Lena Design

Birthday Sewing

2011-02-14T20:59:00.004Z

Soon it is Lucy's 3rd birthday. In exactly one week tomorrow, my little baby will be a big girl. Three is a mile stone isn't it?
So I will be busy every evening of this week with this Clothkit doll.

Sharing the Crafts...

2011-02-12T11:24:00.003Z

About 18 months ago I came across a fantastic shop in my hometown in Germany. It is called 'Kunst und Handwerk Geschenkeladen', which translates to 'Art and Craft Giftshop'. People of different craft backgrounds are sharing this shop. Each has their own shelf space, which they decorate with their handmade items to their own needs and liking.

This idea impressed me so much that I always thought it would be a great idea to bring over to Northern Ireland. It is fantastic if you want to sell your own things, but are never able to create enough to fill a whole shop. Unfortunately I think the rent for a retail unit would be so high that you could never afford it. Well, you are allowed to dream...

image is copyright of Kunst und Handwerk

Return to the blog!!!

2011-02-11T10:29:00.007Z

OMG! I have got to be the worst blogger of all times!

So much has happened since September. First of all, I had our second little baby girl on the 16th November 2010.

We called her Mia and love her to bits. She is such a great addition to our family. Lucy is coping with the change quite well. She loves Mia and keeps telling her, too. BUt I have been drowning in nappies and sick children, washing and house work, hence my very bad absence fro the blogging and crafting world :(

I did have a few crafty projects going on since last summer though. The most important one was Mia's crochet blanket.

I worked seven weeks on it, doing a little bit every evening as I was way too tired and pregnant to do lots in one go. Luckily I had it all finished before she was born. I only have this photograph of it as it is being used all the time. I do get a lot of compliments for it but I do have to say, the idea wasn't mine. I saw a blanket like that on Carina's blog.
During the end of the pregnancy I just couldn't face making anything. I was so sore all the time and very tired. I couldn't even go online and look at all the wonderful blogs. i feel like I have lost the connection and will take me long time to get back into the outline of the circle ;) But I will get there!

Then my friend Jill had a little baby girl four weeks ago. Baby Ella is a beautiful little sister to her older, already very pretty girl Naomi. So, I had to make some presents of course. And this is the result:

a pair of baby booties

and a doll for Naomi

I have seen the clothkit doll for the first time here and just thought it was the cutest thing. I also bought two for my girls. Still have to make them though.

My latest project is another blanket for Mia. You can never have enough pretty colourful blankets to keep your precious baby warm!

This is the Vintage Vertical Stripe Blanket, which I have seen first on the Attic24 blog, but comes originaly from here.

Lucy's New Room

2010-09-22T16:02:00.004+01:00

The move has finally happened! Lucy has moved int her new bedroom two weeks ago.

I think I mentioned it before, but my pregnancy brain is like a sieve at the moment and I have not enough energy to read through all my previous posts, so here goes again: Due to the birth of our second child in November, we decided to move Lucy into a different room and use her old room as the nursery again. So, the plan was, to give her a whole new, very grown up big girl's room. Since April, i have spent time on decorating the room. Several trips to IKEA have taken place by me and my husband and it seems like endless afternoons of painting. With a toddler, who wants to be involved in everything and help all the time, I only ever got an hour here and there. Therefore the painting process of the trees was the longest of the whole decorating.

I am very pleased with the outcome. The trees are slightly wonky and I think over the years there will be more things added. But for now it does the job. Lucy likes it and has settled in well. It probably helped that she has slept in her bed already since March and was therefore in a safe and familiar environment. Anyway, you can make up your own mind:

Just for a small update: I have now only 8 1/2 weeks left till due date. i am fed up, sore and tired. My back is sore, and lately my legs are killing me also. i am not comfortable at night anymore either. On nearly a daily basis I feel very lonely and emotional. I am strongly hoping for this baby to come a little bit earlier. But hey, I don't want to just moan all the time. I am glad all went well so far!

Baby Goodness

2010-08-09T16:30:00.003+01:00

My very good friend Fiona had a little baby boy nearly three weeks ago. Congratulations!!! He is a very gorgeous and quiet little boy.

I have been crocheting a blanket for weeks now

and luckily got it finished just in time for my first visit. But I knew I also wanted to make her a bag. So I spent nearly three days solid a couple of weeks ago on the sewing machine and again got it finished just in time.

The pattern is from Anna Maria Horner's new book, which I can only recommend for anybody who either just had a baby, is expecting one or likes to give handmade presents rather than mass produced ones. I have been making blankets now as presents for over a year and can hardly imagine ever buying a baby present again. The book has lovely patterns for different things and I will certainly make some of them for our own little baby.
There is also a changing mat for the bag.

I filled the bag with a few goodies:

My favourite is the book. It helped me a lot through difficult times in Lucy's first 18 months. The book describes different phases of mental development of children and why they can be a bit more difficult than usual in those times.

This was my last baby present. From now on its all for our own little one. I still have until November, which isn't really that long I guess.

P.S: I have been writing on this post for a week now I think. So, my apologies if it doesn't flow, but I was having difficulties concentrating on it. I am feeling like that a lot lately: restless and bored. Must be the fact that I am soon entering my third trimester and its all coming to an end...

2010-07-02T21:01:00.004+01:00

Oh my.....I cannot believe that it has been nearly two months since my last post. how bad am I?

Life is crazy at the moment. I will not pretend that I find it all easy going, looking after a toddler, who is in her terrible twos, while being pregnant and getting heavier. Today I think I started to waddle....yes, we are at that stage now. Any lady out there, who has been pregnant or is pregnant at the moment will understand what I am talking about. Your legs feel heavy and your whole gravity shifts to the front. You are not quite as mobile anymore and therefore have to walk like a freaking duck. But hey, it's all good.

On Monday ware having our big 20 week scan, where they check all the organs and where we can potentially find out if we are having a girl or a boy. I am really excited and cannot wait. We found out with Lucy, too. I know there are a lot of people out there who will say say love the surprise. But hey, it's a 50/50 chance. No BIG surprises there. You are either having a girl or a boy, right? Anyway I am one of the curious, nosy ones who has to find out ;)

Lots of people seem to be having babies in this part of the world. Two friends of mine, whom I met when Lucy was a little baby, just had their second children (for one of them I made the blanket above). My very dear friend Fiona is due at the end of the month (any time now really) with her second baby (how exciting). And another girl I know found out she is pregnant a few weeks after I found out about my pregnancy. Is it in other parts of the world like this, too at the moment?

So, anyway, I have been tired a lot and feeling nauseous, which means I have not been up for much crafting lately. But at the moment I am making another blanket, which I will not be able to show you until the person has received it as she snoops around here from time to time ;) and I will be doing some sewing soon also, which again I will be showing you a little later.

The only other thing I wanna say is: if anybody out there has any experience with a Phil and Teds tandem buggy please let me know how you got on. Thanks a million and I hope you are all well. Have a nice weekend

Lucky

2010-05-09T14:56:00.004+01:00

Yesterday I got a real proper surprise in the post. And it just made me feel the luckiest girl alive. You know, when someone gives you something that makes you feel really special and honoured? And you are asking yourself: Why me? Why did I receive this great gift?
Well, my favourite blogger pal and online friend Carina send me her beautiful embroidered brooch that she only recently showed on her fantastic blog.

I shall wear this with pride :)

Embroidered wedding present

2010-05-03T09:43:00.003+01:00

Today my friend's brother is getting married. He is one of the loveliest guys I know. he is kind and sweet and caring. As I know from my friend he has been sick since the age of two. In and out of hospital with terrible Asthma.
In September 2008 he finally got together with a lovely girl called Caroline. I have met her a few times and I think they are a wonderful match.
I wanted to give them something more personal. Something for their new home together. Something to remember this beautiful day by.

