creative workspace and a little help from my friend....

Gorgeous weather these days, hot days and cool nights,.... I hope it lasts....
What else to do then work outside with Merino wool, water, soap, and cool linen.

After the (belated) birthday party (of Mies) yesterday, I needed a little break and drove to a shop where I had my eye on some gorgeous linen, I bought it with 50% off, long live the sales!!!

can't wait to make flowers of them, to make perfect summer accessories!

you can find my linen flower (and silk) creations here.

Hop over to Kotoyoo's blog to find more creative spaces!

etnic roots

As I was looking for inspiration for the EST challenge, Kraplap told me I could also let me inspire by the traditional clothing of the countrys were my adopted kids were born.
She did not have to ask me twice, I admire the etnic roots of my kids!Flower Hmong
My eldest daughter Maia Dinh Thi Phuong is born in Hoa Bhin in Vietnam, situated in the mountains not far from Hanoi. As most of the Vietnamese have the ethny Khin, my daughter was originated from the Hmong, a minority Ethny who live in the mountains. I am very proud of that :-)

Noted most among their many crafts, their embroidery is stunning. The H'mong are among few people left in the world who, for the most part, still make their own clothes independently. Even if they buy the yarn at a local market, they still typically weave and embroider the fabric themselves. Many H'mong, though, still cultivate and dye, using local indigo plants, the cotton and hemp from which they make their clothing. From newborns to the recently deceased, the H'mong are dressed in finery. Other noteworthy crafts include the silversmithing and bronze making of jewelry. Indeed silver acts as a bona fide currency for them.

The eaarings are already available in my shop.

Find some beautiful pictures of the Hmong in this gallery of Dutch photographer Rob Oudshoorn.

Flax flowers from my homeland....

This time it was not so easy creating for the Challenge with the theme: Let your entry be inspired by the traditional costumes of the country where you were born .This challenge is hosted by Kraplap. find her blog and the other entries here.

I did not find much information about traditional clothing in Belgium, I am sure there must be, but I had not the time to do much research!

So, I know Flanders was well known for it's lace (especially Bruges) and I learned making lace doilies when I was a child, so I have the skills to make myself a piece of lace, but all material lays stocked up at my mothers and I really hadn't the time to hop over there!
But I thought of something I also have a connection with: linen.

My parents almost grew up between the flax fields and both my grandparents were working in the flax agriculture. When I was young , the flax industry was in a crisis as cotton and synthetic fabric (which were much cheaper) became more important.

But nowadays increasing worldwide demand for linen makes it again important. Flax is one of the few crops still produced in Western Europe, with nearly 130,000 acres under cultivation annually. Climatic conditions in this region are perfect for growing flax!
Here you can find more about the huge work it is from Flax to linen.

Linen is crisp, clean and comfortable. Soft, yet strong and durable. The more it is used, the softer and stronger it becomes. It can absorb up to 20% of its weight in moisture before it feels damp, and easily releases moisture to the air to remain cool and dry to the touch. Flax remains colorfast and launders beautifully. It has the additional advantage to be non-allergenic. Flax requires considerably fewer pesticides and fertilizers than other crops. The fibers are recyclable and eventually biodegrade.

So I found the material for my challenge entry: something typical for the region where I was born: linen.
I used a dark grey linen fabric and combined with light lilac (the color of the beautiful flax blossom) sugulite stones and dark lilac ribbon. The silver chain and hoops go very well with these colors.

Available in my shop.

COOL hot summer!

Hot days here in Belgium. Well, it was about time!
Within a week the it's summer holidays for the kids: two full months!!
And what can be more fun then playing outside with a lovely sun and a coling breeze! Yay!

Maybe these hot temperatures made me create some more 'cool' stuff, don't know, just want to show my new designs here, they are are already in my shop!

- Silk Lady necklace 29 USD
- Organic earrings 22 USD
- Japanese garden earrings 19 USD
- Silk twin necklace 29 USD

My creative workspace today

I am on paper mode today!

All my teapot cards are gone, so time to make new ones!

All I need are my little scissors and a pile of papers, I can do this on my terrace outside with a yummie glass of smoothie near me!

Don't you think they look lovely all lined up?

Hop over to Kotooyo's blog to find out other creative places.

eating 'Petit Beurre cookies' and getting crafty!

Ok, I agree, we are all cookie monsters here!!!
And there is one specefic butter cookie that is loved by everyone here in the house. It's Le Petit Beurre, a cookie that I know since my childhood and to me it stays one of the best butter cookies ever!
I was surprised to find out that the founder of 'le Petit Beurre' was a Frenchman, I always thought it was a Belgian recipe. I am sure you once have seen the beautiful advertising posters of the Lu cookies, the original ones have now become collectors items as they were made by famous artists like Mucha, Foulon, and Bouisset. Nowadays this yummie cookie is American as it was sold to Kraft Foods.
Find here (English) and here (Dutch)more about 'le Petit Beurre'

But what I wanted to point at, is the packaging of this cookies.
After all the 'Petit Beurre's that have been eaten here in the house, we have a pile of cute white ribble paper, and as I never throw these things away, the crafting can begin :-)
This is not a step by step tutorial, it is more a moodboard with tips and ideas .

just click on the pictures to enlarge them.

Cutting cute hearts out of the ribble paper and using them as a little tag on gift sacs.

- ribble paper - ribbon - sacs -

'thanks you tags'
- ribble paper - cardboard - vintage wallpaper - hemp cord - lillte wooden beads - abc stamps

'Happy Birthdaycake cards '
- ribble paper - all sorts of red and pink paper scraps - paper cake doilies - little felted balls

'Happy Birthday crown-card'
ribble paper - all sorts of red and pink paper scraps - paper cake doilies - little felted balls

Happy Feet

1. sitting, 2. Untitled, 3. harlequin_clutch, 4. bla bla

Just back from biking to the postoffice,

the weathers is so nice and it gives me a happy feeling!

It made me make a Happy Feet flickr collection today!

I am happy:

- because it's almost summer holidays

- these schoolyear went very well for the kids

- that I don't have to take the car to go to my work, just bike to Post Office!

- with my new collection 'Colliers de Papiers' that I made lately

- with all the new ideas bubbling in my head...