Gorgeous Children's Sewing Patterns

Aren't these divine patterns from Heidi and Finn on Etsy? I have heard they are easy to follow which is always refreshing news. I would love to sew these for my girl (although she loves a good twirly skirt)! The little bolero is too cute, I'd like one myself.



This is a great unisex pattern! I am desperate to learn to use the over-locker (serger) my Mum gave me to use.... especially when I see patterns like this. On an un-related note, how frustrating was it having blogger out for over 24hours!!!! We have started my migration to Word Press - not fast enough I say! Have a great weekend.

Archie the Elephant Themed Children's Party

My son had a second bash at celebrating his first birthday last Saturday! Gorgeous Archie the Elephant stationery from Polkadot Prints provided our theme for his party. We had a small party at home with some of his posse.





I made one of the best chocolate cakes I have ever made!! It was DELICIOUS! I will have to share the recipe in another post, it is my one bowl chocolate cake never-fail recipe. My husband wrote Josiah's name on the cardboard bunting with his mad typography skills :-) No computer neccessary!



There was no big fancy sugar-loaded dessert buffet, just some themed sweet and savoury morning tea that didn't break the budget, wasn't over the top crazy and very achievable for this mum with two young children! I just want to encourage the other mum's, Auntie's, grandmothers etc... that you don't have to go completely overboard to do something memorable and creative for the little (or not so little) people in your life.





Shock horror, un-iced party favours! I ran out of time the night before and know my limitations and the funny thing is our entire plate of un-iced elephant biscuits ran out first before the cupcakes did! They were Vanilla biscuits from my biscuiteers book and they are very tasty - just as they are.



I think the birthday boy enjoyed himself and loved the open door access from the house to the back courtyard thanks to a gorgeous sunny day! I think that was his favourite part of the morning! In and out....



This face makes my heart melt! Oh, I made some cute fringey streamers but didn't get a good photo - they were supposed to look like a circus canopy over the food table! kind of did ;p

Decorating for the Boys

I have been working on breathing some life into Anya and Josiah's room for the last fortnight, very slowly I might add! I'm looking forward to sharing some photos as soon but in the meantime, here is some inspiration I found along the way. I adore this stunning boat made from recycled books and maps.



Also love this paper plane mobile made from old comics via The Brothers Trimm.



Gorgeous wallpaper from Fine Little Day designed by a very clever 8 year old called Otto Dunker.



Cool wooden whale cut out from Bride and Wolf. Or for something different, the son of one very clever artists does pet portraits! Of course all these ideas aren't just for the boys! But if you do have boys you must check out Dana & Rae's series called "Celebrate the Boy" - it is worth it. My little man needs some kid pants with big velcro knee pads :-) but that is a story for another time...

Children's design

These fabulous, fun items are from Sweedish company, Little Red Stuga. Tell your kids to go and climb Mt Everest, Fuji or Kilimanjaro (which is my personal favourite).


'Play' - a folding plywood screen, easy to move around and change form. My daughter would love this - especially for our games of hide and seek.



Saved the best till last - these colourful foam cloud cushions make me want to play too! I hav a spring in my step this morning - as it's the start of the weekend!! I am doing some decorating in the children's room finally as I have spent 6 long months procrastinating over it. It is much easier to do on the weekends with hubby home, so I am itching to get going :-) Have a magical and relaxing one.

Clothing instead of Art

I'm a big fan of this but haven't tried it yet! How lovely is this dress belonging to Ruby from Cakies! I have a killer pair of heels that I always blab on about mounting on the wall because they hurt to wear but look so darn good. I wore them 'in' for the first time whilst running an event once - stupid!


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This is a very sweet idea too and practical. One of my midwives gave me a fabulous tip about hanging up all the baby clothes in sizes so your bub will have less chance of not wearing an outfit at least once. I give baby coat hangers quite frequently.

