New Job

I'm sure I could happily fill all the extra child free time I've got now that Miss E has gone to school but the things I do to fill that time won't generally allow us to fix the roof and paint the ceiling! I've been looking for a job since E started school in August. I've been so lucky to be at home with my girls all this time. It's really important to me that I'm still home for them when they get home from school everyday and as many of you know, it's not easy to find part time work in school hours let alone work that you will enjoy. I was thrilled when I say that Parnell Farmers' Market was looking for a new Market Manager. It ticks every box on my wishlist and I was thrilled to be offered the job. I've just finished my first week as the new manager of Parnell Farmers Market and it's been fantastic. Yesterday was my first market day and the weather couldn't have been more perfect.



Pukeko Bakery

All the stallholders were wonderfully welcoming to me. 



Clevedon Proteas

I met quite a few regular customers too. Everyone was happy to have a chat. Baskets were laden with goodies (I had to force myself not to go and buy everything I wanted. So many scrummy things)

Miranda Farm Shop

 Look at these lemons. Aren't they beautiful? There were so many lovely yellows and oranges on the stalls. Citrus fruits, yellow tulips, baby  carrots, pumpkins.

Heirloom Organix

I know some of these beautiful organic seedlings are going to end up in our veggie garden before long.

NZ Cheeseman

So many scrummy cheeses. Mmmm.

Cake Concepts

The kids love these sausages in blankets. Those pasties are definately on my lunch list for future markets.

Bethany Flowers

 The sights and smells at the market were heavenly. Managing the market means I have to get up at 5.15am on Saturdays now but seriously, how could I mind that when I get to enjoy these beautiful sights?

I love how these gorgeous veggies were displayed. They sold out within a few hours.

Sunset Eggs

These eggs come from very happy chickens. The NZSPCA regularly audits them to make sure they are truly free range. Happy chickens make me happy.


The Farm Gate

I got home from my morning at the market to discover that M had learned to ride her bike and had made it all the way around the block on her own. Happy days! She is just so pleased with herself. Don't you love it when your kids are proud of themselves? I'm sorry that I missed that moment but I'm so glad that I can do a job that I enjoy and still be there to pick them up from school at 3pm and  hear all about what they've done at school that day (bad and good). If you think you'd enjoy coming down to the Parnell Farmers' Market, it's on every Saturday from 8am-12pm in the Jubilee Building car park at 545 Parnell Road, Parnell between the library and museum. I'll still be running the Devonport Craft Market and Cotton Kiwi. The next Devonport Craft Market is on Sunday 2nd October (next Sunday). Hope to see you there!

It's Market time again!

I'll be at The Devonport Craft Market tomorrow (Sunday 3rd April) from 10am-3pm.

It's at 32 Clarence Street Devonport.

You can't miss it. Head for the supermarket and you'll see the enormous sign my lovely and long-suffering other half puts up for us every month.

 I've been making stuff.

 Lots of stuff.

 And my t-shirts are on sale.

 I've gone a bit crazy with the flower filled fairy skirt making.

 And I've managed to make a few more of these Tape Measure Rose Brooches (once I regained control of the kitchen table from the kids).

 And I've got some very cute softies that I don't really want to sell but I'm worried that people will think I'm a little strange if I keep making softies and keeping them for myself so you should come and save me from being locked up. Please.

I've particularly got lots of Easter type bunnies like these ones. They are very cute and totally baby safe (double stitched seams and hand embroidered faces.

Hope to see some of you tomorrow. Not to early (don't forget the clocks go back an hour tonight so you get an extra hour in bed... woohoo!!

Devonport Craft Market tomorrow!

I bet I'll be up and out of the house before you lot tomorrow.

 It's market day tomorrow which means a very early start for me.

 No matter how early I get there to open up the building, there's always someone who has beaten me to it and there is lots of good humoured tutting and watch tapping. I'm beginning to think that they get there that early purely for the joy of tutting at me. Yes, you lot know who you are and I am going to do my best being the one tutting tomorrow!

 I've been very hard at work building up my stock again so I have lots of lovely goodies for you.

 It's forecast to be a wet day so you won't be at the beach will you?

 That means you should come and see us at the market.

 If it's not too wet, you could join in the Treasure Hunt (see the poster in my side bar)

 Hope we get to see you tomorrow!

 Devonport Craft Market, Sunday 6th March, 10am-3pm, 32 Clarence Street, Devonport.

My Creative Space - monkey business

Meet Bubbles. She's a cheeky lass. Loves a trip to the beach and a flirt at the icecream shop.

  And this is Rose. Bubbles is her best friend and she does worry about her sometimes. She likes to go to the beach too but she prefers to collect pretty seashells to add to her collection.

This is probably Ringo. I'm not sure until he's finished. You never know with sock monkeys, until you meet them properly, who they are.

Sometimes I don't find out who they are until they go to their new home.

Take Stripey for instance.

He didn't have a name or a personality until he went to his new home with M's friend last weekend. He was given both when he was unwrapped. I hear from M's friend's Mum that Stripey is spending an awful lot of time being cuddled in bed which I think he must be very fond of (all sock monkeys like a good cuddle).

