babybandito

{handmade treasures} raindrops on roses and ticky tocks and bunting

2012-01-31T10:27:00.000Z

curated by me! I was pretty proud of what I came up with. I had The Sound of Music on my mind and decided to do an homage to the great Maria. Who knew that Etsy was just filled with Maria's favourite things? Well, now you do. PS I'm in love with the kitty cat ring (and yes, I know there aren't actually any whiskers on that kitten, but whatev)!

Curated by Osnat of Galleros, maker of hand painted goods.

Curated by Betsy (remember her? makes cute bags?) of Spongetta

60/365

2012-01-30T22:14:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. I sold a ticky tock today! It'll be making its way to the Netherlands tomorrow.

2. I had a nice day at work today.

3. Marcus cooked black eyed peas tonight. Yum.

4. Borgen. It's funny seeing ***THE KILLING SPOILER ALERT!***Sarah Lund's dead ex-partners and so on playing new characters in a different program. Marcus keeps shouting at the TV, "Get away from him! He's a serial killer!" Hahahah.

5. I've been featured in two new treasuries since Friday. Yay!

{ticky tocks} s/s12 collection

2012-01-27T17:15:00.001Z

Feast your eyes on a bit of eye candy I'm certainly proud of:

They'll be in the shop tomorrow! xo

59/365

2012-01-24T20:29:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. The Ottolenghi cookbook. Have I sung its praises before now? This book has not failed me once. Today, I made a sweet potato galette and ate it up. Mmm...So good.

2. Today I took another shrunken t-shirt of mine, cut it down, sewed it up, and put it on my boy. He now has a Saint Etienne t-shirt. It's this one:

Coolest kid on earth? Yes ma'am. Thriftiest mama on Earth? Not really, but I'm trying!

3. House hunting.

4. I got Tobyboo's London skyline tape in the mail today. I can't wait to use it. Someone buy something from me please so I can seal the envelope with this most amazing tape?

5. I'm reading Jane Eyre. I didn't think I'd enjoy it, but I do. Immensely.

58/365

2012-01-16T21:38:00.001Z

Grace in small things.

1. The therapeutic properties of cooking. I came home this evening wanting to destroy something, but after cooking up some lovely minestrone, and then gobbling it up with my family, I felt so much better. Oh, and hey. Don't worry. It wasn't any major personal turmoil; I was just railing against the establishment. Mostly Michael Gove (stupid face. Because of him I might be buying the queen a £60 million yacht for her Diamond Jubilee! I wonder what she'll get me for mine...I'm hoping for an island, or perhaps the NHS...) and Citibank (who have decided to charge us to put our own dollars in our own dollar account!). Anyway, I'm glad I chose to create, rather than destroy. Creating is so much tastier.

2. Dhari is a master of flirting. This evening on the train, he got a woman to tell him her name, note that he knows he's cute, and then show him pictures of her house (on her camera, which he asked her about). I know, I should probably teach him to be less friendly to strangers, but...

3. I just finished reading A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan. It was pretty wonderful.

4. I made a lampshade on Saturday at The Make Lounge. It's pretty awesome.

5. I'm starting a book club in the library at school. I hope it's well-received! Any suggestions for reading material? The participants will be 14/15 year old boys.

{handmade treasures} feelin' the love since Christmas

2012-01-13T10:58:00.000Z

Mostly my ticky tocks have been featured in a few treasuries, but my Peace, Love & Robots bunting made it into one as well. Yay!

Curated by Betsy of Couple of Bubbles, a cheerful little shop of mostly bunting

Curated by Phyllis of Flissitations, an English shop for prints and posters

Curated by Sarah of Wish Upon a Charm, a sweet little jewellery shop

Curated by Betsy of Spongetta, a shop full of creative purses, handbags and book covers

Also by Betsy of Spongetta

Curated by Vered of Tukon, a shop full of colourful everything

Also by Betsy of Spongetta

Thanks Betsy!

{hidden treasures} My Funny Valentine

2012-01-12T10:23:00.000Z

It's been a while since I curated a treasury of my own. This one's for the boys. Or for girls who (like me) enjoy pirates, robots and ninjas.

57/365

2012-01-11T16:17:00.002Z

Grace in small things.

1. Got to chat with my big brudder on Skype this afternoon.

2. Dhari doesn't let chicken pox get him down.

3. The Etsy Spring 2012 Look Book is out now. And I'm in it! Well, not me, but you know...

Open publication - Free publishing - More 2012

Please keep your fingers crossed that this means I'll be madly stitching hundreds of tiny felt watches until I go cross-eyed.

4. Back to normal(ish).

5. I've kept to my resolutions so far: floss daily and improve the rhythm of my home.

testing...

2012-01-02T19:51:00.000Z

ticky tocks: handmade felt watches for toddlers and children (and adults with tiny wrists!)

56/365

2011-12-13T12:45:00.001Z

Grace in small things.

1. Nana for Christmas! Screw Santa - this is way better.

2. Tacos for dinner.

3. Dhari for cuddles.

4. Marcus for New Year's resolutions. Oh how lofty (and admirable).

5. Emptied out chocolate tins for sewing storage.

{handmade treasures} blue ticky tocks in a cool blue collection

2011-12-09T13:02:00.000Z

Many thanks to ZuEla Designs, who curated this treasury, for showing the ticky tocks some much appreciated love!

ZuEla has an etsy shop too, knitting up some lovely soft things for the little'uns.

Supreme Awesomeness!

2011-12-08T16:33:00.000Z

Look what arrived in the inbox today:

Yes, ma'am. babybandito got another shout out from EtsyUK. Aside from the totally rockin' blue ticky tocks featured, which of these awesome things make you go, "Squeeeee! That's so cute!"? I love the cowboy cushion on the bottom right, and I also have my eye on a scarf by the same person who made the tulip scarf. Only, the one I like (for Dhari) is a pencil.

55/365

2011-12-04T09:32:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. Volunteering at Fine Cell Work yesterday afternoon. We put together project kits: cutting and counting strands of yarn and thread, constructing colour keys, and choosing and assembling colour way kits for new recruits to practise their needlework. The last one was good fun. I decided to make a colour way inspired by my shirt.

FCW is a charity organisation that works with prisoners, but what makes them unique is they teach the prisoners needlework/embroidery, and then give them paid work. What they have found is that not only does it give them the opportunity to have money to do things like call home or save up for a better life when they get out, but the work itself allows them to have quiet, positive moments in their cells to reflect and to have positive, supportive interactions with fellow inmates who are also involved in FCW. 75% of the inmates involved are men. Amazing. The organiser read out a letter they received that week from a "lifer" who wrote how important FCW was to him and his own mental wellbeing, and his message nearly made me cry. I hope to do a lot more work with FCW in the future.

2. Adele got her needle book and it would seem that she loves it.

3. I'm going to the Concrete Market today. It's organised by Tobyboo, who I think I've mentioned before.

4. I crocheted a cowl last night with some yarn which I think is from the 80s. It is warm and fuzzy.

5. Marcus gave our bedroom a proper tidy up and clean yesterday. It now looks like no one actually lives there. I love it.

{pay it forward} Adele

2011-12-04T09:02:00.000Z

It's a patchwork needlebook!

Made with my Heather Ross fabric stash and some lovely wool felt. You may recognise some of the fabric from the little pincushion I made for my sister. And lookit! lookit! I got to bust out my new dito labels:

I even used mitred corners with my handmade continuous bias binding. For the first time ever!

Happy stitching, Adele...

54/365

2011-12-02T17:39:00.001Z

Grace in small things.

1. 30+ people came to Thanksgiving! Awesome! No leftovers. Not even salad.

2. I went on strike and marched with some old work buddies on Wednesday. It was something I felt strongly about, and would have moped around with a heavy heart for a week if I hadn't done it. I think I was the only person from my school that went on strike (that more and more popular - but completely unenforceable - no strike policy), which is partly why I nearly didn't do it. Let's hear it for swimming against the tide.

3. I made the Purl Bee advent calendar.

It took me 10+ hours and I'm super chuffed with how it turned out and Dhari is really excited about it. He keeps saying, "I want it to be December 16th!" (there's a Green & Blacks white chocolate peeking out of that one)

4. Using sheets of actual wool felt for crafting, instead of the nasty acrylic stuff you get in most craft shops. It just feels so wonderful to the touch and the colours have a warmth to them that acrylic simply cannot achieve.

5. Scott and Regan's wedding in Cumbria. I heart Cumbria, most notably the Lake District. Even in the last days of November, it is beautiful.

53/365

2011-11-19T00:32:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. Big ol' Thanksgiving partay comin' right up. My gonna eat some pecan pie.

2. Dhari made a snowman puppet today. He named it Hmmm.

3. We figured out where to put some of our clutter here at Chez Bhargava.

4. William Shatner and Ben Folds' "Has Been". So good.

5. I still like my job. Woot!

{handmade treasures} ticky tocks feeling the love

2011-11-15T08:37:00.000Z

I am so excited because my Ticky Tocks have been getting lots of love recently. They've been selling pretty well, and have been featured in lots of treasuries - notably, a treasury by Amity, who is kind of a big deal in Etsy's UK side of things. What resulted was that my photo (in two of the treasuries below), along with my shop name, is going to be included in Etsy UK's Spring 2012 lookbook, which will be distributed to Etsy's press contacts in the UK, France, Germany and The Netherlands! How totally rad is that?

