Thank you Thank you and turn down the heat PLEASE

I feel quite chuffed this week

Lavender bestowed these awards upon me and I am flattered indeed because I have been a fan of The Birds and the Beads since my first days of dipping in the blog pond.

Now I have been a bit of a wuss at handing these out again because as previously mentioned, some one grrrr'd at me once as if I asked them to give me a kidney. Well, now I realize that the grrrring person was just rude and I should make a "rude blogger" award. You see, they were not quietly rude, they were rude on their post and I felt embarrassed and stupid.

So I am going to be brave and send out some awards. Think of them like a Thank you card. Read them and put them away or put them out on the shelf. It doesn't matter, I mean it is harmless flattery after all and some of us take praise quietly or if you are like me you wave it around and say "look at me, look at me".

I am rapt to be able to give this little Tree of Happiness for continuous eye candy and inspiration

to Lavender

Desideratum

Flower Garden

August Street
The list was massive but I'm saving other Thank yous for later.

And what about the heat?

My dashboard vinyl lifted up and buckled in the sun which I am pretty cheesed off about.

I also had orders for eBay that I had to send but I have a child with no sweat glands that will have a stroke in this heat so I had no choice. I mean what can ya do right? I might get bad eBay feedback but that's life. Is every one else getting hot and cranky like me ? lol

It took me 2 days to do this post. Once upon a time I worked on cattle and wheat properties in this heat. Now I get cranky if its over 25ºC

I despise being stranded indoors. I am an outdoor animal so hopefully soon the weather will let me out. By then the family will be ready to boot me out:)

Cheers everyone and have a good one.

Stay cool!

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Trash Talk

Its hot, or cold, if you are in the northern hemisphere (*waving frantically* to everyone from the US and the UK) I have relo's in both countries, maybe you know them? - lol that's a joke of course relating to my UK and US relatives thinking Australia is so small that we know everyone here.
Anyhow, as you see I am rabbiting on because of the heat,
So I have provided some light reading to tickle your trash fancy.

Today's trashy topic:

Waste Art

Hunter Waste Education Group - gallery

This site made me go wow over waste

"Disused waste becomes art" - China Daily

more wow

Eyebeam reblog - Covered chair

Cool but Scratchy?

See ya Later!

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Melbourne weather forecast for this week

TUE Sunny. Very Hot. Dry. 38ºC

WED Sunny. Very Hot. Dry. 39ºC
THU Sunny. Very Hot. Dry. 40ºC
FRI Sunny. Very Hot. Dry. 40ºC
SAT Mostly Sunny. Hot. Dry.36ºC

So bloggers in Melbourne, how will you cope? Me, I am dragging everything I need in to the house tonight. Last week I made myself sick working in the shed and walking in the heat.

HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY FOLKS!

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For me?

I got my first award for the year:)

Thank you Ladybug -Zen

I am honored because as you will see if you take a look at Ladybugs blog, her photos are beautiful and I was struck by her natural talent the minute I landed on her page. I cannot travel at the moment so I enjoy seeing life in another country through her eyes.

Thank you:)

As with meme's I am never confident enough to pass these on in case some one grrrrs at me again.

The only way I can rectify this is by making all the award lovers step to the right and all award haters step to the left ... no no, my left, not yours

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What are you guys up to this weekend?

Me?

Well Im bludging as usual

( bludging = slacking off, being lazy, bumming around)

I pulled apart and restarted my knitted string bag. Doing much better this time.

Team nunde went looking for wild life at Wilsons Botanic Garden

This spot is where me and Mr nunde got married.

It was greener then and nunde junior (pictured)was a secret bump *gasp*

We waited for wild life

and waited

then waited some more

after a bit of a barney about using a tripod and nature,

we stomped off to go home

hot and thirsty we made it to the carpark and got away from all that nature quick smart.

It was a terrific day.