I do love making these guys and I love seeing them go to a new home. Bubbles, Rose and Ringo (if he is indeed a Ringo) will be coming along with me to the Devonport Craft Market this Sunday, 6th March, 32 Clarence Street, Devonport, 10am-3pm. Come along and say hello if you can.

For more Creative Spaces, pop along to Kootoyoo.

My Creative Space - Ready, Steady....

I love Christmas and the whole bit leading up to it.

 Did you know that there are only 5 and a bit weeks left until the big day?

 (Brief guest appearance from the the cat that likes to get in the way. Very helpful Kipper.

Can you move now please?)

Now where was I? Oh yes, 'The bit leading up to Christmas'. Five and a bit weeks. That's not long in Mummy and Daddy land is it? There's an awful lot to be done during that time. The gift buying, the food stocking, the light checking and the dusting off of the Christmas tree. Unfortunately, in small children land, five and a bit weeks is an eternity. I may well have let the cat out of the bag yesterday... by accident and the Overexcited Children in this house may have got a little preemptive. I will now have to deal with five and a bit weeks of hourly asking about when Santa is coming and when we are going to Aunty Gennys house for lunch.

 I've got two Christmas markets this week to help the people living in Mummy and Daddy Land out with the gift buying bit of the pre-Christmas preparations (five and a bit weeks isn't long you know!).

 One of those markets is tonight, at Gladstone School, 5-9pm (you can see all the details in the sidebar over to the right there.) Anyhoo... in the spirit of Christmas markets, I got the decorations down from the cupboard yesterday so I could make my stall look quite festive (think sock monkeys in a Christmas tree). I was unfortunately a little less than secretive about it and there was a great deal of ripping open of boxes and squeals by certain small people.

 So I have been sprung and will have to deal with the impatient wails of small people; but my stall is going to look very festive, so that's okay. I have another Christmas market on Sunday. Devonport Craft Market is going all festive on Sunday 21st Nov 10-3pm. We even have a festive eftpos machine which will be manned by the very helpful Mr Cotton Kiwi.

So if you have some Christmas shopping to do for small (and big people, I have goodies for them too!), why not come along tonight or on Sunday and get your shopping out of the way?

And if it's a little too far to come there is always Etsy and Felt. There are links to my shops in the sidebar there.

Now, enough of the shameless self promotion, I'm going to send you off to visit all the other Creative Spaces over at Kootoyoo now. Have a great day!

Teddy says come to the market

This is Teddy. He is a psychic puppy.



Just in case you aren't getting what he's telling you, he's saying "Come to the Devonport Craft Market tomorrow, Sunday 3rd October, 10am-3pm. Visit Sarah's stall. She has lots of lovely things. And she even has Eftpos so you don't have to worry about carrying cash. Unless she can't work out how to use the Eftpos machine in which case, she may be in a lot of trouble."

So listen to Teddy (except the bit about not being able to work the Eftpos machine. OF COURSE I'll be able to work it. I mean, how hard can it be? (wish me luck!)



Sickies

Poor Maddy was really ill over the weekend and it was really hard to leave her at home to go and run the market on Sunday.

She was full of a nasty cold that was giving her really high fevers too. It's so horrible to see your children ill. Maddy suffers from asthma too and I never get any sleep when she is sick because I panic that she will suffer an attack that I won't know about. I always bring her to bed with us and lie awake or doze until her breathing settles.

Richard of course did a sterling job of looking after her on Sunday but it was still hard to leave her when she was so ill. Poor man. Just what he wanted to do on Fathers Day. We're having a Father's day celebration for him next Sunday to make up for his missed day.

No, you're not seeing things. Those are Jennie from A Little Vintage's Dolls who were making a guest appearance on my market stall on Sunday. It's funny how many people recognised them as they walked past and made a comment about them being in the wrong place. Hopefully Jennie will be back at the market next month, but if she isn't, her dolls will more than likely be available on my stall again.

Anyway, back to Maddy. She still wasn't quite right yesterday so she had a day off school. She had spent most of the weekend lying on the couch watching movies and was totally over that, so I had to come up with something else to entertain her. Luckily, the lovely and extremely talented Sarah of Dolls and Daydreams, had given us one of her totally awesome eco dolls house kits.

We had so much fun putting it together. Eloise was a little too keen to have a go with the parcel ripper I was using to cut out the cardboard box and I had to make sure I put that way out of her reach when I left the room!

I did let them loose with the scissors for all the cutting out of the print-out rooms and they had a ball sticking them on. I have to say, it was pretty hard not to reposition everything they stuck on and the house does look a little wonky, but hey, its all their own work and they love it!

Check out that awesome chandelier!

We ordered some little wooden dolls from Sarah and they arrived in the post today so the plan is to decorate those next and evict the Sylvanian Squirrel families from the house. Don't worry, the squirrels have an entire pink princess castle and vintage fisher price dolls house to move into. Maddy is much better today thankfully but still looking a little grey around the gills. Fingers crossed she'll be back to her normal self soon!