World Turtle Day..

You may recall I posted about 'a little turtle friend' back in April.  I took him along to one of the markets and somebody took a fancy to him and off he went to a new home.  My kids were insistent that I make another, my son chose the fabrics for his little turtle and this is how he turned out:

It also happens to be World Turtle Day today (23rd May 2012).  The date is used by experts around the globe to highlight the threat to the many turtle and tortoise species losing their habitat or being poached and smuggled internationally.  Melbourne Aquarium is celebrating World Turtle Day with activities and presentations.  You can read more here:  Melbourne Aquarium.

On a visit to Melbourne Zoo last year we were able to get up close to this gentle old giant snacking on carrots.  

The Zoo Keeper told us that Tortoises have 'beaks'.

Looks like he really enjoys his carrots, can you see his tongue sticking out?  He's licking his lips!!

"Huge numbers of turtles are being poached in Vietnam and Laos for illegal export to China, where they are traditionally believed to have medicinal properties", said Judith Henke, of Melbourne Zoo.  "Other turtle species native to South Asia and South-East Asia are also subject to smuggling, which has resulted in areas with no remaining turtle populations.

As turtles play a significant role within eco-systems, this is now seen as a crisis by environmental experts".

Some turtle facts:

Did you know that there was a Tortoise named 'Harriet' who lived to 176 years of age. She was a resident at Australia Zoo from 1987 to her death in 2006.

One of my favourite turtles would have to be 'Crush', the surf-cultured sea turtle from Finding Nemo

Fin, Noggin, Duuuude

Colourful cushions make great presents..

Finished these cushions just in time for two birthday parties this afternoon.  I really enjoy the process of going through my fabric stash, mixing and matching all the different patterns, and putting them all together.  Even my kids are getting into it, picking out their favourites and giving me their opinions on colours.  I love their enthusiasm.  I still have my very first sewing machine and may have to set it up in a little spot and give them some sewing lessons.  Although I think my son may go a little crazy on the pedal and pretend he's driving a racing car.

Try again...

One thing I have learnt about sewing, is that if you're not 100% happy with something, it is better to try to fix it before you go any further.

That's why this handy little 'unpicker' is my best friend in the sewing kit.  I'm making a large colourful patchwork cushion for a boy's birthday present and decided to try a pillowcase style opening in lieu of a zip or buttons, but it hasn't worked out the way I thought it would.  So I guess it will be a night in front of the TV with my handy little unpicker undoing all the stitches.
Oh well, there are always moments of frustration when you sew, and redoing it is just part of the process.  It is much better to do something well, then when it is finished there is a good feeling of accomplishment.

Mother's Day Stall

Tonight is "Girl's Night Out" at OLA - Our Lady of the Assumption Parish Primary School, Centre Dandenong Road, Cheltenham.

Starting at 7.30pm there will be a fashion parade, market stalls, mega raffle plus bubbles & nibbles.

Gozi & Pop will be there with some handmade goodies including these cute little houses.

Under pressure..

Sometimes I think I work better under pressure and to a deadline.
My daughter's going to a birthday party tomorrow and she asked me after school this afternoon if I could please make a cushion for her friend.  It's hard to say no when the kids tell me how much they love me making things for them.  Can't believe how quickly I was able to make this when I know dinner time is looming and I'll have to get the dining table cleared and put food on it.

Market time..

It's been a very busy couple of weeks with markets last week and this week.  Here are a few things I have made for tomorrow's market - cushions and doorstops.

Hoping for a nice partly sunny Autumn day and no rain. 

Gozi & Pop will be at the Presbyterian Church, 8 Park Road, Cheltenham from 9am - 2pm.  Watermelon Designs will be there too!

Laundry Day

Every day is washing day in our house.  If I've told my kids once, I've told them a thousand times - if their clothes aren't in the dirty clothes basket, then they won't get washed. 
Maybe this laundry bag I've made will inspire them to place their dirty clothes inside, instead of leaving on the bedroom floor! 
I had fun doing the applique, if you look closely you may even see the little pegs I stitched on.

A new turtle friend

There hasn't been too much sewing going on lately at Gozi & Pop Headquarters due to kids, school holidays and lovely autumn weather.

If I don't do a little crafting here and there though, I start to get a bit restless. So when I saw this pattern by Louise Papas http://www.audreyandmaude.blogspot.com/ I just had to gather my supplies and try to make one of these cute turtles.

And I'm so happy with how this little fella turned out:

He can even tuck his little head, legs & tail inside his shell:

The pattern by Lousie Papas is actually for five different size turtles to  make a 'Turtle Tower'.  My kids have already requested one each!

I had been promising my son I would make him a big cushion for ages.  The cushion insert had been in & out of the cupboard too many times, so yesterday I finally got to make this.
I really love all the colours I used.  I started out with just shades of blue and red, but it didn't look right.  A bit of yellow and green has made a lovely bright addition to his room.  Just in time for a bit of lounging around on during the Easter holidays.
And I got two thumbs up from Mister 8!

A funky jungle custom order

patchwork cushions

it's nice to finally have made something out of all these squares

what to do with all these squares?

I remembered I had cut up these squares ages ago, maybe last winter to make a  quilt.  I've never made a patchwork quilt before, it seems like a big daunting project.  So I've decided to turn these colourful squares into something else.
Will show you my completed project tomorrow.