If you go down to the woods today....

I love Typo! I couldn't resist these cute cases; one for me (bear), one for India (cat) and one from the discount bin (raccoon). They are only $9.95 - the raccoon was priced at $1.00 as it is missing the zipper pull which is an easy peasy fix. They are the perfect size to pop in a little money and a phone ready for a quick jaunt to the shops.

Enjoy the rest of the week and the weekend! xx

p.s. thanks for your support of our village heritage petition :)

For regular updates of all things stampie, please check my facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/atreasuredpast

Save our Heritage Buildings - Bungendore

Our local council have earmarked two heritage homes on the main thoroughfare through town to be removed or demolished. In their place they propose to build a new supermarket and carpark (we already have one supermarket that is in the planning stages of an extension).

The village of Bungendore is a 15 minute drive away from the nearest regional centre where there are three major supermarkets. Drive a little further (30 minutes in total) and you will find yourself in the Australian Capital, Canberra.

The local community have started a petition to try and save our heritage buildings:

http://www.communityrun.org/petitions/save-bungendore-s-heritage

You can also read the article in the Sydney Morning Herald below:

http://smh.domain.com.au/real-estate-news/bungendore-paying-price-for-change-20130703-2pcl2.html

Some things make my mind boggle.....

The Prettiest Sky

The sky is so pretty I just had to share it with you. 

Have a wonderful day/night wherever you may be. 

xx

Nine today

Happy Birthday Missy Moo!! 

xoxo

Quick and Easy Polish Jewellery

Hope you have had a relaxing Easter with lots of yummy eggs.

In between eggs, India and I have been whipping up a few quick glittery jewellery pieces. Its a great way to use up left-over nail polish or grab a few bottles on sale. Just cover some glass cabochon backs with the polish, let dry and attach a bail or set into a pendant or ring. Easy peasy. (As you can see, I like the purple and blue combinations.)

Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy your new week whatever you have planned, Tam x

Enlighten: Sienta la Cabeza

India was lucky enough to be chosen to participate in the Sienta la Cabeza performance at the Enlighten Festival last night. I have loads of photos to show of the night, but will start with the hairdressing extravaganza.  Sienta La Cabeza travelled from Barcelona to perform their magical hair creations to music, provided by their DJ.

Here are a few shots of India, she is very Dr Seuss don't you think? They divided her hair, used wire to support the top pony and used loads of coloured hair spray. Amazingly she slept with the hair in place (minus the little village). If you get the chance to see their show, you definitely won't be disappointed.

I'll be back with more photos of Enlighten including Box Wars and the Architectural Projections. Hope you are enjoying your weekend, Tam x

Happy New Year 2013 and Happy Birthday Kade

Wishing you all a fantastic 2013 and the biggest Happy Birthday to Kade who is now 11!

Thank you Lovely Ladies!

A bit of housekeeping before I wow you with my most recent finds. Its also the Queanbeyan Swap Meet tomorrow, so maybe a few more things may be added to the list.

I have met some lovely people - as I am sure you all have too - through my blog, and I have to say a big thank you to the following people for the special gifts that I have received in the mail.

Sorry this is a super long post as I have been super slack!

When we went to England last year (I can't believe the last year has gone so fast) we stayed at an amazing place called  Farleigh Wood, Tellisford, Somerset. Here we met Bella in person in a fleeting moment as we turned down the wrong path to the cottage that we were staying in. Bella and her family own the accommodation, which is just across the way from one of the white horse chalk carvings and near the Farleigh Hungerford Castle. After we arrived home, I discovered that Bella is a amazing artist and has a blog also. Bella kindly sent me some of her artwork and some yummy parma violets. You can find updated on Bella artworks here. Thanks Bella!

Gorgeous cards and wooden bunny hanging

The prefect addition to my owl collection

Bella painted this weather vane in Bradford on Avon (the loveliest place on earth). I remarked that we have the same one on our garden shed

Our weather vane, aging nicely.

Bella's attention to detail is just amazing

I also received some gorgeous stamps from another lovely Somerset blogger, Vintage Jane. She always find that most amazing pieces and travels to the local markets to sell her wares. I purchased some special gifts last year from her for a friends wedding, they were just lovely. Thank you M, x

I am sure that many of you know Kylie, Lucy Violet Vintage, if you don't then you had better scoot on over and say hello! Kylie is the opposite to me, she like mid century modern, clean lines and little clutter. My favourite period is Victorian with lots of clutter..haha. Kylie knows that I also like shell figures and this little parcel arrives a few weeks back. Thank you Kylie :)

One of Kylies handmade cards!

