One of the perks of being back in my home country is the ENDLESS op shopping to be had. There were no op shops in KL, at least that I could see. Thankfully I've landed in a small coastal city that is awash with treasure troves of used goodies. Mostly goodies. Often you come against someone's well worn pilled trackies. Or feather yarn. Sometimes Roxette tapes. Once in a while there's an old high school art class painting that makes you look twice, "Is that mine?"... Although I had ample opportunity, I picked up none of these things. I got a blooming good book called 'Flower Arranging in Colour' by Betty Massingham (image). A kilo of zippers. Some sweet sheets and pillow cases. A teeny yellow saucepan. And a nice chat with the woman behind the counter about the virtues of a good haberdashery collection.

Hey Nephew

Big shout out to my nephew (who likes to be referred to as X) whose parcel I've just received in the mail. It came covered in sweet little dog stickers and included great little gifts of chalk, Malaysian money and a nifty little rock. Thank you Mr X, you made my day!
xox k

We go here...

(This is a street in Damansara Utama, a suburb of Petaling Jaya. PJ, a city in it's own right, is next door to KL.)

to get this...

(this is a 'cuppacake' from one of our favoured cafes, wondermilk)

It's Been Raining All Day

It has. It's so nice. Things have been a little slow here lately. Or, well ordinary. As in I don't have any ker-azy KL adventures to report. Thistler had a cold/flu thing, so our last few weekends have been spent at home, snuggling up under the air conditioning (?!). I've been expanding my softie family though and now have a rabbit and cat to add the made by maude gang. I'll show you later, ok? July has started off in a technology loving fashion. We've got an XBOX 360 and a camera now! Wow! So, no more phone camera shots. We have a boatload of games also but that's not really my department. Ahem, I only play the cute ones...
Anyway I know I've been absent ALL WEEK from this blog but I have been looking at other nice things. Here are two that made my heart beat a little bit faster...



cabin and cub made this beautiful mixed media collage, 'girl and bird'. Is it the pink gingham that got me? The cabin and cub etsy shop is full of more of these sweet, funny, beautifully designed pieces.



This is Raspberry Beret by truffle. Apart from making me hum the song, it reminds me of a piece of vintage cross stitch Thistler gave me the very first Christmas we had together. I sewed that piece onto a vest and it's one of my favourite tops. I can't wear it here cause it's too warm for woolly vests, but I could hang Raspberry Beret on my wall. Of course it helps that it's a blooming great piece!
Have you seen or experienced anything that has made your heart beat a little faster this week? Too much coffee, great art, labour pains, good cooking, paint fumes?

I just bought it home. Can you guess what it is? I bet you can. It's pretty obvious. It's not as pretty as my other machines, but it goes. And it has buttonhole stitch! Although no buttonhole foot...I'd better go and give it a whirl.

above: knitted brooches and bird watching badges for Local and Global

I'm in the process of making my last order of stock for March. And the last order I'll be sending from within Australia! What a strange feeling. I'm feeling good about it all, actually. I can't wait to touch down in KL and see what's in store for me! Thistler moves into our apartment on Monday and with any luck we'll be buying crockery together by the end of the week.

I've been packing and unpacking my suitcase all week. Some things I'm taking with me for certain are these:



The little birdie is by my good pal The Orange Tree. You can check out her etsy shop here. The map of Australia is a pin cushion given to me by another good pal for my birthday last year. I'm gonna miss these two gals a lot, so I'll be giving their creations a pat every time I feel homesick. The two towels beneath are my favourites and the only two I'm taking with me!

The Comforters

I have just finished reading 'The Comforters' by Muriel Spark for the third, maybe fourth time. I've lost track of how many times I've read it. Why why why read a novel three or four times? Sigh. I am a sucker. 'The Comforters' encompasses so many literary elements I hold dear. A house set in seaside England, a touch of London bohemian and of course a litany of eccentric characters. And by golly it's funny. So funny. Witty. Caustic. Critical. But gleefully so, and thus endearing. You can read more about Muriel Spark here. I think she may have been a little 'cool' if you knew her personally, but from a distance she's a Lady I Really Like.
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Don't you think she looks a little like Susan Kennedy on the back cover shot?
P.S. I'm really sorry about the text being underlined today, I have no idea how it got here or how to turn it off

Today I Have Been Making...

This!


I made this purse to take with me when I go to Malaysia.The lining is one of my most favourite fabrics. My younger sister bought it back with her from a trip to Tasmania, and I've loved it ever since. I've dubbed the purse "Garden Delight". It's lush and tropical, like Malaysia! Well, parts of Malaysia. I imagine.

I also finished off this top...




















I traced it from another hand made tee by Brunswick designer BG (yes, pilfering I know). It's a basic T shape - no need to sew on sleeves. It gives the shoulders a nice soft look. You can't see it too clearly but I rouched the back a little, to bring it in and give it some detail. It's been so long since I've successfully made a piece of clothing, so I'm pretty stoked with the end result!!
p.s. thanks to X for helping me with this post.

Ladies I Like

In honour of International Women's Day (March 8th) I thought I'd list a few of my favourite ladies.


Ani DiFranco. Ah yes, she saw me through many a troubled teenage night. Uplifting, funny, insightful and angry (well, not anymore). If I'm feeling out of sorts I can pop on an album, ANY of her many, and feel ok again. Ahhhh.



Neko Case. American singer/songwriter. Some call her
'country noir'. I call her sublime. She
also sings with The New Pornographers, a fine outfit. Her latest album "Fox Confessor Brings the Flood" makes me swoon every time. As does the artwork on the cover, created by the Julie Morstad.
Plus she's a redhead.

















PJ Harvey. Is there a sexier, edgier, lovelier performer than she? This stunning photo was taken by my sister when she saw her live in Melbourne last month. Lucky Duck, that's a show i missed. I've had the privilege of watching peej strut her stuff once before, and it truly is a sight to behold. Check out the gown she's wearing. The word 'grow' is embroidered on it (on the left side). With hair, so it looks. She is a lady after me own heart!

And finally, here's one for the memories. Yes yes, it's Belinda Carlise. Runaway Horses and all. Why? Well, Belinda is to my Tweens what Ani is to my Teens. If I happen to be in a supermarket and Heaven is a Place on Earth comes through the p.a, I get a little shiver of pleasure. She is by far the best for singing in the shower. Warble away Belinda, warble away!

I must say, I never tried to emulate her look though. Sexy and tousled. But classy. Always classy.

Cripes, that seemed to take a long time to put together! There are many more ladies I like, of course and I'll endeavour to bring you more through the week. Next time we'll do authors. Barbara Cartland here we come!

Achievemnt Friday is Here

Allright! It IS achievement Friday! Why? 'Cause here is post number two. This is one of my favourite paintings done by my young nephew (who is sometimes known as X).


It's called 'Dogs'. Blue is X's favourite colour. xox maude