Enjoy the little things in life, for one day you may look back and realize they were the BIG things...

Monday 2 December 2013

From September to December in a flash...!

Wow! Time really flies! It's been ages since last visited this place, and I'm probably the laziest blogger ever...As suspected, I haven't had much time to blog about my "happy times" the last couple of months, but I have made sure that I've found at least a few minutes (or more!) every day to do something that makes me happy - and for that I'm actually quite proud :-)


The fact that we're now at full speed towards Christmas is quite stressful, actually, which is why I decided that I needed to finish with October and November here on my blog first,  before I dive into the Crazy Christmas Frenzy which is on the verge of breaking out....(don't get me wrong: I absolutely LOVE Christmas, but I always have too high expectations and too many plans, and you really can't squeese everything in during those 24 magical days we call Advent...I have learned that, I really have, but I'm still going to try this year as well....:-))
There will be blogposts about Christmas, that I can promise you!





Anyway,  I'm jumping from September to December here, and even though I myself have not visited my blog in a few months, I can see from my stats that my mere 10 posts have been read by quite a lot of people from all over the world! It's quite amazing, really, that you woderful people find my little corner in that huge cyperspace out there. I have only "advertised" my blog on Instagram, and played around a bit on Pinterest, other than that, the Ekte Lykke blog has been living her own life here in Blogland, and obviously made a lot of new friends :-)

Those of you who follow me on Instagram have already had a few glimpses of my baking and making since last time. It is so much easier and quicker to just post a photo and a short status on Instagram. (I suspect quite a few blogs can be quite jealous of Instagram these days - feeling a bit abandoned, actually....:-))


OK! Here are a few of my happy crafting moments this Autumn:


Making progress on my Christmasgranny and the Happy Colours blanket:



I have actually finished joining all the  patches of the Happy Colours Blanket, but can't get around to start with the edging....I will probably post some more details on this later. 


A new addition to my "Christmas Collection" has been made. I found a really beautiful round cushion on Pinterest, and since there was no pattern with this I tried to make my own...I'm quite pleased with it, but the pattern needs some adjustments so I better start making another one before I forget what I did, and have to figure it all out again once more...( If anyone knows a pattern similar to this, please let me know:-)) The roses are May Roses from Attic 24.







I've made a little heart for a very dear friend who is going through some tough times ❤️❤️
(Another creation inspired from the talented Lucy at Attic 24)



...and last weekend I went to visit her at her beautiful applefarm. It was a magical weekend with tears and laughter, sewing, crocheting and drinking of the most wonderful Cava 🌟🌟 (...followed by quite a few cups of very good and very much needed coffee the next day...)
I can live a long time on happy weekends like that❤️

In between the drinking and the talking, I actually managed to blow the dust off my old sewing machine and started to work on a beadspread for Little Missy. 

Here it is at a very early stage...



... followed by a crinkled and crooked assembly of joined patches....




I'm far more comfortable with a crochethook or knitting needles than behind the sewing matchine, but it was quite fun and I'm now eager to learn more...

The beadspread is indeed finished, and as soon as the light is good enough for a decent photo I will show you the final result. 

Since my last post we've also celebrated our boys' 12 th Birthday, and this time I will only show you one cake....: Merengue top and bottom, with filling of vanilla custard and fresh berries. Very yummy🌟





...and to end this speed-journey through October and November, and prepare the ground and set the note for the wonderful December:





...and this makes my Mummy-heart smile:






Till next time: Do what makes your heart smile ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️




❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️     LIVE - LAUGH - LOVE      ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️







Sunday 15 September 2013

A beautiful mess and the best of weekends!

Autumn is definitely here...
Autumn is not my favourite time of year - I' m a summer-person and I always feel melancholic and a bit sad when the leaves fall to the ground and the flowers go into hiding for the winter.
OK, I totally agree that the autumn colours are magnificent and beautiful, but I still so prefer the warmth and light of summer. Living on the west-coast of Norway, the days are usually wet and grey at this time of year, so those beautiful, crisp autumn-days are a rare treat in our little corner of the world.
We did actually have one of those days a few weeks ago, and on a walk in the woods we came across these beauties - so toxic but so pretty:



And here are just a few more pics to set you on your way down melancholy lane...



A little recap...
I guess this post will have to be a recap of the last month, and a reminder of the happy things that has happened in the midst of the rollercoaster life we've lived lately. There have actually been a few very happy moments, and right now I feel that the purpose of this blog is beeing served...
This is my way of taking a step back to see and appreciate what good things I've actually achieved and experienced  when everything felt chaotic and crazy...

