Feather your Nest Friday, 12 August, 2016.

The weekend is almost here! Time to take a look at what I actually achieved this week which I know usually makes me feel much better and happier. If I didn't do this I would just focus on everything I still have on my "To Do" list (which is long)

With the Olympics we have had a bit later nights but there have been some wonderful and inspiring stories that we have enjoyed so much.  Another lovely thing is that in our area it is Magnolia season! Everywhere I go there are beautiful Magnolia's. Pretty much every street has them. These ones are down the street...

The flowers are huge I guess the size of a side plate,  larger than your hand anyhow! 

Most of the ones around here are pink but some are white.

Some of the ways I saved money this week include:

I made a lot of meat pies. This gave us two dinners this week.

I made one family sized one plus 17 individual sized ones.

I have realised meat pies are an Australian thing. So for the US and UK ladies here at the bakery the number one lunch is a meat pie or a sausage roll. Millions are sold a day!  They are yummy! 

They are really easy to make. For the Vicky Challenge I checked on the prices as I went past a bakery. Boy am I out of touch with prices! I got a big shock. Anyway more on that in The Vicky Challenge.

The thing is pies are so easy to make. I am going to show a super easy tutorial next week. They freeze perfectly. They are a meal all in one which make them a very easy meal to give someone or deliver. And you can make them in any size. Individual serving size is very handy.  

I made some little ones in my baby enamel pans...

Also I topped some with pastry and some with mashed potatoes and cheese. And some I made in large sized muffin tins as they are about right for an individual pie. 

I use large snap lock bags to freeze meals. Glad wrap often moves when you are re arranging things in the freezer so now I use strong zip lock bags. They can be reused.  

I had some left over pastry and made a dozen of my usual jam tarts as well.

We had a left overs night and used up things in toasted sandwiches. 

Another night we had fridge pizza.

I packed the lunch and drinks for the boys fishing trip plus all work lunches. 

Finally we had several sunny days. I washed the lovely wool blankets that I got from the op shop some time ago. I used the homemade wool mix. They came up so well, soft and fluffy and smell beautiful. I am so thrilled with them plus they are huge! Queen size at least.  Now they are filed and in my blanket chest. And all just in time as then we had rain!

I started a holiday basket. Ages ago I bought four nights in a travel auction for a bargain! It is at one of our all time favourite beach spots! Lucky I did this as otherwise we would not be having this holiday!  From a month or six weeks before going away I start a basket and get things like tea, coffee, milk, crackers etc when on specials. The holiday basket also is exciting as it marks a holiday coming up! This week I put in tea, long life milk, oat crackers, a jar of coffee and sugar.

The day we leave I will take out two meat pies from the freezer. They will thaw on the trip and be night ones dinner.

Some of the ways I got ahead were so many meals frozen. I am using Mum's freezer too! 

I added to the present cupboard. 

All the work in the spare room has added to my supplies and organisation... I have great supplies and am ahead with packaging, wraps, ribbons, cellophane bags etc.

I added to my pantry:

Powdered milk and medical items.

I have a small space under the bed which is part of the emergency pantry. But the bed is low to the ground. I guess the space is 5 inches? I discovered Bed Risers! Do you know about them? They go under the legs of your bed and give you a few inches extra height to your bed thus extra space underneath. I read about them on a blog. You can buy them but they are quite expensive and for our bed they were going to be $100+

I showed Andy pictures and he said he could make them with stuff he has in the shed. 

Then I can use tubs with lids that slide under the bed!  How I didn't know about these I don't know.

We made progress on our solar and had a company come to give us a quote. We have another company coming on Monday.

I hope you had a good week! I know Vicky did, the shelves she showed in her cellar are filling up and she is now harvesting tomatoes and peppers!

How did you build up your home, get ahead, stock the pantry and save this week?

Little things add up!  It is a wonderful feeling to get ahead in small ways.

Have a lovely weekend! xxx

The Christmas Challenge. Show and Tell for July, Part 2.

Thank you to everyone who commented on last weeks Show and Tell. This week continues on in the same way... lots of beautiful things that everyone has been making!

Firstly Marian....

Marian knitted a little girls jumper and she also made a girls scarf. Lovely!

Plus she made knitted washcloths and used a beautiful printed band for presentation.

I think this looks fantastic.

And also an apron which she paired with a cookbook. The cookbook she got on special and I notice the colours go with with the apron too! What a beautiful gift.

Patti made a heavenly title girls Tutu. She also made a matching headband. This looks like fairy floss and so pretty! 

Janine made her first socks! She sends thanks to all the ladies here who encouraged her and offered advice. It worked!  Her Mum was a sock knitter and left all her needles and yarn to Janine so she has had the supplies.

Plus she loved it and already gave some to her brother who was thrilled with them.

