The Perfect Stranger swap

A friend of mine told me once about this fabulous swap project carried out by Oh Comely Magazine (http://www.ohcomely.co.uk/). I signed up as I love crafting and being creative and the idea of sharing with a complete stranger is just so inspiring. The idea was to collect bits and pieces that would fall in these categories:

1) a wintry treat
2) a modern-day message in the bottle
3) 'What's in my bag' photocopy edition

After searching for bits and pieces to put in my parcel, I finally managed to pack it and send it off to my Perfect Stranger in Moscow. Haven't had so much fun shopping and wrapping in a long time!!

My parcel contains:

1) wintry treat: a few items that will make any winter a nicer one- hands warmer, chocolate dice for milk or coffee, scented oil and burner, bookmark for cold winter days with a book on the sofa, delicious black tea with vanila and orange peels, handmade Christmas tree....
2) a pen drive with my favourite songs 'The Best hits of the 80s and 90s' (a student called me old-fashioned the other day...couldn't agree more...and ...don't mind)
3) since I couldn't photocopy the contents of my bag, I bought my favourite handcream as I always use it at this time of year

yet another crochet project ;)

So here I am working on yet another scarf. This time it's going to be a shoulder warmer.

Here's the original item:

I found it in a French magazine with projects and patterns. 

And I started my own project. Here's what it looks like so far. Still a long way to go, but a very nice project to work on. At first the pattern looked SO incredibly difficult, but after a few unsuccessful attempts, doing and re-doing, and, of course, with the invaluable help from Isa from Madam Fil (facebook: Madam Fil) I finally got started and I'm advancing quite fast. Hopefully I will be able to post the end project soon ;)

The other day while waiting for my next class I had a wee tea break (of course ;)) and did a bit of what I like the most...

Drawing and painting workshop

So... I signed up for a drawing/ painting workshop. Yes, you are not mistaken... yet another workshop!Do you think I have my fingers in too many pies??? Maybe... but I'm really enjoying myself :)

Last Thursday I started this drawing/painting workshop in the nearby town. I'm a self-taught VERY amateur 'artist'. I don't think I should even dare to call myself artist thus the inverted commas. Anyway.... I felt the need to join a group where I could be taught how to use diverse techniques properly and I found the right place.

In the last workshop we worked with charcoal. I had never used charcoal before as I didn't feel comfortable using it, but it turned out to be a very easy technique and a pleasant one too!

Here's the outcome:

STILL LIFE

Christmas is round the corner...

O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum,
wie treu sind deine Blätter!
Du grünst nicht nur
  zur Sommerzeit,
Nein auch im Winter, wenn es schneit.
O Tannenbaum, o Tannenbaum,
wie treu sind deine Blätter!

One day I saw this lovely crochet Christmas tree on one of the blogs I follow (www.lazydaisyjones.com) and I thought that I would like to make one one day. And the day came ;)

Here's how it started:

I bought two different shades of green yarn (one glossy) and a styrofoam cone 

 And I started crocheting:   

And...Taaa Daaaa....my very own Christmas tree

 My Christmas tree needed balls....So I decorated it with little beads. It still needs a star... but since I have never made one... I need to learn first ;) Star: coming soon!

box swap

A friend of mine once told me about the box swap and I just fell in love with the idea :) What is it about?- many of you may ask. Well... the idea is to collect a set of object that you and the person you swap the box with agree on. My friend lives in Barcelona and we don't get to see each other, also we are not bosom friends or anything like that, we used to work together and met a couple of times, but to call her acquintance wouldn't be right either ;) (btw, you can check her blog here: www.penguinduchess.blogspot.com) 

So... we decided on the following categories for our swap: handmade, my favourite (to get to know each other better), recipe and unexpected. We agreed on a deadline and maximum amount to spend and got started with the idea. 

Here's what I sent:

handmade: decoupade decorated box (you can see it in the decoupage section on my blog) 
recipe: chicken with almonds (my mum's speciality) - I'm no good cook ;)
favourite: a little tea box with delicious tea - those of you who know me- know tea is my absolute favourte
unexpected: article by a very good friend of mine Josh who is a counselor; The title is: Stop and just Be; I found it such a grand piece and so thoughtful and simply worth sharing. Here's a link to Josh's website in case you are interested: http://mcadamstherapy.com/

Here's what my friend sent to me:

handmade: a lovely pouch
favourite: a postcard- reproduction of a painting by my friend's favourite artist: Elisabeth Blackadder
unexpected: pom-pom makers and loads of wee bits and pieces
recipe

What a lovely time I had preparing my box! I also loved the waiting time and the box opening as the last step!

triangular scarf :)

As you can see, for the time being it's all about scarves this autumn :)

So here's another project I've been working on.

Last week I devoted the best part of my morning off to crocheting on the beach. It was the first time I actually took my crochet project to the beach and it was a grand idea as there was hardly anybody and the peace and quite gave me a chance to spend some time with myself. I know it sounds a bit egotisctic, but I believe we all need to devote some time to ourselves.

My new scarf! :)

Isa at Madam Fil (a magnificent Café in the nearby town) showed me the pattern for a scarf which I have made. 2 metres long and warm and cosy. Ideal for cold winter days :)