Something I really love here is the coffee in takeaway. In France, you  go in a coffee and have a cup at the counter. Here in New Zealand, you can drink it wherever you want!

And check here the different coffees you can have : short black, long black, expresso. flat white, cappuccino, latte, mocha…

My favorite?? Cappuccino with chocolate…huuuum… yummy!

Other items of interest from the land of the Long White Cloud:

I am mad of her painting and cards (my favorite being the magnets). Her world is full of poetry and dogs! Check out on her website for more …

My first try of an origami bag is a muff. The fabrics I used are too thick, and it was impossible to put the press studs at the right place… Without speaking about the handles which, in my view, should have been sewed before the lining

I used the following tutorial from a French women’s magazine called Avantages. I think it can be a very original bag, but I need to do a second try to be entirely convinced by the pattern.

What is the small piece of fabric which cost a fortune to buy in a shop but can be sew in 10 min for less than NZ$1?

Yes, you get it!

So, I took some lycra fabric offcuts, an old panties, my magic pinking shear, and zip, scratch, zrout, 30 minutes later, here it is:

So this is my spring creation for the Lila Fanfreluche contest (here)

Kitsh, cheap, quick, cheers… as requested!

 The sheep design comes from Creenfantin. Have a look on his web site, she does fabulous creations, and loves to share her tutorials and patterns. I admire all her little designs, and I would like to have them on all my clothes and bags!

This poncho is for Awen, the daughter of my friend Florence, who is, I must say, the cuttest girl in New Caledonia…

 The pattern and fabrics comes from Here

Picmoicietcoudmoica provides kits and patterns for children. Have a look on their website, it is really beautifull. I love the design of their clothes and shapes are really easy to made. The originality is all in the little details as the snails or the end of the drastrings…

I was scarred to sew fleece fabrics but to my astonishment , it is a really nice fabric to sew. I cheated a bit for the finishing and used a pinking shears… A really good tool I recommend for all the lazy dressmaker as me.

Where?

In France of course!

Because here, it is still winter summer, with its amazing cold warm days. 

To celebrate spring ( and her blog’s two years) , Lila Fanfreluche organised a little contest. The rules? To design a creation with spring as theme. Easy? Not really… Cause of course, I woke up at the last minute, and I have  less than 3 hours to sew something…

And for the winner??? Shuuuuuuutt…it’s a surprise…

Same pattern as the others top.

I obviously really like this pattern, it is easy to sew, and the shape is really confortable (perfect to hide my “little” belly, which never NERVER want to go away, despide  all my effort) 

I slightly modified the pattern to obtain a wrapover top. As you can see the result, it doesn’t look  as it should, simply because I cut a piece in the wrong side, and I didn’t have enought fabrics to cut it again…

Nervermind… One day…

An other bag for a birthday, this time for Laura.

I hope she will like it…

A other tube top for my friend Christine in New Caledonia. Perfect to sunbath under the coconut trees, on a white sand beach, in font of the lagoon…

I hope she will burn ! like it…

I may not have a coconut tree in my flat (ME!), but I have a dying lemon tree (yes, on the bottom left corner, it’s him).

Because Irishwoman loves rounds (this is well known indeed)

A little gift for my friend Natalie:

You may think she is spoilled?

Not at all!

Because now, she will have to use it or I will be offended…