a nessesity

For years I have coveted the the cross medicine cabinet designed by thomas ericksson for cappellini knowing full well it was not to be my destiny. I don't have that kind of family, house or husband to be honest

The medicine cabinet & the travel first aid kit. The travel one is easy to keep stocked looks great and is too small for everything you need. The last minute kit I pop together for quick trips is never safe from spills and always a trial and the last thing to be packed... the cabinet at home is has spread to the kitchen also... so that if anything is needed it is always "Fi  where is the..."

I have decided to put one together that does everything we need. 

It needed to fit a space we had 

Have handles

waterproof 

can be wiped out

all products need to be able to stand up

easily accessible.

not too tricky to see in a tent, car, or the dark.

DIY first aid kit.

4 easy steps

1. a red crate ( we do have them lying around)

2. add letters for first aid. Cut strips from the extra paper for the crosses

3. add pouch to the inside ( it's super sticky so add it quick)

4. gather all medicines and pop them inside

what do you think?

a water proof pouch containing scissors, measuring cups, torch etc

bright easy to see

and now the bathroom cabinet 

just has the beautifying bits instead of the avalanche every time you open it

one crate, removable letters, clear pouch.

I do have lots of pouches from a previous shoot. if you would like one with your next order just let us know and we can pop one in.

The best bit of all I have a spare. I made two. Would you like one?

Like our facebook page and you could. 

* winner to be drawn Friday November 18th

lego - storage art

As you know we have been dealing with lego here at HQ for a long time now. Not only us but our customers too. Lego is wonderful one of the best present for boys age 3 and over. Our kids spend hours creating amazing ships. The collection now being so large that the constant sound shugsh shugsh shugsh can be heard every morning from around 6am.

Coming up with a very simple, inexpensive and reusable solution. I love this. All the lego is there. Colour coded with a tabletop on top to keep it all neat. Also to keep them together and hidden from view.We have used both the bases and the lids of the mini depending on how much of each colour you possess. I was helped by 3 toddlers to sort this today and was hoping to run it by my very critical R&D team when they came home from school.   The result was unanimous. 


It's a winner

fabulous present - simple and alot of fun

This one was suggested ( asked outright for ) by a friend as a present for her little boy who turns 7 tomorrow.  

"make a box of odds and ends he loves craft and he is not fussy as long as he can stick something to it he is happy" 

initially reluctant and in favour of lego ( I did feel a little cheap) I was persuaded. I had an absolute ball putting it together.  Obviously we do have quite a lot of lovely boxes here so that bit was easy. I raided the present bag for new textas and a writing pad and the rest has been hunted and gathered from around our home, props box and warehouse . The kids helped ( which meant A LOT of that was rejected) you could do the same at reverse garbage

Here is what we managed to crammed into the box . Lots and lots of treasure

owl paperclips

coloured rubber bands

various handmade paper

red tissue paper 

trend boards

ribbon

wooden clothes peg

chalk label

rubber

textas

sketch book

foam cone

cardboard cone tube

strapping

labels

cards

screened paper

photo paper

shiny board

corflute strips

tape

round box

various interesting shaped envelopes

golden book pages

string

cord

binding

multi coloured card

pattern petals

if you have a crafty friend I would highly recommend it. can't wait to see what he makes. 

 if you don't have such bower bird tendencies and you live in Sydney or would like an excuse to visit

reverse garbage is the ultimate day out for a crafty friend. 

grab a box and have a ball or you can now order online.

a DIY toadstool... storage & fun

OH WOW....FIONA HAS DONE IT AGAIN GUYS- CHECK OUT OUT THIS SUPER IDEA!!

If you love a craft and desire it to be practical too rather than just gorgeous this is toadstool is for you.

 

A quick project that will brighten your day. 

It's great to be on trend and toadstools are hot right now. Here is a quick diy toadstool perfect for your little tuffet.  It would make a lovely surprise for a little miss after a busy day at school. 

Of corse it is storage also... that's a must.  

This tuffet is filled with dads old shirts that are going to be used for something later. Many of you have the cushions already and this is super easy

you will need

ribbon

4 safety pins

a stool

spot cushion - we used ours 

but you could make one out of fabric also if you have more time or are a little handy with a needle...

Fill your cushion. push right into the corners so it's lovely and comfy to sit on.

attach ribbon to each corner. Push the safety pin through from the inside to keep it nice and tidy

 

Place the cushion on top of the stool . Hold both and flip

tie ribbon diagonally tightly

flip again and sit. so gorgeous. This brightened the kitchen and our rainy day. It's easy to undo and reuse the ribbon, safety pins, cushion and stool. imagine 4 around a table with tiny cakes and pink lemonade. Just lovely

red spot cushion... 2 for 1 this week! order 1 receive 2 for all of our lovely readers

art or solution ?

Children are collectors of treasures. Many of these collections are not going to last but are precious for a short time.  If you have little girls in your house you will have many many many collections.  

In our house we have collected in plastic containers - they are too precious to lose especially one with a lid! Envelopes big and small, bags, sacks, upside down party hats ( don't ask). Shoe boxes are crushed and size can be an issue. 

Part of the joy in collecting is the display. Seeing all of the wonderous items at once.

Age can be a factor in the collecting. Our little one loves the items in the car... All over the houses and of course next to or in his bed at night.

Our big one just likes to create and keep them safely away from his smaller brothers and sister and their friends and friends friends.

This is our latest solution

 

Gather together matching or complimentary bases and lids. Make sure they are sturdy and will hold the item that you are collecting. Make sure they are strong enough to take the weight. We have used removable 3m tape to attach to the wall. Arrange working from inside out. So you can even up your design as you go. The different depth and shapes look great. As the collection grows - changes you can add more easily. 

I was going to make a rough copy, style it etc so you could see it gorgeous but decided not to cause undue stress.  Well that and the fact that the car started billowing smoke today and we lost 4 hours at the mechanics. 

Allowing for the fact that we have more boxes at home than most. This took 8 mins to construct, attach to the wall and pop the cars in.

A quick look around the house, in the car, out the back, and a rummage in a couple of backpacks and the result is amazing. The optimistic part of me would love a whole wall like this in the playroom .... There would be no question about art or solution then. ..