This guy made me laugh out loud..haha

The creepy shell doll Kylie posted about, actually she is smaller and nicer in person.

A card organiser to add to the collection

Yay! my own notebook..have to keep it hidden from India, the queen of paper! and a gorgeous table cloth

Another big thank you to Vintage Bird Girl, we share a love of birds and vintage finds. She wears the most amazing vintage dresses ever! You may even know that her favourite colour is green. Its also nice to receive a message or two on my facebook page, thanks Leisa :)

The sweetest card

Don't you just love the recycled book illustration wrapping paper

These are so cute! I even managed to find a home for these in my kitchen!

India just loves this fox. She is desperate to have her own room and is collecting pictures to decorate the walls.

Did you make it to the end??

Blog land can be a really nice place with lots of nice people. Thank you!!!

Happy Birthday Mr ATP

The kids and I had something special planned for Carl's birthday this year. Being the self-proclaimed King of the Nerds, he has always wanted a Segway. We knew that we had to hire a segway for a ride around Lake Burley Griffin on a beautiful sunny morning.

He was sweating it all week, wondering what his surprise was going to be. I said, "you have to wear comfortable shoes",  so he instantly thought rock climbing and was not looking forward to wearing the harness.....hehe.

Then I mentioned that he had to do it by himself (the kids were too young to ride the segways) and others would be there too.  I  hinted that it was a play titled 'Little Drummer Boy'......pa rum pum pum pum....which he hates.

The kids did well to keep the secret and were excited to see his face when all was revealed!

Safety first..haha

A quick lesson

Like a pro

Off they go

I would like to dedicate the following song to the Carl on his birthday....it cracks me up EVERY time I hear it. Enjoy!

Flamingo Pink

I ordered some flamingos a while back on ebay. They arrived this morning, so I have been playing around with them in the garden. They are remoulded from the featherstone originals.

And just because it is nearly Halloween (though we do not celebrate it here), I have included a photo of our brain plants. Don't they look like velvet brains but much prettier.

It is so windy here, Mary Poppins would not be able to keep two feet on the ground! Random checks are in order to make sure the flamingos haven't flown the coop.

Thanks for taking the time to pop over and support my facebook page, I truly appreciate it. I am a facebook Gumby so please be patient :)

Bye for now.....Pokey away!!!!! Tam x

Follow your instincts.....

Thank you to the lovely Miss Simmonds for sharing this award. I hope you have all had the pleasure of meeting her, but if you have not passed by her lovely blog, please pop over sand say hello.  I will pass the award on at the end of the post.

I have struggled with telling you 7 interesting things about me that I have not already told. Though how interesting they are is another question. I will, instead, tell a story that happened more than 20 years ago…..

University had just broken up for mid year holidays, and I was driving back home.  It was a 4 hour drive from Wagga Wagga to Braidwood and it was night. I had some car problems on the way home and had to change a tyre around Gundagai.

I had phoned my parents to let them know that I was on the way but would be arriving late. I managed to buy a spare tyre by chance at the service station as the repair shop was closed, but the attendant found me one that would do in an emergency.  I drove another 2 hours without incident.

On one of the back roads, just 15 minutes from Bungendore (45 minutes from home) I had another flat tyre. At the time, there were very few houses in the rural area. I should mention that this was around 11:00 at night and no lights along the road.  I was lucky I bought the extra spare.

I had just finished changing the tyre when an older man (probably 40-50s) pulled over to ask if I needed help. I said that I was o.k., that I had finished and I was on my way. He was not very tall, had dark hair, was driving a small car, something like a Datsun 1200, maybe, possibly maroon. He stood near me and I could tell that he had been drinking.  He wore work pants, shirt and tie.

As I was packing up, he was fluffing around in his car, and then said that he was having trouble starting it. He said he would get a rope to tie onto my car and suggested that I tow his car to get it started. I was feeling uneasy, I got back into my car, locked my doors and wound up my window.