I'm stuffed though

and I'm sure the MASSIVE block of kit Kat didn't help that:P

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Team nunde makes a studio lightbox

In the heat we trekked to Bunnings then Spotlight which were a massive 7 minute walk away from our house and due to exhaustion, thirst and hunger we chucked our supplies on the lounge room floor, ate junk food and watched TV. It wasn't until 11am we decided to start our project. It still needs tweaking and we got the wrong lamps for the globes but finally we made our own Home made photography light studio thingy.

tomorrow there will be the correct amount of lamps but I am rapt with the results.

and the box is massive.and Mr nunde is now filling it with warhammer miniatures to show off on his warhammer miniature showing off site(weirdos) ooops I said that out loud.

If you are considering having a go at making your own, here are links to a few that we used as a reference when making ours.
We went for a cardboard box from Bunnings lined with poster board and 4 daylight lamps clamped to top, bottom and sides. Now we messed up on lamps but the results were still great.

The box is 50cm x 40cm and cost $17.00 to make.

The lamps were extra and optional. You can use what you have around the house as long as you use daylight globes which are common.

how to make a light studio

another one

Wow, it's 10 past 1am and I have a mess to clean up.

Have a great weekend!!!

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Theyre taking my Loot!!!!

Its 37 degrees (anyone know the command for the degree symbol, if not, no matter, Ill google it..maybe)
It is 50 degrees in my shed and I am NOT lying but the worst thing ever is that the Hard Rubbish truck is making its rounds and I saw stuff I still want. Things are being smashed up as I type. Good re- usable things. FREE THINGS.
I pray to the garbologist goddess that the garbos have OH&S laws that say they cant work over 35 degrees.

Another thing. Anyone know of an organisation that takes unwanted bikes? I counted 20 something bikes to go in the garbage compacter. That's 20 kids that could have got a free bike. 3 of the bikes I saw are in the creek, as expected. Kids out late on school holidays have a ball with hard rubbish.
It's bloody hot
I'm stuck inside
I hate inside
so I thought I would share, as ya do, when you are a blogger.

note: TO make the degree symbol hold down ALT key and type in 167 on your number pad º ta da

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Trash Talk

In India, plastic bag use is a capital offence

Randeep Ramesh, Delhi January 18, 2009

Right On!

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On a Monday

I clean
My TMR (time management roster) tells me to.
It took me about 3-4 hours to fine tune it.
Now to put it into action.
I read it takes 21 days to form a new habit
I think a person counting days to form new habits
needs a more interesting job
I want to change this year
so as I clean,
I listen to Nick Cave - Murder Ballads
and so far my TMR is working
New habits evolve
old habits retreat
A change is imminent

Enjoy your Monday folks

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Hard rubbish looting

For months my husband and I complained that we needed a stool for the outside benches. I couldn't justify buying new ones because I'm just too tight to buy new ones for a work area.

And there it was

one stool for my husband.

Tube steel legs and a broken wood seat that I can fix in a blink or make a new one. Being a woody comes in handy

and then as I was briskly walking home at 12am with stool in hand there it was

my stool

rust and all

its mine

I remember these when I was a kid

wow its old

And its a step ladder too.

I'm so rapt

Ill clean off the surface rust easy, clean off paint splats, find a rubber stopper for the leg and voila, a perfect stool/stepladder for my wood cutting bench:)
Going back out tonight to collect a few more items that I spied.

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Team nunde armed with cameras

I gave master 7 yr old my old kodak digital and we began our photography journey together

His first picture

Great! , the shutter opened just enough to capture my fat backside.

then my big boofhead, wow this kid makes me look tall

This shot is mine. walking right up to the cheeky bird, click.

last night, team nunde went out "hard rubbish shopping" stay tuned

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Today I

went Op shopping and bought another round metal mirror to add to my growing collection of round metal mirrors.

Paid my daughters tertiary education fees. She is such a grown up now.

Went to The old Cheese Factory

I chatted with Phyl and P.S while they worked hard getting the homestead ready for our new improved cafe, gift, community shop. I got pretty excited and Phyl was excited as she showed me where everything was going to go. It was all very exciting

Then I called in on my woodies club next door, no one home.

