Friday Friends - Australian Makers - Bags'n'Bags

Hello there readers, did you have a nice week? Maddabling is making a special guest appearance this Saturday only at the 

Bo Laidler Pop Up Gallery next to the Activ Thrift Shop at

26 Spencer Street, Albany. Why don't you pop down and visit, we are there between 9am - 2pm and a generous portion of all sales made is donated to Activ. 

This week it is my pleasure to introduce to you all a new Friday Friend and Australian Maker - meet Lynne of Bags'n'Bags! 

Lynne makes the loveliest bags from gorgeous classic clutches 

to unisex mini messenger bags especially for kids.  

The Necessary Clutch Wallet with removable shoulder strap is so sweet and there are many other styles of bags that Lynne creates. 

Dear readers, I invite you now to read the inspiring The Tale of Bags'n'Bags. Have a fantastic weekend everyone, see you all on Sunday for the weekend blog post xo♥

The Tale of Bags'n'Bags

What a journey I have taken to end up here with a registered business in the name of BagsbyLynwam. My name is Lynne Wambeek and after a horrendous couple of weeks working for other people (of which I am still there too) I came home and decided I just needed to do something for myself…

As I have always been creative and have used many mediums over the years, my first love has always been with the sewing machine. Over the years I have put my hand to many different things and have been sewing since long before I can remember, some years ago I completed my certificate in Clothing Technology – thought I wanted to be a pattern maker, but no that wasn’t for me and doing mass sewing holds no interest for me as there is no creativity involved.

I have a great industrial machine that takes up loads of room in my wee study, so decided one night that this machine would have to either go or be very useful – so with bags of enthusiasm and a bit of research Bags’n’Bags was born…  my first creation of a spotty tote bag was snapped up quickly once I opened my Facebook Business page, so using money from initial sales I gradually added more fabric and supplies and watched what were the more popular styles that sell…..

There are many great bag makers out there which initially scared me as I thought maybe this is not the path I should be taking, but with more research I find that there is room for us all as we are all very individual in style and fabric choices.

My range consists of anything from the Basic Tote Bag, which I always include a Matching pouch for all those bits and bobs that get lost in the bottom of bags

to Nappy Bag Sets which include a little matching change mat and either a pouch or clutch wallet for quick changes. 

I also make Clutch purses that are always a hit

as are my Funky fun little handbags.

For me I will try to accommodate peoples wishes – if someone wants a vintage bag, I will go to lengths to ensure I can get the fabric they are after and make up a bag that they will love to use….

Along this journey I have met some wonderful supportive people who are happy to share knowledge and tips as am I although I tend to keep my suppliers close to my heart after many long hours of research but am happy to share how to solve a tricky problem that sometimes crops up with bag making.

For me now, I am working really hard to be able to say goodbye to paid employment and be solely earning income from my own sales. 
As this is a fairly new business, less than 12 months old, I use all the networking tools on Facebook (I haven’t made a website just YET), word of mouth and am also doing markets this year to gauge what is going to be a good seller. 

My next market is on 21^st June at The Handmade Show in Glen Huntly where I will also be in July – from August to December I will be at the Abbotsford Makers Market, plus whatever else pops up in between.

You can also come visit me on www.facebook.com/BagsbyLynwam

Having this business page is amazing – So far I have had 2 sales into the UK and am just waiting to hear from a girl in Ireland for my third international sale. Also being a new business I am donating to certain charities to help get my name out there.

So after many years of sewing either formal clothes, baby clothes, kid clothes even quilts and dolls I feel I have come full circle back to the machine with something I have not tried before and that would be my Bags/Purses – I am so loving watching these bags grow and move forward and I can only hope that my work develops and moves forward with the times.

Rough Diamond - Wednesday Wishes

Who says diamonds have to be polished and sparkly - Rough Diamond is the inspiration for todays Wednesday Wishes xo♥

Rough diamond necklace, diamond pendant from TamaraGomez

Jet Black Rough Conflict Free Diamonds, 14K White Gold Ear Studs from LiansElegance

Herkimer Diamond Gemstone Silver Plated Chain Bracelet from HaniaMarysia

Rough Diamond Stacking Ring Set in Recycled Sterling from artifactum

Silver Rough Diamond Oxidized 925 Sterling Silver Dangle Earrings from Beeskers 

Silver Princess Gum and Lunchbox Sandwich Ideas

Hello readers, welcome to the weekend Blog Post. Today, the blog post is short and sweet. Not much at all to share this week. 
I give you "Silver Princess Gum and Lunchbox Sandwich Ideas." 
Happy Reading xo♥
Silver Princess Gum 
When I was growing up, I remember that there was a beautiful tree that stood in my Dads garden - it was a Silver Princess Gum.
We have been looking getting a third tree to fill in some space on our front lawn - we already have a Claret Ash and Jacaranda planted, and have decided to add a Silver Princess Gum to the mix. As with most of our front garden, we have slowly been converting this from traditional plants to a native garden that is waterwise and self sufficient to a point. This lovely tree also gets the WA Water Authority tick of approval as a waterwise plant! 

