A Very Cagey Project

A while ago we drove to a bird fair - James wanted a friend for Kiwi - the drive took us all the way to New Orleans...there and back in one day without stopping for any real fun!!! 

Mr Skwarkers came home with us -
he's a Love Bird - still a baby, but passed the baby feeding stage (thank you)

We introduced him to Kiwi and eventually put them together in the same cage. Kiwi was friendly, but not being a Love Bird was not at all interested in the lovely bit, he spends most waking moments avoiding Mr Skwarkers.  While Mr Skwarkers spends most of his day wanting to perch right next to Kiwi.

We decided they needed a bigger cage, so a hunt for the perfect cage began. 

Look what I brought home!!

and thanks goes to a good friend for mentioning she had seen one in the window of an antique consignment shop.

I knew a wee bit of work was required to get it into shape

on close inspection it turned out to be more than a wee bit of work....a lot more!!!

there were many layers of paint,

underneath all that paint, there were some good bones,

and some that were not so good....wood rot was a problem!!!

the paint layers were stubborn

the wires...well they were a nightmare!!

they all had to come off, labeled, stripped and sanded.

new mitered wood needed to be cut

and then glued in place. getting it perfect was a challenge!

slowly the cage was put back together

                                   and eventually, several months later it was able to be stained

the finishing touches were added

                                             and finally the boys moved into their new home......

                         phew!!! remind me next time that restoration is not to be jumped into lightly.

The notebook

As promised: the surprise gift for Mandy on her 50th birthday.

Pretty papers, photos, beads etc..

Here is Mandy riding her tricycle, it's the same photo I used for her birthday card. This one I printed on fabric, added glitter and crystals

The notebook - front cover

each page was stitched

A pocket for photos of any quilts she makes this year

A few thoughts can be added here

a page with forgotten memories - a pocket with an old letter, some swaps and a few other childhood mementos

The mid-life crisis - a Goldwing bike and a map of a trip around New Zealand

some free space

pockets for photos

A charm added to the binding

and the finished book

and she loves it!

The handmade touch

I have been busy with a few projects....one is a surprise for my OLDER sister who is turning 50 this week!! I will load those pictures later - as she is still waiting for it to arrive in the mail.

Lately I have had my knitting needles out - it's been years, so I started off slowly with a simple baby beanie. I made a few...about 25 actually.

a nice simple pattern

adding my touch of decoration

finished and ready


I got adventurous and did some stripes - these are all wools left over from when I was knitting for my last baby....almost 15 years ago. I knew I would use then one day! (the little pink above had to be bought)



There is a reason I made about 25 hats....My British friend has a team of ladies knitting for her, she collects our offerings and sends them off to homeless shelters and foster homes. I will keep at it and maybe try to branch out a bit. Anyone got a really really basic jersey pattern?



Then an invitation came to a baby shower,


time to try my luck with some booties.



many false starts later I managed to produce these booties

A pink beanie and a heart added to an undershirt

an adorable ultra soft cuddly with a baby bunny in the pocket "Lulla Bunny Bye" (didn't make that) and the gift was ready to box.

into these.

Mardi Gras season has arrived.

One custom here during Mardi Gras is to decorate. While house hunting here two years ago almost every house we went into had some sort of Mardi Gras decoration. Mostly it was beads of every colour hanging from the kitchen table lights, sometimes it was a decorated mantel or a dinning room table centerpiece. For my effort I put together this wreath -with items from three different stores. The shelves had pretty much been picked clean by the time I headed out to shop, so the pickings were slim. There really should be two, from a distance it looks a bit lonely as the doors are double and quite tall.

For the birthday girl

Beads, sequins, ribbons

Felted bag

Needle felted some hand dyed mohair into the felt bag - punching with 3 felting needles

felting

cut shapes from silky fabrics

added beading and ribbons

also added sequins

finished detail of front flower

detail of smaller flower

detail of back flower

Sequins and beads

Beaded detail

Finished front

finished back

Enjoy your gift birthday girl!