I wish them both all the best for their new life . May their life together be happy and fulfilled.

The Pitter-Patter of Tiny Feet

2010-04-26T16:17:00.004+01:00

...can you hear it? I most certainly can. ;)
When I was in germany a few weeks ago I found out that I was pregnant again. It was brilliant news. Although I have to admit that at the time it knocked me out of my socks slightly. Because even though we kinda planned for it we didn't expect it to happen within one month of starting the planning :) But its all good.

Today we had our first scan and even though I am only 10 weeks I feel safe enough to share these great news. I am classed as a low risk as my last pregnancy with Lucy was (apart from sickness right through to the end) a breeze. And this pregnancy is going even better. Apart from nausea I had no physical sickness yet and most likely will not have it.

So, my little world has changed and is once again being turned upside down and I am very excited. Having a baby was the greatest thing for me. I always wanted children. Always knew I wanted to have a family since I was 16. Now I am 29, expecting my second child and I just feel its perfect.

Sorry, for ranting on about this but I am sure many of you will be able to understand how self-occupied you become when you are pregnant.

My little Lucy at only two months old.

New fabrics

2010-04-22T16:22:00.005+01:00

I didn't realise how long it has been since I wrote anything on this poor little neglected blog of mine. Well, in my defense, I have been pretty occupied since returning from Germany at the end of March. During my stay I got some great news, which have been keeping me busy in my mind and body the last few weeks. I will share these news with you very soon.

On Saturday I went to The Stitch and Creative Crafts Show in Belfast. i went there last year already and loved it. Unfortunately you can spend a little fortune at it as there are so many lovely stands with gorgeous fabrics. So, of course I had to splash out a little ;) and here are my wonderful purchases:

Now all I have to do is find lovely little projects to use these for. Any ideas?

To buy or not to buy???

2010-03-12T19:20:00.000Z

I need your help!!! I want to ask all of you, who even glimps at this post to please give me your advice.

I am thinking of buying a new camera. A slr camera. My tiny panasonic just isn't enough for posting good images on the net. But I am torn with offers, decisions and just wanting the best but not being able to afford it.
So, please tell me your opinions of good cameras. What do you use? How do you like it? What would you buy if you could?

-- Post From My iPhone

German weather and my first bag

2010-03-12T18:34:00.000Z

Lucy and I are in Germany again. This time over my birthday, for the first time since I moved to Ireland. So even though I will miss my husband dearly I am very delighted about this occasion.

The winter in Ireland has been very very cold this year (as everywhere in the world) so I was really hoping for a nice spring in Germany. However, this birthday wish was not granted. For the first time I miss the Irish weather. Lately we had sunshine and spring-like temperatures but here it is freezing and there is even still snow!!! Brrrrrrrrr ...

I did a little bit of sewing before I left. I had this idea for a tote bag that can be hung onto the buggy. I always suffer from a really sore back after the day of travelling. As it takes me a good 11 hours to get from my house to my mums, there are many moments where I have to carry a heavy changing bag that is filled with all esentials for the whole day. So this time I thought I would make myself a bag that can hold everything from nappies to a book for me and all the food for Lucy and I. And it had to be bright and colourful, especially in this grey weather. Here is the result:

It is not perfect. There are a few things missing and a couple of mistakes. But it is my first try. I think I will make another one later on in the year. But for now it does exactly what I want from it.

-- Post From My iPhone

Another crochetlicious pouch

2010-02-28T15:38:00.006Z

I have finally finished the crochet pouch that I started at the end of january for my friend. But with Lucy's birthday preperations I was so busy that it had to wait to be finished until after. And as my friend Liana just visited me this weekend (she only left a couple of hours ago), I thought it would be nice to give it to her personaly. So on thursday afternoon, Lucy and I sat down for a crafty afternoon. While I was sewing the inside of the pouch, she was playing with clay and kept saying: "Oh, look!" over and over again. It was a lovely afternoon and here is the result:

She wanted to use it as a little make up bag for her purse. I think it works just fine and hope she will get many years out of it.

The Absolute Best Chocolate Cake...

2010-02-25T20:13:00.002Z

...it's true, it is the world's best chocolate cake. And so simple to make. I said in my last post I would share the recipe, so here we go:

Ingredients:
200g butter
200g dark chocolate (with at least 70% cocoa)
4 eggs
200g ground almonds
200g sugar
about 3 tsp vanilla sugar
1 pinch of salt
40g baking powder

Melt the butter with the chocolate in a bowl over hot water until all is dissolved and smooth. Add the eggs and mix with a mixer until you have a nice gooey mass. Now combine your sugar, baking powder, salt, vanilla sugar and almonds (so basically all your dry ingredients ;) and add them to your mix. keep mixing until all is really good combined. That's really it. Now you just take a large (preferably 26cm, but I don't know if you can get these anywhere else than Germany) Springform tin, grease well and pour the mixture in. Preheat your oven to 160 degrees Celsius and bake for 40 minutes. Let cool down and dust with icing sugar. Enjoy!

Now, just to warn you. The cake is meant to be a little bit sticky in the inside. Its consistency is a bit like chocolate brownies. The cake last for a good 4-5 days and gets actually better after a couple of days. It is therefore perfectly made in advance.

i hope you will all enjoy it. It is certainly my favourite chocolate cake, my husband and his whole family loves it. My mum, who never eats chocolate loves it and Lucy loves it.

Birthday Celebrations and the finished blanket

2010-02-24T15:40:00.011Z

On Monday, the 22nd February 2010, my little baby girl Lucy turn 2. Very emotional times, I have to say. She is now officialy not a baby anymore (even though she seems to think she is ;) she calls herself baby all the time at the moment, just so she gets a cuddle), but a little bouncy toddler. funnily I even treat her differently now, let her do more and give her more little tasks. She really enjoys that. I even style her hair differently now, which makes her look more like a proper little girl. So cute.

We had two parties. One, on Sunday, for my husbands parents and sisters, and one on Monday, for children. Both were nice in their own special way. Lucy loved the attention, the presents and most importantly, the cake. Well, one in particular: the chocolate cake.

It is her favourite cake in the whole world. She ate three pieces on monday ;) And being her birthday, I didn't deny her any cake. I might share the recipie later with you, if you are interested. It is the simplest cake ever and has no flour in it. Perfect for people with a gluten allergy.

I also made a German strawberry gateaux with a white chocolate and joghurt mousse. It was sooo yummy.

The children party was more enjoyable from the aspect that I could decorate the table a little bit more.

I made little individual bug cakes in the shape of a butterfly,

a bee,

a dragonfly

and a lady bird

for the children, with each having a windmill stuck in the middle of it.

The main birthday cake was a butterfly. I used the same mould last year and think it might turn into a bit of a tradition :)

Our present to Lucy was, if you remember, the den under the stairs. Well, the space under the stairs is still looking the same as the last time I showed you. For one did I just about manage to finish the blanket, but we also have tilers in the house this week and she wouldn't have been able to use it any way. I decided that it has to be a slower job instead of rushing and pressurising myself. So, I thought I would share the finished product of the blanket with you.

Lucy also got a mini table from Ikea with two matching chairs, which was the biggest hit ever.

Birthday blanket

2010-02-17T16:13:00.002Z

I have been working nearly non-stop on the granny square blanket for Lucy. Her birthday is on Monday. My baby is turning two and I cannot believe it. So this blanket is meant to be special. A real token of my unconditional love. Sorry ;)

I have all the squares done and blocked. I always thought that blocking was a hideous unnecessary task that I rather wanted to avoid. But after talking to a good friend (you know who you are ;) I decided to give it a go. And OMG the result is fantastic and the actual preparations aren't that bad.

So, the layout is all sorted and organised into rows.

I have actualy already joined all the squares but haven't taken any photographs yet. I am working on the border at the moment and am hoping to show you the result by Saturday. Fingers crossed!

