November celebration

November is a particularly happy month for us, as this is the month that our first-born arrived to show us what had been missing from our lives up to that point.  On Saturday the Sydney clan will gather at our favourite restaurant in the park to celebrate the occasion.  This song came out when our three children were babies, and it never fails to bring such nostalgic memories of the Seventies when we were all so young.  Happy birthday Maz.

Rush

Every year since I was quite young I have made the same promise to myself as Christmas rushes towards us at an alarming clip.  Each year I promise that next year I will be fully prepared.  By the first week of December the Christmas shopping will be completed (the shopping list having been organised a month earlier), the cake and pudding will be sitting smugly in the pantry, Christmas cards will be well on their way, the tree and decorations will astound our visitors with their beauty, and I will be calm.  Right.

Then reality steps in.  This year by late October the Christmas dress orders started to dribble in, and by mid November I predict it will become a little scary.  One woman, one machine, so many dresses.

Yesterday I mailed off a custom order to a sweet young mother who requested a dress for her young daughter and co-ordinating outfit for her as yet to be born baby daughter.

A few days ago I was thrilled to receive the most beautiful images from Boutique Baby Photography and immediately added the dress to my Etsy and MadeIt stores.

Within two days I had several orders to fill and it looks as though it will sell out very quickly.

Not that I'm complaining!

Last week when I stepped onto the balcony off my sewing studio for a breath of fresh air and to clear the cobwebs from my frazzled brain, I noticed something new.

There it was - the first jacaranda sighting of the season.  The city is now dusted in mauve, as the jacarandas take the signal from each other that it's their time to shine.  Ah ... bliss.  

And now back to those orders.  Perhaps December next year my plan will eventuate.  As for this year, we Fudge Seniors will be seen rushing wild-eyed through the department stores at the last minute, grabbing whatever is left which might be in the least bit suitable as Christmas gifts. The cards will be posted possibly by 20 December, the tree and decorations will be flung around the apartment by 22 December, and the cake and pudding will be ready by Christmas morning.  Maybe.

Spring Fair

It's Saturday and it's time to put away the sewing machine and prepare for tomorrow's Spring Fair.  Here are a few things I have recently been working on which will be available tomorrow.

Sizes 6 months and 1 year

Cute baby elephants

Size 7

One of a kind, size 5

Mix 'n Match

Latest design

Apart from clothing, I will have the first of this year's Christmas Tree garlands on sale.

Speaking of Christmas, I will be taking orders for this adorable little Christmas dress.  I have one left in stock in size 1, so if you love it, be quick - they are selling faster than I can make them.

I do hope you will come to the fair if you are in Sydney tomorrow.  

I'm afraid my stocks are lower than usual due to heavy sales on my Etsy and MadeIt shops.  However, I will have an order book on hand and if you see something you like, you can order it tomorrow and if you pay for the item in advance, I will send it to you free of shipping charges.

See you tomorrow!

My sort of Twilight

You can keep all those werewolves and vampires.  My ideal twilight is sitting with old friends in the evening sun (ah, the joys of daylight savings) in a local park, listening to a jazz concert.

Yesterday was one of those magical spring days that Sydney does so well when she sets her mind to it. Fourteen of us gathered at Wahroonga Park to settle back for an evening of fun and music.  

Mind you, we were not alone.  A few of the neighbours took advantage of the stunning weather to join us.

There were picnics ...

... and lots of red balloons.

Local-girl-made-good Monica Trapaga kicked off the evening with a wonderful selection of old time classics.  I had a dress very similar to hers when I was a lot younger and actually had a waistline.  Sigh.  The last time I saw Monica was back in June at the Etsy Success Sydney conference.  She was in the audience and I was making cringing memories to take with me to my grave.  

Then we were wowed by The Rat Pack, who had the adults tapping their feet and the munchkins dancing.

Mr Fudge was so happy to be seen in public with his new nose finally unbandaged.  He's mightily pleased with it.

As the evening set in we walked slowly back to our friends' home for a delightful dinner.  What a perfect twilight. 

Isn't She Lovely

Isn't she lovely?

Isn't she wonderful?

Isn't she precious?

I know Stevie Wonder was thinking about his own little bundle of joy when he wrote these words, but he could just as easily written them for this little princess.

Californian photographer Sara of Boutique Baby Photography has a wonderful affinity with her little models and I am thrilled with the results.

Christmas is not so far away now and you can order this dress by going to my Etsy or MadeIt stores.  There's currently a two week delay, so don't leave it until the week before Christmas!

If you are in Sydney, I will have a limited number available at the Corpus Christi School Spring Fair (see here).

And now back to the machine.

It's coming

How do you know when Christmas is coming?  When the supermarkets start packing their shelves with Easter Eggs of course.

Here at Hot Fudge Headquarters the machine has been working overtime preparing for the approaching season.  My Christmas Tree garlands will be hitting my Etsy and MadeIt stores on Monday 29 October.  They usually sell fairly quickly, so it might be advisable to mark the date in your diary.

However, on Sunday 28 October I will be selling them at the Corpus Christi School 40th Annual Craft & Fun Fair, along with lots of my Hot Fudge children's clothing.  So if you are in the area, why not drop by and say hello?  The address is 17 Link Road, St Ives.  Bring the whole family, as it promises to be a day of fun for all.  The hours are between 10.00am and 3.00pm.  I'd love to see you there.

Whoosh

That's the sound of this week - whoosh.

Last Saturday the clan descended on the Brenda May Gallery at Waterloo for the official opening of the  Art + Food: Beyond the Still Life exhibition which features some of our daughter Maz Dixon's works.  

I don't know much about art, but I know what I like. 

No, this gentleman and his companion are not part of our clan, but it's good to see that some canines do enjoy visiting galleries.  Or perhaps he was expecting more food and less art.  Here are a few random shots taken on the day.

The next day our three year-old grandson came to our apartment to mind us while his parents and two older siblings attended Cirque du Soleil - OVO.  I think we had more fun than they did.  He even brought along his all-time favourite food - bacon and cheese rolls followed by chocolate chip cookies.  Last time he came he insisted on cheese and honey sandwiches, so it was an improvement.

He gave me tips on how to improve my dressmaking skills.  What a boy.  And you can ask me anything on the creatures in Minuscule, because I know them all, frame by frame.

The weekdays were taken up with dress orders, so thank goodness I had my new-found techniques fresh in mind from Sunday's lessons.  If I am not heard of in the next few days, I can probably be found under a pile of fluff from the sewing and overlocker machines.

To complete the week, today my candy stripe top is featured on the front page of MadeIt, which makes me very happy.  

So where did the week go?  Whoosh.