Spring colours

(illustration by Beatrix Potter)
Last Saturday, it was Earth Hour. We shut down all the lights, the computer, the radio,...
And we lighted some candles. That was quite a cozy hour, I even did a bit of crochet! Maybe something to do every week?

My granny blanket is almost finished, I just need to join a few more rows, and then of course all the threads...
Something I can do while watching a few episodes of Dexter.
Although it is getting colder again, I couldn't help it, I bought some spring flowers for my pots at the front door.

Spring cleaning

Today I did something that needed to be done...rearrange and clean my wardrobe. I spent the whole afternoon cleaning and dusting and sorting out my clothes.
And now my back aches and I'm sneezing because of all the dust, but oh boy, it's so nice to have a whole new wardrobe to choose from!


1. Housewife Semaphore, 2. Laundry bag, 3. pretty in pink apron, 4. weekend find: vintage dresses, 5. Kids, 6. Working on this, 7. laundry day, 8. Laundry, 9. Untitled, 10. summer quilts-ready for a picnic, 11. Cinderella does laundry, 12. The Chicken and the Quilt, 13. 1932 Mode Practique, May, 14. Untitled, 15. Untitled, 16. corner of my home

Finished!

Yes, I did it! My Christmas sampler is finally finished. I'm really proud of myself.
It really needed some freshening up, so I washed it in a mild dishwashing liquid (I used Ecover) and rinsed it with cold water.

So now it is ready to be framed.

This week, another two (almost) finished projects: a knitted sweater and cardigan. To be continued...

Paris

Yesterday, my husband had to go to Paris for business, so I decided to go along with him.
It was very cold, but sunny, a perfect day to walk along the Seine and see the Eiffel tower again.


Around 1900, the view was a bit different... all the other buildings for the World Exposition have disappeared now.

And now, I'm back at my desk, trying to work a bit. In the afternoon, I'm going to work on my sampler, it's almost finished. All your nice comments on the stitching are a real boost for me!

Week#15

Last week, I managed to stitch quite a lot, and that gives me the courage to carry on. As you can see, I only need to finish the left border and the left down corner.



Outside it is very stormy and wet, but I bought myself a little bit of spring with this tulips.

Giveaway (not by me)

If you want to give it a try, and join in to win this bear, click here. I left a message on Pussman's blog, you never know...

Knitting sleeves

Another unfinished project: a cabled sweater I started last year (winter 2008). I still need to knit the sleeves (shown here, I always knit them together on the same needles) and the collar. So I guess it will be finished next week and I will be able to wear it in the last cold weeks before spring.
Today, it started to rain, and now all the snow has melted. My garden has never looked so dull and grey before, but I heard some birds singing, oh joy!

Detail of a sleeve.

My knitting companion!

About vampires

Now that I had a few days to craft and tidy my house a bit, guess what : I fell ill and had to stay in bed for a day. So I decided to read a bit, something not too difficult, because I couldn't concentrate for long.
I'm always a bit late for a hype, or I ignore it, but now I decided to give this book a try: "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer.
It was a real disappointment, with cardboard characters and almost no plot at all. I wanted to give it a chance, and I do like spooky stories, but this book didn't work for me, not at all.
I've never read "Dracula" by Bram Stoker, but now I definitely will.

Or to still my thirst for blood, I can watch these movies again:



And I have already a few other books on my bedstand that will please me!


(here, here and here)

Winter is here to stay

I've been away too long...feels like ages since I've been blogging. The reason for my absence: work, work and more work. For a month, I didn't cook, shop, read, or craft. All I did was sit at my desk, and work, work, work.
And now this job is finished, and I don't know where to start blogging again.
So a mosaic it will be, just to get the hang of it again.
For a few times since January, I thought spring was arriving, but no, last week it started snowing again. And I'm growing a bit tired of the cold. So this mosaic is a sort of goodbye to winter, I hope!


1. holly bob, 2. A Chickadee in hand, 3. Santa's Toy Shop, 4. Santa Gnome Evening Lights Jenny Nystrom 1905, 5. polish matchbox label, 6. "bow to me!", 7. 2 Cup Yellow Tea Cozy, 8. Over the River, 9. Anemoi Mittens 2, 10. I'm Not Looking!, 11. Once Upon A Wintertime: Skating, 12. my sweet pillow, 13. cuckoo clock, 14. Red Hat, 15. ...April Fool..., 16. Mansion no. 2

Too cold...

...to work in my room upstairs.

As everywhere else in Europe the past weeks, it has been very cold. So I decided to move my computer downstairs, where I have no internet, but my view on the garden makes up for that.

January had a very hectic start, so I try to get a bit of rest in the evenings. I'm knitting a green cardigan, a rather easy pattern, because I like to knit while watching television.

Our Christmas tree is waiting to get planted, all the decorations were put in their boxes till next year.

The snow started to melt today, time to put a bit of spring in my house.

Crafting for Christmas

A week before Christmas, I decided to make a few gifts myself. This year, we had a Christmas party with friends, and we had to give something to this lovely couple. I needed projects that I could finish in a week, so I made:
a scarf for him

and a pair of socks for her.


After all the partying and eating, I had a very lazy sunday. I did a bit of ironing, a bit of reading, and I made a resolution list for 2010. I wonder what will come of it.

Sometimes it's a good idea to take the example of a cat, and sit by the fire and relax and meditate a bit.
I'm ready for the new year and the work that got piled up on my desk!

A happy 2010!

For all of you out there: a lovely, creative, healthy and happy 2010!
My New Year's resolution: more blog posts...