Dear Mrs Sibbert

There's not a lot going on upstairs today due to a serious case of sleep deprivation so I thought I would just show you a very lovely letter a kid named Thomas wrote to a lady called Mrs Sibbert. From a time when a boy could call his friends 'boy friends' and kids still played 'Cowboys and Indians'. Found in a big box of inherited Golden Books by Ada, she has made me read it to her a dozen times already.

I wonder what fires Thomas was talking about, Ash Wednesday perhaps?

Back tomorrow, hopefully with a tail of adventure (of the vintage fabric variety). Ms Cinti might be taking me to vistit her vintage fabric 'dealer', bless her :)

Keep on truckin', if your that way inclined.

x

Castle & Things

See that sexy yellow velvet pillowcase, I just got me a pair for my birthday! Thanks Ma and Pa for asking me what I wanted this year and being ever so obliging :)

Castle bed linen is my new obsession. I'm am head over heals with Rachel Castle's paired back style, sumptuous fabrics and bright shots of colour. I figure I can add bit by bit and the sheets and velvet pillows will mix and match nicely with my vintage linen. I can't wait for my new pillowcases to arrive so I can start throwing them around the room to see where they look best. Maybe I should get the grey ones too, and maybe a confetti garland. 

Tea Cup Candle Tutorial

Here's the tea cup candle tutorial I promised.

You will need

lump of Bees wax (the melted volume can be difficult to gauge as wax is usually sold by weight but it should 'look' like it would fill your required number of tea cups)

wicks (pre primed and with aluminium bases can be purchased from ebay for $3.00 for 25) You can also purchase 'un-primed' wicking* from craft stores). As a rule, the thicker the wick, the better it will burn with Bees wax. 

tea cups

wick holders ( icecream sticks with small holes drilled in them, also purchased from ebay $2.00 for 20)

double boiler (I used one BIG saucepan for my water bath and two smaller ones for my wax)

metal tea strainer

candy thermometer

baking tray

Before you get started:

Make sure you have everything you will need laid out (once you get started pouring you have to move quickly)

Have your oven pre warmed and set at 50 degrees.

Ensure your tea cups are clean and without dust. Place your cups on the baking tray. If you are using pre primed wicks and wick holders place the primed wick end through the hole in the wick holder. Place the wick  into the tea cup so that the metal base sits flat on the bottom of the cup and the wick holder sits across the rim of the cup. The wick should stand up straight and without slack.

If you are using un-primed wicking,  you will need to prime it by dipping the wick in you melted wax and hanging it over a chop stick to harden. You can then cut your wick to length (about 3cm longer than the depth of the cup) and stick one end to your wick holder leaving the other end to hang in the centre of the tea cup.

you're now ready to get pouring!

The trick to making your own bees wax candles is to get the temperature of your wax correct before pouring. Ideally you should get your wax to around 77 degrees before you pour your candle. This is why we use a double boiler and a thermometer, it is a gentle way to heat your wax and reduces the risk of your wax over heating and subsequently cracking after it has been poured. Bees wax contracts quite a bit as is cools, the slower your candle cools, the less likely it is to crack!

If your using un-  refined bees wax like I did you will need to melt your wax block in the double boiler and strain the wax before you start to remove any debris. Get your wax up to 80 degrees before you strain it. I used a couple of old saucepans from the Oppy to do this, straining the wax from one directly to the other and then straight back on to the water bath.

Once your wax has been filtered and has cooled slightly to 77 degrees you can begin to pour your candle. I used a milk saucepan to pour my candles as it has a pouring lip and allows for greater control. Carefully pour you wax into the tea cup pouring close to the wick and stopping about 1cm from the lip of your cup. When you have finished pouring all of your candles, carefully transfer them to the oven and then turn the oven off. Shut the door and leave the candles overnight to set. 

Enjoy!

*Note, the pictures above are just a rough guide (taken shamelessly after the fact)! I'll update the tutorial with new step by step pic's when I get some wax and pour a new batch. :)

Blogtoberfest Bonanza!

To celebrate Blogtoberfest and my birthday I'm going to give away this cute little Curbside Style package to one lucky follower! Included is a gorgeous rainbow crochet blanket, knitted by one of the very lovely volunteers at my local oppy (I don't crochet, but love those who do), a Mexican Oilcloth tote and one of my recent endeavours a hand pored bees wax tea cup candle!

To enter, simply follow my blog and leave a comment (if you don't have a blog please include your email in the comments). I will draw a winner on Monday the 25th of October using one of those random number picker thingy's so that gives you three weeks to enter. This comp is open to everyone near and far so follow away!

x

bizzy as a bee

Made it! Phew, I thought I might not get a post in today (that would be a poor start to Blogtober wouldn't it). Iv'e been running around all day between markets, fancy shmancy dress shopping, lunch dates, dog walks and kid wrangling so many things to do and so little time to do it in. Actually, the reason I'm posting at 9.30 at night is because I bought a big lump of bees wax at the market today and I've been having a go at making some pretty tea cup candles. Super easy and lot's of fun, they appear to have turned out quite well and the house smell sooooooo good. I have amassed quite a large collection of tea cups and saucers over the years and thought this might be a way to use the ones that are chipped or without saucers etc.  I'll take some photo's tomorrow when the light is good and run a quick tutorial. Hope you've all had juicy sweet weekends too.

x

making the most of a beautiful day.

I love Spring, and not just because its my birthday. Spring makes me want to get stuff done, like cleaning the windows or clearing out the shed. Today was one of those industrious Spring days. Perfect weather gave me the chance to tick a bunch of weather dependant jobs off a very long list and it feels good. Kids playing in the yard, dog slurping the marrow from a very large bone, husband mowing the lawn and me knee deep in sheep manure and mulch. like I said, perfect!

I also managed to photograph a bunch of furniture and 'stuff' to list on Ebay. Hopefully, by this time next week there will be a LOT more room in the shed so I can finally set up the screen printing carriage I purchased from Oakleigh market six months ago (so many ideas that need realising). I'm itching to get started on some new projects,  with the warmer weather and extra daylight in these parts(hurrah for daylight saving) I may actually get some of them done!

Animation Friday and day 1 of Blogtober!

While rescuing the cat from the affections of kid two, kid one decided to help herself to a post breakfast snack of banana and ice magic, brilliant! Set against a mountain of unfolded washing and with un-brushed hair this weeks animation pretty much sums up my life at the moment. For more animation Friday fun pop over to My Poppet and check out what Ms Cinti has been up too.