in this little neck of the woods

 

In this little neck of the woods we’ve been completely preoccupied with chook pens and fencing and mulch blowing everywhere! Still. But we’re nearly there. The fencing is almost done – gates just need to be fixed to posts and then our little house will be all enclosed. The chook pen’s virtually done too. It also needs a door and then we can get some girls. Can’t wait for that day.

 

 

Another pointy tin roof to add to the collection.

 

 

Besties and brothers have caught up for  late autumn swims, walks and play. It’s lovely to see these two beautiful brothers rumble and tumble and play like they would’ve when they were tiny pups, still with their mum and Dad and brother’s and sister’s.

 

 

 

I’ve been enjoying this for breaky. It’s baked egg and it’s flipping yummo! I’ll post the recipe soon. So easy and delish. Another reason why I can’t wait for the girls to arrive:)

 

 

My clever sister has been on a cake pop rampage. Thankfully we get to do a lot of trialling for her. They are so delicious. Have you ever had one? To be honest, I’ve always thought they were just another one of those faddy things – cake on a stick, big deal. But they are so not just cake on a stick. They are cake mixed with sticky, sticky icing and then rolled into a ball and smothered with pure chocolate. They are so moist and yummy. It’s impossible to stop at just one.

 

 

Art lessons this term are providing me with so many lovely art works for our nest. Lew has been doing the most wonderful pieces and I’m so very pleased:) This one is a charcoal drawing on brown paper with white paint showing the light and charcoal shading showing the dark bits {shadow}. Love, love, love it! Though this photo is pretty crappy.

 

 

We’ve lit the outside fire pit and cooked potatoes in their jackets. This is such a lovely ritual – sitting outside in the crisp, autumn air, darkness quickly falling, stars twinkling, the smell of a fire and chatting with my boy.

 

 

 

So what about you? What have you been up to in your lovely little neck of the woods?

 

nesty crumbs :: summer pesto in autumn

 

 

 

 

Has anyone else got basil growing madly in their garden, still? Mine hasn’t skipped a beat. Actually, I think I’d have to say, it’s doing better now than it was in the height of summer. The weather is still so warm and although I’m also craving the slow cooked loveliness that is all autumn and cooking and dinner time I’m still enjoying fresh, light meals with pesto and tomatoes. Some lucky people have still got tomatoes happening in their gardens down here in the south. Strange gardeny times.

 

 

So I thought, before my basil really does freeze up and and disappear for the winter I’d share with you my pesto, pasta and tomatoes recipe. It’s soooooo easy!

 

 

 

It’s so easy and so fresh and sooooo yummy!

 

 

Enjoy!

Oh and a little reminder about my Second Hand Styling link up fun. Come and join in. The theme this week is: TEA. Looking forward to having a sticky beak around at your lovely second hand treasures.

 

second hand styling link up :: tea

Thank you so much for not leaving me on my lonesome last week, my first Second Hand Styling link up. It was so lovely sticky beaking around your second hand styling loveliness. Not only did I get to see some gorgy second hand pieces I also got to check out some new blogs and meet some lovely new bloggy people who also happen to love old stuff. I love that about blogging.

Don’t you?





So today’s Second Hand Styling link up is all about TEA. I’ve had lots of fun with this one because tea is one of my favourite things to have and think about. It’s so cosy, isn’t it? – a cup of tea. It’s a warm fuzzy kind of thing  and I’ll find any excuse to grab the chance to have a nice hot cuppa.
Add the word ‘tea’ to second hand and styling and I get very excited! Tea’s an old fashioned kind of thing anyway and it reminds me of my Grandma and my Nan and precious china and sugar cubes and a well loved teapot. So tea and second hand styling go hand in hand, in my book at least:)

When I’m on my own I tend to be a little lazy and grab a tea bag {the strongest sort I can find} and have my tea in a big, modern kind of mug.
When I’m trying to make things a bit special though, I love to get out my teapot and teacups and have real tea.





One of my favourite tea pot/tea cup combo is this little pale green teapot for tea with the blue and white johnson bros tea cups that a lovely friend gave to me a few years ago. This teapot is my favourite ‘tea for two’ pot. It’s actually not second hand, though. I get so many compliments over this tea pot but the truth is I got it years and years and years ago at Coles when they had tea pot sets. It cost me about 4 bux. I broke the lid of the teapot not long after I bought it but with a little bit of glue it now looks …. well, second hand:) I love using it with those watery blue tea cups {they are second hand}. That colour combo is my favourite of all time combos. Love it!


 

This red enamel teapot is another favourite. I got it for a bargain at a garage sale and love using it for tea with 3 or more people. It pours beautifully and I love it with blue or green or white tea cups. It’s probably not actually that old – I think it’s one of those army disposal ones but I love it and have used it a lot.





The retro blue teapot is a more recent addition to my second hand collection. I love it’s retro shape and that colour blue has really grown on me over the past year or so. I’m finding myself more and more drawn to this shade of blue and I love using it with my retro cup and saucers. This one was also a garage sale treasure {so too the little white jug and the yellow tea cup and saucer}. Everything is second hand in this photo, even the chrysanthumum!  I got a cutting from  friend’s garden over the summer and was so excited to see it flower for Mother’s Day.