This treasury was curated by Amity, Etsy UK's Community Manager!

This treasury was curated by Ashley from Crowes Nest, a sweet little barrette shop.

This treasury was curated by Paula Greene-Bowron from With These Hands, a maker of shabby chic home furnishings and crocheted goods. I really like pictures of mineral makeup.

52/365

2011-10-20T15:01:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. Dhari loves Where the Wild Things Are.

2. Sold a Raj bunting at the beginning of the week to a lady who seemed REALLY EXCITED!!!! about its impending presence at a party. Yay! I sensed the warm fuzzies in the purchase, so I threw in a little freebie. That's always fun.

3. Have had fun with this little up-cycle project:

So easy. I love a bit of immediate gratification. I did mine with the pretty decorative tape I bought at Renegade Craft Fair. Here's the finished product:

4. My mom and dad will be here this time next week.

5. Tenerife was awesome. I read a lot, laughed a lot, ~~drank a lot~~, and basked a lot.

51/365

2011-10-13T11:04:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. Been selling a ticky tock a week.

2. This time tomorrow, I'll be on a plane to Tenerife for Reegers' hen do! Bring on the sunshine and poolside cocktails.

3. I pretty much like my new job, for the most part.

4. Welch's grape juice is on sale at Waitrose. Yum.

5. Am tearing through the Millennium series. It's not my preferred genre, but the stories and the characters (especially Lisbeth) just suck me in.

Renegade: a person who deserts or betrays an organisation, country, or set of principles

2011-10-09T20:30:00.000+01:00

Given a rare morning off motherhood, I ventured out east to check out the Renegade Craft Fair, which has zoomed across the pond to offer up more amazing crafted awesomeness to Londoners (and the odd tourist, as it was conveniently located near Spitalfields Market and Brick Lane). It was weird being on the other side of the table as a buyer rather than a seller. Weird, but way more relaxing. No joke.

Anyway, Renegade set up shop in Truman's Old Brewery, which was a pretty fabulous space, from my point of view. The sellers were given ample space to display their wares, and there was the occasional crafting station here and there. The Make Lounge was there in full force, manning (or womaning, really) a free needle felting workshop.

I'd have loved to sit at that table, as I love me a good Make Lounge schooling, but I had a three year old's birthday party to attend, and I spent my allotted hour shopping.

Among the sellers were some old favourites: Janine Basil and Jimbob Art. I bought one of my nieces something from Ms Basil, and so wanted to buy this wonderful and punny illustrated side plate from Jimbob (that's not actually the artist's real name, but it would be amazeballs if it was, so I'm calling him that. So there.), but I didn't have enough money.

To steal a much loved Danaism, call the waaaahhhhhmbulance!

Aside from these pillars of the London crafting community, there were other Brits, some European types and of course Americans (it's an American craft fair, duh!). I overheard one seller tell someone he had flown over just for the event. I hope he sold lots of stuff. And now for my absolute favourite makers:

I fell in love with these wonderful little buildings. I wanted to compile a village of them and put them on the mantlepiece. I must keep them in mind for that distant and sparkling day when I get a house. I will have The Drawing Machine's village on display, yessir.

And mr nico does this awesome camera wallpaper (Kat, if you're reading this, check it out!). Lekker Haas Paper was mind-blowing, with her giant hand-cut birds-eye-view of London (and Paris, and Brooklyn, and...) - all the tiny winding streets! I didn't manage to take a photo though. Boo.

And eek! Take a butchers at these cuckoo clocks by Kate Sutton (also an illustrator)! Kah-yewt! Add that to my list of things to put in my non-existent house.

And last but not least - oh no, certainly not least - was Stephanie Tillman. I had great fun chatting with her. She's an American, like me, and has married a Brit (sound familiar?). Her embroideries are so cute and ridiculously hilarious. My favourites? "What's up britches?" and "Man, I ain't trying to eat all these leaves today."

Sparkle Motion!

2011-09-27T12:12:00.001+01:00

My friend Amy (who made me the lovely soft scarf) introduced me to Donnie Darko back in college. She is therefore, quite obviously, an important figure in my life. She had a baby boy in the summer, so my immediate impulse was to pick out some cute banditos to give to Dorian. Then I thought, hmm...Amy needs a present too. And I had just fallen in love with cross-stitching. And seeing as Amy was my Donnie Darko supplier and her email address used to be sparklemotion, it only seemed right to make her this:

See, I figure that now Amy is a mama, she has lots of different roles to play in life. And there will be lots of people with crazy expectations of how she needs to go about doing things and what her priorities should be. And she may find herself having to say no to someone, and perhaps will feel bad about letting them down (maybe I'm totally projecting at this point, but whatever). All she has to do is look at this, and she will feel better.

But mostly I just thought it would be hilarious.

50/365

2011-09-20T14:27:00.001+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. Getting settled into a new rhythm. I'm working two days a week now, and it took a bit of time to get used to that old way of doing things (and overcoming the emotional "wahhhhh!" of dropping the Little Man off at day care). But we're settled now.

2. A refresher of optimism and hope that comes from being invited to sell my things at gorgeous places like Skyline Salon, Sienna Loves Kai, Beanies Cafe and now Things British.

3. Having inexplicably long fingernails. I'm a hopeless biter.

4. The gorgeous soft scarf Amy knitted for me. I got to bust it out all day yesterday because the library is cold. Thanks Amy!

5. De Forbrydelsen (The Killing). It's so good you won't get annoyed about having to read subtitles. And, even though he's never seen it, it's fun to say "Troels?" to Dhari because he responds with, "Yeah, Troels?" And if you get him to say "Troels Hartmann" he sounds Danish. But if you say "Theis?" he will say, "No, not Theis." Poor Theis. After 20 episodes, I finally know who killed Nanna Birk Larsen and why. And I can't wait for Season 2 to see what happened to "Anne" and if poor Sara Lund ever gets any sleep.

I know there's an American version. But. I'ma stick with the original.

Crafty Foxes on the Craft Trail a la Thames Festival

2011-09-16T14:43:00.001+01:00

I spent the days before the Thames Festival doing the following things:

1. Sewing, sewing, sewing.
2. Starting my new job.
3. Checking the weather forecast every half hour, willing it to change from rain all day to sunshine.
4. Rejoicing when the forecast changed.
5. Daydreaming about selling out of most everything before dinnertime.

On the actual day, I was initially excited by the sheer numbers of people who descended upon the Southbank. Unfortunately, it turned out that not many of them were actually stopping to shop. My stall neighbours and I seemed to be stuck at the edge of a thoroughfare, and the best shopping time seemed to be when it finally decided to rain, and everyone ran to the stalls for shelter. While my daydreams did not manage to come true, I still got to meet a load of lovely folks.

Sharing a table with me were Maria and Andreea of Magic Joys. They had baskets full of adorable little hand-knitted animals. They use all natural materials and have begun working with only organic wool. I loved the foxes, made especially for this Crafty Fox event, and my absolute favourite of all time was the little baby white owl pictured above. Andreea told me that would be the only one ever made like that, as the knobbly wool was very difficult to work with. I love the downy fluffiness of it, makes it seem even more like an owlet. I was planning to purchase it once I made enough sales to pay for my half of the table. Alas, alack!

To my right was Corey, one half of the husband/wife team behind Strange Fruit, a unique greetings card company that aims to design cards to "reflect Britain's colourful population". I love the collage stylings of the cards, and was most taken by a Christmas card featuring two gorgeous girls sporting Santa hats and surly pouts. Corey (a fellow American) also became my "muse", as every time I complained to him about no one buying anything, lo and behold, someone would come by and hand over their hard earned cash for something babybandito. Thanks Corey!

And check this out! Thanks to my stint at the Thames Festival, I've been invited to sell some of my goods at Things British, a new boutique at Kingly Court, off Carnaby Street. I've been wanting to expand my brick and mortar sales beyond Kansas City and South London. Carnaby Street will do just fine. Yessir. Americans, maybe you're sitting there thinking, Hmm, I know of Carnaby Street - where have I heard of that before? And why is Austin Powers music suddenly playing in my head? Or, if you're slightly cooler than me, you'll have made a more rock and roll link to The Jam.

Another highlight of the day? At about 8 pm, Regan popped over the river (as you do) to give me some freshly popped popcorn and a thermos of hot chocolate, because she thought I might be cold and hungry. She is officially the Random Acts of Kindness Queen of my Life. She makes me want to throw shapes.

hello again

2011-09-09T11:41:00.002+01:00

It's been nearly two months since my last post. Funny, the sun was shining and I was both productive and enjoying a bit of slow living. That seems so long ago! Marcus and I have been eagerly anticipating the day when life slows down a bit, a return to routine. I'm hoping that will be next week. In the meantime, I'm working like a madwoman in preparation for the Craft Trail at the Thames Festival this weekend. I'm excited to be sharing a new, cohesive collection of autumnal fabric colours and my first modest attempts at printing my own designs. Hopefully I'll get to post photographs before it all sells out (hopefully!) on Sunday.

