Brand new on line store

When I was a brand new member of the blogging community, a lovely kind soul named Nellie popped by & welcomed me aboard  the addictive world of blogging. She introduced me to her readers & from her fabulous post I was on the road to having a great group of followers.

For this I was eternally grateful & knew a time would come when I could repay the kindness, I mean really, isn't that what us bloggers do best.

Now  Nellie has recently had a major career change, leaving the banking industry to follow her dreams. She has just launched a brand new business based in the country town of  Orange, NSW, Australia.

She is specialising in Home styling & Event styling.
 If you don't already follow her blog then you should pop on over & check out the photo's of some of her latest work,it's well worth the visit!

McCarthy Designs

Click here for a shopping delight

She has also created a lovely online store that stocks something for everyone...

I dream of one day owning a gorgeous silver wine bucket & this one fits the bill!!

I love the french market baskets

Swish tea towels!

Fabulous cushions

I also these lanterns & Nellie has them in a couple of sizes...

Seriously, pop on by & do a spot of shopping from the comfort of your own home, you can even do it in your PJ's...I am!!!

CHEERS

Trish xxx

P.S I hope your new business is everything you dream it to be Nellie xx

Keep Calm

Fabulously creative & fellow blogger, my dream child No1 ,  has alerted me to a really fun website where you can create your very own "Keep Calm" posters.

I did mine after a huge day with the kids & I felt I needed to indulge in a glass of wine to calm myself, LOL!!

Its called keepcalm-o-matic. which sounds like fun before you even get there!!

You should check it out, it really is fun & there are some really great versions made by others in the gallery to enjoy!

Have a fabulous weekend everyone!

CHEERS

Trish xxx



As you know my dream guy gave me my first ever digital SLR camera for Christmas & I am really enjoying learning how to use it.

I have only ever owned a basic point & shoot camera, but even on the auto settings my photo's are sooo much nicer.

I have found some fantastic web sites & blogs that offer so much photography knowledge with tutorials & weekly assignments to get to know your camera better.

I have been playing with the macro setting

I saw a photo taken on a forum at the

Digital Photography School

of water dropping into a dish & thought I might try to replicate it, I was already playing with water, food colouring & would you believe baby oil, trying to do some fun abstract photography,

I gained lots of tips, tricks & inspiration for this image from

The Pioneer Woman

which at the moment she has a wonderful assignment at the moment for everyone on food photography, including a great  post on "Ten things she has learned about food photography" to get you started, some of the images her readers have entered so far are just "delicious!"

I experimented with my macro setting, changing my aperture & even the sports mode on the dripping water.

I have been learning how to use the light meter to adjust the exposure, all three of these pictures where taken one after the other, adjusting the exposure.

I have even learnt a bit about reading the histogram, to ensure you have the correct, or best exposure possible for a perfect shot.

Ive started studying up on adjusting my white balance to suit the light source & ensure optimum colour in my images, like under the shade of these amazing trees.

Ive have gained so much knowledge from a wonderful blog

Life with my 3 boybarians

Darcy has a fabulous series called "31 days to a better photo" which is an awesome resource for us photography newbies

I have also tried to put a lot of focus, pardon the pun, on composition, to ensure my pictures are appealing to the eye.

I must add that NONE of my photo's have been edited in any way, they are fresh from my camera, that would be a whole other skill to master & I am a one step at a time kinda girl!!!

All of the outdoor images here where taken at a lovely little village called Paterson in the Hunter Valley of NSW Australia.

The kids & I went on a photography excursion & had a picnic dinner in the park here, whilst dream child No1 & I experimented with our new cameras.

It was a very fun afternoon & we hope to have lots of little photography picnics in the future!!

I hope these links are helpful for all of you DSLR newbies, or if you have any sites that you have found helpful & inspiring we would love to hear about them!

CHEERS

Trish xxx











crafty kids

 Janette at My Sweet Prints recently did a post about this fabulous blog called Filth Wizardry

Lindsey, over at Filth Wizardry is a mum to two little girls & her blog is all about  art & crafts for preschoolers & she really has some fabulous activities to keep messy little cherubs occupied.

My little girl is a 3yr old craft obsessed, mess maker & we are constantly on the look out for new things to entertain her & feed her thirst for all things creative!!

She also likes to play dress ups, dance &  she sings the whole time she is doing something crafty...possibly the happiest girl on the planet!!!

Over at Filth Wizardry  Lindsey showed us how she made a fantastic bath time craft, by cutting shapes from sheets of thin foam. I was able to purchase a pack of 6 sheets for $2 at the supermarket & we have just started out with some very basic shapes & ideas. Lindsey has an awesome range for her kids to decorate with. All you need to do is wet the foam & it  temporarily adheres to the tiles.

We didn't just reserve it for bath time, it saved me from pulling out the paint box today, which means it saved me from a messy clean up as well..Thank you Lindsey!!!

My kids had a fantastic time...

They thought I was the cleverest mum on the planet!!!

The best part is that there is no major mess to clean up...YAY!!!!

My dream guy doesn't mind getting in on the act himself & decided to put to use a few Styrofoam boxes.

He worked with the kids to make a diorama that they could play with.

 Our 7yr old son loves his army style scene & was able to play with his toy soldiers in it, don't you just love the explosion!!!

He helped our 3yr old make this under water scene & added some shells he had collected whilst fishing, she loved helping on this project....

These are an on going play item that have entertained them both many times over the past few weeks!

