Getting up-to-date

This post is probably a little late in the year for some but is quite telling on where I am in the organisation stakes.
Up until recent times I have been completely satisfied with using the calendar application on my phone as my sole reference point for all things "to do", "birthdays" and appointments alike.
Now that Master P is off to school I realised the need for something visual, on display, for all of us to refer to.
As usual I had something in particular in mind, I wanted a blank, squared monthly calendar that I could display on the fridge that wasn't too big, ideally smaller than A4. Getting out of the house to shop for said calendar was near impossible and the selections left at Kikki K and Typo were limited (clearly I'd left my run too late). So I turned to the internet which is the perfect time filler as I sit and feed and sit and settle bubs. Scouring the internet and searching for the right fit (I was quite specific in what I wanted) did not return any potentials to buy. However, I stumbled across a perfect style that I could print. Even better it was free!! Courtesy of www.delineateyourdwelling.com

http://www.delineateyourdwelling.com/2015/11/2016-hand-lettered-calendar.html

Clever Amy from Delineate Your Dwelling hand wrote the typography for the Months of the calendar. Clearly one who strives for perfection she wrote out hundreds of versions of calendar titles and selected the best ones which she then generously shared.

Very happy with the style and able to print to the right size I almost had what I was after except it was missing something. That splash of colour. For a long while now I have owned a set of watercolour paints that I have been longing to play with and the calendar presented the perfect opportunity.
And play I did. It was thoroughly enjoyable and I was pleased with the results. Simple, effective and each one unique.

Here is the result..

Follow the link to get a closer look
https://flipagram.com/f/kDCqDae3ob

Which one is your favourite? (comment below, I dare ya). Hubster prefers April which just happens to coincide with his birthday month. That's fortuitous. 

Til next time...

Michelle

Instagram: @shelladores

Pinterest: shelladores

Blogspot: www.shelladores.com

Pastel prettiness

Summer brings a sense of cheery brightness, light and colour that is best reflected by pastel hues.

While pastels are never far from favour they seem to have made another recent revival. The soft pastel tones create a soothing feel making it a popular choice for children's rooms and nurseries alike.

Pastel colours are versatile and impartial being suitable for either gender depending on the colour combination.

The preference for pastel is appearing more frequently in my Instagram news feed which is always a good indicator that they are in style.

Here is a selection of pastel pretties that would brighten any space from a few of my favourite Insta stores...

 http://www.thegingerkids.bigcartel.com

The Ginger Kids sweet pastel blocks are paired perfectly with my favourite pastel colour combination. 

www.facebook.com/emspattyscraft

These Em Patty's crocheted cuties truly capture pastel playfulness perfectly. 

@tinydolldesigns          tinydolldesigns@yahoo.com.au

Tiny doll designs has the pastel spectrum covered with these sweet wooden dolls.

Bunny by http://faithlaine.bigcartel.com & Pastel board by http://www.poppypeach.bigcartel.com

Faith Lane & Poppy and Peach's devine duo bring pastel prettiness to any shelf. 

http://www.koabykaitlin.com.au

It's hard to go past a Koa creation and even more so with this pastel pairing. 

http://www.mitahlidesigns.com.au

The soft and subtle wooden wonders by Mitahli Designs would be sweet for any wee ones space. 

It is easy to see the appeal and charm of pastels & the reason for their longevity. 

Ah pastel perfection is purely paradisal and I am proudly passionate. (Apologies, I do love a good bout of alliteration.)

Til next time...

Michelle

Follow me on Instagram @shelladores

Blogspot: www.shelladores.blogspot.com

Harmonious hues - Colour of the year

'How's the serenity' and 'a rose by any other name' come to mind when talking about Pantone's much anticipated selection for colour of the year. The global authority in colour, Pantone, selected a blend of two colours, Serenity and Rose quartz, as the 2016 recipients. For the first time they chose two colours and forecast the soft pink and blue pastel palette best reflect a time of soothing and gender equity.

Pantone believe this colour combination provides a sense of calm and order.

Nature seems to share a partiality for these harmonious hues as reflected below.

I do love these tranquil tones and look forward to seeing them reflected by fashion and interior designers.