Interiors - Nursery inspiration

Here is that beautiful butterfly mobile again. I thought this was a brave and refreshing colour choice for a nursery - it works don't you think? The white really pops off those walls. I like the simplicity of it too, found via Designfiles

Children's Party Ideas - Art Exhibition Party

How gorgeous is this idea for a kid's party - particularly if they like arts & craft! I love the numbered craft stations and those name cards.





Simple paper chains - very achievable and decorate your room as you go!


Face painting!



I don't know that I would have the patience for this cake but how marvellous is that!



This divine site has lots of DIY tutorials and a few free printables not to mention plenty of other great theme ideas on the side bar. I found One Charming Party via Design Mom who has moved to France incidentally - I'm a bit slow!

Valentines Craft for kids

As I mentioned the other day I have never been big on Valentines but it did present a nice opportunity to talk to Anya about love - why we love each other and how we show love etc... not so much about romantic love and to do a themed craft with her :-)



We made these cardboard hearts for Daddy - cut shape, drew our messages and pictures, stuffed them with paper and stapled closed - hung with twine. Thanks Tania for the inspiration.

Childrens Bedroom Inspiration

I still haven't really done a thing to the kids room as far as decorating goes - you know how it is... move in, unpack, get on with life... but here are some inspiring rooms for little ones. I have been looking for a map like this for our wall, for preferably under $300!



I know these are nurseries but easily adaptable for older kids - cute artwork display ideas. For gorgeous free templates to frame your own visit my favourite artist Sarah Jane!



LOVE this butterfly mobile and wondering if it would work with fish? We bought this gorgeous print from Sarah Jane and I'd like to carry the theme on for Josiah's side of the room...



Babies would be mesmerised with that mirror :-) Nice wheels too. All photos courtesy of Lonnymag. Have a lovely weekend and stop by Honey Bee Books if you want to snap up a quality second hand children's book or two!

Lovely Labels

Anya is off to 3 yr old pre-school in a few weeks (eek) and I am trying to get organised so I ordered her these cute birdy iron-on clothing dots from Mooo. I could get really carried away with this stuff...

We already have a lunch bag chosen by Anya on her birthday last year with money from Nana. It is pink tinkerbell (blah) but that is what happens when you give a child choice with no manipulation from Mum (which is a good thing)! I don't think it will even fit in her bag it's so big :-(


You can even get personalised clothing - t-shirts, hoodies, rashies etc...


Clearly converted! I think they have some of the nicer designs around and would make really nice gifts for kids. I am looking forward to two mornings a week with just 1 child, it will be nice to hang with my little man on his own a bit too, although I am sure we will miss the poppet.

Gorgeous Kids Cubby - Happy Home

How sweet is this cubby house made by Belinda and her husband! Belinda is the author of the lovely blog, Happy Home where you can find more photos and details of this stunning cubby they built for their two kids.





Really gorgeous - I know my daughter would LOVE it!

Circus theme planning....

Thanks to Jordan for hosting a fun facebook sale over the past two nights on her Polkadot prints page. It was fun to be on the 'other side' as a buyer instead of selling this time. I scored these fabulous invites, cupcake toppers, buffet labels and thank you stickers for Josiah's 1st birthday. I was very keen on the plane theme (below) too but exercised A LOT of restraint... (his name was Gordon). J isn't 1 until May but now I have a theme I can start day-dreaming.



Random fact - My husband can juggle - perfect for birthday entertainment (although we may have to use balls instead of fire-clubs and machetes)! I often joke I could hire him out for birthdays parties. See Jordan's entire range here!

Woodland Fairy Birthday Tea Party

I never get sick of these gorgeous themed birthday parties. This perfect woodland tea party belongs to photographer Pascale Wowak's daughter Ellie. Pascale is famous in my world for this shot.



Themed by Lindsey of Blue Egg Events no detail was spared in creating a truly magical tea party in the woods. As a florist, I LOVE the use of moss throughout the theming.





For more enchanting photos go to Pascale's blog. It's always nice to see more on the menu than sweets too - some very cute fairy fruit wands and toadstool cheese :-) I hope you feel as inspired as I did.