Oh, dear!

Chloes's favourite saying is currently "Oh, deeeaaar." She says it over and over all day and I'm sure she would have said it if she'd realised how silly her Mummy is.

Sam gave me some great laptop speakers for my birthday (way back in early June). All this time I've been thinking that it's a shame they don't play very loud. The other day they suddenly got really quiet and I was telling Sam he'd have to take them back to the shop. Later we realised Chloe had found the volume control that we somehow couldn't find and turned them down. I'm so glad I didn't waltz into the shop saying "You've sold us a lemon!"

Now I'm having a great time playing loud music while I sew. At the moment I can't move past Beck's new album Modern Guilt and Jose Gonzalez' album Veneer. Beck makes me sew faster and Jose Gonzalez makes me relax - perfect combination.

Winners

I decided to give away three sets of the hair ties so my husband has just drawn three numbers corresponding with blog comments out of a hat (or at least a very pretty blue bowl). So the winners are number 1, kristin and millie, number 23 kylie b and number 24, Gill - that british woman.

If you guys could email me at blackeyed-susie@hotmail.com with your address I'll send them off on there way to you.

Cheesey Stars

Firstly, a quick reminder to enter the giveaway in the post below.


Chloe and I have been baking again. Or at least I've been baking and Chloe has been rubbing flour into the cracks between the floorboards. We made some cheese biscuits in little star shapes and they were a huge hit with Chloe. She normally refuses anything involving cheese (I do remember Sam and I having the somewhat deluded idea that we'd have a child who would even like olives - oh, how wrong we were she lives on peas, corn, beans, pasta, fish patties and chicken).

Cheesey Stars

100g plain flour
50g butter
50g cheddar grated
1 egg beaten

Preheat oven to 200 degreed C. Rub the butter into the flour then mix in the grated cheese. Mix in the beaten egg - you may have to use your hands for this. Roll out, using plenty of extra flour (all the better to make a mess with) and cut into shapes.

Our stars were very small and about 4mm thick and took just under 10 minutes to cook. So keep an eye on yours.


This is an incredibly simple recipe and whilst, not particularily healthy, I think we'll make them fairly often. Chloe enjoyed cutting out the stars and the finished product made me want to rush out and buy more cookie cutters. I may try using parmesan and cracked pepper for a grown up snack.

I got to sleep in!

Don't forget to enter the hair tie giveaway below!




Sam and I spent our first night away from Chloe on Saturday. I must admit I felt very strange to be without her. We didn't go far. Just to a historic farmstead called Brickendon about half an hour (or less) away. We had a tiny one bedroom cottage with an open fire, we made ourselves a picnic for dinner and drank merlot in front of the fire then slept in until 9.30. Ah, remember the days when a 9.30 rise was fairly normal for the weekend!

Chloe had a great time with her grandparents but was very unhappy after we returned. She cried and cried and didn't want anybody near her but me. I felt terrible about how vulnerable she must have been feeling.

We went to see Playschool live this morning and Chloe was so, so excited it was amazing. I've never seen her like it before. She still wanted to be on me the whole time and I'm exhausted. I was pummelled, trodden on, shoved and bashed for the entire hour. Crazy. Nice to see her so happy though. She said "happy, happy, happy."

Give away!

It's time for a give away! Just a small one, but I promise whoever wins them will love them.

These are ponytail ties made using vintage Japanese kimono silk. They are beautifully vibrant and lustrous. My photos really never do them justice.

To win please leave a comment on this post. I'll put everyone's name in a hat and draw out a random winner. I'm happy to post them anywhere in the world! The closing date is one week from now - Thursday the 14th August at midnight my time.

New things

A couple of new dresses. Not new designs, just new fabrics. I'm desperate to get onto some new ideas at the moment but I have to work through my current orders first. Then I may need a little rest!

Spotted...

...in Hobart this weekend. Some kind soul has knitted some legwarmers for the Antarctic explorer. He may be Mawson - I'm afraid I've forgotten. It was very cold, I'm sure he needed them.

The sculptor is a good friend of mines father, Stephen Walker.

Snow?

Last weekend we thought we'd take Chloe up Ben Lomond to see some snow. We were late leaving and missed the last shuttle bus to the top. We had no snow chains so weren't allowed to drive up ourselves. This is a picture of the measly amount of snow Chloe got to see.

It was absolutely freezing but she loved it. We made some tiny snowmen and threw a few snowballs and then jumped back in the car and went home to hot chocolates.

Sam cooked Turkish lamb pies called sfiha of Baalbeck in the picture below. They were great and just perfect for serving at a cocktail party (if only!). The recipe was from the book Saha by Greg and Lucy Malouf.

A little more of Cadel

Cadel didn't win but in my opinion showed he was the strongest overall rider anyway. Maybe next year. And if Cadel Evans doesn't make it maybe this Cadel will. Iris drew my attention to this and I'm impressed. Cadel's mummy has even put sponsorship on his little yellow jersey!

Glossy magazines

I'm not really much of a magazine buyer (although if I had more cash I might be!) but there is one I'll definitely be buying in August for the total thrill of seeing something I made in it's full glossy, coloured glory.

Some of the Black Eyed Susie range is soon to be available at Ten Sticky Fingers, a very cute online shop based in Brisbane. Ten Sticky Fingers is going to have a full page feature in Studio Bambini and a photo of one of my halter tops has made it in!

This is one of my early creations and still one my most favourites. There won't be many more as it's getting harder and harder to find the fabric.

Ten Sticky Fingers have some really cute things. They make some of their own items under the label Red Thread Designs too.

Go Cadel!

