Willkommen - welcome to my little blog. Enjoy all the ideas I brought with me from my trips around the world of crafting.

Freitag, 16. Dezember 2011

Starry night - and day

Somehow this year my christmas decoration turned out to be a little "starry". But I love how my cookie cutters look on the window.


Outside in the hallway I strung some of these origami stars and made a wall hanging. I used old books, maps and sheet music - love the look of it!


Dienstag, 1. November 2011

Paddington and me...

... are going to Great Britain!
For two weeks on a teacher exchange to Scotland!
I'm so proud of the bag I made from the curtains I bought at the flea market in England. The pattern is taken from "The Bag Making Bible" by Lisa Liam - a great book!!!
Paddington Bear  on the back of the bag
The front with a large pocket

You can definitely fit a lot of things in the bag -
perfect for a weekend trip or as a carry on on the plane

Dienstag, 9. August 2011

Face of summer...


...or a face of autumn?!


I found this little creature today among my flowers on the table - I'm not sure what he is trying to tell me. Is he part of the summer that is supposed to be here, or did he come with the rain and cold weather?? 


I'll try to find out!!

Dienstag, 26. Juli 2011

Summer in a bag

The last weekend felt more like fall than summer - cold, grey and wet. So I decided to fight the sad weather by finally taking on the Cosmo Bag from Amy Butler. It  took me the whole weekend - but I finished, and now I feel like summer wherever I go...
I love how the bag has turned out - very summery!

I divided the inside pockets, so I now have four - and already packed the most important accessory this summer - my umbrella! 

Mittwoch, 20. Juli 2011

It's my turn / Endlich eine Tasche für MICH

My Reversible Shopper by Amy Butler - I added the little side pocket (it used to be a little pocket on the apron as well).


Ok, I have the bag-fever right now, as my hubby pointed out. I have done a number of bags from the Amy Butler book - but now it's my turn... I made a great and easy shopper for myself. I used IKEA and vintage fabric - actually it was an old kitchen apron from my grandma - that I found in the dress-up clothes box (Faschingskostümkiste) in the basement. I love the pattern and the colours. And now I love the bag. Used it a lot on our trip to England - as a shopper and a beach bag!



The bag is huge - I could almost fit my dog in (I don't think she would like it ;o)


These are the other two shoppers I have made:

The reversible side.
A farewell present for our help Elena at school (all the kids drew pictures on the inside fabric).

The shopper for my mother-in-law.





Montag, 18. Juli 2011

England-trip fabric treasures


We are back from a lovely two week trip to Dorset, the south of England. We had great weather, a great campground on a beautiful little beach, found some nice fossils on the beach and took our time to do a lot of reading and relaxing. AND shopping - especially at all the charity shops and flea markets we passed. These are the fabric treasures I found...

Two vintage curtains - I just LOVE the Paddington Bear fabric!!

Three pieces of home dec fabric - two from Cath Kidston (very dangerous store!!)

Mittwoch, 13. Juli 2011

Handmade Gift Exchange

For the second time I have participated in the Handmade Gift Exchange, hosted by Linda at  craftaholicsanonymous.net .
And this time I not only send off a gift - I also received one!!!! My partner was lovely Nicole from Belgium. I made for her a little summer bag, some flower pins and some sock animals for her kids. Because she told me she does a lot of flower arranging I also send her two embossed stones.

The gifts I sent to Nicole...

a little bag and some flower pins...
embossed stones which I found on a beach in Wales...

and the sock-animal gang.

Dienstag, 21. Juni 2011

Finally I can show you...

... the finished DearAnna-Bag!
The finished bag.

I found an old blouse at the thrift store - the flowers and the colours were ideal for the lining.

I had to enlarge the bag to fit in books - now even the pattern book fits easily!

At first I wasn't sure about the button - but it needed something...and now Anna loves it, so I'm good!

Donnerstag, 16. Juni 2011

Birthday-bag for my mum

Tomorrow is my mums birthday - and I made for her the Amy Butler 'Teardrop Bag'. My mum is a great sewer and loves to sew stylish and trendy clothes for herself. And colorful ones (she is turning 72 !). So I picked a fabric that should go with everything... I hope, she'll like it...
The bag is ideal for a summer afternoon having coffee with your girlfriends - regardless of your age, don't you think?


Circus, circus

I don't even remember the last time I have been to the circus. I mean, a REAL circus - with a tent, animals, clowns and people flying high above you through the air. So last weekend the circus was in town and we went. We - me, my hubby AND my dad...

Going to the circus means wearing the right shoes - my "hippy-shoes" as one of my students named them

When I was a kid it was always me and my dad going to the circus - but I didn't think he would still like to go. But he did! I'm glad he did. Somehow we haven't found the right grown-up-way to communicate with each other, yet. So maybe going back to the past and doing something we both enjoyed when I was a child helped to revitalize the father-daughter-bond.
Growing up really is strange sometimes... 