photograph credit to Torbay Treefarmers 

This particular tree is described by Torbay Treefarmers 
"With the hardiness of a plant native to the wheatbelt, the Caesia can make a unique contribution to any water-wise garden or landscape. Bark peels in strips from the main trunk and the pinkish or white branches and nuts (which earns it the 'Silver Princess' name) that hang down are contrasted by long pendulous green leaves. It shares the open growth habit of most sizeable mallee and can therefore share its site with other suitable plantings." 

photograph credit to Torbay Treefarmers 

I can't wait to see this little tree all grown up, and to see those gorgeous contrasts between the bark, gumnuts and flowers. You can visit the Torbay Treefarmers website here: 

http://www.torbaytreefarmers.com.au/
Lunchbox Sandwich Ideas
I am trying to be good and take my work to lunch more often, this is an adaptation from a roll I recently got at a lunch bar when time was not on my side, so to speak. 

I used a combination of baby English Spinach, super thinly sliced apple and celery, some Salad Cream dressing and some Roast Pork from the supermarket deli (although you could use left over roast pork from a Sunday Roast or thinly sliced home cooked lean Pork Fillet). It is a bit of a new take on Pork and Apple Sauce, I made my sandwich from a bake at home Sourdough Bread. Do you have a favourite sandwich filing that is not so mainstream? By the way, this sandwich is best assembled just before eating :) 

Dear readers, I hope you enjoyed "Silver Princess Gum and Lunchbox Sandwich Ideas." See you all on Wednesday for a new edition of Wednesday Wishes xo♥

Friday Friends - Local Makers - Bickie Blessings

Hello dear readers, welcome to a new edition of Friday Friends! What a busy week it has been. There has been sunshine and rain in my part of the world - how has the weather been where you are?

This week it is my great pleasure to introduce to you all, two very talented  Friday Friends and Local Makers - meet Irma and Christine of Bickie Blessings.  

These lovely ladies create cookie treats that seriously look too good to eat! I just these pretty feminine cookies, they are just so so gorgeous. 

These sweet flowers are beautiful and I bet they are tasty too, and they won't give you hayfever *wink*

These tool kit cookies are just wonderful - for the tradie or home handyman in your life? So unusual and very creative.

Dear readers, I will now hand you over to Irma, to tell you all about The Bickie Blessings Story. Have a fantastic weekend, see you on Sunday for the weekend blog post xo♥

The Bickie Blessings Story

Who are we? Bickie Blessings is a partnership between two friends, Christine and Irma. We love spending our time baking and decorating. We developed the love for baking cookies when we were little girls in pig tails and ‘helped’ our mums with rolling out and cutting shapes. Now that we have ‘grown up’ we have even more fun baking and decorating cookies for all occasions! We could say with total sincerity that this is one of our favourite things to do, although seeing the delighted look on our customers’ faces when they see their cookies for the first time, is also one of our favourite past times :-D

How did we get started? About 4 years ago Christine was sitting at my (Irma) kitchen table and spoke with great awe and admiration about a website called the Adventures of Sweet Sugarbelle. She couldn’t stop talking about this American lady’s incredible creations and suggested that the people in Albany would surely appreciate decorated cookies like that. 

We decided to get better acquainted with royal icing and ‘foreign’ cake decorating terms like flooding, piping and marbling. Our first attempts were decorating Christmas cookies as Christmas gifts to friends and family. We enjoyed it that much that we just wanted to try out other themes as well. About 3 months after that we had been granted the opportunity to sponsor 80 heart-shaped decorated bickies for a Christian ladies camp and decided it would be a good way to ‘feel out’ the public. Shortly after that we started to bake and decorate cookies for orders. 

At that stage we both felt that it is something we would rather do as a hobby and all our proceeds went to charity. Christine was being a good wife, a mother of two teenage boys, and working part-time; I was being a good wife, working and studying part-time. 

From the beginning we hoped that our cookies would simply be a blessing to others. Whether you just look at them, or indulge in them, our biscuits are meant to bless because a blessing is love in action or form. Our business tag line is: “The key ingredient is love” and ‘love’ is also listed first on our ingredient label. Christine and I are both South African and we really liked the Aussie term ‘bickie’ for biscuit. And so Bickie Blessings was born. 

Our current sources of  inspiration? Something I need to mention is that cookie decorating is BIG in America. We have spent many hours surfing websites in absolute admiration – it is impossible NOT to be inspired by these talented ladies. There are so many wonderful decorators who generously post their beautiful creations on the Web with YouTube instructions on how to do specific techniques, such as montreal confections and  
the bearfoot baker. 

As we became more confident with decorating,we realised the true fun lies in the expression of our own ideas. We are inspired by the different orders we get from our customers and the different themes for different markets. It is not only the source of our inspiration but the challenge behind it that drives us to make each biscuit as special as possible. Some examples are 

"Wedding Theme" 

 "Sea and Shore"

This particular order was for a young lady’s pre-wedding party who loves spending time on the beach.

