Recycled inspirations...

Great use of tea towels in the wall hanging and cushion! You can see more tea towel goodness here

Words and pictures: Rainy Day

I like walking through puddles

I love rainy days.

I like watching the clouds darken

I love walking in the rain, if only to smell the rain on tar and experience the temperature change upon entry into a warm room.

One of my favourite times to garden is when it's raining...

I like feeling safe under my umbrella



Rain

I love lying in bed at night and listening to the rain on our tin roof.

Hot showers are always better after being out in the rain.

Got something to say or images to share? Join us here

Best bedside table ever

cute hey?

These made me laugh

menstrual calendars!

Thoughts on an autumn morning in Melbourne

Do you ever feel like your life is fragmented with lots of bits that don't really fit together? I feel like this alot. It's not exactly a bad thing, but it's more that I can't help thinking sometimes that it would be easier to be really good at one thing or have one clear passion in life. I like lots of different things but lack the drive/ability to make any one my clear succes.

At the moment it feels a bit like this.

I work full time in academic advocacy. I enjoy it but I feel a bit embarassed that I am one of the longest serving staff in my company. There's not really any opportunities for career progression but I earn a good salary with lots of little perks and I love the people I work with. As a person with mental illness, I need stability and structure and familiarity in my day to day tasks. Working in education gives me alot of stability and I have been quite well for a while now.

I write (periodically) for The Dawn Chorus and have an article on issues around female sex drive due to be published in Filament magazine.

I make crafty things for Polka Dot Rabbit but most recently it feels like alot of effort given that it's a bit too much work around a full time day job. I love creating and making things but alot of my orders are for the same products all the time which takes the creativity out of things a bit as it can just feel like work. I could probably technically make enough money to create crafty things full time but the thought makes me feel tired. I am starting to feel a great pull toward more arty recycled products but don't quite have the confidence/skill to get it all together. I really want to be able to draw well but don't draw anywhere near enough. I'd love to be able to do an art show or exhibition. I really enjoyed doing the craftea chat workshops and I'd like to set up a not for profit for such work but I lack the time/energy to do the extensive business things that are required to get this moving.

Greenrenters is starting to kick off quite well but we're not quite sure where to take it. There's always the possibility of grants and such but we both work full time and we're not quite sure about the next step.

I'm going overseas for a month in June. This is excited as we would like to live overseas one day. Being over 30 makes this a bit difficult but not impossible. I'm becoming more and more interesting in environmental issues but I still love arty crafty things and social justice and feminist issues. I love volunteering and festivals and workshops and galleries and cafes and all sorts of things. I tend to start things without finishing them and I often feel overwhelmed by choices in my life so I end up in a state of inertia.

Some of my disjointed dreams:

-opening an all day English style breakfast cafe with space for evening classes and workshops

-having an art/craft studio in a co-op environment. I couldn't work alone all day.

-living in Eastern Europe

-being fit and healthy (and yes, thin) instead of being plagued by the tyranny of eating issues

-running a not for profit with workshops and training full time

Perhaps I am of a generation which will never specialise in one career/passion/focus? Not wanting children gives me alot of freedom, the future is exciting. But it's also so uncertain....

Inspire me...what blogs do you read?

I'm looking for new/more blogs to add to my reading collection. What blogs inspire you each day?

Things i like today

Mandarins are in season again!

Cute cardi

Two cheese please's handstamped fabric

Little heroes mixed media work

Scrabble kitchen tiles

Things i like today

Cute cushion:

my new shoes!:

Colouring In Wallpaper by John Burgerman!

Catching up

I've been really busy the last few months and I am thinking and feeling about the merits of voluntary simplicity. I'm starting to burn out a little and I need to focus on what's important to me and acheiving my goals. Rest and rejuvinate a bit and tick some work stuff off the list. One day at a time.

Play along with Words and Pictures!

Make your own dishwashing detergent!

Recipe here

Happy Earth Day!

LucyCat takes the most beautiful nature photographs. I wanted to share some with you on earth day as I've been looking through them all and it really reminds me what life is all about, the bigger picture...

