I love the school holidays!

Today I finally got around to making my cloth shopping bags. I bought a single bed doona cover (and pillowcase) from the op shop AGES ago, and managed to squeeze 5 bags out of it.

Before:



And after:




With just this much material left over:




The last two ended up a little smaller as I had to piece together the fronts and backs but I'm really happy with them all.




Thanks also to Charlie the dog for her lovely modelling effort!

I found a great tutorial here for the bag pattern: nthnbutmoonshine.blogspot.com/2009/08/gr...-goodwill-score.html

The bags look great mudhen!

Today I planted some corn in my new raised bed, watered/fertalised an ailing mandarin tree in the hopes of reviving it, remembered to take my green bags when I went shopping, and bought the first few tins to start off my stockpile.

gorgeous bags mudhen, I love the colours

I walked to the shops and back ( shh dont tell my doctor )

watered my plants, topped up the potato cages and sat done with the chookens today

I have oranges and lemons to make some cordial, but will do that later in the week

Thanks ladies! It's lovely feeling I actually achieved something today! I'm eyeing off a king-sized doona cover that's been on the shelf for a couple of years. It's quite a heavy cotton, blue and white stripes. Just need to find a navy sheet (or two!) for the lining and I'll be able to make bags to give away at Christmas.

froot_loopz, I so miss my chookies. Please soak up a bit of chooken magic for me next time you sit with yours! I have cordial to make this week as well, and another bag of cumquats to have fun with!

Gosh, what it would be to have some produce to work with...instead of weeds!!! Actually, I'm fearing the glut and my need to try and 'preserve' what I can (I really should share!). Love those bags you made mudhen...wish I got time in my sewing room...instead of with the weeds!

Today was actually a light day for me, I just gave some unknown plant a radical haircut (because everyone keeps telling me it likes it that way), took Mr FR to the airport, checked out a second hand tool shop (nope, didn't have what I wanted)...and spent $70 on clothes at another op-shop - most of which needs alterations in some way!

Then back into the garden, making potting mix, planting seeds, tending to the Gooseberry cuttings, photos and watering.

Just made two potato cages - my first attempt at growing them this way. Planted an angel peach tree, and put some sugar cane mulch in the chook pen.

Mudhen that doggy looks like its posing for the camera ! so so cute

Sandra

I just read that its not suitable to grow potatoes in a cage type situation in the sub tropics.We just bought some seed potstoes with a view to growing them this way as we are running out of room. has anyone succcessfully grown them like this in SEQ?
Started a new compost mix in the tumbler after mowing up all the weeds I pulled out yesterday and cleaning out the chook house this morning.So should make for a goos mix.

mudhen wrote:Bugger, I think I just ragged a navy blue sheet.

Today, I haven't spent any money. Haven't actually done anything yet today, but need to do some more decluttering, and find a home for the pieces of tent material I cut up yesterday.

Organised some stuff - cuttings, seedlings etc - for the $1 table at the South Burnett Permaculture Group meeting next Sunday.Spread some mulch - chook pooey dried grass from the dome - collected eggs. Thoroughly disturbed another rats nest - pity the cat got there first before I could pour the buckets of water down the hole , at least he caught a big one on its way out!! Others scattered and up the apricot tree but I dug over the whole area so they won't have a home to go back to.Going back out now to plant seed potatoes and sow carrots,lettuce and spinach seeds.Some rain forecast for tomorrow,really need a good soak up here.Tanks are low and town water doesn't make anything inclined to grow!

Love your 'rat tales' Blue Wren! I can picture the scene when I read it. Must be quite comical! Fingers crossed for some rain for you! I'm surprised the rain hasn't given me a break down here...I really want to go inside and sew! Unseasonally dry I would say.

Ravyk wrote:
lol, not to worry! I actually dug the doona cover out of the back of the closet last night to look at it again, and I think it will be ok. The top cover is blue and white stripes about 1.5cm wide, the underside stripes are much much thinner. I was worried it just might show the typical grocery bag grime too much, but after seeing it again I'm not too concerned. I'm looking forward to making it into bags, because I really hated it as a doona cover. All those stripes did a strange thing to my eyes, and being king sized, you just couldn't escape looking at it in the room!

I still have not planted one seed today. Did do a reasonable amount of weeding out front, then got carried away and fixed up my ornamental potted plants on the patio. When I dropped DS17 off at school last week, the council had just finished cutting down a large gum tree nearby, and left all the logs piled on the footpath. I asked the family whose house was nearest if I could take some, and they said to help myself. I got close to a dozen good sized ones, and have stood them on their ends to make a display for the pots. The patio area is a work in progress, but that bit looks good so far.

Today I made my own yoghurt and planted another fruit tree - a peach. Cooked a frittata with our own vegies and eggs.
Only spent $50 for this weeks groceries.

Planted heaps of veggies mainly brassicas and tomatoes
Made a few loaves of sourdough for the week
and didn't need to buy groceries, just bartered for some bananas

I didn't spend any money ;D and the only fuel I used was to get to work and back.

Walked around the block and picked up 4 free old timber dining chairs, a lick of paint and they'll do as chairs to sit outside on for a couple of years. Our old ones were breaking underneath us and irreparable. At least now I can safely sit out the back door with my coffee when the sun comes out.

Finished one wicking pot, filled the tub ready for fish and started the other two wicking pots (rain intervened). Sat around and had coffee with my sister and played with my baby niece and handed over stuff we don't need for the kids anymore.