So my little man and I ate our Macca's in the grounds. (800 calories!!! eeks)

Then we collected nasturtium seeds

Then I went to raid Joyce's fruit trees. Another great harvest

It was a great day!

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My first tag for the year.

Ooty has tagged me to do 7 random things about myself.

1. My favourite smell is vanilla
2. I have 8 pairs of shoes and 6 of them are thongs(flip flops)
3. I want to learn Mandarin
4. I wrote a letter to the Queen. I was only 5. She wrote one back(well her lady in waiting did.) I still have it.
5. I was on Bozo the clown in the audience
6. I had a friend who was in the Vegemite ad.
7. I got to name nameless roads on the map in a region when I surveyed roads. I also got to help to delete roads that had become unused. I still have the original maps of the region we surveyed. That was 23 years ago

I'm quite boring really. I am supposed to forward this to 7 people but I am not the confident type to do that so I will pretend I have and not tell anyone and no one will be the wiser. Oh I said that out loud didn't I? :)

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What do you know about madeit.com?

Hi guys. Do any of you sell on Madeit.com.au?
It is hard to see how much sales are done there because they don't have a score rating of any kind. I have had a shop there for a while but I was all googly eyed for eBay because that is all I know but I want to keep certain stuff on eBay and my home wares and crafty stuff on places like Etsy and Madeit etc.
Now I can't even log into the forums to ask probing questions. *stomps off*
Anyone out there a Made it pro? I need you!!!!

***(Sorry Ooty. I forgot the dot au at the end.All fixed now)

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More warm fuzzies to add to my blankey

With renewed interest and because summer just screams for me to make warm and toasty things, I have begun knitting again. I'm getting faster too but don't be expecting me to do any of those fancy stitchy things. Hey do knitters time themselves? Like you know how typists can type so many words a minute. OK so what about how many stitches per minute? Knitting races!! Can you imagine the taunting as you knit like a beast, psyching out your opponent, cussing and knitting with gritted teeth. Oh yeah. eXtreme Knitting! I want in on that if it ever becomes a sport.

Socks are next

3 pairs awaiting heels.

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From Discarded Pram to Billy Cart Joy

Hard rubbish ideas!

Thanks Elsie, You reminded me of what My Dad also did!

Go grab a pram.
strip the wheels

Get some billy cart plans

and make one.

My dad made one, they cant be that hard.
I truly loved my billy cart. No brakes, a car floor mat for a seat and hills aplenty in The Dandenong Ranges.
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

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All I can say is

it really really hot in my sheds where I work. But Yay I finally got off my bottom and started. Will be back later with Trash Talk Tuesday and we will chat about trash.
Be cool

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Trash Talk Tuesday

Photos are deliberately blurry to protect the previous owners of this trash' privacy

Most bikes end up in our creek.

Twice a year Melbournites get to throw large amounts of rubbish onto the nature strip. In our area some of it end in the local creek because of kids but mainly it is picked up by the council, compacted and put in landfill. No, it doesn't get recycled. It gets compacted right in front of your house in a great big smelly garbage truck.

Things for us all, including me to consider

Can it be fixed?

Does someone need it now that you don't?

Can it be refashioned?

Is it even worn out?

Should you even buy it in the first place?

(hint hint, yet another hardly used treadmill out for trash, and yes, its working, I know the owner:) She is a good hard working mum with kids so don't think for a minute I'm trashing her. She is good folk but is she any different to many of us?)

So many do it.

That's how we are now.

Everything is disposable

And that makes me sad.

I have my eye on that roller desk and a Triton bench. stay tuned. If I get arrested do you think they will let me blog in jail?

I also have my eye on a fake brass bed and I'm thinking wind chimes. Break out the angle grinder baby. Feel free to suggest what can be done to reduce this kind of waste. Maybe if the council stopped hard rubbish. Maybe if we stopped making it? Not sure we are close to a solution yet but surely it is time for us to think on it:)

Cheers

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a bit of nunde froo froo

To break the monotony of Mondayitis

Trying hard to get back into the swing of it all.