After a few failed attempts, he said that he could not untie the rope as it was tied too tightly and that he would get a knife to cut it.  He continued to fumble around in his boot. I was terrified, I started my car, and drove as fast as I could, with the rope following behind.  I cried all the way to Bungendore where luckily my sister and her family was living, terrified that I would see headlights following me. It was the longest drive of my life.

The next morning, my dad drove over to pick me up and he looked at the rope. It fell from the car when he touched it. It was not tied tightly as the man had proclaimed.

I will never forget that night. I will never know if his intentions were innocent. At that time, alone, 20 years old, on the side of a dark rural road, with alcohol on his breathe and the mention of a knife, I was scared.

We drive past that spot often, I always say, “that’s the hill that I broke down and the guy was going to kill me”.  He was probably a normal guy, driving home from work, pulled over to help and remembers the girl that drove off leaving him stranded on the side of the road. Who knows….

What I do know is, always follow your instincts! Its better to be safe than sorry.

  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have contemplated pulling the pin on my blog lately, you may have noticed that my posts are shorter and less frequent. Lately I just haven't been in the right place to write, but I still have so much to share. I have been a jumble of emotions lately, from high to low....very low but I am trying to find the balance, and not let work dictate my home life.....its hard......very hard.....

I would like to pass this to the lovely bloggers that have kept my embers burning, when I am feeling down, they make my day a little brighter (in no particular order)......

vintageandart (Bron and her amazing mum)

Bella's bag and Happenings at Farleigh

Lucy Violet Vintage

Shabby Vintage Junk

Vintage Jane

Squirrelhaus

Vintage Bird Girl

Crazy House Capers

Hello Vintage

La Maison de Maristella

The Serendipity Cafe

The Romantic Rose

The Polka Dot Petticoat

Bayside Rose

The Old Boathouse

An angel in the garden

Vintage Sweetheart

My nomination list is quite long (more than 15) and I could have added more, though others have already received this award and some are award free blogs. If I have forgotten you, please feel free to take it too, while passing by........Tamara x

Its Snowing!!!

I have been running around like a headless chicken trying to find something to film the snow. It rarely snows in town, the last snow settled in 2008, so we are all very excited! There has been lots of screaming and phone calls......

The snow storm blew over Canberra where it fell at 10:00am this morning, and reached us around 11:00am. It has been raining this morning so no snow has settled, and the temperate has dropped to 2.5 degrees.

Yay!!!

 

Happy Birthday India

Cereal Box Prize

Remember years ago when you would find a little card or even a small plastic toy in the bottom of your weetbix box and it gave you such a thrill. Well, this morning, I had another thrill when I picked up the cereal box. I could see big hairy legs peaking over the top. Needless to say I dropped it straight on the ground after a little squeal.  He scooted under the kitchen sink but luckily remained in place while I rummaged for a container to scoop him up.

For the past week he has been travelling between our kitchen and computer room but he has been up high on the wall so we had let him be. No doubt he will be back inside in a few days after all the rain.

 

He doesn't look very big in the container but spread out he would be bigger than the palm of your hand.

Huntman spiders are very common inside homes, shed and trees throughout Australia. (Tracy - do you remember when you were hanging out clothes under the lemon tree and one fell on your head? haha) Usually they are quite harmless and are non aggressive (although they can still bite). They wander around and don't make much fuss but can also move very quickly especially when trying to catch them.

Did you have any surprises this morning?

The Budding Pastry Chef

Hi treasure hunters near and far. Boy it been a busy week, with the kids starting their new school year, and me finally heading back to work. It feels like ages since I posted.

Last weekend our local Show was on, and India and I decided that we should actually enter something this year. Maybe we were inspired by Kirstie's Handmade Britain, but we thought we would bite the bullet as we are always going to, so this year we did!

India entered the decorated cake section for her age, which could not be a packet cake, nor could it incorporate plastic decorations. It was the first time that she was made a cake all on her own, from start to finish. It even came out of the pan better than mine, as mine usually stick.

She decided to make a Lalaloopsy (or Bitty Buttons) face, although I think the judges just thought it was a dead face...as they had a good laugh apparently. She was super chuffed to see that she has won First place the next morning of the show.

I also entered a few photos and won a Highly Commended for my bumble bee that I shot in England, you can see it here.

Here are a few shots of India's winning cake. Thanks for visiting! Enjoy your week and I'll catch up with you all soon!