upcoming craft projects

every spring i get super inspired, i become more productive as an artist/ crafter than any other time of the year. so i've been taking on new projects. i was going to build aya a dollhouse from scratch but when i saw this handcrafted one at an abbotsford thrift store (mcc) for $20 i decided to do some doll house reno's instead. it's now one of ayas favorite things ever, it entertains her for hours. we have filled it with all sorts of animals (mostly mamas and babies) and it's the 'animal house'. it needs a serious paint job (inside and out) and all new flooring. i will be posting after pictures once it's finished, i'm pretty excited about this little/big project i've decided to take on!

and i had been putting off fabric shopping for quite some time. it's one of my guilty pleasures. i find beautiful fabric and know exactly what i want to make out of it and then don't always find the time. so my fabric collection goes back quite a few years (seven years give or take). so when i got it more organized, cleared out some of what i'd probably never use, and finished some old projects, i decided to reward myself with a trip to fabricana. i picked out some fabric for some baby dresses i'll be making aya this spring/ summer. i looove the butterfly fabric. i got tons of it so i can do upholstery with it or whatever.

i've been buying some shirts for aya as well to alter and turn into baby dresses. i love altering more than design even. i just love turning something ok into something great. these aren't something i would personally wear but i think they'll make super cute baby dresses. i've almost finished the owl one. when they're finished i'll be posting a diy on how to turn a shirt into a baby dress so when moms grow tired of old shirts they never wear, their little girl can have something cute & 'new' in a few simple steps!

 

happy crafting and happy spring!

♥

that time i went to mexico

so i've been reminiscing travels and old adventures lately. it's that time of the year again when i start to get itchy feet. since aya's come into our lives i've been feeling quite settled, but it's buried within me to explore and adventurer. i was thinking about it the other day and so far aya has technically been to: portugal, england, scotland, mexico, and hawaii. of course i was pregnant in 4 out of these 5 countries. i didn't let it hold me back even though at times it was difficult...like a 26 hour flight with an 8 hour layover coming back from england at 5 months pregnant (which was totally worth it, i even stayed in a castle!). and not for an all inclusive second trip to mexico to meet up with good friends. my ticket was booked before i was pregnant and while i was traveling in europe. luckily i was in my 2nd trimester when the trip hit. it was difficult not drinking a drop of any of the free alcohol the entire time let alone not eating a piece of fruit or having a sip of tap water. i made up for it with the free buffet (which i later regretted for obvious reasons). so here are a few of the pics i shot in mexico with my old camera. there where hardly any of me (my choice entirely), i was at that awkward stage where my belly looked like i was just bloated and nothing fit right. i remember rummaging through my suitcase looking at my sad lack of choices and bursting into hormonal tears wishing jamie was there and my belly was an obvious pregnant one and not a 'fat' one.

we sailed to a remote island for an afternoon (probably my favourite part of the trip)

and watched sea otters bathing in the sun.

this poor  cat lived in the wall of the hotel with her little kittens

i walked around the town a little with friends. i always feel like i have to watch my back in mexico, it's unfortunate but true. there where some charming little nooks and crannies though.

adios mexico.

feeding the birds

a few days ago our friends sonja and alice took us to a wonderful majickal little spot. we hung out with the birds and squirrels while a quiet stream trickled by. it's one of my new favourite spots, i absolutely love it there!

 alice and sonja

i totally conquered my phobia of birds!

love these cheeks

happy spring!

♥

easter

this easter weekend was pretty great. we had a baby easter party with a baby train ride through the forest, an easter egg hunt, lots of relaxing, & of course good hang-outs with friends and family

 this is why i love the spring so much, the cherry blossoms are in bloom right now, so pretty...

starting the morning right with a little rooftop yoga like it ain't no thang

picking flowers on a spring walk

alice eating cats

alice and aya eating cookies and eggs

baby train!

it is actually very exciting...

"look at the cherry blossoms kira!"

hope you all had a wonderful and happy easter!

♥

tibetan skull dress

i really really want to go fabric shopping!! however, i have so much fabric and minimal space for storing it. i am going through it all and making whatever comes to mind out of whatever i feel somewhat inspired to use. i'm really liking making baby clothes and accessories lately because they are small, pretty easy, and don't use much fabric. i used to screen-print, a lot! every time i did i would do a test run on some scrap fabric. i saved most of them. so when i found this old tibetan skull print i decided to turn it into a summer dress.

i've also been covering baby hangers (like the one in the photo above). i got the idea from this blog and have been adding bow ties to them.

tibetan skull drawing by jamie macpherson

 

happy crafting
♥

lazy sunday

oh aya...

♥

sad bunny. happy lion.

our friends took a trip to taiwan and came back with some lovely little aya stuffies!

now ayas worry bunny has a friend

another worried little bunny

aya loves her little bunny

and the happy lion too!    

thank you yu~wei & grace & kira♥