Finish it off Friday (with a fortnight to go)

No fun around here this week, as I realise that my first show of the year is just two weeks away and so it's time to get cracking on finishing up some stock for it.

I have piles of pouffes (which you might recognise from last year's version of this post, and which I realise I blogged about back in December 2013. At least the're almost ready to go: just eighteen months late).

Rows of rectangles (in this wool and some neon colours I picked up from Typo and which are rather the in thing at the moment, I read).

And a rather a lot of rugs to sew ends into.

I'm planning a very quiet weekend, so hope to have lots of finished product to show you by the end of it!

Scale silliness (when I should be studying)

(The TBAG box kit is coming along slowly, I decided to add a coat of varnish and am waiting for that to dry while I read the instructions for creating the tea bags for the umpteenth time and try to figure them out. Perhaps a cup of tea would help?)

A mug's game...

This morning I unpacked this week's kit (and cut out the tea bag printies).

I was pleased to see that the kit included a couple of extra pieces in case of breakage (always a good thing, particularly as it usually guarantees no unexpected disasters!)

Remembering the last kit of Adelaide's I put together reminded me of the most excellent woodstain pens she'd picked up from The Reject Shop. And since I wanted my 'TBAG box' to be brown, I headed out to track down my very own set.

With no luck. After four discount shops, one discount department store and two hardware stores, I finally found something much more expensive but which might just do (and, for miniature work, end up being a bargain if I just hack off very small pieces for each project: I'll get back to you on that...)

Using one of the included gloves, I stained one side of the kit pieces.

And, while waiting for them to dry, started work on part two of the project: a miniature version of the Trevor Dickinson Canberra bus shelter mug (Trevor had been kind enough to send me the artwork after I promised solemnly that I'd only ever make one of them in miniature).

But I wasn't happy with the end result,

and decided to 'dumb it down' and try again with a photographic print glued onto another mug (at which stage I discovered that my usual trick of running it through the Xyron and slapping it on did not work, and so resorted to Weldbond,)

Oh *&*!, is it Friday again?

(Although, on the bright side, that does mean I don't have to be at work again for three whole wonderful days.It's been quite the week...)

I dug out most of my kits last weekend. I won't share the photo as it's a bit scary (not as scary as Otterine's, I hear)

Tempting as it was to start with the largest, I figured it would be more fun to play a game by choosing this week's #FinishitoffFriday kit by theme.

And since I recently bought this most excellent Trevor Dickinson Canberra bus shelter mug, I thought Adelaide's 'TBAG box' kit might be the way to go...

Waffling on the weekend

It's my last weekend before I start studying.

I have the latest issues of two of my favourite magazines as yet unread.

And a lovely new white cotton waffle-weave blanket from Just Bedding (long-time readers will know of my love of decent bed linen).

So what's a girl to do but make the bed and return to it for a day of luxurious languid reading?

Finish it off Friday freak out

I made the fatal mistake of thinking it was a good idea to start gathering my unfinished (hell, unstarted!) kits together in one place:

The really freaky thing is that this is only the more recent ones: I know I have a stash of older ones tucked away somewhere. Including kits that have moved country. Twice.

Perhaps this week's #FinishitoffFriday challenge should be to dig them out, consolidate them all and face the fact that I have enough to keep me going for quite some time?

Baa-ewe-tiful!

Finish it off Friday: feeling sheepish

There really was only one choice for this week's Finish it off Friday project.

 Jewel Lewis's Shirley the Sheep kit.

This should be a quick build: the instructions seem clear and straight forward,

 and the contents well designed...

The morning after

That

was 

 quite

 some

 party

(Whose stupid idea was it to store the bed behind the piano to make more room?)

Spotted something missing?

I guess you may have noticed a severe lack of folding chairs at yesterday's party.

 Never fear, they are being worked on, but the paint wasn't dry in time for the set up. Which made me decide I needed to leave space at the party for mingling (and maybe dancing).

Besides, the chairs had decided to head in a whole different direction once I remembered the spotty fabric tape I picked up on my last trip to Daiso...

(School) house party

And so the day of the party finally arrived. The bunting is up. And everything's ready for the first guest.

And here you are! Welcome! You're right on time!

Do come inside.

 There's heaps to drink. Grab a glass.

 Would you prefer non-alcoholic

 or alcoholic?

There's quite a spread to chose from (I'm expecting rather a crowd).

 There's even a specially-iced cake to mark the occasion. We'll cut it later in the night when everyone's here. In the meantime, help yourself to something sweet,

 savoury,

and, of course, there's lots of cheese.

Take a seat, if you wish. I'm sure more guests will arrive shortly.

My muso friends were tuning up earlier and have just ducked into town to collect a couple of last minute things. They'll be back soon and then things will really get started.

Feel free to grab a chair outside and wait for them to return. If you get peckish you can access the food from out there.

 Blogging for nine years? I know, who would have thought?

I'm glad you could make it!

It's a start

This morning I dug out the black and white bunting pieces I bought from Scrapmatts at the 2013 craft show.

And then I went on the hunt for my booze supplies

(most of which I found in still in the Brio, after that New Year's Eve party...)