Yes, I still sew.....

I just haven't had enough time to pull out the sewing machine! But ...... look at what I have had time to 'whip' up!



Two 'Dot Minky' AI2 nappies all ready to sew up for Zach and Anna. I was going to make them AIO's but since we have had some terrible weather lately and my really sick of having nappies hanging around all the time I decided to make them AI2 as I have a few of them (my favourite being Zada's!) and they always dry really quick.


One with pink inner for my little girl and one with blue inner for Zach.


And LUSH Bamboo fleece already to sew up and snap for snap-in inserts!
(Dot minky & fleece from Spotlight, Bamboo fleece from ummmm...The bamboo fabric store. PUL that I used to make it a little more water proof is from Fairy Fabrics.)

Yes I said SNAP! I got myself a SNAP PRESS!! (and HEAPS of different coloured snaps)
(Snap press from Snaps Australia)

This purchase has made me even more determined to finish the nappies so I can use my new little toy...LOL! I have had some offers to use other peoples and I did really appreciate this but I never seem to have the time to get out and do it. The snap press was a big purchase in my book but the good news is that it is useful for more than just nappies...more on that later.

So check back for the finish product and some actions shots! I'm heading to the machine now - oh and wish me luck! LOL!

Very pleased with myself

I made a decision a little while ago to cut down on some unnecessary spending and to also try to help the environment a bit. When I sat down and had a bit of a think about what exactly I could do I found a huge amount! A bit of web surfing also helped. I wanted to 1. Spend less cash on things I really don't need to buy 2. Reduce the amount of rubbish we output here and 3. Be more environmently friendly. We already do a HUGE amount of recycling at the moment to the point were our recycling bin is over flowing and our rubbish bin isn't even half full but there was still more I could do.

First things first, I went from disposable nappies to MCN's (Modern Cloth Nappies). First we started out with about 40 Mandy Mac fitteds with Snappi's and 9 BBH (Baby Beehind) PUL covers. I loved them so much I moved onto AIO's (All in ones) and pockets that don't require a cover and come in amazing different fabrics and designs. After that came my obbession with making my own AI2's (All in two's) as I found that they dried alot quicker. We have now built up a stash of about 70 nappies (and the addiction continues!). Zach and Anna are in full-time MCN's at home and out 'n' about, Mitchell even wears one to bed with a Bamboo booster! I haven't purchased any disposables for months!.

The next thing I did was decide to use cloth wipes. Having twins and a 3 year old we would go through an enormous amount of wipes that aren't cheap! I was given a stack at chrissy time so I finished those off and went using fleece wipes. I purchased 24 fleece nappy liners from Oztion , cut them in half to make 48 and there you have it, all for only $4!! We just use water or a little bit of JnJ cream and it works great.

Other ideas for money saving that I have taken on board are:

• 
  
  Shopping at Aldi instead of Safeway or Coles
  
  


• 
  
  Buying in bulk - I now purchase most of my meat in bulk at great savings
  
  


• 
  
  Walking more places - living in a smallish town has its advantages
  
  


• 
  
  Ashlee catches the busy home from school - cost less then driving
  
  


• 
  
  I make most of Ashlee's lunch stuff i.e Muesli bars
  
  


• 
  
  Homemade snacks and yogurt
  
  


• 
  
  We converted our 4x4 to gas a little while ago - we have a late model Prado and it was really consuming the petrol. Brett has a late model LC Ute that is diesel - not so cheap :(
  
  

To name a few.....

I make my own cleaning products (its amazing what vinegar can do!) and have begun sewing a lot of the kids clothes. Ashlee thinks this is great as she gets what she wants in the fabric she choses.

So that is my contribution to the environment and also our hip pocket!

Some excellent sites to help you out if you would like to make some changes are:

Saving Mums - A1 Top Site!

Simple Savings

Green Living Australia

Thrifty Fun

Till next time, take care everyone!

Just another Update

A few things to share, where do I start??

I have decided to start knitting.....yes, knitting!! I used to hate knitted things but I'm really growing to love them. I am starting with a really easy pattern for a nappy soaker for Miss Anna. Its just finding the time to start it!

I wanted to turn this.....


Into this....


Once I get this one done I'll knit a blue version (without the frill) for Master Zachary.

