I can't explain how wonderful it really is to have space to spread out and display, and enjoy owning and using beautiful items.

I've been living in small spaces for too many years.

It's such a delight to create displays!

These are display ideas for the Winter Solstice altar cloth.

Which way do you prefer?

You can find my altar cloths at Etsy: SewIntuitivebyRainey 

 

Hello Suburbs

I've never really lived in the suburbs before. Well, maybe after living on campus at university in a house for a couple of years, but mostly I've lived in areas that aren't totally built up. I am very grateful that this house only has 4 neighbours touching the fence because there is nobody over the back. It could be noisier!

However, the next door neighbour went away for a weekend and their smoke detector was going off all night. And part of the day, until someone else rang the fire brigade, who couldn't see anything wrong with it. 

All the same, we got a visit from a fireman which was pretty exciting, and the ice cream truck came along too. So the little fella had the experience of excitement buying a Bubble O Bill from the ice cream van in his own street. Sounds like heaven for a kid who is almost having a birthday right?

Throw in a sunset for Mum.

And his first cinema experience - Trolls World Tour movie. Well, wasn't that just the BEST???

I've set up a cabinet in my house as well.  A crystal display. 

It's a busy time, not sure when I will sew next. Maybe now you can see why I was so productive before now?

 

The little fellah's Big Boy quilt

The little fellah is turning 5 soon, and I'm hoping his new bed arrives in time for his birthday. In the meantime, we've been setting up his room, and it's just as well that his new mattress is on the floor, because he hasn't slept in a bed without a roll bar before. 

This is the new quilt I made him especially for his first Big Boy bed. Tula Pink squirrels and some cute stripes, created super fast in the quilt as you go fashion.

Look at this boy setting up his bedroom with his brother and sister. How marvellous is it to see him just want to be in his own space. He is honestly in heaven.

And while I set up the rest of the house, he is playing in cubbies and whatnot throughout the entire space.

I still have a lot of setting up to do, I can't see myself sewing for a few days! And the 5yo birthday is later this month too.

I am a happy Mum!!

 

New directions

Oh Tinkerbell! How gorgeous is this! Connecting to the inner child, but also connecting to wanderlust: the personal growth that comes from travel and exploration and experience! I've painted her wings so twinkly. She came up great, but I only bought one of these fabrics. So its first in, best dressed.

If you're into coffee and cats, this one is for you. Some people are buying these textile art pieces to hang behind them while they run online zooms, or classes or workshops, to show what they are all about, and act as conversation starters. That makes total sense to me.

I'm not sure if this is Maat or Bast, one is a cat, one is the lioness. I think this one has cat whiskers, so perhaps Bast. Egyptian Goddess.

I love everything Egyptian, so I definitely love this. It's the first one in a Egyptian series.

You can find me on Esty: SewIntuitivebyRainey

 

My own sacred spaces

This is the sacred space that brought me to my new home. I set this with intention, a home in the trees, a sanctuary, i called in the fae and the goddess, and this could indeed be why the "bush block" as we have affectionately named our new land is very connected with the Fae.

Likewise, my happy space (the beach) is here, with open hands, calling to me a safe place to live for my family.

This is one of the new spaces I have created at the new (for me) rental house. 

It's the first time every that I've had space to decorate and display anything in my adult life.

Big changes in my lifestyle, thank you, thank you, thank you.

 

The Wish Pot

 

It's school holidays here, so my 4yo is home, and I've been at the house washing the walls with triclenium every day.  Remember when I said that I had to take the house no matter what? Well, when I went for the inspection, it smelled of bleach as the bathroom was being cleaned.

When that bleach smell disappeared, the smell in the house appeared. And as much as I wanted to live in a comfy home, it was a deal breaker for me. 

I washed every wall with triclenium. (Thank you again to those vitamins which gave me mental clarity, took down inflammation and gave me energy to move). Then I noticed the carpets stank. They were the original carpets and the previous tenants had 5 or more indoor cats. Trust me. It was yuk.

So I organised for the best possible installation and bargain carpet I could get. When the carpet layer came to lift up the carpet, the wood around the walls was rotten as well. Ewee. I had to mop the concrete under the carpet with vinegar and bicarb to remove the smell. Yes, really. The cat pee had made it through the old carpet and sunk into the concrete. Steam cleaning was never going to be enough.

I truly believe the end result of this blue carpet is beautiful. And the whole smell issue is gone. The little fella claimed his bedroom, we put his new bookshelf together (thank you Kmart!!), and he started putting his books away. His first own bedroom!

I started unpacking my crystals, and I found this wish jar made by Bobbi Oliver Lambo Art.

I had written my wish for a new home, with air conditioning and a sewing space, with bedrooms for each of us. I had forgotten of course, because that is how it worked, and I only just found my wish written inside while unpacking it in the new home.

So truly grateful, I will be busy with the move for a little while. Hopefully sewing soon.

The Best News

The best news in the world is that I live in a beautiful city, and I love being near the beach. Townsville has brought me such blessings, including friendship with my dear friend Kate. We studied beauty therapy together here back in 2014 (you might see that I didn't get to finish much sewing that year, it was brutal! I don't know how anyone could study that hard and have a young family!)

The best news is that we got the keys to a rental property. I got it by word of mouth, as I knew I would.

I had to go for an inspection, but honestly: I was going to take it no matter what. I had no other options. So when I went there and found it had 4 bedrooms, one bathroom, and space to sew in the air conditioning, I was elated! A lockup backyard to keep the dogs safe, and a laundry in the garage, with space for the clothes dryer in the wet season.

Add to that how well I am feeling with these vitamins, I am a new woman from the one who was unable to walk in March this year.

I am in the middle of moving and packing, I couldn't do it 6 months ago. I was too sick. I am so grateful.

Sorry to say goodbye to our old place, but optimistic for the future and our new life!

P.S. I am wearing earrings made from crystals and snake bones - we found a snake skeleton a few months ago, that had been run over with the ride on mower probably a year ago (it was just a skeleton now, and had been hiding in the long grass). 

Identifying strongly with snake, shedding skin and transforming into a new reality!!

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.