be-stitched artfully

Belly Cast finished!

2011-07-08T06:17:00.000-07:00

Around the 37th week of my pregnancy my hubby and I decided to make a belly cast. I've used modrock before but Axel had little idea of how to use it. Considering he took to it well and did a great job finishing just before I fainted from kneeling on my knees for too long. :-O

I did a lot of image searches online, looking at what other people did with their casts. Sooooo many beautiful casts out there with beautiful whimsical designs on them. I decided to go for something a little more realistic and a little symbolic. The flower is a water lily. At the time I was just drawn to it for some reason, thought a rose might be more appropirate but nope I decided on the lily, just before bubs due date I discover July's birth flower is a water lily! must have been a sign that she wasnt going to come late June. The leaves around the edge are birch leaves for protection and new beginnings according to Wiccan symbolism.And then there is the photo of the parents-to-be. Looped around us is the umbilical cord that connects us to our baby.

While it's technically finished tomorrow I will spray it with a clear vanish and Axel will add some device so we can hang it in bub's room. I am very pleased with the finished belly cast. Now we just need the baby to put in the nursery. I'm sure it won't be too long now. Here are some photos from different angles.

Yep there are little stars on my nipples! Thought it would be a laugh!

A Granny blanket for Baby

2011-06-05T00:15:00.000-07:00

It's been a long while since I last wrote. Not sure if I mentioned that we are having a girl and have already named her Zara Artemis. There's only 4 more weeks till her due date, but you know how babies are, they come when they want to come! I have been making oodles of things for Zara including 3 crochet blankets. I've already posted about the first one which was the large white granny square. I never did end up making the bunny one. But as you can see below I managed to make a typical granny square blanket. I wanted to use some of my stash and make it fun and colourful.

Other things I've made include a heap of crochet caps/beanies, burp cloths, bibs, burpkerchiefs and a cute red corduroy pinafore. I have a few more things I want to make like some simple track pants but I'll wait to see how big she is before I make them.

First Baby Blanket

2011-01-03T03:16:00.000-08:00

I have finally finished my first baby blanket. It's not what I hoped it would be but it is kinda cute all the same. I actually bought this yarn to make another pattern with little bunnies on it. Here is a photo of what I wanted to make.

But with all the nausea and exhaustion I could only muster enough brain and physical strength to make a large granny square blanket which I can practically do asleep. I finished it off with a simple scalloped edge. Here is a photo.

Maybe a little later, now that I'm getting my mojo back, (blessed 2nd trimester!) I can attempt to make the bunny blanket.

Speaking of bunnies I would like to introduce you to our newest fur child, Gloria! We adopted her when friends of friends found a rabbit who two days later gave birth to 4 kittens. They couldn't keep them so we helped out. Our George is not impressed about sharing his house with a new 'girl' bunny!

Gloria was a very scatty rabbit, scared of any movement or noise. She would take ages to catch and would not let you pat her. With a few treats and lots of patience I have manage to tame her. She is now actually the most affectionate out of the 3 bunnies we have! 2 weeks ago I would never have guessed!

Merry Christmas (Christmas Eve 2010!)

2010-12-25T20:39:00.000-08:00

This year was the first year Axel and I spent Christmas in our own house. To celebrate and to help make Axel feel at home we celebrated Christmas Eve German style, or at least in the way his German family do. We put up the Chrissy tree, brought out the ornaments and scattered green and red candles here there and everywhere. In the morning we received a postal delivery which was a box full of Chrissy ornaments from his mum. They were very pretty and typically German in style. I instantly hung them around the house to complete our look.

So what do Germans usually do for Christmas Eve? Well they go to church and then come home and have dinner followed by sweets and the exchanging of gifts. Axel's mum makes a plate for everyone that has an assortment of nuts, winter fruits, chocolates and biscuits.

Here is our version of these plates...

For everyone I made a 'shortbread' person with their name and likeness. They would have been gingerbread men and women but everyone complained that they didn't like gingerbread. Fussy relatives!

I had a little fun with mine and added the baby!

All in all it was a great night. We had lots of fun and heaps of laughs. I think it might have been the best time we've had as a family for a long time. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas too full of happiness and yummy treats!

Where have I been?

2010-12-14T17:22:00.000-08:00

I just looked at the date of my last post and its from MAY. OMG where have I been? I have been crocheting and working on some quilting but just haven't posted about it due to a lack of photos. It's also been a hectic year with work so much so that I asked to go part time next year, that was until....

Yep this little person came along. Within a week of missing my period my anxiety panic disorder came back full blast sending me to the emergency room begging for my old medication. (damn hormones!) It took 6 weeks for the medication to completely kick in and in the mean time I packed up my husband and rabbits and moved back to my parents for extra help. I had no energy for doing house work, cooking etc, and lost all interest in things including my husband. It was such a scary experience constantly having hideous thoughts that my baby will be deformed, will die, will have 5 limbs etc etc.Work was a nightmare, I tried to go in a few times but totally freaked out and was very anxious for the whole day, adrenalin running through my veins and causing my whole body to be in pain. Even my uterus was killing me and that's when I thought I have to take time off this can't be healthy for the baby or myself.

And so I've taken the rest of the year off and after 6 weeks school holidays I will go back as a casual relief teacher, filling in when I feel ok. I am seeing a psychiatrist and psycologist as well as my midwife and doctor so I'm in pretty good hands at the moment. It's taking me some time getting used to being a 'house wife'. I've never not worked or studied. I felt very guilty at the start but my husband said it was the best decision I could make and that he is happy that he can go to work now and know I'm safe at home or hanging out at mums or friends. He just wants a healthy wife and baby and work can wait!

Ironically now that I have time on my hands I have NOOOOOOOO energy or interest in crocheting or crafting. I'm told that your energy levels come back after the first trimesters finished so I'm very much hoping that that's true! I have so many things I want to make. Mum and I went to the yarn store the other day and mum bought a great baby knit book heaps of awesome patterns and some yarn. She's already finished one little sweater.

Anyhow hopefully now that I'm at home I will post more but I seem to always say that, hope this time I stick to it!

Merry Christmas to everyone if I don't post by then and I hope you have a lovely festive time!

Raspberry Delights and Over the Top cake

2010-05-29T19:49:00.000-07:00

I finished the cardigan I was making for our friends' new baby girl Paula Johanna. She was born about a month ago and we are just itching to go see her. I was so happy to hear that it was a girl because then I had an excuse to use some super pink raspberry yarn. I just love hot pinks but haven't had any real reason to use some.

Lucky for me the exact stuff I was looking for was in the discount corner at the local yarn shop, still meant $5 dollars for 50gms but hay for raspberry coloured 100% merino wool who's complaining! I mixed up two patterns to come up with this one. Unfortunately I printed out the patterns long ago and have forgotten the sites I got them from so I cannot share them.

Here's a photo of the little gem!

It's been finished off with the cutes of pink mother of pear buttons. I am also planing to make a beanie to go with the cardigan. I hope it will keep her warm this winter. It will be too small for the following winter.

Just before I go thought I'd throw in a photo of a yummy cake I tried today. I got the recipe from Recipes + May 2010. It's called pear and chocolate cake with hazelnut syrup. I didn't have any hazelnut liquor so I swapped that for chocolate essence as suggested at the start of the recipe.

DON'T TELL ME TO GROW UP!

2010-05-29T05:36:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Axel and I attended my friend Nanette's 60th birthday party. What can I say about Nanette? Well, she is a funny, say-it-like-it-is, warm and generous woman, who recently became a granny for the first time. Nanette started off as my boss, well second-in-charge boss, then mentor and finally became my friend. To give you more of an idea of what Nanette is like let me just tell you that instead of a speech after singing happy birthday, we were all asked to do the chicken dance in her honor.

The party was wonderful, and held at her daughter's beautiful home in Ascot Vale. We were spoiled with yummy Asian food and oodles of rich cakes and sweets. It was really nice to finally meet all of Nanette's family and meet her granddaughter who I'd made the little booties for. (see post at For the Love of Crochet Along) A few people from work were there too and it was great to spend some time with them away from work.

The present I gave Nanette was of course hand made. I later found out that she is usually the one who cross stitches presents for others, traditionally for their 40th birthdays, so she was surprised to get one herself!

This is the first installment of the present I made her. I knew I couldn't just make her something ordinary or without a twist. I initially wanted to cross stitch 'I'm getting too old for this shit' but my more proper and less daring husband suggested she might not be able to display something with a 'swear word' and thus I came up with 'don't tell me to grow up'. But after talking to some friends who also know Nanette I convinced that she would love and display the other, thus why this one has become a 'part one'. Basically I only had enough time to make one so Nanette now knows she's got another present to look forward to.

A site that inspired the cross stitch messages can be found on Flicker. The group's name - subversive cross stitch. I recommend anyone with a wicked sense of humor go and check it out!.

Anyhow I better stop with all this and get back to some serious report writing, yep it's that time of year again!

Food Glorious Food!

2010-05-27T07:00:00.000-07:00

I've been dying to try some new things in the kitchen only to find that I haven't really got much time to actually experiment and cook something more interesting than a simple stir-fry or chop in the oven. Watching Master Chef is not helping either because now I feel like everything has to look like it came out of a fancy restaurant just so I can call myself a great cook. It also makes me want to try my hand at some of the recipes just so I can 'test' how good a cook I am. But the problem with that is most of the recipes have ingredients that Axel will not eat. I didn't realise how many things he just wont eat. He must of been just too polite before to complain leading me to think he was a good eatter. Arrrhhhh!

So anyhow over the last few weeks I've just had to let some other areas of house keeping go, like clothes washing, vacuuming and make some time to cook. I've looked through some old cook books and adapted some classics to my liking. Classic gnocchi with roasted pumpkin and butter sage sauce, ( think this one was on Master chef also) well I took it one step further! Mine was roasted beetroot, pumpkin and garlic with mixed herbs in a butter sauce and balsamic vinigar, sprinkled with fresh riccota. TAKE THAT MASTER CHEF! I served it with a nice bit of pork chop and damn it was good and so colourful too. The following night I took the left over pumpkin and beetroot cooked a new batch, with the gnochi again but also adding some brussle sprouts I had boiled the day before and served it with sliced sausages. Soooo good!

Here are some photos of the second batch with sausage and brussle sprouts...

Sizzling away on the stove!

Served with the ricotta

Still want to try the beef wellington that was on Master Chef! Will let you know if I ever get to try it!

The Wedding

2010-05-16T02:15:00.001-07:00

Here is the final chapter in the 'wedding cup cake' saga. It's a little late but here is what we ended up making for the wedding.

As you can see below we set to work early Saturday morning (day before the wedding) baking 110 cupcakes from the trusted and well tested White Wings Golden Butter Cake mix. Yes I took the easy way out and went packet cake. The reason for doing so was that we found the packet cakes stayed moist longer and since they were going to be eaten over a day after making we thought this was the best option.

Axel helped turn the cupcakes as I piped. The new piper that I bought for the job didn't work so well, icing kept on coming out even after I stopped pressing. I had to use an old one I had that was very hard to use and needed a lot of force to push the icing through. Hence the aching hand and sore shoulder the next day! It all went pretty well and took 8 hours to complete. We did however break 2 electric hand mixers, one blowing up in our faces (lucky I didn't loose my eyebrows). Fortunately the last one broke just as we finished making the last batch of icing.

Here is a shot of the cupcakes on the cake table. Unfortunately even if you send a photo of how the cake should look and detailed instructions to the reception, people still can't set up the cakes exactly how you intened... in our case a missing cupcake on the very top part of the stand. If there was no cupcake intended for the top, why would we have it there? Obviously not all people think the same.

