easing back in

i am not doing a terribly terrific job of easing back into "life after holiday"

11 days without kids,
without having to cook, clean or look after myself

oh - it's hard to come home to the noise and mess and life of a home with two busy little ones

since flying back home on Tuesday morning, i've barely been at home at all
no time to unpack a suitcase, heaving with dirty washing, dyed fabrics and memories of time away
no time to email new made friends, or catch up with old friends
barely time to even look at my photos

so today, Saturday, i've had to say no to a few things so that i can settle into the week afresh, tidy the house, and clear my mind ready to make all those 11-days of dreaming come to life. {tidy my desk and work room as well, ready for lots of new work to be designed and produced}.

here's some images from my time away in NZ.
i'll be back later this weekend with an account of my time spent on that beautiful organic farm, amongst apple and pear trees, sleeping in that sweet little caravan, finding wind blown treasures to wrap up in the luscious wool and silk fabric and simmer and boil in the pot of leaves.

school lunches

Ari starts school next week. 

I'm quite freaked out. But putting on a very brave face, for him. For myself.

We weren't going to send him to school this year. Were planning on holding off for another year. But I realised that he would be a whole lot older than all the other kids in his class, if he waited another year. And, I know he's ready - intellectually, socially and (probably) emotionally. We'll have some tears, I know. But, we'll also both be okay. 

Really - one of the big things I'm a bit fearful of is sending him with the wrong lunch. I want to make sure he'll eat it, and be happy to eat it. And that there won't be any lunch box teasing happening. (Being a vegetarian, and coming from what one may perhaps call "hippi" parents meant that we could have been prone to lunch box teasing as kids. I was lucky to be amongst a group of kids with similar upbringings. I don't know what it's like in the playground now). 

Aside from the food I put into the box. I'm worried about the actual lunchbox itself. I've spent a fair bit of this afternoon doing as much web searching as I can manage. With a good bit of help my Ms Peppermint (who knows a whole lot about a whole lot).  I'm still not entirely sure which way we'll go. 

I really like these, from ECOlunchboxes. I would make my own fabric bag, but if you're not a sewer I think these prints are fantastic. So bright, and fun - as well as versatile. Unfortunately, it seems as if they don't ship to Australia. 

Other choices are the LunchBots, which I can get locally from Biome (they also have an online store). We may end up with these ones (due to convenience), but I read on one of the sites, that the lids may be a bit hard for younger kids. We'll see.

I did consider the little fold up sandwich wraps or snack wraps, from 4MyEarth. They do ultimately have plastic lining (even if it is PVC & phthalate free), and I'm trying to steer away from that. 

There are a few other choices at Life Without Plastic, that are of the Tiffin style. We're going to check out our local Army Disposal Store and see if they have anything similar (those places normally come with a much more realistic price tag - kids loose lunch boxes, after all!). 

There's a heaps of totally fun, kid friendly (adult approved) prints over at Kids Konserve. And a lot of ideas for different lunch packing. I'm going to explore this site a bit more. 

Also, some really cute Tiffin Tins here.

There's a pattern in Betz White's book for making your own lunch bag and sandwich wrap, which I'm going to look into. Problem is - it says to use PUL, which is polyurethane. I'm not entirely sure what this is, and can't seem to find much info about it at all. But it sounds a lot like plastic to me. Do you have answers? I'd love to make some of these sandwich wraps, but they'll be no good without the plastic lining. 

So - you see my dilemas? And I haven't even barely started to think about the food to put into the container I choose. 

They do say that ignorance is bliss, don't they?


EDITED 23/01/10 :: ECOLunchboxes wrote back to let me know that they have an online stockist who posts to Australia, called Naturally Sustainable.
Also, thank you Jacqui for sending me a link to another place, 3GreenMoms, who sells sandwich wraps. These one have really cute prints on them, which appeal to me more than any of the others.

not stupid

Photos from our glamorous movie premiere in Sydney.
Look at us three women. don't we look very sophisticated and grown up and all that - i actually don't think that we are; just good at pretending.Kelley, Sylve and me (hailing a taxi - i know what i'm doing, don't i!)Kelley, Sylve and me - on the green carpet at the launch of Age of Stupid. It's a really excellent movie - do go out and see it. A story about climate change, told from the future - with wonderful little views into everyday-people's lives from today. And some just terrible quotes from people, who think they care about the environment yet they don't want a wind farm in their back yard because it'll ruin the view!
The US premiere will be 21st and 22nd Sept. It will be screened all across the States, via live satellite. This is a movie with no advertising budget what-so-ever, yet a strong and important direct message that needs to be seen. Check where your local screening is.
Let me tell you that she, my sister, looked this gorgeous every day of our holiday, regardless of if she was in jeans and boots or her dress-up outfit.Ben and Kelley in their vintage and op-shopped green carpet outfits. Beautiful couple.

Grand Designs :: Infusion Fibers

When I got home today, there was a box waiting for me.
The kids tore it open, to reveal the most beautiful little slippers, that I won over here. Wrapping was so pretty, but we didn't get a photo of that.
Made with lovely blue/black striped cotton ticking, and hemp fabric as the sole and lining, these are special slippers that I know I'll love wearing day in and day out. I have only taken them off twice since I first put them on; one to go for an afternoon walk, the other to hang the clothes on the line.
Abby has such a sweet little blog, over here, with beautiful photos and lovely stories. Her shop is here - I have been eyeing off this dress for a long time now (and the modelling is very very lovely too, Miss Abby).
You can buy your own pair of ticking house shoes, or a selection of others too. Look at these beautiful baby boots; could you get anything cuter.Abby makes all her items using reclaimed, upcycled, organic or sustainable fibres. Her pieces have a timeless and lasting style. Her dresses are versatile and you would wear them for many seasons. And her bags are simple and bold at the same time, would fit with most any outfit, but have their own distinct features to make them stand out.
You can see the quality and work(wo)manship and dedication and love and attention to detail in the pieces that Abby makes.

It's so lovely to meet people like this, who live many seas away, yet has such a warmth and honesty about them, and lives life in a real natural manner.
She also sent me a lovely little zippered purse, made from indigo-dyed organic denim (same beautiful fabric that we use - I recognised it straight away!). And some little shells, that Mishi swished away in a moment - and somehow made through Australian customs.Thank you Abby for this sweet treasure and love you have sent to me.
*all photos by me, except 3rd one down of pink baby boots from Abby of Infusion Fibers.

red on green

I'm very excited and pleased to direct you over to some kind and lovely words written about Red Seed Studio.
Crafting a Green World has featured us on their Fab Fabrics post. Jackie obviously has a deep passion for environmental and ecologically produced products. Her personal blog, Tiny Decor, is a round up of the most wonderful things for your little ones, and for their playroom or nursery. Showing that good design is just as easy using eco-friendly furnishings and decor.
The amount of inspiration and information on Crafting a Green World is amazing. Keeping us up-to-date with new products, easy and fun green tips and projects for the household, as well as lots of other little tit-bits*.
Do go and have a read.
Thank you Jackie, and Crafting a Green World for featuring Red Seed Studio amongst all this wonderfulness.

(* is it tit-bits, or tid-bits?).