It may have come to my attention that I very rarely blog about all the wonderful little goodies I actually create.

Most of that comes down to the fact that I have the attention span of a flea, and I can never quite remember to take my camera to work, photograph the products, edit the photos, then pop them online. I'm exhausted just looking at that list!

Luckily, I'm surrounded by a group of wonderful crafters who actually do these things, and when they are at markets they do me the great favour of taking beautiful piccies of my things too!

So, thanks to the lovely Margaret from Konstant Kaos, here is my lovely range of Notebook Covers...



And a big fat stand of Passport Covers...


And here is a sneak peak of my Cushion Covers...


All of which will soon be available in my Etsy store... if my attention span will get them there!

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After the rough trot of last weekend, I must say I'm quite looking forward to this one!

Friday night will see Pepperberry & Co. launching our sexy range (full of brand spankin' new Notebook Covers, Cushion Covers and even Luggage Tags!) at the brand new craft market at Borders in South Yarra- how exciting! Borders is one of my favourite places of all time- how could anyone not be just delighted to be surrounded by that many delicious books, gorgeous comfy couches, and the smell of roasting coffee? If this combination and a little bit of handmade goodness sounds like heaven to you, come and hang out with us at:


Then, a few hours of sleep later, I'm off to my favourite market- the Northside Maker's Market. This market is always filled with so many wonderful things- unique, handmade goodies, a warm-and-fuzzy community vibe, and great food. I don't know about you, but I sure couldn't ask for more! 

If you've never been down to the market before, this is your last chance- it's the fourth in a series of four and it's unknown whether this magnificent crafter's haven will continue! So come and play at:

And let's just hope that neither of the markets experience last weekend's bad weather or bad luck!

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Some weekends just don't turn out as planned.

On Thursday...

...as Sharon was driving home, she found a little ginger ball of bones that turned out to be a kitten.


Boris, as he is now known, is all spine and ribs and sunburnt face, but not much else. He now lives in our bathroom and is being regularly stuffed silly with food and water and vitamins. His ears and nose, which are badly burnt, are covered in paw paw cream, as is his little neck, which has lost all of its fur.

On Friday...

... our car died. Totally and completely died. After an adventure with towing and many phone calls, we were told our engine needs to be replaced.

 Please note: Not our actual bus! Just a cute, relevant photo :-)

We're now using Sharon's giant school bus and keep getting inspired by the idea of a road trip!

On Saturday...

... a severe storm hit Melbourne. If you didn't see it in the news, here's a great update:


Normally I get very excited by storms. They mean lots of silliness and running around and squealing in the rain. Saturday's storm, however, flooded the Pepperberry & Co. studio. Bad drainage in the building meant that water rushed in at ground level, and the crazy, 10cm large, solid hail stones broke through the roof and flooded us from above. 

We lost quite a bit of stock, particularly paper; our office furniture got soaked; and we are yet to see if all of the machinery (computers, sewing machine, overlocker) that we rescued actually function. Our office kind of ending up looking like the shop they show in the video above.

We moved out of the studio on Sunday, and are currently working from home. Next weekend, we're moving the office into the spare room of our temporary rental property. And then, we'll try to regain some semblance of normality in our now very wet world. 

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Some things in life are so overwhelmingly exciting they just don't seem real.

A year ago, in March 2009, I dipped my nervous little toes into the big wide world after a bout of Chronic Depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

I found the wonderful Stitches & Craft Show.

I learnt how to sew. 

From scratch!

I started a business.

I made stuff.

I sold stuff!


And I slowly got better.

And now, a year later, I have another mind-blowing achievement to celebrate... my very first stockist


A year ago, as I was sitting in my sewing classes and listening to the wisdom of some of craft's brightest stars, I never in my wildest dreams imagined that one day, something I made with my very own hands would be sitting on an actual shelf in an actual shop. 

But there they are, at the gorgeous Little Shop Of Handmade run by the even more gorgeous Bec. 

The Little Shop Of Handmade at 8 Woorayl St Carnegie

And I couldn't be more proud! Thank you to all of you who have supported me from day one. I couldn't have done it without you!

May all of your perseverance, blood, sweat, tears, laughter and hopes too turn into a dream come true...

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One of my very favourite quotes in the world goes:

'If you think you are too small to make a difference, you've never been in bed with a mosquito'.

It always reminds me that no matter how insignificant it may seem, every little positive action can create an inspiring chain of reaction... well, maybe with the exception of a mosquito bite, which simply creates annoyance and some naughty words!

Whilst the internet is full of wonderful projects that take the concept of turning small things into big ideas to create magic, one in particular caught my attention today- the wonderful idea that is ReKnit


The mother-and-son duo behind the concept take your old, uninspiring sweater, unravel it, then knit a beautiful piece of fashionable wear and post it back to you. Better yet, each month readers get to choose which pattern the team will work on next by voting. 


It's design, creativity, recycling, ingenuity, community participation and fun all in one idea- perfect. But with only 30 items knitted each month, you'd better get that op-shop jumper in to them fast!

Now it's your turn to inspire me! What creative ideas have rocked your socks recently?

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