Snow Gum Bounty Farm: a family business

Supporting cottage industry, hobby businesses and small family enterprises is important. I firmly believe that we all need to support cottage industry so that we will always have the choice to purchase and own quality products. Large enterprises are pushing out small family run business and if we do not support these small hobby or home businesses, in the end all we will have left is mass produced, factory, plastic, tasteless, nasty, soulless items!

I have in the past blogged about products and businesses involved in jewellery making, home decoration, and aromatherapy, and today I am introducing you to a family farm business.

Snow Gum Bounty is a family farm/small business in Yass, New South Wales, Australia. They describe themselves as a family operated farm that provides grass fed sheep and beef to the Canberra and surrounding regions.

photo (c) Snow gum Bounty: see the kangaroos peaking over the fence?

They sell lamb, beef and hogett (a hogett is a sheep over a year old and less than two years)  meat directly to the public, how cool is that? Their business is registered as an Australian Business and they maintain a Food Standards licensed mobile cool room. 

This farm is run by a young couple and their little boy; a hard working family with honest, ethical, and quality values. They have some amazing plans for their farm and really care about their environment.  

Snow Gum Bounty Farm is looking to future improvements of the pastures by using livestock and not chemical fertilisers and are continually work towards improving the land and improving the quality of the fields that grow the grass that feeds their animals.

Can you see the two alpacas? I LOVE alpacas! photo (c) Snow Gum Bounty

If you want to know more about their farm or  wish to join their mailing list please contact them via email 

snowgumbounty@gmail.com or via their facebook page.

Bovine model courtesy of (c) Snow Gum Bounty

Please support this family run business! Please LIKE them on Facebook!

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About Me: I work full time in a computer security area, I am also studying for a therapist qualification in Advanced Herbalism, subsequent to completing a Diploma in Herbalism, I also have Diplomas in Fraud Investigation and Fraud Control, and i read a lot!  I have a small craft 'business', I am co-admin of an auction page on facebook to help other small hobby businesses, i maintain my own 'store' facebook page, I blog at least once a week either here or on apothecary greens, I have a website about herbalism,  and I maintain a facebook page created to support small home businesses and hobby sellers 

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Steampunk-Goth DIY supplies on the cheap

Still on my Steampunk meets Goth jewellery creating theme of last week, which you can read about here, I decided to look around the house, the grocery store, and the hardware store to see what could be used to create original Steampunk-Goth pieces without costing a heap of cash, and without being mass produced jewellery components.

'Found items' from the house

To start with, anyone who knows me knows that I am into technology and work daily with computers, so it won't be a surprise to know I have quite a stash of old memory cards, old phones, wires and assorted computer bits and pieces including circuit boards lying around the house. These have been piled together and are ready for me to create with. Not only is this recycling it is also a cheap supply of jewellery components, as otherwise all these bits would have ended up in landfill!

Hardware Store

Oh my I have found Aladdin's cave! Here for purchase I find cheap copper wire, washers, nuts and bolts, soft metal tubing, industrial strength glue, and all manner of things that I can turn to good use for minimal cost!

My favourite find is these elbow shaped copper capillary joins that were in the plumbing section. (they are small and will be good to thread necklaces through as a kind of pendant bail)

Grocery Store

At the grocery store where I was purchasing potatoes to go with the salmon I am cooking for my husband tonight, I found these beer bottle caps. They are an antique gold tone, were super cheap for a massive bag, and I can think of heaps of ways I can use them to make jewellery!

Very happy with my stash, I can't wait to see what I can create with it! Stay tuned to future blog posts to see my creations.

What bargain finds do you have for your jewellery making?

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About Me: I work full time, I am also studying for a therapist qualification in Naturopathy specialising in Herbalism, I have a small craft 'business', I am co-admin of an auction page on facebook to help other small hobby businesses, i maintain my own 'store' facebook page, I blog at least once a week and I maintain a facebook page created to support small home businesses and hobby sellers 

............................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................... Please visit me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat handcrafted gothic goodies at bargain prices. see me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat ...Please visit me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat handcrafted gothic goodies at bargain prices. see me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat

DIY: Easy Fabric Bunting

A few days ago, a friend of mine who has a market stall called Wytchway  was asking on facebook about where she could buy some waterproof fabric bunting to decorate her stall. 

If you are in the Dayboro Queensland area and interested in Wytchway's stall or to purchase from her online please have a look at the information on her facebook page.

I decided to attempt to make some bunting.

Just to see if I could.

Step 1

Created a template out of cardboard for the size and shape I wanted, allowing for the hem (to feed the string through)

cardboard template

Step 2

Drew around the template on the fabric and then hand lettered the 'WYTCHWAY' with a fabric ink pen

Step 3

Ironed fabric and then placed the clear fabric plastic coat stuff on it, covered it with baking paper and ironed on a low setting

Step 4

I cut out the triangles with sharp pinking shears (keeping my fingers well out of the way for fear I would end up with pinking shaped abrasions on my hands!)

I then sewed around them and sewed the hem in which the jute would go to string the bunting

Step 5

After each triangle was sewn I then threaded them with the jute to form the bunting. After all triangles were on the jute I pushed them closer together and did a zig zag stictch over the hems and the inserted jute.

I then went over each letter adding embellishment in the form of gold paint pen shading. (yes I AM ambidextrous which is why the top photo shows me writing with my right hand and this photo is my left hand)

The bunting is ready to hang!

My sewing machine is old and falling apart, i cant afford a new one at the moment, so it kept breaking the cotton. I think if my sewing machine worked properly i could have made this bunting so much faster, and with less expletives.

Remember this one is only a prototype. So excuse it looking a bit dodgy!

I think these could be improved if a stiffener was used such as stitching the triangles onto acrylic felt, or ironing interface on the back.

VERDICT: easy to make, so give it a go!

For teeny bunting, use washi tape and twine!

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About Me: I work full time, I am also studying for a therapist qualification in Naturopathy specialising in Herbalism, I have a small craft 'business', I am co-admin of an auction page on facebook to help other small hobby businesses, i maintain my own 'store' facebook page, I blog at least once a week and I maintain a facebook page created to support small home businesses and hobby sellers 

............................................................................................................... ............................................................................................................... Please visit me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat handcrafted gothic goodies at bargain prices. see me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat ...Please visit me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat handcrafted gothic goodies at bargain prices. see me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat

PINTEREST: anyone 'pin'?

I have a Pinterest account, I use it mainly for myself, to collect images, ideas, and sites that I find interesting, and that I can then go back to look at them when I want to, knowing that I can find them all again by going through my Pinterest boards.

I have heard that some people use Pinterest to promote their shops, crafts, and websites; I think this is a great idea as cross promoting through a variety of media will increase the exposure to the shop/whatever.

Who out in the Blogosphere uses Pinterest? 
What do you use it for?
What are the links to your boards so I can follow them?

Feel free to post your board information in the comments so I can follow them!

Visit Eliza's profile on Pinterest.

$5 discount on your first ETSY purchase (from any store) 

............................................................................................................... Please visit me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat handcrafted gothic goodies at bargain prices. see me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat ...Please visit me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat handcrafted gothic goodies at bargain prices. see me on etsy! www.etsy.com/shop/empressbat