Let's talk pillows

Finished up these three cushions. I made a vintage fabric big blanket a couple of weeks ago and off course that one needs cushions to go along. And besides that, I gues I just really like to make cushions and pillows... And we never have these too much!! So here are three vintage, patchwork cushions in orange/brown colors.
This was a small job in a very busy and hectic last week. The big storm is lying down now for a bit so I'll promise to be a better blogger this week. Be back!

One finished,...

...three to go. For a long time now I want to make placemats. Not too big!! That is important because I don't like all these mega large placemats. They are almost like table covers.. Not my taste. And I want squares and a nice edging. I'm happy with the result (used a pattern from an old craftbook). Now three more to go..

Colour

Good pattern but COLOUR is better...

Together

Together in the sun.. I saw little Olivia today and we enjoyed the sun together. Worked hard the last couple of days so it was nice to have a good free day with family and lots of sun!! Men, how we all need the sun after a cold, rainy May month. It's so nice to be outside, see so much people on a bike, terraces that are loaded, people who are happy and relaxed and all that green and flowers. Love, love, love the summer!
So no much creativity today. Only some searching in old craft books for a good square pattern. Found it and made the first but that's all.... Enjoy this (long) weekend!

Catches and projects

Couldn't leave the thrift store without these two handmade, in perfect state, cushions! Don't know yet if I'm keeping, remake or sell them but I'll think about that one. The same happened with the porcelain old cups, below.. Couldn't leave the thrift store without these. Mostly I have retro cups but I really like these. They are so kitch that they become beautiful.
Below a detail of a project I'm working on. It's not going like I want it to go/be but this weekend I have more time to figure it all out and find a way.

Favorites

'de taarten van Abel'

I’m rambling on about my creative projects lately. A lot is going on besides that (you know, I still have a life besides crafts and creating) but there is a lot I can’t tell now. Sometimes that feels as if my blog isn’t any ‘personal’ anymore. So I thought I’d make a ‘favorite’ list! Nice to think about, nice to share..

So here are some of my favorites!
TV program: I only have the three Dutch public stations.. No commercial tv! Love Klokhuis, De taarten van Abel, Top Gear (on laptop) and if I had them I would watch Discovery, National Geographic and Animal Planet.

Movie: I’m not a movie type, don’t have the concentration for it. But Romeo and Juliette, Das Experiment, Instinct, Mar Adentro and the Holiday are some favorites.
Book: Besides crafting I have a book collecting/reading addiction so this one is a hard one. Love all different books but some of my favorites are ‘ The day after tomorrow’ from Allan Folsom, ‘The shadow of the wind’ from Carlos Ruiz Safron, ‘ Pobby and Dingan’ from Ben Rice, everything from Renate Dorrestein and much, much more..
Famous person: I really like, and have a lot of respect for Wende Snijders. She’s so creative, has so much energy and sings the best songs/chansons. Please check these songs:
Au Suivant, Roses in June, Je t' attends and Je suis comme je suis
Sport: None.. Did Pencak Silat for a while in Amsterdam (love, love loved that sport!!) but in Leiden we don’t have that sport.
Food: Mmmhh.. Not the cooking type but I like everything. Sweets are the best, love all deserts but crème Brule is my favorite.

'creme brulee'

Site: youtube, etsy, flickr, all your creative blogs and funda (love to watch houses and dream about living there..).
Color: Again.. Do I have to chose? Guess I like purple and lilac best. And also turquoise, petrol and aqua blue. Love olive green too.. Shit! See, I can’t chose here!
Clothing: I’m a layer type. Have lots of vests. Love a skirt with a maillot and boots or sneakers. Wish to wear my pumps more often but I’m more of the ‘functional’ type. And always darker colors with a smashing item or accessory.
Vacation destination: Buitenkunst. Love to see Morocco and Japan sometime and have a trip to NY. And my dream is to cross through Scandinavia in a camper.
Gadget: None. And I guess I’m one of few that don’t like their mobile phone..
Drink: Coffee Latte, Chocomel and Roosvice.

'caffee lattee'

Alcoholic Drink: Rose or Cava, Martini with Bitter Lemon and after dinner with friends I like a Baileys with ice.
Way to spend money on: Crafts and thrift stores, books.
Song: See my list at the bottom of this page.. Love so much music that I don’t have a specific favorite. But this is a favorite list so I chose: Au Suivant from Wende Snijders (although the original from Jacques Brel is perfect too), Me and my Monkey from Robbie Williams, Impossible from Daniel Merriweather and I love to dance on Like the way I do from Melissa Etheridge. Again.. this isn’t one favorite!! Sorry..
Animal: My Bowie. When I move to a bigger house with garden (instead of a roof terrace) I want a dog too.
Way to get to sleep: Work hard, read something or make my own ‘dream’.

Please feel free to take the stick if you want too!!!