The kindness of strangers

2010-02-06T20:42:00.001Z

There is no photograph to this post as it is just a little story that I experienced today.

This morning I went with Lucy to our local shopping centre to buy food. When we arrived I walked over to the shopping trollies, set down Lucy and started rammaging through my purse. As it had to happen I had no £1 coin to free the trolley. I already imagined having to get £10 out of the cash machine to then go to customer service to ask them to change it for me to then go back to the trollies and finally being able to start my shopping, to which I was not looking forward anyway as Lucy was already really tired and would probably tell me soon that she was also hungry. In that moment this totaly strange woman, whom I have never seen before in my life stopped and said: "Do you need a pound coin or change?" But I had not even enough change for her to exchange me £1, so I told her that and said not to worry. But she handed me. A coin anyway and told me not to worry about it. I was really baffled and grateful. So off I went and got all my shopping done.

Afterwards I felt really bad about the idea of keeping this £1 coin, a symbol of kindness that still exists within humans and I decided to give the trolley plus £1 coin away to the next best person. Unfortunatly there was nobody there. It is now in the pocket of my coat waiting to be donated to the next charity box on the next till I am standing.

So, I want to thank you stranger for your genuine kindness this morning and all of you strangers out there, who do similar things :)

-- Post From My iPhone

Granny Square Crochet

2010-02-04T15:01:00.004Z

I have decided to make a granny square blanket for Lucy. In the spirit of the colour scheme I am useing for her birthday i am sticking to lime green, orange, purple and cream. I just love those colours at the moment and it makes me happy working with them.

My dear online friend Carina was so kind to get me the beautiful yarn she is using from Denmark. This is the nicest yarn. It is so soft, easy to work with and has these amazingly vibrant colours.

The only thing that scares me now is the amount of squares I have to make in comparison to the time I have left. I have started on Monday and have made so far eight squares. But I only have until the 22nd of February. Ah well, I have always been a positive thinker ;)

The Empress's New Clothes

2010-01-27T16:14:00.005Z

LOL...well its really just my new clothes. But to be honest I feel a little bit special at the moment. And here is why:

*WARNING...this can be a sensitive subject to some people!!!*

Since August I have been on a diet, trying to loose all the baby fat plus all the extra that I put on since living in Northern Ireland/Ireland. It all started when I was an Au pair in Dublin and was very unhappy in my first family. I started comfort eating. Sweets every evening in front of the telly. Oh dear, not a good thing to do. When I cam to Ireland I weighed 64 kg, which is 10.0783st to be exact. After Lucy was born, I weighed a terrible 92.4kg, which is 14.5505st. Now, don't get me wrong, I have no problem whatsoever with bigger women or people in general. As long as you are happy, it is up to you. Although I don't believe any more, that you ARE happy with that extra weight. i told myself the same and can only admit now, that I lied to myself.

Well, any way I was always used something different. Going up from a UK size 12 to a size 16 and nearly 20 on bottom, had a huge impact on my self esteem and happiness. It even influenced my marriage. I mean, this is not a joke, right. According to my bmi, I was obese and also had several health issues that nobody should have at the age of 28.

But since I started that diet I have lost 20.6kg, which is 3.24394st. I have no aches anymore, am fitter, can run up the stairs, without getting all breathless and feel in general fantastic. I am now walking with my head held high, without being embarrassed. BUt best of all: I can now finally fit into clothes i never fitted into. So I am really enjoying shopping at the moment, which isn't such a good thing for my bank account ;). One guilty pleasure I have discovered, are short dresses....I mean those ones that don't even touch your knee ;). I feel like I am discovering a whole new me.

So, I was in Dublin at the weekend and you can see my gorgeous finds on the photograph above. I just love the vintage feel to these lovely dresses. I cannot wait to wear them., which will be at the weekend. I am trying to figure out a way to wear them all. LOL

January Madness

2010-01-26T17:41:00.006Z

There was me thinking all the christmas hustle and bustle was over and I could finally get stuck into some much needed crocheting and sewing for my still to open etsy shop. But of course, as life goes, mothers just seem to have no time...EVER for anything else. Or so it seems to me (any advice on how to change that is welcome ;)

This month is now keeping me busy with the preparations for Lucy's 2nd birthday and I am beginning to wonder if I have taken on to much with her present. i still have to pick a fabric for the curtains to partition the den off, which I then have to sew. I also still have to crochet a granny square blanket with is meant to be a decent size and not just something that will last her one year. eventually i would like it to maybe go onto her bed or so. And I have started the snake which has turned out a bit of a nightmare. there are so many colours in the pattern, which constantly change and I don't like crocheting rounds very much. It has over 200 rounds!!! HELP! But I thought I would share my progress with you and see what you think about the colour scheme:

Can you see all the ends? I am NOT looking forward to weaving them in.

I have also agreed to make another little pouch, similar as the one I made for my cousin.I really enjoy doing this, even though it is extra work. Luckily it is a much smaller version and I am already nearly finished with the crochet bit.

This pouch is for my very best friend Liana, whom I know now for 10 years. She has picked the colours and yarn herself and we chose the button together. i love the button. It looks so bright and cheerful. I really do enjoy making these pouches and am seriously considering selling these. What do you think? Would you buy them?

Birthday Surprise

2010-01-10T14:31:00.003Z

This time of the year is birthday time in my family. First, Lucy will be 2 years old on the 22nd of February, then I will be 29 on the 17th of March (Oh oh, the big three O is getting closer. Not that I mind ;). I also just discovered that my blog is gonna be ONE on the 13th of March.

BUt of course Lucy's second birthday is my main focus and will from now on get most of my attention. As her birthday is so close to christmas, it is difficult to get her presents. i don't like a toy overflow. There is nothing worse than giving a child too many toys. In my opinion they only end up not knowing what to play with and get bored. And to be quite honest, Lucy already has quite a substantial amount of things to play with. So, the plan for her second birthday is to give her a permanent fixture in our house: a den under the stairs.

This is the space I want to close off for. All the way up to the radiator.

And as you can see, there is enough space for her there. Even when she is older, she can still sit in it and have her own little hide-away, whee she can have secret tea parties with her teddy bears and dolls.

I will close it off with curtains, so that one day it can be easily dismantled again. There will also be a lot of cushions and a blanket that I will crochet for her. Oh, I don't think I have quite realised yet just how much work it will be. And not that much time left.

I have been thinking about a colour scheme. I am not a very pinky pink person. I love greens and purples and blues and turquoise. But I am also an Interior Designer and it is important to me that no matter what it is, that comes into our house, it has to match somehow the rest of the decoration in that room. The wall that goes up beside our stairs is a light purple, so I thought of this colour scheme:

I am not so sure about the last three colours yet as I want to stick mainly to lime green, dark purple and orange. We will see. I will keep you updated on the progress.

Happy New Year! and wintery past times.

2010-01-09T15:53:00.004Z

First of all: A Happy New Year to all of you!!!

I have been so busy in the past few months that this little blog of mine had to come last on the long list of making presents, preparing the house for several visitors and first of all of course, taking care of my sweet baby Lucy. Not so much a baby anymore, she will be turning two next month. And I will be boring you with all the birthday preparations as I am making her present myself. But more about that the next time

This is the way Northern Ireland looked yesterday. Well, at least my part of the country. There was not only a lot of snow (if you consider that we nearly never have snow), but also a loooot of fog. This is nothing unusual, but the combination of snow and fog made everything look really eerie and quiet. As if the world is wrapped in cotton wool. There were hardly any cars on the roads and I think not many people left their home. Unless they had to work of course.

This kind of weather calls for lots of wintery indoor activities. So, this is what we have been up to yesterday:

You gotta have a fire to keep you warm.

