christmas : one

Yesterday we spent a gorgeous afternoon at the Titirangi Rudolf Steiner School Advent Fair. I didn't really know what to expect but the highlight for me was making a wreath for our front door. I had I no idea how brilliant it would be, if I had I would have documented the process, instead I just have the reveal shot, above. This will no doubt be a yearly event so I will post in full next November.

My understanding of the Steiner school philosophy is that it focus' on the importance of our natural environment, creativity and freedom of thought. So making your own wreath is a perfect extension of these ideas.

macrame kitsets

BASIC MACRAME HANGER KITSET

In addition to our macrame workshop we have created kitsets for to you make your own at home or to give as gift. The hanger is made to fit a 15cm terracotta pot as pictured.

The kitset contains: macrame braid, 1 brass ring and instructions.
You will also need: scissors, tape or a lighter and a ruler or measuring tape

To purchase email us at mimaandmoo@gmail.com
Kitsets are $30.00 each

We currently have the following colours available-  ivory, neon yellow, orange, jute and black. If you want specific colour please email as we are placing another braid order shortly.

macrame magic

We just completed our first craft workshop on basic macrame hangers. Everyone who attended loved it, so it was well worth the effort. 
We thought we would share some photos with you...

We created a hanging display to show case the hangers we had made and different ways of using them. We were very lucky to include  fascinating terrariums from Bio Attic in the display.

Everyone took home a potted succulent so they could enjoy their hanger straight away.

We also enjoyed a delicious afternoon tea featuring cakes from The Caker.

It was a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon, thank you to everyone who helped and came along!

recycled : flower decorations

I'm constantly trying to find cheap or free things to do or make with Moo and her little friend that comes our house once a week.

Today we made recycled toilet paper roll decorations. They'd be great for christmas tree's or for any kind of party.

What you'll need: 
Toilet rolls - 1 per flower
Scissors  (Pinky shears or craft decorative edge scissors make a nice edge)
Stapler 
Twine or string
Paint, pens, glitter to decorate

Flatten toilet roll in half. Cut toilet roll into 5 or 6 equal sized rounds to create petals. Staple together as close to centre of flower as your staple will allow. Keep joining until all petals are added.

 

Tie twine through one of the petals. Decorate.

garden : one

I really love growing my own vegetables. 
We moved into our current house about a year ago and with Mima keeping me very busy, I haven't had time to organise our courtyard garden. But I plan to create an epic edible garden that will feed us year round. I have dabbled in growing vegetables in the past, but I am no expert!
We live in an unusual community, Freemans Park, lots of terraced houses and apartments built in the 1960s scattered throughout an established park only 15minutes walk from the city. So beyond our small courtyard (approx 6m x 4m) are the most amazing giant trees. It really is beautiful. 
That's right I only have 6m x 4m to create this edible paradise, so just a bit of a challenge. This spring / summer I want to experiment and get back into gardening. 
Recently I found an amazing edible gardening website POD Gardening, and spent an evening watching their tutorials, reading articles, looking at the inspirational POD gardens (like Selby in the garden) and checking out their seed catalogue, I can't recommend it enough!
So I made a planting plan for the courtyard, brought seeds from POD and seedlings from Weathersfield Organics.

It is much cheaper to grow from seed and some seeds you can plant straight in the ground. Having said this with a small garden I will only want one or two tomato plants so I brought these as seedlings. Below is a list of what I got:
GROW FROM SEED
Mesclun mix
Tom Thumb Lettuce
Carrot - Rainbow mixed
Parsley
Marigold - petite mix
Calendula
GROW FROM SEEDLING
Tomato - Money Maker
Cherry Tomato
Corn
Courgette

time to get crafty

around my house : three

With Halloween only days away I wanted to share some Day of the Dead items from around my house. They are on display all year round but take pride of place this week.
Day of the Dead is actually on November 1, a celebration connected to the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day (November 2). It is the opportunity for people to remember those who have passed, they visit the cemeteries and decorate the graves of loved ones with their favourite flowers, food etc.
A few years ago I was lucky enough to experience Day of the Dead in Mexico. I will never forget the color and chaos of the celebrations.
This little skeleton in a box (above) actually came for Olvera Street the Mexican heart of LA. It is tiny, matchbox sized the detail is amazing, I love this little diorama.

This candle was a wedding favor by Tiffany Jeans, these favors inspired her to create her gorgeous candle business Curio Noir.

These pottery skull beads which Mima loves also came from Oaxaca in Mexico.

This odd pottery cup also came from Mexico.

Happy Halloween and Day of the Dead!