Hello Ladybird

This Sunday was such a sunny but ah, very windy day here. I spent some time in the garden raking leaves and fighting against the first weeds (yes, they're coming early). I saw tulips peeking eagerly, as well as bleeding hearts (lamprocapnos spectabilis) and herbs like parsley and oregano to mention a few. If I haven't been very succesful in growing vegetables in the past years the herbs don't seem to fail on me. It must be because many of them are perennial and don't require that much attention but are happy on their own. And of course they apparently have a proper place with a suitable soil to grow. There were quite many ladybirds in the flower-bed. They were moving so fast I couldn't capture more than one to a picture. Such little creatures. I love them!

I got nice news today. Nei had put up a lovely article about Karuski on her greenfashionfreak blog. Thank you. Kiitos!

Sakura Inspiration

During the Easter I came up with a new design. The best part is that it happened by accident. I was cutting fabrics for other purse and something went wrong. I guess my mind was wandering around and I wasn't concentrating. But happily this resulted in something new! I'm glad to say that the first one is sold by now, another one is available here.

The linen here is something I found in Tallinn, Estonia a couple of years ago but didn't use until now. It's not recycled but I consider it quite eco-friendly though. I'm matching upcycled sakura and other flower prints with the solid color fabric. Blue, light & charcoal gray linens + floral print patterns. I never get tired of flowers, no matter if they exist in the nature, photo or fabric. Maybe you'll also get inspired by the picture of blooming cherry blossoms I took back in Japan? I hope so!

Kitten Talk

This is Kiti, the kitten who's been visiting us from Saturday and will stay here until tomorrow. She's just about 9 months old Norweigan Forest Cat. Such a fluffy and flexible young lady! She's so fearless, I have witnessed her jumping several times from floor up to fireplace which is about 1,50 meters of height. She likes to experience new tastes too. I had to move my spring seedlings from our kitchen to my studio because three sprouts of the runner bean (phaseolus coccineus) were already cut by her teeth. This has been an interesting baby-sitting for us, I think we'll miss her company after she has returned back home tomorrow evening.

Another thing. I want to thank Madelene from Merry Go Around. She was so kind to feature my earrings on her inspiring blog. Tack så mycket!

Happy Easter!

Do you have any plans for Easter? Are you having a holiday or are you working? I'll stay at home, take a little break but sew and craft in small bits too. I wish to:

-go through my bookshelf for a little inspiration
-make a nice dinner with my boyfriend (I bought a salmon today)
-get some ideas how to decorate new gift boxes and make a booth display at the upcoming craft event
-visit many nice blogs for a joy and enlightment
-sow some more summer flower seeds
-spend time outdoors, the weather forecast is promising!

I almost forgot, we'll get a guest coming on Saturday and staying for four days. It's Kiti, the kitten of my boyfriend's sister's family. I hope we'll get along well. Happy Easter!

Poppytalk!

I got really nice news this week: I got accepted to Poppytalk Handmade! Mother's Day & Kids Market will take place April 13 - May 8. This is my first time to be there, I'm pretty excited. I can't wait to see all other artists and labels who will be there. Of course I will hope for sales too, that's for sure. But the best thing is to be seen there. In a good company. Come to visit my showcase next week. And don't forget to visit their blogs here, here and here. Good for your eye and brain, me thinks!

Spring & Sprouting

Two weeks ago I did sow a whole bunch of seeds. Happily I can see most of them sprouting now! I even found some forgotten spaghetti squash (cucurbita pepo) seeds from my storage, package showing the best before date December07 but they're going strong as well. It's always worth trying, really. Soon I need to divide these into bigger planting holders.

And there are still plenty of more seeds to be sown in April. I need to find more space for them somewhere in our house, the kitchen is getting pretty crowded. It wont be before late May or early June I can plant all of them outside but I can wait. Oh, it feels like a spring now!

Feeling Connected?

These days the mantra goes: Get connected via social networks if you want to exist. Some years ago I didn't feel like doing this, in some ways I am so old fashioned! But what happened?

When I moved away from Helsinki some 3,5 years ago I left all my friends there. It's not that I wouldn't ever see them anymore but for sure the contacts are fewer now. In this tiny town I feel I'm an outsider and things wont probably change much in this sense days to come. My crafty soulmates are located all over the world within the internet connection. I need my Etsy friends e v e r y day: to say a quick hello, ask a question, listen to someone with good or little poor news, share your feelings and what's the most valuable; be assured I'm surrounded by people who share the same passion and are willing to give feedback and encourage each other. No matter where they are located, what's their background, age etc.

So thanks twitter, facebook, flickr and etsy. You fullfilled my needs. I ♥ you all!