We went with the silver patty pans and plain blue icing pipped in little stars all around. No silver balls. We were pleased with the end results and all up it cost under 200 dollars which included the cake stand and the practice runs. Much cheaper than paying $4.00 to $5.00 per cupcake, which would have meant minimum $440 plus the stand. Considering at least 30 cakes were not eatten that would have been $120 wasted.

So here ends our cupcake story!

He Fell Asleep on Me

2010-05-08T09:35:00.000-07:00

There hasn't been much time for anything other than work and house work. The place is pretty much the same as when we first moved in just before the wedding and it's bugging me to the max because so much of my craft and art materials are in boxes with no chance of coming out to play. The sun has moved position in the sky and no longer reachers my little veggie patch. Nothing is growing, the plants are not really dying either but the fruit and veggies are no bigger than 2 months ago. They seem to be in suspended animation.

Out of artistic desperation I took some printer paper today and an old HB pencil that was lying around and sketched Axel laying in bed. It's nice to know I can still hold a pencil and make a semi-recognisable sketch. It's been way too long. Only problem was Axel fell asleep halfway through the sketch, hence the one eye.

And the next day this happened...

2010-03-08T03:17:00.000-08:00

Hail storms Melbourne. Just when all the tomatoes and peppers were getting ready for harvest. And the poor beetroot was looking so healthy. Growing so nicely... Sad the a whole 3 months of heart and work can be destroyed in a few minutes.

In the Garden we have...

2010-03-05T04:08:00.000-08:00

Somethings Growing!

2010-01-26T04:18:00.001-08:00

Just a few photos of some veggies we are growing in our little garden. We can't believe we are actually getting fruit! We are not sure how they will go maturing. Some of the peppers seem to be dropping off just after they start growing. You can see one that has dropped still with the withered flower on the top left corner of the photo before.

30

2010-01-21T07:18:00.000-08:00

Today I turned 30. So what does one do on their 30th birthday...? Demand a really yummy and huge lemon meringue for their birthday cake! Why? Because I felt like it and 5$ mud cakes from the supermarket just don't cut it when you're the big 30. hehehehe. I guess one good thing about being in the middle of renovations and wedding plans is that you don't have time to feel so pooped about turning another year older and saying goodbye to your 20's. Here are some pics from the big moment.

We had Axel's parents on Skype while everyone sang happy birthday. They are so cute they made me a birthday sign and had a candle burning for me too. I've got a special parcel on it's way too. They always spoil me. Axel spoilt me with flowers and I spoilt myself with a new little cotton bud. His name is Joseph. He's a little 7 week old Angora X lop bunny. I've been thinking of getting a new rabbit for a while now and today I popped in to the shopping centre for a pair of shorts for indoor soccer and came out with a little fluff ball as well. I just have to work out how to socialise Joseph with Charlotte so they can be out together.

Home Improvement

2010-01-11T02:26:00.000-08:00

I have some photos of a couple of projects that I am working on at the moment. Above is a section of an afghan I'm making for our new red velvet couch. I thought I'd be a bit more daring and use a variety of different colours. So far I am very happy with the results. I'm thinking of making it about 8 by 10 squares just large enough to cover the couch seat.

I'm also working on a quilt for our new bedroom. We bought a new bed frame because Axel keeps on hitting his feet on the bottom of the one we have now. (I guess being tall is not always an advantage!)

Here is a catalog photo of the bed. We haven't actually got it yet, it's on order.

Our walls will be a light blue and the ceiling, skirting boards and doors are white so I decided on making a blue and white quilt with a hint of orange and peach for contrast. Here are some progress photos.

At the moment I just have the blocks finished (simple maple leaf blocks without the stems. Did I mention I hate doing the stems on maple leaf blocks?) I'm planning on adding a 3 or 2 inch white border around each block and then a 1 inch navy border, finished with another 6 inch white border. I'm also considering putting a border of triangles made from the left over blue and orange material. I will see how it looks after the first white border and see if it needs more colour.

Anyhow I hope everyone is well and enjoying the first month of the new year. I can't believe 11 days have already passed! 16 more days before I go back to work! I have so much to finish at home that I am no longer looking forward to getting back to work, I just want more time so I can get things finished!!!!!!!

To 'New year's resolution' or not?

2010-01-01T03:00:00.000-08:00

For the last few years I've given up on even setting new year's resolutions, what's the point I never keep them. Don't even know anyone that does. And they always seem to be the same ones, get fit, lose weight, eat right with the occasional read more books, get back to art.

Is there anyone out there that has actually kept their new year's resolutions? Is there a way of setting them and actually achieving success?

Having said all this I am one to make a 'what I want to do this year' list and it usually becomes more of a yearly to-do list like a daily to-do list. So what do I have to do this year?

1. Finish renovations on the house
2. Finish planning wedding and get married
3. Pay off more of home loan
5. Finish craft projects not finished from this year
6. Get body ready for pregnancy
7. Extend work skills
8. Start a vegetable garden
9. Maintain happy house and marriage
10. Continue to be pill free, (finally I have come off my antidepressants and want to stay that way!)
11. Living more frugally and environmentally responsible with the main focus being on recycling and getting others to do so as well as being self sustainable as possible. (bring on the solar panels, veggie patch, chooks and water tanks!

I also should be less sporadic when it comes to blogging. Anyhow lets see how things go. I got a feeling this is going to be a busy and exciting year! By the way did I mention I'll be turning 30 this January?

Happy new year everyone, hope it's a good one for you all and that you make the most of it. Hope you pass by and keep in touch with comments and follow me towards being more environmentally responsible. We can do it!... and should do it!

My Swap Parcel

2009-12-20T14:32:00.000-08:00

I got my swap package the other day and I must say WOW what a wonderful package! Here are some photos of what was inside the HUGE parcel.

As you can see I got spoilt by Pammy Sue! The beautiful pineapple shawl in the background is just perfect to snuggle up with.

Here are some cute cowboy inspired Christmas ornaments, already hanging on our tree I must say!

And last but not least two wonderfully festive pot holders. I just love the sparklly yarn.

Thank you sooooo much Pammy Sue. It's been wonderful having you as a swap partner and learning all about you. I hope we can keep in touch over the years to come.

Another Cupcake post... why not?!

2009-12-10T00:34:00.000-08:00

Ok made some more cupcakes recently and tried some different colours, recipe and icing designs. What do you think?

I really need to get on with things and stop fussing about the cupcakes... although eating them has been fun!

Daydream among the flowers

2009-11-24T12:41:00.000-08:00

A few flower ideas I like for myself and the bridesmaids. I must say though I am being very indecisive when it comes to the flowers. Nothing has really captured my heart yet. The only thing I've been able to decide on is that I want lots of different flowers in my bouquet and feathers. I can't even decide on whether I want red or white flowers.

Ring Bearer pillows and favours

2009-11-18T18:08:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd post a few photos of the ring bearer pillow I made and the favors we've decided on for the wedding. I did try several other things for the pillow like a crochet pillow and then I even tried a quilt block pillow from left over material from the bridesmaid dresses but both of these just failed so I went for the simple ribbon/bow pillow made from some lovely duchess satin which I scored for $1.00 a meter! it was on the clearance rack for $8.00 a meter and I just wanted 20cm so the woman said here have a meter for a dollar. The brooch you can see on it was some old costume jewelery I bought at a clearance sale years ago. I was going though my jewelery box looking for a ring and saw it and bob's your uncle it was the perfect finishing touch. The ribbon was left overs from decorating the unity candles and the stuffing was left overs from another craft adventure so all up I think this pillow cost me $5.00 not bad considering the ones in the magazines are around $30.00 to $50.00.

The favors will hopefully add some color to the tables and be a yummy treat for our guests. 2 chocolate hearts and the traditional 5 sugar almonds. I almost bought the ribbon from a fabric store for something like 80c a meter but then found the perfect stuff at the Reject shop $3.50 for 91 meters of curling ribbon and $2.00 for 45 meters of the red ribbon. Thank God I didn't pay the full price from the fabric store. I mean people are just going to untie it and throw it away.

If you want chocolate hearts don't go to candy stores they charge like 50c each. We have a local wholesaler and its like $22.00 per kilo and you get around 160 pieces and the chocolate quality is very good!

And the Cupcake drama continues

2009-11-10T03:59:00.000-08:00

Ok I have a confession to make, making your own cupcake wedding cake is just a good excuse for trialing cup cake recipes. We have been at it again this time trying the most awesome berries and white chocolate mudcake cupcakes. The recipe worked wonders and the cakes were to die for BUT bad news was they were too hard after being put in the fridge and the cost got a bit much with all the chocolate and berries. But still an awesome recipe to make for other occassions that dont require 130 cupcakes.

We tried out the beautiful blue foil patties which I paid good money for and while the blue shine is divine the size of the cupcakes are HUGE and look rediculous. The red cherry-on-top look was also not so great for a wedding, more comical and suited to a birthday so we ditched that idea too.

Finally we got the look right with blue frosting and silver candy balls and cheap silver pattie pans. If only I'd known I would never have spent so much cash on the blue metalic ones. Oh well.
We kept this batch in the fridge for 2 days, overnight, like we would have to when it came to the wedding. We also made them using a simple vanilla recipe and added some berry mix so that they didnt set solid when kept refrigerated. Taste testing them on the second day I was suprised and relieved to find that they still tasted fresh and soft.

All we have to do now it figure out how to transport 130ish cupcakes to the reception centre without them melting in the car or getting squished. Any ideas?????????

Mini Me Cake Topper

2009-10-28T03:29:00.000-07:00

I have been at it again, making stuff for our wedding. This time I've been making our cake toppers. We wanted these cute birds from Etsy but we can't afford the $150.00 although I do think they are worth it. So instead I'm making another set of little people like I made for my sister's wedding.

Here is a photo of my mini me. I like the end product but she is a bit broken. Her head is lose and luckly there is a toothpick holding it on. She's also been glued back together having fallen and broken in two from the waist. You can see the crack around her middle if you look at her from the back but since that won't really be visible I'm not going to worry about it. All I need to do now is to make her a REALLY long veil which I'll make out of touli. Best part about her is that she has little red shoes like I'll be wearing!!!!!

Top of the Cake

2009-10-25T05:24:00.001-07:00

Just a bit more progress on the cupcake stand this weekend. Just need to figure out how to incorporate some red into the cake. Red flowers on top?, red flowers scattered in between cupcake or glazed cherries on top of every large cupcake. (only top layer will have mini cupcakes)

Also bought the maid of honour's dress but need to return it as I noticed this morning that there were some pulled threads in the skirt. Will post a photo of that when I swap it.

Pringle Containers and Wrapping Ribbon?

2009-10-20T06:07:00.000-07:00

It seems we have solved the wedding cupcake stand issue and we've done so with empty Pringle containers, a bit of plaster, liquid nails and silver wrapping ribbon. Who would have thought? At the moment we are waiting for the liquid nail glue to dry so hopefully that will dry and set hard.
If all works out this 5 layered stand would have cost us around $60.00 Aus dollars. I just love the silvery goodness.

So far this is the best example of cupcakes I have found on the net with the colour scheme I am going for. We have bought both blue and silver metallic cupcake patties but we are not sure which ones we will use. Chocolate mud cake is looking like a winner for the cupcakes but something with Bailies also sounds good.

First of the Bridesmaid Dresses

2009-10-11T13:38:00.000-07:00

I have spent most of my last two weekends attempting to make one of the bridesmaid dresses. The pattern is from Vogue and you can see it in the previous post. I must say it was a bit of a challenge. I've never made anything with lining AND interfacing. I'm also usually hopeless with darts as well but this time I marked them properly and based them before sewing.

The dress is made out of navy sateen. As you can see it will be accessorized with red shoes and red earrings as well as a bouquet of red flowers. I now have just one more of these to make and then another one in a different pattern for my maid of honour.

Yes I am busy busy busy!