'princes leila' hat

I never had so much trouble taking pictures... Normally it's a piece of cake but now, for the last two, three weeks I have trouble with the lightning. So to explain: this hat really is old pink!!! Not purple, as the picture seems to show off. It's a light, old pink colour.
It's crocheted with a mohair kind of yarn and it turned out to be a lovely ' Princes Leila' like hat. The 'ears' are already attached at the lowert side but I need to attach the top too. That's for later... Today is (finally!!!!!) a bit of a sunny day! So I'm heading outside, see my sister and little Olivia. Whatever.. But outside because djeezz, I had it with the rain!
Enjoy your weekend!

Felt, paint and other projects

Worked hard today on this free (Ascension) day but I'm pretty satisfied with the work I've done. As you know I like to work on different projects at the same time. One of the projects today was about using scraps/leftovers of felt. I had enough to make this brown case. Don't know if I'm going to use it for my crochet needles, for pencils or for my glasses. I made it to fit all, so I can still decide.
One of the other projects I worked on today included a lot of painting. Can't show you anything more then my hand with paint rests.. (there will be a day soon I can tell you more!). And as you can see (a bit) I used smashing colors like purper and petrol blue.

Beret

No, I'm not going to die.. I gues I took over 200 pictures and none of them gives me a normal skin color. In every picture I'm as white as a sheet. So not such great pictures but it's not about me, it's about the new beret I made. I really like beret hats but none of the ones you can buy in the stores. Those are all too 'beret', too slappy or too french and I don't like that. So after three, four designs (too big, too small, too slappy and didn't fit at all) I finally have found a good beret model.

Awards!!

I'm so sorry! It's been so busy here in this holiday week that I completly forgot to blog, read email or see any computer. Unforgivable because, of course, I'm very honoured with TWO received blog awards in the last weeks! (but then I have to keep blogging.. don't you think!?) So Libby, Annemarie and Wiek thank you very, very much!! You are all so sweet! Thanks, thanks, thanks! Please people check these blogs for lots of creativity!

With the Happy award comes the assignment to write about ten things that make me happy. I have a lot of things to be happy about, or be happy with. I'm very, very happy with coffee latte (really that's my addiction and I would be very, very unhappy if I don't have my coffee). I'm happy with my friends, family, my Bowie and of course little Olivia. Being creative makes me very, very happy but it also gives me peace in mind. Reading a good book makes me happy, but double happy when I can read outside in the sun (for example on a terrace with a good glass of wine..). I love to thrift and a good score makes me very happy. I love this blogging world, my readers and friendships I get out of blogging. And so I can go on and on about things that makes me happy.... Maybe it's better to say that I learned, in the last years, to enjoy the little things, see the positive side of life, learn to see that the glass is half full, not half empty.

A quik view on other blogs tells me that these awards are going around very fast. So I can pass them through and then some people get them twice, three, four times and some get none. So I won't pass it but give it to all my readers! Take the awards, you all deserve it.

I'll be back soon here with some new finished (crochet) projects and finally, finally I can tell you something (it would be a glimpse but it's something) about the things I've been working on in the last couple of months!! Finally..
Enjoy the weekend! Hope you, outside Holland, have better weather then we have. It's so rainy here, all week. Not nice but then again the glass isn't half empty but half full and personally I go think of a lot of things to do inside the house. Enjoy!!

Wouldn't you?

Wouldn't everybody (re)make a doll house for such a sweety!? Already 5 months now. (and yesterday and said, she's just 5 months.. so you see it's all about the perspective) My sister sent me these pictures yesterday. Two weeks ago I saw her last and she really grew and changed again. The baby is getting out. She's wiser, more present, showing her own will and making sounds, all day long. I'll see her (and off course the rest of the family.. ;-)) this weekend again. Can't wait!

Happy week

Happy week at lisette's!! A good meeting at work, the sun that's out (some times), a good decision I made, a free/lazy day, a real MUS gift and a great catch at the thriftstore! So a happy, happy week here. Some pics.. Started at the top with a real MUS t-shirt for me! For me!! Happy, happy!!

Found this flat bowl at the thriftstore. I love, love, love this motif! It has some chips off but that doesn't matter.. The motif is so inspiring and the shape is original.

As some of you read in November, I was there when my sister and brother-in-law gave birth to the little, lovely Olivia. My first niece (and only), being there.. of course she is my absolute favorite! As soon as she was born, and we knew it is a girl, I wanted to make a doll house for her. A second-hand wooden doll house, remade by me. With cool wallpaper in every room, carpet, all painted and with hip wooden furniture.

But that's what I want to do with it, after finding one... Buying it second-hand was a search. Because I wanted a) wood, b) not to heavy damaged, c) an open house, so it playable, d) not to small, not to big. So that's a list! I saw a lot of doll houses but today I found the ONE!!

See the white doors? That are sliding doors. So windows while open. And the small room in the back has great blue retro wallpaper. I'll definitely will leave that.

But the best, best surprise and more then I ever could wish for is the furniture that was included!! I made some pics but I guess I have over twenty wooden furniture pieces!! Happy, happy! (sorry...) Can you imagine it? Painted, new wallpaper and carpet, all decorated...

Such a shame, Olivia is now 5 months old, so this all have to wait.. But it gives me all the time to work on it, piece by piece..

Don't you love this toilet? Someone did a real good job here! Even the lid can go up and down. And the same person made a perfect bath and sink too, with little cranes on it..