Tuesday 25 February 2014

Pointless?

Hello fellow crafters!!! 
I've been hard at work making bunting for my balcony and "oh my" have I enjoyed making it!

I decided to make it out of felt as I have a big assortment of scrap felt at home, I thought it was about time I used it for something. Not to mention felt comes in such an amazing array of colours....


I started by making a template out of a piece of cardboard from an old cereal box. I figured it was easier (and way faster) to draw around a template, rather than measure and mark out each piece of bunting individually.  


I traced around my bunting template onto each of the felt pieces and cut them out. Leaving me with a lovely collection of colourful flags. 

I then cut long rectangular strips of felt that I folded in half and placed at the top of my little bunting flags. I did my best to make this rectangle piece of felt as contrasting to the main section of the flag as possible. 
With the help of my trusty sewing machine I stitched the rectangular pieces to the main flag section to secure it in place, giving the bunting a rather lovely upper edge.


Finally I threaded each of the bunting flags on to some twine I had bought from the local hardware store.


My felt bunting  was all ready to hang!!


Now I hate to get all "deep" on you but I have to bring up a question that a friend of mine asked...... "What is the point of bunting? What do you do with it? Why would you bother?" and at the time I didn't know the answer.

I've thought about this for a few days and even held off from hanging my bunting as I thought that maybe it was a little stupid. 
Up until yesterday my bunting sat in a pile on the dining room table with absolutely no purpose. 


It was yesterday afternoon when the sun was shining that I finally went out on to the balcony and started to hang the bunting from the balcony that hangs above.
Once I had completed the stringing of my bunting, I sat back and enjoyed the shadows that it cast upon the wall.


I loved how my bunting looked hanging in the late afternoon sun.




I realised that there was a point to bunting.
The point of bunting is JOY. Making the bunting bought my JOY, the shadows from the bunting bought me JOY. The colour of the bunting brings me JOY.
Sure it doesn't have an obvious function, but this little mass of felt scarabs that is connected to some simple twine makes me happy every time I look at it.
Isn't it strange how something so simple can bring so much JOY.  Pointless? Um....Definitely NOT!

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Friday 21 February 2014

Sofa night!

Hello Lovelies!
I've been enjoying a rather lovely evening at home. I took the evening off from work, as I needed a little bit of me time and ended up having a cosy evening on the sofa. 
I lit the candles around the living room, put on my favourite music and spent time making some rather yummy food.




Fresh Salmon with a rather adventurous salad. I put whatever was lying around in my fridge: Mixed salad leaves, rocket, pepper, celery, olives, humous and even some grapes!


It was absolutely delicious!
The food didn't stop there:
I then sat down to a rather intense Greys Anatomy session!
Nibbling on a bar of chocolate with a coffee at hand, it was pure bliss.



 Of course I also had a little hooky something to keep my hands occupied. It's a very jolly and cute project that I'm working on. I'm enjoying it immensely!

I should be finished with this in a day or two as it's only a little project. 
I will reveal all soon..... 
I hope you all had a lovely Friday evening also?

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Tuesday 18 February 2014

Roses are red.....

Good morning Lovelies!!! 
I hope your week is getting off to a great start?
I've only got time for a very quick hello, but I just had to come share a little bit of sunshine with you all.
On Friday I arrived at work nice and early in my usual state of sleepiness, deep in thought about the day ahead. As I arrived at the stage door the lovely lady at the reception called me into her office. I had no clue why, so I was a tad confused.

Imagine my utter delight when I left the stage door with the biggest, most luscious bunch of roses!!
They were from Dennis of course, a gift for Valentines Day!

I simply had to come and quickly share share some pictures of them:






I find Roses soooooooooo GORGEOUS, they are just too perfect.
The variety of colour they come in, inspires me.
I love how when you look closely you see more than just an "Orange rose". The petals ooze  from red through to yellow, making the flower glow with a bright intensity.


Perfectly formed, The petals rap around each other. I could get lost for days in the swirly petal formations.


So elegantly they sit on their long slender stems. It's really no surprise they are a symbol of love. How could you not love them? A feast for the eyes and a banquet for the nose!!! They smell heavenly!


I'll be enjoying these beauties for as long as I can.
They sit in a jug on my dining table, giving me so much joy each time I pass them!


Thank you Dennis!!!

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Sunday 9 February 2014

Green Fingers

WOW WOW WEEEEEE WOW!!!!!! What a lovely response I had to my completed Flower Blanket. Thank you all for the kind comments and likes here on my blog as well as over on Facebook, it really means a lot. 

I hope you have all been having a tremendous week? 
Mine has been a good one, although since we last spoke Dennis has left home to work on his next cruise ship contract. I know it's his job and I have my job....jobs we both love, but it never gets any easier saying goodbye. It will be just over three months until he is back home again and so I've been feeling a tad glum. 

As many of you know from reading previous posts, I like nothing more than a colour injection from a fresh bunch of flowers to lift my mood! So I did what I know best when feeling a little down.... and popped into town for some fresh flowers.


I ended up buying some little pots of hyacinth bulbs. I love to buy little sprouting bulbs, they sit in their little tubs growing rather rapidly from day to day.


I didn't know what colour flowers these hyacinths were going to end up having. It was a nice surprise when the little buds started to open and I could catch my first glimpse of their glorious colours.


White, violet and pink hyacinths!!! Rather lovely! Bright Jolly and so full of fragrance!

It's been a very mild Winter here in Stuttgart and there have been days when it really has felt like Spring already.
It was on one of these "Winter days that felt like a Spring day" that I bought the Hyacinths and decided to continue my quest for colour and also buy some plants for the balcony.


It's the first time I've ever had a balcony and so I've just been too excited to start using it.
Even though I've never gardened before, I felt like a gardening pro! I planted lovely flowers in cute window boxes and hung them out on the railings to my balcony.




I bought some extra seeds and nuts for the birds, to help them through the rest of the Winter months, 


Once I start on something I find it pretty difficult to stop, Some pot plants to sit on the floor!! YES PLEASE!!! I was ensured when I bought these flowers that they were suitable to be kept out in the cold and would continue to keep their gorgeous flowers.





I also bought some Buxus plants to sit happily along the length of the balcony. I hope they grow MASSIVE and  I can carve them into sculptures, like Edward Scissor Hands would!


I'm loving the balcony so far!! I even sat out there yesterday morning with my coat on, drinking my morning coffee. I was FREEZING!!!! But it was good to be in the fresh air.
I'm not quit finished with the balcony!!! I think I'm going to give the pots a crafty makeover of some sort and I definitely need some bunting hanging out there!! That'll keep me busy over the next days!

Happy Sunday!!

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