Dapple Design Shop will be CLOSED FOR CHRISTMAS from December 10, 2016 to January 4, 2017.

Tuesday 28 April 2015

Lilacs and Boxes


Lilacs and a few bluebells.  Plopped in a jar with very little fuss.  They're bright and fragrant.  A very welcome scrap of pretty.

But the real story here is in the background.   Boxes in corners are multiplying.  Walls are bare, cupboards empty.   The real work starts on Thursday when we get keys to the new house.  If I don't post for a week or two, feel free to picture me in old jeans, up a ladder with paint on my nose.

Monday 20 April 2015

A Weekend Away

These Northwest beaches are nothing like the ones I knew when I was young.  My family would drive down down down the mountains to scorch our feet on the blistering hot sand and frolic in the frothy waves.

Here there are more rocks than sand and the water is cold enough to freeze the breath inside you.  Even so, the sea is seductive and I am very happy to don windbreaker and rubber boots for a walk on the beach.


G and I did lots of beach walking this weekend.  We drove just far enough up the west coast to lose cell coverage and feel distant from the every day.  The shapes of the trees suggest that a bracing wind is the norm here.


But we escaped the worst of it by sitting right down on the rocky beach.

Selfie time.

The waves blow in then roll the rocks around on the inhale.  My favorite beach sound.


This big guy flapped past, harried by some seagulls.  Was he stalking their nest?  Stealing their fish?  We stalked him back -- through three perches until the light and angles were right for portraiture.


A rope swing on the beach.  Oh yes!  It was an erratic ride between the bouncy tree branch and all that wind, but no one smashed into the tree trunk so it was fun.


Finally a cozy retreat.  Rustic but comfortable.  Close enough to the water for the waves to flood our dreams.


Wednesday 15 April 2015

Works in Progress: Crochet Cloths

It's really starting to look like we're moving.  Piles of boxes line the dining room walls and the cupboards and cabinets house-wide are increasingly empty.  This is all very good, but I've had to slow the packing a bit as we still have to live here for another 4 weeks.  

Somewhere in all those boxes are my sewing things.  As luck would have it, I'm feeling especially inspired to sew this week.  Pawing through fabric and patterns (to pack them) will do that.  

So I've been expending my creative energies via crochet.  I needed some new dish cloths, so I tried out a couple of patterns and picked my favorite.  Then I kept going.




I''m a little obsessed with these flower-topped bundles.  They're great fun to line up and admire.  These are already up in the Dapple Shop with a few more colours to come.

I've also begun something on a whim because I saw it on Pinterest.  Oh Pinterest.


Just one square doesn't look like much, but maybe I'll make enough for this retro circles blanket.

What colours would you combine with this blue?


Thursday 9 April 2015

Pink and Yellow

On our walk this morning Miss S and I passed along this bit of sidewalk.


Lovely, isn't it?  These trees turn bright orange in the fall and glow with twinkle lights in the winter.  As you can see, they sing choruses of pink in the spring.  Walking under them, pushing a stroller with one hand, clutching coffee in the other, has become one of my favorite small indulgences.  This is the way to the library and the playground, but not for long.  I'm going to miss having such ready access to the town centre when we move.  

Closer to home, other things are blooming.


Miss S called them Dandy Flowers, and I think they're her favorite.  I'm pretty sure the new house will come with a few of these.

Thursday 2 April 2015

DIY Non-Plastic Easter Basket Fluff


An Easter basket just isn't an Easter basket without a few handfuls of fluff to nestle everything into.  Fluff.  You know, those strands of coloured plastic that the box stores sell in small bags beside the chocolate bunnies.



It's Easter basket tradition.  But this year I just couldn't bring myself to buy it.  Plastic fluff may be pretty, but it's still plastic.  We pay good money for it, use it once and contribute it to the landfill.



No longer!  I made my own this year.  It cost virtually nothing, took only seconds and looks great.  Here's how:


You'll Need:
- A paper shredder.  We use this small one for our receipts.
- Several sheets of newsprint paper.  This is the dollar store stuff that my daughter uses for colouring.  it's cheap and made from recycled fiber.

Watch your fingers and shred away.

If the colours are important to you, try shredding coloured paper or letting your kids draw all over the paper before shredding it.  I prefer to let my coloured eggs shine bright against a neutral backdrop.



Best of all, when Easter is over you can add your Basket Fluff to the compost pile instead of the landfill.

Happy Easter!