there is something wrong".........bless him! I am proud of how he has taken to it, and he really is making good progress.  Not sure if his "scarf" will ever be long enough to wear, but he's having fun along the way. Just look at that sweet, contented face......

 

Jayden had a go too, but his concentration span is no longer than a commercial break in the Friday night football telecast! Maybe he'll pick it up again some time.....when his DS battery goes flat :)

Crocheting like a crazy woman.

 Well, the love affair with crochet continues.....I can't get enough of it! To paraphrase my dear friend Joylene, crochet and knitting are like "meditation with sticks and wool"! I wholeheartedly agree. Here's what I've been making recently......

       

       

       

  

Busy stuff hey?! I've enjoyed every minute of it! What better way to pass the time when the weather is cold and wet, and you just want to curl up on the couch under your quilt? The hats are all for sale in my little Madeit shop, Anita Meade Creations. The granny square rug is just for me and will be a work in progress for a while. I plan to pick it up between other projects and it will come together slowly. I've made about 36 squares so far. I just love those rich colours, and the black border makes them stand out beautifully. I'm sure I will post more photos of my progress as I go along.

    I'm off to watch the kids at their school swimming lessons now, so I'll sign off. Thanks for stopping by to see what I've been creating. Happy Friday! Love Anita. xxx

 

Some cards from the weekend....

Here's a couple of cards I made for birthdays last weekend.

The first one was for a little girls 6th birthday party that Corey went to. The theme of the party was fairies and elves, but I thought a butterfly might be equally appealing. As you might guess, I used the left over negative shape from my die cut butterflies seen in a recent post. Waste not, want not! I think it's so pretty.  I love making girly cards, probably because very few of my scrapbook pages are even remotely girly! The story of my life.....(lol!)

 

I also made this pretty crocheted flower and button brooch for the birthday girl. I think I will have to make one for me too.....or maybe several in lots of pretty colours.....yep, just another project to add to the list!

The second card is for a very special 10 year old. Bet you can't guess who! I tried to get a grungy, boyish feel to this card. The grey "netting" behind the letters was created with my fabulous new Cuttlebug. Very handy.......

 

In other crafty news, I have been "granny-squaring" like a mad woman. How addictive is crochet?!! So calming to the soul! I have had a flare-up of the flu (which I thought was long gone) and have been feeling pretty lousy the last couple of days, so I have indulged in little more than sitting and crocheting granny squares. That and having long, foggy sleeps.  I will show you some photos of my lovely crocheted squares soon, I promise. (Some of you may not find that promise all that exciting. Others will be waiting with baited breath.....my kindred spirits)

Off to bed now......although Danny also has the flu, and has been snoring like a chainsaw, so I'm not sure how much sleep I'll get. Wish me luck!

                                   Love Anita. xxx

New items in my little Madeit shop...

Hi everyone,

Remember these luscious discloths I've been knitting?

     

       

      

      

Just wanted to let you know I've listed three sets over in my little Madeit shop. Once you've used a pure cotton handknitted dishcloth it is hard to go back. It makes cleaning up those daily messes just a little more pleasant :) They also make wonderful washcloths in the bathroom - I find the waffle texture great for cleaning dirt off little boys knees! They're lovely and thick, and best of all, because they are 100% cotton, they can be thrown in the washer and drier.

I've also put some of my handmade cards ON SALE, and I will be listing some more items over the next week or so, so check back regularly to see what little gems I have on offer.

Thanks for stopping by today. Have a great Tuesday!

                            Love Anita. xxx

Making stuff from yarn....

    I guess it is no secret that I have been spending a lot of time with my crochet hook, knitting needles and various types of yarn lately. Thought you might like to have a look at some of the things I've been making.

This beanie is for my own beautiful boy Jayden. He came to the wool shop and chose this wool himself.

These beanies are for the kids of one of my very special friends. Will be dropping them off this week some time....sshhhhh!

 

Been making a few baby hats. Not sure who will receive these ones....handy to have on standby I guess......or I may put them in my Madeit shop.

 

While I was on the white theme I whipped up this headband. It, too may end up in my Madeit shop, or as a gift for someone. My hair is just not thick enough to pull this sort of thing off. It is gorgeous though. I love the idea of pretty, handmade headbands.