Lucy was entertaining herself with this lovely wooden jigsaw/puzzle.

And I was finishing off a granny blanket for friend's new baby girl.

Manic November

2009-11-26T13:03:00.010Z

It has been a looooong time since my last post and I have been manically busy with making Xmas presents. Especially since I have quite spontaneously decided to fly over to Germany for my mum's 50th birthday on 5th December. She is only having a small thing at home as the real big party will happen next March in conjunction with my 29th birthday, but it is a big event after all. You only turn 50 once, right? And as I haven't been over for my mum's birthday in the last 8 years, I really wanted to be there this time.

The plan is to take all presents with me to save on postage and as I am only going for a week I don't need as many clothes for me and Lucy. Therefore I have been busy busy busy. I also didn't feel quite ready so far to share these handmade presents with you as I didn't want anybody to see anything. But I also don't want to put them on here after Xmas either.

So, here are a few of my favourite things:

a crochet hook+accessories wrap

potholders for my granny

scarf galore- for several people...

Peony corsage for my MIL

I can't believe how much work this all took. When I decided to make as many presents myself this year as possible I didn't realise how much it would take. I just hope they will all know to appreciate it...

P.S: Please excuse the quality of the photographs. The light here is very poor at the moment.

'Tis Winter Time

2009-10-12T09:02:00.005+01:00

Brrrrrr.....is everybody as cold as me?

The weather has changed so quickly. Just a few weeks ago I was enjoying the hot weather in Germany and now here in Northern Ireland we have icy cold winds. This gets me into a wintery and actually already a christmasy mood. By that I mean I have started on my Christmas presents. Obviously I won't be able to show you the full thing as I cannot guarantee that the people who they are for will not look at this blog. But I guess a little sneak peak won't do any harm.

I love the colour combination of this. If you can guess what it is please do not write it in a comment. Just write something else ;) It is pretty obvious anyway...

Lucy's Creativ Space

2009-10-08T18:42:00.007+01:00

In Germany we have a saying: "Früh übt sich!" It means if you start to do something early on you will learn it and get better and better.Well, I believe it is important for children to be creative at an early age already and to be given the chance to test their creativity and to live out their phantasy side. Naturaly I bought Lucy this fantastic easel from IKEA. Since Germany she loves standing at it and draw wit her crayons whatever she draws ;)

This is the currant drawing...

...but there are a whole lot more already.

P.S: Don't be confused. My husband was drawing a little bit with her ;)

Correction

2009-09-16T09:48:00.002+01:00

Okay, I always knew I was a very impatient person, but I didn't realise how bad I was :)
My husband didn't forget after all. He came home last night with flowers and a voucher and I felt really truly bad. I apologised to him though and I guess he earned himself some brownie points now LOL

Anniversary

2009-09-15T13:57:00.003+01:00

Today is our second wedding anniversary.

But what do you do if your husband forgets all about it?
Well, you just have to make the most out of it by yourself....

I am back!... and some more Germany

2009-09-14T17:09:00.014+01:00

Hey, I am back!

Well, actually I am back for the last week but I just didn't have time to get online for more than 10 minutes and to be honest I also found it quite difficult getting back into the swing of things. I am one of those people who finds it very hard getting back into her routine again. especially after such a long time. I am still kind of in my German routine.

I miss Germany a lot and my family of course. But hey, I have no choice so there is no point in sitting here and feeling sorry for myself.

My last week in germany was very nice. We visited my great aunt who just lost her husband of 40 years in February and is grieving a lot. It was pretty intense as she gets upset a lot but I am glad I could spent those moments with her and got to see her from a different side.

She also took us out for a little sight seeing at the sea as she lives very close to the Baltic sea. There is a huge memorial remembering all the German fighters that died in submarines during WW1 and WW2. It is pretty impressive. You go down a couple of steps, which bring you into this little chamber with a lot of wreaths.

From there you step outside and you find yourself in a path that is outside but below ground. It is shaped in a half circle.

On both sides are high walls that are covered in these black panels on which you can see all the names of the victims.

It is very quiet down there and so peaceful. Like their last resting place.

Once you get to the end of that path you enter another -identical to the first one- chamber and from there you get out again.

It is so close to the water and so big that it impossible to get a picture of it all together. But you can see the layout on the map below.

In the middle of it all towers a huge collum with an eagle on top, the symbol of Germany.

And just a few more pictures I cannot resist showing you:

My last post for now

2009-08-29T22:15:00.000+01:00

After the greet response of my last post I thought I give you some more of my beautiful country.

A few days ago I took Lucy to a playground, which is located in a very near by park. It is a very nice playground and to me quite typical for Germany. Huge sand pits with climbing frames in the shape of pirate ships, swings and baby swings, slides and kind of rocking horses on massive springs in the shape of horses, lions and motorbikes. All of this is surrounded by beautiful green trees which give some shade so that even the smallest can play in the sand.

I love trees. When I was young I used to paint trees all the time and in nearly all of my paintings. In primary school we used to have a lot of trees and bushes around the outside space of the school. Inside the bushes was a hiddden world that only us children had access to. There were paths created by us children and little dens in which we used to play. There was one very big (or maybe we were so small ;) tree that looked very old to us. It's roots were huge and dug their way into the ground. Us girls made it our task to protect this tree and to care for it. We even gave it a name. While the boys came with sticks and hit it whenever they got a chance.

I think this carding created this love for trees in me. I especially like wheeping willows. There was a very nice example at the playground.

This is my last post for a while. I am going to visit other family members from tomorrow on where I won't have much Internet access. I will be back home on the 7th and hopefully you will hear from me again on the 8th or the 9th.

Have a good time until then and don't forget me ;)

-- Post From My iPhone

I love Germany

2009-08-27T13:43:00.018+01:00

Growing up in Germany I never felt that it was ok to be proud of my country. With our history, all I learnt was to be ashamed. Ashamed of a truely horrible crime that, however, I have not commited. Other cultures are proud of everything that makes them, their history and their country. All I ever learned was that you risk being classed a Nazi if you say that you are proud to be German and that we all have to carry the burden of the holocaust on our shoulders.

All this was reason for me to move abroad. Since I was 14 I knew I wanted to move to Ireland and when I finally finished school, I fullfilled this wish. Funnily enough I only learned in Ireland to be proud of Germany. A lot of great things have come from Germany: most famous fairy tales, Volkswagen cars, good quality electrical goods and other things. Nowadays Germany is a beautiful country with people living in it that share different religions and cultures. German people are friendly, and welcoming and in their own way humurous. We have delicious food in our supermarkets and brilliant bakeries with very yummy breads and cakes.

Today I can stand tall and say: I am proud to be German....not proud of our history at all but still proud of what we have achieved since and how far we have come in less than a century.

Yesterday I went for a little walk while Lucy was sleeping in her buggy. I took some photographs and I would like to share some things with you that to me are truely beautiful and a reminder of my home country.

A pair of birds

2009-08-24T16:29:00.000+01:00

I have finally managed to continue with my embroidery project. This is my pair of red Robbins. More will follow but I won't reveal what the finished product will be until later on ;)

Hope everybody had a great weekend.

I feel very far away from the craft community here in Germany...
-- Post From My iPhone

A trip to the zoo

2009-08-23T18:47:00.001+01:00

Yesterday we spent the afternoon in the zoo. It's only a small private zoo called 'Noah's Ark' in Braunschweig in the north of Germany. It's very nice and child friendly.

Usualy I am not a big fan of zoos. As I am a great animal lover and also a vegetarian I don't believe in keeping wild animals locked up. But I have to admit that now -as a mum- I think it's a nice way to teach Lucy about different animals and to show her the great variety on our planet.

We were rather lucky as they had just three new tiger cups.

They were very cute and kept annoying their father who was lying against the fence trying to sleep.

Rather like human children they tried to get his attention in all sort of ways.