Something Weddingy

2009-09-25T12:57:00.001-07:00

I've just come to terms with the fact that our wedding is just 6 months away. Yes the locatio, photographer and celebrant are booked, and the dress bought but other than that nothing has been done about it since March. I have thought about it on and off on occasions but a lot of the things are still up-in-the-air. We have lots of ideas regarding different aspects of the wedding like the song for the first dance, the kind of cupcakes for the cake but we have no idea what we WANT and this seems to be one of our, or at least definantely MY biggest problem. As I look through the internet for inspiration I just seem to come across irritation... more ideas, more options!

My sister has been helpful while I've been away. She found some fab red satin pumps for the bridesmaides at reduced prices. There was NOway I was going to dish out 150$ for each bridesmaid but at $49.95 bingo! right on budget.

We have made a somewhat decision to put our (mum's and mine) sewing skills to the test and sew the bridesmaid dresses. This is the pattern we have bought...

2009-08-31T07:21:00.000-07:00

The rainbow cardie is finally FINISHED! Just thought I'd let you all know I didn't let the darn thing get the better of me. I worked and worked on it and finally finished it off with some nice red buttons. I am so over making baby cardigans after this one. I think it will be a long time before I make another one. I am looking into making socks next. Anyone have any ideas as to where to get a crochet sock pattern?

There are also some yummy yarny things that I purchased the otherday. Lovely sock yarn, yummy crochet cotton size 10 in lovely navy, grey, cream and green. It's the same stuff I made the maroon doilies in so I know it will work well. I just can't wait to use the stuff!

The BossHoss Rock Berlin!

2009-08-27T15:10:00.001-07:00

Last weekend Axel and I went to see the awesome 9 piece German cowboy band called The BossHoss who sound and act like they've come right out for Nashville but are actually from Berlin. They started off by doing country versions of famous pop and rock songs, some including Britney Spears, Toxic and The White Stripes, Seven Nation Army. They now have their own songs too which are pretty awesome. At the concert they had a 'suprise' for the audience, a 20ish piece brass and string section that added the most awesome tones and edge to their songs. If I could work out YouTube I'd love to post some video that I took on the night. Here are some photos from the night.

The BossHoss, oh how great they are in their hats and boots!

The original 2 man setup, Boss and Hoss, oh how sexy that Hoss is! I have a crush on him and I don't care that Axel knows hehehehehe.

The fans wearing all the essential gear!

And lastly Axel and I sitting out the long wait for the concert to start. Arrived at 4pm they didn't start until about 8ish. But it was all soooo worth the wait!!!!!!

Watery Women

2009-08-15T09:51:00.000-07:00

This is a quick sketch of a bride and her moon cresent bear, inspired by one of the stories in 'Women who run with the Wolves', a book I mentioned in another post. In the story the woman's husband returns from war and is distant and angry. She goes to the local witch doctor for help and he tells her to get a hair from the chest of the moon cresent bear. In my drawing I see the moon cresent bear as a symbol for women's anger, agression and we sometimes become a bride to it. But just like a husband it can support us and help us grow if we know how to live with it.

Here is another version of the woman inside a woman image. I worked this one on quality water paper and really concentrated on layering washes of colour to achieve some depth.

I hope everyone is having a lovely weekend. I know I am just layzing around dabbling in a bit or crochet and painting.

Working on Owl Woman

2009-08-14T16:18:00.001-07:00

Please excuse the bad photography. The picture is much lighter than this in the white areas. I am working more losely with the watercolours at the moment, really enjoying working over sketches and layering washes.

Wise Owl

2009-08-08T07:53:00.001-07:00

Latest watercolour of a woman in an owl mask. I think I would like to turn this into an oil painting with a langscape background. The eyes I love best, their haunting quality.

Here is the later sketch with landscape added. I will work on this image further and look at some older 15th centry paintings for inspiration. Here are some that I am looking at at the moment for ideas.

Leonardo Da Vinci, Ginevra

Hans Memling, Portrait of a Man

Leonardo Da Vinci, Mona Lisa

Emotional Ties and Psychic Growth

2009-08-02T08:53:00.001-07:00

This image of a woman/infant growing within an woman came about from an image I had when thinking about how much I miss my mother and how much I wish I could just curl up in her arms. The image and idea developed from that feeling into something that is not only about missing my mother but also about missing my conection to mother earth and nature in general. The woman inside could also be a new idea or project that is evolving and growing inside the woman's psyche. The hair is deliberately drawn to look like flowing water as well as hair. In some stories hair represents power. Water is symbolic of emotions. The women's hair is tangled to form a kind of umbilical cord. They nourish each other.

I have reworked the original image using photoshop making it look like a wood cut or lino cut, something I might like to turn it into in the future. Red is for blood, growth, blue is for watery emotions. It's a silvery blue so it also connects it to the moon, and the moon godesses knowing and power.

New Works

2009-07-30T12:25:00.000-07:00

This figure is wearing the Seal skin, soul skin mentioned in the book 'Women who run with the Wolves'. She also has a cresent moon for a third eye and wolf ears. The cresent moon, symbol for goddesses like Diana and Artemis. We have their powers within us.

A new piece that I'm working on. Something I'm always being asked to do. I guess women are often asked to 'lower their voices down' Made from a sketch colour added and manipulated in photoshop. The cheeks are red because I am always embarrassed when asked to quieten down.

Back To Art, simple as that?

2009-07-28T19:42:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since I've kept an art journal and actually worked on developing an idea artistically. I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with making art, love using it as a form of expression and for dealing with emotional issues but hate the selfishness and what I see as the uselessness of it (My art sits in the attic collecting dust) I also get caught up in thoughts like, is it any good? it's not important art, or the stuff that I do make that I think is important isnt seen by anyone so whats the point!? There are a million other questions and problems with my relationship with art and in particular my art. I'm not a big fan of the art world either, I think I've written about that before.

Having said that I'm just starting to realise that it doesn't have to be for anyone else. It doesn't have to hang in a gallery. I don't have to be working towards being a 'professional' artist, just being an 'artist' 'artmaker' is fine. This argument works for more personal works but sometimes I want to make art about bigger issues, personal but also related to something bigger, then being just an artmaker or artists for my own sake doesnt work, then I need to work towards being a professional artist and getting my stuff out there because it has to reach those who it is trying to speak to. And so I go again chasing my tail!

At the moment I'm just focusing on more personal ideas and so avoiding the issue above. All other ideas that are not of the personal sort are being filtered out until I can sort out the top dilema.

Here is some work that is in my visual diary at the moment. It's been inspired by a book called Women who Run with the Wolves, Clarissa Pinkola Estes. I see so much of myself in what she writes. I think I will need to read the book a few times to get all the information and advice out of it. So many of the problems facing women that she talks about relate to myself. The work is not only inspired by the ideas in the book, making art again in general has been inspired by this book. I recommed it to any woman of any age! It is like a bible for women.

Anyway I will share a few photos of some of my work that is happening at the moment.

This is a watercolour that is of a friend of mine, Bell. It's not meant to be a likeness of her but it has her red hair, and I was thinking of her when making it. I will pass on my book or buy one for her when I return home. I drew the wolf part as a mask with visible stitches because I think we have to work to make our connection with the wolf woman within us. So we stitch, we cut, we mold we do what we have to with our minds and hands to make ourselfs in the wolf woman's likeness. Here I just played around with a drawing I made using Adobe photoshop, getting back to my old art days where I did a fair bit of image manipulation type art.

I want to make this work again, and to not forget or cut off my 'art making' life. I will need support though and I feel finding it will be just as important as making art.

Bad Blogger and Crochet Disaster

2009-07-26T17:02:00.000-07:00

Yes I have been a bad blogger. It's been over a month since I last posted and I feel a little guilty about having neglected the blog. I am proud to announce though that I have been a good girl and have kept For The Love of Crochet Along, another blog I manage with a great bunch of crocheting chicks, up to date.

It's not that I haven't been doing anything crafty it's just uninspiring photos of my stuff and a lack of patience to sit and write. Above is a snippit of a doily I made a few weeks ago. I made another one (same pattern) last week too with the intention of making a set of three for under my sugar, coffe, tea pots. I've also been crocheting a baby jacket but the whole thing went to poo when I realised the neck wasn't wide enough for the body. Have to start the WHOLE thing again. It was almost finished when I realised. (Mind you I had already undone half of it when the arms were not the right size) I have a pattern now to work from, no more making it up myself!

Here are some photos of the disaster!

I tried to cut a bit of the top to make a larger neck opening but of course you cannot undo crochet from the opposite way that it's been worked... found that out the hard way.

It was looking cute, there was a bit more blue on the end and then a red edging all around. The sleeves also had a few read stripes on them. I will try again at a later point with the pattern found.

A Little Crochet Heart Doily

2009-06-14T11:19:00.000-07:00

I have been working on a little doily for a few weeks now, on and off between reading and crocheting the cardigans. I was thinking of using the doily to make a ring bearers cushion for our wedding but I am still undecided, I think I might make it through cross stitiching a pillow. Anyhoo, this is the first time I´ve attempted to crochet using cotton rather than yarn, and it is the smallest hook I´ve ever used too (1.25). I must say it is tricky. Getting the tension right takes practice and I don´t know how many times I´ve undone rows. I am getting better though, thank goodness and I am happy with the results so far.

The pattern is a free pattern I found online, Crochet Memories, Free crochet-a-long Hearts doily pattern. The pattern is pretty good just had trouble in one spot, still don´t know what its trying to tell me but I made up I didn´t understand myself and it seems to be still working. There are three different rounds of it, this is just the first two so I´ll keep you photographically posted as I finish the last two parts.

Hexagon Granny Square Cardigan

2009-06-13T00:04:00.000-07:00

I was looking online for another baby cardigan pattern. I´m not really interested in ones that require me to sew arms and back and fronts on, I like the more work from the top down kind of patterns because I find I can understand them better. Googling away I came upon this niffty pattern which is made up of two large hexagon grannys. I was quite baffled when I first saw the pattern, couldn´t really work out how the grannies formed the arms but after watching a youtube tutorial it all became quite clear. This pattern is from Bev and can be found here.

I wasn´t too keen on the holes from the granny square pattern so I decided to make mine from solid hexagrannies. I later found this on the net, a solid hexagranny cardigan. It´s good to see others coming up with similar ideas!

This solid hexagranny jacket is by Cozy´s Corner, and the pattern can be found here.

These last two photos are of my attempt to make a solid hexagranny jacket. So far its been really easy and I can see how it will become a jacket but I worry about the proportions. I think the sleeves will be too wide. I think in order to make the jacket long enough or wide enough the are holes have to be the size more suited for an 18 month old or 12 months old with the body measurements for a 3-6 month old. We shall see how we go.

The floppy hexagon granny and how it transforms into one side of a cardigan!

Here is now a photo of the finished product. I did alter the pattern a bit and put a few rows down the back to make it wider without making the sleeves wider. This was a bit of a bother and disformed it a little until I crocheted the edging. I put 4 rows of edging and no collar to make up for the adjusted back. Anyhow it all worked out in the end and I am pleased. Also a very quick project just 4 or 5 hours worth of work!

It's Finished and It's Cute!

2009-05-30T06:48:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post to show you the finished baby cardigan. I am very pleased with it and very glad that I pushed myself to try a new pattern for the bottom half. Usually I just continue in straight rows. Although, the pattern for the bottom half takes a lot of yarn and thus this little piece has taken about 6 50gm balls of yarn to complete, usually I get away with just over 3 balls. I'm not sure what aged baby it would fit, I think maybe about 12- 18 months. I made the arms very long so that the child won't grow out of it too quickly, when it's younger we can just roll the sleeves back in the manner you can see in the photo.

