Kelly Casanova Weaving Lessons

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“Can you find Saints” book review

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I purchased this book by Philip D. Gallery recently after reading about it on Catholic Icing. I wasn’t sure what to expect other than a “Where’s Wally” style fun book.
But it’s much more than that.
Not just a fun book but an educational tool that doesn’t feel like education. It’s a chance to reinforce the saints you already know and read small snippets of those you may not know so well. The short readings on the saints to be found really make this a multi age book. For younger children, you can read briefly to them about each saint before they get to spot them in the pictures. For middle children who can read, it can be read together and the saints can be found together. And for older kids, it’s a brief, fun picture book that teaches them something. Each of my children (aged 4, 6, 8 and 13) enjoyed this book and are asking for the other books in the series.
Something I like about the book is that it can be used as a tool for further discussion and research. Besides the saints who are described and that you search for, there are many, many other saints in every picture and they are labelled with their names (there a quite a few that I haven’t heard of!) There are also optional extras to find on each page for children who really like to search and find.
As my husband pointed out to me, when you look at the “Where’s Wally” books, although they are clever and entertaining, they often make light (a mockery even?) of horrific historical events. It is refreshing to find a book that is completely good for a child, faith enriching, educational and fun! 
I highly recommend this book for children of all ages šŸ™‚

If you click on this link to purchase the book you will be blessing me and my family with a small percentage of the total sale, thank you.

Seamstress in the making..

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Gem (my 8 year old) made her first skirt! I call it the awesome skirt, can you see why? šŸ™‚
This girls is a big maker (gosh, where did she get that from?) and constantly has something on the go, usually a little wool felt stitchery project of her own design. But she hasn’t made herself any clothing before.
We drafted a pattern together based on the Crafty Mamas hoody skirt. She chose to have a stretchy knit skirt rather than a woven (like Mum wears). So, we started with a white Stella base.

She did most of the sewing on the machine herself, with my guidance. Except the waistband, that’s the tricky part, so I did that for her. The waistband is also made of Stella, so it’s one of those gorgeously comfortable skirts – no elastic.

Next, she had her first experience with dyes. After some discussion and planning, I showed her how to mark and tie the skirt, then apply the colours to get the effect she wanted. She was amazed to see the colours run into each other and mix, creating new colours. I don’t think she understood much of the dye process before, you need to actually do it and see it in action.
After curing overnight (what a painful wait for a young lady!) we cut the ties and rinsed. Then the awesomeness of the colours and patterns was revealed. The look on her face when she realised what she had created was priceless.
Here is another recent project she came up with as a surprise for me. It’s the best little pincushion I’ve ever used! She embroidered “Ma” at the top and used a polymer clay button I made ages ago.
There is only one downside to all this. I think I’m going to have to hide my fabric stash šŸ™‚

Completed projects this week

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Not one but two projects completed for me this week, this is almost unheard of!
First up, the Primrose dress for my 4 year old princess. I knit this in 8ply superwash and hand dyed it just for this project. 

A little lace detail on the hem. 

And some ladybird buttons to finish off with. There is lace detail on the shoulders and sleeve trim too.  
I was really thrilled with this pattern – it was simple and easy to knit, the sizing is accurate and it was all explained so well that I didn’t feel like tearing my hair out like I normally would with a knitting project! The pattern in by New Zealander, Julia Stanfield.

Next up, some tea towels off the loom. I wove these with 4ply Bendigo Woollen Mills cotton.

I’m pretty happy with how they turned out, despite the wonky edges! I learned that weaving with 4ply is more challenging than 8ply.

It seems that as I grow more confident as a weaver and knitter I also increase in speed, which is a wonderful thing, it means I can turn out more beautiful things for my family!
Linking up with Ginny’s Yarn Along šŸ™‚

Customer’s beautiful work.

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I do so love to see what you all do with my hand dyed yarn!
Zofia, who is a very talented and prolific knitter used some of my rainbow cotton to knit up this gorgeous little piece for her daughter. I think she chose the perfect pattern to showcase the yarn, doesn’t it look stunning?!
If you’re interested in the pattern, it is Shannon Passmore’s Poolside.
In case you hadn’t noticed, I have a new blog address! 

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The joy of learning!

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Learning is fun! And if learning isn’t fun for you or your children, then it should be! Think back to your school days (I know, it hurts!) Think of what you most enjoyed learning. Then think of what you least enjoyed learning. When I do this I come up with: favourite – Art. Least favourite- Mathematics.

When I think of Maths at school I think of monotone men in dorky shirts and ties. I think of a class I could easily sleep through if allowed. I think of how little attention I payed. It was mind numbingly boring and I understood very little of it.

Move over to Art. I think of a teacher who was a bit of an outsider and a little unstable. Who sometimes did “art theory” with us when the inspiration overtook or when he felt guilty – about once a year. And the rest of the time? He was, well, not there for most of the class. This was the great part! I could grab a camera and go take photos for 2 hours. Or I could spend that time in the dark room, which I frequently did. Sometime I stayed at the long table and worked on drawing murals with other students. Sometimes I painted.

Can you see the difference? One was formal instruction in a completely non passionate format. The other was free reign, and ultimately, bliss for a creative person.

So what is it I’m saying? Children, young adults, and adults alike need time to figure stuff out for themselves. They need time to follow passions and interests, even if they don’t seem to lead anywhere. And if someone is not learning effectively, then the format may need to change.

Let me give an example. My 8 year old finds lessons from a writing or English textbook decidedly dull. But, left to her own devices, she is an avid story writer. One of her favourite past times currently is writing to pen friends. In essence, she can write for hours each day without opening a single textbook.