The pictures aren't that great as the battery of my camera died and all I had left was my iPhone. It's ok, too but it has no zoom.

The only bad thing about the trip was that Lucy had her first bad fall towards the end. She tripped over the root of a tree that ran across the path. She hit her head on the ground and it looked like it was nearly split open. It was a shock for both of us. Luckily I had some arnica with me which speeds up the healing process and reduces the pain. Today it's only a little bruise.

-- Post From My iPhone

Embroidery and washing machines

2009-08-18T11:33:00.000+01:00

This is my creativ space at the moment.

I am doing some embroidery since yesterday. This is my first try and I think it's going well. But then again it is fairly simple. I only need the backstitch and once I had mastered that all I had to do was following the lines.

The pattern is from Carina and I think it is really cute ;) and very well done. You can buy them in her Artfire and Etsy shop. This is my more contemporary and maybe a bit abstract take on Carina's very naturalistic embroidery. I love the colour combination. I think this project might take me at least the length of my stay in Germany as it is going to be something bigger that I am doing.

Otherwise Lucy and I are enjoying Germany a lot. Seeing family and friends is to me like bathing in energy.

Lucy feels already like home here as you can see for yourself:

Ah, she is great fun ;)

I will keep you posted about the embroidery piece but please be patient with me as I don't have as much time here to post every day.

-- Post From My iPhone

The long way down

2009-08-15T19:26:00.000+01:00

Yesterday Lucy and I traveled to Germany. It took nearly 12 hours from my home in Northern Ireland to get to a city called Braunschweig in the north of Germany. We had to take one bus, one airplane, one subway, two trains and one car to get to my mum's apartment building. I can tell you that was a very exhausting trip as you can see on the picture ;). Consider that the actual flight only took 1 hour and 50 minutes.

It is very hot here today and I think Lucy is finding it tough but I am sure she will get used to it.

This is a trial for me by the way as I am writing this post from an app on my iPhone- for the first time.

Hope you are all having a great weekend. I will be back soon with something o have never done before but many others have.

-- Post From My iPhone

Clutch-ing Great Inspiration

2009-08-10T12:36:00.000+01:00

A week ago I bought something of etsy that I wanted to have for quite some time: a clutch bag made by Constança Cabral. I have been checking her shop again and again, but these bags are sold out so quickly that I was always unlucky. And of course there were some times when the fabrics were just not me. But then I was reading her blog and stumbled across this beauty.

And when I checked her shop straight away I couldn't believe my luck. I had to have it!

Well, yesterday I got the package, which was super quick, as she only sent it on Monday. I love it! This is one beautiful clutch that I can see myself using a lot. And it will make a nice change to the changing bag that I have to carry with me for the last 18 months ;)

Constanca has been a true inspiration to me...in many ways. I first heard of her when I received my copy of the IKEA family magazine in January. Constanca's home was featured in it. But not only did she talk about her beautiful apartment, she also mentioned her blog. Of course I had to check it out. Well, Constanca's blog was the actual reason, why I started my own. And although I am far away from where she is at the moment, it is really nice to follow somebody, whose passion for sewing is as great as mine.

If you want to check out her beautiful clutches, go to her shop Saídos da Concha or look at her very classy blog.

Oh, I nearly forgot to mention that she also sent ma lovely little lavender cushion, which made the whole parcel smell wonderfully summerly.

Hope you all have a wonderful start into the week. I will have to go and start packing now ;)

You are my sunshine, my little sunshine....

2009-08-09T13:11:00.002+01:00

here is a little sneak peak of what I am working on at the moment. It is just something to keep my hands busy in the evenings, but will have a purpose in the end. I will not show you more at the moment. Most likely I will not get it finished before friday, so you will see more of it after Germany as I won't be able to bring it along with me.

Lucy absolutly loved it and wants to have it every time she sees it. She is not too impressed with the fact that she can't have it.

Hope you all had a great weekend.

Come fly with me.....

2009-08-06T17:07:00.003+01:00

Today has been a quiet day. Just the usual stuff: grocery shopping, cleaning, looking after Lucy...

Tomorrow is the start of the last week before Lucy and I will fly to Germany. I brought her over already three times. But this time will be very different. for all of us. Now, Lucy is walking, is starting to talk and is in general not the same child as on Christmas anymore. My family will have to get to know her all over again. My mum hasn't seen Lucy since her first birthday in February and that was pretty hectic, as we were so busy with the party preparations. She also came as a surprise and was therefore only here for two days.

Now that Lucy is walking it will be much harder for me to bring her over all by myself. Last year I just strapped her into a baby sling and off we went. This time I will have Lucy in a buggy and a suitcase and I have to go from the airport in ha burg onto a train to my Mum's. I also have to change the train once. We will be on the go all day, from around 7:00 am till 7:00 pm German time, which is 6:00 pm our time. Eleven hours. I am exhausted just thinking about it.

So this week is all prepeaations in the house. That means: cleaning, cleaning, cleaning.... I really want to leave the house spick and span for my husband. he works so hard and deserves to come home to a clean and tidy house every night.

Next week will be then all week packing. Well, its only four days really, so that doesn't leave me with much time. I have to wash all our clothes and actualy do a trial run with the packing of the suitcase, just to make sure its not over weight.

I don't want to bore you any more. Just thought I let you know what it's like here. I doubt I will be getting much crafty stuff done from now until the 14th but if I am lucky maybe the elephant.

Hope you are all having a lovely week so far.

Red/Orange Delight

2009-08-05T09:08:00.009+01:00

I have finally finished the present for my cousin. About time, too. After all, I will be going to Germany next friday. At least now, I can concentrate on packing and getting the house into shape.

And this is the finished product:

I am sure you can guess by the photograph that it is a pouch. I guess it could be a clutch as well, but it was intended as something she can put make up or similar things in. But hey, I am happt for her to use it as she wishes :)

To give it extra strength I have lined it with two layers of orange felt. I also have attached two magnetic buttons to make it last longer.

As you can see it can hold a few things, like a mobile phone, lip gloss and your credit cards ;)

For the first time I have added my very own label as this is the first thing I have made and designed completely on my own since I got the labels. I love them. They look very professional. I like that its printed on gross grain and not a woven label. I can also fold them in half in sew them into something, so that they look out on the side.

If you are interested in such beautiful labels, you can get them on Mommie Made It 's etsy shop

A light-hearted decision

2009-08-03T14:49:00.015+01:00

I am an Interior Designer. And will probably always stay one at heart.

Already in primary school, after turning a shoe box into a room (and making an entire toilet, with seat and lid, out of an egg carton) I had that wish to become and interior designer. Even though there were other options crossing my mind this one always stayed with me. Until it came to the time to decide on a university course. Of course I went for a design course in which I then specialised in interior design and graduated with a two one. Now that was in Northern Ireland, all in English (which is after all a foreign language for me)...I think I've done pretty good. So I would claim I know a thing or two about interior design. Although I would class myself more of an interior architect...but the decoration part is always fun and important as well.

At the beginning of the year IKEA brought out a new pendant light that I immediately fell in love with. I imagined it in our bedroom, right above the bed. We started to renovate our bedroom a little bit before Lucy was born as we bought ourselves a new bed after our wedding. So it needed new paint and I really wanted wallpaper on the wall behind the bed. Before our wedding I was working for 11 months in a fabric, wallpaper and paint shop. I had the wallpaper picked pretty much from the start :)

But so far we had no lamp hanging from the ceiling. Just a boring light bulb. Now, even though I am 'the interior designer and should know best' (as my husband likes to say, just to avoid any decision making) I still prefer to run any plans of changes to the house by him. It is his house, too after all. Although I always get what I want ;) When I told him of this idea and showed him the lamp in the shop months ago, he suggested that we could put it upstairs on the landing as it would look nice from the outside. I agreed.

