Three upcycled outfits in 3 days.

Day 1: Big smile in her skirt into dress....oh and a sneaky owl!

Day 2: A Mary Poppins impersonation before leaving home. Another skirt made into a dress.... yes and am "Over it" Brooch to finish it off.

Day 3: Orientation done! I think a song is in order. Men's shirt into a skirt and top.

Leading up to orientating 5 year olds to school, she began getting very excited about upcycling skirts into dresses.

We had made one in the past, and she really enjoyed wearing it….bit small now…

On a recent trip to the Op Shop, 5 year old bought me the two ladies skirts and suggested we make dresses for her ‘try out days’. She called them this because  she was under the impression that she would try it…ask the teachers a few questions (Like what is 2+2… because if they didn’t know, then she thought they wouldn’t make very good teachers)…..

Anyway we thought we would turn it into a fun activity together. She would pick some pieces from the Op Shop and I would make her some things to wear. While I sewed she sat on the floor and floated around watching and learning what Mummy does.

These are what we ended up with!

The first one is simply made by attaching ribbons to the top of the skirt and tying them together at the shoulder.

With dress two, I made fixed straps with ribbon and attached the ties. I also added a little ribbon on the skirt yoke to draw the ribbon print into the overall dress.

The skirt and top is a little complex to explain in a sentence, but I hope to share a tutorial of how to do it soon. It’s a great (cheap) way to introduce children to sewing…..

Bliss Bomb: The Little Pink Owl. ( Read carefully…… give-away time)

The Little Pink Owl

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hd: Tell us a little about yourself….

lk: My name is Lynne Keasey and I am 39. I am married with a wonderful husband and have 4 amazing children ranging in ages from 6-20 years of age. I live in Mailtand, NSW. I have always loved being creative and enjoy making things for people and seeing there smiling faces when they see them. I enjoy spending time with my family, reading (when I get a chance), watching movies with my husband and generally just enjoying life.

Asian Dolly by The Little Pink Owl.

Dolly by The Little Pink Owl.

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hd: Sounds idyllic…..What did you think you would be doing when you were in school? 

lk: I had many things I thought I would like to do when I was at school. A kindergarten teacher, a hairdresser, a dancer, a truck driver (I know that sounds strange but I thought a pink truck would be cool- it only lasted a little while that one.) and a MUM.

hd: Well, it looks like you are doing some of that, so how did you get  to this creative point in your life?

lk: I have always loved creating things- I started with scrap booking and then my husband bought me a sewing machine a year ago and I started tinkering around with it and loved it. I found that when I made things people loved them and so I thought maybe it might be something I should go into. My husband and I have a cleaning business as a primary source of income but craft has always been my passion. Once people started showing interest in my creations I thought it would be great to follow that and see where it could take me. It has been a fun journey so far and it is only growing more and more each day.

My husband has been a great support just as my children have which I think is amazing that they allow me to follow my dreams and have it bring me such happiness.

Zebra Softie by The Little Pink Owl.

Panda by The Little Pink Owl.

 ……………………………………………..hd: Tell us a bit about what you create….

lk: I have many things that I make currently. I make animal softies and dolls that are from the “Dolls and Daydreams” patterns. I make owl softies in different sizes and patterns that we came up with. I do hair accessories, scrabble tile necklaces and bottlecap pendants, button bracelets, fabric covered earrings, beanies and scarves for winter.

Fox Softie by The Little Pink Owl.

Meercat by The Little Pink Owl.

 ……………………………………………….hd: And such a gorgeous range of things. I love that. Have you always loved making things? 

lk: I have always enjoyed making things. My mother is very creative and clever with sewing and things and I guess I have followed her somewhat. I love having a go at many different things and trying to learn new crafts all the time. Essentially I have only being sewing for the last year and I love it. I remembered how to thread the machine from high school when I did Textiles and design in year 10. My Mum taught me to knit when I was about 16years old and I love to do it as it relaxes me.

I started back to craft one day when cleaning out my daughters closet and found a little pair of shorts and thought I could make her a bag out of them and recycle them. Then I made a bag out of them and decided maybe I could make more and sell them and it just went from there. I never did follow through with the bags yet as I ended up making other things but that is where it started I guess.

Scrabble Tile Necklaces by The Little Pink Owl.

Rudolf the Reindeer necklace by The Little Pink Owl.

Little Black Bird Necklace by The Little Pink Owl.

hd: You heard it here people, upcycling can do great things for your creativity. What did that first sale feel like?

lk: My first sale was so exciting it was to someone who I have admired on facebook for a long time and she happened to be at my first markets and bought the first item.  I have since built a great relationship with her and she is very supportive of me and what I do and she now sells my toys on her website, Sweet Little Birdy. I also love when people walk past my stall and smile and get such enjoyment from what I make, it brings me such joy.

My Favourite! Lamb by The Little Pink Owl.

hd: It sounds like it has been a whirlwind success. What would you like to offer the  ’Friends of harrysdesk’? 

lk: I would like to offer 2 deals for your readers.

If your readers go to my facebook page and like it and say they came from “Harry’s desk” and write the animal softie that they like. I will at the end of the time frame draw their name out and whoever is picked will get that softie free and posted to them free of charge. They must say they are from you though as it is only for your readers this offer. This chance to win will finish on the 10th of December, 2011 at 8:00pm EST.

