New (old) nesting boxes

So the girls have been laying their eggs under the passionfruit vine every morning. That's fine, but you have to twist your body around a bit to get them out, and it's not inside their run, so I have to let them free range until they lay, then herd them (or catch them), and put them back into their run. I'd heard that you could use old lawn mower catchers as nesting boxes, as they are nice and dark and sheltered, so I ventured into the tip shop for the first time this morning. What an amazing resource, just like a dirty op shop! I found 2 catchers (there were plenty more) for $5 each, here's the girls checking one of them out. I figure they could provide a bit of shelter when it rains too. I just hope they lay in them!

Rainy day eggs

Andrew spent yesterday afternoon constructing a chicken run, so we can have them confined to the back corner of our garden, but it appears they can get out of the gate- it's expanding bamboo trellis. I thought I might have to put a second one over it so the gaps at the bottom weren't too big. Anyway, it's a rainy old day here at the moment, so I don't mind that they escaped, and all 3 sat under the passionfruit vine to keep dry. It appears that they each layed an egg while in there! So we now have 3 laying hens. There's one long funny shaped one, and one small one in there.

Less than 2 weeks until Ecofest

These packs of soap will be coming with me to Ecofest on Saturday the 5th of November. I packaged these up today with my little helper Evie, into biodegradable cellophane bags and jute string. There is only 10 packs, so if you're a handmade soap lover, you'd better get in early. I completely sold out last year. They make great Christmas presents, and of course, lovely treats for yourself. In each pack, there's a lavender & almond meal, peppermint & lavender, and a rose geranium & patchouli. They're all naturally scented and coloured with clay (or not coloured at all), and are palm oil free. $10 per pack.

Steiner school spring fair

A lovely day again at the Freshwater Creek Steiner school's spring fair. A bit of an overcast rainy day didn't dampen enthusiasm, and we brought home a few handmade treats. Bec, your mushroom baby seems to have gone a little broody. Bec's bee brooch is in the background there too. Very cute!

We also brought home a cat

Eggs take 3

We let the chookies out this afternoon, and while 2 of them came pretty much straight down near the back door and gate to have a feast on an aphid plagued nasturtium patch, one stayed up the back. Went down to see where she was, and I could hear her but not see her. On Sunday she hid behind the passionfruit vine, away from the wind, and that's where she was again today. I thought to myself that I should check there once she gets out, as she may be laying an egg. And I was right, one perfect, small egg was left behind. Fantastic. Here's Evie with the egg, so excited. She's a little under the weather, with some sort of viral thing that Liv has just gotten over, so excuse the dreamy eyes.

Egg update

For those interested in such things, another egg was laid this morning, outside of the nesting box. It was already squashed, but I could see it was thin shelled, so progress I guess. Must get out earlier tomorrow.

Our first egg...sort of

I got a bit excited when I saw a little egg in the nesting box this morning, so I grabbed my camera. Evie came out with me to have a look, but alas, when we pulled it out, it had no shell. You can see by the little indent that it only has the membrane. Apparently this can happen early on in egg laying. Hopefully we're close to some "proper" eggs.

A girl and her chooks

I don't know how many times this week Evie has said "I just love having chickens in our backyard." Liv's not so sure when they come close to her, but they're fine when they're in their house. 2 of them had a bit of a sit on the chair in the backyard today while they were free ranging, so we had a little photo shoot. Love those fluffy bums. They are named Henny Penny, Lola, and Star.

Positive feedback

It's so nice to hear positive feedback about the garments I make, a lady from Norway who bought two of my upcycled blanket dresses had this to say:

Thank you for the lovely dresses you made. I am getting so many nice comments about them. Today one of the teachers in my daughters kindergarden said to me, " That dress with the buttons, that Kristine wore the other day, was amazing."

And this from another happy customer the other day:

I absolutely love the dresses you made and the sizes were perfect.. Thank-you so much.
Please let me know when you have new stock. I love the fabric.
Thanks again

Thanks girls, you made my day :)

I have taken the blanket dresses down from my Etsy shop until after Ecofest, I have a size 2 in each colour, and a size 4 in the pink colourway. If I don't sell them, they'll be back in my Etsy shop. The fabric is all used up now.

Meet our 3 new girls

Three 18 week old Isa Browns moved into the chicken house today. What a jam packed morning it was! Andrew played tennis this afternoon, and I had to stock In.cube8r this morning. So I went and bought the newspaper early this morning, so we could see what sort of chickens were available this weekend, pretty slim pickings. After I stocked the shop, it was a quick trip out to Mt. Duneed to buy 3 chooks, with a stop at a hardware shop on the way,to buy dowel for a roost, straw for nesting, and pick up a cardboard box so we could get them home. Then set them up, and race down the road to the farm shop to pick up some laying pellets before they closed at 12! They are settling in well, I'll look at clipping their wings tomorrow.

A little chook house

This is what Andrew's been up to while he's been off work for the last 2 weeks (back to work today)
He has made a fabulous chicken house! And a batch of ginger beer, and other jobs around the house that we never find time to finish. It is bigger than it looks, another photo wouldn't load for me, but it showed the length a bit better. With any luck, there may be 2 or 3 residents for the chook house this weekend.

In.cube8r sneak peek

Some of the little cuties going to In.cube8r for next week's opening. I love the balloon and pinwheel fabrics, so cute and girly. I'll have 2-3 of each design in the shop, in different sizes.

In.cube8r

I'm sewing up a storm at the moment as I have signed up for In.cube8r, which is opening in Geelong on the 12th of October. In.cube8r is a shop space that rents out glass cubes and clothing racks to artists and makers for a weekly fee, and takes no commissions on sales. It's kind of like having a market all the time, without having to be there, they do the selling for you. I might give you a sneak peak at what I've been sewing closer to the day, I've had fun with some absolutely gorgeous fabrics. I'll be stocking the shop next Saturday, in readiness for opening day. Should be a great place to do some Christmas shopping :)