Kayla's Terrarium Making Birthday Party

My Daughter and I made this Terrarium together and had so much fun making it.

She asked if we could make some with her friends as well, so we came up with the idea to do this for her birthday party.

We made little bunnies and mushrooms for her friends out of Fimo clay.

The table was set up to be interactive.

Once the girls had their moss and plants in, 

they could choose little bits and pieces to add to their terrariums.

We had a Ladybug village,

and a Bunny Town.

Kayla was just as excited to make the food fit the theme, so we chose our party food wisely.

By this stage she was totally in charge of displaying it. ;-)

A bit of Ivy and some twigs set the scene. 

We managed to find most of these items around the house.

Delicate little hands were just what was needed to put it all together.

The girls had a ball and were so excited to take their own terrariums home.

So much fun!! You only turn 7 once!

Art work Inspiration

I saw this painting in a window and I couldn't stop thinking about it.

I knew I had an old board that I could paint over 

so I got the kids together to help me try and recreate it.

We mixed some colours and gel mediums together.

Zach wanted to use his fingers while Kayla was a natural with the pallet knife.  

Since the background was already dark with left a tiny space between the colours.

My friend Sam who loves to bake was great at spreading the paint out evenly.

She had never painted like this before and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Before we knew it we were done.

I think I like our version better too,

especially since it was a collaboration by

friends and family.

Reclaimed Tasmanian Oak table

A friend of mine recently

 saved some timber from a demolition that he thought I might like.

Thank you Rob!!

I do like!

A lot!!!

Reclaimed Tasmanian Oak
roof beams

Ever since I first went into Mark Tuckey's furniture store,

 I have dreamed of making an amazing piece of furniture from reclaimed timber.

Luckily,

 I discovered a new workshop up in Northcote called 

Pop & Scott

They allow people to use their equipment for a small charge.

Or in my case, 

help me create something amazing

that I could never do on my own.

Scott was lovely to work with,

and he showed me how to do
 every step along the way.

First we had to remove the nails

ok..get my gear on...

Their workshop was so cool.
They have been featured in a few magazines recently
and I can totally see why!!

This room houses their awesome

thicknesser.

Scott showed me how it worked

 and even let me have a turn.

before

after

How amazing does it look?

Scott cut the mitered edges.

 A practice run...

to see how it will all fit together.

He showed me how to fill in the cracks and nail holes with a black putty.

Scott also showed me how to sand the timber.

This job he then left up to me.

My pleasure!

This timber was unreal.

I seriously could have sanded it all day.

It was smooth as silk

by the time I was done!

To join the pieces seamlessly,

Scott used a biscuit cutter to create theses slots.

Just to be sure...he put 5 on each side.

Tasmanian Oak 

is amazing in its raw state.

We needed lots of glue!!!

Now to put it all together

Pop & Scott

 have all the gear you need to make

 just about anything.

 They are currently expanding to include even more wonderful things.

We used these super large clamps 

to hold it together 

until the glue set. 

Now to wait 24 hrs

And here is the finished piece.

Well, almost....

I couldn't bare to varnish this amazing timber,

so for now it is unsealed

until I figure out a way to wax it and keep that natural colour.

My very own

hand made

 Mark Tuckey style table,

for a fraction of a fraction of the price.

Thanks 

Again

to

Pop & Scott

I can't wait to go back!