Can anyone else tell I'm just biding time now...?

I was trawling through facebook last night, when I noticed that a couple of friends of mine had 'liked' this thing called Cubeecraft. I had no idea what it was, but quickly figured it out. And it seems it's nothing new either! I have obviously been living under a rock (or in a pregnancy induced state of self-absorption anyway!).

So basically, what I understand is that its a collation of a whole heap of different artists and illustrators designs for cute little paper creatures/people/cartoons that you can print out on a single A4 piece of paper, cut out and create yourself for free! All you need is a computer and printer, access to the internet, scissors and a bit of glue!


This is the little guy I made last night. I'd say he took about an hour to accurately cut out, fold, glue and assemble - but that is probably just because he was my first try. It is pretty addictive, especially with the HUGE range of different designs available. The cubeecraft website has a big archive of them. The facebook page has some pretty cool fan photos. Some people have made a lot of these critters!
(This is the direct link for the odd little panda if you wanted to have a go at him too)

Anyways, just thought I'd share this little find for you all. I know how easy it is to get stuck on one kind of craft, or even to just feel like you need a break from sewing for a while! And this is something quick, free and satisfying!

Just some more random updates!

I have been wanting to take Chelsea to the zoo for ages!!! But with the weather so bad we had put it off and put it off. But today was Mark's last full day at home with us before he has to go back to work, and before baby comes. So we bit the bullet and went anyway!

When we drove in the gate there was a big sign warning that the zoo was very muddy, and the lady we purchased our entrance tickets from explained that it had actually been closed for two days last week due to the lake surrounding 'Lemur Island' flooding right up to the back of the cafe! We were unperturbed!



I think (again) that Mark and I got more enjoyment out of it than Chelsea did. We saw sun bears and marmosets, red pandas and camels... plus all the usual Aussie animals - wallabies, kangaroos, emus, cassowaries, frill neck lizards at every turn!





This Koala looked like he was sick of the weather too!


It started to rain a little heavier at one point so we took refuge at the farm animals display. This was the only time Chelsea cried. The sheep was baa-ing very loudly as they could see we had the little packets of food, and I think it scared her a bit. After she settled down we patted some alpacas and feed a very large and very friendly cow. The sheep were a little too enthusiastic though, so I fed them myself. They were clambering over each other to get to the food. I laughed to Mark and said that at the rate they were going they'd climb out of their enclosure... and sure enough the biggest one got out! We're not sure what happened after that as a new group of people arrived for the sheep to pester for food!

My favourite animal of the day, and probably one of the least exotic, was the donkey! He was very friendly, and even though the sign said not to feed him as he wasn't well, he still came right up to us and said hello.

Something else from the 'to be completed' bag

Little Maximus here is another creation found at the bottom of my 'to be completed' bag of creatures. He was completely cut out, pinned together and half sewn, so I finished him off and decided to do his face a little differently (especially as there wasn't any scope to change his pattern like I've been meaning to at this stage!). So I gave him a slightly more Anime/cartoon look with his high-set nose and beady little eyes. He's also the first guinea pig to have whiskers - which kind of makes him look a little cat-like! :P





We got a brief moment of no rain this afternoon for me to take photos. Not exactly clear skys, but enough sun to get decent photos! Oliver was SOOOO excited to have someone in the backyard that he was rather difficult to control. Eventually he got the message that I was busy, and he backed off. And he didn't try to snatch Maximus once! (must be all the training I've been putting into his not snatching Chelsea's toys - mind you, that's still a bit of a battleground! If he thinks no one is watching he'll still quite happily sneak inside, grab whatever she's left lying closest to the door way and run to the far corner of the yard to munch on it. Usually resulting in the destruction of that particular toy, or the need for it to have a very good soaking/machine wash!).


It wasn't all discipline for poor Oliver though. We played fetch half a dozen times till he decided that wasn't doing it for him any more and went off to make his own fun! And here I was feeling all guilty that we weren't spending enough time with him... ! :P

Bessie (and the never ending rain!)

