Miss Tread Softly turned three this week. Handmade gifts and treats were the flavour of the day.

image: japanese bunting

image: sleepy cloud in it’s box

image: sewn antique bedding and embroidered cloud

image: bedding detail

image: cake pops to share with friends

image: cake pop and milk

image: wooden dolls house and sylvanian bunny

image: dolls house painted in our last homes colours

image: our birthday pirate off to find treasure

Some gentle pottering has been taking place in my studio this week. I’ve been working on a commissioned lampshade similar to this one. Lot’s of work but the repetitious motion, I’m finding, is somewhat therapeutic. The past couple of months, in relation to the new build, have been a bit of an uphill struggle but, I am happy to say that we now have building consent. We’re good to go! So, building a lampshade out of 100′s and 100′s of small tissue pieces has been the perfect make.

Image: wire pile

Each of the tissue pieces are wired onto the frame. I love this image of how the snipped wire sits. Like a miniature version of Pick-up-Sticks.

I always spend time  wrapping orders that come in from the online shop. I take great pleasure in making them look and feel special. Today I’ve been making little tags to attached to parcels that will be tied on with string.

image: thank you tags

image: a pile of thank yous

It’s a beautiful Autumn day here. Time to leave the studio, load my iPod with podcasts and go walking. Until next time…

What better way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon than at Hedley’s Book Store listening to Rosemary McLeod talking about her newest publication ‘With Bold Needle and Thread’. The book includes 47 projects taken from vintage magazines that have been given a little 21st century twist. It’s also ‘threaded through with social history, ephemera, facts, tips and hints’.

This book is tremendous value and a vintage feast for the eyes.

image: rosemary mcleods new book

On the way back to the car, I found a dollar coin on the pavement and so put it towards treating a girlfriend to tea and cake at a local eatery. A wonderful gentle afternoon.

image: chocolate brownie and tea

The house we’re staying in used to belong to my friend who now lives over the back fence. Sometime ago, she scattered a handful of mushrooms under the apple tree to see what would happen. They decomposed and she forgot about them. It just so happened that she popped over for coffee this morning (we do that a lot) and look what we saw in the dewy grass…

image: baby mushrooms

image: edible mushrooms

image: lots of them!

As I look out of the window from my desk, I can see many more little white mushroom tops poking through the grass. My friend took them home with her – well, it was only fair that she had the first crop. What did you make with them Leanne?

image: the house plans

It’s been quite a week. In between the colds and sickness bugs that our daughter has generously shared with us, we managed to submit our house plans to council for building consent. Quite a major step in amongst the myriad of pigeon steps that make up the building process. We can now concentrate on the details of interior design as well as making those huge kitchen and bathroom choices. Here are a few images taken from my Pinterest boards that I think are rather lovely and are inspiring us right now.

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I’m having a sale on doorstops over in the shop. They were $48 and are now half price at just $24! I know! Bargain city! I’m down-sizing my product range in terms of weight and won’t be making any more for a long, long time so now is the time to purchase and perhaps put them away to use as gifts throughout the year. Sorry – ALL SOLD

These super stylish made by hand doorstops are available in dark blue denim or taupe linen with a panel of antique French hemp and embellished with cashmere yarn stitches. They all have a repurposed leather handle and are filled with dried rice.

Due to customs restrictions this offer is available to New Zealand customers only.  P&P is $7.50 however many you purchase. If you’re outside NZ, don’t worry, I have lots of goodies that I’m getting ready to pop into the shop that are suitable to post overseas.

This morning we stood in our pyjamas on the dewy grass and watched balloons sail across the sky.

image: balloons over wairarapa

I’ve been making tea cosies this week – screen printed from one of my drawings and enhanced by a touch of embroidery.

They’ll be making their debut this Sunday at Cobblestones Market (details in the right-hand column) and then added to the shop next week.

Miss Tread Softly has decided that she rarely needs afternoon naps anymore so producing a small run of cosies and pin cushions has been quite an achievement!

Hope to see you Sunday.

image: a little corner of our home

image: glass bell jar cover, paper boat, vintage book, rosemary + lavender

A parcel arrived from Audrey this week of Hello Paper. Her ‘Live Simply’ sticker had caught my eye  and I felt that an old bell jar cover I had, needed a lift. Honor and I have been paper-folding together. The glass cover protects our first attempt.

She also sent a tiny, twine tied bouquet of rosemary and lavender cut from her garden. Don’t you think that’s precious?

I never lose sight of life’s big picture but it’s always the little gestures, moments and details that I love to focus in on throughout my day.

I’ve said before that one of the many things I enjoy about living in NZ is eating seasonally. Asparagus season, sweetcorn season, feijoa season… Right now,  tomato season. We’re snacking on them and eating them with pretty much every meal. Yesterday, I roasted them. So good! Seriously good!

image: roasted tomatoes on ciabatta with feta and basil

Halve your tomatoes (I used several varieties), scoop out the seeds and lay them, cut side up, in a roasting tray. Drizzle over 1/4 cup of EVOO and 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar. Season. Finely chop two garlic cloves and sprinkle over the tomatoes along with 2 teaspoons of sugar. Roast in the oven (220C) for about 35 minutes. Spoon over warmed, sliced ciabatta and add torn basil leaves. Because I had it in the fridge I also added crumbled feta and some bacon pieces that I’d fried until crispy. A delicious summer supper!