amidst the chaos

Well holy diner is moving ever the biggest chore....packing, cleaning, sorting, cleaning, some more cleaning, a lot of lifting and finally cleaning. Only to do it all again when you reach your new destination!!!!! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..... talk about a full body and mental (aka sanity pushing) workout!!

Although it really makes you realize how much 'STUFF' you have...and i mean stuff!!! And being crafty by nature....i can never throw things out.....coz i could use it to make something really fantabulous one day......and do I????? MMMMmmmmm - well .......

So i am making a vow today.....not to keep all those tiny bits and pieces that add to my clutter!!!(cluttered lifestyle leads to a cluttered brain i think!!)

And this is my once cute retro kitchen....turned into a demolition zone

And my new headquarters (i think thats what i'm going to call it....sounds a bit more exciting and extremo than sweatshop!!)

Yeppers i've picked out my colours...but as soon as you go to buy the paint...thats when you doubt your choices!!! Maybe its too bold, maybe its going to look different in the real...do i really love it??? Oh to have 500 shades of the same colour and only one room!!!

Anyways thats what i'm up to0 ...and hoping to have some new goodies in the shop by the 4th!!!

bye bye for now Miss Muscle, totally ripped Little jj

Pearls

I just love pearls.....

.so i thought i'd add them for this photo shoot!!!!
And i finally got these classy lil numbers listed HERE

Happy saturday!!!

bye bye for now

little jj

BEEP!!!

What the BEEP jj??? Man i just took all these really cool photos thru out the day...........and lost EM again!!!....i just get so excited fix the up and get them loaded......my fingers work faster than my brain!!!! RRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!

Anyways i guess i'll be posting these 'Victorian Teals' tomorrow now!!! Which is probably a good thing coz....i had supa scarey hair today

i like to do a bit of surprise stitching here and there too!!!

So there will be 3 of these lil beauties in the shop tomorrow..........................hopefully!!!!

bye bye for now

little jj

New stuff

So i was on a roll yesterday!!!!

I'm doing a big batch of hats - i just gots to have enough to put in my shop and for this 'Fabulous Finds' market i'm doing next weekend!!!

So i decided to call these cute nearly made Kinn Jones 'Victorian Teal'............as all i can see is classy broads in the 40's sipping on tea in a Victorian styled hotel ....you know the ones with checkered floors, plants in the corners and ladies wearing pearls and chaps playing a spot of tennis!!!

Mmmmm to have an over active imagination!!!!

Such gorgeous vintage fabric!!! and of course a touch of teal (my favourite colour of all time!)
and why else i am pumped???

This is going to be the new Sparky Jones headquarters!!! (and the words are from a teabag tag that i had that morning - good sign i thought!!!)

So i'm hoping to change the flooring, paint her up and get some funky retro stuff in there...so it feels like a real Sparky space!!!

I'm supa excited and it has given me some higher goals to work towards... for the next year!!

bye bye for now

little jj

So me and the beau got a great offer over the weekend...do some dog sitting up at the ski hill!!!! Ummm alright then!!! It was really great to get away actually, get some fresh air in the brain cells and to really relax - i think you just need to be away from your home to do that!!!

We had all intentions to go snowboarding....but....well ::: there would be no soft landings -so we did some 'not so extremo' snowshoeing instead!!!

And we did have 4 mutts to exercise.....

then

home to drink some deliciously dangerous coffee and watch crappy movies!!!

This week i finally got around to making some Waste Wonderful wristlets...called

Vintage VioletsA supa cool broad that i had met in the summer at the markets had contacted me recently....and she was really in the need of some purpley/bluesy kinda girly combo in the wristlet department.......so of course i said 'for sure'!!!

Well let me tells ya...when someone asks for a certain something.......nothing pops out at you....i was trying and trying....but it just wasn't creatively working - and it just wasn't her!!

But, always the way- when you are right in the middle of something else.....the fabrics pretty much jump off the shelf and then you just want to get right into it::: like RIGHT NOW!

Okay, this auto inspired supa sturdy wristlet, was actually made from a vintage curtain....Blues, purples and cars...what more could a girl desire!!! The back side is made from a kitschy upcycled bluesy plaid!! Whilst the lining - is a beautifully thick lilac upcycled cotton (Mmmm that was also a curtain!!). She is finished off with an lilac zip and organic cotton labels. Some interfacing and upcycled padding is used..to keep your goodies safe
Righto - bye bye for now

Little jj

ps::: I ended up getting my 'dreamy studio' - i'm picking up the keys tomorrow!!!!!! FINALLY the search and stress is over!!! phhhhhhhhhhheeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwwww

Mmmmm the latest!!!

And i just had to take a photo of the inside!!!! Its just as delicious as the outside!!!

the Perfect.....

Okay so i went to check out the' dream' studio today......everything was perfect:::the size, the locale, the sunlight thru the windows, the price.....like i said perfect!!!!

