cloudy skies.

hello sunday!

It's been a couple of weeks since i posted so i'm going to warn you that there'll be an image overload to follow. total eye candy i might add (lots of can you keep a secret sneak peeks), and covering all of the fabric, baking and vintage shopping bases, i'm sure you'll enjoy! It's been a busy time at the flower house and i am happy to say that i am full to the brim with inspiration. an august group exhibition has been secured which is very exciting and long awaited. sneak peeks of new works and installation ideas will soon follow and the good vibes have also been nutured by a certain herriott grace, whose cloud cookie cutter i have been eagerly awaiting in the mail. oh boy was it christmas when it arrived last week. she is a wonderfully creative woman with a successful business and her ability to decorate cakes that adorn her fathers wood turned creations is out of this world. like a certain something's hiding in here duo, these guys never cease to inspire me. speaking of people who rock my world...i had my gorgeous girls over for dinner last thursday where i cooked up my first ever curry. i mean, who has time to cook when there are sweet treats to bake? it's a woman's weekly recipe (of course) and was a bit yummy. cauliflower, red lentil and pea curry warmed our bellies indeed. sarah, trude and i spent today hanging out at secret and playing dress up (a pretty pink floral blouse and turquoise dress were purchased), taking photos and planning birthday parties. went to lunch at lady marmalade in stones corner, which was delicious. have heard lots about it so glad we got to try it out. life chats were had over soy lattes, haloumi and johnson plates. this afternoon was full of chilling in egg chairs, drinking creme brulee tea, flamenco tunes and cloud cookie behaviour. have been dying to try the recipe out. note to self: do make sure you spare a few hours and use far less salt than the recipe asks for and you'll have hit the jackpot. super cute final result though. the state that my kitchen is in right now, i think i'll concentrate on some blogging for a while. i do hope your weekend has been just as delicious.

i'm framing tapestry designs...loving the idea i saw on a gorgeous blog. (not for sale)

i think they're just as beautiful minus the wool! (nfs)

love my yellow roses..a mid week oppy find. (nfs)

sorting fabrics for the vintage fabric sheet swap.

visiting secret always makes me happy.

see why?

oh yes, not one but THREE handmade ceramic balloons!

blue and green gorgeousness.

cosy corner.

an orange lounge...my kinda furniture.

the obligatory suitcase shot.

there are goodies..everywhere!

our in house fashionista.

delicious lunch.

the love starts...

things are going well...

lovely little clouds make for...

a beautiful cloudy sky. (sorry about the night time photos!)

rummaging sunday.

i'm writing this at the end of a busy day of rummaging and praying that the rain gods would stay away. they did, until about 4pm. not bad. had a delightful day with my lovely rummaging girls, trudy, louise and kimberly. who are not only great company, but their finds and creations are irresistible too. (see below) here are a few pics from the day. thank you to those who bought, stopped and chatted and to the lovely mel of bungalow bliss who it was a pleasure meeting. she wasn't sure if i was 16 or 60 from reading my posts...thanks for the giggle mel. i won't be back for the next rummage as i'm going to get stuck into making some art for an upcoming exhibition i have in the works. more deets as it all unfolds. i'm off to drink a big mug of creme brulee tea and savour the last of this beautiful weekend. i do have a food date at max brenner tomorrow night so not a bad start to the week huh? looking forward to seeing what you have all been up to. much love, grandma lau. xx

my stall, a bit of an eclectic mix/mess.

my favourite mother and daughter team.

the talented kimberly of kijaro with her many delicious finds. this woman is my personal vintage shopper. (see finds below)

only the most gorgeous girls around town.

before it got a little too crazy.

more flower art from kimberly. to hang above the kitchenaid? i think so!

rummage is not complete without floral pillowcases!

a gorgeous red pencil skirt with button detail.

only THE most amazing curtain fabric. a gift from the beautiful kimberly. oh, and did i mention there's 4 metres of this gorgeousness!!!

today i'm...

watching: (am) my arse getting kicked at boxing (pm) romy & michele.

eating: chocolate covered blueberries (as you do after every workout)

listening to: ke$ha, notorious b.i.g, lionel richie, katy perry, rihanna, phil collins & john mayer. a nice varied mix.

shopping & ferreting at: 'can you keep a secret'

baking: gf monte carlos

getting ready for: rummage tomorrow!

the weather has been GLORIOUS today. i'm attending my bestie's 'things that used to be cool' birthday party next weekend so some 'awkward clothes' shopping was done today. it's hard when things that i think used to be cool, still are. i've decided to go baby sitter's club style with some stonewashed dungarees (that are too short) and a crazy patterned 'katies' top (which i love and hope to wear again in winter). found some 'claudia'esque' earrings too. definately not going to turn heads in a good way next saturday night. fun times ahead! here are a few pics from my day. hope yours is just as lovely.

last week i spotted this gorgeous forest print at 'can you keep a secret'...today i walked out with it. it's the essence of what i love most right now. (it's giant and spans the length of my piano!)

i've been busy reorganising my lovely little home. my cake stands are now my latest favourite setup.

my new favourite ferreting ground.

to complete my outfit below.

oh my.

glorious light soaking into my lounge.

betty vs julia.

