calendar event: meet Amy Butler!

Amy Butler travelling stylishly to Aus (oh ok, these are clearly not travel bags but gift bags from her new line, see below)

Queen of the textile and design world, everyone's fave domestic goddess, Amy Butler, is coming to Australia! And if you live in Melbourne or Sydney (or are willing to travel to either city), you can pick her creative brain - in the flesh! Living Creatively, Highland Quiltworks and XLN Fabrics have joined forces to organise two inspiring evenings with Amy in November where her latest designs and publications will be revealed and her cleverness deconstructed.
All the important stuff:
Melbourne: Thursday, November 13 2008 in the Carillon Room from 7pm at the Sofitel Melbourne
Sydney: Thursday, November 20 2008 in the Adelaide Room from 7pm at the Sofitel Sydney Wentworth

Want to go? You must book now as places are limited. Tickets are $45 and include drinks and canapés. You can find all the info, plus book online, here at Living Creatively. Shame I live so far away. And have a baby. And am too much of a wuss to leave the baby behind and go. Does anyone have plans to go? Would love to hear all about it if you do. And if any of her genius rubbed off onto you!

Gorgeous wrapping just in time for Christmas

And on the subject of Amy, she's recently released and eco-friendly range of gift wrap, bags and tags as well as an eco line of pretty paper partyware. Giftwrap Green is 100% recycled while the party line is printed with 100% soy ink and can also be reused themselves thanks to a water-soluble coating. The range is so pretty you will seriously never be able to use regular paper plates again. And might even consider replacing your plain white dinnerware with them! Check it all out here at her site.

Have you seen prettier paper partyware? All images from Amy's site

calendar event: stitches and craft show

Craft heaven! Pic from Stitches & Craft website

Oh how I wish I was going to this: the Stitches & Craft Show starts today at Rosehill Racecourse. But while I'm happy to drag a newborn to Ikea (as I will be doing tomorrow), I can't imagine doing it at an exhibition as big as this. Sounds brilliant though, if you're clever and creative or just like to look at pretty things and suck in the creativity of other people, head to the show - it's on from August 20-24. What is it, you ask? More than 100 craft retailers and suppliers showing off the latest and greatest crafty stuff from beading to paper art and all inbetween. There'll be workshops - Brother sewing machines will teach even the most hopeless sewer the basics on their super machines - seminars, fashion parades and demonstrations by industry experts.

Whisking has never been so glamorous! Dandi's Pini Apron, $29.95. Pic from Dandi website

I particularly would love to see the Dandi tutorials - I'm sure their "Dandicrafts" as they call it will be something spesh. I love this Aussie brand - they pretty up the most mundane of household chores with their gorgeous ironing board covers, tea towels and aprons. I often get my gifts from them as you rarely spend money on these products yourself - in fact, I'll be getting matching Pini Aprons for my friend and her daughter whose birthdays are both next month. Too cute. And I'll have to get Layla the mini version of mine too so we can look all pretty and matchy matchy while baking (in about 18 months, seeing as she's only a whole 10 weeks old and therefore won't fit the apron, let alone bake with me). Shame there are no macho manly ones for Zakky who loves to "help" me make cookies.

But back to the show, please let me know if you go and what I missed out on. If you want more details on times, prices, where to park etc, go here. I'll try and make next years. And just quietly, how the heck have I never seen this crafty online magazine: Living Creatively??? Brilliant!