 

  

I also have a new obsession - hand-knitted cotton dishcloths. Although they are a tad too lovely to wipe up spilled weetbix off the table! lol! I just love their colour and texture. They can be used as washcloths in the bath too. And because they're cotton they can go in the washing machine and drier. I gave some of these to my Mum as a thankyou gift for having the boys last week. She is probably the only person I know who would love a dishcloth as a gift. Yep, she's a cleaning machine!

 

 

So that's what I've been making. I also knitted a beanie for my dad in a nice chunky rib pattern, but I forgot to photograph it before I gave it to him. Apparently it is great for those frosty mornings in Myrtleford at this time of year.

Jayden and Corey have just come back from a week up at Myrtleford. They had an absolute ball! Lots of going "up the bush" to get firewood. They also went fishing for the first time (didn't catch anything of course - my Dad has this uncanny ability to repel fish!)  It was lovely to have a break without the kids, but I sure am glad to have them home now. It is good for all of us to have a break from time to time.

 

While the kids were away Dan and I had a cosy, romantic weekend away down on the Mornington Peninsula at Red Hill. We stayed at this gorgeous bed and breakfast. We had a lovely time....of course the weather was pretty lousy, but we didn't mind just staying in and relaxing, knitting (me), playing the DS (Danny) and watching the footy and car racing on TV (both of us!). It was so wonderful to just be together....to reconnect and recharge our relationship. It is so very important to do in a marriage - even though I consider ours to be rock solid, taking the time to nurture it is always a worthwhile investment. We have reaffirmed that we are on the same page in our journey through life together. Our friendship and our love are stronger than ever.

 

Well that's what has been happening in my world. I'd love to hear what's been happening in your neck of the woods. Hope you are feeling happy and well today. Come and visit again soon.

 

                                Love Anita. xxx

 

 

 

Non-paper inspiration.

    Just wanted to stop in this morning and let you know that I haven't forgotten about you! As I mentioned in my last post we have dealing with our fair share of winter sickness in this household. It just keeps going around and around.....just when I think we're coming out of it, one of us takes a dive again. It's nothing serious....just your garden-variety winter ills, but it is challenging nonetheless. The kids are officially on school holidays. Hopefully they will be well enough to enjoy them soon.

     Due to the lack of productivity around here I have only a couple of things to show you today - I finished these a couple of weeks ago, before the sickness descended on our household! More baby stuff.....I think the white and pink hat might need a flower attached too. What do you think?

       

     

    

    As I haven't been doing much actual crafting, I thought I'd share some lovely blogs I've recently discovered. I am seriously entrenched in my fabric and yarn obsession at the moment, and these blogs are fuelling that obsession. I am also enjoying reading about simplifying our lifestyle, and toying with the idea of rejuvenating our garden this spring. All in all, these are homely, nesting-type days filled with comfort food, keeping warm and dry, and nurturing my family and home.

    Here are a few if my favourites at the moment, for your Sunday reading pleasure:

Down to Earth  - this delightful blog by Aussie Rhonda Hetzel is about simple living, home-keeping and lots of other  loveliness relevant to the challenging times we are facing at the moment. I have found lots of pearls of wisdom here.

My Sewing Serenity -  A pretty blog about sewing, gardening and other homely type things by US blogger Cathleen. This blog is such a visual treat to visit.

Lucy Bowler - I linked to Lucy's blog last week when I handed out a blog award. Just wanted to remind you to visit her......you'll be glad you did. Lots of beautiful stuff and inspiration here.

Feeling Stitchy - An embroidery blog by various artists. Some of the stuff here is downright bizarre but there is lots of inspiring pieces to see as well.

dear fii - Aussie blog full of crafty, stitchy goodness.

Attic24 - Lots of crochet inspiration and information to be discovered here. Bright, beautiful colours in her work.

Amazing Mae by Tracie. Fabric and sewing amongst lots of other beautiful creative stuff.

    There are oodles more that are occupying my time right now, but I will save some for another day......I don't want to overload you!

     Oh papercrafting mojo! Where have you gone? I am hoping you will come and visit again soon (at least before my next Making Merry Monday post tomorrow). But isn't it nice to be inspired by other crafts? It really keeps the creative passion flowing......and that is such an important part of my life. Hope you enjoy browsing these blogs. Have a wonderful Sunday. Love Anita. xxx