Elephants is a MUST at the circus...

...and seeing all those beautiful horses was amazing, too!


Dienstag, 31. Mai 2011

The right moment

Sometimes it has to be the right time, the right angle, the right place - and something you pass everyday becomes something special. 


But...if you don't take the time to notice it will be gone. 


Don't miss the right time to notice something new in the old - open your eyes to see the change!!!


The sunlight shining through the window in the roof - reflecting off the mirror on the wall - back-lighting the flower (no, I' didn't use any extra lighting or tricks from the camera to make it glow like that)

Montag, 18. April 2011

Colors of spring


I bought these beautiful flowers today - Ranunkeln und Löwenmäulchen (I have no idea what their english names are). Spring is definitely here!!

DearAnna-Bag II (a little glimpse)

Yes! Done! I made it!!!

The bag is finished and actually looks nice - but since I didn't give it to my friend yet, I can only show you a little glimpse of it. I really hope she'll like it!!

Samstag, 9. April 2011

DearAnna-Bag I (aka The Prototype)

Ok, so maybe I did get carried away - a little bit. My dear friend Anna's birthday is next week - and I wanted to give her something special.
So I told her, she can pick a bag from the Amy Butler book - and she did!! The cute little blossom bag.
But since she is an absolutely book-crazy woman and takes a book (or two) everywhere she goes  - and is mummy to a little baby girl - we decided to enlarge the bag a little to fit her needs.

So, not only a tricky bag but also different from the pattern - I love the challenge (What was I thinking??).
Better to sew a prototype before I start with the fabric she picked. 

And that's what I did the last week, and last night I finished the PROTOTYPE!

I'm glad, I made the effort because I found some things I will have to change - but it turned out quite well!
Have a look and decide for yourself...






Montag, 4. April 2011

My first handbag

No, of course it's not my first handbag - like  every other woman I own more than enough handbags - but this is the first time I made a handbag for myself.  I always wanted to make one, but I always feared it would be too difficult. Now, having bought the wonderful book "Style Stitches" by Amy Butler I just had to give it a try. Since I have more than enough fabric; collected over the years and patiently waiting to be made into something - I selected some summery IKEA fabric and gave it a try.

I have to say - for it being the first time, I'm very pleased with the result.
The finished bag

The lining used to be an IKEA bedspread (very british, I think)

I used some old buttons and a ribbon to close the top

Boy cardigan into very girly jacket

I just returned from a weekend trip to Switzerland - visiting my dear friend Anna and her beautiful little mouse Alicia (ok, and her hubby, too - even though I didn't see him much). But I have to admit - having a mostly girls weekend was a lot of fun.

When I had asked Anna, what to bring for the baby she said she could use a light wool cardigan. Knowing that my dear friend is quite a little fashion victim herself and has great taste in dressing little Alicia, I wanted to bring something special. But all the girls cardigans were very girly - puffy sleeves, only one button - not very much suited keeping an energetic one year old warm.

But I found a great boys cardigan - very british, hooded and with a long zipper. So I decided to pimp it up a little bit to make it wearable for a little girl.

So here is the before and after:
Plain boy cardigan

Girl version with added lace and buttons
Some more buttons on the bottom


Ok, the arms are a little long - but she'll grow into it


Yes, it definitely doesn't look like a boy's cardigan anymore

Freitag, 18. März 2011

Bad hair day

Don't you just hate when you look in the mirror in the morning and your hair just decides not to cooperative for the day? 



Call yourself lucky when you have hair long enough to make a pony tail or do something else with it. But what if your hair doesn't only take the day off, but goes on vacation for a long time - completely...? A dear friend of mine is going to have brain surgery next week - so the hair will have to shaved off. What a cruel thing for a woman to think about. I remember as a child in kindergarten I had to cut my hair very, very short - because I had to be treated for some kind of skin problem - I looked like a boy and felt horrible. But I was a kid - and I quickly didn't care anymore. But as an adult? Hair is such an important part of being a woman, isn't it? 



So, when my friend told me the news I wanted to do something to make her feel better about what she will look like after surgery - so I offered to make her a hat. Fortunately, she is as strong-willed as me, therefor her had is as big as mine (I always have problems finding hats that fit) - which makes it much easier sewing a hat for her. She decided on a newsboy hat with brim. So I made a pattern from a hat I bought in a little woolen mill in Wales and started on a prototype. With lining and everything. The prototype being a little wide I added some elastic to her had - and I have to say I'm very pleased (my model Eeyore doesn't seem to be though ;o)
The finished hat for my friend.

Eeyore modeling the prototype - I think, he doesn't like the pink...

...no, it's not the pink. Maybe he's just not the hat type?

The flowers are pins you can take off. The right pin is repeating the fabric of the lining.