I decided to spruce up, you know like look professional:::giggle - so i wore my new favourites 'kitschy with a hint of plaid'....i picked up this necklace recently...it was just so glitz...I HAD TO HAVE IT!!! So knowing me i just wear it around the house...and do to the housework!!

But then, all of a sudden i felt like i was booking a flight - you know when you see a good deal, everything seems great and then you start to booking process and WHAMOooo the cost of your flight has multiplied by 10!!!! Needless to say....i'm back on the hunt for a workspace!!

So i tootled off home a little heart broken and finished off these lil guys - 'Aviator Blues' and some other hats that i'm taking to the market.

And here is a glimpse of what i'm trying to finish off in between orders, studio hunting and making extra goodies for the markets.....i think she'll be named ' in the night garden' Busy Jones - she is mainly dark: greys and blues tones, BUT then has these splashes of colour...which totally remind me of walking through a fresh spring time garden by the evening light!
Bye bye for now

Little jj

life lesson 231::: always save your photos to your computer!! That way when you have taken the most PERFECT photos.....when you press the wrong key...you won't lose them and have to take the all over again!!!

Flyin' High

So i picked up this cool fabric a while back....and i thought...i just gots to use it before its summer...its WAY too cute to sit there for another season!!!!

And all i could think of was......'airports' when i looked at it - well maybe an airport way back in the day !

anyways....this cute lil character was made from Horace's trouser (Horace was a very quiet lil ol' man who liked to wear LOUD clothing....and definitely wore clothes from the era he was happiest!!)

The kitschy brim has been stiffened with layers of upcycled canvas, whilst the underside...Mmmmm a yummy upcycled thick dark denim!!

So to keep it in the Aviator theme...I made some delicious bias binding out of a deep blue upcycled linen and appliqued an retro styled arrow!!!

And the lining::: well it matches perfectly of course!!! With a band of cozy grey jersey for a comfortable fit..

Anyways will be adding a couple of these guys to the shop tomorrow!!!

Oh and i just got confirmation today....that Sparky has approval from the government to run a very small manufacturing company of one....in that studio i looked at!!!! (i'm going to look at it tomorrow again...so i'll take my camera!!)

Bye bye for now
Little jj

The Crossing

Yeppers i haven't written much of late hey!!!

Well truth be known.......I have been looking to move Sparky's headquarters( plus trying to get ready for this supa cool market at the end of the month) .... so after much searching, phoning and zoning(permits that is)........i think i've found the perfect space!!!! and its just around the corner from here....which is great considering the number of trips i'm going to have to do!!!

Anyways amidst the craziness i managed to squeeze in a quick trip to the States....yeppers its my first time crossing the border (which is pretty bad considering i've been here for 11 years!)....and let me tells ya i was quite the trip!!!

I was totally pumped, not only was i going on a roadtrip, i was going to a different country and on the most beautiful day......sunny n' still (even tho i must have passed this view point a million times....i just had to take a touristy snap!-i was on Vacation!!!)

So we went to the little town just across the border for some groceries, gas and to visit the famous 'Taco Truck'. But to be honest with you....i couldn't stop laughing n' staring.....everything just seemed so different...the people even looked/sounded different(there was a lot of mullets...and not just on the men!!WOooowZa)

and as i am in love with retro...how cool is this sign....and vehicle for that matter!!!

After we completed our 3 missions, we crossed back over to Canada.. yet without ease!!! We were asked many questions, had to empty our pockets and bags and had a vehicle search. The officer came back and informed my beau that he had found something of concern in our truck!!! HOly diner that is not what you want to hear at a border crossing....and especially not for 2 little nerds like ourselves!!!!

Let me tells ya..never leave a lighter in your jacket pocket after lighting the BBQ the night before....coz when you tell an officer you don't smoke anything and then they find a lighter in your pocket......you are going to come across as a big fat liar!!! And just coz you are sweating like a maniac....doesn't mean your guilty!!!

So they had to do some tests (or should i say a tummy churning longest 3 minutes ever) on this 'illegal substance ' they had found in the truck, but the silly thing is...even tho you know there would be nothing to worry about....its amazing how many stories that an over active imagination can come up with!!!!

The results came back........................................................................................

it was broccoli!!!!

My beau had done some food shopping a while back and decided not to get plastic bags, so apparently there was dried up bits of broccoli dispersed all over the back seat!!!

I think the officer was trying not to giggle. But did say perhaps it would be better to vacuum before crossing over next time!!!!

So we drove back in a 'been thru a highly stressful situ' coma and passed that view point again........still as beautiful don't you think!!!

Just some of the loot i brought back......i think i have been in a suga hangover since!!!!

Bye bye for now

Little jj

ps::: Some 'Aviator Blue' Kinn Jones coming very soon!!!! And just to let you know they are supa cute!!!!