Another Baby Cardigan, but with a Twist, or More so a 'wave'

2009-05-03T11:34:00.000-07:00

Yes I am at it again crocheting baby cardigans for a baby that has not even been concieved yet. But this time I got a bit more adventerous and incorporated a different pattern for the bottom half. It takes forever to grow, 2 rows = 1 cm but I think it´s worth it! Here are some update photos.Hope everyone had a great weekend I did and even spent some of it crocheting on the subway in Berlin hehehehe people dont seem to care which is good but one lady asked to look and she spoke in German. She saw that it was for a baby and said something I just shook my head to say yes because I had no clue what she was saying later Axel told me she was congratulating me on being pregnant Oops! hehehehe oh well. I should probably tell people I dont uncerstand rather than pretending I do.

Lena´s First Birthday Present

2009-05-01T09:09:00.001-07:00

I got some great 4 ply yarn from one of the Saturday markets last week with the intention of making a baby cardigan for our ´someday´baby. I asked Axel to choose some yarn that he thought could be for a boy or girl and he chose this great yellow ball with specks of green, pink, red and blue.

Having completed it though I realised it was quite big and probably for a 1 year old not a new born. I could wait and keep it for when our future baby turns 1 or is big enough for it but then I thought why should it wait that long to be worn, Axel´s niece is turning 1 next week she would look great in it and it goes with the t-shirt we already got her. So alas the cardigan is now packed for Lena´s birthday and I will just have to keep on making others for our ´future´kids. We are that eager to make some but waiting until a better financial time. pooey also I don´t want to be pregant in my wedding dress.

Here are some photos of the cardigan...

Happy May Day to all the Germans reading this! Have a great weekend everyone.

Roses are Red...

2009-04-29T01:17:00.000-07:00

Above is a beautiful bunch of ribbon roses I came across while surfing the net. I came across this fantastic tutorial on Burda Style the other day and was thinking wouldn´t it be great if my bridesmaids actually had a posy of silky red ribbion roses instead of more maroon dark red real roses? This way I can match the red of the roses to our red satin shoes!

I bought some ribbion from the 1 € shop the other day and gave it a go. Above is a single flower and below is a bunch of them which I really like. They would work better if I had the florist wire and tape and could fix them properly. At the moment I´ve just tied them with a bit of yarn which means they move around and undo a bit when I arrange them in a bunch.

I will continue to experiment with the ribbion roses, making some with wider ribbion like in the first photo.

It's All About the Cookie!

2009-04-19T15:38:00.000-07:00

Yes we've been busy baking! Axel bought a cookie cook book a week ago and since then we have been making yummy little treats for our friends and of course ourselves. Axel actually surprised me and made the bottom batch all by himself. He burnt a few but I forgave him. Hehehehe! I was actually impressed by the way he dribbled the citrus icing on the cookies, so artistic!

These cookies above actually have white chocolate in the middle. Again Axel impressed me by melting the cooking chocolate in a double boiler, this is the same guy that eats can food or microwave heated meals when I am not around. I guess when the end product is something so yummy anyone could be motivated to cook!

There are 50 different recipes in this book so I'm sure I'll be posting a few more pictures of cookies in the near future. The only problem is I can feel my pants getting a bit tighter around the waist. Ahhhhhh

Patterns for Bridesmaid Dresses

2009-04-15T12:46:00.001-07:00

Sorry to do a random wedding blog entry but I was looking at some patterns for the bridesmaid dresses which I´m considering making myself. I´m loving the fun nature of this yellow number so cute but not sure how it will go for all the girls one is quite large up the top and would probably not feel comfortable in it. I am thinking of having different dresses and same colour though. Hmmm that´s where this pattern or batch of patterns would be good.

Front left, back right tickle my fancy but then they are such typical bridesmaid dresses. I want something that´s formal but not typical.

So far this black number, which we would make in navy blue with red accessories is the one my sister and mum are cheering for. I like it but maybe it´s too typically bridesmaidesque. It is classy and could be worn by all the bridesmaids... hmmmm we shall continue to look as there is plenty of time. Anyone got some pics of really cool bridesmaid dresses that are perhaps navy blue?

Yummy...

2009-04-11T03:03:00.000-07:00

Lack of money has got me trying to convince Axel we should stay in and cook more often. Don´t know what he thinks of that because he does like eating out. I think it´s a single guy thing.
Anyhow we planned a weekend menu and made a big batch of my not so famous vegie soup with meatballs. This should feed us for 3 days hehehehe. Above you can see the small space I have to work in. The kitchen is literally about 1.5 meters by 2 meters. I´m used to mum´s huge kitchen with all the fancy appliances.

Hope you are all well and enjoying some nice weather, I know we are! Mild and sunny just the way I like it!

Berlin I Have Arrived!

2009-04-09T06:44:00.000-07:00

So here I am again in that beautiful city called Berlin. It's great to see Axel again and the appartment feels like a home away from home. I've already done some sight seeing visiting the Brandenburg gate and Jewish memorial. I've also started the horrifying task of finding work in a foreign city. It seems there are millions of others like myself looking for 'teaching english' jobs. I'm not quite sure how things will go because most of the jobs start next semester which starts in August and I leave at the end of August. I've also started reading for uni and gathering information for my first assignment. The weather has been so nice though that it's hard to stay inside reading, all I want to do is wander around and go exploring.

20 years since the wall came down, it mark the event you can get your photo taken with an East side soldier and get a passport (fake of course) with the original passport stamps from the different areas of Berlin, American, Russian etc. Only 2 Euros what a touristy bargan!

Jewish memorial

Infront of the Brandenburg Gate

Anyhow I will try and keep this blog updated although with uni work and job searching and a bit of sight seeing, there is really not much time for anything else! Ah but who's complaining. I love this city!!!!!!

Up Date on Block Swap

2009-04-03T20:00:00.000-07:00

Finally Kathy the terrible block swap partner has finished the last of her blocks she owes. I am so sorry to the January partner who's been waiting 2 months for her block. I hope it's worth it.

P.S That's the first time I've made a maple leaf block with an applique stem.

New Handmade Felted Bead Necklaces

2009-04-01T01:58:00.000-07:00

I've been busy making a batch of felt bead necklaces. I'm hoping to take them with me to Germany where I hope sell them at one of the craft markets in Berlin. I'm really happy with these necklaces mainly because I feel I've done the best I could with the materials I've used and I believe they are of great quality, no corners cut. Thick tiger wire, metal beads and clasps, fittings and chain, none of that cheaper plastic stuff that looks like metal, and of course tightly felted beads made carefully by hand and quality wooden beads.

Some of the necklaces are adjustable and finished off with a wooden bead.

These beads are actually made with wool that I've washed, carded and dyed by my very own hands. Wool supplied from my uncle's farm in Toolernvale, Victoria.

I thought these hot pink beads deserved to be glammed up with some gorgeous silver metal beads.

Hopefully I will be able to establish an Etsy shop as well but I have a few things to work out before I do that, like how extra income (if things go well) will affect my taxes etc. and if I need to register it all as a business with business name and ABN number. Anyhow it's been a dream of mine to sell stuff at a craft market so I hope I can live out that dream. Also how cool would it be to live that out in Berlin?!

Wish me luck!

Neck Warmer From Germany

2009-03-31T13:53:00.000-07:00

There were a few things I made while I was away in Germany. Being a lazy blogger while I was there I didn't actually post any photos of the stuff I made. I've decided to make up for that and post some now. This is a neck warmer that I made. I was so sick of wearing scarfs that didn't really cover my neck well that I decided to go online to find a pattern for something that would keep me warm. It is a ribbed effect even though it is crochet. I love the effect and think it would be a great way to make a whole jumper, crochet but with the 'knitted' look. The only problem I had with this neck warmer was that the top would curl and expose some of my neck to the cold. I had to reshape it every night to make it uncurl.

New Felted Bracelet

2009-03-31T02:21:00.000-07:00

I've been making a range of felt bead necklaces lately with the hope of opening an Etsy store. Yesterday I tried making a bracelet in the same fashion. I think the colour combination works but I might turn this one into a necklace and make the felt beads smaller for the bracelet. It was a little difficult to wear. What do you guys think?

A Crafter's Suitcase

2009-03-30T01:50:00.000-07:00

Just thought I'd show you all how a crafter like myself packs for a 6 months overseas trip... Do I hear you ask 'where are the clothes?' I promise you there are SOME under there, under the watercolors, paintbrushes, jewelery making bits and pieces and wool tops. I don't know how much this suit case weighs at the moment but I don't think it's looking good for under 20 kg.

My Sister's Wedding

2009-03-29T04:44:00.000-07:00

As mentioned in the previous post my sister got married recently on the 21st of March. It was a great day and the event took place at the Royal motor Yacht club in Williamstown.

If you look back a few posts you would see that my younger sister Annie and I made the cake toppers for Stef's wedding. Here is a photo of them sitting on the wedding cake. I must say they looked great and lots of people were amazed that we had made them ourselves. I'm now thinking of what I will make for my own wedding, if I will make another couple like this based on Axel and myself or if we will go for little animals, pair of birds or rabbits.

Axel and I scrubbed up pretty well for the day. We have set a date for our wedding, 11th of April 2010 to be held at Lakeside receptions.

The Ring

2009-03-28T22:43:00.000-07:00

I am sorry to those of you who have been visiting my blog over the past 3 months just to find that I am still sitting in Hong-Kong airport. I have totally neglected this blog even though there has been so much happening that I could have written about. Axel came over to Australia February 17th and just left on the 26th of March after attending my sister's wedding on the 21st of March. During this time we also picked up my engagement ring which I blogged about in past entries. The jewelers did a perfect job in creating my vision, it is EXACTLY how I wanted it! Even though Axel had his doubts when I first pitched him my idea, as soon as he saw the final product he loved it and often would ask to look at it again and again, pulling my hand to have a look. Here are some photos of the ring...

I will be heading off to Germany again in a week so I hope I can keep you all posted on how I'm going over there. I will be unemployed but looking for work while I'm there and that is making me quite nervous. I will also try and continue to improve my German language skills and set up a craft stall at the local markets. Anyhow we shall see how it all goes. Hope you have all been well while I've been away from blogland. I promise to post more often!

Sitting not so Pretty in Hong Kong's Airport

2009-01-23T20:43:00.000-08:00

Well what does one do when they are stuck in transit for 12 hours? Yep they hop on a computer and write a blog entry. What does one write about while sitting waiting for 7 more hours to pass? Well I don't know... I guess I could give you all an update regarding my trip to Rome and Germany. I was hoping to write about it when I got home and had some photos down loaded but oh well I'll just have to post a bit of a gallery later.

This trip to Germany was great, good chance to get a feel for what it will be like living with Axel, which will become more apparent after the 6 month stint in April. As expected he is easy to live with, quite relaxed, flexible and extremely attentive and helpful. I don't know what I was like to live with, at times a pain in the bum I suspect but he assures me that I was fine. I'm sure the snoring wasn't a hit with him but hopefully the home cooked meals made up for that. Anyhow I am so excited to have him back in Australia in three weeks even though it's just for 6 weeks this time, I have to wait until October before he moves here permanently.

Well what can I say about Rome...? First of all you cannot turn a corner without there being something amazing and monumental there in front of you. While 2 and a half days is not really enough we did manage to get to see most of the main attractions. Spanish steps, Colosseum, St Peter's, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, St Angelo's Castle, Vatican museums, Sistine Chapel and a few other small churches and museums with significant artworks. We also got a bit of a look at the Roman forum, all the ancient ruins. It's so amazing to think that you are walking on the same ground where others so important in history also walked. Very inspiring actually. I must say getting a good feed and at a reasonable price was tricky and there were some annoying moments. Not being able to speak any Italian also makes it quite tricky. It's not like Germany in that sense, you really do need some knowledge of the local tongue to get what you want. Anyhow overall it was a great cultural and artistic experience!