So that’s my  Second Hand Tea Styling for you. Now it’s your turn. Here’s what you need to do:
 
1. Grab something second hand from around your nest {or outside it} that is somehow related to this week’s theme of TEA. Then go mad with the styling. You can choose one thing to style or 1000. You can be as creative or as low key as you like. Just have fun and enjoy your lovely second hand treasures.

2. Share a photo or 10 of your Second Hand Styling via a blog post on your blog. 

3. Link up your actual blog post to the Second Hand Styling  link party down there.

4. Share  on facebook, twitter or instagram if you want to:)

5. Pop on over to some of the other links. Leave a comment and say hi!

This linky party is open from today until the 22nd of May so get styling your second hand lovelies and link up!

Oh and  if you don’t want to stick to the theme you really don’t have to just as long as you use at least one item that is second hand in your styling}. I’ve also set up an instagram tag called #secondhandstyling so if you’re an instagrammer you can pop your photo on that as well.


Happy Saturday!   Happy Second Hand Styling! {The link up thingy is down there under my name}

a little bit of rug drool

 

My mind, lately, has been of life outdoors. It’s been filled with chook pens and fences and vegie gardens and planting and painting and all of the stuff I have to get done out there. Since the wintery edge seems to be heading our way {yah!!!} I’ve also been doing a little bit of inside pondering. Rugs. Floor rugs to be precise.

I haven’t yet floor rugged our concrete floors mainly because I hadn’t found anything that I really loved or that I could make a firm decision on. After some lovely googling time this morning though, I think I’ve made my decision firm.

Do you want to see what I’d like to pop on these grey concretey floors of ours?

 

 

Tathra Beach Designs by La de dah

 

 Tathra Beach Designs by la de dah

 

Yep, it’s a mega doily look and I’m loving it!

And these too …

Fine Craft Guild

From Architecture Art Design

Custom Made

Do you likey?

Oh, and before I venture outdoors for some more chook pen netting put-upping, don’t forget tomorrow’s Second Hand Styling link up fun. It was lots of fun last week so I’m hoping even more of you will join in. Do you want the theme for tomorrow, today? OK:)

tea

Looking forward to checking this little space tomorrow to see your lovely second hand tea styling. Used tea bags are welcome! Haha!

 

 

all of the nesty crumbs are here

 

If you’re looking for recipes or foodie posts then they’ll be here in the Nesty Crumbs corner of this blog.

 

Here are this year’s ones for you to check out.

 

Swedish Apple Cake

Zucchini Balls:: River Cottage Meets Feather & Nest

Genevieve's Zucchini Pickles

A Pre Mother's Day Treat

 

May the crumbs fall freely in you nest and may there always be a little dust pan and broom handy;)

 

nesty crumbs :: a pre-mother’s day treat

 

 

Thankyou, Darling!

Yep, it was a  bit like that on Saturday.

A Mother’s Day High Tea at a lovely local function centre with my gorgy homeschooling mumma friends was where I was at on the weekend.

 

 

Yes, we gorged ourselves silly. Yes, we laughed A.L.O.T. Yes, we cherished this time together as mummas of homeschoolers. Yes, we agreed we must do this again and really soon.

 

 

And yes, Steve from here, has to be one of the most wonderful chef’s in the world.  For a mans man to set up his own funky festival catering food van called Hardcore Carnivore {and hopefully you’ll get to see this right here at Feather & Nest   really soon … it’s sooo cute!} and then whip up a deliciously delicate feast of Mother’s Day high tea morsels like we scoffed – well, he’s just plain fantastic in my mind.

There weren’t many crumbs left, that’s for sure.

Hoping all of you mummas had a wonderful Mother’s Day yesterday. Oh, and thank you to you lovely people who joined in with my Second Hand Styling link up over the weekend. I’m looking forward to next Saturday already:)

 

second hand styling :: new linky fun here

 

Okey doke, well hello there and welcome to my new little link up party which I’m calling Second Hand Styling. I’m a little bit nervous today because I really don’t want to be hanging out here on my lonesome. I want to be able to sticky beak at your blogs and see your lovely second hand treasure and what you’ve done with them.

But apart from the nerves I’m also feeling very excited because I love, love, love chatting about second hand loveliness and using it in my nest.  I love old stuff.

My Dad has instilled a love of repurposing and second hand in me since I was really little. He’s always been a tip lover. Back in the day, when I was a kid my Dad loved nothing more than a trip to the tip. At the time, i have to say,  I wasn’t a tip fan. The smell would make me heave and it felt like the blowies, if they got the chance, would carry me away at any given moment.  I’d usually be found, on these tippy adventures, inside the old holden, windows wound right up, jumper sleeve covering my nose waiting impatiently for Dad to get back in the car and get us the heck out of there. And off to the milk bar for a treat or two. He was a good Dad like that:)

But regardless of the smell and flies and the desire to leave the tip as quickly as possible something about those tip adventures with my Dad sunk into my veins. Into my bones.  I found that by my mid 20’s I started to look at the tip through my Dad’s treasure hunting eyes. It was around that time that we became the owners of our first home and so began the ever growing love I have for feathering and nesting. Those days we were on a very tight budget {not at all unlike now, to be honest} so the tip became extremely appealing. It was then that I also began garage saleing, auctioning and op shopping.