On Saturday afternoon, we finally took on the task of fitting the new pendant lamp. Once we unpacked it (it takes a lot of assembling) and lifted the actual fitting out, we discovered that it was hanging down so far that nobody would be able to walk underneath it. Naturally we came back to my original plan, of putting it into the bedroom. It still hangs quite low, but as it is mainly above the bed, it doesn't matter.

I love it. I am so pleased with it that I cannot stop looking at it, which is why I wanted to share it with you. So here are a few photographs of that gorgeous lamp:

I think they are all meant to be daisies but the whole lamp looks like one giant soft and fluffy dandelion clock :)

And look at the beautiful shadows it casts on the ceiling:

Lazy sunday organisation

2009-08-02T17:30:00.003+01:00

Now, I know for most people this would be normal. Chill, take it easy, have a days rest. Well, as Lucy wakes up very early in the morning (generally between 5 and 6 am) I don't get days off anymore. But this morning my husband took Lucy with him to work, so I got to lye in a little bit. I also was able to take a bath, which I haven't done in months. It was very nice to relax a little. Even if it only lasted until 8:30 am ;)

I am not sure if a late start in the morning is so good....I feel very unproductive today. Did no crochet, no housework, certainly no sewing. I managed to drag myself and Lucy to the shopping centre to return something and to by some bulbs and a bit of food. But that's a s far as it went today...so far anyway. The big plan is to finish the pink amigurumi elephant tonight. We'll see.

But I did one thing that I wanted to do for a while. Once I started to crochet and made more and therefore opened more yarn, I had all these labels flying around. Soon I was unable to recall which colour was which number and I got a bit freaked out. I was worried that someday I might think of a project that I finished and would not be able to to remember which yarn I use (make, colour, etc.)

So I put these little sample cards together:

I am having a bit of a lazy sunday.
They are nothing special, but at least in this way I can go back and feel the yarn. I never thought that there are so many different kind of cotton yarns in the world. Some are so soft and others are quite tough.

I love samples and to a certain extend I quite enjoy organising things. So this was a perfect way to fill one little hour in my lazy sunday afternoon.

Hope you all had a great weekend!

Sneak Peak

2009-08-01T08:37:00.005+01:00

of my cousin's present.

I made this flower yesterday evening. It is the first flower I made and I quite enjoyed it. I couldn't find the perfect one in any book that I looked at. Either they were way too small, the wrong design or weren't colourful enough.

Flower Power! thats what I wsnted. My cousin only turned 18 and although she is maybe more on the conservative side for her age I still wanted something young and fun. I knew I wanted to use quite a few colours, so the flower had to be very layered. I also knew I wanted a colour in the inside that was very different to the pinks and orange. So, it had to be lime green as that is my most favourite colour and a nice citrusy contrast. But it still goes nicely with the orange (limes and oranges...get it? ;)

The flower will be attached to the finished piece of the big red crochet thing I showed you in my last post ;) I am very tempted to show you the whole thing, but instead I will show you one corner of it, together with the flower.

I am waiting for some felt at the moment and then I should hopefuly have the presenr finished soon and can move on to other things (like finishing the pink elephant..oops). Although I have to see how much time I will have to start any new things as I am going to Germany in 2 weeks. Yay!

Where has the time gone?

2009-07-29T16:53:00.004+01:00

Remember a while ago I was posting about a present I was making for my cousin's birthday? This was the post.

Yesterday I had a friend over for coffee and home-made cheescake and she was very interested in my projects. So I showed her the beginning of the present. When I told her that I will take it with me to Germany in August, it suddenly struck me that it is only 2 weeks on friday until I will be going home to visit my family....2 WEEKS!!! I seriously have to get a move on this present.

So today I continued what I was making and thought I would show you what I have done so far as it really doesn't give away what it will be in the end, I think.

Time is flying lately. Lucy is teething again and clinging a lot and that means I don't get much done. And with y bad IKEA experience last week, a wedding plus our trip to Dublin at the weekend, I really didn't have much time for anything crafty. Sometimes I wonder if I took on too much with a 17 months old baby. If I had started during the pregnancy it might have been easier for me as I would have been used to it. But starting now with such a small child that is used to having her Mama all to herself is very exhausting at times. But I think there is no turning back now. I am totally hooked and savour every moment I get to either create something or to sit on my computer and read up on other people's creations. My head is bursting with ideas and I wish I had more hours each day.

New Yarn

2009-07-26T20:35:00.005+01:00

I think I might need serious help.

I went to Dublin on saturday and came back with twice as much yarn as I intended to buy. Once I was standing in front of the shelves filled with beautiful soft yarn in bright and soft colours I could not resist. And this was me holding myself back!

This is a nice mixture of cotton, eco and bamboo yarn. The very bright lime green is actually not cotton or bamboo yarn but a cashmerino (cashmere/merino wool blend)and it is very soft. I liked the colour a lot so I got one ball anyway. The two very long big ones are a cotton merino blend that has been hand dyed. I really love the mustard yellow.

I hope you all had a very nice weekend. Hopefully by wednesday I will be able to give you a wee sneak peak of what I am working on at the moment....

Giveaway/swap

2009-07-23T15:11:00.005+01:00

This is my first giveaway or swap.

I got this yarn from my mother-in-law recently, thinking I might be able to use it. BUt I came to the conclusion that I most likely will never use it. Its 100% polyacrylic (so nothing special), for 2.5-3.5 needles or crochet hooks (although I think a 4 would be ok, too) and the tension says 10x10 cm. The mandarin and the kind of turquoise colours are five 'balls' each and the other one (which is black with a gold metallic thread through it) has four.

The other thing I want to give away are three patterns thta I got for free with the yarn I bought from America. Again, I know I will never use them and instead of throwing them out I would like to find a nice worthy home for them.

There is one crochet pattern for a 'eco-chic bath set' and two knitting patterns. One for hats and mitts and one for a beret.

I am happy to give all items to one person or split them up. If you are interested, you can either give me the postage or offer me a swap. I will calculate the postage depending on where you live and what you want.

I won't be able to ship them before next week, so you have plenty of time to decide if there is anything for you :)

yarn addiction and amigurumi update

2009-07-23T09:54:00.007+01:00

My yarn stash has grown quite a bit in the last week. I think I am addicted to it. All the lovely ideas I get when I see great yarn make me wish I had more time sometimes. I had some eco cotton yarn ordered from America as well as some really lovely peacock blue bamboo and silk yarn. This is sooo soft. Even softer than the baby cotton yarns you get in the UK.

I also bought some on that website that I posted a couple of posts ago. Although the yarn is lovely and soft, unfortunatley I find the colours are not as strong as they appear on the website.

Tomorrow, Lucy and I will go to Dublin for the weekend, to visit my sister-in-law. I am really looking forward to it as I have never visited her without my husband. Shane and his youngest sister will join us on saturday but it will be nice to have some girly time. I hope to go shopping a bit ;) just a bit! But I definetly want to go here as they seem to have a great selection and variety of yarn....I think I might have to spend a bit...oh dear...

Another thing I still owe you is the update of the pink elephant.

Well, I got as far as the body and one leg and she has her second ear now. I think the head is very lopsided and I might open the stitches up again to re-sew it into a better position. I didn't get to crochet much in the last few days,as we were also at a wedding on monday. I think the elephant looks a little bit scary at the moment but Lucy loves her already now. I hope to finish her off next week or over the weekend and will show you the finished result then.

On that note:
Have a nice weekend!!!

IKEA trouble

2009-07-23T09:30:00.005+01:00

I just had a few very exhausting and annoying days. And on top of that I had to cope without my computer for nearly four days!!! That is the reason, why I only get to post on the blog now. And I had all these things going through my head but coldn't write them.