I am feeling inspired to get out the paints, see you soon with the results.

Til next time...

Michelle  xx
@shelladores

DIY - Babe alert

So my latest DIY project has been nine months in the making. Made with some serious TLC and a little help from one doting Dad. This project has kept us busy but has been a labour of love in the most literal sense and a cherished creation that grew patiently and serenely while we were dealing with the frenzy of knocking down our house, moving to the rental, creating and designing our home, watching our house come together, moving out of the rental and setting up our home. All in the nick of time! (This was in addition to the daily grind of work, kinder, childcare etc.) It's been a crazy, wonderful, exhausting, exhilarating, intense time.

Seven weeks ago our treasured project was complete and made her entry with just a little fuss but well worth it! Our whimsical Willow was welcomed into the world, a delicious sumo babe weighing a whopping 8lb 12oz with a head of hair to make any grown man envious. Our clan of five is complete & the older two have embraced their sister with complete devotion. I am feeling incredibly blessed as I savour the indulgence of new born snuggles in our sparkling new home.

Emerging from the bubble that is life with a newborn and adjusting once again to being a zombie Mum, I am keen to get back on-board and continue the joy of writing my blog and sharing the interior spaces and creative projects I am creating. I feel I have a bit to catch you up on and a lot of promises previously made to fulfil. You may need to be patient with my sleep deprived and addled brain as well as tolerant of the typos that come with one handed typing as I have a babe in arms.

My treasures & greatest achievements

Wow-ven wall hangings!

As we settle into our beautiful new abode and wait the arrival of our little cherub I have found me some nesting time. And fortunately I have a whole brand spanking new house ripe for nesting. One of the features of our new house is an abundance of grey wall space that is screaming for some wall couture to make them shine. However it's a brave and bold step to hang something onto the wall of a new house and one I really want to get right. 

I have had some insta-inspiration and wanted to share the latest prettiness for those blank wall spaces for both adult and child spaces alike. 

 

Photo credit: @warpedthreads

 

What I love most about Instagram and the talented folk out there is the resurgence of handmade crafts of old made with skill and love. The latest trend of hand woven wall hangings  has put a modern spin on the art of weaving.

 

I am amazed at the beauty and diversity of the wall hangings that are around. The variety of different materials, knots, patterns and colors that are available and make these beauties suitable for any space. 

 

Photo credit: Maryannemoodie

 

As usual I have selected a few of my insta faves to bring you a collection to treat your eyes. 

 

 

My favourite colours by @warpedthreads Courtney and Nicky offer beginner workshops too.

Shop: www.warpedthreads.com.au/product/warped-threads-beginner-workshop

 

 

 

Love the softness of this custom made weave by @maypoledesign

Shop: maypoledesign.weebly.com

 



 

How pretty is Peyton by @wovenbysarajo

 Custom orders: sgiansiracusa@hotmail.com
 

 

 

Pink, grey, white and pom pom perfection by @missmaramakes

 

The aptly named Ballerina by @wallcouture
Shop:www.etsy.com/no-en/shop/WallCoutureAustralia
 

 



 

The clever ladies @winniedotlabel and @maypoledesign collaborated to create these beauties.

 

The hand-woven wall hangings have even made the big guys sit up and take notice, with companies such as Typo stocking their own collection. 

 

 

As I do love a good DIY challenge I endeavour to have a go at making my own weave so keep an eye out for it in the future. Meanwhile have fun deciding which wonderful weave will adorn your wall.

Celestial styling - DIY Kmart Hack

This is just a quickie to share a recent up-cycle I completed. This is my first step towards preparing the babies nursery. Pictures of the nursery will come when it is complete.

 

I bought this fine looking bargain of a marquee light from Kmart, however the black was a bit moody for the light pretty nursery look I was going for, so something had to be done.

 

 

 

To transform this to a prettier shade I picked up this can of spray paint from Riot Art for around $12.00.

 

 
 
The challenge now was to find a way to ensure the white light bulbs don't end up covered in spray paint. Enter the most unlikely craft hack ever, Water balloons!! While I would like to take credit for this act of genius, I stumbled across this in the wonderful world of Insta some months ago.
 