This is where the wonder of learning at home comes in. A child is not restricted by grades or timetables. If one of the children is immersed in an activity they love and they’re learning from it, why on earth would I stop them right in the middle of it and tell them they need to do something more important, more academic. 


It is so important to me to not fall into the trap of holding “school at home”. Yes, I think it’s important that the children learn certain things but in the quest for knowledge we must never crush the joy of learning.

Fun names for new yarns

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I decided to have a bit of fun naming my latest yarns. This one was inspired by a sunset while I was out walking. I wrote “sunrise” by mistake when editing, so sunrise it stays!
SOLD OUT!

Some members of my family thought I was a bit silly for this name, but what they hey, I said I wanted them to be fun!
STILL AVAILABLE!

I LOVE this yarn and if it hadn’t sold already it may just have quietly disappeared only to reappear much later in another form (a shawl perhaps?)
SOLD OUT!
I hope you like them as much as I do šŸ™‚
God bless you all.

Sing a rainbow yarn giveaway!

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I’m having a giveaway on the RetroMummy Facebook page!
I have 8 x 50gram skeins of 100% Australian merino superwash hand dyed in all the colours of the rainbow to giveaway to one lucky Australian resident.
Wouldn’t these look good in your stash? To enter, simply head over to the RetroMummy Facebook page and get your entry in before January 24th šŸ™‚

“Secret Garden” book review

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I bought this book recently after seeing it on Mary Corbet’s blog Needle n Thread. I wasn’t disappointed when it arrived.

So, what is this book? A colouring book! But it’s more than that. It is a beautiful book of intricate and original designs. The author/ illustrator Johanna Basford has filled the pages with pictures inspired by the flora and fauna of her homeland, Scotland.

There are a few ways you could use the book. Firstly, as a special colouring book, secondly as a base for ideas for pictures of your own and thirdly, you could use it from a design perspective for things like embroidery, as Mary has done. If you take a moment to look at what Mary is doing you can see the potential for such wonderful designs!

To be honest, it is the sort of book that I am attracted to but would write off as a “too frivolous” buy.  At around $16.40 it isn’t too extravagant, but unless you photocopy pages to use rather than colouring directly in the book, it is consumable.

My plan for the book is still a secret (at least from my children). It is sitting on top of a shelf as yet unseen by them. I will wait for the right moment – a day well spent, extra chores done or some other achievement and then allow a picture to be chosen to colour in with our best quality pencils. The picture can be dated and named. Gradually, the children will have these beautiful pictures to look back on and enjoy. (I think the little one will have to wait a while to have her turn šŸ˜‰ )

* If you purchase this book via this link you will be blessing me and my family with a small commission – a very valuable thing for a family of book lovers!

How do you make your children behave in Mass?

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I get asked this question constantly! I’m not saying my kids are perfect, but generally speaking, they are pretty well behaved in Mass. I thought I would share my observations and things we’ve put into practice over the years- the things that DO work and the things that DON’T.

Lets start with DON’T:

*Don’t give your kids sweets or drinks in Mass. Ever. No food, no drink. Most Masses go for 45 minutes – 1 hour. They won’t starve or die of thirst in this time! They also won’t leave sticky finger marks, spills or distract other children. The church is not the place for food and drink.

*Don’t let them play with your phone or other gadgets. This is training them that they need to be entertained.

*Don’t allow other (often well meaning) church-goers to hold conversations with your children in the church. Politely explain to these people that you are happy to speak to them outside after Mass, but you are trying to teach your children to be silent in the church.

*Don’t let your children leave their seat. Children being allowed to run up and down the aisle or near the altar during Mass is something I find totally unacceptable. If they don’t comply they need to be taken out of the church into a quiet area where the Mass can still be heard. Don’t take them outside and let them play, that is counterproductive.

*Don’t allow your children to attend “Sunday School”. A child will never learn to sit still and be quiet if they are allowed to go out of the church 10 minutes into the Mass to do colouring in and often “soft” teachings. Keep them with you, where they belong.

Now for the DO’s:

*Do give your children a solid grounding of their faith at home so that they have some sort of understanding of what they are doing at Mass and why. Set a good example in the church – genuflect, whisper or be silent, move in a posture of respect. Children need to see faith in action.

*Do remind them of the rules before entering the church if necessary. Children need to know what is expected of them.

* Do reward them for good behaviour in the church. Suitable rewards for us are praise, a trip to the shop, a special outing etc.

*Do remove your child/ren from the church if they are misbehaving and refuse to stop. Don’t make this an easy way out, they are to stand or sit quietly somewhere as a punishment. If the child is crying or noisy I would take them out of earshot of the rest of the congregation but would never let them run and play. The idea is that you make the idea of being in the church more desirable than being stuck outside in punishment mode.

*Do allow them to take religious books into the church. If they start to get restless, this can be a welcome relief.

*Do sit right up the front! What? I hear you say- my kids are so naughty, we always sit down the back for a quick exit! Sitting near the front means they can see what is happening, feel more involved and are less likely to misbehave.

*Do sit between children who are misbehaving, however you can separate them. I often do this still as I see little developments and lack of concentration.

*Do, if at all possible (and I know for some it isn’t possible) have a helper. Whether it is your husband, a friend or relative it is so helpful to have someone else, especially if you need to take one child out and leave the others.

As you can probably tell, I have fairly strong feelings about how children should behave in Mass and I see parents constantly getting it wrong. For me, this is all a very necessary part of giving due respect, reverence and worship to our God who deserves the best from all His children.

“There is a proverb; a boy will keep the course he has begun; even when he grows old, he will not leave it”.
Proverbs 22:6

Questions? Ask away!