Pink Moment of the Week

This week we celebrated Carolina's third birthday.

And how it turned out at the end of this busy party day it also became the birthday of Carolina's and Clara's new cousin. My sister was due with her first baby actually a couple of days later, but how many babys really care about their due date? - statistically about 4 percent. I quickly knit up this little baby hat (it is this pattern here) with wool my mother once gave me for Carolina and finished it right on time (what can be quicker then a newborn baby hat) to send it out to my little niece. Aunts do things like that.

Pink Moment of the Week

Day 365 of my year-long photo project,

see here, if you like.

And also coming to its end, the MATS online course,
in the final week the assignment was to design a hyper-lush zipper pouch,
where I used some photographs from our recent holiday on Gran Canaria.

Agar Agar Prints

Today I would like to share a recent crafty discovery of mine - Gelli Printing or you could also call it monoprinting with a gelli plate. That means that you need a special printing plate for this technique, which you could buy not quite on the same cheap side here or better make your own one. I found this recipe online and being a vegan I find the idea of gelatine very repulsive and substituted it with the same amount of agar agar (which is an algae) which worked out great.

There is so much room for experimentation with gelli printing.

And I have just started - 

there really is an addictive factor in it.

The girls find it fun too and like watching and assisting.

 

These prints will come in very handy soon.

Pink Moment of the Week

A collage for this week's assignment in MATS.

We were supposed to create an abstract collage for a 25-45 year old female, using limited colours (in my case pink, red and neutrals) and collected items. Plus including words, floral and geometrical motifs. Would I buy it?

Winning is Sweet

... for Anja who made the right guess in the Travel Quiz.

Polveróns from Gran Canaria.

Congratulations!

Anja, will you be coming to Oldenburg Knit Night someday soon?

Just let me know,

so I can bring them around

(and maybe some knitting also).

Handmade in Thailand

While we are already on another little holiday, I still owe you Thailand's crafty impressions. So now is a good time to fill that gap.

To be honest, Thailand was the first time for the last years that I didn't bring any knitting with me - knitting with white in the tropics? Not such a good idea. And I didn't feel like knitting anyway. I would have felt like the only person knitting in Thailand, because I didn't see a single person doing it. But I did see quite a bit of crochet.

Crochet also seemed like a popular pastime for some masseuses (that gave us those great massages) while waiting for customers.

I also found one fabric store called PhaiBoon in Hua Hin.

And you could always see some kind of sewing shop.

Pink Moment of the Week

Do you know Suzanis? I didn't before this week's assignment in MATS. They are embroidered patterns from Uzbekistan. They served as inspiration for designing plates. Here are mine:

Wherever I am, pink travels with me.

Hello November!

I turned the calendar before we left for our vacation:

It will be Carolina's third birthday at the end of the month.

Right now November for us is not full of rain, cold and dark,

but more like July.

(and remember you can still win some sweet souvenirs 

in the Travel Quiz)

The cold and rainy moments will come,

but we'll take some warmth home with us

and light three candles later in November.

Travel Quiz

Where am I right now?

To win an original gift from this place, just write a comment and say where I am. The right guess wins! If there are several right answers, I'll pick a winner by chance. The winner will be announced on November 10. Good luck!

Pink Moment of the Week

Actually lots and lots of moments (around midnight),

practicing my newly acquired fabric pattern making skills:

Made in Lilla Rogers e-Course Make Art That Sells,
under the theme "root vegetables and vintage casseroles".

Knitting!

So this, dear readers, is my first yarn purchase of the year

(and it's already October!):

As you might have noticed, I was all about painting, colours and art this year - and I still am. But some night before falling asleep last week I felt like picking up the needles again. My ongoing (or better "onlying") projects couldn't spark my interest, so I thought a little thingie for the little one would be fun. I bought this wool and have already cast on. And it is - fun.

Yarn Graffiti

Spotted near the city centre:

We all start to need knitted woolies again for warmth.

Clara Crafts

This summer's crafting hype has also infected our house:

Clara has been making them since June 

and had a major loom band making outburst last week.

Is that loom-y or loony?

Falling Leaves

The wine leaves turning red are my favourite plants in our garden in autumn. 

There is so much beauty and radience in those colours 

and they captivate me every time I pass by 

(and go to the compost). 

All through September and October I watch this spectacle, 

which is now nearly over.

My latest play with surface pattern design

(I am just taking this incredibly fabulous

e-course Pattern Camp with Jessica Swift at the moment)

made those wine leaves come back to life on the computer screen:

So this is my first-ever pattern design
(it is a straight tossed repeat to use the designer lingo) 

and I couldn't be more proud.
There is still a lot to learn,
but combining drawing, painting and new computer skills couldn't be more fun.

Thank you leaves for your inspiration.

Pink Moment of the Week

Can there ever be a painting without pink?

Pink Moment of the Week

a new painting:

Hello October!

It is the first of October today.

What sounds more like autumn than October?

"Is this a heart"? I asked Clara.

"Of course, not! 

Have you ever seen a heart with three tips?

It is a leaf."

Golden October here we come.

Knitting in Wilhelmshaven

Last weekend I spent at a yoga ashram at the North Sea teaching a prenatal yoga training. I travelled via the city of Wilhemshaven and was quite surprised when I left the train station and saw a whole square full of yarn graffiti trees.

I don't know whether you have ever been to Wilhemshaven, but I think it is fair to say that it is a city that is really lacking in the beauty department. So it was a great idea to give this place some adornment.

 

These are just a couple yarn graffitis, there were so much more. But I had a train to catch and only photographed a random selection. And I also found out what there were all about:

They were part of the Wilhelmshaven Street Art Festival (here).

There is hope for Wilhemshaven.

Pink Moments of Thailand

It's been four weeks already since we came back from Thailand,

and now I found the time to show you these:

a wall in our first hotel room

Bangkok taxis

or better a bike?

tickets for the Royal Palace 

on the train to Hua Hin

new hat

such beautiful flowers!

Ko Tao Island

yes, these are eggs!

at a restaurant

fresh pomegranate juice

having fun with Mama ...

... and Papa!

water sports on Ko Tao

no sports

bying (and eating) loads of tropical fruit every day

temple time on Ko Samui

fancy pink hair, Blythe?