winter characters

In this day and age of information and influences everywhere all the time, where it's so easy to give, borrow, steal consciously or unwittingly ideas and designs flagrantly or more subtly, it's not easy to be truly original and unique. Some more than others get thumbs up for making a good effort though. You feel you've seen it, or something very similar before, but it's endearing and sweet just the same. Not seldom due to the creator being of an unpretentious and humble nature.

That said, I'm certainly no stranger to the notion that the world may share an invisible common mind bowl of creative ideas and thoughts, when the creativeness spatter it can land and appear on different continents, in many different heads simultaneously. Whose ideas influencing who is far from always certain.

This little "set" of ceramic pieces were the only things I bought at that Konstfack (Stockholm art- craft- and design college) Christmas fair some weeks ago (which was an overall disappointing fair). Made by graphic design/illustration student Fideli Sundqvist. In a quirky characters way I've always found very appealing.

Look there are garlands, tea or coffee, lussekatter, weird beings (which may or may not be bunnies, cats, bears or people), snowballs and winter wonderland, all little details in life that makes one smile.

More of her cute work can be found in her shop ~

granny square winter garland

So there, another granny square garland has made it to the finish line (yeah for yet another finished project!). This time a winter version - pretty similiar to the granny square summer garland but with other colours, the more Christmassy kind - that will adorn... well that I haven't quite decided just yet. Thinking the living room window, but we'll see.

It was a nasty windy day today, not very cold per se (-5C) but the harsh winds made it so so much worse. So one might say I really very much risked my life taking these pictures. I think one might even say I'm up there with the Arctic explorers and the likes.

Because that's what those few steps out into the wintry garden felt like. And what was once a carefully put together garland with no knots and mess quickly turned into just that. A complete tangle.

Good thing I got a helping loaf, with lots of helping paws. We managed to entangle the mess again later. Or well, loaf being a spectator, encouraging me to get on with it so he could get a well-deserved spectator snack. Which, as always, naturally was an immense help.

little loaf's birthday garden party

Before birthday do took place the cupcakes and cookies where duly inspected by inspector Knut He was most pleased by their looks, smell and taste.

Let the frosting of cupcakes begin and the party start, time to recapture Little Loaf's 7th birthday party;

there where granny square summer garlands,

swirling rainbow air balloons,

there were seven kind of cupcakes/cookies, namely

oatmeal toffee cookies - delicious

orange polenta cookies -

always most pleasing in texture, flavour and looks

triple chocolate cookies - mmm

beetroot hazelnut cupcakes -

heavenly, my favourites of the four served.

Now I just need a proper pastry bag for the frosting

which was suppose to be a rose-like thing...

courgette cupcakes -
not only cute, but good enough to eat

banana cinnamon sunflowerseed cupcakes -
quite delicious but for the frosting that was way wrong

strawberry cream -
strawberries, ricotta and mascarpone,
loved by some but not me,

though fun to make and cute to look at

the was treasure hunt for hidden presents

and opening of treasures -

a green bone and a happy pig -
at least before loaf dog jaws got a grip

There was tea, Berliner Weisse, good company, yes all and all a pretty awesome 7-years do, for all beings involved. As well as for freezer which is very full of cupcakes and cookies that were quite impossible to consume in one Little Loaf's day.

granny square summer garland

I may have lots of ideas and creative whims swirling around in my head, but there are also a whole lot of half finished projects leisurely floating in head as well as lying around in house. I do wish I was more of a doer, a finisher than a thinker at times. So when I actually do finish projects and make something happen with ideas I am most pleased and satisfied with myself (and don't we all heart that feeling?).

So here I give you one of those actually finished - from a lot of crocheted squares, the granny square garland of summer 2010.

I begun crocheting them in April-ish, assembled the garland in late June in what turned out to be a non-satisfying way so I re-did it in time for Little Loaf's birthday do the other week. So not too bad from thought to finish, in my book of projects.

I now love the fresh, fun and simple look. I'm thinking I should crochet some more squares because they way I've hanged them under veranda roof calls for more squares really. But perhaps that will be a project for next spring-summer instead. As new thoughts, old ideas and half-finished projects also screams (very loudly) for attention...

more garlands;
linen and old lace
all heart

all heart garland

One wee - or not so wee as it took a lot longer to actually assemble if not crochet - project I've actually managed to both begin and complete as lately. What begun with a wee single heart...

Turned into lots of tiny hearts with many loose ends...

The loose ends got tied and turned into...

... the heart garland.

Ever since I saw the sweet idea and pattern at cute Yvestown blog past Valentine's Day I've been meaning to make one myself. As the heart is one pattern-symbol-shape I adore (much like acorns...).

Even if the pink-red colour palette is my favourite I wanted to make this tad more summery and fresh, with a feel of green grass and blue skies with woolly white clouds. So I went with turquoise, apple-green, teal and off-white instead. I am pleased with end result and yes there will possibly be more such hearty garlands made by me (ah the colour combinations are endless and alluring...).

For now though this summery garland will adorn my kitchen window with its hearty, summery and hopefully brimming with good vibes appearance.

linen and old lace

I love linen, I love old lace, this is the offspring from a meeting between some wonderful linen fabric - the shop had about 100 different colours (at least it seemed like that to colour enthralled me).

I had to settle for a selected eight, the task was beyond difficult and I still think life was cruel and unfair that day (in a very i-country way) - I procured in springtime and a selected lace from a big bag of delightful old bits and pieces of lace my grandmother once upon a time had made.

(There are still loads of them left in bag and I have some sweet ideas for a few of them, the rest will have to bide their perfect time.) Yes, I'm slowly, slowly beginning to warm up as far as the wilful sewing machine goes.

I have decided these summery garlands will cheer me up come dark, gloomy, wintry days... But let's not go there yet, pretty please!