If you're in town on the 11th come by. We crafty foxes (similar to nerd foxes but different) will be nestled in amongst some trees between Tate Modern and Founders Arms.

Wish me luck!

splish-splash, simple joys

2011-07-15T14:45:00.000+01:00

{handmade treasures} bloomsbury group

2011-07-14T16:51:00.000+01:00

I was going to wait until I had more items in my new shop to introduce it to you, but what better way than to share its first inclusion in an Etsy treasury?

I'm in the third row - a set of lavender heart sachets I made for hanging on doors. These particular beauties were commissioned by my friend Hazel, so I dedicate this blog entry to her. Yay! xo

49/365

2011-07-11T10:07:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. I have an interview on Wednesday to be a part-time school librarian! Wish me luck...

2. Dom and Kristine are back from Dubai. Yay!

3. I've nearly finished Adele's fb gift.

4. I've now come up with the basicbandito. Basically (har-har), it's still just as cute and absorbant but not waterproof. And it's half the price. But this project has served an additional purpose - to trial a multi-size bandito. We'll see how it goes.

5. I made a maxi skirt. It's purty.

{make do and mend} cowboy to cowgirl

2011-07-09T20:49:00.003+01:00

Ages ago, Marcus was throwing out a load of button-down shirts. I grabbed most of them for future projects. The majority of them ended up being Dhari's birthday bunting. But I saved this one for me.

{before}

{after}

I replaced the bottom snap with a pink one from my vast collection of pearl snap buttons (oh, the glorious life of excess I lead, as a bandito maker). I took the pockets off to streamline it a bit. The sleeves became my straps and side panels. I like this top because I've fitted the straps exactly at the point where my bra straps are. And that makes me feel clever. You don't get this with store bought tops.

And, it looks extra nice with my mended cropped jeans.

48/365

2011-07-08T13:44:00.001+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. I've been putting my new shop together and one of my bags has already been added as someone's favourite!

2. I've also been working on a little present for my friend Amy and it's finished. I desperately want to show it off, but can't until it's in the hands of its rightful owner. It is awesome. ifidosaysomyself

3. I watched Capote last night, finally. What a great film. Philip Seymour Hoffman is da bomb (to bring back an accolade of old).

4. I've signed myself up for a very very fun sounding market, Playtime.

It's probably more of a one day festival than a market. Anyway. Keep your fingers crossed that it'll be a good day for babybandito! Even if it's not, a market/festival named after a Jacques Tati film and run by a French lady has got to be a good thing to steep yourself in for a day. It's next Sunday. You should totally come check it out.

5. Dhari still likes vegetables.

Happy 4th. From the Ticky Tocks.

2011-07-04T13:44:00.000+01:00

47/365

2011-07-04T09:25:00.001+01:00

Grace in Small Things.

1. Finally getting back to doing this post again.

2. Barbecuing it up at the Cutting's on Saturday. I'm only a bit disappointed that I didn't manage to get Adele's Pay it Forward gift (from twelve-thousand moons ago) done in time to hand it over. It's still just two pieces of awesome fabric pressed and draped over my dining room chair. I think maybe I've subconsciously decided that I just like looking at the fabric all day and that's why it isn't done. Anyway, even without the gift, the BBQ was fab, complete with bunting and twinkly lights and lots of lovely new people to meet.

3. That paper chain is getting shorter and shorter every day. I know that's the point, but it still makes me happy. And Dhari loves it too.

4. Busting out the Wii Fit again after something ridiculous like 951 days of gathering dust in the corner of the room. The little animated Fit Board man had all sorts of cheeky things to say about that. Snarky little bugger.

5. Ticky Tocks. Dhari and I gave one as a birthday present to Jack, who loved it and gave me the perfect tagline for them. "It's just like my daddy's!"

The Big Countdown.

2011-06-27T16:44:00.000+01:00

Dhari keeps saying, "Want to go see Grandpa and Grandma in July." I'm pretty certain he thinks July is a place, like Florida or Missouri. So to give him a better idea of when we're going to see Grandpa and Grandma, I made a little paper chain for him. Since there are 30 links to this chain, and that is FOREVER to a two year old, I wrote in little things for Dhari to look forward to on the links of the chain. Not that he can read, but at least I can show him the letters when he tears off a link and say "Look Dhari! We get to see Artie today!"

Wonder Hill High Market

2011-06-25T22:23:00.001+01:00

There were some talented (and super-friendly) folks at the market today. It was certainly a slow day, so thank goodness for the quality company! Here are a few fine folks I found:

moosetachelovely

laura-kate draws

babybandito - oh wait! That's me!

And - what a nice surprise! - a twitter friend was there. A cute lady came up to my table, gave a funny look to it, then said, "I know you!" It was Tobyboo, who will be selling some of her awesome creations at Beanies Cafe. My favourite thing on her table was a stitched-up version of the tin man, but on his chest was embroidered, "tinned artichoke hearts". How awesome is that? And well, since I didn't manage to snap a picture of her table, I stole one from her website instead:

If you look closely, you can see the tin man in the top right, next to the cowardly lion and scarecrow.

Red Ink Overdose for Local Woman

2011-06-25T21:56:00.000+01:00

Tragedy strikes as yet another civilian falls victim to the undeniable power of the red pen. We have confirmation that a high profile agency had pressured Suzanne Bhargava into using the pens in dangerous doses. Sources say there are many others like her, not knowing which flourish of the pen will be their last.

We spoke to the victim's distraught husband, who said, "I don't understand how this could have happened! Suzanne never even liked red pens! When she was a teacher, she always preferred to use green or even purple. She said it was less aggressive. These villains have to be stopped."

Police say she went through just over two full red biro pens in the space of about four weeks. These amounts are said to be toxic to even the most hardened, critical, red-pen-using teachers. One former colleague of Suzanne's, Dr Sean Purchase said, "I like to make their homework bleed."

Community members are asked to remain calm, but vigilant in these trying times.

You ain't my baby daddy!

2011-06-19T11:28:00.000+01:00

Just coming up for a bit of air...

2011-06-13T10:04:00.000+01:00

I have been madly marking a stack of 570 GCSE exams, but took a day off for a second try at my new project: Ticky Tocks.

So named because that's what Dhari calls watches and clocks, duh! I chose the time based on what time I completed the French knot on the watch face.

10.47am

look at the adorable backing fabric!

3.35pm

3.24pm

10.32am

What I love most about these is the actual handwork involved in the process. Especially the French knots. There is very little time spent at a machine. Instead, it's mostly just me, a needle and the textiles. Grand.

46/365

2011-05-21T18:26:00.001+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. I have begun my month of exam marking (blech). My small thing that I have found to cherish in this mountain of spelling, grammar and punctuation mistakes is this: The Pomodoro Method.

It gives me nice little five minute breaks (and the occasional 25 minute break - woo!) to do whatever, guilt-free, because I know I have to go back to the mountain of mistakes for another 25 minutes, over and over again, until it is finished. So how have I spent my break time today? Well, at first, washing dishes (what?). Then doing minimal make-up and hair, checking email, Facebook, updating my favourites on Etsy, reading everyone else's blogs and finally updating my own. I was unable to finish this first point in a five minute break, but oh well. It's done now!

2. Starting on Adele's Facebook Pay it Forward gift. At this rate (see above), it might be done by July. Even so, it's going to be so cute and so useful. There's something so lovely about perusing my many craft books, shopping for the perfect thing to make for a friend. And then, of course, digging through my Heather Ross fabric scraps stash (WHICH I LOVINGLY HOARD) to find the most fun combination of patterns and colours.

3. I've ordered labels for my new grown-up brand, which I've hinted at for ages now. It's mostly been little wisps of ideas floating in and out of my line of vision, but I now have an ever growing list of things to actually make and put in this new babybandito offshoot for big banditos. Those lovely lavender hearts, for starters. It will be called "dito", pronounced deeto (not ditto). Makes sense, right?

4. How tiny Dhari's bum looks in big boy pants. We tried it (potty training) out yesterday. To put it lightly, he's not totally won over by the whole idea. Still, pretty cute.

5. I found Collective Memory Part 2 in the cupboard the other day. Part 1 is in Kansas City. Anyway, I can now add to the one "Vintage" quote by Amy I have over at my other blog. It's weird reading through them. Some are still hilarious, others? Not so much. Most make no sense whatsoever. Still, good fun.

45/365

2011-05-16T16:23:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. I think I've finally mastered the making of bias binding tape. I used to hate it, but I'm starting to like it, especially the part where my custom made matchy matchy tape makes the rest of the bunting look so good.

2. Spending £1.30 and getting four "new" books for Dhari at our local FARA charity shop, whilst also offloading a big bag full of Dhari's old stuff in the process. Out with the old, in with the new old.