 "Girly Birthday Party" 

Christine loves decorating custom-made birthday hampers. Whenever she gets an order for someone’s birthday, she would ask about the things that are important to them e.g. what they like, what kind of job they do, special interests, favourite colours, sports team, holiday destinations/places etc; to capture the essence of that person. Christine would then translate the elements that are particular to that person into a very unique birthday hamper. Below are some examples of the lovely hampers she’s made.

What events are coming up for us? We are very excited about the Anzac Centenary event that will be held towards the end of 2014. There is a selection process for stall holders and we hope to be selected. There are also 3 shops in Albany that are stocking our bickies – Reeves on Campbell, Yellow Bird in Middleton Loop and the Christian Bookshop in Shoppers Arcade in York Street. 

Our future plans? Bickie Blessings had been a hobby and a charity business until the end of 2013. However, since the beginning of 2014 we realised that we cannot keep up with the demands for bickies. Christine has taken baking and decorating on as her her primary occupation. I am doing this part-time. We still sponsor selected orders for charity, or give the proceeds of specific orders to charity. 

We have big dreams and plans for Bickie Blessings. We know that Bickie Blessings is able to bless in various other ways. 
For instance, we would like to create jobs for aspiring biscuit decorators or school leavers wanting to fill a gap year, or the mums that would like to earn an extra dollar or two. These are our dreams and we would love to see them realised. Until then, we will keep building our brand, our beloved Bickie Blessings.

Dear readers would you like to see more? 
You can keep with all the latest on Bickie Blessings here: 
http://www.facebook.com/bickieblessings

Concrete Jungle - Wednesday Wishes

After spending a day in the city this week, Concrete Jungle forms the inspiration for Wednesday Wishes today. 

Enjoy xo♥

Concrete Jungle; Wooden Teardrop Earrings Wrapped in Black and White Irish Waxed Linen Fiber from sunsouljewelry

Concrete Jungle from BabblingPhotography

Concrete collector Series crack in a cube urban fossil sculpture from elswago

Industrial Strength Pumps Vintage Concrete Jungle Steel High Heel Runway Shoes from Atomicfireball

Streetline "concrete jungle" ash grey + black leather 

collar necklace from basemend 

Autumn Blooms and Moody Skies, Inspiration from Musetouch and Cauliflower Tabbouleh

Why hello there. I hope you had the most wonderful weekend. Today I share with you all "Autumn Blooms and Moody Skies, Inspiration from Musetouch and Cauliflower Tabbouleh". Happy Reading xo♥

Autumn Blooms and Moody Skies 

Autumn is one of my favourite times of year. We have lots of native plants in flower in our garden at the moment, they are really gorgeous.

Cool crisp mornings, mostly sunny days and fabulous cloud formations in the skies close to sunset. Do you have a favourite season?

Inspiration from Musetouch

By chance, I stumbled across some truly wonderful pins on Pinterest by Maia Sylba of Musetouch Visual Arts Magazine. 

"MUSETOUCH is a free magazine about visual arts. It has been
created by Maia Sylba out of love and passion for art with
the hope that people will be able to use the publication and website as a platform to showcase their skills and gain recognition." 

I truly recommend that you spend some quality time browsing through this fantastic collection of art works and inspirational things. You can see more about Musetouch Visual Arts Magazine at these links: 

The Website: http://www.musetouch.net/

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/maiasylba/musetouch-visual-arts-magazine 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MusetouchVisualArtsMagazine
Meanwhile, here are some of the pins I found which I just had to share with you all!

Pin Description by Maia: "Something quite interesting...Art by Kim Joon, who creates digital prints exploring themes of desire, memory and youth using porcelain and tattoos as his digital mediums."

Pin Description by Maia: Secret poison case disguised as a Book, 17th century.

 

Pin Description by Maia: "Installation Art...While you were sleeping cut dress" by Su Blackell as part of larger installation work "Dioramas of Victorian Relics. in conjunction with ArtSlant." 

Pin Description by Maia: Beautiful Fashion Details...Casadei Fall 2013. pinned from Musetouch Visual Arts Magazine

Pin Description by Maia: "Lucy Reynolds, Musetouch." 

Cauliflower Tabbouleh 

While relaxing at the hairdressers, flicking through glossy trashy magazines, I spied this recipe for Cauliflower Tabbouleh. Instead of using Burghul, you use Cauliflower finely chopped in a food processor. This is really yummy, you simply must try it for yourself. 

Cauliflower Tabbouleh

Ingredients:

serves 6-8

250g Cauliflower

3 Tomatoes, peeled and seeded

2 Lebanese Cucumbers, seeded and finely diced

1 Red Onion finely chopped

2 Cups Flat Leaf Parsley, roughly chopped

1 Cup Mint, roughly chopped

1/3 lemon juice

100ml of Olive Oil

Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper to season

Method: 

1. Process cauliflower in food processor until finely chopped ( it should have the texture of Burghul).

2. Mix the cauliflower, tomato, cucumber, onion, parsley, mint, lemon juice and olive oil in a large bowl, season with salt and pepper. 

3. Serve immediately - enjoy! 

Dear readers, I hope you have enjoyed "Autumn Blooms and Moody Skies, Inspiration from Musetouch and Cauliflower Tabbouleh". See you all on Wednesday for a new Wednesday Wishes blog post xo♥