Yes, it’s no surprise that I heart Owls :-)

It makes me giddy when members of my family ‘get it‘ too. A relative in the USA is an owl-lover (in addition to being just a naturally cool chick :-)) and sent me this necklace - a favourite of mine - last year:

I knew I had to send her one of my grumpy owls for her birthday. It’s two months late but Omega the Owl is finally taking flight and is on his way to her home:

I had a lot of fun picking out all the fabric bits - a mix of vintage and designer pieces :-)

In more owly news, I recently released my newest softie sewing pattern through Pattern Press - Bubbly the Owl. He’s currently available through the Haby Goddess, with more stockists to be added very soon (full list of current stockists of my sewing patterns can be found here).

By the way, thank you to those of you who have emailed me to let me know you visited the giant fawn at Sportsgirl - and some have emailed me pics as well. I’ve enjoyed reading your messages and giggled at your photos (in a good way of course!). Your support is really appreciated!!

I’m taking my 3-year-old to her first day at Pre-school today and she is so excited - especially because she gets to have her own backpack and lunch box :-) I’m sure it will be an emotional moment when I drop her off.

Have a wonderful week all!

I finished this Woodland Girl, Diana, this week. She is a very overdue Christmas gift for a woman who has been a mentor to me for some years now and has been a trusted confidant and source of strength during my recent troubles.

Her late husband was a well-respected and much-loved leader in the Aboriginal community. I had some fabric bearing a design by an Aboriginal Artist tucked away and I knew this would be perfect for the doll.

Thank you for all the comments received for the giveaway! Wow, you guys really love some free fabric!! :-)

I really loved reading through the comments - thank you so much for your willingness to share about inspirational people in your life, events, bloggers and crafters, quotes, and personal achievements. I came away feeling incredibly hopeful, grateful and yes - inspired to make every day count! I hope you’ll take some time to read through the comments too.

Oh, and so good to see so many GLEEKS amongst the commenters!

Here are the winners as randomly chosen by this trusty robot :-)

Fabric Pack 1:
35. Comment by Anya — February 1, 2010 @ 3:06 pm
These great purple and green fabric fat squares at the fabric store inspired me…I haven’t broken out the sewing machine in months, and now I have a pillow for my little sister. Shabam! Glee is fabulous, for the record.

Fabric Pack 2:
89. Comment by hollysarah. — February 3, 2010 @ 2:48 pm
Those fat quarters look so cute! I love the prints.
I’ve been inspired by Blythe dolls lately… I’ve been browsing Etsy shops for clothing, and I love this one so much! http://www.etsy.com/shop/dollymolly
thanks for a giveaway! <3

Amy and Holly Sarah, I will be contacting you shortly to ask for your postal addresses.

Thanks to a wonderful new sponsor for the month of February, I will be holding another giveaway next week so please keep an eye out for that one!

Planning to drop these Ze Bun-buns off at Mikes this weekend for the Mirabel Softie appeal. I think I will just make the cut-off (sorry for the lateness Pip!). By the way, have you seen Mikes’ window with all the softies received for far?! Absolutely wonderful, exciting, happiness-inducing!

I’m gearing up to spend the weekend and next week doing some Christmas gift sewing (finally). Wishing you all a beautiful weekend!

(This week is the last Creative Space for the year. Thanks so much Kirsty for hosting this meme and inviting us all to be a part of it! Go to Kirsty for more spaces.)

. . . a Mama Matryoshka and Baby sample ready to be sent to their new home at A Little Different in Geelong.

Where has this week gone? Has it been just as fast for you? I haven’t been able to do much making these past few days. Next week is looking a tiny bit less busy so I am hoping to get a few softies sewn up for Mirabel and even make a few more owls for the exhibition since the other ones have all found new homes.

How are you going with your gift-making? We put our Christmas tree up earlier this week and I just let the girls have free reign. They absolutely loved decorating it - the most wonderful giggles were heard in that one hour of merriment (nevermind that all the decorations are hanging on just one side of the tree :-)). I think I’ll need to get cracking on the gift-making too if I want to have them ready before Christmas!