Anyway, it all started on sunday, when I went to IKEA to buy a new, bigger desk. I went for this range, as you can create your own personal combination, the way it suits your needs best. I love IKEA and we only have one in Belfast for 1 1/2 years now. I grew up with IKEA though as it is very popular in Germany. Although I have to say that nowadays I am looking more and more for "better" quality furniture as well, like sofas and beds.

So, we bought the desk. I have to add here that I didn't pick all the parts I needed for it myself. As you cannot pick this system out of the shelves by yourself, but have to go to the customer collection point, where they give it all to you, a staff member has to print out a list in the office section, which you then bring to the till and pay, before you collect it. Confused?

When we came home I started straight away unpacking it and discovered right at the start that I had some parts missing. I will cut this short for you. One phone call, two 40 minute drives, two hours spent in store, one cranky Lucy, one lost set of car keys (which where luckily handed in) and another phone call later I finally understood the problem. The woman who wrote the list out put one part in wrong! So I had another trip to Belfast which takes 40 minutes each way yesterday and Lucy cranky and tired again, but finally got all the right parts and assembled the desk yesterday.

Was it all worth the hassle?

I think so...

Now I finally have enough space for my computer and my sewing machine and all the other pieces I will need. And I can just roll in between the two.

pink elephants

2009-07-17T08:29:00.006+01:00

I have started my first Amigurumi animal three days ago. I picked the pink elephant from the book "amigurumi world - siriously cute crochet" by Ana Paula Rimoli. I bought this to make some toys for Lucy and because I think Amigurumi IS seriously cute.

At first it was much harder than I thought it would be. I never crocheted in rounds before and never decreased stitches. So it was all pretty new to me and nearly like learning crochet all over again. But after a couple of goes I eventually got the hang of it. And once you get started it isn't that difficult...honestly.

I got as far as the head of the elephant, but she only has one ear at the moment. The second one is the next stage. Still, I thought I would share the progress.

Lucy pointed at the elephant in the book yesterday and laughed. So I can only hope she will like her and enjoy playing with her.

Tomorrow I will hopefully have one of those rare afternoons alone with my husband. We are planning to go to the movies to see the new Harry Potter film. I love Harry Potter and have read all the books twice. I never enjoyed the movies as much as the books as I like all the little details which they have to leave out in the films. I think they make the story. But I am still looking forward to it.

of mobile homes and afternoon tea...

2009-07-16T14:50:00.005+01:00

I recently purchased a lovely mobile phone (or cell phone if you wish) cozy of Carina. I came across it on her Artfire shop and thought it would be the perfect home for my iPhone. Yesterday it arrived in the post and I have to say I think my iPhone looks very stylish and rather cozy ;) in its new pretty cover.

You can buy similar ones in Carina's etsy shop.

Another matter this afternoon is Lucy's new tea set.

I bought this morning on a little trip to get myself a very pretty dress in the Monsoon sale (Yay!). It is made on metal, which makes it nearly indestructible. Rather important for a 17 month old toddler :)
The set has four cups and saucers, four plates, a lovely tea pot and a tray. I already had to pretend having some tea today and eating some invisible food. Funny thing is that Lucy is starting to join in and pretends to eat something, finding it rather funny.

looki, looki...booki, booki ;)

2009-07-14T16:53:00.008+01:00

I love books.

This is a simple fact about me. I love them so much that I treat them really well and I detest it when others don't do the same. Therefore Lucy is learning to treat her books with respect.

One method for me to indulge in a newly found passion is reading, exploring and using books. So it was natural for me to buy a whole bunch of new books about crochet. Well, I ordered them of Amazon actually and they arrived today.

I really enjoyed flicking through them and cannot wait to try out some of the beautiful patterns. There are five in total and one of them is about amigurumi patterns, the cute japanese stuffed animals. I am particularly looking forward to trying them out as I think they would be so adorable for Lucy to play with.

Another one of the books is vintage crochet patterns, which is the other one I was very much looking forward to. As much as I love strong bold colours, I adore the mellow colours in this book.

I love research.

That is another fact. When I have my heart set on something I search and search the web until I find the perfect thing for me. This can be quite annoying as I don't easily let go and the search can drag out for months. However, sometimes I am very lucky and find something good straight away.

I had my heart set on finding good quality, brightly coloured yarn as our local yarn shops have, quite frankly, a rather dull colour variety. So, I sat on the computer yesterday and hit gold only after a couple of hours. And I want to share this great find with all the crochet (and I suppose knitting) fanatics in the UK:

Purplelinda Crafts

Happy crochet!!!

Pride and Perfectionism

2009-07-10T20:57:00.005+01:00

I decided to write a post today after all, because I am a very proud wife and want to share this with the world.

Wouldn't every woman like to get fresh flowers every day? Well, in the summertime I am THAT lucky, because my husband grows flowers for a living. But not just any kind of flowers. He grows the loveliest, nicest and most beautiful lilies you could possibly find in the shops in the UK (and maybe beyond). He works very hard on them, puts all his effort into them so that he can produce such gorgeous flowers. He is a perfectionist and tries every year even harder. I do not get to see him much during the summer season but I have to admit, getting such lovely fresh flowers on a regular basis makes it a little bit easier ;)

Fall is near....

2009-07-09T20:05:00.005+01:00

Now that I have all the time in the world again (I wish!!!) I can get started on this idea that I have been carrying around with me for a while now. And this is the yarn I will be using for it:

It is a linen yarn, which I have not used before. It feels quite thick and sort of rustic, but nice to work with. And I love the colours. They remind me of leaves in autumn/fall time.

It is a belated birthday present for my cousin's 18th birthday....in May...oops! But she is in Germany and I am here in Northern Ireland and I didn't see here since christmas. So she will get it in August. Anyway, that is the reason why I will not show any photographs of the progress because you never know who comes across your blog ;). But I will show it eventually. And if it all works out this might be the first piece for my etsy shop. Yay!

I might be quiet over the weekend because I really really have to clean our house. Everything got neglected as I was so busy making the two blankets. Also on saturday we will finally visit our friends with the new baby so that I can give them the blanket.

So-in advance-have a nice weekend :)

The Tale of Lucy and the Electric Rainbow Blanket

2009-07-08T19:58:00.011+01:00

There once was a little girl, who was so happy and kind that every person that saw her fell in love with her. She was full of energy and vibrant and her aura shone in all the colours of the rainbow. Very rarely was this little girl in an unpleasant mood, instead she took it upon herself to make everybody else in this world happy as well.
One day a fairy watched the little girl as she went shopping with her mother. So many people turned their heads and looked at the girl, smiling to themselves, that the fairy knew there was something special about her. She decided to watch her a little bit longer. Soon she was also under the spell that the cheerfulness of the girl cast on everybody and she decided to create something that would catch the many vibrant colours of the girl's aura so that every child that enters this world will be surrounded by the happiness and kindness of this special little girl. So she made the Electric Rainbow Blanket....

Well, the girl really exists. She is my little baby Lucy, who is very special indeed. The blanket also really exists and is created (pattern and colour sequence) by the fabulous Carina, who in my opinion has created a blanket so cheerful, every baby should have one.

I made this blanket as a trial, as Carina wanted to see how easy to understand the pattern and instructions are. as a newbie at crochet I found it very easy. It was a real pleasure and joy to work with these fantastic vibrant colours and cheered me up every time i saw them. It took 10 days to complete and Lucy is now the proud owner of a real Electric Rainbow Blanket.

Anybody who is interested in the pattern should contact Carina or else you can buy similar blankets on her Artfire shop. It is really worth it!

Happy crocheting and my love for greens...

2009-06-30T10:25:00.006+01:00

So, I have started the Rainbow Blanket by Carina yesterday evening and I have to say I am very pleased with myself. I have already done one whole round of the colour sequence and started on the next round. This means of course (so far) that Carina's pattern is very easy to read and understand, but to me it also shows that my crocheting skills are getting better and better. It didn't take me very long to get the hang of the granny square. I know it is very simple but I am a complete crochet beginner.

