October was busy!

 These are just a couple of the piles of mail I've been getting! I usually wait till the weekend now to open everything LOL!

That amount of mail arrives at least each week, sometimes more. I'm always so touched and moved by the generosity of the people in our Australian community.  Some packages cost $20 or more to send, but I get them on a regular basis from several people.  You should know that the items go to our storage area and are sorted regularly and packed as needed.

Opening the packages is great fun and I set aside a special time to do it, because I figure if people spent time organising donations, packing them and heading off to line up at the post office, the very least I can do is take some real time out to appreciate it all. I used to take lots of pix but as you can see from the quality of some of these photos, my camera is on it's last legs and I really can't afford a new one right now.

So, I know it's been a while since I blogged.... so here's what's happening! I've gone back to work 3 days a week, initially in the prep class but for the last six weeks of term I'm filling in in all grades across the school to give teachers  extra time to work on report and catch up on non contact time etc. As a teacher myself, I bet the teachers are very excited to have this extra time at this time of the year.

Other than that I've been sorting all the undie donations into packs of 3 in size and gender!
I've used about 650 plastic zip lock bags and because I really feel bad about all that plastic, I've bought cellophane bags for the rest. (it's biodegradable!)










Also  went to the local Family Care meeting to collect donations!!!

I promise I've been busy LOL










Just to finish off this blog, here is a pix of a kids bike that was dropped off to me. I was able to give it to a 3 year old girl who had just come into care with absolutely nothing of her own. Wish I could have been there to give it to her myself :o)

Final Week for Project Underpants - 964 undies have arrived!!!

 This project was the brainchild of Indi from {Kid}Independent.
Everything was arranged and organised through this site and through the fan page on Facebook.

Indi enlisted the help of various online businesses who donated some fantastic prizes as incentive for undie pledges!

Don't forget that all the undies sent in are going into backpacks for kids going into foster care

Here are the final few prizes on offer . . .

First up, if you’re going to wear your knickers outside your shorts, you can really only get away with it if you look the part. So our fabulous friends at DressUps are giving away one of their awesome handmade superhero capes. It comes with a bright red super symbol screenprint, and matching eye mask for keeping your identity secret.

Next up, representing the amphibian superhero community, it’s Oliver the Frog! This little green machine is handmade by the folks at “and the little dog laughed” and proudly provided by our buddies at billy lids. He’ll arrive on you door step with his very own handmade mini superhero cape, ready to join you on your crime-fighting adventure.

Last up today is “Wild Willow”… she may appear all sweet and serene on the outside, but at night time she dons her superhero paraphernalia, and protects the world from evil forces. She has superhuman strength, stamina and agility and her secret weapon is the ‘power-hug’. She’s 100% handmade by the crafty folk at Cuckoo for Coco and comes with her very own  mini polka dot superhero cape.




The Project Underpants winners will be drawn next week and names will be published on this page and in our 7 October news. I’d like to send another BIG thank you to all of the wonderful Project Underpants sponsors. Be sure to drop by and visit their websites to show your appreciation for their generosity.

• Whimsy Child
• Billylids
• Cuckoo for Coco
• DressUps
• Knit Baby
• Little Humbugs
• Little People Clothing
• Mon Petit Poppet
• My Poppet
• Paper Scissors Rock Stationery
• Quirky Kids
• Sissy Sparrows
• Vintage Chenille

Project Underpants Week 4!!!!

Ta Daa!!!!! This is the last week of the {Kid}Indepenent Project Underpants and boy oh boy has it been successful or what!?!

Over 600 pairs of undies have turned up at my place with another 400 pledged!

And really with these awesome prizes on offer, I can totally understand why! … Each pair of underpants you donate to the Project Underpants campaign gets you one entry into the draw. Plus the person or group who donates the most pairs will win a $150 shopping spree from our friends at Whimsy Child. For full campaign details, please click here. 

On offer this week are the following -



Handmade by our friend Caleena from Little People Clothing. She’s made entirely out of a pair of white cotton socks with woollen hair, hand embroidered face and hand crocheted knickers and slippers… She’s soft and stuffed and ready to be loved!








Next is a handmade lavender heat pack from the crafty Leah at Vintage Chenille. It features an adorable retro dolly print on super cosy vintage chenille fabric and is filled with rice and Australian grown lavender flowers.

 This vintage eeny teeny cotton knit bikini was hand knitted by our friend Elizabeth from Knit Baby. It’s from the Knit Baby Spring Summer 10 “Cool Cotton Collection”.







 Lastly we have a hair clip holder, handmade by Nat from Quirky Kids. Constructed from an original hand drawn design, it’s handcut, sanded, painted, decoupaged, sealed and finished by hand.

 And finally . . . a great big giant THANK YOU to Indi from {Kid} Independent for organising the undie drive for us and canvasing to get all the fantastic prizes on offer.  Thank you also to the wonderful Indi handmade designers for donating such awesome prizes as well!!!!

Project Underpants Week 3 !!!!