Since my last post, little Missy has turned 7 years old! Unfortunately I had to be away on her big day, travelling abroad on a business trip that could not be avoided. It was a little heartbreaking for me, since I've never been away on my kids' birthdays before (...and hope never to be again...), but when attending her "birthday wake-up" via Skype I could see (and hear!) that she had the best of mornings, and that my absence was not a major concern to her...

I did come home the next day, and to compensate I promised to make all her favourite cakes for her two birthday parties...
When she started listing up her wishes, I soon realized that compromises had to be made...
We would have ended up with at least 10 cakes if all her wishes were to be granted...

For the family-celebration, we therefore agreed on a "4 in 1 compromise":
a (very) pink, heartshaped, oreo-cake covered in roses...




For her next party, with all the 15(!) girls in her class, we needed at least two cakes. This time her colour of choice was light blue, so we settled for the same cake as last time, only in different colours, as well as a really yummi merengue cake decorated with butterflies. 





Her birthday party was all girlie-girlie pastel, and I'm sure I had just as good a time as her preparing for this...I just LOVE pastel colours ❤❤❤❤❤❤



This lovely weekend!
In spite of the massive rain we've had the last couple of days, this turned out to be the best of weekends!
After a lovely summervacation came to an end, I feel like I've been caught in a rollercoaster of getting back into the everyday chaos of work, school, after-school activities etc.etc..
To top it all, both me and Mr. C have been travelling a lot for work, so the "at home-logistics" have been even more complicated than usual...Being a "single-mum" for three active kids for almost 3 weeks can be rather challenging, I have to say. To all you single-parents out there: you have my utmost RESPECT!!

So after a few crazy weeks, I've finally landed......This weekend has been one of those blessed ones without any plans on my account. My favourite kind of weekend!
Mr. C is out of town, our two boys are at camp, so it's an all-girls weekend for me and little Missy.

And what a weekend it has been!!
It has been pouring down outside, so we've spent almost the entire weekend indoors, doing our favourite things : crafting, reading, listening to music, watching movies and generally just having a quiet, cosy time together.



My girl is five years younger than her brothers, and while we carefully and with great enthusiasm introduced our boys to the classics (by our own definition, of course...) in film and literature as soon as they reached the proper age for it, we sometimes tend to forget little Missy in that respect. ...That's one (of the few) disadvantage of being the youngest, I guess...
We have already done that and been there, and forget that she still is new to many of the things her brothers already knows....

Yesterday I realized that she has never seen the brilliant "Finding Nemo", one of my favourite Disney movies, so right now this is on for the third time this weekend :-) I sit here giggling to myself listening to Dory speaking "whale". Hilarious! :-)

We've also started reading the epic masterpiece of C.S. Lewis, "The Chronicles of NARNIA", and she just can't get enough.
I loved these books as a child, and read all of them for my boys a few years ago. Now I've started all over again for little Missy, and to my great joy, my two big boys also snuggle up in the sofa when I read this, so I guess you never get to old for Narnia.
I also love the movies (not to mention the old BBC series from when I was little), but these will have to wait until all the 7 books are finished...(if we can manage to wait that long...)



One of the many, many  wonderful things about having children is that you get to experience those magic moments from your own childhood all over again throught your childrens eyes - just remember to take the time to treasure it!❤❤

This weekend, I decided to do just a bare minimum of housework. Filling and emptying the dishwasher, doing the necessary bit of laundry (which is actually quite substantial...)to survive a new, hectic week, making a huge lasagne to last us all weekend (to avoid having to make more dinner..)
The rest of the time I have dedicated to doing happy things for myself and my girl.

Little Missy have created a beautiful mess of paint, glitter and sequins, making some creative art from paperplates.....




She also made me the most beautiful keychain. This just made my heart melt....❤❤


 
            (Translated from Norwegian: I love you Mummy, from Anna)❤


And a little crocheting for Mummy, of course....
I always have way too many projects going on, and I really need to focus on getting some of them finished and done. The problem is that when I finally have two whole days dedicated to crochet and crafting, my head just spins and my heart sings, and I start everything at once...
I have so many ideas, and get so much inspiration from all the lovely books I've found on Amazon, not to mention all the incredible talented bloggers out there.




Below is just a few of all my WIPs that I really need to finish soon...!



