Big Oops...

a few days without blogging went by, a week without blogging went by...

and here I am, with the husband, enjoying the company of family and friends in the Netherlands for a while

it is great to be back and see and hug all the lovely people again

but... it leaves me very absent here, and I am sure it will last for a little longer

~

so here is a little update of what has been going on

I finished the Miami City Blanket 

and I am working on the pattern for my shop

I also started the girl blanket order in white-grey-pink soft tones

the last craft group for this season was last week and the ladies surprised me with this beautiful cake

and one of them worked on an embroidery project, her box of colorful joy was amazing to my eyes...

I hope you are enjoying the beautiful weather and doing great out there !

~

I am off to more family and more friends,

and will see you here in a while again - probably somewhere late next week

hugs

Chair Project

the scarf I posted yesterday

was lying on an old chair in a few of the pictures

a chair we already sanded at that time, ready to be painted

last weekend was very sunny and we were ready to work on our six wooden kitchen chairs

out came the sand paper, out came the paint

and on we went, the husband and me ~ so much fun !

six chairs we collected in the nine months we have been living in Canada

quite a catch if I may say so myself

they are all 'old' or vintage or may be even close to antique

and I like them in their own style, with their own stories : who has been using them ? in what kitchen ?

~

this is actually a teasing post, because none of the chairs is finished yet

they will all get a minimum of 3 layers of paint so we will be busy with them for a while

and you have to wait a little longer before I post a real 'tadaaa'

but... I am, and we are, very satisfied with the results so far

as you can see the sun was so bright, I was not even able to paint outside, it had to happen in the garage

in the shade and out of the wind

but what a lovely and perfect weekend to do so

~

more about the colors I choose and more pictures soon...

are you into re-doing furniture at all ?

Finished Scarf

remember this scarf that I started for a dear client ?

well, I finished it last week and it is already shipped

but I had great fun making the scarf and taking pictures of it

so here is to share : the scarf

inspired by this scarf I custom made a design in different colors and different yarn

this yarn is Catania 100% cotton, the same yarn I use to make the baby blankets

when knitted it is very soft and gentle around your neck

the colored stripes in between the large blue and grey blocks, are choosen by my client to match her coat

excellent choice if you ask me

 

after I finished the knitted rows I added crochet borders to give the edge a more firm look

and then I was looking for the finishing touch

a scallop edging like I did here did not seem to do the trick this time

and then I got it : mini crochet pompoms !

after I finished those I decided I had to make at least one more scarf with pompoms, for myself haha

don't they look like cute mini lights that lighten up your outfit ?

~

yesterday I told you about the cousins that are about to be born 

and will be lying under creJJtion blankets soon

well, the boy blanket will be striped in the same beautiful colors as this scarf

I am so honored my sweet friend would love to have her boy sleeping under one of my blankets !

~

back to the scarf

I love this scarf, truly and honestly

with jeans, on a bright white t-shirt, or fashionably with your red skinny jeans... suitable for every occasion

what do you think ? would you like to see the pattern in my shop ?

Monday Mood Board ~ 7

oh wow, my friends

where was I last week ?

I guess it was a combination of great weather that made me spent several days outside, 

being busy finishing crochet projects and enjoying time with friends...

but well

today is a new week and I am back here, it feels good

Mood Board number 7 already today !

every week I add a selection of yarn to the Monday Mood Board 

to give you an idea of what colors could match for your next project

this week however, the mood board is inspired by a selection of yarn for a next baby blanket order

quite a last minute order

so I 'd better pick up the crochet hook right now, haha

it will be a cute soft striped blanket for a sweet baby girl, to be born in a few weeks

and even better, her future cousin is expected this Summer and yes, 

his future mom, who is a dear Dutch friend of mine, ordered a blanket too ! 

more about that tomorrow

~

a happy new week to you

Burlap Crafts

in the craft group this week

we worked with burlap

instead of sitting around the table, we worked in the garage, on the ground, with scissors, paint and tape

and we had a wonderful time doing that

again thank you so much for all your ideas, they were very helpful and inspirational !

in no time the ladies came up with the most beautiful things

taking out a few threads in a row leaves a nice gap structure

cutting off the corners of the burlap bag, using them inside out results in great little baskets

and acrylic paint on burlap turns out to be working great

don't the table runner for the outside table in the garden, and the little May baskets look fabulous ?

as for myself, I tried stamping with a round sponge, but that did not turn out quite as good I had hoped

I guess the stamping surface should be more flat, since the burlap itself is already uneven

directly painting onto the burlap however, turns out perfectly

and together with some regular painter's tape, you can create the most fantastic patterns

this was a great first meeting with burlap, at least for me it was a first

and it leaves me with a nice chevron pattern, that I have to find a purpose for now

~

to thank you for all the great ideas that inspired us this week

I would love to send out a burlap bag to you

to be specific, I would love to send out a bag to Tereza

she enthusiastically wrote about her project of burlap and screen printing it, 

which got us to the idea of painting the bags

and just because I feel like it, I am going to send out two more !

I would also love to send out a bag to

 Janina because she made the effort to write down a cute idea she came up with herself

and Barbara because she gave us ideas in her comment, and sent pictures afterwards to illustrate the ideas

thank you all ladies!

please send me an e-mail with your address and the bag of your preference, so I can send them out to you

something else that's going on here this week, has to do with a beautiful scarf...

more about that very soon !

Monday Mood Board ~ 6

another week, another Monday

but a special one this time

because it is Queens Day in the Netherlands !

therefore, orange had to be part of this Monday's Mood Board

we celebrated Queens Day abroad for the first time

in Toronto with the Dutch club, we had great fun playing 'sjoelen' and enjoyed the BBQ and drinks

on Saturday morning, when I teach Dutch to kids age 7-14, we had a Queensday celebration with them too

so much fun, all kids dressed in orange and they had a blast when we played 'koekhappen'

all together, a great celebration !

inspiration for this Mood Board came from the little vintage piece of fabric

and the beautiful rose tin I got from Koralee

a little neon orange to lighten up the color scheme

and beautiful creamy yarns to match

~

I hope your Queens Day was great, and I wish you all a fabulous new week

a week in which I hope to finish one or two beautiful crochet projects and add a pattern to the shop...