Time out

It has been a whole month since my last blog post. I didn't plan to be away from Blogger for this long, but it is a busy time of the year, and one thing led to another, and before I knew it I was completely out of the routine of blogging.

It all started with a mini getaway in the South West of WA. It is a holiday that my family and I have taken at about the same time every year, for the past few years, and it has now become a bit of a tradition for us. The weather was warm (sometimes in November it is still a bit chilly) and we were fortunate enough to be able to swim and really enjoy the area's amazing beaches. And as always there were the ice creams at Simmo's, lunch at Colonial Brewery, and plenty of strolls through town.

While I was away there wasn't a computer to distract me, and I only had a crochet hook and yarn with me for craft. By moving at a slower pace, and enjoying simple activities with my family, I was able to see just how distracted I had been in recent months with Etsy and Blogger, and I realised I was actually feeling quite exhausted! I arrived back home feeling relaxed, rested and inspired, and with a desire to continue on at this slower pace.

But while blogging and crafting for Etsy did take a back seat for a while, there has still been plenty of handmade crafty goodness happening in my world...here is a little bit of it...

Crochet Party Bunting...while on holiday I did have with me the new book by Meet Me At Mike's Pip Lincolne, 'Make Hey! while the sun shines', and from this book I followed Pip's pattern for making crochet bunting. It was the perfect holiday project, simple and fun, with the added bonus of relaxation and calm that comes with crochet. When we returned from our holiday, I strung them all together with a piece of pretty pink ribbon, and hung them up on the eve of Miss A's 4th birthday celebration. That was nearly three weeks ago, and they are still hanging beautifully, and I do not plan to take them down as I LOVE them!

 Wooden advent calender...I bought this Kaisercraft advent calender in kit form in the post-christmas sales in January...but silly me still managed to leave it until the very last minute to assemble and decorate it! I did get it complete enough to fill with trinkets and chocolates in time for December 1st, but it is still a bit of a work in progress. Maybe we will start a family tradition of adding a bit of decoration to it each year!

Knitted and crocheted Christmas decorations...All over our home there are cute and cuddly little Christmas characters. They are perched happily upon shelves, peeking cheekily out from behind the branches of the Christmas tree, and watching over the kids as they sleep. They have been lovingly handmade by my mum. Each Christmas for the past couple of years she has given us a bundle of new ones, and slowly we are replacing all of our plastic baubles and decorations with these beautiful handmade ones which will be treasured in our home for years to come.

Hope you have been enjoying some time-out this busy season too  x