I wish I was as organised as Anna, who sent me a lovely email this past week about the Happy Chibi Girls she has made for Christmas -

Yes, that’s seven Happy Chibi Girls!!! She’s done such a fantastic job. She also offered a great tip: if you are gifting these dolls to little kids (say 5 years old and under), then you can replace the felt on the hair with corduroy to make it easier for washing/cleaning.

Okey-dokes, better get off the computer and back to making lists :-) Hope you enjoy the rest of your week!

More creative spaces to enjoy over at Kirsty’s place. And please do pop by Claire’s to wish her a very happy 10 years of blogging!

I popped into Hudson this morning to set up the show. It was good to see Nikki once again and we had a nice little catch up as the dolls and softies slowly found their places.

If you are in Melbourne any time from tomorrow until the end of December, I do hope you will get a chance to visit the Woodland Folk and their friends :-)

If you are interested in any of the dolls or softies, you can contact Nikki at Hudson (03 9525 8066). This year, you’ll be able to take the softie with you when you purchase it rather than waiting until the exhibition is over. This means that as the weeks go on, the display may get smaller and smaller - so if you wanted to see all of the display, you might want to visit earlier rather than later.

Thanks again for all your support and lovely comments/feedback regarding the stuff I’ve been making for this show. I’m going to take a little break from sewing and hope to get caught up on all the emails and blogs this week. Happy week all!

Wow, this weekend was a blur! A fun time was had at the AQM on Saturday catching up with some lovely ladies and I hope to do a post about it this week. It still feels like I have been sewing non-stop though and as a result, my brain has turned to jelly.

So I’ll stop jabbering on. Here are the final batch of softies for the show.

Ojai, Okena and Oriole the Owls (all made using thrifted crocheted squares and doilies):

And a few Ze Bun-Buns:

I didn’t get a chance to make hybrid creatures for this show but I have another show planned for early next year and I am hoping to focus purely on hybrid creatures for that one (something a little different from what I usually make).

Now off to get some sleep and then it’s off to install the show tomorrow!

Three new bright and cheery Fawns for the show.

Fitzroy:

Francesca:

And Firenze:

I’ve reinforced the legs on Fitzroy and Francesca with wire so they are definitely more sturdy than previous fawns.

I’m still sewing like a crazy woman. My creative space this week has branched onto the kitchen bench in order to get as much sewing done as possible whilst looking after the Youngest.

I’m also spending the day at the Australian Quilt Market tomorrow, hanging out with the lovely ladies of Pattern Press :-) I’m looking forward to meeting and catching up with other designers, visiting all the booths, and given the forecast for tomorrow - air conditioning! It will be a nice break from sewing. Hopefully I’ll remember to bring my camera.

Back here on Sunday with the last batch of softies for the show - Bun-buns and Owls (that’s the plan anyway!).

More creative spaces at Kirsty’s.

Thank you for your lovely comments about the upcoming show! Here are the Peg Bears who will be attending the Tea party:

Peg Bear Ranchera:

Peg Bear Rara:

Peg Bear Requiem:

Peg Bear Rhapsody:

Peg Bear Rocknoir:

Peg Bear Rondeaux:

All the Peggies are sporting op-shopped or donated crocheted squares and doilies.

I’ve also just completed 3 fawns. About 6 more softies to go in the next 5 or so days - I think I might just make it! Hope to share pics of the fawns soon. Thanks again for all your support and best wishes ♥

For the upcoming show . . .

Magnus:

Marlowe:

Meriwether:

Millicent:

and Myrtle:

We’re off on a short family getaway. I’ll be back here next week!

. . . Woodland Boys on the go.

More creative spaces at Kirsty’s (check out her super cool toadstool!)

P.S. Thanks so much for all the advice you have provided on the last post regarding strategies to address fussy eating. I will certianly be taking your advice on board and will be hopeful of less stressful meal times!