Mind keeps wandering back to making froofy or sparkly things. Lesson learned. Don't have too big of a break from routine. Now it isn't routine, its like starting from scratch(well for today anyway)
And its a perfect day for gardening.

Cheers

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Not just another cat picture

Sorry

No I am not Sorry, he is. That's his name. So why do I have a picture of a cat called Sorry on my arty crafty blog. Well I have fallen in love with photography and think it is time I make a new blog to cover my new hobby so that it doesn't clutter this blog.

Today I start back at work. 2 months I have to make X amount each week or I have to get a job.

What is it that I do anyhow? I'm a reseller. There is not one specific thing that I hunt down to offer up for sale. It depends on market and availability. Bah, boring stuff. My home wares line which I am forever in the process of completing was a dream that needs to be put on hold. That's business though isn't it? So off I go. Wondering how the hell I will meet this weeks target.

Anyhow I do hope you will enjoy my photo blog. Please remember though. I am learning. I want to journal my progress.

OK enough chit chat. I have to get to work

cheerio

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My Strutting around Melbourne Camera Bag

Is finally finished

My Strutting around Melbourne Camera Bag
Originally uploaded by nundecreations

Because I am sometimes a little quirky and often resistant to compliance, I just couldn't bring myself to pay a fortune for a camera bag for my new DSLR.(I'm a tight arse) It became an ongoing saga to find or make the perfect bag and thanks to Boxing day sales I managed to secure myself something close to what my perfect bag is. You see, this was my dream camera bag

Yummiest bag ever

and for $239.00 USD it was out of my price range.
Plus it was leather and I don't want leather. It is the kind of bag, for me anyhow, that is liken to the range rover you see mums dropping the kids off to school in. It all looks good and screams "I have money" but you wouldn't want to get it dirty and use it for its intended purpose. My bags get treated like workhorses just like my Range Rover would be if I had one, which I don't because I'm a tight arse(too poor). With that in mind I purchased this my black one for $34.00.

When I excitedly showed it off to my husband his first words were " Good grief, its a bit gaudy isn't it?" and yes he is right but there were no non shiny ones in that style left. My answer to him was *rolls eyes* "It's the fashion now dear and who cares, it was only 34 bucks"

This will now be my "Choofing around Melbourne with my trendy Melbourne city Ambassador mum" bag.

So I began the padding and I just so happened to have some computer packaging foam and lots of it thanks to a geeky husband who built everyone except the cats a computer last year..Do you have any idea how many computers that is...... Needless to say, the amount of packaging that I had to work with was enormous. Oh and also with that in mind, that's why I will NEVER be able to afford a Jill e bag or a Range Rover..bloody computers.
This will not be my last camera bag. I want one for hiking also just in case I accidentally swallow a pill that will make me want to hike.

That one I am making from scratch out of completely pre used stuff. I have included glue and such in the cost and I reckon $40.00 for a bag that does not look like a camera bag is fantastic.

The bag weighs 3 kilograms when full and fits everything in the above photo. Now I wont embarrass my mum when she shows me the tours she does for work and I act like a tourist with my touristy backpacks and such while she is dressed up all posh like. Oh and I have camera and zips positioned so it takes less than 5 seconds to get out should I catch you doing something.....lol

Cheers!

