Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge 79

Time to do another Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge - today inspired by the weather: rain.

This week's sketch looks like this:

And this is what I was able to do with it:

The girl in the yellow rain coat - that could be me when I was little. It was just that yellow colour and rain coats back then was not particular "breathable" - if it was a hot summer day, you ended being wet from the inside because you were sweating soo much. LOL!! Ohh Memorylane.

Materials used:

COPICs

DistressInk

GELLY ROLL pen

Scissors + scalloped scissors

Water color paper from India

Design paper (Panduro Hobby)

Bubble stickers (Panduro Hobby)

Doublesided adhesive tape (Panduro Hobby)

Digital Stamp: RainRain (The Greeting Farm)

48 Hour Read-a-Thon

Had a crappy day at work - so my mind has to be occupied with something else this weekend - oh and I just saw my mission / challege this weekend:

Oh this is one I simply can't resist :o) I do have to make two birthday cards, but since I have the ideas already, it should take much time at that account. And the local weather forecast is actually rain and more rain.

What to read?

1. "Skein of the Crime" by Maggie Sefton - have all her books and just love the knitting world murder mysteries.... But can I resist to pick up my knitting project when I read this, thus making me forget all abot the book?? LOL!!

2. "Cathedral of the Sea" by Ildefonso Falcones. Love books that takes you back in history - and Barcelona has a memorable place in my heart.

Challenge is from this blog and goes like this:

1.Choose a few books that you will attempt to finish this weekend (Friday evening through Sunday night).

2.Post your TBR Read-a-Thon books on your blog so your readers can see what you are attempting for the weekend.

3.Challenge your readers to read along with you! (It’s OK if they don’t, but might be fun if they want to choose at least one book to participate with).

4.Join the discussion all weekend long at #bookblogchat on Twitter.

5.Post updates on your blog about what you are reading and what you have finished (full reviews can come later, but this will let your readers know what you are reading so they can either read along or look forward to your reviews!)

6.Visit other blogs that are doing the read-a-long. Post comments and follow your fellow bloggers.

7.Make sure you sign up here with Mr. Linky with a link to your first post so we can follow your progress!

8.*If you don’t have a blog but want to participate: Sign up with Mr. Linky, just don’t add a website (or you can link to your Twitter or GoodReads page).*

If You’re Not In, but Want to Support:

1.Check out the blogs that are participating below in the Mr. Linky list.

2.Visit those blogs and leave comments and encouragement

3.Add to your own TBRs as you see what others are reading!

I hope you’ll join in on the fun. It does not matter how many books you read (1 or 100 — actually, if you read 100 I might be so impressed that I send your name to the Guinness Book of World Records), just read! There are no tangible prizes, but hopefully being part of the community of readers and learning about great new blogs will be incentive enough.

8 Years and Counting....

... yet this is one of those things you wished you couldn't count...

Today is 8 years ago, that the diagnosis MS was given to me.... I was alone at the hospital, when the doctor told me... I was confused and speechless... But somehow relieved: I knew, what had put me in a wheelchair unable to walk.

Telling family, friends and colleagues the news was hard, but I got unexpected support from the lady in the hospital next to me. She is "confined" to her wheel chair due to irrevocable damages to her spinal cord - but she told me about all the possibilities: it was "simply" up to me to find them and embrase them. Of all people this stranger gave me the courage to TRY - trying to find out if I could get the ability to walk back, trying to find out if I couldn't go on the vacation, that I had booked for a couple of months later, trying to find out if I was still able to go to work.

Now I have regained 98% of my abilities - and I have accomplished much more, that I could ever imagine (even pre-MS diagnosis)... yes I am stubborn and dont want to give up... Yet I have to be alarmingly aware, that I might loose some of the abilities to MS... I "just" have to CARPE DIEM!!

Logo of the UK MS Society

Logo of the Danish MS Society

Creative Recycling

I love to read other blogs for inspiration, and earlier this year Carmenesque had a blogpost about packaging and recyling.