so it's only taken me several years, some convincing from trudy who is a whizz with her slow cooker and a trip to lifeline to get me on the slowcooking wagon. never been a huge fan of cooking casseroles or soups (or leaving food to cook unattended) but with winter (queensland's version anyway) approaching i wanted to get on board! couldn't resist this gorgeous piece of orange awesomeness you see below. as you would probably understand, i could not be persuaded to pick up a shiny new white version. this has heart, and was owned by alice. label says so. the photos of today's finds are terrible, it was raining and approaching 6pm fast, so i snapped what i could. i spent all morning cleaning the house (ok, like 3 hours, but it felt like 8) and then gathered all my opshop bags to donate and loaded the car. it started to rain by then so i was a little disheartened but once i got to the salvos the volunteer's happy face at seeing all of my donations and the little bits i picked up in the shop, made it all worthwhile. i'm baking monte carlos later but you all know what they look like so hopefully minus the stopping to take photos, they should be whipped up in no time. it's rummage this sunday so i'm gathering treats from around the house like a mad woman. will pop some pics up of the treats on offer during the week. hope you've had a grand start to the week and things are looking good for the rest of it. love.

isn't she beautiful?

some doily loving.

yummy fabric napkins.

a coated fabric platter, sure to jazz up my kitchen sink detergents.

i found this cheeky guy at the salvos and i think artist tony albert has more of an impact on me than i realise. his works comprising of kitschy indigenous collectables are thought-provoking and channel a much deeper message. ( i have spent the last few months with his work @ goma)

some 'old navy' ballet flats, so cute and fit perfectly.

roses for evie.

pretty rose cupcakes for evie rose's 1st birthday. have a wonderful day gorgeous girl. happy sunday all!

early morning sun calls out for a quick photoshoot.

pink rose.

pink and aqua lovin'.

come back to bed.

hello on this beautiful saturday. spent most of the morning in bed. got out to make a breakfast smoothie, put on some john mayer and then crawled back in, camera in hand. i snapped a few pics from my bed that you can see below...for two reasons. one being that i was too lazy to haul my arse out of it and two, i am deeply in love with the light which infiltrates my room of a morning and the wallpaper which acts as the best bedhead ever. i can't get enough of it. i often lay in bed dreaming up beautiful artworks inspired by it and wondering about the lovely lady and gent who owned this house before i moved in. it was also the first glimpse of the interior that i got from outside before viewing the place. love at first sight. i wondered if i was ever going to make anything of today but it's turned out to be a delightful day so far. kate needed to grab a birthday gift for a friend's bubba so we visited the emporium for some old fashioned baby store perusing and a sushi lunch, just yum. then we paid a visit to one of the most perfect vintage shops i have ever been to. run by emily and situated in greenslopes, brisbane, 'can you keep a secret' is just divine. (my word of the year it appears) we only had a short time to play so we got rummaging in $2 suitcases, i ummed and ahhed as to what large forest painting i wanted whilst katie tried on skirts and highwaisted shorts. in a little queenslander it sits, with just a few knick knacks on the pavement to entice you in. such a darling setup and definately somewhere i can spend a few hours, if only for the chats with emily. a cafe will be opening there soon and with kate & i already set on making it our winter bike riding destination, i just can't wait. be sure to check out her facebook page and if you're in the brisbane area do pop by. just delicious. i have just got back from a max brenner date with two of my most gorgeous goma girls and i'm popping at the seams with chocolately goodness. well worth the 40min lineup. anyway ladies, i do hope your saturday has been lovely, i'm off to bake some baby cakes for miss evie. photos up tomorrow. happy weekend all and hello to my new followers. much love as always.

apple crumble.

thought that would get your attention. firstly i just want to say a big thank you for the lovely comments left on my previous post. as creative types you will know that sometimes all that is needed is to be able to share your creative output with people and i have most definately come away feeling inspired from it. i don't make enough art (too many ideas too little time) or collaborate with enough of the people that inspire me the most. this peppermint opportunity has given me the power to get creating. watch me, and ask for some evidence of this, ok? back to the apple crumble...i'm baking a giant crumble tonight for a little work shindig with some of my favourite goma kids. i am also whipping up some 1st birthday rose cakes for this little lady's party on sunday. should be perfect. big day ahead tomorrow with work, won't be home till late but i've got boxing, baking and vintage sheet swap doings to keep me busy on saturday. have a great friday and thank you again for all of your loveliness. ps. here are some treats i've been collecting lately..some for me, some for rummage!

pot holders, too cute.

cameras to play with atop a gorgeous little piece of barkcloth.

i found two more! syrup jug collection is growing.

gorgeous jar. perfect for my sugar flowers i think.

can't pass up a ship painting. available at rummage.

welcome to my world.

gorgeous crocheted olive & aqua blanket. perfect for winters on the couch!

kitty metal tray. available at rummage.

i'm not sure why i couldn't leave this behind. it's so cool and ummmm...cool? (i think it's the clouds)

the colours on the glasses are just awesome. available at rummage.

as seen in...

peppermint! woo! couldn't be happier with my feature in the latest issue. a huge thank you to tess for involving me, it's really made my week. as a frankie girl at heart (i mean come on, they created 'spaces', which is only one of the most beautiful books ever made) i hadn't really spent a lot of time with peppermint...but now, i can truly say my eyes have been opened to an inspiring coffee table companion. i'm not going to lie, i'm over the moon... i feel so inspired. please grab a copy if you can, the baked relief feature alone is enough to get you baking up a storm this sunday...and if you need a cake stand to accompany your treat...look no further. happy wednesday all. laksa wednesday for me! double woo!

my favourite (far right) was included, yay!

hello name in print.

the cake i created for the 'baked relief' feature.

the said cake was consumed shortly after those photos were taken.