New additions...

We have listed some lovely new items in our Etsy store and would love you to head on over and have a look.

Our Replay section gives old toys and games a second chance at happiness.  Check out these new additions...

This vintage gold clutch will add a touch of glamour to any occasion...

For a bit of nautical adventure, this vintage book bundle is just the thing.  Treasure Island and 20,000 Leagues under the Sea...."Ahoy me hearties!"

And for the sewing enthusiast, these vintage buttons in shades of blue are sure to inspire.

 

How cute are the little mouse buttons?

Christmas Craft countdown....12 weeks

It’s the same every year.  I promise myself that I will be organised for Christmas and every year, despite my best intentions, Christmas sneaks up on me and catches me out.  I spend whole days fighting my way through the heaving shops, sweaty and grumpy; thinking murderous thoughts about my fellow shoppers.

Not very attractive.  Or Christmasy. No more.

THIS year I am going to be organised.  I am going to handcraft delightful gifts for friends and family, save money AND do my bit for the environment at the same time.  A tall order?  Maybe.  But I’m going to give it my best shot.  Or die trying.

I thought a good way to keep this Christmas mission on track would be to include a Christmas-related idea here, perhaps once a week or so.  It will keep me motivated and we can all get our “jolly holly” groove on together.  And so, the countdown begins…

12 weeks until Christmas – Pillow Boxes.

It’s a universally known fact that a gift is only as good as its wrapping.  (O.K, this may just be my opinion.)

I found this lovely idea on Pinterest recently and since it’s really easy and justifies my impulsive loo roll collecting, I thought I’d share it.

Step 1:

Take a loo roll inner.

Step 2:

Bend the middle bit in and then do the same to the other side.

Step 3:

Pinch the sticky-up bits at the side.

And voila!  A cute little pillow box! 

You can use this to wrap any smallish gift – sweets, chocolates, a necklace or bracelet.  Whatever you can squeeze inside.  Wrap with raffia, ribbon or string and add a cute embellishment.  

You can also use left-over bits of wrapping paper and make colourful pillow boxes as well.  Here's how....

Step1:

Cut the paper to size, leaving a little “fold over” room at the sides.  

Step2:

Mix some glue with a little water.  The consistency should not be too watery, but should thin out the glue a little.  Apply with a brush or a sponge to the “wrong” side of the paper.

Step 3:

Place the toilet roll inner at one end of the paper and roll to the end.

Step 4:

Fold over the bits at the side to the inside of the tube.

Step 5: (optional) 
If you like, you can apply a layer of the glue mix to the outside of the paper as well.

Step 6: 

Fold the sides of the tube, as shown previously.

Give it a try.  A nice project for the kids too. 
We'd love to hear from you and all the ways you use this neat idea.  Email us at les.revoici@gmail.com

Ditching the wheel...

When my cousin, Jessica, was little, she had a pet hamster.  It was a Russian hamster – I think its name was Hammy.  One day while watching Hammy (or whatever) running on his hamster wheel, and discussing hamsters in general, (as you do) Jessica and I had this conversation:

Jessica:  “Do you like my hamster?”

Me:  “Yes, I do.”

Jessica:  “He’s called a Russian hamster.”

Me:  “Yes, I know.”

Jessica:  “Do you know WHY he’s called a Russian hamster?”

Me:  “Ummmm….”

Jessica:   (rolling her eyes and gesturing with her hands in what looked like resignation)

              “Coz he’s always Rushin’ around….”

It’s a cute story and it’s always stuck with me because there are often times in my life when I have felt just like that hamster.  Rushin’ around.  Stuck on my wheel.  The daily grind.  I usually don’t even realise it until I see it reflected in someone else.

Case in point….

This morning, on our way back from breakfast, Big L and I got stuck behind a line of cars snaking its way up a steep hill.  The cause of the holdup was about seven cars ahead – an old seventies caravan being towed at about 10kms per hour.