3. Being inspired by Dana (yet again - jeez woman, your awesomeness might one day become irritating) to take my lame attempts at being eco to another level. I am now constantly on the lookout for new ways to follow my three R's (mainly the first two, because "recycle" is just too easy). Today I cut a couple dry-cleaning bags in half, tied them at the end, and made new little rubbish bags. So now I can reuse them, and reduce my use of actual bin bags. Hey, I didn't say it was groundbreaking. Just better than before. Dana, meanwhile, hasn't taken the trash out in a month - not because she's gross, but because she actually doesn't produce that much waste. Amazing.

4. I have completed every last item requested by Karen for the opening of Beanies Cafe in Croydon! And I did it in a pretty respectable amount of time, considering the snail's pace I usually work at. I'll be dropping it off tomorrow and I can't wait to see how the cafe looks now...yay!

5. I got a new steam iron! I sent the old one to be fixed, because the drain plug had rusted shut (probably my fault, shh) and they just sent me a new one. Woot! This is what excites us 'round these parts.

Cowboy Bunting Facelift

2011-05-13T18:41:00.000+01:00

My cowboy bunting is now a million times more special than it already was, mainly because the bias binding tape at the top is now handmade by me. Not scratchy store-bought beige boringness. Just look at the cute little coordinating polka dots! How cute are they???

These two little guys will be going on a great retail adventure in Croydon, at Beanies Play Cafe. But I assure you, I'll be coming up with at least one more improved, totally handmade version for Etsy. I just need to rest my back for a bit...

44/365

2011-05-12T12:40:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. That moment when, on an evening out, Dhari transitions from over-tired to hilariously delirious.

2. Finally finding a halfway decent Mexican restaurant in London. For some reason, people who are not Mexican simply cannot do proper Mexican food. Who woulda thunk? Mexicano Loco in Victoria was, in my opinion, satisfactory with good features. Which is a major achievement, as Mexican food in London goes.

3. Getting to hang out with Carol and Debbie! Carol's off next week to work in Nigeria for a while. Gosh I'll miss her.

Erm, does anyone else think the "Burberry" table cloths are a bit of a weird presence here?

4. With every item I cross off my list, I seem to add two more. Initially, I am consumed with panic, but then I get excited to do another exciting thing! (granted, I probably won't get around to it for a few months, but still...)

5. I'm all signed up to do another market in a pub. Yay! It's not until June though, because methinks May is going to become ridiculously busy here pretty soon.

43/365

2011-05-10T17:00:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. Dhari is having a nap.

2. I had a nice long walk, mostly downhill, in the sunshine today. Bliss.

3. Jack has been getting A's on his practise essays. Yay!

4. Lunch at Pizza Express with Dhari and Donna. What a treat!

5. Only one more day of Ofsted for Marcus.

{handmade treasures} The fairground left town...

2011-05-09T13:30:00.000+01:00

...but the circus stayed in. (a little Josh Weller reference...)

I made this treasury this morning, obviously with a black, white and red circus theme. Maybe not so obviously, all artists featured in this treasury are based in the United Kingdom.

drumroll please...

2011-05-09T08:59:00.001+01:00

We have a winner! As promised, Dhari picked the winner from a bowl of entries.

Normal people use a random number generator, but as this was such an intimate gathering, it just seemed right. (Thanks for the idea, Bernadette!) And it meant I got to use my new pretty paper. Plus, it makes for much cuter pictures. Especially since the pretty paper matches Dhari's pyjamas.

All right, all right, this is clearly not the information you're looking for. Without further ado...the winner of the babybandito May giveaway is Jel, who said, "If I win this fabulous giveaway, I plan to get the turquoise and green dragonfly barrette, green and yellow flower barrette and the two pairs of sweetheart hairclips from babybandito.etsy.com with my gift card."

Congratulations, Jel - those felt barrettes are my absolute favourites.

Everyone else, thanks for joining in on the fun, and I'm pleased to have seen some new faces around here! (ahem, not that the old faces are, you know...it's just...I mean...oh dear, I've only gone and put my foot in it again. Bah!)

I'm planning a "babybandito's second birthday party" giveaway for August, so make sure you get in on that too. Why the May Giveaway? Because I bloody well felt like it. Heh.

42/365

2011-05-05T09:52:00.000+01:00

Grace in Small Things.

1. Mending my Diesel jeans for the third time. I know I should be fuming that such an extravagantly expensive pair of jeans should fall apart so easily (and so frequently), but I'm just not. I actually enjoy the process of bringing them back to life, and I relish in that stubborn-as-an-ox feeling of absolutely refusing to let them die. I love them as much as a human being can actually love a pair of jeans.

2. Watching Dhari make everyone laugh at his weekly music and play class. That's my boy!

3. The sweetness of a sleepy two-year old. "Want to cuddle Mummy..."

4. A hermit day. I love sunny days, and getting outside to bask a bit, but I also love being a hermit - just hanging out with my little guy and getting stuff done and hanging out with my little guy a bit more. I suppose, if we get stir-crazy and it doesn't rain, we might go to the park for a bit.

5. Getting lots of positive feedback about my bibs. That feels good.

41/365

2011-05-03T15:39:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. My black lace fingernails. I am wearing these without a stitch of irony, seriously. I love them.

It's Sally Hansen's Salon Effects nail stickers. It's a sticker made out of nail polish. Genius. They have leopard print too. Uh-oh!

2. I am thrilled to see that, so far, three whole people have put in a try for my May Giveaway! For a moment there, I thought it was just going to be my sister. And as much as I love her more than the whole entire universe, that would just be sad. (by the way, if you want to enter to win, you have until Sunday 8th).

3. The sun. It shines.

4. I'm looking forward to getting rid of those giant bags of Dhari's old clothes and annoying toys on Saturday at the NCT Nearly New Sale in Putney. Yep, same as last year! And I'll probably go ahead and bring along some babybandito gear just in case.

5. And last, but not least (oh no, certainly not least, not at all), you know when suddenly you realise that you haven't heard a peep from your toddler in what must be, like, ten whole minutes? I had that this morning, so I went to see what he was up to. What was he up to? This.

That is correct, ladies and gentlemen. He had all my shoes out of their boxes and was trying on each and every one. "Stoo big...Nope...Stoo big...Doesn't...Stoo big." Oh me, oh my.

getting in on the action

2011-05-01T15:32:00.006+01:00

Welcome to my first ever giveaway! The lucky winner will receive a £20 gift card to spend on anything in my Etsy shop. To enter, all you have to do is complete these two tiny tasks:

1. Leave a comment at the bottom of this blog post (include your email address please!), completing this statement:
If I win this fabulous giveaway, I plan to get _______________ from babybandito.etsy.com with my gift card.
2. Either follow babybandito on Twitter or like babybandito on Facebook.

That's it! This giveaway is open to everyone worldwide and closes on Sunday 8th of May at 8pm GMT. The winner will be chosen at random by my toddler (who is, I assure you, incredibly random), and announced by me on this very blog Monday 9th of May.

Good luck!

xo

*Please note, this giveaway is now closed. Thanks for playing!*

40/365.

2011-04-27T17:57:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. Felafel wraps for Easter lunch, especially when the spicy hot pickled veg is homemade from scratch and the felafel is too, and you get to watch the cook make it expertly with an Israeli felafel mould that's been around for ages and "only gets brought out on special occasions".

2. Dhari's first Easter egg hunt. So cute.

3. The hallway is painted! It is no longer yellow! And I helped!

4. Dhari keeps playing the intro to "To Die a Virgin" by Divine Comedy, over and over again. It's a sound clip from an old British TV show, of a woman saying, "If there's a war, I'll sleep with you before you get get killed - that's what maidens do in books, and I'm a maiden." And then a man replies, "Oh, you do seem to go on about your virginity. Virginity's nothing - you can lose it on a bicycle." She responds, "I didn't know that! I must be careful - I'm going to get a bicycle when I get to London." Dhari seems to think it's really funny.

5. I got my lovely Mother's Day dress (handmade by Sue Bradbury) in the post today! Yay!

39/365

2011-04-19T12:22:00.000+01:00

Grace in Small Things.

1. I've started a cross-stitch project. So far it's taken me two days just to transfer the pattern. There must be an easier way, I just couldn't figure it out. But I'm way excited to start stitching and see the final product! It will be one of my Facebook giveaways, which I let fall by the wayside there for a while. Oops.

2. Going to a funfair yesterday with Dhari, Sophia and Hazel. I took Dhari on loads of little kid rides, including the caterpillar train, the teacups and a little train roller coaster (which he loved at first, but then at the 4th or 5th time around he decided "I don't like it! I don't like this one!"). I was hoping he'd come off saying, "I ain't afraid of no rolly-coaster!" But he didn't.

3. Summery days like today. Ooh, sunshine.

4. The tea cupboard. It's the only spot in the flat that isn't cluttered. Thanks Marcus!

5. Charlie Brookers The Hell of It All. It makes me laugh so much I can't really read it on The Tube. You're not allowed to smile, let alone laugh, on public transportation.