 


This balloon I cut too short. It needs to be cut just below the skinny point so that it sits snug around the globe like in the image below.

 

 
  

Looks quite pretty with all the colours!!

 

 Now it's time to spray.

 

Spray your star outside, away from anything that could get discoloured. It is advisable to wear a mask. Leave it for a day to dry properly.

 

 

Here is the outcome! Not too shabby for an afternoon's work and now the perfect temperament for the nursery. Actually, it dried a touch darker than I was going for but it will work all the same.

 

I will share this sweet celestial with you when it is sitting pretty in the nursery once I am done.

 
 

Minion Madness - DIY Minion Pinata

It's been too long between blogs thanks to the craziness that was the month of August. Shelladores moved headquarters and it was a big job which we are happily settling into now. I will share interior snaps of the new house when I have it looking pretty!

August also saw two kiddie birthdays for us to celebrate, a 2nd Peppa Pig Muddy Puddles Farm party and a 5th Minion's theme party. The latter is the reason for this DIY post (as promised).

At the time of Mr Fives birthday preparations I could not find a Minion piñata in stores despite some mediocre hunting. And a Minion piñata was a must as it had been specifically requested (demanded?) by the birthday boy. Not one to shy from a challenge I had a vision in my head of how I could pull off making one of my own and thought I would be kind enough to share (only because it worked). It was surprisingly quite easy and not too time consuming once you've got the right materials.

You will need:

• A box of approx. 30 x 30 x 10cm. I found a sandwhich grill box which was the perfect size.
• Yellow streamer ribbon - This can be bought from most cheap goodies shops.
• Glue - I used craft glue and a glue stick
• Sticky tape
• 5 sheets of yellow paper
• 1 sheet of black paper
• Minions eye goggle mask & mouth print out - I found one through a google search, printed & coloured in.
• Lollies - a selection of your sweetest choice
• Strong string or thin rope

Step 1 - Poke a hole for the rope to go through at what will be the head of your box. Leave top flap of box ajar but ensure the bottom of your box is secure.

Step 2 - Cover the box in yellow paper - this is to stop any box appearing should I leave gaps

Step 3 - Measure the length of your box with yellow streamer and cut as many lengths as you will need. I cut my length to go over one front and side. I did 20 lengths at a time. Approximately 50 lengths was needed for one side.

Step 4 - Fringe your streamer using scissors. The streamer is so fine that you can layer and cut multiple streamer lengths at a time. I was fringing up to 15 lengths at a time.

Step 5 - Paste glue over the box and stick streamer one layer at a time just on the top edge so the fringing hangs down and overlaps the layer below. Start from the bottom of the box and work your way up. As the streamer is fine it is easy to tear once glue is applied. Trim of any overhang from the strips. Keep one fringed streamer length for sealing the box at the end.

 
 
 Step 6 - Turn over box and repeat Steps 3 - 5 for the reverse side.

Step 7 - Cut and paste the Minion goggle eyes and mouth that you printed out. Use two black strips of paper to make the straps on the goggle. Cut out four matchstick sized pieces of black paper and glue on top of the box as the Minion's hair.

Step 8- Using yellow card cut two even strips of approx. 4cm wide. Fan fold the strips the entire length. These will be the arms for your minion.
 

Step 9 - Cut out two small black hands that are in proportion to arm size. Adhere to the yellow arms and attach arms to the sides of the box. I required tape for this to ensure they will stay.

Step 10 - Poke through your string or rope ensuring you have enough length to tie your piñata.

Step 11 - Fill your piñata with some sugary goodness. I go for wrapped lollies as the idea of collecting them unwrapped from the floor doesn't bode well with me. Kmart has a good selection.

Step 12 - Seal your piñata well and cover the seal with your spare piece of streamer for a seamless finish.

Step 13 - Stand back and admire your handiwork.
 

Step 14 - Hang your piñata, assemble the Minions and let them wack away watching at your precious creation gets decimated all in the spirit of good fun.
 

 

 

 Note: My box was a little too strong so if you have a thicker box it might be an idea to poke a few holes to help the destruction underway.

 

Finally here is my attempt at a minion cakes for you to have a giggle at, I'll stick to Pinata making.