StayAtHomeLife

We now have puppy pens for the boy and girl cages so the GPs have a huge grass run during the day. Creating shade is the new problem though. They love boxes on their side or with doors cut in them but any moisture and they are ruined. Pet shops sell tunnels like this made from soft pine, but at around $45 each and when you need several, I decided to have a crack at making our own. It was just as…

The blank canvas.

I happened to be at Bunnings just a few days after Christmas, and their pallet recycling pile was massive, presumably from all the extra Christmas stock. I grabbed a long pallet for another project then inspiration struck! I called Mr. SAHL and he was on board.  What better reason to pull out all those power tools I buy him.

Unfortunately, heaps of the photos of the progress have gone missing, so what was going to be a step by step guide cannot be.  But hopefully, this blog can be inspiration enough anyway.  I was aiming for pots at least 70cm tall to deter the chooks. But you can make them any size you like really.

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  I was originally planning on painting them, but now I kind of like the rustic finish, even with the random chunks of blue. 🙂

And we have progress.  The temporary fence is in place to keep the dogs and chooks out while the groundcover, lychee, and pomegranate trees get established.

A family that bees together, stays together.

Or something like that. 🤷🏽‍♀️

I have been wanting a beehive pretty much forever. Now that we live on a bit more land with a lot more flowers and fruit trees, even more so. But when do you have a spare $400 or so to splash out on a box full of insects? So, alas, it has been sitting on the Wishlist for some time. In a strange turn of events, a swarm of bees made house at Mr SAHL’s work this spring.…

Mt Coot-The Botanic Gardens.

I don’t know why, but I always seem to find myself at these gardens in autumn or winter. Annoying really as I would love to see them in full spring bloom.  None the less, the gardens have a pretty impressive display of succulents, cacti and other odd specimens that are impressive all year round.

So if you are wanting to get out of the house for a few hours, pack up the picnic blanket and head…

The outcry surrounding women’s clothing and the lack of pockets is nothing new. It’s been a problem recognised by just about anyone that wants to carry like anything since forever. When I was younger I’d console myself with the idea that it was a money saving sacrifice. I can sew, pockets would be an absolute time-consuming bitch to add to clothing. Sounds reasonable?  I’m all for a bargain and…

Kmart hacks - DIY party favours

We only have parties every 3rd birthday in our house as organising parties for 4 kids every year would be a full-time job (plus I’d need a 3rd job to pay for them).  So when we do have a party, I like to try to make it ‘next level’.  This month my daughter will be having her 9th birthday party with 10 close friends at home.  I thought rather than just the usual party bags filled with cheap…

I am really happy with the way this project turned out, but it may not be something everyone can make at home, as you will need access to a kiln for the baking of the clay.  I am lucky enough to have that access :)  The discs were made from potters clay, available from any good craft shop, about $30 for 10kg (it’s really heavy when wet!). I rolled some clay out to around 5mm thick, then cut the circles out using a metal egg ring.  I then used a variety of leaves and flowers from around the garden, laid them over the clay and rolled over gently with a rolling pin, just enough to create the patterns as you can see.

Clay circles with leaf and flower prints.

Once baked and cooled, it was time for assembly.  Mr 5 and Miss 6 were happy to help decorate the pieces of fishing line with some chunky transparent glass beads I had in my bead stash.

Threading the beads on fishing line before assembly

We then went on a hunt for the perfect stick, attached it to a chair and began assembly.  I wanted the discs to taper down, so this was not something the kids could help with.

Assembling

Once I was happy with the positioning of each string, I tied them in a few more knots and decorated the top hanging twine.  Cut off any loose ends and it’s done.  As simple as that.

Each disc touches the next ever so slightly, making a lovely sound in the breeze, without being too noisy.

  Wind chime

Beads in the sun – sun catcher wind chime

Clay and glass bead sun catcher