38/365

2011-04-16T20:31:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. The Crafty Fox Pop-Up Market. I have so much respect/gratitude for Sinead of Galavant, who organised the whole thing. What a huge undertaking! And what a rambunctious success! I did incredibly well today, which is really no small thing for me. In my mind, it is a massive thing because I doubt myself and my product and my vision everyday. Honestly, reflecting on my success has just made me well up with tears a bit. It could be the exhaustion. It could be the "I've worked hard today, so I deserve a drink" drink. It is probably a bit of both. But mostly, it is being able to tell myself that the craft I've worked so hard on and put so much of myself into, is quality craft. That means a lot.

2. This is very closely connected to number one, but it is AWESOME getting to meet with other crafters and artists. Everyone is so friendly and eager to share ideas and experiences. I discovered today that there is a close-knit community of crafters who have become friends solely through attending events like this. Over time, they start to recognise the same faces and begin to look forward to seeing each other again. The hour of setting up in the morning was like a hipster's high school reunion. Very cute.

3. Hanging out with Kristine and Dom last weekend. They're engaged now! Yay!

4. Thursday afternoon at Tanya's. I wish I had a garden! (Dhari does too, methinks)

5. Just now. Watching Dhari engage with the frog puppet I bought him today at Crafty Fox. He made the mouth move properly then said (in a funny voice), "Eat your lunch! Eat your brekky!"

37/365

2011-04-11T11:57:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. A clean flat, largely thanks to Marcus.

2. Spending yesterday afternoon engaged in two of my favourite things: crafting and activism.

I met loads of lovely people, including Colin, a hilarious and chatty homeless man who joined in with the stitchery in exchange for tea, sandwiches and cakes! Good atmosphere overall.

3. A gorgeous little shop in Brighton called Fair, that befittingly trades in Fair Trade goods. Being a Fair Trade city, Brighton has a barrel-full of these places, but this one was particularly good. Lots of stuff from People Tree and elsewhere. One highlight was underwear that says on the elastic waistband, "Poverty is Pants". In the end, I bought some giant hoop earrings and a very cool necklace, for the bargain price of £24 (there goes my fun-spend allowance for this week...).

4. I'm getting really excited about the Crafty Fox pop-up market on Saturday. Be there, dudes and dudettes!

5. Having actual conversations with Dhari. It floors me every time.

{a sunday shop} feeling grey

2011-04-10T21:46:00.001+01:00

So...why is it that on grey gloomy days I gravitate towards blue and yellow, and on bright sunny days I'm all about the greys?

Here are a few new and so far undiscovered Etsy shops that seem to have lots of potential. I found them today, too tired to do anything else!

beads2riches (shame about the name) only has three items listed in her shop, but they are beautiful. And hey, her shop has only been open for two days. Give the girl a break.

Nadezdha Petrova's Dream Pillow is a lovely shop. My fave is her bicycle pillow, of course!

I was going to give you three grey things. But then I saw these. And if you pay any attention at all to my Grace in Small Things posts, you know full well the power macaroons have over me. And Cookie Boutique just opened up today, so you know those macaroons are fresh. (kidding - I'm not stupid, people) Oh, Cookie Boutique. How I wish you were in London instead of NY.

I think I need to go lie down now.

This blog post was brought to you by the Pounce function on Etsy.com

36/365

2011-04-08T17:15:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. Sitting in the sunshine with Dhari, both of us singing along to Father Goose and playing tents with the sawaar kameez scarves. Again! We've had nearly a week of this. Awesome. (plus, according to a very reliable Facebook source, all this sunshine is due to the magical workings of a newly-built playhouse in Kingston...Dhari can't wait to try it out).

Dhari's Downward Facing Dog?

2. Taking baby steps toward the "Keep what you love and get rid of the rest" way of living. I hate being surrounded by clutter - it stresses me out - yet I don't want to live somewhere that feels like no one lives there. You know what I mean. So, yesterday, Dhari and I wandered down to the charity shop and offloaded some of my things that I don't love. I kept Dhari, by the way.

3. I put some white azaleas in my "backyard" flower pots and relocated my herbs to a disused window box. Things are starting to brighten up back here! This weekend, I hope to hit up the market near my flat to buy some inexpensive, but cheerful flowers for the rest of my planters. I'll probably be going for purple because that's my favourite.

4. Taking a moment to paint my nails. Three coats!

5. A nearly finished Easter basket (that - I am ashamed to admit - was started in February).

Thanks, sister!

2011-04-08T16:52:00.000+01:00

Finally... I was waiting for the perfect sunshiny day to take a photo of these. That day has arrived!

Here are the bags my sister made for my birthday present. Aren't they amazing? She is so talented. And a major perfectionist, which makes for very good handmade birthday presents!!!

I love love love love love them. I told her already that I now never have the problem of forgetting to tell the cashier that I don't need a bag. Any excuse to bust one of these out. Any excuse will do.

I'm not the only one who thinks they're amazing. I happened to stash them in another eco-bag before I left to meet the owners of Beanies Cafe (just in case I needed to buy some groceries while I was out) and show them some of my own handmade goodies. Karen picked one up out of the bag and said, "Ooh, this is cute". I opened it up (to more ooh's and ahh's) and told them about how my very talented sister made them. They said, "Those would definitely sell." Melissa? Wanna sell some bags in London? xo

{handmade treasures} all things small

2011-04-07T13:45:00.000+01:00

An Etsy grandma-to-be has been daydreaming about all things small, and all things purple and pink. I feel charmed that my one-of-a-kind bandito has captured her imagination.

waldorf inspired play

2011-04-05T16:52:00.000+01:00

One of Dhari's favourite things to play with is my sawar kameez scarves. Today, according to him, he was a little fairy flying around (with Kaiser Chiefs on in the background, of course...which is not so Waldorf inspired).

35/365

2011-04-04T11:41:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. A glorious Mother's Day weekend. The weather was kind, Dom and Kristine flew in from Dubai, and somewhere in Portland, Oregon, there is a talented lady making me a dress! I love Etsy.

2. Dhari's Hindi vocabulary is coming along nicely. He can now count to das (ten) and name his fingers: chichi, ungli, ungli, ungli, unguta! I have no idea about the spelling. Hindi uses an entirely different script/alphabet, so I guess it doesn't matter? He has also been going around reciting a little nursery rhyme that Shiv does with him. So cute.

3. Bike riding weather commences. Yes, I am a fair weather cyclist. Mainly because I don't often get the opportunity to hop on my bike anymore (the kiddie seat we bought for Dhari but never used won't work on my fold-up). Back when I cycled to work, I didn't let the rain deter me, simply because I couldn't face doubling the time of my journey by using public transportation. Now I can't wait to cruise down the road in the sunshine, wind in my hair, bug in my eye.

4. I've made my first attempt at amigurumi. I made a carrot. There were some ubiquitous penis-jokes of course. In the end, I assure you, it became a carrot.

Almost good enough to eat. Almost.

5. A while ago, Esther asked me to send her some pink animal bibs. I didn't have any fabric that suited, so was "forced" to buy new fabric, which is one of my favourite things to do. Two out of three have made their way to my door in the last couple days. They are SO cute. And the cutest is yet to come. I can't wait!

protest hoodie for a two year old

2011-03-29T10:05:00.000+01:00

So, Dhari had a whale of a time taking part in a little bit of activism on Saturday. His homemade hoodie went over very well indeed:

In case you're a little shocked that I was okay with my toddler attending a huge London protest (where there is always the ubiquitous, yet small group of masked anarchists who will, without end, live up to our expectations and smash things up), don't worry. Even though Dhari claims to be an anarchist, his Daddy kept him safe in the family-friendly part of the march.

Here's what Bagehot over at The Economist had to say about the march on Saturday:

"The main trade union march was strikingly peaceful. There were small children and babies in prams, and lots of marchers sitting down having picnics. The marchers were overwhelmingly public sector workers, and in real terms that meant the park was crammed with health visitors, nurses, teachers, college lecturers, tax inspectors and council town hall staff."

34/365

2011-03-28T11:15:00.000+01:00

Grace in small things.

1. On Sunday, hearing Dhari shouting, "March again! March again!" because he had so much fun at the March for the Alternative with his daddy on Saturday.

2. Starting the day with great intentions to get things done. I've managed to tidy my bedroom, dance around the (now tidy) lounge with Dhari singing "Don't Dumb Down" by the Rumble Strips (yes, Dhari got his ukelele out), clean the bathroom, re-list an item on Etsy and start this blog entry. For me, this is an achievement!

3. Staying out late on Saturday night to celebrate Ben and Jane's engagement and then having a midnight curry on Brick Lane. Yum.

4. All the compliments (mainly on Facebook) I got on my new tiny hair. Always very fun. A random man in Chiswick called out, "Crackin' eyes!" when I walked by on Saturday. It's a great compliment, but then, you always have to wonder, where is the line between an honest compliment and street harassment? Surely, it's defined by the way the comment makes the receiver feel. If it makes you smile, it must be a compliment. If it makes you uncomfortable, then harassment. For me, it made me smile, mainly because I get a kick out of the adjective "crackin'", because I associate it with Gavin and Stacey. What do you think? My clever friend Kate explores this very question here.

5. The way Dhari sounds like Snuffleupagus when he's really focused on something. He also sticks his lip out, which is a distinct Chappelow trait.