Anyhow I hope everyone is doing well and are enjoying either the hot or very cold weather, depending on where you are in the world. I'm not looking forward to returning to a 30 degrees C day in Melbourne, but then at least there is air conditioning at mum's.

Hope to write again soon and post some more holiday pics! Stay tuned

Our Engagement Dinner in Xanten, Germany

2009-01-06T09:14:00.000-08:00

While I was still in Australia Axel, being the ´events manager´that he is, organised a family dinner at a local restaurant to celebrate and officially announce our engagement. Here are some photos of the evening.

Axel´s parents, grandmothers and brothers, with their girlfriends attended the dinner at the restaurant Dalmatien. It was a lovely evening and the food was great. Axel got up and officially announced why we were there and that we planned on getting married in April 2010. We were then congratulated by members of his family and everyone officially welcomed me into the Remy family which was very touching and yes I almost cried I was that overwhelmed with happiness.

It was a little embarrassing. Axel and I had to go to a doctor´s appointment and also get Axel´s hair cut before the dinner. It took much longer than we thought so we actually didn´t have time to go home and get ready thus why we looked like this... Axel in tracksuit pants and I in a t-shirt and jeans. Not the best look for your engagement dinner especially when everyone else is dressed up! Oh well...

In April 2010 I will be able to officially call baby Lena my niece. I already love her so much!

New Year´s Eve with a 180° view of Berlin

2009-01-03T09:59:00.000-08:00

Yes I am doing things a bit backwards here, posting NYE photos with the intention to put some other Christmas photos on later. Sorry about that guys. Anyhow as mentioned before NYE in Berlin was really all about the fireworks. We were lucky enough to have our friend Nadine invite us to join her and Erni to view the fireworks from her work place´s roof top. It was amazing! Beautiful 180+ degrees of Berlin. I must say it didn´t take long for the sky to be filled with firework smoke which was a shame because it spoilt the view we had.
Here are some photos from the night...

Axel and I after the NYE count down.

Friends Nadine, Erni and Simone.

Handmade Christmas Presents

2009-01-01T23:04:00.000-08:00

Just thought I´d post a few photos of the Chrissy presents I made for Axel´s niece and mum. Both presents were appreciated and many thanks were given. It was amazing and a great relief for me to see the cardigan and beanie I made Lena fit so perfectly. It´s tricky making clothes for a baby that is growing so fast, you have no idea how much they will grow over the 5 months you are away.

Anyway I hope everyone has had a wonderful Christmas and a great start to the new year, I know mine has gone off with a ´bang´! I can´t believe how many fireworks were lit in Berlin. Everywhere on the streets people were throwing those little bangy fireworks (I don´t know what they are called fireworks are illegal in Australia) and then the other rocket ones. The appartment above our friends caught on fire from fireworks sparks. The firebrigade and police had to come but by the time they did our friends had broken into the appartment and put out the fire which we later found out was just a flaming plastic chair on the balcony.

As you can see it looked quite bad.

Chritmas In Germany

2008-12-23T02:14:00.001-08:00

Hi everyone! Finally after 30 odd hours I made it back to Germany and have been reunited with my darling Axel. It´s kind of weird seeing him after 5 months. You go from kind of being single to being part of a couple in a flash. Very strange for the brain to get around but lovely for the heart!

Anyhow after a nice long sleep in Axel and I went to Öberhause for some Christmas shopping and lucky for me there was this great Christmas market next to the shopping centre. I remember going to a Christmas market in Berlin when I first came to Germany in 1999. I was worried I was going to miss out because I was coming so close to Christmas time and most close just before Christmas.

Here is a photo of some yummy potato fritters we had with apple sauce and the famous Gluwein! It tasted even better than I remember it. Hmmmmm Gluwein.... I also got to have this yummy cheesy potato pizza thing and some cooked mushrooms with herb sauce and fried onions, what an awesome dinner!

There was also some winter fun to be had with this snow slide set up and another section for kids to ride snow mobiles. We decided we will wait till we get to Berlin to have a go.

Anyhow today Axel and I have the honour of decorating the Christmas trees and then we are off for dinner in Xanten with his family, the dinner will be our engagement dinner and so it´s going to be quite a special event.

So if I don´t add another post before Christmas I will take this opportunity to wish you all a merry Christmas and a wonderful new year. May you all be blessed and surrounded by loved ones and good health.

Gingerbread Men

2008-12-14T01:29:00.000-08:00

More gingerbread men madness! It's a great way to spend a wet Saturday afternoon, especially when you have babysitting duties!

Eliona adding a lovely blue icing suit to her gingerbread man!

And here are some of our decorated men! They not only look good they taste good too. Yes the kids' dinner was spoilt, I am a bad babysitter!

You're Invited!

2008-12-13T16:41:00.000-08:00

Ok I know the wedding is like a million years away but you can't give me a design project and not expect me to jump to it and spend all my free time fussing over it. So having said that 16 months to go and I've pretty much finalised the design for our wedding invites. I'm now in the process of designing the Save the Date cards and RSVP cards which will just utilise the same design elements but different sizes and compositions.

For those of you in blogland here is a sneak peek at the invite.

It's not a very fancy invite, i.e no frills and ribbons etc but I have tried a few different types of paper and this one is printed on a lovely 250gms textured white card. I tried to print on some of that lovely metallic paper in an ivory colour but the ink didn't stick. I will see if I can get some that is printer friendly because ultimately that's what I would like them printed on, just to make them a bit 'weddingy' and a bit of shimmer did no one any harm! Even though I've been designing them Axel has been part of the process and it's his choice to use blue in our wedding. So I am not being a bridzilla in any sense. He also agreed on all the other elements so is just as happy as I am with the results. I just have to wait until he comes in February to show him the different papers and then he can choose which one we will use.

November and December Swap Blocks

2008-12-10T01:33:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's been just over a year when I first joined the block swap. It's been a great experience making very different blocks for 12 different ladies around the world. I've seen this block swap as a great way to experiment with colours and new block designs. As you can see below I've even had a go at a log cabin style block! I've also used my 'blanket' stitch on my machine for one of the other blocks which was the first time I ever did any applique.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the women who have participated in the swap and who have sent me the most wonderful blocks ever! I am thinking about putting all the blocks together to make a small quilt that I can either hang or drape over the couch. I will be in Germany for most of next year and without a sewing machine so I must remember to let the administrator know that I won't be swapping next year. I'm quite sad about that, it has been lots of fun.

It's Starting to Taste a Lot Like Christmas!

2008-12-09T01:36:00.000-08:00

Well there is only a week and a half of this term and we are making the most of it by packing in as many Christmas activities as possible. This week we've already started on the Christmas baking and turned out a batch of yummy gingerbread men and Christmas cookies. The kid's had a great time putting their 'play dough' skills to good use and I let my creative side get the better of me and four tubes of writing icing. In the afternoon we also settled down with a Christmas D.V.D 'Elf' which the kids thought was a hoot!

Both the biscuits and gingerbread men turned out so well that I'm now thinking I should make some myself for gifts. I used the gingerbread man cutter and gingerbread recipe I received as part of a swap package last year. Makes me wish I was part of a Christmas swap this year!

Anyhow I hope you are all well and enjoying the lead up to the holidays, baking your own gingerbread men and other Chrissy delights!

Update on the wedding planning... the dress has been ordered! I'd love to blog about it but I know my fiance reads this blog so I'm afraid I can't mention it here as I'd be giving it away and I want it to be a surprise on the day.

My Engagement Ring, Part 1

2008-11-27T02:55:00.000-08:00

I looked and looked on the Internet and in every jewellery store in my area and after I looked some more and went through the 40+ pages of google images I ended up finding the inspiration for my engagement ring in my mother's humble stash of jewellery. It is a man's ring from the 70's shipped over from Greece by my dad's grandmother, a wedding gift in fact. From the moment I first saw it I thought that is it, that's my ring! The intricate star design and the filigree on the band I find divine. Being a man's ring it is quite large and bold so I am getting the jeweller to make a more 'feminine' version of the ring. To do so I am combining my fathers ring with this one.

This is my father's ring with the star design that I love so much

Here is a quick sketch of the way I want to combine the two rings together. The top will be exactly like my father's and the band just like the first ring.

I have found a jeweller who will make the ring for me we just have some design issues that we need to work out. Because I want the ring smaller and the diamond smaller the star shape might have less detail and not look exactly like I want it. Anyhow we have about 5 weeks to get the ring made, 3 before I go back to Germany for Christmas and 2 before Axel returns to Melbourne. As the title suggests this is the first part to the engagement ring saga, stay tuned!

It's Been A While

2008-11-24T02:40:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, yep it's been a while since I've written and a lot has happened since. There's some good news and some bad news to share today. First the bad/sad news... Our friends' dear baby boy Eli passed away last weekend after numerous complications related to his bone marrow transplant. Baby Eli was diagnosed with leukemia when he was 4 months old and had been battling the disease for another 9 months before he left us. He got a transplant and everything was going well, but then other complications occured as they do when one's immune system is down. You can read about little Eli's story at http://www.eli-simpson.blogspot.com It is truly and inspirational story! I never got to give Eli his cross stitch present. I am not sure what to do with it now, should I still give it to his parents?

On the flip side I got engaged a few weeks ago. It was very romantic...not!!!! Axel and I set a date over a visa application form 4 am in the morning! So I've put on my wedding planer hat and at the moment I am running and ringing around to find a suitable venue for the reception and trust me I'm already over it. People just charge so much for a wedding and then there's all the extras! Also we are looking at 80 guests so most places are too big for us and restaurants are just too small. We have heaps of time to organise other parts of the wedding but for the reception we are limited. We only have 4 weekends together in Feb/March 2009 where we can both look at places in Melbourne then we won't be in the country until 5 months before the wedding which is really too late to book a place. One thing that is really peeing me off too is going to see places that look great in their website photos and you turn up and the place is a dump! As I said, I am OVER it already.

Anyhow at least I've decided on my engagement ring and finalised the design I want. I modeled it on a ring my father got from his grandmother. Its quite funky indeed. I'll post some photos when I get it.

Hope you are all well and happy crafting!

Framed Goodies

2008-10-15T07:45:00.000-07:00

Yes I've been to the framers! Above is a print by Ashley from Kitty Genius which I bought for my sister and her fiance for their engagement, but then the party didn't happen so I didn't bother with getting the print framed until recently. Since I've already given her her wedding present, (deposit for wedding photos) mum said I can give it to her for her kitchen tea, great idea mum that I will do! I am so jealous now, it looks so good in the frame that I wanna keep it. Ashley has some other brilliant prints so I'll just have to buy some more, once the bloody Aus dollar rate picks up!

As you can see I finally finished the cross stitch for our friends dear baby Eli, mind you it took only a year and a half to complete... According to Eli's blog they are back in Melbourne so I should go and give it to them soon before they head back home to Lakes Entrance. I am quite please with both frames and I hope that their new owners like them too.

Hope you are all well in blogland.

Crocheting up for the Winter

2008-10-11T07:11:00.000-07:00

I am going back to Germany for Christmas and the whole of January so I've decided to make a few scarfs and beanies to take with me, keep me warm while I'm walking around Berlin, gallery hopping and scouting the local op shops, second hand book stores etc. (Ahhh man I can't wait) Anyhooo this is the first scarf that I am working on. It is an idea I stole/borrowed from another blogger Inkberryblue who took the idea and pattern from an other blogger Crochetroo who originally wrote the pattern as a bookmark. Click on Crochetroo for pattern. Just like Inkberryblue's mine is also pulling a bit because of the weight of the yarn but I am ok with it, I jusr pull it back into shape every now and then.

