It's my birthday today and...

It's my 37th birthday today, the end of the financial year in Australia and the last day of the SALE in my online store!

Bestest early Birthday Present ever!

As some of you may know, I have been on the search for frankie magazine issue # 2 for quite some time now.

Well, on Saturday my wish came true. My pal Eddie gave his mint condition copy to me as an early birthday present, and it took alot of self control not to jump up and down like a person who has scored front row Bon Jovi tickets.

I think aside from the fact that Ed is a generous person, it may also my magazine karma.

You see, about 3 months ago, I gave my friend Pete of i heart guitar my treasured copy of Guitar World, featuring a very young and spunky Steve Vai on the front. I had the magazine since I was 15 or 16 years old, which makes the issue "vintage".

As Pete lives and breathes guitar - and is also a huge Steve Vai fan, I felt that the time had come to pass it on.

So if you have a collectable, or something that you have been hoarding for a long time, and you think that someone you know may appreciate more than you do, wrap it up and give it to them...as you don't know what collectable karma will come to you!

Some of you will know Steve Vai from this David Lee Roth music video:

Friends that inspire me - Lynnelle Moran

I planned on doing a series of blog posts about my 'muses'. However, I felt a little awkward using the word muse, so I am going to blog about friends/people that inspire me.

Lynnelle Moran and I met in the early 90's in clubland. We were both goths and I thought she was very cool indeed as her face was pretty and so much whiter than mine!

Over the years she has inspired many dress and skirt designs and we have collaborated together to make some fine threads.

Lynnelle has a super cool husband named Dan West who is a music producer and also is part of Sylent Running, a collaboration between musicians from Melbourne and NYC. Lynnelle is also in a band, a folky electro outfit called Welcome Dear Friend.

As well as making people happy with her beautiful singing voice, Lynnelle also juggles being a mother to two boys aged 4 years and 6 months AND running a sweet childrenswear label named crumb...

The label is a partnership between Lynnelle and her beautiful mother, Mary. The two create beautiful clothes for both girls and boys. My favorite item in the shop at the moment is the Billy Boy Rocker shirt.



Well, this is the first post of nine, I hope you enjoy checking out all of the links and please do tell your friends about crumb... and please mention that it is all handmade in Melbourne, Australia.

Life Is Flashing Before Your Eyes

My pal and I went to see some Vince Collins animation at ACMI in Melbourne last night.

If you watched Sesame Street (gosh, another Sesame Street reference!) in the 1970's and early 1980's you may be familiar with his work.

Here is a clip from last night. Both my pal and I are mums to young boys, this song was quite relevant to both of us at this point of our lives.

Happy 5th Birthday T-world!

T-world was launched 5 years today by tee collector Eddie Zammit.

The magazine is wholly dedicated to t-shirt culture and is the only one of it's kind in the world. It has featured some amazing artists both from here in Australia and around the world.

Something that you will notice about T is it's colour. With so many magazines choosing 'muted tones' and black and white photos, T is like a trip to "that room" at Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory - coincidently, Eddie currently lives in a converted chocolate factory!

Issue number 6 celebrates 40 years of Sesame Street and is a must have for people like me who grew up watching it and still love it. Oh, and some cute little people I know are models in the 'A-Z of Kids Tees' feature!

I met Eddie through my friend Nicole a month or so ago. His hard work ethics and passion for life are infectious and he has certainly made me want to work harder at what I do (the dressmaking bit, not the motherhood bit, that's already covered).

Whether you are into t-shirts or not, this magazine is still worth a look as it really is amazing.

You can buy current and back issues from mag nation.

Baby Wasp interview with Eddie here.

The Girlfriend Of The Whirling Dervish

One of the best things about Facebook is the wonderful things you can discover through your friends - thank you Mose for posting this!

SALE is not a dirty word...

OK, so if you live in Melbourne, Australia you may be quite sick of the word SALE by now.

Department stores seem to have them all year round and the thrill of the post Christmas and End of Financial Year sales seem to have lost their sparkle.

Well, it is the end of the financial year and it is my birthday soon. So, from today until midnight, June 30 I am having a SALE in my online stores.

Oh and thank you Pilgrim Lee for my cute sale sign!

Webstore: www.petapledger.bigcartel.com

Etsy store (USD): Peta Pledger

Speaking of Pilgrim...

I blogged about the dress I made for Pilgrim Lee of draw! pilgrim the other day. However, I don't feel that I don't you enough about the girl behind the delightful designs.

I first read about Pilgrim Lee and her wonderful artwork on The Vine. The article was written by paintergirl - someone who has introduced me to many cool people and things over the years - and I instantly fell in love.

What caught my eye was her Alphabet series, my favorite being the one pictured above. I love the colours and I love the indirect way the pills and letter C remind me of The Carrie Nations from the movie Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.

I bought the print and had it framed by the amazing people at Melbourne's Outre Gallery.

Not long after reading the article, I started following Pilgrim via Twitter, and after learning that we both had sons the same age, I asked her if she was interested in a playdate. Thankfully, she said yes and we (and our sons) have been friends ever since.

Whether it's a sunny day or a grey & rainy day, Pilgrim always fills up my day with colour...technicolour to be exact!

She launched her Etsy store recently and is planning on adding new items every couple of weeks.

If you're after a pretty bright print for your wall or some super cute gift tags, visit her store and be sure mention that I sent you for a 10% discount off your purchase from her etsy store!

Website: draw! pilgrim
Twitter: pilgrim_lee
Etsy store: draw! pilgrim

Pilgrim's dress made from a 1960's bedsheet

My super talented friend, Pilgrim asked me to make her a summer frock made using one of the many beautiful pieces of fabric from her stash.

First, I machine washed the fabric using hot water and just a little washing detergent and fabric softener. I would have liked to have tumble dried the fabric but as I don't have one, I line dried the fabric piece.

Finally, to ensure as much shrinkage was taken out as possible and to make the fabric easier to work with, I pressed and steamed the fabric with a hot iron.

We chose a simple boat neck strapless design as the fabric print was quite bold. The skirt is a simple gathered a-line shape and the centre back has an invisible zip.

Princess seams allowed me to get a nice fit in the bodice and I lined it with 100% Viscose lining.

Hopefully I can post a photo of Pilgrim in her new dress later in the year as the weather gets warmer.

For now though, forgive me for the iPhone photo of the dress and be sure to check out Pilgrim's amazing website, draw! pilgrim.

One of the things that made me want to sew

When I was a little girl, my nanna and I watched this movie together many times. I remember the feeling of awe when they convert the "shack" to a pretty home.

I am about to make some new curtains for both my bathroom and laundry. I hope you enjoy this clip from the movie Calamity Jane as much as I do.