{handmade treasures} curated by waterpenny

2011-03-25T21:36:00.000Z

If there ever was a greener being with greater taste in green things, I sure as heck ain't met her...

My friend Dana, aka Water Penny, did an Etsy treasury! And of course it's beautiful and green and lush. And as she is an awesome friend, she included me in it as well. Take a peek:

Dana made the lovely quilt that looks like rows and rows and rows of lush green mountains.

33/365

2011-03-25T10:40:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. Not having a haystack weighing down my head anymore. I got my hair chopped. It's really short.

2. Dhari gave up his dummy on Monday in exchange for a "real guitar like Rumble Strips and Kaiser Chiefs." It's actually a ukelele, but don't tell him that.

3. Hanging out in the sunshine at Wimbledon Park yesterday with Maria, Marcus, Dhari and Belle. Very fun indeed!

4. My To Do list. It's mammoth, but it's also full of fun things (except one, which is "clean the flat"). The only problem is I want to do all of them now (except the no-fun one), so I haven't actually gotten much done at all. Does that make any sense?

5. The prospect of attending a stitch-in on Sunday afternoon, April 10th. A stitch-in! How awesome is that? I get to embroider a little train carriage that tells the minister of transport to stop punishing people (me) who don't drive.

Scrum-diddly-umptious.

2011-03-21T16:21:00.000Z

My flat smells awesome right now. Mainly because I live here (obviously. Just kidding). No, mainly because I've been working on a nice smell-good project. My friend Hazel asked me to make some lavender heart sachets for her to hang on doorknobs around her house. Her house is serene in a mainly cream/beige/grey/black sort of way. So here is what I made for her:

The pink one's for her daughter's room. :)

I'm well pleased with the outcome and hope Hazel is too (and Sophia!). These will definitely feature in my developing grownup etsy shop-to-be.

32/365

2011-03-19T10:09:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. Finishing my Red Nose Day bunting. I loved stitching Dana's (ahem, waterpenny's) super-cute protesting animals, especially as Dhari is going on the March For the Alternative with his papa next week. I like to imagine Dhari toddling along in solidarity with a turtle and a unicorn, shouting "Tories, Tories, Out-Out-Out!" By the way, did you know that COURTNEY LOVE is now a supporter of the Tories? She tweeted it, so it must be true.

"Tory now."

How completely random and bizarre is that? Nothing says rock'n'roll like conservative politics. I mean, look at Thatcher. The Sex Pistols loved her. I find this deeply amusing.

2. Meeting up with Claire and Hazel yesterday, and watching the madness that is four toddlers let loose on what would seem to be the greatest toys on earth. It was - and always is - an explosion of cute.

3. Being included in such a talented group of crafters at The Crafty Fox pop-up market. I'm really excited about this. I'm sure this is counter-productive, but I plan to save up some dosh from my weekly allowance (yes, it's come to this!) and pick one wonderful hand-crafted thing to buy at the market while I'm there.

4. Dana giving me a shout-out on her blog. Thanks Dana!

5. I raised £57.50 for Red Nose Day. I'm pretty proud of this as I have never been good at this sort of thing. Remember selling girl scout cookies? Or having to sell magazine subscriptions or those coupon books for your school sports team? Yeah, I pretty much sold some to my parents and that was it. And babybandito ended up donating a bit because a friend bought one of my stripy scarves.

If you're beating yourself up because you missed the deadline, not to worry. You can still donate here!

{red nose} The Real Red Nose Day!!!

2011-03-18T23:59:00.000Z

Finished!

What do we want? Healthy babies and happy mothers! When do we want it? Now!

Remember I set myself, somewhat ambitiously, a fundraising goal of £182 because that's how much it costs to send a maternity nurse in Tanzania to a one-week training course on child delivery, resulting in safer labour for mother and child.

embroidery pattern by waterpenny

Now...what on earth should I do with this bunting? I smell a giveaway coming on.

In the meantime, if you're still weighed down by lots of spare change in your pocket because you haven't yet donated to Comic Relief or to relief for Japan, get a move on! I've raised £50 so far, but still have £132 to go to meet my goal by the end of today! Thank you very very much to Hazel, Ben, Val & Shiv, Adele and Christine for your support. :)

{red nose} day nine

2011-03-17T13:25:00.000Z

Woo! Bias tape done! Now all I have to do is stick the flags in and sew, sew, sew...

Unless, of course, I grow too fond of this new style, and decide to keep it. I might be onto something - sort of a post-modernist take on the hijab.

Want to know how to make your own bias binding tape? Check out this blog, which is full of tutorials on how to do lots of quilty things.

Want to cheer on my efforts in the ultimate blog-friend way? Donate here. Remember, a little goes a long way.

{red nose} day eight

2011-03-16T23:53:00.000Z

So, this post is not as lazy as it looks. That twisted mess of pinned and marked fabric will, I assure you, become bias binding tape for my little embroidered flags. And that look on my face? Either mock excitement (because I hate making the stuff) or giddy excitement (because it looks like I may have actually gotten the whole convoluted process right!) We'll see, just as soon as I sew it, cut it and iron it. Tomorrow. Right now, I need sleep.

Go ahead and donate here. Last I checked, I still need £142 to reach my target! (Thanks Hazel, Ben, Val & Shiv for helping me get closer to the goal)

{red nose} day seven

2011-03-15T23:11:00.000Z

The gingham background will become binding tape. I'm hoping that if I just stare at it long enough with big googly eyes, it will magically become binding tape.

And the glorious red nose is actually the wax covering of a baby gouda.

Please please please donate! I set myself a target of £182 and have £172 to go... (thanks Hazel!)

{red nose} day six

2011-03-14T20:04:00.000Z

When do we want it?

pattern by waterpenny

Only three days left to donate!

{red nose} day five

2011-03-13T17:21:00.000Z

Oh, I'm rubbish and I'm sorry. This is supposed to be yesterday's, but I forgot then. Anyway, hippo finished!

pattern by waterpenny

Please, please please support Comic Relief and your fellow human around the globe by donating a bit of money here!

{red nose} day four

2011-03-11T23:15:00.000Z

Totally running out of ideas for red noses. So things might get odd.

Hippo wants to know when we want these healthy babies and happy mums.

Adorable pattern, still by Waterpenny!

Please donate to the cause here...

31/365

2011-03-10T22:51:00.000Z

Grace in Small Things.

1. A windfall of business for babybandito (much busier than what I'm used to anyway). Today was manic. Keep your fingers crossed that this might be a sign of what's to come! My aim is to one day turn a profit. Heh.

2. Dhari LOVES The Rumble Strips (oh hey, and so do I). His new favourite thing to do? Watch their videos and live clips on YouTube. Today, while watching the fantastic video for "Motorcycle", Dhari was really rocking out in front of the computer. We're talking a full-on head bobbing, fist pumping, teetering chair rock out session. Please remember that Dhari is two.
And for your viewing pleasure:

3. Daily Waterpenny embroidery sessions. Remember the tulips playing croquet? And how happy it made me to stitch on it every day? My Red Nose Day bunting is the same. Dana has drawn a collection of different, adorable animals, standing in solidarity for a cause; whether that's for cupcakes or the preservation of democracy in Wisconsin, it's wonderful.

4. Vaguely channelling a 1940s factory girl with my hair and make-up today. Okay, so maybe I just put a scarf on my head, but still.

5. Having a nice chat with my Jenny on Skype last night. That's always a treat!

{handmade treasures} by Ark Ceramic Arts

2011-03-10T21:48:00.000Z

Gordon over at Ark Ceramic Art curated a lovely treasury just for boys and men. And, I suppose, also for female types who like stuff generally made for boys and men. For example, the plush fox on the lower left corner (right next to that adorable child in the green spotty bib!) looks like Lola's favourite toy (from Charlie and Lola).

Take a closer look here.

{red nose} day three

2011-03-10T20:13:00.000Z

What do we want?

Why, healthy babies and happy mothers, of course!

This adorable pattern is by Waterpenny.

To donate to the Comic Relief fund, click on this link then select "Sponsor Me". Thanks!

{red nose} day two

2011-03-10T01:12:00.000Z

There! A completed (not part-pig!) unicorn! And she's almost got something to say...

To donate, please visit my Red Nose Day webpage!

pattern by Waterpenny

{red nose} day one

2011-03-08T23:52:00.000Z

Bah! A mischievous little house elf hid my black embroidery thread halfway through my first flag. That's why the unicorn looks a little odd and has nothing to say.

Support Comic Relief with babybandito

2011-03-08T21:05:00.000Z

I've decided to embark on a special crafting project for this Red Nose Day. Every day I will work towards festive bunting that demands proper support for mothers and babies in sub-Saharan Africa (using Waterpenny's adorable "Protesting Animals" design). In keeping with the spirit of Red Nose Day, I will post a daily picture of a red-nosed me and my bunting-in-progress here, on my blog. In addition to this creative endeavour, I will also be donating 50% of my takings from any red item in my Etsy shop to Comic Relief.