I actually spent a bit of money this time and bought the most beautiful Jo Sharp wool which is also 5% cashmere and 10% silk and boy can you feel those two fibers in the mix! At our local wool and tapestry shop there is a lot of tweed yarn and I am not complaining because I love that look. This one has spots of cream and black through it which I really like. So far the scarf has cost 20$ in yarn I hope this ball is going to see me though to the end because I don't think I could justify another 10$ for another ball. 30$ scarf, hmm a bit much don't you think? Anyhow see how we go!

Personalised Wedding Toppers

2008-10-06T05:26:00.000-07:00

My middle sister Stefanie is getting married in March next year and she asked me to make the wedding cake toppers. With the some help from my younger sister Annie we came up with these two figurines. The wedding dress is made to look like the actual dress my sister is wearing and being a huge comic fan we decided to give her fiance a superman t-shirt as a shirt. I must say after working out how to sculpt these little people making them was a whole lot of fun!

Sewing Shirts for My Man

2008-10-01T06:55:00.000-07:00

I have nearly finished sewing my first male shirt! Just some cuffs and buttons and it's done. This one is of course for my darling Axel, although after our discussion tonight sounds like the sleeves will be too short for him, and maybe the length of it too. Damn 6 foot 3 inch men, just make sewing life more difficult hehehehe! Anyhow I told him I'd finish it and send it to him, he can try it on and then tell me if it needs longer sleeves etc.

I have to admit it's been tricky sewing this shirt. The collar was easy to make but hard to sew onto the actual shirt. The shirt has a double yoke as well but that wasn't so hard to work out actually. Putting the buttons on the collar and on the cuffs has got me worried, actually just doing button holes on the front makes me nervous. I have an automatic button hole maker on my machine but sometimes it stuffs up so that doesn't help me much.

I've bought some other shirt material, more 'evening wear' material. The top one is for me quite expensive 18$ per meter and I needed 3 because it's narrow. The other stuff was on special 6$. I'm saving the expensive stuff until I'm more experienced. The shirt above is actually made from fabric that was on sale, down to 3$ per meter so all up including thread and buttons, interfacing it will cost about 16$ a bargain hehehehe.

Anyhow I sent Axel these photos and he likes the fabrics very much which is good to know. We will just have to see how the top one fits before I go and make the others. Will keep you all posted!

Block Swap, I'm finally up to date!

2008-09-27T05:01:00.000-07:00

Here are just some quick pics of two blocks I finished for my block swap partners. I'm actually about 4 months behind and have just finished catching up. I had two other blocks that I finished ages ago but haven't gotten around to actually posting until now. The two themes for these blocks are red, white and blue and earthy tone stars. I hope that my partners like their blocks.

I will have to post a photo of the blocks these two lovely ladies sent me, they are really quite lovely. Thank you both!

More Onion Paintings!

2008-09-25T11:54:00.000-07:00

This is what I do at 4.30 am when I am depressed and have been sleeping all day to keep bad thoughts out of my head. True art therapy!

Axel wanted a photo of me at the exact time, I tried to smile so he doesn't think I'm too depressed.

It's Been 7 Odd Years...

2008-09-21T10:27:00.000-07:00

I did something today that I haven't done in about 7 years... yep I made an oil painting. It's not very good and it's not exactly exciting or inspiring but it is still an oil painting. I don't know what possessed me, well actually I've been fidgety all day, ok, ok, ok all week and I've been doing some sewing, no luck there really, and trying to think of something amazing to make for Axel's birthday and christmas present, again no luck so at about 11pm I get out an old tube of brown oil paint and a small canvas I bought at the 2 $ shop and start sketching an onion.

I must admit I was so scared to start because I didn't know if I would remember how to paint after so long. Anyhow I must say I sure am rusty, there are so many problems with this painting but meh... it's alright for a quick painting of a sprouting onion. Picking up the paint brush again made me realise that I've been running around trying to learn all sorts of new skills that I've forgotten some of the others I have. I used to just paint and draw once upon a time, now it's the last thing on my mind. I think I have to change that. If I loose this skill then I don't think I could forgive myself.

The colours are darker in this photo than in real life. The onion is quite redish purple not so blackish. It's also quite a small canvas, about 15 by 20 cms.

What's New Pussy Cat?

2008-09-18T00:47:00.000-07:00

It feels like ages ago that I last posted an entry. I've still been sick, every week it's something different, stomach bug, runny nose, sore throat, aches and pains, sinuses then stomach bug again. It has been never ending this term! I am just waiting for the boss to call me into his office and say, 'Kathy you are too sick, you are costing us too much in sick leave so I'm going to have to let you go!' then I imagine myself breaking out in tears and crying 'oh I'm sorrryyyyyyy... boo hoo' Ah thank God for school holidays which start this Friday at 2.30pm!! Two weeks of relaxation, sleep and warm cosy indoors without having to come within and inch of a school kid with runny nose. If I don't feel better by the end of the two weeks I will be feeling pretty close to jumping off the Westgate bridge!

Anyhow some crafty news... I've finished sewing my first shirt! I started one for my sister who then decided she hated it and wouldn't wear it, so it didn't matter when it didn't work out. Then I made one for myself with cute bumble bee material and it turned out perfectly! I was so pleased but disappointed that the pattern was so dodgy, short and tent like. I've decided that I need to add pleats at the back to give it some shape. I'll post a photo once I've done the adjustments.
I also finished the baby cardigan that I started a while back, adding the buttons last night. I've decided to give it to our neighbours who just had a baby boy called River. I haven't seen him yet because I don't want to share my sick germs.

I can't wait to make more of these, it was so easy to make and so cute. I hope baby River likes it!

Another Crochet Baby Jacket

2008-08-30T20:35:00.000-07:00

Here is a photo of the finished crochet jacket that I was working on. I think the yellow star buttons finishes it off quite nicely. I've started a new jacket but this time using nice pure wool with a 4mm hook instead of 4.5mm. I am getting nicer edges without wholes just by ch2 instead of ch3 to make a dc at the start of a new row. I also have realised that quality yarn is the way to go and that $2 yarn looks like $2. So I've gone and bought some pure wool yarn for $5 for 50 gm balls. I must say I cannot wait to use the stuff. In this jacket below you can see some of the orange yarn I bought. I am going to make the rest of the sleeves orange and brown stripes. I am also thinking of putting teddybear buttons on this one.

I Finished Sewing My First Piece of Clothing

2008-08-26T06:13:00.000-07:00

I finally finished sewing my first piece of clothing. As you will see if you go through my blog I do sew a bit but only quilts. I've always wanted to sew clothes because most of the time I think the stuff in the shops is either crap or just don't fit me. And so here after my third lesson I've finished sewing a hoody with zip.

I've made a lot of mistakes while sewing this hoody but I'm glad I did because I've learnt so much from those mistakes. I now know how to use my zip foot and to use and adjust different stitches. I also now know what those nodes are for on the patterns.

I wore the hoody to work today and all day I was trying to put things in the front pockets but of course there are none on this. I think I will go back and put some on so I'm not forever feeling for pockets that are just not there.

My next project is a short sleeve blouse for my sister in some nice blue cotton material, which she just told me is the same material that the cleaners wear at her work. Oh dear I guess she won't be wearing it out then. Still it will be good for practicing and I'm sure I'll learn lots from the experience. Collar and buttons and interfacing oh my!

Afghan is in it's New Berlin Home!

2008-08-24T07:22:00.000-07:00

I just received some photos from Axel depicting the afghan I made for his apartment set out on his bed. I think it looks kinda neat. I do think his room needs a make over though. Something for me to do when I go over there for Christmas. Axel will be at university so I think it's safe to say I can do what I like to the apartment, deco wise.

I am nearly finished sewing the jacket I've been working on in sewing classes. I just need to heme the bottom. I am going to try and make a shirt next for my little sister, she's probably the only one out of all of us that will wear it. We shall see but I get the feeling that most of the stuff I'm going to make is never going to be worn.

New projects, Making Clothing for the first time!

2008-08-21T14:34:00.000-07:00

Yep this is the first time I am attempting to make something one can wear. The first item is a 6month old cardigan crochet from this wonderful rainbow yarn, cheap as 3bucks but looks so cute! It's from this book I think it was called 24 hour crochet projects, everything can be made under 24 hours. I changed it though didn't like the way the bottom half of the cardigan was designed so i continued with simple double crochet stitches. I'm going to put three yellow star buttons on it too. Don't know why I'm making baby clothes, I've got another year before I can even start trying to get pregnant. Oh well I'm starting early I guess. I just love babies in handmade knitted clothes.

I've also joined sewing classes, beginners of course. I've never made anything but quilts with the machine and the last time I tried to make a skirt it turned out 4 sizes too big and just completely wrong. I am quite proud that I have been able to sew sleeves to what will become a hoody. The classes are every Monday for 6 weeks at our local Spotlight store. I am learning heaps and very excited about it all. I think I might have mentioned before that I want to sew my own wedding dress. I've got about a year before I have to do that so with lots of practice I think I will be ready by then. My grandma and my mum made their own wedding dresses so I want to keep that tradition.

Anyhow must fly got to get ready for work. Oily bed hair is not a great look! Hope you are all well. Have a great Friday and weekend!

Five Buck Shawl, and the Cat Loves it!

2008-08-19T02:47:00.000-07:00

Just a little note about this wonderful crochet shawl that I found at a thrift store or what we in OZ call an Op shop. 5 bucks can you believe it? I can't even buy the yarn for that much. I think Puff the cat is also pleased with it too! I was acutally hoping I could use it to work out the pattern, I really like it and think it would make a great baby's blanket or wrap.

Sick of Being Sick!

2008-08-17T20:03:00.001-07:00

I have been really not the best all year health wise. I have had to deal with chronic sinusitis for most of the year, then that started to get better and I did my back by putting a dish in the dishwasher mind you! and then before Germany I got some stomach problem which lasted for a week, still don't understand what it was but the tablets worked. Then in Germany I get bronchitis get over most of it while I'm there, come back home get sick again with a virus and now not only do I have that I am also switching between that coming and going and the sinusitis sometimes mixed in with it. Also this past week it's been a date with the toilet every time I put something down my throat. At first I thought it was having eaten some bad cheese on Monday but nope it got better after two days, drank some milk then bam again for another three days. I don't have a problem with dairy so I have no idea why I am reacting like this.

I like my doctor but you know I want to know WHY I'm like this not just go home rest and drink plenty of fluids. Why does it come and go even if I am doing the same thing? Like I was great on Sunday except for the toilet running and then today again my body is hurting and I feel weak like I did on Friday when I was told I had a virus and just sleep, drink and rest etc.

I used to really understand my body, when I'd get sick I knew exactly why and what to do, I wouldn't bother with doctors now I'm getting sick in ways I've never been sick before and don't know how to deal with it, sometimes things I do work and then they don't. I hate the fact that I cannot control my body and the way it feels. Also it seems when I start doing one thing that works for one symptom then I create other problems. For example I've been eating lots of oranges and garlic, honey and veggies to boots my immune system, kept bugs away for a while but then created this acid problem and very painful stomach. Now I have to deal with stomach issues. The aromatherapy is keeping sinuses clean but now I can't sleep at night it seems to have stimulated my brain too much. Oh man I just can't seem to win!

Anyhow that's my whinny sad sod entry while I wait for 2pm so I can get my sorry butt to the doctors AGAIN! Hope the rest of you are feeling much better than I am and in controll of your bodily functions!

Just a Not so Nice Note

2008-08-16T02:25:00.001-07:00

I just want to say I am really angry that people are leaving comments that are not related to the posts but just attempts to sell stuff etc. I thought there was that code protector thingy when someone leaves a comment, isn't that supposed to help with spam crap???? Ahhh I am so annoyed. This is a place for crafters and friends to share not people selling cheap drugs and lottery tickets for lotteries that don't exist. Sorry but I could just write a whole string of nasty words right now, I am absolutely cheesed off about this. Does anyone have any ideas what I can do about it? Is there extra security that I can put on this blog? Anything I should click on or off in the settings section? If you are reading this and thinking of leaving a comment trying to sell me something or to link me to some viagra site GO AWAY. I don't want any, and I don't play the lottery anyhow even the legitimate one here. So stop wasting your time!!!!!!

