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   

A 'Tool Crate'!!

Oh sunny, sunny day today!!

Warm weather and the shining, blue sky makes me feel as if  summer is still  here !!!

 That’s why I thought of sharing with you an easy, mini project and some photos that I took some months ago, while we were still on holidays.

 If you don’t have a shed in your garden , or even not a garden at all , but your balcony or back yard, have some flower pots, then, I’m sure you have a set of the most basic garden tools, like secateurs and a  small spade. Where do you keep them?

 I used to put them either into  a drawer or inside a clay pot in the garden. I wasn’t that happy with that, because I had picked some really pretty tools  decorated with floral patterns in shades of pink, and I wished I could handle them with the care and ‘respect’ they deservedJ.

 When one day, I came up with the idea – or did I see it somewhere? – I don’t really remember because I have lots of magazines at home with decorative ideas , and I might have seen something similar , but anyway , I decided to turn  a fruit crate into a mini tool shed !! YES, YES  and I needed now and then to find one.

 I took my bicycle and off I went on my quest to discover a crate somewhere among other recyclable material people leave in recycling bins. I was lucky to find one, in a good condition– not smelly or broken- not far from my house.

I don’t know about you, but I sometimes feel a HUUUGE happiness when I find things I can reuse, among trash.  

At home, the crate was washed and painted in white and then, the easy and always trustworthy method of decoupage started its metamorphosis!! I used a paper napkin with patterns inspired from garden life and soon the crate was decorated with them. I opted for colours that remind me of a garden in spring and country life. 

Then, I added some small, nails along its upper, inner part, so that I could hang my tools and some twine from them and the project was complete!!

Now I have my mobile, mini ‘tool shed’ which can be placed either at a corner of the balcony or on a shelf , a bench , somewhere inside the house or wherever it pleases you.

Do you like the idea?? If yes, please leave a comment, I’m always happy when I read your comments.

Have a lovely, new week, my dear readers and I hope to be back soon, with new , interesting things to share with you.

My best to you all,

Tina xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx