The Big Day

Some of you will know that I have been making bridesmaids and flowergirl dresses for my good friend's wedding for some time - indeed, it may explain my lack of blog posts during Blogtoberfest! However, today's the day of the wedding, the dresses are done, and I am eagerly awaiting seeing them in action!

I will post tomorrow with some pictures of the dresses, but for now, here is a little preview of the design. It was the first time I had a little play with some of the fabric.


Also, this is your last chance to comment to win my awesome NeverEver giveaway! I will draw it tomorrow morning - cos in America it is still the 3oth!

Nerdy McNerd Strikes Again

In January this year, a good friend of mine from Germany gave me a jigsaw puzzle of a castle we had visited together. It is called Neuschwanstein, and was the inspiration for the famous Disney castle. It is quite glorious in real life, and comes with many myths and legends and an interesting history. The king, Ludwig the 2nd, decided to "renovate" an old crumbling castle on the site, and turned it into what it is today. Despite looking incredibly detailed and ornate, the castle is actually unfinished, as the king was suspiciously declared mentally insane during the construction, and soon after was found drowned in a lake.

Anyhow, lakes and kings aside, it has taken me til now to complete the 1500 piece puzzle, and along the way I took photos of my progress. And here's where the Nerd part comes in: I have taught myself to make a little video of the puzzle growing and growing until complete.

Et Voilà!

Aren't I clever? PS. Don't forget to comment to get yourself an entry to my final Blogtoberfest Giveaway!

The Final Giveaway for Blogtoberfest

Well folks, as I suspected, October has FLOWN. Here we are at the last 10 days! As promised, I have one final giveaway as part of my Blogtoberfest celebrations! It will be drawn on the 30th, and as before, every comment from now til then will gain an entry.

To go out with a bang, this time I am giving away your choice of either a Sunny Butterfly or a Happy Octopus Vest and Pants set. Perfect for summer, and super sweet! The only hard thing will be choosing...

Sunny Butterfly, or Happy Octopus?

The choice is yours! Enter by commenting on any post between now and the 30th Of October!

Winner!

Well ladies and gentlemen, Giveaway #2 of Blogtoberfest has been drawn! This sweet little Queen of Hearts Onesie is making it's way to the lucky winner as we speak!

And speaking of lucky winners, that winner is...

Tess of PlanetTreasures!

She was the 20th person to comment on my posts between last week's giveaway announcement and today! Well done Tess!

Stay tuned! Tomorrow I will announce the final giveaway for Blogtoberfest, to be drawn on the 3oth.

Featured!

I have recently found myself on several delightful and fun kid's blogs.

First of all, the wonderful KidStyleFile, in collaboration with Madeit, featured my Dressed For Dinner bib amongst some lovely dinnertime company.

Then, the lovely Kelly of Macaroni and Glue featured me on her great blog.

And just when I thought it was over, today my Rosy Red Polka Dot Dress is part of a fun and bright polka-dot theme feature over at Handmade Kids.

Please go and have a peek at these wonderful blogs! Thanks to all of them for featuring me!

We're all going on a...

SUMMER HOLIDAY!

This is the campervan that we booked today to go on a week-long trip of the North Island of New Zealand, in December. Isn't it wonderful? Everything you could want in a vehicle, and best of all, we can stop anywhere we like and soak in the atmosphere. I'm especially looking forward to having picnic dinners, and seeing the scenery from the cabin as we drive along. We also plan to see the following:

Cathedral Cove, on the Coromandel Peninsula

Lady Knox Geyser, Rotorua

The Waitomo Caves

I can't wait. I have never been on a campervan holiday before and I'm sure it will be awesome.

And now for the second giveaway!

Well, here we are finally - giveaway #2 for Blogtoberfest! This time, I am giving away a super sweet and gorgeous Queen of Hearts Onesie, newborn size - perfect for a new baby gift! Featuring applique hearts in four different pink fabrics, it is up for grabs on the 20th of October. To be in the running, simply comment on any blog post I make between now and then. Easy!



And don't forget, still to come, lots of enlightening posts about concerts, cameras, Japan, weddings, and my grandpa!

You can't plan anything!

Well here I was all ready to announce the next Blogtoberfest giveaway, and Etsy is down for maintenance, so I can't post any links! Bear with me, everyone, you'll have to wait for the next post!

In the meantime, a comforting, delicious, and hopefully distracting meal that I had for dinner tonight - Italian Meatballs.



It is a recipe from The Busy Woman's Cookbook, A Woman's Weekly book published in 1982 ( a very good year if I do say so myself). My mum made it regularly when I was young and it is a recipe that I still enjoy today. Mum and I always laugh about the fashions on the cover!

It's giveaway day!

Today is the day of my first giveaway as part of Blogtoberfest. Thankyou to everyone who has commented on my posts - not as many as you may have expected! I guess I have to accept that life gets in the way sometimes. But there's still lots of days left! And two more exciting giveaways.

The winner of this first giveaway, a Top Banana Bib, was drawn by a very technical and tricky Random Number Picker. See?

And so, congratulations to Alissa, the 4th person to comment. I'll be in touch to get your details to send you your prize!

Tomorrow, I'll be announcing the next giveaway, to be drawn on the 20th of October. Stay tuned and make sure to comment on any post from tomorrow to be in the running!

Kitchen Town

Some of you will know that I am planning a trip to Japan next March. One of my top must-see places is Kappabashi - "Kitchen Town" in Tokyo. It is basically a street full of wonderful food-related shops. Lacquerware, noodle bowls, knives, linens, and all sorts of yummy goodness. One of the more quirky shops is a "fake food" shop, selling plastic meals for restaurants to display in their windows. I can't wait to buy some plastic sushi.

The real Oktoberfest.

Ready for the 'fest

Ladies and Gentlemen, it is the 1st of October! That's right, pick yourself up. All this month I will be taking part in Blogtoberfest, which means you will find a post from me every day of October.

As part of the festivities, I will be giving away PRIZES! One each on the 10th, 20th and 30th of October. First up is a Top Banana Bib. To enter, simply leave a comment on any of my Blogtoberfest posts.

WIN ME!

To keep you on the edge of your seat throughout October, here's a list of some of the topics I will be writing about!

• My friend's wedding
• Jigsaw Puzzles
• Mondrian
• Brisbane
• Cameras and Concerts
• Fish Dinners
• Japan

...and maybe a bit of a preview of some new NeverEver stuff in the works!

Stay tuned, and don't forget to leave a comment to win the Top Banana Bib on the 10th.

For other Blogtoberfesters, click here. For a list of other Blogtoberfest giveaways, try here.