It reminded me of my own envelopes, that I have made since I was a full time student. Being a full time student, money were sometimes scarce at the end of the month, and it could mean that you would rather save money than spend it on new envelopes ... You simply took what you had at hand to make new envelopes, and you could often find cool papers in magazines, brochures etc. Later on I bought a plastic template at the local hobby store so I did not have to used the miserable envelope that had served the last of its life as a template.

I still make my own envelopes - and I still write letters. I use email everyday at my job and find it relaxing to writing to friends and family the old fashioned way - email is only used if I want a quick answer.

A while ago I read somewhere, that envelopes was a scarce commodity a few hundred years ago, so an "envelope" was often reused 2-3 times, even more in some cases. I do not reuse envelopes, I recycle them instead in the papercontainer situated in my building (but only the letters that aren't "keepsakes").

All you need is cool pictures etc from magazines, glue or double adhesive tape and scissors... and if you do not have a template, I am sure that you have an old evelope, that you can use as a template.

Alphabet Wednesday - T is for...

T is for...

Tea

Comes in more flavours than one can count - my favourite hot beverage

Tennant

Could be you in your home, a squirrel/bird in a tree, a fish in the pond....

Tennasity

Sometimes you need to show some...

Thanksgiving

Wonderful way of remembering the past - love most of the dishes (but mashed potatoes with marshmellows?? Who came up with that?? Not a favourite)

Traditions

Sometimes you follow some... Other times you create your won

Transformation

Paper turned into cards... Events that have an huge impact on your life... pretty much what you make o it..

Tranquility

For me when I am sitting comfortably, with a cup of tea reading a book - an nobody/nothing disturbs me :o)

Travel

Firsthand encounter with other places, tourist attractions, places that had a big impact on history, adventures, new input.... For some a pleasure, for others something they need to do....

Turtle

That little creature - wearing it's house on at all time.... love them

Typhoon

One of Mother Nature's ways of showing, that we can not control her behaviour - I've encountered one and I will never forget it (luckily I was surrounded by calm people how has encountered them all their life and passing on the calmness to me)

CCEE1029: Christmas in July Challenge

CCEE Stampers have their Christmas in July challenge this week, and the sketch called out for a Christmas carolllers' stamp, that was a freebee with a card magasine (can not remember which one and the stack of magasines is HUGE)

Even when I was a kid, I could listen to Christmas music all year - much to my parents' dismay - and my niece is soo like me in that area ... LOL! ... she is driving her parents crazy and is happy that I can actually relate to her... though the Christmas music only plays, when I am doing crafty things involving something Christmassy.

I was not until I was finished with the card that I realised the small detail - that is actually a line from "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen"--- and blue for me is the cold temperature, which is why they are dressed warmly when singing.

Mojo Monday Sketch challenge 148

I actually dismissed this week's Mojo Monday sketch, when I first saw it - too difficult.... no ideas how-to...

Guess it has been on my mind the whole week, because when I was looking for a rubber stamp, the idea finally came to me - I simply just had to try it out - here goes:

I love reindeers and often when I find a new reindeer stamp in a store I buy it... LOL! .. the reindeer stamp I used is actually the first one that I bought - and the sentiment (in the middle) I found at Michaels - and the Candy Cane design paper seemed perfect...

I have actually already finished all my own Christmas cards, but friends keep "ordering" some last minute....

Moxie Fab World Challenge: Signs of Peace

This weeks Moxie Fab World Challenge is all about the signs of peace.

Earlier this week, I found out, that paper cranes (origami style) also are a sign of peace, so knew I had to incorporate it into this challenge somehow.

Little by little an idea saw the light of day: To fold a paper crane with lots of peace logos on it - but since I had no origami paper with peace signs, I would have to make my own. Created a digital stamp and printed it 49 times on a piece of paper - colored all of them by hand with COPICS... folded a paper crane... 

But needed to do some more with this crane and then I remembered some image lamps from MENU that I bought some years ago... I decided to create an image using the folded paper crane and after some attempts I ended up with this:

Project: A Thousand Paper Cranes

Inspired by Scientific Housewife's blog post about Lovely Silver Strands' request to support a cause. The request is to make a thousand origami paper cranes and give them to her mother struggling with cancer. Made me find the story about "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes" - I have studied Japanese, but had never come across this story until now.