It looked a little like this...

It was beautiful – white, with a bit of sun-bleached blue and I sat forward in my seat, straining to see it in all its rusty, crusty glory.  I was imagining all the memories that had been made in that caravan – holidays at the coast, trips to the mountains, the thrill of setting up home (if even for a short time) in something mobile – like a gypsy or a travelling tinker.

I was snapped back from my reverie by terse and clearly irritated mutterings coming from the driver’s seat.  Big L had a lot to say – all of it bad and some of it which I cannot repeat, but there was a “Oh, for Pete Sake” and a “What the *heck* is this guy doing?” amongst others.

We weren’t in a hurry; we were not late for an appointment, or a plane.  There was nothing pressing that needed his attention.  He was just feeling….rushed.  While mildly annoyed that he had spoiled my caravan moment, I could hardly criticise, as I realised that I have been guilty of the same thing lately. 

I was once again reminded of Hammy and his infernal little wheel and resolved to lift my head from the grindstone every now and again and enjoy the little moments that come my way.  

I also resolved to buy a caravan and travel the countryside like a gypsy.  But that could just be a phase.  

Fabulous Friday - a crafty one

Phew!  What a week it’s been!  The overall mood has been *creative* with lots of ideas and Great Plans rattling around.   This has involved buttons, fabric, old cereal boxes, varnish and a glue gun (not necessarily related)  and a Big Mess.  The mayhem has spilled out of the studio into the dining room…oh boy…but luckily it is easily blamed on *creative frenzy* and everyone in the house just sighs and works around it. 

We’ve been working on getting some lovely new goodies loaded for our Etsy store, planning a major revamp of the studio, as well as cruising the Net for inspiration and catching up with our favourite blogs.  (the latter two are code for “I’ve-run-out-of-steam, am-having-a-tea-break-and-ignoring-the-chaos-around-me”)  

All of which has resulted in no blog posts this week.  Tut..tut.

But we couldn’t possibly let a Friday go by without celebrating something fabulous.  This week, our Fabulous Friday feature is a lovely little blog we discovered, which has contributed greatly to the inspiration factor.

The Mother Huddle is a collection of Kids Crafts, DIY ideas, sewing projects and recipes, with handy tutorials.  We found out how to make these cute crêpe pom poms

were inspired by this easy tutorial on making a child-sized upholstered bench

and fell instantly in love with these adorable storage baskets.

Aren’t they sweet?  And judging by the tutorial, they are quick and simple to make, which we think is simply fabulous.

Fabulous Friday

Every Friday, we at Revoici, would like to feature something which appeals to us by virtue of its general fabulousness.  It could be a place, a person, a product – anything that takes our fancy, inspires us and feeds our creative muse.

For our first Fabulous Friday feature, we thought we’d share a little gem of a place we discovered this week.  Since we’re all about passion, creativity and nature, we simply loved visiting The Nature Company and feel it is our moral duty to spread the word!

Situated near the lush green surrounds of the Kloof Nature Reserve, The Nature Company is a peaceful refuge from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.  It’s contemporary, without being pretentious and you get the feeling that this is someone’s passion – a lifelong dream perhaps, that has finally come to fruition.

Clearly a lot of thought went into the design and layout of this “nursery nouveau”.  The pathways, plants and central feature garden all work together to create a visually pleasing experience.  There is an interesting selection of plants which have been laid out attractively, with a new “discovery” around each corner.  Just look at this stunning clivia we found! 

Some colourful seedling trays accompany a good selection of veggie and herb seedlings – broccoli, rocket, green pepper and cauliflower, to name but a few. 

A delightful outdoor café provides a restful spot to sit and take in the picturesque surroundings, with an intriguing menu ensuring you will not go hungry.  Friendly, efficient service combined with scrumptious food and excellent coffee makes for an entirely enjoyable experience.