For the rest of you who have left genuine comments relevant to this blog I thank you, I love hearing what others think of my work and I also enjoy hearing about what you all are getting up to. Sorry that you had to read this.

Come all ye Crafty Melbournians

2008-08-14T17:21:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about organising a Melbourne 'meet and stitch' for ages but haven't been quite sure how to do it. I would love to meet new people that enjoy crafting and not just meet them here in cyberland but in real life. I thought I would start the process of organising something by firstly putting the idea out there to those of you who are local and read this blog. Maybe there already is a group of us that meets? If there is any you know of it would be great if you could let me know, no point in reinventing the wheel so to speak.

So for now, if you are reading this and you are in the Melbourne area or would be willing to make the trek to Melbourne for a 'meet and stitch' just leave me a comment and pass the word around to others you know who would be interested.

In Keeping with the Quilt Swap Theme

2008-08-09T21:15:00.000-07:00

Just thought I would keep my promise and post some photos of the quilts I've made for my June and July swap partners. I don't know if they visit this blog so I'm not sure if this is going to spoil things for them. Sorry if it does!

Tea Pot theme- first time trying the blanket stitch option on my sewing machine. It's actually not too hard to use and also gives a delightful effect. I just have to work out how to go around corners neatly!

My swap partner asked for a calico small print and muslin block, this is my interpretation I hope it's what she was looking for. There's muslin over the other print in some areas. I think it's quite subtle and works really well. I was thinking it would make a nice block to built a wedding quilt up from, adding more muslin in the borders too.

Quilt Blocks I Have Received From Swap Partners

2008-08-09T07:10:00.000-07:00

It's been quite a long time since I last wrote about the quilt block swap that I am part of. I have been lucky enough to receive so far 7 lovely quilt blocks from my swap partners all of which I think will fit together to make quite a nice quilt. If I can remember correctly I listed as my theme, autumn colours and that I particularly like maroons and earthy colours. Here are some photos of my partners' interpretation of that theme.

There is another block that I have received that is not featured in these photos, I have left it at mums and need to pick it up and store it with the rest of the blocks. I did a bit of sewing these past two nights and can now relax knowing I am up to date (finally) with my blocks for the swap. I will send the two blocks out on Monday and hopefully post a photo of them in my next post. Hope you are all well and enjoying your weekend. It has been a restful and productive one for me, still battling coughy flu germs, and sinusitis but managed the two blocks and lots of reading for university assignment.

I've Been Tagged!

2008-07-31T03:05:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by Rachel at Cornflower Blue Studio Thanks for the tag and here are the rules:
1. Link back to the person who tagged you
2. Mention the rules on your blog
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours
4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking to them
5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged bloggers blogs letting them know they've been tagged

Ok so here are the 6 unspectacular quirks of mine

1. I am facinated by photos of biological mutations

2. I cannot function properly if it is hotter than 25-28 degrees celsius, very sensitive to hot weather

3. I had a crush on Astro boy when I was in kindergarden

4. I once had an imaginary friend living in my head, his name was Pete

5. When I speak to someone who has an accent after a few minutes I start talking in the same accent without meaning to.

6. Since starting preschool at age 4 (now 28) I've only had 1.5 years where I haven't been studying or attending school.

The 6 people I am tagging are ...
Eli Simpson from Eli Simpson's Blog
Carola from My Living Room
Ashley from Kitty Genius
Maizee from Fabric and Yarn Stasher
Emily from Inside A Black Apple
Michelle from Creative life

Hope I don't come across too weird but if I do then I guess that's nothing new! Hope the rest of you enjoy sharing your little quirks with us I know I have. Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Visiting Franz Marc Museum in Kochel am see

2008-07-22T01:09:00.001-07:00

Finally after 14 years of wishing and hoping I made it to the Franz Marc Museum in Kochel am see! I first came across the artists Franz Marc in 1994 when I was studying art as an elective at highschool, and instantly I fell in love with his work and the artist himself. I must say that I thought the museum would feature photos and artifacts from his life but I was wrong it is a real gallery that feautres his work and that of other modern artists who were his friends or working around the same time. I think the house he had in Reid is actually set up in this fashion. I wish I knew where it was so I could visit it.

Here is the view of the museum from the carpark, the gardens are so beautiful as are the surrounding forrest and mountains.
Here is the view from the other side of the car park, the actual Kochel am see, ´lake Kochel´

And finally here I am standing outside of the Franz Marc museum. Thank you Axel for making my dream come true, driving me all the way across your country to see my beloved Franz Marc.

Swiss Crafts

2008-07-21T14:52:00.000-07:00

I believe in my last post I promised some photos of traditional and local crafts that I came across in Switzerland. Here are some of those photos. I came across this bell making workshop and pottery studio when travelling with Regular and her dad through the Swiss mountains near her village.

These photos are of a workshop where bells for stock animals and decorations for horses are made. These bells and decorations would have been used more often in years gone by. Most of these in the photos are made for trophies. In the local villages they hold wrestling contests and the winners get a bell as a trophie. on the bell is inscribed the winners name, the year and event.
People also order these special silver bells as wedding gifts with the names of the couple written on the bell. I thought they were a wonderful idea and would love to get one for my wedding. I made sure Regular knew that hehehehehe! All the leather work and the making of the black and brass bells are done by hand. The wedding ones and others like them are made from casts rather than hammered into shape from a sheet of metal.

Here are some photos from the pottery studio. I loved every pieced in the store but in particular this fondu set that costs 500 euros almost 1000 australian dollars! Considering it is all hand made and painted it´s worth it. You could watch the artists create the different pieces and watch them paint them with the diffrent glazes. It was great to watch. Proof that they were indeed hand made and made locally.

Here I am picking out a small ceramic bunny. I wish I could afford more I would have bought so many more things if I had the cash!

I only have a few more days left in Germany and I am already starting to feel down, I don´t want to go back home. I´m just starting to feel settled and comfortable with the language barrier, different environment etc. I am also enjoying the extra time off work and uni and don´t really want to have to get to reality just yet. I don´t know how I am going to cope not seeing Axel again for 5 months, 4 months this time was hard enough. boooooo hoooooo hooooo!

Hello from Germany

2008-07-18T15:07:00.000-07:00

Ok so I thought I´d have a bit more time to write but I have been on the road for two weeks traveling from northern to southern germany, then flying to Switzerland and back again. I must say it has been a very busy and awesome three weeks and I am already sad about having to go back home in a week. The country and it´s people have been wonderful. Axel´s family and friends have been welcoming and helpful which makes it even harder to leave in a week. Anyhow I thought I would just take this opportunity to tell you all that everyone loved their handmade presents and I found out that Axel´s mum was looking for cushions for that room for over 6 months but couldn´t find any she liked! until mine came along hehehehe so I was glad that I chose to make cushions and not table runners. Axel and his brother and his girlfriend loved the quilt for the baby, baby Lena who I have totally fallen in love with.

I am already starting to think about what I could make for everyone´s Christmas presents, more granny blankets, Christmas stockings and some cross stitches I think or some scarfs and hats considering it will be winter. Anyhow I have 5 months to work it all out.

Here are some photos, highlights from the past 3 weeks...

The cushions in the Remy´s lounge room.

Looking at Axel´s baby photos, awwww so cute! hasn´t changed much hehehehe.

Driving on the ´WRONG´side of the road, ok ok ok the right side of the road!

Meeting up with Bernard who was responsible for introducing me to Axel in Melbourne

Meeting up with friends from Contiki Australia, Thomas in Munich and Regular in Lucern Switzerland

Finally visiting the Franz Marc museum in Kochel am see a 14 year dream of mine finally came true also visited Franz Marc´s grave in Kochel.

There are so many other highlight but I´ve just realised how late it is and I have promised to cook lunch tomorrow, Axel´s mum is working night shift so I wanted to cook so she doesn´t have to worry. I will post some more photos later, there are some great photos from Switzerland which show some local craft, awesome stuff I tell ya. Till then I hope everyone is well and enjoying their summer or winter weather.

My Turn!

2008-06-24T06:53:00.000-07:00

I've realised I have spent so much time making things for other people that I have never really made anything for myself. The only thing I have for myself is the quilt I made when first learning to quilt. It was a square on square pattern I made as part of a class at Spotlight in Werribee. oh I lie, one more thing, a small lapghan, my first granny square project, that I've also managed to keep. So having said that I am starting to put a list together of all the things I want to make for MYSELF! I have been looking on the internet, googling images, flicking through craft magazines and visiting endless craft blogs and have been inspired by so many of the things I've seen.

Here is a list of things I want to make for myself

1. I am in love with quilts that have house blocks on them, I want to make either a wall hanging or bed cover with cute houses on it. Here are some images off the interent that have inspired me.

2. I have always loved cross stitch samplers and want to make my own 'Home Sweet Home' sampler that has flowers, a sampler house, birds and bees and rabbits as part of the design as well as an alphabet set of course. I want to frame it in a lovely antique wooden frame and hang it in the entrance of my home as people enter in. The above picture is off the Internet and just gives you and idea of the look I want, it is not the type of imagery I want though.

3. I want my own large size granny square blanket that I can throw over my couch and use as a blanket and snuggle under while watching television on a cold winter's night. I want it to incorporate a range of fun colours that will cheer me up on a cold day.

I love this one off the Granny Along flicker group site, who ever made it I love it!!!! It's so yummy looking and cosy.

4. I want to get back to painting and make some paintings that feature beautiful bunnies, I think maybe even a portrait of my dear bunny Charlotte. I just love the detail in the painting below. I think I would like to paint something like that or at least start collecting some 'bunny' paintings like the one below.

Even as I write this entry I am reminded of the quilt I need to finish for my sister's wedding, the beaded necklaces I have started to put in my etsy show, I will talk about that another time once I get it set up completely. And I've got to finish the children's cross stitch sampler for my friend's baby. I haven't touched it in 6 months and his first birthday is in September. It was supposed to be a 'birth' day present but I just haven't finished it.

Ahh looks like it will still be a while before I can start something for myself. Oh but I wait patiently for that day!

Finished Crochet and Felted Presents

2008-06-22T05:03:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone I can't believe how longs its been since I last posted, over a month! There has been lots going on though. I am still in the process of cleaning my rental property but at least the new fence is up, the house is completely painted and the garden has been attended to. There was actually 4 truck loads of rubbish we had to take to the tip, can you believe it?! All that's left now is to clean and repair the roof and to build steps at the back door. I don't know when I'll be able to get new tenants but it is stressing me out financially.

Anyhow enough of that and onto crafty news! I have finally finished my boyfriend's granny square blanket and it looks pretty good if I don't say so myself. It is so warm and comfy. I've given it a wash with fabric softeners and it smells so lovely. I've also made two necklaces with handmade felt beads using the wool from my uncle's farm. These have been made as gifts for friends overseas. I've also finished the cushion covers for Axel's parents complete with zips which my mum helped me sew on.

Here are some photos of the completed projects. First photos is of the necklace I made for my Swiss friend Regular who I met last year as part of a Contiki tour of central Australia. I am going to see her as part of my trip to Germany- weekend stop to Switzerland yay! Second photo is of course a photo of the finished blanket for Axel.

I hope everyone is well and thank you for still visiting my blog even though I have neglected it to some extent. I promise I will blog more often now that I have finished reports for work and assignments for uni. I will be in Germany as of next Sunday and will stay there for four weeks so hopefully I'll be able to give you a bit of a tour of the country as I travel around and let you know what the recipients of my crafty presents think of them.