I'm still in nappy making mode although I haven't had time to get much done! Here is one that I'm nearly finished. I just have to put the snaps on and sew it up.



It is a pocket nappy. I have really grown to love pockets, I find them a lot more user friendly. I have a few AIO's & fitted's but I keep coming back to the pockets. They dry quicker, don't need covers, can be stuffed with almost anything and are really easy to sew!

A quick photo of the Santa Sacks that my mum made the kids. I really love them, and the kids thought they were great too!



Thats all for tonight I think, hopefully some more interesting news to share next time. Till than, take care.

Time for an Update

Hello everyone! Time for an update from me.....

Well, we have had a terrible start to the year. On January 4th we had Anna admitted to hospital with broncolitis. She had been sick for about 6 weeks before a doctor finally decided to have her admitted. After 5 days in our local hospital on oxygen Anna was transferred to a larger hospital (about an hour away) to be cared for by our usual Paed. With in half an hour of being there he had her on ventolin and antibiotics (to treat a secondary bacterial infection caused by having the mucus sitting in her lungs for so long without treatment!). The differences was amazing. Even though she was definately not 'better', you could see a marked improvement and she finally was able to have a decent feed and a decent sleep. We were all soooo relieved! She is home now although still not 100% but a lot happier. Here are some pics of her while she was in hospital.... Oh and used the hospitals Huggies nappies the whole time we were there and found out how much I love my MCN's!!!

You can see by the look on her face she was really not well

A 'famliy shot' & Anna sleeping in hospital cot

So what else have we been up to? Haven't had a chance to get any sewing done but hope to get back into it soon. Here is some other news....

Finally here is a photo of the finished dress I made for Anna ~ with Anna modelling it!

Used my flybuys points to get some Gift cards. Here are a couple of adorable t-shirts I picked up at Target with some of them today for Zach and Anna. Just couldn't resist!

Finally took a photo of my growing nappy stash (although there were still a few in the wash) - for twins its not that big but we are working on it! LOL!

We have:

40 Mandy Macs - our workhorse nappies
2 Pookey Pockets
1 Nappy Chappies - Sandman(?)
1 Ummm...not sure what this one is - blue with green frogs
3 BBH Magicalls (although only 2 pictured)
2 Home made fleece pockets (all homemades are made by me :)
1 Home made terry fitted (not pictured)
4 Peapod hemp boosters
1 Peapod bamboo booster
4 Home made boosters
6 Target brand nappy wraps (Not to bad - going to add some extra elastic around the legs)
9 BBH PUL Covers (not pictured - all in use or in the wash)

We also have on the way:

2 x Nappylicious 'My little pony' & 'Icecreams'
1 x Bubblebubs Green Dot Minky AIO
1 x Mandarin Daiquari Wild child Dreamy Night Nap

I think thats it. Really would love more ..... hehehe

I'm in the process of making Anna a 'Dora' fleece pocket and Zach an 'ABC' print fleece pocket. I'm also making Mitchell a 'Wiggles' Night nappy fleece pocket. He is still in nappies at night and loves the wiggles!

Ok just looked at the time - 2:30am!! Going to bed!!! Good night (morning LOL!) everyone.

New addition to my MCN essentials

I have just recieved my newest addition to my MCN stash. My new 'Wetbag'!

I have really been looking forward to recieving this as I'm really sick of carrying around plastic bags and this is far more stylish ..... hehehe! Now dampness and smells will be kept at bay while out and about.

Oh, small things amuse small minds don't they ...... hahahaha!

Its a mini disaster.....

but its cute .... I had an attempt at making a fleece pocket nappy and I must say that it really is not what I though it would be.

I went to fast and made (quite) a few mistakes, I'm really not happy with myself.

On the other hand I have tried it out on my little girl and it does work! It will definately be an 'at home' nappy though. Not something to be overly proud of.

My next attempt will be with blue fabric for my little boy and I will definately be taking more care on this one! My even change my pattern or just make it a fitted one (a little easier for me being a 'newbie'!)

My addiction has started!

Today is the first day of my absolute addiction to sewing! I have this weird urge to sew - ANYTHING!

So far I have only made one terry fitted nappy but it came out ok. I am now in the process of making my daughter a dress, so we will see the outcome of that shortly!