On the messy side of fun, we have even dabbled in a little paper mache'

We did this one in the garage as it was EXTREMELY messy, but a tonne of fun!!

 Kids craft is a huge part of our world & we are always on the look out for some great new ideas.

Where do you go for crafty fun?

CHEERS

Trish xxx

Sunshine Award with a twist

Cameron from Ingenue mom has sent the Sunshine Award my way this week & I would like to say a BIG Thank you!!!

Cameron writes a great blog offering her experiences on life, pregnancy, being a first time mum & a wife, she also offers lots of tips & advice on many things including how to improve & manage your blog, I learn so much from her, its great.

Ingenue mom is a great read & many of you will relate to lots of Cameron's experiences, I know I do!!!

Because I only recently received a Sunshine Award I wont follow up with 7 things about me, as I fear I will bore you to tears, instead I am opting to show you 7 things on my decorating wish list formy dream house ....& I will say it is definitely a wish list, as by the time my house is built I will be wishing I could win the lottery for all the added extras us dreamy decorators require!!!

If your new to my blog & you want to read 7 things about me just drop over here

 Beacon lighting.

I would love to hang this chandelier over my staircase...

Recollections

I will be investing in a beautiful fire place for my formal lounge, I would like each room to have a feature of its own!!!

Time pieces Australia

It wouldn't be my wish list if there wasn't a clock on it!!!

I have no recollection of where I found this image, unfortunately, because I could see this lovely ottoman sitting on top of my white shag rug in front of the fireplace, in my formal lounge...

If you have seen this ottoman any where please let me know?

 interiors online

I would love this black side table to compliment the zebra print ottoman in the formal lounge

interiors online.

& it would be great to have a pair of these as well, I don't want  my tables to be to matchy. The general colour scheme of my house will be, cream, white, black & silver or variations of those colours with accents thrown in depending on the purpose of the room, some rooms will be quite formal, whilst others will be very comfy relaxed family spaces!

I think I could use a pair of these Chinese garden stools as side tables in the kids activity room, that way they could double as extra seating... we have an ink blue leather lounge for this space & if I get to ikea for a cow hide rug I think it could be a fun place to hang out!

Ikea

& what do ya know, here's the cow hide rug for the activity room floor!

Everyday Living

Now please excuse the photography, I snapped this picture whilst in the shop, but I would love this chaise style couch in a dark grey, for my family room, it also comes with a buttoned ottoman which is right up my alley.

As you can imagine my wish list is much longer than this, but I think these items give a bit of an insight into how I would like to decorate my home...

 What would you say my style is?

I loosely label my style as  modern classic or modern traditional, what do you think?

Now I'm supposed to pass this award onto some blogs I love, but I enjoy sooooo many, that I decided to  pass it on to just one new blog that I have recently discovered

Angie's healthy living

A lot of my followers mention that they would like to be fitter & healthier after they read my profile & discover I have worked as a personal trainer, so I think you will enjoy Angie's blog.She has weight loss tips, recipes & shares her weight loss journey. 

So if you want to be a little healthier drop by her blog ASAP!!!

CHEERS

Trish xxx 

Ive been tagged & I liked it!!!

I have been tagged by two very lovely ladies to play a fun Question & Answer game. Nellie at Mccarthy designs. & Janette at My sweet prints have bestowed this owner upon me & I have to say I qiet enjoyed it. Here are the questions & my  crazy answers....

1.If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

I think everyone would like to live here, but even just a night or 2 in the Hamptons beach house from the movie 'Somethings gotta give" would be a dream come true

Cocktails by my pool anyone?

2. What is your favorite band?

I don't think I could say I have a favourite band, but those that know me would probably say I do enjoy music from the 80's...Ahhh good times!!!

3. If you could be someone else for a day, who would it be?

Just for today I would like to be Julia Gillard. The first FEMALE Prime Minister of Australia.

Now I'm not one to show to much interest in politics, but I can only imagine the pride & jubilation she must be feeling right now!!!!

Look out fellas a women has just busted the boys club wide open!!!

I guess Julia Gillard has smashed that glass ceiling....

Great inspiration for the females of our country!!!

4. Concert or Broadway show?

I would love a good Broadway show!!!

5. Theme song for your life? I took a tip from Nellie on this one & did this quiz, Whats you're theme song quiz  It came back with U2 " A beautiful day". I do enjoy U2, so I was happy with the result!!!

6. Would you choose a fancy dinner at a nice restaurant or a picnic in the park?

Definitely the fancy dinner, but I would need to go shopping for something to wear as Fancy dinners are a rare treat around here.

 I would love to try a seafood platter at Scratchleys on Honeysuckle, Newcastle, NSW Australia

7. Favorite place to shop?

I don't know that I have a  particular favourite place to shop, but I do know where ever I go, should have a nice coffee shop for me to get a caffeine fix whilst I'm there...Yes I am addicted to coffee!!!

8. Favorite movie?

I love anything with Adam Sandler or Ben Stiller in it, they make me laugh, & on the romance side of things, who could go past "The Note Book", by far the most romantic tear jerker I have ever seen.

So now its my job to tag a few other bloggers....

No need to feel obligated to participate as we all know time is precious!!!

Fun and vjs

Driftwood interiors

Chair up

The paper tree design

So go check out all of these great blogs if you have'nt already & I hoped you enjoyed my question & answer time!!!

Cheers

Trish xxx