Janine, I think you should be very proud as you have done a beautiful job! 

Vicky (in between harvesting and canning!) is working on a beautiful crochet rug. I love the colour!

Jane made made Bluey a bathroom bag for when they re travelling. She made a loop on it to go over the door in an effort to try and stop him from leaving it behind!

Also a gorgeous baby rug and hat...

And a table runner for her table....

She also made cork coaster and a trivet from corks she was given. And her daughter has been painting old pots and potting up flowers.  I love this as we all have old pots that we could make over.

That was a big month! All beautiful!

Jeanette worked crochet edgings on tablecloths and a pillowcase for her daughter.

I love the idea of working an edge around a table cloth! 

She also made a quilt using her son's fraternity t shirts. I think this is amazing and another idea for boys!

Jeanette that is fabulous!

Mel C is working on a child's quiet book. 

These are her winter pages...

This is an idea I would love to copy. I thought of the old Fuzzy Felts we had which were felt shapes you arranged on a board.... I loved those too!

She also made crafts with her son and the sweetest skirt for herself...

I love the print and the shape of this skirt!

Mel also made  Dandelion Balm, massage oil and has Vanilla extract started...

It is beautiful watching this infuse and get darker and darker until is smells divine.

You did a lot this month Mel, well done.

Roseanne finished another kitchen towel from her cut up table cloth. She crochets her edge then sews it on. 

I am working on crochet edgings again as I have finished my last rug for a while. Thank you Rosanne for telling me this different way of doing it!

Thank you everyone for all the lovely photos! I have more than I used as I just couldn't fit them all in but thank you! Thank you too for all the encouraging comments both here and on Vicky's garden and canning. Encouraging each other and building each other up is a big thing.  It takes courage to show what you have been making in public and to give as gifts. These days it even takes courage to say you are a homemaker, live by your faith or save money etc. The world can be very critical and try to tear you down! 

When that happens you need to have your feet firmly planted on solid ground.  I have written before about getting told I was wasting my time bringing up my own children, keeping home, making my own gifts, cooking etc. This week Andy was told it is "not appropriate" to be a Christian in todays modern world. Happily he has his feet on solid ground and was more amazed than discouraged. 

So I am going to end with my motto for all things homemaking! 

I hope you are having a wonderful week! Keep working away on your wares and your nest! xxx

The Vicky Challenge. When too many things are overwhelming!

My Vicky Challenge for last week consisted of some things I am not sure how to count! I have almost gone from an unusable storage room to a lovely little nursery so I guess that is a big value right there!
Things I can add up with some accuracy included:

Mum gave me a roast saving me $20
Andy salvaged an old tv and made it into a large computer monitor saving $200?
I made all the work lunches and coffees saving $100.
I made two dozen banana cakes saving $60 compared to bought cakes.
And I pruned citrus trees myself saving $40.
Also I did the usual things which mean we don't buy take away or use a dryer and water the garden with recycled water etc.

I wrote $420 in my savings book.

Many of us seem to be decluttering and organising. The US ladies and the English ladies have been harvesting, canning and busy as bees.  Here we have several big projects going that we hope to have finished by Christmas including new doors at the back, (Andy making those) the solar system, the rest of the house painted... and several others.
Like with many big projects you go through such a mess before you get to the end. Things seem to get worse before they get better!  At about that worst moment possible the general rule is you get visitors that haven't seen you since high school.

Vicky has been working on a mass of projects and wrote to me about managing it all. Some things you just have to get on and do or the opportunity is wasted! Growing the crops and harvesting, using it and preserving don't wait. You have to get busy and get it done.
She also has re arranged the house to have a new pantry room. And they have a cellar like I do that hasn't been used (for the same reasons as mine wasn't... creepy, scary, and dark etc) and they have cleaned it up, painted it and added shelves ready to fill. This is a big asset!
All apart from planting a massive vegetable garden, harvesting and preserving... and it all happening at once!
Just about daily we report in with our progress. I am always amazed at what Vicky has done!
So I am sharing what Vicky wrote along with pictures of the work she is doing. They will show the magnitude of it all!

Over to Vicky:

I was asked with all of the things you have to do how do you not feel overwhelmed with it all? 

Well for starters some seasons are busier than others and Winter is the season where I can relax and just have more of a normal schedule. 

When there is a lot going on and projects lined up one after another and this needs done and that needs done how we choose to look at things can make a big difference in feeling overwhelmed by it all or not. 

We can only get so much done in a day. Some days are very productive and others there are interruptions galore and slows down the process, but as long as we don't lose sight of what needs to be accomplished it will fall in place. 

This person asked if I ever felt that I bit off more than I can chew? Most assuredly, but I have to stop and revisit the situation and get my bearings. 