In my internet wanderings last week I came across a sweet little lady bear called Bessie, and just had to have her! She arrived today bringing with her the most amazing aroma! I am guessing this has to do with whatever it was she was dyed with - My husband thinks its cinnamon, but I can't decide what I think it is! It reminds me of those gorgeous handmade baked goods stalls at early morning markets, or the quintessential 'grandmother's house' of your earliest memories...



Bessie is made by Di Paulovich of Woollybuttbears, a fellow Australian bear artist. If you like little Bessie as much as I do, she has another little guy - Robin Love - in the same style available at present as well.

Bessie was such a nice surprise to wake to this morning, on yet another soggy, rainy day here in Brisbane. We're all incredibly sick of the rain that seems to have been here forever (well, at least the better part of the last 3 months anyway!), and I'm sure many of you will have heard of the devastating floods in the northern part of our state. There are many people here who would like to see some sun I think!




(Even Oliver seems a bit depressed by the weather! There's nothing else for him to do but sleep all day, only venturing out into the rain and soggy backyard when he needs to go to the toilet!)

Another hand sewn mini bear

This is Brokk, the mini I mentioned in an earlier post. He is not my best work, but has his own charm. I found him in my 'to-be-completed' bag of bear bits when I was looking for something else to handsew on new years eve. It has gotten to the point now where cutting out patterns is a little difficult (I like to sit cross legged on the floor and spread all my mohair and bits around me - its not so bad getting down there, but I can't bend or reach anything and usually require assistance to get back up again!), so I've had to resign myself to the bears I cut out a while ago but never finished for various reasons... probably not a bad thing at the end of the day though. At least those poor souls will get a chance! :P

Emma's Bears GIVEAWAY Clear-Out

In case you've been under a rock (or otherwise occupied like myself), you may not have noticed that its a totally New Year!! And as such, I was thinking that it's time for a bit of a clear out! Or maybe this is a bear-makers version of 'nesting'... who knows!

My 'available bears shelf' is spilling over with bears, bunnies, guinea pigs and baby toys, and it just feels cluttered and messy to me. I don't know about the rest of you, but my creations feel a little stagnant when they sit for too long without finding homes.

So, in a rather pathetic and small token gesture to make some space, I'm offering two of my longer-term resident critters up for giveaway - Shelby and Wombat.


Shelby was made in the last few months, but is a little badly portrayed in her photos. She is a less than 'cute' bear, but not as odd as she appears. I am hoping that whoever scores her for free will find some charm to her!




Wombat is a stylised guinea pig critter that was made quite a long time ago... probably about the time I found myself pregnant again actually! (yes, it has been that long!). He's quite a charming chunky fellow, but again, a little odd.





All I require you to do to go into the draw for one of these creations is to leave me a comment below (or email me at eleb2000@hotmail.com) with some way of allowing me to contact you in the event that you win, and an idea of which creation - bear or guinea pig - you'd prefer. (You can also specify that you'd like either of them as well which is probably the smartest move as you'll go in the draw for both, thus doubling your chances of getting something!). Postage will be completely covered by me and as a thank you for spreading the word you'll get an extra entry for telling a friend/posting on your blog/ leaving a facebook comment/ twittering etc etc. (just let me know you did this or your efforts will go unrewarded!).

I plan to draw the winners on the 24th January 2011 (my due date) - this is subject to change depending on whether or not I'm in hospital giving birth that day etc etc... (they do say that less than 5% of babies are born on their due date though... so chances are low!).

Gelli Baff!!!

I love this stuff! It feels amazing. It was one of Chelsea's 'Santa' gifts - but was probably more for me than her!



You take a normal everyday clamshell wading pool and half fill it with water...



...sprinkle in the blue powder (which smells like blueberry jelly crystals!)...



...wait a few minutes...



...and you have some goo to play in!!! Oliver even got in on the action! Chelsea didn't stay in it for long. She wasn't impressed. So I took over and used it as a foot-spa for a while! Just divine!