I started this "Bling-cushion" back in May, and still haven't finished it! I've made all the flowers, and joining the rest of them is easy-peasy, the problem is getting started with the very boring backside, which will be a plain granny square in beige....
I'm totally in love with it, though, so I should just get my act together and finish it!!My favourite chair needs a little bling in this dark and grey time of the year....



My version of the South Bay Shawlette is slowly growing, and I LOVE it! So soft and light and warm.


I'm planning to add some lace and beads to the edging, but still have a lot of crocheting to do before it's big enough. This is going to be a BIG and snuggly shawl!❤❤


This is a blanket for one of my boys, inspired by the Circus Patchwork Blanket of the incredible talented CocoRose!




I actually had started making these hexagons before I found this blogpost, but was originaly planning to make this in only a few tone-in-tone colours. But when I stumbled over this beautiful CocoRose blanket, I decided that all my scraps  should be used and a colourful, happy blanket was the right thing for my boy. I have now made alle the 160 hexagons in 20 different colours, and are currently building up the currage to start the joining-frenzy...

Unlike the CocoRose blanket, I did not want to make this a join-as-you-go blanket, pretty as it is.          I like to have the opportunity to see all the finished patches, and to arrange them in the final colourscheme after they are all done. Another reason is that I usually bring a little crochet project along on long car-rides, and it is so easy to take my needle and my yarn along and whip up a patch or two whenever og wherever I have the opportunity. You can not do that with a big, growing blanket....
The "big blanket joining" is a great activity  to do now that the nights are longer and darker, and I can cuddle up in my favourite chair under the warmth of my growing blanket.

I'm planning to join them all in a cream colour flat-braid join...I'll keep you posted on the progress once I get started...

The recipient of this blanket loves it already, and he can't wait for me to finish this so he can put this in his new room. My "problem" now is that both his brother and little sister want a similar blanket, so another 2 blankets are in the pipeline....i.e. 300 more patches to be made and joined....


Just a few words of praise about CocoRoseDiaries
Of all the blogs I follow, the CocoRose Diaries is my favourite and  the most inspiring for me. Sometimes I feel like she writes about my life and my feelings - it is almost a bit creepy...

Unfortunately, the talented Vanessa has decided to leave Blogland for a while, a decision I respect and completely understand, but she will be sorely missed never the less...
All her old posts are still there, however, so if you have not visited her blog yet you are in for a wonderful treat This woman is just one of a kind, and her photos and crafts are incredible and so full of inspiration. Enjoy!!


Drifting away..
OK, I'm drifting away here again, and have to get back to this wonderful weekend and my crafting adventure..
I bought this book from Amazon almost a year ago, planning  to make this lovely cat for my nephews and nieces for Christmas - last year......



That obviously did not happen, but this weekend I made my first attempt on this cute creature, and I have to say I'm kinda pleased with the result I have some trouble getting his facial expression the way I want it - this guy looks a little grumpy - but I guess practise makes perfect, so I'm now well into my Amineko nr. 2....The plan is to make at least 6 of these little cuties before Christmas...



The pretty Mary-go-rounds...
Earlier this summer I had a play with some new cotton yarn I bough. I loved the colours, and - again - I found som great inspiration at CocoRoseDiaries.
She had made these lovely and colourful "Mary-go-rounds" from old bracelets, and refererred to this great tutorial from another talented crafter out there in Blogland.

I found some cheap bracelets at H&M, and made a few of these pretties, not quite sure what to make of them; pictureframes, bunting??







I left them in a box for a while, but yesterday I took out the rest of the bracelets with a great idea in my head....you just wait and see:-)

A little jump-start on Christmas....
A few weeks ago I felt a flash of Christmas inspiration coming along, and started this Grannystripe blanket in festive Christmas colours. The plan is to make this a BIG and cosy blanket for our couch.
(I can just see myself and Mr.C all cuddled up under this with a cup of warm Gløgg,  watching my all time favourite movie: Love Actually....)



Anyway, my little Christmas inspiration came out in full bloom this weekend, and I've now started on a full "Christmas-collection" of blanket, cushions  and ornaments....

Here is a little sneak-peak of what I indulged myself into last night, after little Missy was sound asleep...

A creative mess

LOVE the festive colours    


Tah-dah! My H&M bracelets all dressed up for Christmas....
These could be used as ornaments for the three, a festive bunting or a nice decorelement for wherever and whatever...