Please support me as your cash really can make a huge difference to the lives of vulnerable people across the UK and Africa. I have chosen my target as £182 because that is how much it will cost to pay for a maternity nurse in Tanzania to attend a seven day training course on child delivery care to ensure the safety and health of many mothers and their babies. Did you know that 40% of all child deaths occur in their first month of life? With properly trained nurses, maybe the little bubs will have a greater chance of survival.

To donate, visit my Red Nose Day page. Thanks!

Celebrate the Boy!

2011-03-08T10:32:00.000Z

Every cowboy needs some bunting, right?

30/365

2011-03-07T17:31:00.000Z

Grace in Small Things.

1. I've been invited to sell my stuff at the Crafty Fox Pop-Up Market in April! This is really exciting. It's a craft market at a bar (!!!) and is enthusiastically endorsed by Etsy UK, so it must be good. If you live anywhere near The Dogstar in Brixton, you need to come. We can make it a drinking game. Every time I sell a bib, you take a shot. I really hope you get wasted.

2. Dhari is giving away free kisses today. And I'm hogging them all. Mwah-hahah!

3. Old episodes of Mock the Week on Dave. I laugh. And laugh. And laugh. It's like The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, but with a quiz format. I can't wait for the new season to start.

4. Esther has helped me to Celebrate the Boy by ordering some more boy bibs. I made six last night!

5. "Sausages" and mash for dinner tonight. Mmm...

{pay it forward} Melissa

2011-03-07T09:07:00.001Z

I posted a pic of this before, but wanted to give all my giveaways their own post. So I deleted it and put it here instead.

My sister sews a lot. She has just enough OCD to make for excellent craftsmanship (and excellent presents - yay!). Therefore, a pincushion in co-ordinating materials right down to the matching buttons, seemed like the right thing to make for her.

Bonus - I got to use some more of my Heather Ross stash! I only have small bits and pieces (can't afford yardage of Heather Ross...weep) so have been looking for tiny projects as an excuse to use this adorable stuff. I love the shy little octopus. And the happy orange buttons. I wanted also to do a little pin sharpening strawberry thingy, but didn't have time. Ach, well. Nevermind.

29/365

2011-03-05T22:42:00.000Z

Grace in Small Things.

1. Using the last episode of Skins to clarify a student's understanding of what themes actually are.

2. Dhari was really really excited to see his grandmuma and granddad. It was cute.

3. I started making Hazel's lavender door hangers this evening. I think they're going to be luuurrrrvely and might have to make some for my own home too!

4. I already posted this on Facebook, but as I was getting off the bus at Richmond Station, an old man with awesome sideburns let me get off the bus first and then told me, "Your hair colour is really pretty." It was sweet and totally made me smile.

5. I discovered a little shout-out for my friend Dana on the Made By Rae blog today. Dana's featured design is the Dinosaur Rock Band. It makes me happy that she is getting major kudos all over the place, because she is awesome, talented and hilarious and she definitely deserves it.

{pay it forward} Heidi

2011-03-04T16:41:00.000Z

I had so much fun making an eco-bag for Jenny that I decided to make one for Heidi, in the same fabric as Jenny's handbag (and Dhari's stacking rings, and Kate's birds, and my market stall money belt...).
I got word from Heidi that she got the bag, which she used on a picnic! So here it is:

I really like the idea of this bag going on a picnic in Texas. I'm really proud of it; the other side is made of the orange stripy fabric and I used French seams, for the first time ever. Her boyfriend, Joseph, even said it looked like I bought it. Yay!

Heidi's an anti-plastic bag girl, so this was a good gift for her. She knows what murderous things plastic bags can do to sea-life.

28/365

2011-03-04T15:52:00.001Z

Grace in small things.

1. Tickling Dhari with my toes under the desk as I type this post.

2. The incredibly gorgeous and made-to-perfection eco-bags my sister made me for my birthday. I love them so much I occasionally give them little hugs when no one's looking. Thanks Mo!

3. Finally getting to give my sister her facebook handmade giveaway, which was a pincushion, and her immediately exclaiming, "I was wanting a pincushion!"

4. Also finally giving her the little crocheted clutch purse, referenced here, that I have worked so hard on these past months. She has decided not to use it as a cosmetics bag, as "it will get dirty." Awesome.

5. Fried food and beer for dinner with Marcus, Mo and Zach. A rare treat!

{pay it forward} Jenny

2011-03-03T16:02:00.000Z

I was really excited to make a handbag for my friend Jenny. Unfortunately, it turned out much smaller than expected (but she insists that she loves it and has an outfit that will go nicely with it). I wasn't happy sending just that to her, so I made an ecobag out of the same fabric I used to line the handbag. I love this fabric. I found it in a crazy textiles shop in Jaipur called Malani and bought about 10 yards of it. I also ended up using it to line the crocheted bag I gave my sister for her birthday. I never got around to taking a picture of that one. Wah.

27/365

2011-02-22T14:09:00.000Z

Grace in Small Things.

1. Sunshine.

2. Hanging out by the swimming pool.

3. Boat rides in the late afternoon.

4. Crafting, crafting, crafting.

5. Grits for breakfast!

Hugs & Kisses...

2011-02-14T09:03:00.000Z

26/365

2011-02-11T13:53:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. A fab night at the Jazz Cafe, up close and personal with London's cool set (including, but not limited to, Boy George - oh, I will never get over this...)

2. Facebook friends may recall me saying something about being desperate for a bit of Moet and macaroons. Well, the other evening, Marcus came home from work with the telltale Paul box. Inside it was the tastiest, most delectable raspberry macaroon ever (that I know of anyway). Yum.

3. I finished my stitching rendition of waterpenny's Sunday Afternoon! I did it at the edge of a pillowcase, then finished it off with some spring green grosgrain ribbon.

There are two more playful tulips to the right. If you want to see them, visit my flickr stream. I loved doing this embroidery. Waterpenny's (aka DanaK) illustrations just make me smile (remember the gingerbread zombies?). And stitching them to life makes me smile even more!

4. The success I've had on ebay the past couple of weeks. It's amazing how other people will willingly pay for your old stuff.

5. Only one week now, until I'm in sunny Florida. Yay! I know I've already listed this one before, but it just makes me THAT happy.

{make do and mend} giving jeans a second chance

2011-02-08T15:57:00.000Z

I couldn't understand. How could a £150 pair of jeans wear through after less than a year of usage? The last ones I spent a fortune on over at Diesel lasted me five years! Then I realised...This past year, jeans have (sadly enough) become my day-to-day uniform and I spend half my day on my hands and knees chasing a two year old. So of course the knees would be shot. Instead of tossing them (how could I? In times like these?), I mended them:

And then there were the cropped Armani Exchange jeans, which I've had for six years. Again, the right knee self-destructed only a few weeks before the Diesels broke my heart. But with these, I didn't much like the length anyway, so I decided not to mend, but to alter:

I'm pretty pleased with the results on both. I know the Make Do and Mend mentality has made a resurgence, what with the recession and environmental consciousness pervading absolutely everything - it's all very stylish. And as important as it is for us not to be wasteful, it's also wonderfully fun.

25/365

2011-02-08T10:53:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. A kindly British Gas HomeCare engineer. What a rare, rare thing. He even wished me a "lovely day" and told me to "take care". !

2. Dhari only tried to hop in bed with us once last night! Easy win.

3. Embracing the WW2 era "Make Do and Mend" mentality

(not because it's Recession Chic, but because I actually really and truly don't have enough money to buy a new pair of jeans...maybe I shouldn't have bought the lace necklace? Naw, that was needed), and finding myself pretty successful in my efforts.

4. Crossing tasks off lists. ScribbleScribbleScribble

5. Bored to Death. I've never seen anything with Jason Schwartzman in it that wasn't completely AWESOME.

Valentine's-ing up the shop.

2011-02-07T10:37:00.000Z

Stolen!

2011-02-07T09:45:00.000Z

In case you didn't already know how covetable my little animal scarves are, you soon will. We have good reason to believe that someone STOLE Dhari's scarf on Sunday at the pub! I imagine this is what happened...

Dhari was enthralled by the rugby on tv, or Auntie Debbie's necklace, or something similar. His adorable little grey and red striped animal scarf (The Original) slipped off the back of his pushchair in the hustle and bustle of pub-life. Another toddler with an excellent sense of fashion toddled along, noticed the neglected scarf, liked it, and took it back to his/her table. Mum very conveniently didn't notice until they were halfway home that her child was wearing someone else's very cute scarf. But being dishonest and greedy, she didn't bother going back to see if anyone was missing it. If she had done, she'd have seen Marcus and Debbie searching around for it frantically, crying and tearing at their hair with grief for the missing scarf.

I really don't know. I wasn't there.

So I made Dhari a new scarf. It is intentionally ambiguous, with the very boyish blue camouflage fleece and pink/orange girlie bicycles. Dhari likes pink bicycles - and who am I to stamp this preference out of him?

bicycle fabric by Heather Ross

Process of elimination

2011-02-05T10:16:00.000Z

I narrowed it down from 48 to 2. I picked these because while I may sometimes be adept at picking out some clothes that look nice, my skills at accessorising are poor. That's why I prefer dresses to anything. I'm a lazy dresser. These are good accessories, and I have clothes that would be perfectly happy hanging out with these cuties. Which one though?

by white owl

by Spinthread

{handmade treasures} Feelin' the love again!

