Deck the Halls……

Deck  the Halls with boughs of holly Fa-la-la-la,la- la-la!

It’s the time to be jolly dear friends and I hope you are all well and ready for the holiday season.

I spent the morning today listening to Christmas songs and trying to assemble a ginger bread house I bought from the big blue and yellow shop.

I love gingerbread cookies, men, trees, stars and hearts and surely houses.

They look so pretty and so festive. Assembling biscuit houses though can prove a bit tricky!

I felt very satisfied with myself when the frosting I made came out  OK–which is not the most difficult task one can tackle, but still……

After a few hours of ‘gluing’ and ornating the little windows, doors, roof and chimney with white and pink frosting, a fairy -tale- like tiny house appeared in front of my glimmering eyes.  Happy , happy ,happy I was and foolishly proud of myself:)

 ‘A  Hansel and Gretel’ house –without the witch!!-  transported me to fairy land , to snow covered country side, fir trees, twinkling stars , reindeer and snowflakes and a roaring  fire in the fireplace of the tiny houses hidden in the deep forest.

And so I created my little fairy tale scene, I share with you  today, in my kitchen, to keep me company with its little red fairy lights during Christmas days and cold nights.

 Oh life’s little pleasures , thank you so much for the joy you bring to me.

Do you want to have a look at some of my Christmas decorations?

Here is the tree. I love white, silver and gold baubles and lots of fairy lights.

 I also love little angels . I have a small collection and I take them out every year to celebrate with me J.

It goes without saying that another  Christmas wreath was also made!!

 I found this cute little couple with their crochet bonnets and warm clothes ,at a shop the other day  and decided that they will find shelter in my  house , on a wreath ,  among my crochet flowers , greenery and ribbons.

 I love poinsettias ! Their flower doesn’t usually last long, but they are so pretty and the red petals give the house the brightest and the most festive touch.

 So , enjoy the holidays my dear friends, whatever you do, wherever you are  and try to create a warm, sweet and tender fairyland for you and your dear ones with lots of love and sugary kisses.

My love to all !

Tina xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Just before Christmas!

Two  more weeks for Christmas!!!! Oh  time flies and  it flies fast!

The weather is still very good here, in sunny Greece and the sea still invites you to swim, though I suppose it is better to just look at it ,as it must be veeeeery coooold.

Last weekend, we visited a favourite seaside resort and were amazed by the beauty of the orchards , with the lemon and orange trees full of fruit , the  green greener than ever , the blue of the sea vibrant and the horizon clear and bright.

I think Christmas in Greece is very often sunny and not ‘white’, at all. I love the song : ‘I’m dreaming of a white Christmas’, although,   snow rarely appears  before January, in my country.  

To be honest ,I don’t think I would like it to get very cold and snowy at the moment . Good weather helps with hanging out , shopping and arranging easy -going , holiday activities.

These past weeks have been very hectic on the crafting front. We made ‘tons’ of Xmas cards at school to exchange with some schools abroad.

 I organized a Xmas  and New Year card workshop and lots of glitter, shiny ribbons and cardboard were  used , the words ‘Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year’ , were written again and again and I spent  more than an hour at the local Post office waiting  to post seven thick envelopes with the handmade cards my students made. Well, it was all worth it. It always is, I suppose.

In between other professional activities and house work, I found some time to make two more wreathes.

Here, have a peek. The red one is similar to the one in my last post. I love this kind of wreaths: a tiny bird house, greenery, little creatures, red ribbons. Cute!!!

The second wreath is definitely more glamorous. I crocheted the flowers and added  shiny beads in the middle to give them  this extra luxury and make them  sparkle.

I love this time of year , just before Christmas. I love the anticipation of the warmth this special time brings along , the dreaming of snow that never comes, the wishes and presents and decorations , the fairy lights and glass baubles. I like it all and wish to enjoy it to the full.

Many warm wishes to all of you !

Tina xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Life’s little pleasures: a Christmas wreath

In this ever changing, uncertain and sometimes tragically dangerous world that we live in , our heart and mind seeks refuge to some innocent , simple, happy little pleasures, our  defense against dark realities…….. .

My little , happy moment today was another heartwarming craft .

I have had this in mind for some weeks now, but I thought it was rather early to  make something Christmassy . The weather here is still very spring-like and discourages the whole Christmas crafting idea.

But this morning, I felt the urge to start working on a wreath , using the tiny , Oh-so-cute and pretty creatures I bought some time ago, along with my crochet flowers –the ones I wrote about ,in my last week’s post.

Do you want to have a peek ?

 This little man with the red bonnet and the grey outfit is just adorable.

Look, he is sitting next to my crochet Christmas flower. Do you like the little button?

And here is another tiny friend , one of Santa’s helpers , dressed in red .There is a white heart on his dress .

 A Christmas wreath can’t be complete without  some cinnamon sticks , a pine cone ,fir ,holly and red ribbons.

Here is my wreath against the green background of a plant in a pot, on my balcony.

A new wreath deserves to be photographed again and again!

The two pretty creatures on the wreath have company, as you can see!

I adore the little ,female Santa’s helper and the tiniest  Santa I have ever possessed , fully covered in beard!

A reindeer and a wooden tree are definitely a must for a festive scene .

I hope you liked my new wreath and why not, make something similar using little Xmas ornaments you have at home , little crochet flowers and loads of positive thinking and smiles. 

Have a lovely week dear friends. I hope this will be better than the last oneJ

Till next time ,

Tina xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

                 

Flower Power : Crochet flowers!

 Hello , hello , hello!

My dear readers it’s been a while since I last contacted you  and I’m really EXCITED  today to be back to my little , dear place in blog land and talk to you!

Some days ago, in one of my regular visits to the lovely blogs of talented and creative ladies, I was fascinated by the prettiness and colourful magic of crochet flowers!

  It wasn’t the first time I had come across flowers made of pretty, soft, brightly coloured yarn, but this time, I felt an urge to start crocheting and on a day off work, I spent a few hours creating my little, sweet, darling blooms that made my heart happy and my mind full of ideas about how they could be better used.

I should add here that they are so easy and fun to make that they can be ‘dangerously’ addictive, to an extent that you may end up with little piles of them and still want to make more!!

  The colour combinations are endless and each one has its unique, bright ‘personality’. I used the exact same   pattern for all of them, but each one reminds me of a different kind of ‘real life’ flower: a marigold, a pansy, a rose , a gardenia, a cyclamen , an hibiscus and so many more.

A bunch of happy little fellows that looked so cute that I couldn’t avoid playing with them, decorating wreaths, placing them inside pots , spreading them on a crochet blanket I made some years ago, forming different shapes , combining them with real flowers to get the most of their excessively vibrant colours.

If I had more time, I’m sure I could have found more places for them, to continue this fun , creative game!

 What can I say, no matter how old we are, the kid inside us is ready to play, laugh and have fun and grab a chance for a fun game when she/he comes across one!

Have a fun , carefree , playful week dear friends . Crafting and day dreaming will be your allies to that!

My love to all!!!

Tina xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx