August Competition at Crafty Mama's

I love pumpkins.

I like how they look,

I like their leaves and ranks,

I love to paint them,

I love to eat them and

I love their uniqueness and variety.

For the August Competition the theme was Halloween. I'm no fan of darkness and spookiness but I love pumpkins and I love to be creative. I finished this one in the nick of time:31st of August!

So I painted these pumpkins on a tea towel and added a recipe for tasty caramel pumpkin cookies mmmmjammie!
As it is not ordinary to eat pumpkins here in the Netherlands (ahw you may get pumpkin soup at a gourmet restaurant) they're used for accessories or Halloween.
Once every blue moon I buy one at cook it, as I'm a great fan of cinnamon and brown sugar, pumpkins are a very good excuse to use these ingredients!
My mom used to make these caramel pumpkin cookies and we would fight over it lol they're absolutely delicious. In South African pumpkins are a common table vegetable and as hot a topic there as Brussel's sprouts here in The Netherlands.
I've painted with textile paint and added a finishing touch with golden liner. The butterflies are stamped using turqoise mettalic paint. This tea towl is heat set and washable.

Woohoo!

I've opened the post and there was a prize in it!! For me!!
I've won 15 Euro's with with a crossword puzzel in a regional magazine (veenendaaltotaal). I went to look in the old paper bin for the last edition of the magazine and yes I was announced as one of the two winners. I totally forgot I've entered my puzzel solution: "camping" mmmmm. What a nice birthday gift to myself lol

Images of Denmark

Zakka Zakka

At CraftyMamas the swap for August had a Zakka theme.

Yes, what is Zakka?!

It was quite and adventure to find out and try and make my swap buddy Karma something Zakka.

Zakka according to wikipedia is: "Zakka (from the Japanese 'zak-ka' or 'many things') is a fashion and design phenomenon that has spread from Japan throughout Asia. The term refers to everything and anything that improves your home, life and outlook. It is primarily based on household items from the West that are regarded as kitsch in their countries of origin.
Zakka has also been described as "the art of seeing the savvy in the ordinary and mundane"

I painted what I thought is a Zakka bag with textile paint. I've found the Kanji (A Japanese system of writing based on borrowed or modified Chinese characters.) words for strawberry, flower, rabbit and kat and painted that on the bag as well. Normally I draw my animals quite different, I now gave them a big head and big eyes to try and give them a more anime (A style of animation developed in Japan, characterized by stylized colorful art and often adult themes) look. By chance I've found wooden buttons with what look to me like japanese blossoms painted on them. These I've sown onto the bag as well.

I added some postcards my husband bought once for charity reasons. The cards had some Zakka looking characters on them.

I also added a crocheted necklace from wooden buttons to convince my swap partner I'm really trying my best to send her something zakka lol

On the Crafty Mama forum I've read that she received the package and I gather she likes it!

If she's happy I'm happy.

It was quite fun to Zakka with her...now I can't wait for my Zakka item she has made!

Please visit her log at http://lisascraftyplace.blogspot.com/

I used to be a Lemon Meringue

Since 2 years I'm a total Brownie Freak
Lol I have to share this with you, I got it from my mom:

Do not cheat - go with the first dessert you picked.

If all of the desserts listed below were sitting in front of you, whichwould you choose (sorry, you can only pick one!). Pick your dessert,andthen look to see what psychiatrists think about you.

Here are your 8 choices:
1. Angel Food Cake
2. Brownies
3. Lemon Meringue
4. Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Icing
5. Strawberry Short Cake
6. Chocolate on Chocolate
7. Ice Cream
8. Carrot Cake

No, you can't change your mind once you scroll down, so think carefullyabout your choice.
OK - Now that you've made your choice this is what the research says aboutyou:
SCROLL DOWN --- No Cheating

1. ANGEL FOOD CAKE -- Sweet, loving, cuddly. You love all warm and fuzzy items. A little nutty at times. Sometimes you need an ice cream cone at the end of the day. Others perceive you as being childlike and immature at times.

2. BROWNIES -- You are adventurous, love new ideas, and are a champion of underdogs and a slayer of dragons. When tempers flare up You whip out your sabre. You are always the oddball with a uniquesense of humour and direction. You tend to be very loyal

3. LEMON MERINGUE -- Smooth, sexy, & articulate with your hands, you are an excellent after-dinner speaker and a good teacher. But don't try to walk and chew gum at the same time. A bit of a diva at times, but you have many friends

4. VANILLA CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE ICING -- Fun-loving, sassy humorous, not very grounded in life; very indecisive and lack motivation. Everyone enjoys being around you, but you are a practical joker. Others should be cautious in making you mad. However, you are a friend for life

5. STRAWBERRY S! HORTCAKE -- Romantic, warm, loving. You care about other people, can be counted on in a pinch and expect the same in return. Intuitively keen. Can be very emotional

6. CHOCOLATE ON CHOCOLATE -- Sexy; always ready to give and receive. Very creative, adventurous, ambitious, and passionate. Youcan appear to have a cold exterior but are warm on the inside. Not afraidto take chances. Won't settle for anything average in life. Love to laugh

7. ICE CREAM -- You like sports, whether it be baseball, football,basketball, or soccer. If you could, you would like to participate, but you enjoy watching sports. You don't like to give up the remote control. You tend to be self-centred and high maintenance

8. CARROT CAKE -- You are a very fun loving person, who likes to laugh. You are fun to be with. People like to hang out with you. Youare a very warm hearted person and a little quirky at times. You have manyloyal friends.

Tell me what you are!

I can brake the vow of silence

" Now turn around and face us hands in the air,

you're surrounded!"

"Looks innocent to me, what do you think?"

For the crafty Mama july swap the theme was Recycled item.
It was my first swap and I was quite nervous.
Needend be.
I've crocheted this one from black garbage bags (unused), yellow and red bags from Kruidvat and blue bags from some expensive shop.
His eyes was made from beads I had from an ancient wooden beaded fly curtain a friend had.
I drew some pupils on them.
I know his feet look like they've been burnt by a hot roof...
I've stuffed him with bags.
While I was crocheting I raked my mind to give this frankenstein a little hope for love
If you're ugly you must have character and humour certainly helps.
When he was finished being crocheted and had eyes he already looked better
I didn't shave him but gave him a Smurf hankerchief (the girls') as a bandanna
I tied the card round his neck and then
had so much fun I though I'd make him a knapsack from felt I've been planning to do something with for 5+ years.
In there is the bounty money: Different European cents.
foreign looking type of guy
I thought he was picked up by the highway police but
he survived the trip to Ausralia and
I've received a absolutely cheery report from my swap partner Violet!
Lot of fun
We all fell in love with that rough fellow,
under all that black is a heart ready to spread some laughter!

Striped donkey

A friend stimulated me by ordering

a zebra linnen bag from me.

Starting with the back which is clear to all: The background is painted with pearl textile paint,

the beast lined with gold and black liners.

Well, if you don't draw attention at the market with this bag...

Yesterday I've finished this bag and manage to finish both the swaps I'm joining in!

How Zakka is that?

Crocheting flowers on a beach,
pink and cherise ones...
How Zakka is that?

Totally groovy baby ;-)

The cherise doesn't show so well on the photo

and I should've pressed the flowers before making a photo

(when we got back) in our garden.

But I tried out a new flower (for me) from a book from Marie Claire Idees (ISBN 8710966004159)

and succeeded.

I made 5 flowers in total in between watching and feeding kids

and getting sunburnt legs.

All and all enjoying a great day outside.

Husband made totally delicious Pangasius fish fillets and I

showed my true colours by dishing up an extraodinary salad

which the kids didn't like ;-)

Huge Horse...

Have I ever told you I drive a two seater?

Well, before you get green

it is not exactly a sports car

but you have to be very special to drive one of these

not anyone qualifies

you have to

• have escaped the rat race
• like to drive the scenic routes
• totally be able to stay away from highways
• be able to stop to smell the roses along the way
• Have a solid identity and not care what other people thinks
• not have a driver's liscence

This car is only allowed to go 45km/h max

but

it does have:

• cd player in which I play loud rock music to disguise the engin noise
• automatic sun roof
• central locking
• electric windows
• mags
• black and silver
• easily loads 2 crates of beer
• keeps me from getting drenched by the rain (we do live in the NL)
• it is still faster than walking, cycling or a horse ;-)

I have a South African Flag as bumper sticker because

• It is a beautiful flag
• black as a background really compliments the colours
• the Swiss may have their impressive watches but we Africans do have the time!

by the way in defense of the car;

the horse IS enormous,

it is some kind of Belgian Draft horse

Go little Hippo

Go little Hippo

Go on your way
and make the little children
next door
happy

If this side doesn't make them

giggle with enjoyment

show them your

right side

• 
  
  

  

(Right side Painted with textile paint on calico using linders to create 3D)

We went today to congratulate the neighbours with their new baby.

---

Made cards with the girls today.

The room where we had our creative overflow

looked like an explosion in a soup factory but we had fun!

We made 2 birthday cards,

1 bon voyage card,

1 congratulations-It- is- a- boy card and

1 card in memory of my painting teacher's cat:

she died at the age of 20.

GIP

Go In Peace

This guy is no longer with us.

He flew off yesterday to nest at a friend's house.

I wish them both lots of fun together. lol.

(Guinea Fowl Linnen bag painted by me, see more here:HouseOnTheMountain)

Crafty Mamas Swap

Ooooh I've totally forgotten to share with you my swap:
I think it is because mine is still on its way to Australia so I can't tell what I've made.
I can show you what I've received in the post. Such a nice supprise I got from CM Violet(give her blog a visit).

the theme was a recycled item to swap
She made me a bookmark and a pain brush roll-up from a children's curtain and sent if with this cute card!

I just love the colours and it is usefull too!

I absolutely can't wait till she receive hers...hope it will not get lost in the post!

Sun!

Today I went with the girls to a strip of beach at the Rhine river.

*A river of western Europe formed by the confluence of two tributaries in eastern Switzerland and flowing about 1,319 km (820 mi) north and northwest through Germany and the Netherlands to its two-pronged outlet on the North Sea. It is a major commercial shipping waterway linked by canals to other important European rivers and passes through a number of scenic valleys.*

Behind the sail boat you can see the dyke.

*The word dike is associated with the Netherlands "dijk", where dikes were built as early as the 12th century.A dike (or dyke) is an artificial earthen wall, constructed as a defense or as a boundary. It is also known in American English as a levee. The best known form of dike is a construction built along the edge of a body of water, to prevent it from flooding onto an adjacent lowland.*

I forgot a watch but luckily I had

the Cunera tower to check the time.

I took a crochet pattern to try out from Jo-Ann Idea

Just a little rosette. This way I was able to try out

something; keeping one eye on the girls and one eye on my hands:

For the rest I've worked on my mother's gift that I should finish this week

to be able to post it in time for her birthday.

Spoiled

This past week I got flowers:

Sunflowers (ooh la laaaa) from husband.

He went to shop for clothes, came back with what he went for and

for his dear wife he brought flowers!

Not just any flowers but the sunflowers I so cherish.

Aaaaaaaaah

The girls went out to play and came

giggly running back with little sweaty hands holding

picked flowers for mommy...aaaaaaah

I couldn't visit the lady from the Zonnebloem I ussually go to.

So she came to me and supprised me with a bunch of roses.

She shouldn't have.

Aaaaaaaah

Flowers says it all.

Especially if one is the daughter of

a flower farmer.