For example this new pantry project. It is not going as fast as I had hoped it would and parts of my house look like a hoarder is in residence with boxes and containers stacked up all over the place! My table is covered and even the chairs. Isn't it funny how things don't look like much until you have to start moving it all? At the moment I'm not winning a feature in Better Homes and Gardens that's for 

sure! 

Meanwhile I am working in the garden and canning and have the regular household duties to do as well. 

So even though I have a big mess and things prevent me from getting as much done as I like as quickly as I would like as long as when I am working on something I give that task my all. I have slowed down in one area and picked up in another and that's ok. 

Having a clear plan first and don't just jump into something because it can be a time waster if you get to a point of what do I do now? Because even if you have to toggle back and forth on the project you know what needs done next. 

Some planning ahead is super helpful! I know when I am that busy I will not feel like cooking every night so I make sure to have quick meals ready and if I am going to be using the oven I will do double duty and bake a cake or brownies at the same time. 

So feeling overwhelmed by things doesn't have to get to the point we need to go to the looney bin, just stop get your bearings and tackle things one thing at a time. Also if you set things up so you can multitask some of the smaller things that need done it helps with productivity. Example- When really busy I keep toilet bowl cleaner and cleaning rags next to the toilet so when I'm already in there I will put the tb cleaner in and spritz the toilet then next time I go back in I clean the bowl and give the toilet a quick wipe down. Then it's ok until I can back to my regular schedule. The next time I go in I give the mirrors a quick cleaning and so on. 

So just stay positive and know you'll get to that finish line eventually!

XOXO

Vicky

Coming up you will see Vicky's new pantry and the cellar when it is full of produce. 

Vicky called her garden "The Victory Garden" and the pantry is her "Victory Pantry". I just love this! 

We just have to make hay while the sun shines and where possible plan ahead. Today I have beef in the crockpot cooking away ready to make meat pies tonight. Some of these will go into the freezer. On days coming up where we will be working on  projects or I will be painting these meals help a lot.  Vicky is right, there is only so much that can be done in a day.  Some getting ahead when we can helps in those really busy times.

How did you go on your Vicky Challenge, savings and earnings? And how do you manage when there is a lot on your plate? 

Have a wonderful week!  I want to finish this room and we are getting quotes for solar panels.  Progress....

Feather your Nest Friday, 5th August, 2016.

This week I was working on one big project more than lots of little ones. My gaol for the week was to make over the room that is too many things... it's the craft room, nursery and junk room.  Whenever I don't know where to put something it goes in this room.
Also it is the smallest room and can't afford to be cluttered! I will have the whole house tidy and nice EXCEPT for this room and I shut the door.
I want a room where Harper can come to stay over and not have her packed in there like a sardine.
So this was the week.
I started with emptying the craft cupboard out completely. Boy did I find some relics in there!
I am not finished the room. I think I am about three quarters the way there.
Today I will keep going and hopefully over the weekend it will be finished!

There are a lot of up sides to all of this. I know what crafts I can do next. There are a lot of baby things put away and I gave Lucy little dresses that might be the right size for this summer that she and Chloe wore! Little smocked dresses etc.
I have lots of ribbons, wraps, gift bags, tags...
Endless supplies of glue, string, glitter and so on.

I have donated a car load of things I know I will never use. Either they were colours I don't like or not suitable in some way but I kept them because they were "good".  I hope they go to someone like the quilt squares Rachel found... someone who will love them and use these supplies and make the most of them.
Also it is a relief. When there are things to use I feel they are on my "to do" list. Now my "to do" list is shorter! It's a weight off my shoulders.

So most of my week was the usual stuff and this never ending room!

I will call it building my nest as having a lovely little room set up that is useful and not a mess is much nicer.

Otherwise I feathered my nest in a few ways:

Mum gave me over ripe Bananas. I made them up into banana muffins. I got two dozen.

I made three meatloaves for dinner and lunches. Plus some went into the freezer.

Mum gave me a leg of lamb to roast.

Andy came home with a big TV from the side of the road. He used the screen as a giant Computer screen for when he does design drawings.  It looks amazing and he loves it. For detailed designs he can see it all much better. Cost nothing. 

I made "use it up" toasted sandwiches one night for dinner.  

I filled up the car for 94c a litre. 

Also I pruned potted fruit trees. They needed a good trim.

Chloe and I went past a beautiful florist I had not been in before. Florist shops are one of my best places for ideas!  So in we went. This was a good idea!  We came away with projects and inspiration.

First of all macrame is in. In a big way.  Chloe loved this:

This was sold as one... the plant, container and hanger for almost $300.  I said "are you kidding me?" and told her how we used to do macrame when it was the in thing years ago! We noted it was made of thick rope that you would get at the hardware store. So now she is following macrame tutorials to her hearts content!

