ta-dah! here's swatch no.5; cables this time! so much easier than i imagined... :) 

it's a long swatch, so i could really practice the cable stitch! i like how this swatch is so different in size, that might make it more interesting when i put them all together, at the end of this year.

no.5: cables#1

i'm really liking the swatch-a-week project so far! i was afraid i would have no time left for other things, but i like having short-term goals. i'm glad i'm finishing things... even if it's just a swatch.

i had a little more time this week, so i started knitting the second wristwarmer... and i teared out my zpagetti basket after my boyfriend banned it out of the living room. (a story yet to be told)
AND!!!!! my granny square blanket is almost finished now, after two years of crocheting...
i am currently crocheting with the last skeins of yarn, when i'm trough those i still have to put all the squares together. it might be fun to give you guys an update next week. :)

and just like last weekend, we took a winter walk, a REAL winter walk this time: loads of snow and cold, cold, cooooold. :) but so much fun, i love snow!! have a nice week and keep warm!

i'm having a very relaxed sunday today... not doing anything special, just drinking some coffee and documenting my latest crafty projects...

this week i started on a new knitting project; with the yarn i bought at the fleamarket. (apparently putting raw coffee in an envelope inside the bag with yarn helps getting rid of the smell!)

i'm going for a purely functional knit... bed/couch-socks! i hope i finish them soon cause i always have cold feet in the evening. :)

next to show is one of the crochet snowflakes i made. maybe i'll put them in the christmas tree, maybe i'll make a garland for the windows or mantle, don't know yet... :)

i also wanted to share these pictures i took. the sun was shining so beautifully in the park across the street, and made pretty shadows inside our living room... which makes me love living here even more!

that's it for now... have a nice sunday evening!

i'm back from la douce france! let me share some of my souvenirs with you!

in Aix-en-Provence there was a cute fabric store just around the corner... they had such pretty fabrics! i decided to buy some, but only if they were "provence-ish" and affordable.


there was also a big bookshop in Aix. we went in to buy a map of Marseille, but ofcourse i ended up buying books. i never saw so many good hobby books in one shop, i had the hardest time picking just one. :) to my own surprise, this point de croix ( cross stitching) book caught my special attention...



i've also got some other souvenirs: a tan and a sunburned belly, new sandals, authentic marseille soap and 34 crocheted granny squares... and while i was in france, my order from Wolhalla arrived at home. they are selling Noro yarn for only half the price and i ordered three skeins, one for a pair of mittens and two for a scarf called "wabi-sabi". this yarn is sooooo pretty! the colours are stunning and it is incredibly soft...totally worth its money! i can't wait to start (after i finish my socks!), i do hope i get them ready before winter.


conclusion: the provence is great, holidays always end too soon and i should really start using all my yarn and fabrics. (a sewing project is in the making, though!)


(PS: still nobody who wants to P.I.F.???)

apparently there's some give-away virus going trough Blogland!
- LaFilleHella is giving away a handmade scarf and 2 cute bowls. i'm not entering because i can fill an entire store with scarfs and porcelain only... ;)
- Dutch Apple is giving away a handmade bag out of recycled materials! it's really pretty!
- Melissa is giving away all sorts of things! all really nice! some fabric, some vintage...

oh and look how beautiful the light was yesterday evening...
i should really start taking more photos again!

home made sushi, times two:

the edible kind:


the knitted kind:

i found the free pattern for knitted sushi a while ago at ravelry, i just had to make it. :)
totally useless, so i used them for dressing up our new sushi plates.

ps: check out Kupuku: they have sushi-pillows and magnets, very funny!

after a visit to the MoMu in Antwerp (for the Delvaux exhibition, which turned out to be good but not as great as i expected it to be), we also went to Tilburg for a visit to the Textile Museum.
some pictures of the visit:

first some coffee at the café...

the exhibition started with some authentic "wool-blanket-making-machines"...


... but what was really amazing was the textile lab: imagine all kinds of fabric-making machines in a big room and people working in it, creating gorgeous textiles, tapestries,... and ofcourse loads and loads of yarns!





unfortunatly, it wasn't allowed to take pictures of the mina perhonen exhibition which was breathtaking and inspiring - i loved it so much!

5 reasons why spring is so much better than winter:

1. spring is the perfect time for squeezing our feet into pretty, open shoes.

2. letting the dog out is so much more enjoyable in spring.

3. having pink things all over your garden makes everyone happy.

4. reading in the grass makes a good book even better.

5. spring is perfect for going on long bike rides.


anyone else longing for spring as much as me? reasons why? do tell!