I'm just sitting here wasting time (when I really need some sleep) but it's the big night for Cadel Evans at the Tour de France. I've really enjoyed the tour this year. They went through some areas Sam and I rode through when we went cycle touring in France a few years ago. They even rode a col in the Pyrenees that I have ridden (Ah, yes, it's true, I was fit once).

For anyone who doesn't know, and if you're in Australis this is pretty unlikely, if Cadel Evans can make 1 min 35 secs on Carlos Sastre in the time trial tonight he will become the first Australian to win the Tour de France. He has had so much pressure on him so I really hope he manages.

I'm also daydreaming about another trip to France. It would be nice to go on a big adventure before we have to pay for a seat on the flights for Chloe. It would have to be minus the bikes this time and I'm not sure if it would live up to the last trip.

I did an impressive thing and managed to put on a small amount of weight whilst cycling for four weeks. Those patisseries were irresistable especially with the excuse of having to ride.

Little Jenny Wren

Little Jenny Wren is an Etsy seller who makes stunningly beautiful dolls. She was featured in the same Babyology Storque article as Black Eyed Susie and I recently discovered she lives in the same city as us. I think it's just great that two Launceston sellers were featured and I'm really very tempted to comission a doll for Chloe's birthday or Christmas. The dolls are eco-friendly which makes them even more tempting. The only difficulty would be deciding on the details as you'll see if you have a look here. Jenny also has a blog here.

Mmmm, yum.

Chloe and I got our aprons on this morning and did some baking. We made these.

Banana, Date and Rolled Oat Cookies

125g butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg yolk

1/3 cup mashed banana

1 1/2 cups plain flour

1/2 tsp bicarb

1 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup chopped dates

extra rolled oats for coating

Heat oven to 180 degrees celsius.

Beat butter, sugar and egg yolk until smooth.

Add banana, flour, bicarb, rolled oats and dates. Stir until combined.

Roll small tablespoon sized balls of this mixture in the extra oats and place on lined baking trays. Bake for about 15 minutes.

Give them a go there perfect for a winters day with a nice cup of tea. I know I've had my share already!

And don't forget to lick the spoon.

And please quietly ignore the mess in the background of this photo and the lack of camera skills in the next photo!

Woohoo!

Wow, two exciting things have happened this morning and it's not even 8.30 yet! Maybe the day will just keep getting better! I have an item on the front page of Etsy for the first time ever! It is one of my denim skirts and it was chosen by Kimiko. I hope this is a milestone that will inspire me to improve my photos enough to get on the front page more often!

And, the lovely Mandi from Babyology featured a Black Eyed Susie dress in an article she wrote for Etsy on Australian kids products. Go take a look, Lucy from Lucy's Place and Two Little Banshees are featured as well!

So what can make the day even better? We're going out to local vegetarian cafe Fresh for brekkie. Yum, yum. And then I'm popping in to see if Suzanne at Cocoon needs anymore hair ties. She always makes me happy!

New duds, New shop!

A couple of new models in my denim dresses and wide leg cords. I'm particularily happy with these fabric combinations and have snaffled one of the dresses for Chloe. It suits her!

These will only be available at Leeloo and should be up on the site this coming Monday. Have a bit of a browse on Leeloo - there is some cool stuff on there. You may recognise some of the makers from Etsy and Made It.

Edited to add: Oops, I'm a bit early with this! Monday the 28th will be when they are available!

Busy, busy, busy!

I've got the theme tune from Gordon the Garden Gnome (ABC Kids in the morning sometime) in my head almost constantly these days.

Busy, busy, busy. It's off to work we go, we've got to dig the garden and etc, etc, etc. So let's get mucky, put your puddlebusters on, with Gordon the Garden Gnome.

It's driving me somewhat bonkers.

But it's true. I am busy. I've been working on wholesale orders for a couple of weeks now. The only lull has been waiting for fabric to arrive (some new stuff - pictures soon). I'm getting through it and I must admit, I find it really satisfying to be busy.

Baby Style Watch

Baby Style Watch has featured Black Eyed Susie here. I'm so excited!

Off to the coast

We made a spur of the moment decision to go to the north coast for the weekend. We went for long walks on the beach, swam in the pool (indoor and heated of course!) and ate lots of nice food. It was nice to get away - that's the only way I can manage to stay off Etsy (it's addictive you know) - and just spend some time relaxing and playing together.


The only bit of work I did was a very, very quick photoshoot with Chloe. These are some of the results. Makes it hard to see the clothes!


What a cutie! And she's working the camera - true model material! She's been wearing that necklace non-stop for about 72 hours now. As soon as I take it off for bed she whips it back on again.

Finally

I've been feeling frustrated because I haven't been able to get anything new made for Black Eyed Susie for a while. Finally I made this sweet dress. I love it. I love the contrast of the large dark blue and ivory daisy print with the smaller oval and rectangle red print. OK, some may say it's a bit busy but I just think it's oh so cute!



I want to get Chloe some red tights or leggings and a red polo neck now.



I'm finding photgraphing my clothes difficult now we are in winter. It's really way to cold to put Chloe in a dress (without the leggings etc) and I do want to show the dresses as they can look in summer as well as winter. Also, the spot in my house that I have always used to photgraph the clothes flat just doesn't get enough light even on the brightest day now. So whilst I love the dress, I'm disappointed in the pictures. I need to find some better options.

Kitchen fun

For anyone in need of some inspiration go take a look at this. Fortytworoads, on Etsy, sell a tutorial for making a great play kitchen using cardboard. It looks so cool and lends itself to a bit of fun for the maker- imagine the pretty curtains you could choose, or colour schemes. A cute matching apron could be made too.

Time is a bit short here at the moment so we went to the toy library and hired a plastic toy kitchen. I still plan to make the cardboard one sometime.

Fortytworoads also has a blog and there are sometime photos of finished kitchens there.