They had bowls of handmade soaps. As I made soap earlier this year,  have heaps for gifts and I know many of you have too I am showing you the prices....

They had some with labels, some tied with string, some with wrap around labels... all $8 each.  

That is more than I valued mine at. Ok, that is double what I valued mine at!  So your homemade soap is worth more than you think!

I love to see this. It builds up confidence about giving home made gifts. This is just home made soap!

Good information for the Vicky Challenge also!

And next...  in the flowers for sale they had heaps of foliage, gum nuts and wattle. These are all things I can pick for free at the farm and road side in mass quantities. It is so common we tend to over look these things.

They had various gum nuts for $15 to $25 a bunch.

Bunches of gum leaves for $15.

So this little visit was very inspiring! They also had bunches of wattle, banksias, proteas etc.

 I am always picking flowers from the farm but seeing this inspired me to pick more!

I love making the most of our free resources!  

How was your week? How did you build up your home or get ahead this week?

I hope you have a lovely weekend. xxx

The Christmas Challenge. Show and Tell. What we made in July. Part 1.

Thank you to everyone who sent in their photos and stories for July's crafts and presents made!
This is going to take two weeks to post! As usual I will include something from everyone but I can't use every single photo as it would take too many weeks. But I love seeing them all and it is so inspiring and so many good ideas!  Thank you so much!

You are all a clever bunch. And very inventive. The photos are in no particular order other than I've tried to spread variety across the two weeks.

Plus I am including some little extras. Firstly we get to see Mary's kitchen. After she showed us some of the things she had painted I told her I would love to see the whole room!

It is so pretty! I would be so happy and at home in this kitchen. Mary made the under sink curtain and painted the lazy susan in this picture...

Thank you Mary your kitchen is gorgeous!

With lots of baby formula cans available to me I was thrilled to see what Fiona has made. A supply of beautiful storage containers...

I love them! Imagine all the potential uses!  In the background is the memory board Fiona made as well. Beautiful!

My friend Nerilie just became a Grandmother again. She has a new Grandson. Nerilie and I lived in the same country town for many years. We used to got to an embroidery group together. Like me she has had a long break from embroidery but took it up again because of a new baby on the way. This is the blanket she made...

She did a beautiful job and I love the sheep!

Maria made a crochet rug for one of her Grandsons and is working on another for her other Grandson and one for her Grand daughter. She put her Grandsons initial in the corner.

It's beautiful, colourful and a big rug too. Well done Maria!

Rachel sent me photo's of timber that they have come by. I am including this for Bluey but I really wanted to see the photos as I love to imagine all the possibilities.  Rachel said they think it came from bridge supports. So it is huge. Don't ask me how they moved it!

Rachel now we want to see what it becomes next!

Meanwhile Rachel finished a quilt. She found the fabric and completed squares already made up in the op shop!

So Rachel set about assembling the quilt She backed it with two op shop blankets as she wanted it to be really warm then she quilted it. What a fantastic result! Truly beautiful.  I always say about making the most of things that come out way. This takes it to the next level! 

Rosanne made kitchen towels with a crochet edging. I love these! First of all you need to know she bought a large table cloth from the op shop for $1. She cut this up and hemmed the pieces to make cloths/t towels then she worked the edging. This picture shows half of them...

This is an example of how little such beautiful things can cost! I just love them and what lovely gifts too.  Many times I find lovely old tablecloths and they have a mark on them. When cutting them up this is no problem! You can make kitchen towels or serviettes etc. for so very little! Well done Roasanne. She also made her Grandson slippers.

Jen in NC completed socks. Take a look at the pattern! 

Jen also made both strawberry jam and strawberry reserves and included a jar of each in the picture. Beautiful. She also has other things on the go but won't say until they are finished! Knowing Jen they will be beautiful things too.

Garden Pat has been making trivets. We would call them place mats I think.

She is making ten sets! Each set is different according to the colours of her daughters and daughter in laws. I have seen a fair few and they are all beautiful. Plus she is fast at making them!

These are beautiful and I thought a very good idea for anyone with little bits of fabrics. Lovely work Pat!

Christine made the most amazing quilt. It is all made from old jeans! This is so clever, recycling and a brilliant gift for a man, boy, teenage boy...

I would say this will last forever too. I love the row of pockets along the side. For a child these count hold toys and books. Really beautiful work Christine!

Well I am at about the half way point so the rest will be next Wednesday.  Thank you so much to everyone for sharing what you have been making. Every time we do this I get new ideas and others must too. That is half the battle, inspiration and ideas.

Lets make August a wonderful month as suddenly Christmas is seeming a lot closer!

I hope your week is going well.  What are you currently working on? Do you have any supplies but are not sure what to make? We could all help each other with that.
xxx