crossed

For the last four years I've made a big batch of hot cross bun dough to take along to our playgroup for the children to make into buns. This year I really didn't feel that enthused about the prospect and was secretly hoping I might get away with not doing it! If no one asked I decided I wasn't going to volunteer. What a grinch huh? But I was asked and I got a up a wee bit earlier to make the dough this morning. I must admit that when I saw what fun some of the kids were having I couldn't believe I'd been such a grinch! So much so I'm going to volunteer next year to do it even though Mr A won't be there anymore (a big school boy!).  The buns turned out amazing considering they didn't get too much time to rise.

I've made a batch of Easter bark - no peppermint and a sprinkling of candy coated chocolate eggs, I've also made a few Easter bouquets for preschool and school teachers too. They look so nice as a center piece on my table it's a shame to gift them away!

I've got a bunch of stuff to share with you dear readers, including a very exciting product review and giveaway! Yes! I've been working on quite a few other things but I'll have to wait a wee bit longer till they can be shared.

I wish you a safe and happy Easter!

rainbow

I have a boy here that LOVES colour. It often amazes me the differences between my children and the way they play and the things that interest them. I was lucky if I got one painting from Miss E at preschool a week, Mr A it's several a day! He loves anything to do with colour, he is always commenting on different colours of things he sees and LOVES to paint. He's wanted a "rainbow" blanket for a long time. By "rainbow" he means a knitted or crocheted blanket with lots of colour. He often sees them at the local opshops and wants me to buy him one. Until now I've said no, as they have been out of my budget (they are quite the collectible and the opshops seemed to have wised up to this) and as I can crochet I kinda think I should make one myself! But yesterday I found this great knitted blanket for $8.  I picked it up, would I? Wouldn't I? While I was deciding the ladies at the counter were talking about it, saying how lovely it was and how much all the wool would have cost and how great it would look on a bed. They sold it to me! It has also been backed with super soft and cuddly polar fleece. It looks like it's been made and never been used too!

I'm happy to report that I have one very happy four year old, nestled in bed, snuggled down and totally in love with his "rainbow" blanket! Perfect timing too, seems that the weather is finally cooling down, after the Summer that never ended.

Linking up again with Max - the op-shop show-off !

drum roll .........

First prize of a $20 Bakers Delight voucher - #7 Sophie!

Second prize of a $10 Bakers Delight voucher is - #3 Miriam!

Winner of the maps - is  Max!

Thanks to everyone who took the time to enter! Seems like all the winners are from Christchurch! Ladies could you get in contact and let me know your delivery details please? Thanks so much!

bloglovin

Follow my blog with Bloglovin - You will have heard by now about google reader finishing up soon. Blog Lovin has made it super easy to import all those blogs you have been following with just a click!

pattern postie

If you have ever spent ages pouring over a pattern book at your local fabric store with a toddler and maybe a baby also in tow, only to get to the counter and find they don't have the pattern you are after! You will be able to understand why Bronwyn started her site - Pattern Postie. You can browse patterns (all the latest ones!) in the privacy of your own home! How amazing is that? The postage rate is really reasonable too, meaning that there is really NO reason not to buy them online. The Pattern Postie also stocks all those great sewing magazines too, Burda style and Ottobre too (she can also get the back issues for you too!). Now you maybe wondering how I know all of this? Well I was so lucky to have a stall right next to Bronwyn at Fabric-a-brac over the weekend. We chatted lots about her business and our crafting hoarding collecting!

The best part of me bringing this wonderful site to your attention is that Pattern Postie is currently having a HALF PRICE sale!!!! (the sale ends this Sunday)

fried - giveaway #2

You are probably not like me at all. You probably don't buy things for a "dream house" that you don't own yet, keeping such possessions tucked away in some cupboard waiting for their time to be displayed. I picked up this fry pan at the local Salvation Army op shop this week, it's been painted on the base, so it's "display only" now. I once saw in a design magazine, a beautiful all white kitchen with a mural on one wall very similar to the scene painted on this fry pan. I loved the crisp white (highly practical!) bench top and cupboard doors, but I especially loved the peaceful bush and waterfall mural. I've been dreaming of such a kitchen ever since. For now I'll have to make do with this fry pan "mural", not hiding it away for that dream kitchen.