Mr Bluebird sitting pretty:

One of Lucy's Nesting Boxes:

Mrs Bluebird minding the eggs:

They've hatched!:

Getting ready to fly:

Here they go:

Happy and free!:

Beautiful, don't you think?

Do you make your own yogurt?

Anyone have a good recipe?

Change is blowing....

I had a wonderful but tiring weekend at the Melbourne Social Forum ( I was one of the organisers) and I am starting to think about some new creative ideas, ways for social and environmental engagement, voluntary simplicity and lots more...stay tuned..

ps- Have you visted our Green Renters site yet? Here's our weekend stall:

pics I like today: (from ffffound)

Magic Sewing Machines

Saudi police say they are investigating a hoax that has seen people rushing to buy old-fashioned sewing machines for up to $50,000 (£33,500).
The Singer sewing machines are said to contain traces of red mercury, a substance that may not exist.

But it is widely thought that it can be used to find treasure, ward off evil spirits or even make nuclear bombs.

It is believed that tiny amounts can sell for millions of dollars, the Saudi Gazette reported.
The paper said that trade in the sewing machines was brisk across the country.
Rumours about the sewing machines have been spreading for days by word of mouth and over the internet, it said.

These included rumours that foreign experts and companies had been buying up Singers.
In Dhulum, it was reported that people had broken into two tailors' shops to steal the machines.
In the city of Madina, people were holding mobile phones up to the machines, due to the belief that they could be used to detect the presence of red mercury.

An interior ministry spokesman said authorities were trying to discover who had spread the rumours.

"We have to find out who started this hoax," he told Reuters news agency.
"People hope to make profit," he added. "This is no different to cases of citizens who put their money in untrustworthy schemes."

Excuse my messy blog

My beloved is going to fix my coding soon

Cate's clean green cleaning list

Blogger question someone may be able to answer...

How do I get a column of links on either side of my entries? At the moment I only have one column on the left and can't quite work it out...

quizzically yours,

Cate

xx

Make your own washing powder!

Have you ever thought of making your own washing powder? We all want to do our bit for the environment but like me, you may find the $10+ costs for a container of ‘enviro friendly’ washing machine powder a bit prohibitive.

So, here’s what I tried…I got all the ‘ingredients’ from plain old Safeway supermarket. I always have good intentions to go to a local organic grocer or co-op but I work 9-5 like many and a 80 minute commute each way means I have limited access to organic type shops. Borax (sodium borate) seems to be a contentious ingredient . Some recipes mentioned Borax, others said, no, no it will kill your plants and garden worms. So I went without for this recipe. In general, I use borax for washing really smelly towels and sneakers as I’ve tried nothing else works as well. It can be added to your washing water but personally I limited it to grey water which goes on hardier non-edible pot plants.

I got my recipe from this wonderful blog Towards Sustainability.
Laundry powder

You need:

2 cups washing soda**:

4 cups grated pure soap (e.g. Sunlight soap) or Lux Flakes:

I also added some tea tree oil Mix all ingredients together well, and store in a plastic container with a lid. Use 2 tablespoons per wash.

* Borax is a naturally occurring mineral (sodium borate) but too much on your garden is toxic to plants and worms, so if you are going to use your grey water on your garden, leave out the Borax.

** Washing soda is the mineral sodium carbonate and in Australia is commonly known by the brand name “Lectric”. Lectric soda comes in crystal or powdered form - the powder is much easier to use as it dissolves in the wash water more quickly.

ta dah!

Thifty finds in Port Fairy...

PortFairy had a lovely weekend craft market (well we ended up buying date and nutloaf and fig jam) and I found these lovelies:

Orange table cloth and tree themed pillow cases. I think the tablecloth would make a gorgeous skirt:
Clarice Cliff bowl for $3 due to crack in it! Bargain! I don't mind the crack, I can store something in it! Also some lovely tea cups for candle or succulent pot making :-):

Runaway bunnies!

This is why you should desex your bunnies...

Things I love today...

Vintage shirt patchwork quilt. You can see a tutorial here

Plushie from Edward and Lily

Crayon rings by Timothy Liles