Between now and then we’ve been on fluctuating budgets – sometimes tight, sometimes quite relaxed but no matter what sort of funds I’ve had I’ve always preferred buying old things to feather my nest with. It’s become a passion. A hobby. An obsession at times and mostly my second hand treasures have brought me loads of fun.

I’m so thankful to my lovely Dad for instilling in me a love for second hand stuff. I didn’t realise it at the time but those trips to the tip when I was 10 years old have lead me to this very post and linky blog hop. And my Dad, well he’s still having regular adventures to the tip and coming home with lots of lovely treasure. Unfortunately though, the local council have decided that repurposing from the tip’s stance is now an occupational hazard and bans are being put into place to stop people like my Dad from treasure hunting and recycling. But that’s another story ….

So  now let the Second Hand Styling fun begin!

 

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Grab something second hand from around your nest {or outside it} that’s related to this week’s theme and then go mad with the styling. You can choose one thing to style or 1000. You can be as creative or as low key as you like. Just have fun and enjoy your lovely second hand treasures.

2. Share a photo or 10 of your Second Hand Styling via a blog post on your blog. 

3. Link up your actual blog post  to the Second Hand Styling  link party down there.

4. Share  on facebook, twitter or instagram if you want to:)

5. Pop on over to some of the other links. Leave a comment and say hi!

This linky party is open from today until the 15th of May so get styling your second hand lovelies and link up!

So that’s the ins and outs of it. Pretty simple. Now for our theme of the week {but remember, if you don’t want to stick to the theme you don’t have to just as long as you use at least one item that is second hand in your styling}:

things of stone and wood

 

Here’s my Second Hand Styling for this week.

 

I love all of these second hand treasures. Actually there isn’t one thing in this photo that isn’t second hand. Most of these lovelies I got from garage sales and a few have been from local auctions. A good deal of those cream Johnson Brothers plates came from a lovely and very generous friend of mine who knew I was collecting this set at the time.

 

 

The chip in that big stone ware bowl is something that, to me, gives the bowl it’s character. Every time I look at it sitting, usually, on my kitchen bench, I wonder how that chip got there. I wonder how many cakes were mixed in it and I imagine lots and lots of fruit cake batter dribbling down the sides. It makes me think of Christmas.

 

 

I’m really loving cream stone ware and ceramics mixed with white and rustic timbers. It’s one of my favourite styling themes at the moment – so fresh and simple yet with that worn and slightly imperfect feel to it. It’s funny, I have always been such a colour person but lately I’m craving the calm of natural tones, white and cream. Team it with stone and wood and I’m very happy:)

Well, that’s my turn. Now it’s over to you. I can't wait to see what you've all been up to with your second hand treasures.

 

Happy Second Hand Styling this weekend!

 

a new link up for feather & nest

 

If you’ve been reading this blog for any amount of time now you probably have noticed that I like old stuff. Second hand stuff. I love the idea of re-using and re-purposing something. I love the stories that are held within something pre-loved. I love the old look of vintage treasures. I love the character that it brings to my home and I especially love that it’s affordable.

You might also notice that I like to play around with my second hand treasures and try to make them look pretty {styling} – which isn’t hard at all ‘cos old stuff is so very, very lovely all on it’s own.

Did you get those three key words? Second. Hand. Styling.

So I’ve been thinking that I’d like to have a cosy little spot here, where we, who like second hand stuff and styling it, can come together and share the little stories that we make with our precious treasures. That’s what we do when we put things together – we tell a story. A visual story. We might not even realise the story as we go along but a story is shared nonetheless about you, the featherer and your lovely nest.

The styling could be as simple as a couple of old rolling pins leaning against the wall ….

 

or a pile of old Johnson Brothers plates …

 

 

or as thought out as a bunch of stuff arranged with a little extra time and effort.

 

Oh, and you don’t have to forget your new things either. Mixing and matching is really cool too. Just as long as there is something second hand in the shot, ‘tis all. I’ve got newbies and oldies up there in that all white vignette.

However simple or extravagant you want to be is totally up to you. It’s all just an excuse to do a bit of styling and have some fun with the stuff we’ve got lying about the place as well as a chance to sticky beak around other people’s blogs and get to make a few new second hand-aholic styling friends.

What do you think? Would you join me or will I be here on my lonesome – no guilt trip intended, I promise. Nudge nudge wink wink.

OK, well I’m hoping you’ll be here tomorrow for the start of a fun new styling link up. It’ll be loosely theme based just so we’ve got something to go with but if you don’t want to stick with the theme you don’t have to. Totally up to you. The main thing is that we share our love of second hand stuff and get to sticky beak around a bit.

So go and get your second hand stuff out and dusted {or not, dust can be pretty too!} and get ready to have some Second Hand Styling fun on … Saturday (tomorrow). Do you like all of those S’s?

I’ll be here waiting for you to join me. Please? Beg. Grovel.