There is also a lovely selection of plant pots in an array of designs and sizes.  We found this adorable terracotta set for only R20!  Needless to say, we were all over THAT bargain like a fat kid on a glazed doughnut!  We think these will make lovely little gifts (especially with Christmas looming - *jingle jingle*).

Now, we are not terracotta connoisseurs by any means, but even we know a good price when we see it.  Double checking in case there had been some kind of mistake (that’s just the kind of honest girls we are) we were humourously told “Charity begins at the Nature Company”. Quite fitting really, as nature gives of herself freely, without exploitation or thought of reward.  

It's not charity, but if you’re looking for value for money, quality merchandise, good food, a friendly atmosphere (with a passion for nature on the side), then it really does begin at the Nature Company.  And we think that's simply fabulous.

You can find The Nature Company at 102 Kloof Falls Road, Kloof or online at https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Nature-Company/170073899721430

Upcycling....Beach style

It’s my precious little nephew’s birthday coming up and the theme for his party is “Under the Sea”.  I was inspired by my poor old beach umbrella that got blown inside out one windy day, resulting in its metal bits breaking and me relegating it to the back of the scullery cupboard.  The fabric is still good and it occurred to me that it would make a rather cheerful tablecloth or overlay for the upcoming party.

I was so pleased with how it turned out that I thought I’d share it here.  This literally took me 20 minutes to complete and was quite a lot of fun.

First, I had to separate the fabric from the umbrella frame, which required a Stanley knife and about 10 minutes to complete.  Since the fabric was connected to the frame by a series of loose stitches, it was merely a matter of slicing through the stitches (being careful not to cut the fabric!)  The fabric was secured to the umbrella pole by means of a screw-on top, which came off easily.

 

The metal washer in the centre of the fabric had to be removed.  A tiny screwdriver and a bit of elbow grease made short work of that.

 

All that was left was to close up the hole, which I accomplished by sewing a gathering stitch around the opening and pulling it tight, securing with a stitch or two.

And now, my previously disadvantaged beach umbrella is ready to get its party on!

  

Talking Tees

If you are anything like me, you hate waste.  Reduce, re-use and recycle…the future of our planet depends on it.  And while it’s easy to get complacent and pat ourselves on the back for recycling our old newspapers, we should always be looking for new ways to reduce our rubbish bin output.  It’s the responsible thing to do.

One way to do this is upcycling – taking something destined for the dump and turning it into something useable or beautiful, or both.  This is a trend which has taken off overseas, with fantastic results and while South Africa is slightly behind the times, upcycling is catching on here as well.

And of course, we at Revoici simply love it!  We are constantly searching out new ways to give old items a fresh new face. 

Take T-shirt yarn, for example.  While by no means a “new” idea to many overseas, it was something of a revelation to us when we happened across it recently.  I mean, what happens to T-shirts when they no longer fit or we grow tired of them?  Many end up at charity shops, overlooked and rejected (sniff) while some get cut up and used as cleaning rags in the garage – seeing out their days in the dusty darkness, smelling of thinners.  Shame.  

What if you could take that old T-shirt and turn it into something fabulous?  Something funky, fresh and fun?  The good news for T-shirts everywhere is that you can.

T-shirt yarn, or “T yarn” as we affectionately call it, is easy and fun to make.  You are limited only by your imagination and the number of T-shirts you can get your hands on.  It can also be mildly addictive.  Just saying.

Once you have turned your old Tees into super-fabulous T yarn, you can use it to knit, crochet or weave anything that takes your fancy - just as you would with conventional wool.

We hope to post a basic “How to make T yarn” tutorial soon, but in the meantime, why don’t you check out this funky pattern for a knitted T yarn bag – which can be used as a shopping bag, beach bag, hold-all bag or whatever. 

T yarn pattern

Get inspired, get creative, get swept up in the T yarn revolution.   

T-shirts everywhere are depending on you.

We would love to hear from you and see what fabulous creations you have made with your T yarn.  Email us at les.revoici@gmail.com