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Empty Pegs

OK, so in my last job, many moons ago, work orders were on A4 size clip boards and each day I would fill one up to hand to my staff then refill it at lunch. Clearly my little pegs are somewhat of a down size to the companies work orders that I issued elsewhere. I have had a bit of a slimy start to 2009. Financially mainly and very unpleasant but nothing that cannot be overcome. It has left me feeling less confident and I stare at the pegs wondering .....
No, I am not having a pity party:) Well, I probably am lol. Nah, as us Aussies are wont to say "She'll be right mate" and because we are from battling stock we usually are. Ill cop this crappy start to the year but Ill be buggered if I will cop it layin down. I start back at work(in me shed mate) on Monday and I have had a wake up call. Work and succeed at self employment or get a bloody job. Gawd I hate being a grown up some times. Anyhoo, I am preparing for Monday already so craft has taken a back seat.
Forgive me for whinging. Nah, don't. Cheers everyone

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It's the weekend and it is time to

I found an A finally. I couldnt be bothered cutting the letter myself, gawd, getting the table moulder out and the scroll saw etc etc just for an A. But then one day there is was in the shop where I got P, L and Y. Boring I know, but seriously, it is very boring around here at the moment.

See my new sexy signature *wolf whistle*

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Nokia95

I am a Nokia Nut. I just love this phone and it has just made me even happier. It can be used as a step counter. It does everything a pedometer does but does a pedometer have GPS? Well, not that I use GPS for walking the 10 feet I walk before I collapse exhausted but if I get lost while I am walking, if I were walking more than 10 feet, then cool, I have GPS.

I picked up the handy belt pouch to protect it while I walk for $2.99 on eBay. The guy selling them advertises them as "Genuine Leather" but they re not and his feedback has heaps of angry shoppers venting.....$2.99 people, sheesh get over it. Its still a bargain even for vinyl. But yeah, he should change it because he is blatantly lying.

Anyhow check out the links below if you have a Nokia95 and want a fitness program built into your phone. I will be using this because I'm sick of being a little bit alot fattish. Maybe Nokia could make a cattle prod like device that shocks you when you walk slower than 3klms an hour. Oh now that would be sweet.

Nokia Step Counter

Wellness Diary(Beta)

Cool huh? I am test driving it tomorrow so I will see how cool it really is. Gosh, I feel fitter already.

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Trash Talk Tuesday

Where I get to talk about the good or bad things people do with trash. Please email me if you have trash ideas or links you want me to post. Its all about, reuse, recycle, recreate, refashion yeah yeah, you know, all the RE words:) If your idea gets posted you will of course get the credit.

"A Chat with Elsie"

December-ish 2008
As Elsie and I walked along the path leading to the wood workers function room we chatted about my Trash Talk Tuesday and she thought she might have something interesting to add.
Now Elsie is no slouch when it comes to recycling, re using and such, and she has been quite a pro at it for some time, so much so that she has written a few articles for Grass Roots, sharing her wisdom and offering smart tips on various topics.

One such tip she shared with me was her habit of collecting her yarn left overs which she then turns into cushion inserts.She starts by sewing up a square measuring a standard cushion insert size with one end left open, sits it beside her knitting chair and whenever she has a scrap left over she plonks it in the bag.

Whilst the bag is in its collecting stage she can rummage around to find suitable scraps for small projects or repairs. Elsie says she continues to add to the bag until it is full and once it has reached sufficient bulk she sews the top up and voila she now has a new cushion insert.
Now for me the bag would take 10 years to fill if it were just knitting scraps but for Elsie I am sure she has a few pillow inserts by now because she is an exceptional knitter and contributes her knitted wares to charities all over the world and has done so for many years.

I am going to follow this example and use it for my embroidery and sewing scraps also which I am sure Elsie is already doing. I throw out so many small strands of embroidery cotton and little felt pieces that if I collected it for a year I would have a super soft cushion insert and a continuous supply of scrap threads.

Thank you Elsie for sharing that tip. Now I am passing it on to the blogosphere in the hope it will inspire others as it has inspired me

All the best and get trashy if you dare. Trash is the new black!

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Click clack

My knitting basket is back

Feels like forever since I knitted.

1 row of this blanket takes me the same time as a 1 hour TV show to knit so its good thing I get to watch Choir of Hard Knocks tonight on ABC2. I am no speed knitter that's for sure.
Cheers!!

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Sunny Sundays

It was a magic day in my garden today. I spied lots of

Spinning

Swimming

and sleeping

This summer in Melbourne is superb at the moment.

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