* Small Print: If you are an overseas reader you are welcome to join in but the additional postage will need to be paid by the winner! 

hd: Yes you read right. You could win a softie from The Little Pink Owl. Awesome….. and your offering somethings else? 

 Yes, I will offer a $5 discount on any animal softie that they like, so instead of it costing them $35 they will only pay $30 plus the postage (from $6:60 ) This is only on the animal softies that are in the folder on my facebook page named animal softies. (It will not include the reindeer or skeleton)

hd: Thanks so much Lynne.

You can also visit Lynne’s MadeIt Store (if you are not on facebook)….. and come back here and leave a comment saying that you have done this.

harrysdesk now available a Little Big Tween

New to King Street Newtown.

You can now get harrysdesk brooches and hair accessories from LBT King Street Newtown.

If you have children size 6 to 14 this shop is well worth a look. Great appropriately styled clothes for this age group.

Due to the one off nature of harrysdesk products you will need to pop into the store to see them…. 541 (south) King Street, Newtown walking towards St Peter’s Station….. yes! the groovy end of King Street.

For everything else, or if you are a non-local,  you can visit the website.

Inside Little Big Tween.

 

A very cute end of holiday project…… the snuggly owl.

How cute is this! Image from Sewing Republic.

This is such a cute little project.

PDF of pattern pieces and tutorial can be found here.

It would look great made from reclaimed materials too!

harrysdesk now available at My messy room.

Yes…it’s so exciting! harrysdesk pieces are now available at ‘My Messy Room’

‘My messy Room’ is a quaint and sweet kids and interiors shop with interesting yummy things at every turn.

Here’s how Stav (the owner) describes it…..

‘A stylish life, a room that’s rife with fabulous favourite things! A space for us, and all our fuss, full of the the joy that family brings. This t-shirts too tight – but fits my brother just right, these hand me-downs still have style that bites! With pretend chef hats we’ll learn how to cook! Then we’ll snuggle for hours with your favourite blanket and book. Play hopscotch and elastics and have old fashioned fun, and on hot summer days we’ll make sandcastles in the sun……

…My Messy Room stocks all sorts of interesting and unique Gifts, Furniture, Books, Clothing, Toys and Decor including; vintage wallpaper, hair clips, vintage prints, retro lamps, plushies, hand made dolls, paper dolls, designer children’swear, baby brands, games and puzzles, nostalgic gifts, children cooking, childhood keepsakes, family heirlooms, children’s bedding. ‘

….. and now harrysdesk brooches, owl brooch making kits and giant hair ties!

HOORAH!

My Messy Room: 111a Smith St, Summer Hill, Sydney NSW 2130 …or visit online 

 

…..just follow the owl……?

This looks fascinating….. Pottermore!

ht: Chris Morphew 

 

 

 

Did you win the anniversary bag?

Is your name Heidi?

Heidi is the winner of the anniversary bag!

The random generator must know something…. Heidi was the first person ever to buy a harrysdesk bag. So I guess it’s kind of fitting that she win the 2 year anniversary bag. She already has a bag named after her…so not sure what we will do about that one.

She wanted a green bag to go with her winter coat, so I had better get busy.

Thanks everyone who entered.

I love giving things away that I make… so I decided to award 3 more people (chosen randomly) to send a little something to. An owl brooch will arrive in the post for you soon.

They are Lauren, Sonyabossypants, and Claire.

And three more little treats, because it’s my 500th post.

SO congratulations… (randomly generated again from the last 5oo comments)

Ingrid, Cathy and Kate Marquez will all receive my latest creation. The fox brooch!

If anyone else would like a little fox for their cardi or coat….just contact me. It will take a little bit of time to get them listed in the etsy shop…. but there is really no need to wait.

 

Commission for Tom

 

The combination of fabrics before piecing.

This was a super exciting project to do for a couple of reasons…

1. Tom is my first ever customer commission via etsy.
2. It was the first commission I have made using a mix of fabrics (not ties) given to me from the client and fabrics I found to go with it. This was a little scary at first, because you just never know what the reclaim world is going to have for you at any given time… let alone to a deadline.
3. Although I haven’t met Tom, we have emailed often through the process of the bag making, and he was always really encouraging and full of energy.
4. The bag is for his wife Ciara for their second wedding anniversary, the theme cotton…. and it is a surprise! Sweet.

What’s not to like?

Here’s the finished bag…..

 

Made from authentic Scottish tartan and reclaimed ties.

 

Owl brooch close-up.

Inside. Owl fabric from Tom. Pocket made from reclaimed cargo pants.

Bottom with gorgeous green shank buttons.

 

I included 2 owls as a surprise. One for each of them on their 2nd anniversary.

Commission for Sue

Upcycled wallet front .... complete with matching owl brooch

...coin zipper... other side

Inside... many card pockets...

...other inside...

Commission by Sue as a gift for Heidi

… and, like the bags and other things I usually make, the wallet is made from men’s neckties and lined with reclaimed textiles.

The design was taken fairly literally from a sample I was given. I’d like to try some with some changes, but we will see.

There are more of these to come… Sue wants one for herself now.

Some new owls….

New owls for palace Panrty…