2011-02-04T10:28:00.002Z

Another shout out for my chicken bib! Do you recognise any familiar items? Like maybe the bicycle bag? Yep! It's been in one of my own treasuries and sits quietly on my favourites page, just waiting to be bought. Maybe this is a sign? That I should just go ahead and buy it? But then...I have a lot of bags...And I think I might end up buying the golden lace necklace.

24/365

2011-02-03T22:17:00.003Z

Grace in small things.

1. So, I've saved up some monies, and have decided to go ahead and open Pandora's box. Or a can of worms. Or what-have-you. I am going to actually, really and truly, buy something off my favourites page on Etsy!!! The only problem is, I have THREE pages of favourites and I can't decide what to get? I only have £40. Please help me decide. Just have a look, and then in the comments section, let me know what you think. I need retail therapy, but I want to do it right. Handmade. Or vintage, of course.

2. Today, I stripped Dhari down to his nappy, cranked up the heating, and set him to work on some awesome little sponge-paintings. I'm going to cut them in half now and use them for his very belated thank you cards. He definitely had some fun painting himself and even tasting the paint once or twice.

I got the idea originally from an article at Rhythm of the Home by Jean Van't Hul, which I read ages ago. Then the other day, I saw something similar on Mister Maker (oh, CBeebies...), so decided to give it a try on different colours of craft paper. Next time, I'll most definitely use Jean's suggestion of a stretched canvas. Less likely to tear.

3. Dhari keeps pulling down the Serge Gainsbourg albums. This is fantastic because it means he already has excellent taste in music. "Ooh ooh ooh! Cha cha cha du loup!"

4. Cherry 7up.

5. Florida. Bring it.

In love with embroidery...

2011-02-03T21:38:00.000Z

This is one of my much more wearable favourite items of clothing. I bought it years ago, really excited because I bagged a bargain AND it looked like something Moschino Cheap & Chic had been churning out at the time. Now I love it for those reasons AND it has screen print, embroidery and lace applique. What more can one really ask for in a blazer? I mean really?

I'm only doing fashion-drool posting again because I've been spending too much time over at The Glamourai and not enough time crafting. Oops. Wasn't this blog supposed to be about creating more and consuming less?

23/365

2011-02-01T16:28:00.000Z

Grace in small things.

1. My Matthew Williamson dress. I got to bust it out for the second time ever (first time, Angie Lang-Mendenhall's wedding, woot-woot!) on Saturday for Nina and Nirmal's 25th wedding anniversary. And boy-oh-boy, am I ever glad I did? Had I worn anything even a teensy-weensy less colourful or sparkly, I would have felt like I was wearing burlap. Indian ladies know how to dress for an occasion (I'm not one for stereotyping, but this has largely been my impression over time - plus, it's a big huggy-kissy compliment, so just shush). I love my dress. Unfortunately, I can't find any full-length pics of me in it, nor can I find any pics of it being worn by some waif-like model on the Internet. So you'll just have to imagine. It is these colours and fabrics:

Put into this shape and design:

Both dresses are Matthew Williamson, of course. And while we're at it, here's the man himself:

Only this man could have come up with those dresses. Am I wrong?

I especially love this dress right now because I am newly obsessed with embroidery (didn't you know?). Also, because I you can wolf down a whole box of Mr. Kipling lemon cake slices on my your own and still slink around in it comfortably.

2. A cuddly toddler in my lap right now.

3. My friend Tanya, who gave Dhari a pack of art supplies. Thanks Tans. It keeps the munchkin occupied for at least half an hour everyday. Taking all the pens out...swapping the lids around...putting the pens back in...

4. Laundry. It's the only housework I actually enjoy. Not ironing though. That's different. And not fun at all.

5. The sounds of squealing adolescent girls outside my window every weekday at around 4pm. School lets out and so do they. My goodness!

22/365

2011-01-26T09:26:00.000Z

Grace in Small Things.

1. Dhari knows the words to "Sleepyhead" by Ed Harcourt. Can you imagine how adorable it is to hear him sing,

"And the night is cold, my favourite time
And the day is old, plays tricks on my mind..."

like some tired old man who's worked in the City for far too long?

2. Tulips playing croquet. I get so happy every evening when I sit down with my embroidery hoop and all that colourful thread, to get a little bit more done on this project. DanaK has a very special mind. She has somehow managed to give each tulip very different emotions and personalities. And they don't even have faces! Body language can tell us so much.

3. Finally having our Hammerpress prints on the wall. We have El Corazon y El Craneo next to each other in the lounge. They are awesome. Thank you Mom and Dad for the framing.

4. Marcus did the dishes last night. Thank you Marcus.

5. Waking up early enough to take a shower before Dhari is up and running around (opening the bathroom door, pulling the shower curtain over his head and saying, "Hi Mummy!" when I've forgotten to lock the door). It meant I had to get dressed in the dark this morning because Dhari was in our bed again. But it's still a good thing.

Arrr...Shiver me timbers...

2011-01-25T14:29:00.000Z

This is Dhari's new pillowcase. I embroidered some nice piratey swords in the corners for him.

pattern by Sublime Stitching

Tasty Tuesday: Egg-Fried Quinoa

2011-01-25T11:04:00.000Z

This recipe is from a Food Doctor recipe book. I always adapt it depending on what I actually have in the fridge. I present it to you in my favourite adapted form. It's really easy to make, and full of yummy goodness. It supposedly serves two people, but I bet three would be perfectly satisfied sharing this. Possibly four, if one of them is a very small person.

Ingredients:
150g (5oz) quinoa
300ml (1/2 pint) very light stock
3 cloves garlic, peeled
3 eggs
2 tbsp olive oil, plus a little extra for the eggs
1 large shallot
1/2 or 1/4 tsp chilli powder (according to your own tastes)
1 small onion, finely sliced
1 tbsp water
1 courgette/zucchini (same thing / different name), sliced into ribbons using a potato peeler
2 peppers (different colours - I like to use yellow and red because there's already green on the courgette), deseeded and finely sliced
3 spring onions, shredded
1tbsp soy sauce

Instructions:
Simmer the quinoa in the stock with one garlic clove for about 20 minutes, until it is cooked and the fluid is absorbed. (You may need to add more water, depending on how powerful your stove is. Mine is pretty powerful.) Then mash in the garlic. Yum-yum-yum.

Scramble the eggs, using a little oil, until firm. Set aside.

Blend the shallot, two cloves garlic and chilli powder in a blender.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a wok and cook this paste over a gentle heat for a few minutes. Add a bit more oil and the onion, and cook for 5 minutes or so. Add the water, courgette and peppers and cook for a couple minutes until they soften. Stir in the spring onion, soy sauce, quinoa and egg, cook until piping hot and serve.

There you have it! A healthy, tasty and colourful meal. Sure to please the tastebuddies. And it's one of those slow-burn energy foods that everyone is (or isn't? I don't know...) talking about.

Bah!

2011-01-21T19:12:00.000Z

I am so ashamed. I misspelled my cookie word. I am so embarrassed by this mishap that I just might bake new cookies just so I can right my wrong.

I am going to curl up and die now.

21/365

2011-01-21T12:42:00.000Z

Grace in Small Things.

1. After having proudly crocheted a very even rectangle of red (for my little Facebook giveaway where I've pledged to make something for five people and somehow ended up with seven recipients...it would seem that my friends know I'm a pushover), I realised that I didn't have enough red yarn to finish the project. So I gingerly tugged on the thread a bit, and then went nuts with unravelling the whole thing. Marcus was horrified. "Suz, what are you doing? You worked so hard on that! Don't pull it apart!" Fair enough. I spent ages on it and it looked very professional (in my humble opinion). But I thoroughly enjoyed pulling it apart. There's a lovely cocktail of freedom, anarchy and nihilism involved in such things. Like messing up a 1000 piece puzzle after spending days putting it together. I love that.

2. After pulling apart my red rectangle, I was left with a heaping pile of red yarn, which to my sick sensibilities, looked to me like a tiny mountain of entrails. I know that's gross, but I found it funny. Sometimes I think that I'm actually a seven year-old boy.

3. This morning, Marcus and I taught Dhari to say, "Namaste. Meera nam Dhari, heh," Which, of course, is "Hello. My name is Dhari," in Hindi. He needs to learn this because we're convening with the Indians (dot, not feather) next weekend, and he will charm their socks off anyway, but this would just be the piece de resistance.

4. Letter and number shaped cookie cutters. They're a pain in the ass to use, but the finished product is excellent. What could be more fun than spelling out funny things with tiny cookies and then devouring them with your loved ones?

Oh yeah, and it's educational for Dhari. He has to identify the letter or number before he eats it.

5. Fashion on the Ration is wonderfully inspiring. And it links with a project I intend to undertake once I brush up on my embroidery skills at The Make Lounge tomorrow.

Welcome to the monkey house. And the bird house. And the um...elephant house?

2011-01-18T11:08:00.001Z