Take care and keep on crafting!

House Cleaning

2008-05-13T01:54:00.001-07:00

I have resettled a little after the last post, thanks mainly to my beautiful bf Axel and his words of wisdom and the comments shared by Inger C at Hello Craft Lovers reminding me that there is plenty of time to be an artist as we never stop being one, it's something you can go back to at anytime in your life. I do have to say though I still feel like it is something I should be doing now when I am younger rather than older. I am scared domestic life, kids husband will really take over then and seal the creative envelope shut. But of course these are fears and not necessarily my future reality.

Anyhow I finally had my tenants move out of my house I lease and have started on the big 'clean up'. Now I know things could have been worse but at the same time the house was not left in the best of states and outside was worse, things broken and nothing I could actually claim. Very annoying. If there is anyone here from Melbourne I tell you John Kontek, Sunshine has failed to manage my property properly. They have not done one inspection over the last 3.5 years and have made appointments with us to inspect the property and not shown up only later to argue that they did not make an appointment with us. Ha! obviously we just dreamt up the date and time. And above all they have lost my last months rent by telling the tenants to pay after they move out. As if they are going to pay after they move out. Seriously why should I miss out on money if they want to be lazy and not do their job as they should. Anyhow I think I will take matters further with them. Not happy Jan!

Anyhow all weekend we have been painting and cleaning and this weekend we will start on the backyard. I need to get the roof fixed and painted and also put up a new fence. My parents have been awesome. Mum has helped me paint and dad is going to help with the removal of a broken down patio and the fence. The Garden needs a good clean up too, there is ivy growing on the side of the house that is about 9 feet tall.

I must say I will be happy when it is all finished, clean and fresh smelling with less out of control plant life and a 6'4 fence so nosey neighbours can't peep in. Oh must not forget all finished off with a non-leaking roof!

Fine Art in Contemporary Craft

2008-05-11T02:01:00.000-07:00

For a while now I have been contemplating on pursuing and developing an art practice that incorporates crafts like crocheting and felting but in a way that is more sophisticated and is designed as fine art rather than just decorative craft. I was browsing at the local 'arty' book store in Yarraville and found a book called By Hand which presents the craft based artwork of a variety of artists. Every artist is also presented with their own artists' statement as well as 3 or 4 photos of their work.

The book is edited by Shu Hung and Joseph Magliaro, and those of you in Australia buy it off Amazon.com it's much cheaper, if only I'd known. The work itself covers a variety of media from cake decorating to freehand sewing even crochet in the form of granny squares!

Shane Waltener, Sweet Nothing, An intimate history of cake decorating, 2005

Coffee Maker M.I.M, 2001 Margarita Cabrera

I don't know what I am going to do... I have this urge inside to create 'fine art' again and not just make handmade presents for friends and family. I want to become serious about my art again but I am not sure if it's for all the right reasons. I am starting to worry that I haven't made serious art for so long that I have lost any chance of making it in the art world. Then I start thinking oh what a waste of time going to art school for 4 years and what will people think who have known me as a kid with a pencil in my hand? The problem is if I think about it real hard and look deep down and honestly about my desire to make art again it could all be because I still have a silly teenage idea that being an artist is cool and if I am an artist then I can be cool or 'interesting'. It's so stupid. I bumped into a ex lecturer and my honours year supervisor at the train station the other day. It was lovely to see her but at the same time at the back of your head you can't help but think maybe you failed her by not continuing to purse an artistic career.

I think back on my years at art school. I do love making art creating and designing. But at the end when I have an artwork finished and I think of the art world and exhibiting, the snobbery and academics that run the show it makes me want to slit my wrists. I am a miserable artists and a happy teacher who acknowledges that she is a daggy teacher who thinks she wants to be a cool artist. I sure am an idiot at times!

I think I will email that lecturer and make a coffee date...

Crochet Baby Hat fits a Real Baby!

2008-04-30T21:35:00.000-07:00

Ah I am so happy, at Easter the other weekend I got to see if my crochet baby hat would actually fit a real baby. And to my surprise it does! My poor cousin's baby had to look like a dag for a while while I took him around to show off that I could make a hat that fit. Everyone was yelling at me to take it off that it made the poor baby boy look poofy. I think if he was a girl their reaction would have been different but anyhow. So here is a photo of baby Lukas modeling the crochet cap.

Maybe I can make him a nice blue one without the trimmings oh and without the flower hehehehe.

Doing it Old School, First Step: Wash Fleece

2008-04-27T19:05:00.000-07:00

My house mate and I are back at it, that is making felt from ABSOLUTE scratch! and all by hand. I got some more fleece from my uncle's farm, this time the fleece is from a ram, which my uncle says is better quality. One thing it is is cleaner than the last stuff we got which I can now see was like D grade. We haven't done much else other than wash some of it, we have to get the carder back from the Steiner school and rent a whole heap of DVD's to watch while we spend hours carding the fleece.

Drying in the sun. Oh how Australian!

I haven't actually made anything for myself as yet but this time round I would really like to dry felt some little mice like I saw on another blog. Please forgive me I have forgotten which blog the image came from but I acknowledge that these mice are someone else's idea that I would like to copy for myself and not commercial reasons.

Are they not the cutest things you'd ever seen?! I want to put little glasses on mine and make three like the three blind mice.

It's Willow Time!

2008-04-19T16:49:00.000-07:00

Ah finally I have made a Willow block made famous by many a Flicker groups which are dedicated to making bags and what-nots using this block. I fell in love with this block the first time I saw it on Granny Along and after searching the web for the pattern and asking others I finally found the book it came from and quickly snapped it up on Amazon.com, as they say, the rest is history.

I have had enough of looking at blue yarn and all the other projects I've made are in natural earthly colours so for this project I've gone for a more candy palette lots of colourful fun for the senses. I saw another bag on Flicker where the crafter used purple and mint green to make a German crochet bag using two different squares, one similar to the willow and the other a normal granny. I have chosen to do something similar but with different colours and a different block pattern. I wish I could remember what the crafters name was but this is a photo of the 'inspiration' bag. If anyone knows who made it please let me know.

And here are the first two bocks from my bag to be. I've used hot pink, jade green, orange and light pink for the border. I don't think mine will look as elegant as the other one, which is just amazingly beautiful and elegant but I hope it will look like a fun casual bag to do the shopping with in Germany because they don't have plastic bags at the supermarket you have to take your own.

What Do You Do When You've Stuffed Your Back...?

2008-04-04T08:40:00.001-07:00

Oh dear the last few days have literally been a pain in the back! I was bending down to put the dishes in the dishwasher and bam I pulled my lower back out of place. I couldn't bend down, lift my left leg up or do much at all really. The chiropractor was closed so I couldn't even get in to have my back looked at. All I could really do, without creating the kind of pain that makes you want to scream and cry, was to lay on my back with an ice pack. And what does one do when they can only lay down like this? Try their hand at a new crochet pattern of course!

So there I lay Wednesday night with baby wool and a size 2 crochet needle oh and of course a really poorly written pattern off the web. I soon realised that the patterned needed thin crocheting cotton and not yarn and that even though I had 4 ply yarn it was going to turn out HUGE if I continued with the pattern. So as one does I altered the pattern and made my own very plain version of a baby bonnet. ( I have since bought the crochet cotton and will do a 'take two' of the pattern)

Here are a few pics of the finished baby hat.

We don't have a baby to model the hat for you but this teddy bear was kind enough to fill in. As you can see my first attempt at crocheting something other than a granny square has produced a very daggy item indeed.

Update on Quilted Gifts

2008-03-29T19:54:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos of the finished baby mat. I am actually quite pleased with how it turned out, very colourful and I think playful. I like that I ended up making a 'neutural' coloured mat because if the have other children later, boys and girls, they all can use it! I do hope it proves useful to the parents. I know they have polished floor boards in the house so this would protect the child from the cold floor when it is playing- that's the idea anyhow.

I have also got some photos of the cushions I have been making. I have finished piecing the tops and putting the borders on. I am now contemplating whether I do quilt them or will the stitching make the tops too busy? I could dip stitch them but I am totally hopless at that and you can always see some stitches. Oh I don't know but I do have some time to think about it.

As you can see I have decided on making 4 cushions. I don't think I could fit more in my suitcase! Also I eliminated the green squares in the corners, I had cut them out and set it up with them in the corners but it acutally looked wrong. It looked good in the mockup design but in real life YUCK! don't know why but it just did! I think that gold/green material is what I will use for the reverse side.

Cushion Covers in the Making

2008-03-25T07:05:00.000-07:00

I have been working hard these last few days crocheting, quilting and then quilting some more. My latest quilting project are these soon to be pillow cushions which I will also take with me to Germany. ( it seems my suit case will have nothing but handmade gifts in it and no clothes!) These will be for my boyfriend's parents to put in their lounge room. My boyfriend has sent me a photo of different rooms in the house and after having noticed their couches don't have cushions I thought that's where I could help!

Here is a photo of the room I am making the cushions for. I think I will make four, enough to decorate the place without over doing it and making it possible to carry them with me on the plane. If I have time, maybe some bigger fancy ones for the single chairs. See how I go.

This is my mock up design for the front of the cushions. I think I will make them with buttons on the back or maybe just get my mum to help me put a zip on them. I am not sure yet, but I think some nice brass buttons would finish them off quite nicely.

In their first stage, middle section done. So far I have done two middle sections, two more to go!

Crocheting Around

2008-03-19T14:10:00.001-07:00

I just love the german crochet bag that was posted on the Granny-Along blog. I decided to have a go myself and so I downloaded the pattern but couldn't really understand it, then I went on You tube and found a video tutorial and viola I was making solid granny squares! I've tried a few ways one where I am going in between the double crochet and another where I am going through the top link in the double crochet, both which give a different effect. I think I need a bigger hook as the stitches look much smaller than the ones in the photos posted on flicker.

It's Coming along, Slooowwwly

2008-03-14T18:52:00.000-07:00

Here are some update photos of the granny square blanket I'm making for my boyfriend. Once these squares are complete then that's basically just under half of the blanket done!

Baby Play Mat Quilt!

2008-03-14T18:39:00.000-07:00

I have started making a baby/toddler quilted play mat for my boyfriend's brother's soon to be born baby. I didn't know the sex of the baby when I bought the material but since then I have learnt that it will be a baby girl. Anyhow the colours I chose are neutral, neither traditionally boys' or girls' colours but bright fun and almost tasty! I used my block book again but this time it let me down, the measurements were wrong by an inch! Thank God I didn't make that many before I realised they wouldn't fit together. I might use the spare bits as part of the border's corners. I've never made this pattern before so it's been fun and also quite easy because you just have one corner that has to match up.

Here is a photo/mock up of how I plan to finish it with the border. I was also thinking the purple material as the binding.

February Swap Block

2008-03-01T00:21:00.001-08:00

For February's block swap my swap partner asked for a block that featured a star. I have used my new quilt block book to make a simple 9 patch star. Whilst my sewing machine has been playing up and causing me trouble using, the book has been easy to use! Here is a photo of the block. This is the first time I've made this block!

Awesome Quilt Blocks Book!

2008-02-29T20:09:00.001-08:00

I love my new quilting book that Axel bought me at the Australasian Quiting Expo. It has patterns and measurements for 1000 blocks. All the measurements are seam inclusive so there's no need to add or convert measurements just cut out the pieces and viola beautiful blocks! There is a square and triangle section, hexagon section and some others which are more free form and for these they have the outline of the pieces which you then photocopy to size and use as a template. Here is a photo of the book and my first attempt at using the book. I also tried a product which is new to me- quilt basting spray an adhesive spray used instead of pining everything together. I don't think I like it that much as it makes everything quite stiff and doesn't completely keep the material in place. I think it will be good when making coasters or table runners but not blankets and larger quilts.