Now to another giveaway! Remember this stool I made over with maps? Well I've still got lots of maps and I thought there might be someone out there who would like to have some maps to play with! I've got two to giveaway, one is of Hamilton and the other Lake Taupo, they are large topographical maps. This giveaway is open to everybody, world-wide! (As long as you don't mind them being sent folded). Just leave a comment on this post if you would like them and I'll draw a winner on Sunday.

Joining in with Max in her op-shop show-off!

crossed + giveaway

It's no secret around these parts that I like hot cross buns, ahem. So when offered the chance of some free ones to review, I didn't waste anytime to say "yes". The lovely people at Bakers Delight sent me a selection! Some original, traditional buns and also some chocolate ones.  In order to give a fair review, I sucked one up for the team and tried both! Then I wanted to check to see how they well they kept, and if they were in fact nice to eat the next day ( a very important test right?) so again, I might have had one with my morning coffee (they were in fact so fresh the next day I could have sworn they were baked that day).
The rest were gobbled up by my family so fast that I didn't get to take a good pic of them. I saved two chocolate ones for a friend who was insanely jealous when I mentioned I was getting some sent to me. I popped two in a bag for her and surprised her, she was so excited and sent me a "thank you" text to say how she and her daughter had enjoyed them for their supper. That's what it's all about isn't it? Making someone happy with a surprise of something delicious? So pop down to your local Bakers Delight and make someone's day!

Now the lovely people at Bakers Delight have given me some of their vouchers to giveaway to my lovely readers.

I've got a first prize of  two $10 vouchers - A combined value of $20! You'll be able to get lots of yummy goodies with that! A second prize of a $10 voucher! Yummo!

So now to the fine print : Leave a comment at the bottom of this post to enter, you don't need to have a blog to enter, open to NZ residents only. You can also get an extra entry if you are a follower of this blog - please leave an extra comment, and you can get a third entry  if you pop over to the Bakers Delight Facebook page and hit like! - Please leave an extra comment for that too.  I'll draw a winner this Sunday!

Fab Five

This is my 500th post! I'm struggling to imagine how on earth I've found 500 things to write about? But Blogger tells me it is so. So I'm going to have 5 giveaways to celebrate! I can't promise they will be five in a row, cause I'm a bit more realistic about my time management than I used to be (that and I've got a crazy couple of weeks coming up). But there will be five giveaways here over the next few weeks!

I had a fabulous time at Fabric-a-brac over the weekend! I was next to a very lovely lady (more about that in a post soon) and I finally got to meet the lovely Anissa from the Growmama blog! A few blog readers introduced themselves too! Which was a really lovely surprise. I came home with a few new pieces, my stall was really close to the Hospice donated fabric stall - dangerous. I bought a leather hide and another leather piece too, I'm hoping that some bag making will happen in the very near future. I didn't really have a good look around, which for a fabric hoarder  lover like me it could be a very VERY dangerous thing to do. Anissa very generously gave me a couple of "boyish" pieces for Mr A, I can't wait to make him some Winter pants from them, thanks again Anissa! I also managed to score some home made Guava Jelly, all for a good cause right? When I got home I was on pikelet duty and the Guava Jelly was the perfect accompaniment!

Check back tomorrow for a review and a yummy giveaway!

braid

I'm a sucker for vintage trims, I've been lucky over the years to thrift some amazing trims, but most of those finds sit patiently for me to find a use for them. This weekend- Fabrica-brac is on in Auckland and I've got a stall, some of those vintage trims I've been saving up will hopefully be off to new homes! But not the cross stitch trim in the top pic, I found it in a local church thrift store, two metres and a $0.40c price tag! It's quite beautiful, more so than the pic suggests. It's been lovingly unpicked from some other project, leaving behind some of the old threads, I love it! I'm thinking of putting it on a top.

Linking up again with Max - the op shop show off!

wasn't

 It wasn't the week I expected, or planned for that matter. But here we are nearly at the end of it, which is, to be honest a relief. The highlight of the week was getting a lovely parcel in the mail, from Miriam (my secret scrap fabric swap partner). A lovely tote with a doily and "hope" embroidered on it - it's already in use Miriam! The bag was filled with some lovely fabric scraps, Miriam must have known that I've got hardly any boyish scraps and included some great car pieces, I particularly love the seersucker piece with the yellow and red cars. There were also some sweet treats tucked in the parcel too! The disappeared into little mouths before I had a chance to photograph them. Thanks again Miriam - you made my week!