Week 3 already!!! and I have to say O.M.G!!! So far 336 pairs of undies have turned up at my place.

The postie is starting to give me some strange looks as he leaves half a dozen or so packages on my back steps daily and the back deck is pretty much covered in donations, (again!). 


{Kid}Independent has organised three more awesome undie themed prizes. This week it's Y-Fronts! LOL! Everyone's favourite kind of underwear.





 Firstly we have the coolest coin purse that you’ll spy this year! These one-of-a-kind wacky y-fronts are completely hand stitched from reclaimed felt by our good friend Cintia from My Poppet. So cool!









Secondly, four knicker sticker packs from Sissy Sparrows. These colourful sets are perfect for creating hilarity on school books, diaries or scrapbooks. Each set is handcut from original illustrations and features a variety of y-fronts and frilly knickers.





 (and my personal fav!!! I am an unashamed cat lover)

Lastly, is an original 8×10″ print by Noosed Kitty. Indi spied it recently on her travels and couldn’t resist snapping it up to add to the prize pool. It features one very brave kitty and his fabulously hilarious superhero mask. I mean, really, who HASN’T attempted to fight crime with knickers on their head… we’ve all been there…



Now just a quick reminder - for every pair of undies you donate (that actually turn up at my place) you will get one entry into the draw!

Winners drawn October 1st 2010, PLUS the person or group who donates the most pairs will win a $150 shopping spree from our friends at Whimsy Child. For full campaign details, please click here.

So, get your pledges in and your undies sent asap to be in the draw!!

Project Underpants Week 2!!!

{Kid}Independent supporting B4AK

Well, I was sitting on the living room floor the other night opening packages and counting undies, (a little like the Count from Sesame Street, except I wasn't wearing my cape), and I realised that we have had over 260 undies pledged in just the first week of Project Underpants!!!

AWSOME!!

And that doesn't even include the several people who are rounding up donations from friends and family before they send theirs!

This is our adopted cat Milo (or Ianto as we trying to re name him, he doesn't really come to either!)

 Currently we have enough undies to pack about 900 bags (that's 3 pairs of undies per bag), but we are really needing boys undies and sizes 12 - 16 for both boys and girls. (A women's size 8 or medium is a girls size 16 and a man's size medium is a boys size 16).

Pop on over to {Kid} Independent to see the prizes on offer this week!

 To inspire your undie pledges this week, we have three fabulous prizes to add to the prize pool. Each pair of underpants you donate gets you one entry into the draw. New prizes will be released each week throughout September {winners drawn on 1 October, 2010}, plus the person or group who donates the most pairs will win a $150 shopping spree from our friends at Whimsy Child. For full campaign details, please click here.

Firstly, Louise from The Little Humbugs draws her designs in pencil, and then colours them digitally. The finished product is printed using high quality archival paper and claria inks and is then matted, ready for framing.  This little cutie looks like she’s taking master duck for a splash in some puddles!

Next up we have Billy in his y-fronts and Bella in her frilly knickers. This delightful pair are hand crocheted by Rosie from Rosie’s Bears and Bitty Critters. Each one is made from acrylic yarn and stands approx. 25cm tall. I don’t know what it is about y-fronts, but they always make me giggle!

Our final prize today is from the crafty studio of Steph from Mon Petit Poppet. Sporting a red and white polka dot bikini, this handmade dolly is off on vacation to the beaches of St. Tropez. She’s looking for a stylish fashionista to take along with her… cocktails at sunset anyone?

A big thank you to all the Indi handmade people who have donated to the prize pool!

And thank you to all the people who have pledged undies!

Project Underpants Sept 2010!

{Kid} Independent has organised a series of prizes which have been donated by our fabulous friends and sponsors. There will be three new prizes released each week during September, so check back each Thursday to see what’s up for grabs!

To be eligible for the prize draw, your undie donation must arrive here, at the Backpacks 4 Aussie Kids HQ on or before 30 September, 2010. For each pair of undies that you pledge/donate you will get one entry into the major prize draw. 

Plus, the person or group who donates the most pairs of undies will win a $150 shopping spree from our friends at Whimsy Child. Hooray!

How do you start?

• Start collecting your knickers today …
• Add “undies” to your weekly shopping list …
• Tell all your friends about the campaign …
• Share on facebook, twitter, blogs, etc …
• Get your Mum’s group, or work place in on the action …
• Package up your undies and make your pledge before 30 Sept …
• Wait with bated breath to see if you’ve won!

*Special thanks to Amanda from Style Collective for her assistance in promoting this campaign, and to all of our prize sponsors for their awesome prizes. Don’t forget to drop by and visit them to show your appreciation for their generosity.

• Whimsy Child
• Billylids
• Cuckoo for Coco
• DressUps
• Knit Baby
• Little Humbugs
• Little People Clothing
• Mon Petit Poppet
• My Poppet
• Quirky Kids
• Sissy Sparrows
• Vintage Chenille

And of course thank you to {Kid} Independent! for coming up with this idea and organising EVERYTHING!!! So wonderful to have support like this.