I just love the colours. They cheer me up. especially the lime green. Green is my favourite colour for many years now and I could just surround myself with it at all times. But all kind of olive and lime greens are the best. They make me happy. I would love to own lots of that yarn. I guess I have to keep an eye out for something similar in Germany the next time I am going over ;)

The one really good thing about crocheting is that it started to give me ideas of things that I could crochet without using a pattern or somebody else's ideas. This means essentially that I can sell these things in my etsy shop that is all set up but unfortunately very empty. Fingers crossed I will get started on these ideas after finishing the Rainbow Blanket.

A very colourful treat...

2009-06-29T13:59:00.011+01:00

I got a very exciting parcel last week. It arrived on wednesday, even though I only expected it to get here at the end of the week. It came from a person that quite inspires me lately in the crocheting department. She is a very talented lady: the lovely Carina.

The envelope was filled with lots of bright coloured yarn and a pattern for her famous Electric Rainbow Granny Square Blanket, as I agreed to 'test' the pattern for her.

I love the colours Carina uses and when she mentioned on her blog that she was thinking of selling patterns and the matching yarn, I literally jumped at the opportunity. I didn't know which pattern it would be but I have to say I was very pleased to see it was the Rainbow Blanket. This will be perfect for Lucy's room.

Carina was ill with the flue and therefore unable to send everything out straight away, which I did not mind of course. But she sent me also a little something for the delay and I can now say that I am the proud owner of an original embroidered bookmark by Carina. Thank you very much. I will honour it. :0)

Baby Blanket

2009-06-27T19:43:00.010+01:00

I had finally finished all the squares for the blanket yesterday. 36 squares!!! About time, too as we wanted to go and visit the new baby today.

The next stage was the sewing together of all the squares. That was quite a big job as you can imagine with 36 squares. It took me several hours and I think I was not aware of just how long it would take.

And this was the result of probably 5 hours work:

Lucy would not leave me alone when I tried to take a photograph of the blanket in one piece. But at least this gives an idea of the size of the blanket ;)

The next step then was to crochet the edge, which according to the pattern was meant to be all three colors. So you crochet on edge of tr crochet around the blanket in one colour then the same in the second colour and the same again in the third colour.

The cream edge took me about 4 hours as (of course) my crochet hook broke (it was made of wood and the hook part just snapped off) and I had to rush into town to buy a new one, also had to put Lucy to sleep, who then only slept for 50 minutes and then had to sit on my knee while I tried to crochet....*gasp for air*....so I decided I couldn't finishe the whole edgeing and that it would look nice also with just the cream. Nice and simple, right?

Weeelll...like I said: we were gonna visit the new baby today! But as usual my husband had to work longer than planed. he is a vegetable grower and the orders were just enormous today....sooo, we never made it to see the baby. All the hard work and long hours for nothing....but I guess I can finish the edge now properly. I also have a new project to start and therefore it is good that I don't have much work left on the blanket.

My new passion

2009-06-18T12:40:00.007+01:00

A few months ago I developed a real crush on crochet. I secretly 9I guess everybody will know now) blame my sister-in-law as she told me she was gonna join a crochet class. I was just in the process of trying to learn to knit....well I had to face the truth: it was just not gonna happen. So I gave crochet a try and fell head over heels in love. I am still a beginner I would say but I have always been a quick learner.

Friends of ours were expecting a baby at the end of May and I had been really looking forward to this baby as this was the last friend of my husbands who did not have any children yet. Rather exciting and certainly an occasion to give something handmade rather than the ty[ical baby clothes or the 20th cuddly toy. So I decided to crochet a baby blanket!!! It is not quite finished yet as I will still need another 9 squares and then sew it together and give it a nice border but this is the result so far:

This is what it will look like together:

Look what the postman brought me

2009-06-17T10:53:00.008+01:00

In January when I tried to organise my daughter's first birthday party I decided that I wanted to bake a lot of German cakes. Because the flour in the UK is different to German flour I searched online for a place to get the flour I needed. So I came across a shop in London that sells all kind of German food called German Deli
Last week I placed another order as it is really nice to see, smell and of course taste the food I know from my childhood and beyond. I know it may sound silly, the idea of ordering a lot of food from London but anybody who lives in another country and knows how it feels to be homesick will understand me.

YUMMY!!!!!!

Some items where wrapped in newspaper as they where highly breakable or very valuable...like chocolate ;). While I was unwrapping them my eyes caught the writing on the newspaper and I realised it was all written in German. Turns out it was a newspaper called 'Germanlink' and it is especially for London and the UK. So I got free reading material out of it as well. Woohoo!!!

My study/creative space

2009-06-10T14:27:00.008+01:00

For a very long time I wanted to renovate my study. I used to study for UNI in this room and draw, build my models, etc. But now I am not a student anymore I felt that the reason for this room had changed. For a while I was thinking of changing it into a guest bedroom, but we already have two and to be honest we don't have so many visitors.
When the idea developed to set up shop in etsy and to do more creative work again I new I really had to do something about this room. For a while after I got my degree my husband and I called this room 'the junk-room', which prettymuch explains it all. We just dumped everything in it. In the end the room was covered in stuff and I could'nt find the simplest things anymore. And when we went on a holiday the hunt for the passports was exhausting as we had to dig ourselves through piles of paperwork and other rubbish.

I wanted something modern, grown-up, relaxed and creative and so far I think it is wrking for me. A few changes still have to be made: I need a new desk..but it is in progress.

Annie Design @ etsy

2009-03-20T21:31:00.004Z

On a hunt for nice materials to use I came across this lovely etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5841277
It's owned by Carmen from Waterford/Ireland. She makes gorgeuos crochet appliques and I particularly like her shop as it is local for me. So I purchased three lovely flowers:

They were packed in a sweet little bag and when I shook the envelope I could'nt believe what fell out of it. Carmen had packed another two smaller flowers as a present. What a sweet idea!!!

So, all you lovely bloggers and etsy fans, go onto her shop and support the irish!!!

twitter....tweet tweet

2009-03-19T13:20:00.003Z

Ok, so I have joined twitter yesterday and seem to be doing alright with it. The only problem I have is that it doesnt seem to work very well with my MAC...or maybe it's just the fact that my ibook is old and rubbish (time for a new one!!!). Does anybody know of any problems with MAC??? Please let me know. I dont seem to be able to follow anybody on my ibook...but luckily I have an iphine and can stay uptodate with everything and everybody.
Anyway, now I am hoping somebody will follow my blog and leave a nice comment. I know its not the biggest and maturest blog but I will get there once I am starting with the sewing. I have purchased some nice fabrics and patterns and will hopefully get started soon....

Plastic Bottle Mobile

2009-03-15T14:02:00.003Z

When I was in Germany over christmas, visting my family, I came across a little galery where they had this very funky mobile hanging in the window.

When I looked closer I realised that the clear plastic flowers where all the bootoms of plastic bottles. i think it is a great idea for recycling and am still planing to make one myself.

cafetiere/french press cosy

2009-03-13T22:19:00.006Z

My mum likes to drink coffee and she always uses one of those cafetieres/french presses. She has been going on and on about getting a cosy for her press so I thought I would make her one myself. I knew I wanted to use felt as it looks so warm and wooly and....well...cosy ;) It was meant to be a christmas present but I dragged it out until just two weeks before christmas. I never Made one before and wasn't sure how long it would take. But after one week of intense evening sewing this was the result:

I have'nt been sewing in years, so I was quite proud of the result. And after my sister-in-law saw it she asked me to make one for her tea pot. I will have to start this soon, as it is March now and I told her I would make it as her christmas present...oops...