If this "collection" turns out half as good as it all seems inside my head, I will probably make a separate blogpost about this a bit closer to Christmas..

So, I guess this turned out to be a long post after all - about all and nothing, really...Just some bits and pieces of my happy things at the moment.

I know that the next couple of months will be crazy work-wise, so my blogging will probably be the last priority on my list, but hopefully I will manage to leave a few posts now and then...

Instagram and Facebook are both faster and easier than blogging, so I'll probably upload a few pics there from time to time...I'd love for you to follow me there, too.
Just click on the sidebars at the top of this page, and you will find me :-)

I wish you all a wonderful week with lots of love and happy moments.
Don't forget to treasure the little things that make you happy - if you look for them you'll find them


                                     ❤ Live - Laugh - Love 

Friday 23 August 2013

Daisylove!

So,it's been a few weeks since my last post...
Time is running so fast, and the days are hectic again now that the long and lazy summer vacation is over.
But now it's finally Friday afternoon, the weekend seems to become one of those nice ones, and I'm cuddled up in my favourite chair with a warm cup of lovely, frothy cappuccino. The kids are all busy playing soccer outside, the house is quiet for a blissed while and I can finally write this post that I've been thinking about and looking forward to for a while now....


Daisies!

I love daisies in all shapes and colours, but my favourite are those little, pretty ones that fill my lawn and makes it very tricky to cut the grass.....



When I first discovered all the beautiful chrochet daisies out there in Blogland, I got so excited! I searched around a bit for a tutorial, and the best I've found is this one from the Tillie Tulip blog. Nice photos and clear instructions, and her Daisy blankets are just amazing!
One day I might be able to make a whole blanket with these cute, happy flowers...I just have to finish some of mye other BIG projects first...For now I have to settle for smaller projects like cushions, and I've already made a few.

Here is my first attempt at the pattern...
The stiches on this pillow are a bit loose and uneven, and I am not too happy with the joining method I chose for the squares,  but I love the colours and the cushion fits nicely in my favourite chair, so it stays for now...


I started crocheting less than a year ago, and I am 100% selft-taught..... Thanks to great tutorials and YouTube videos, my skills are improving little by little....

I have been knitting since I was 5 years old, and I love it. But when I started crocheting, it only took one grannysquare and I was " hooked". So now I'm trying to make everything at once - there are just sooo many wonderful things to make, and my mind is constantly working on new ideas to patterns and colour-combinations.

Anyway, back to the daisies...I absolutely LOVE this flower, and when I first found this lovely pattern at Tillie Tulip it just made my heart sing!
After a few projects using this pattern, I started to experiment a little.
A dear friends birthday was coming up, and I wanted to make her a BIG cosy cushion.
She is also definately a "Daisy-lover", so I wanted to make the flowers really big and bright on her cushion.
After a few attempts, I came up with this version, which I call "The Double Daisy". I made the yellow centre bigger, and more 3D-like. It kind of pops out a bit, like it does on a real Daisy.
I also added a second row of petals to make it bigger. I really like how the flower stands out, bold and beautiful!
The colours were carefully chosen for my friend, and I think these aqua tones are really nice together with the white flower.


Here is how it came out all joined together with a light blue colour. 
I really like the joining on this, it is the flat braid join which I also used on The Blue Meadow Cushion. 



Tah-da! The Double-Daisy Cushion




The back is made out of one big grannysquare in the light blue colour. With so much going on at the front, I wanted to make the back calmer and more neutral. 




This cushion is part of a birthday present where every item had a special meaning to me and my friend, and since the Daisy played the leading role here, I also made a lantern with a couple of pretty daisies attached.



...and of course my little signature heart





Here is the whole ensemble together: Daisy cushion, Daisy lantern, pink champagne, lovely, sweet merengues, Marc Jacobs wonderful Daisy perfume and of course a big, wonderful REAL Daisy plant!





 A little close-up of the pretty pastel colours




...and a little, sweet Daisy-treat

Daisy and Butterfly vanilla cupcakes were obviously a must for this particular birthday party. The butterflies and daisies are made of sugarpaste. So much fun to make :-)




Pretty and really, really yummi!




Ok, I've finished my coffee,  the noise from outside is coming closer, so I guess my little moment of quiet is over....
Now it's time for movienight with the kids - and I might just be able to sneak in a little crocheting while watching...

I wish you all a wonderful weekend with lots of fun and love



 


❤ Live - Laugh  - Love❤


                                               






























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