The journey so far.

So this whole "Blogging" thing has been way more fun then I thought it would be! The first 6 months of my blogging life have zipped by! Here are a few simple things I got up to over the past 6 months that I didn't get round to posting....

Performing an acoustic set at the Maribyrnong Makers Market.

Our beautiful country. Organ Pipes National Park.

Home made spinach and fetta pizza. yum.

Crafternoon.

Birthdays!

Making cakes!

Simple Easter crosses in our community garden

Stop and smell the roses.

...more baking!

Dressing my kids from head to toe in Op shopped goodness!

Recycled bottles make great vases. The roses are from our garden.

Fresh produce from our community garden.

I've JUST started getting the hang of crochet, and loving it!

Look! Our garlic is growing!

I'm really enjoying blogging, it's been quite an outlet for me.However, I'm now going to say bye-bye for a month as we head off to the UK in a few days! I'm sure I'll have plenty more to share once I'm back. Thanks for reading my blog, and make sure you come back again in a month or so!

Mezz xoxoooooooo

PS- I'm quickly going to "whip up" some pretty bunting for our Brother's Wedding in London before we leave in two days. (They are having a picnic wedding..how cute!) I won't have time to share it with you, but the idea I'm going with is to make the bunting out of something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.

Baby Shower Gifts

My little brother and his wife (Taz, who writes the lovely blog Butter and Buntings) are expecting their first bubba in the next month or so. We are all getting quite excited!! Our little nephew is due to arrive while we are away overseas, so I'm hoping he holds out just a few more days til we're back (I'm sure Taz isn't hoping that though!!)

Anyway, thought I'd share with you the gifts we gave them at their baby shower over the weekend. Most were Op Shop finds, I love that most of my friends and family appreciate these second hand type gifts!

Cute green elephant shirt (Op shop)

A nappy change mat (just pieced together two pieces of oil cloth with an old towel sandwiched in for softness. Edged it with thick bias tape and learned that I cannot sew straight lines!!)

Picked this up from a local craft shop on a recent day trip to Maryborough

Cute. Op Shop.

Really cute. Op shop.

This Bulldogs scarf was given to us 6 years ago for Coleman Jnr. He's turned out to be a bit more of a Tigers fan though (yes!!)

another Op Shop find

Good luck Pete and Taz!

love Aunty Mezz xox

3000 Page Views...

Well, Woop Dee Doo. My blog just celebrated its 3000th page view today. It did. It had its own party with streamers, balloons and bunting....I'm sure for many people 3000 doesn't sound like much, but for someone as technologically unadvanced as me, I'm pretty proud of creating something online that people are bothering to check out. So thanks for supporting Mezz Makes Stuff, and three cheers for making stuff, whatever that stuff may be!

To celebrate the big 3000, I thought it would be nice to have you all over for some slice and tea. But it could be a logistical nightmare having you all over to our little apartment, and as of yet I'm not sure if and how one can share food online, so here's the recipe to try it for yourself! Let me know how you go with it.

EASY ORANGE SLICE

YOU WILL NEED:

1/2 CUP (125GM) BUTTER
250 GM CRUSHED MALT BISCUITS
1/2 CAN OF CONDENSED MILK (Not Nestle, please!)
1 CUP DESICATED COCONUT
GRATED RIND OF 1 ORANGE

FOR THE ICING
1 1/2 CUPS OF ICING SUGAR
GRATED RIND AND JUICE OF ONE ORNAGE
SQUEEZE OF LEMON JUICE
2 TEASPOONS MELTED BUTTER

METHOD: MELT THE BUTTER AND THEN ADD THE REST OF INGREDIENTS. SPREAD EVENLY IN A GREASED 28 X 18 CM SLICE TIN. PLACE IN FRIDGE.
WHEN SET, ICE WITH THE ICING AND SPRINKLE WITH COCONUT AND A LITTLE EXTRA ORNAGE RIND. CUT INTO SQUARES ONCE ICING IS SET.

                                     


(This is a favourite Lemon Slice recipe passed on from my friends Liam and Melissa. I replaced most of the lemon with orange however, as we had oranges growing in our community garden. I’m trying to think more and more about using seasonal produce, and this was just a small step toward thinking a bit more seasonally, as we had the oranges right there and then in our backyard...couldn’t get more organic, seasonal or local then that! The result is a slightly less “sharp” taste, but very, very sweet and yummy..)

Thanks for stopping by,
Mezz xxo

New project...

I have been thinking about doing this for along time, but am finally getting started! Very excited. It's a tshirt quilt, made up from old favourites that have been worn to death or outgrown. We pass most clothes onto other people or the Opshop, but there are always a few that mean something special (perhaps a joke or a lovely memory) that are hard to let go.

So far all I've done is a lot of cutting and placing. The photo is to remind me of how I hope to sew it all together, and I'm sharing it with you for a bit of accountability! I need people to remind me to do this, because I think it will be great, but I'm not so good at projects that take longer than an hour...

So watch this space and I won't be offended by any gentle reminders and queries about how the quilt is going!

Mezz xoxoxo