Looked at the shelves surrounding my computer and saw a pack with origami paper - 100 sheets - 20 different designs - bought at MUJI a couple of years ago and then forgotten in the stash of creative supplies. A libraby book borrowed last week about origami, but not yet opened. This was Monday.

Today, I accomplished "my part" of the project - making 20 paper cranes folded in origami style, one for each design in the paper pack. Never folded anything origami style before, but the request persuaded me to try.

                                                        

Mailed those 20 paper cranes today - they have to fly a great distance. Hope they will accomplish to help supporting the cause with their humble presence.

Alphabet Wednesday - S is for...

When you only have to see a letter part of a logo like above and then recognize it...

Then it is really good branding

S is for...

Sherlock Holmes

Conan Doyle - classic!!!

Snow

..snowflake...snowflake...winter... :o)

Solitude

Sometime you just need to have alonetime to clear your thoughts, relax and just be you

Starbucks

A favourite retreat when I travel... time to relax... look at other people passing by... enjoying a beverage...fells a little bit like home since the scenery is not different even though it might be in foreign countries

Strength

Sometimes you could ask for more... And sometimes you are full of it.

Stubborn

That I am... I need to be in order to live as normal as possible with the MS

Sunflower

Beautiful to look at - and it's seeds/oil taste wonderful in food

Eating habits

The answer, I would learn was in the words petit and peu, which both mean "a little". You can have de tout un peu pas beaucoup, meaning you can have a little of everything, but in small portions.

French Women Don't Get Fat

Mireile Guiliano

Have you ever seriously thought about your eating habits?

I never thought, I had to - but the MS changed everything. Meat is only in very limited amounts and only rarely - my body can not digest it properly. Fish and turkey are "my thing" and luckily I like them both.

Adjusting the eating habits, as there are generally healthy food-types, which are not healthy for me any longer, has been a process with lots of pitsfalls. And as soon I got a hold of it, I started losing the weight gained after the MS took control of my body. I may be able to fight the handicaps usually affiliated with MS, but I seriouly had to listen to my body's reactions when it came to food.

You may argue that the MS helped me loose weight - but it was actually gained because of the MS... but to change - I had to listen...to myself.

Other people strugling with overweight may have issues. But until they understand was underneath/behind those issues, will they actually be able to loose weight?

In her book, Mireile Guiliano argues, that multitasking is bad when eating, because your mind is occupied with other things, so it does not realise, that you are not hungry anymore until you have actually eaten to much..... And in some countries, finishing everyting that is on your plate means, that you are still hungry, and you need more food - in others it simply means that you like the food, therefore you finish you plate....

Loosing weight is never easy - but just remember if you occasionally fall into pits, it does not matter, as long as it does not happen often. Remember to allow yourself time to prepare your food - and enjoy it while eating it. The word little actually means a lot, if you live by it - you should be able to see a difference for the better.

I Reserve the Right... to Change My Mind :o)

Whenever I get feedback on my blogposts, I am always checking out the blog of the person leaving that comment. I did the Christmas in July challenge a week ago, and I got a comment from Rosemary.

I went over to her blog and encountered something new: an embelished paper doily project.

OK - I have always disliked paper dolies as I have always regarded them as waste of paper. There you have it... I did... until yesterday that is :o)

This is one of Rosemary's creations and I am fascinated - she has some interesting things on her blog, and I can not wait to read more. I wanted to find out more regarding this project, when I found out, that she got inspired by Christine

Go see Christine's blog now - you will not regret it. She even has tutorials that could help getting you started.

I was blown away by Christine's final result - is is soo awsome. WOW!! I have printed out the picture of her window box and put it on my notice board, which is actually my biggest source of inspirations, as it has a lot of to-do ideas: printouts, clippings from magazines, articles, postcards, pictures etc.

What would be on a window box created by me - actually several ideas popped into my head:
- X-mas theme
- 50's theme (including dresses, diners, the coca cola logo, cars etc.)
- Travelling

Actually many more ideas are wandering in my head, but I need to do one project at the time, at right now I have several "balls in the air" that I have to catch before throwing a new one.

NOTE: The pictures shown in this blogpost are belonging to Rosemary and Christine.

Crazy4Challenges C4C46 meets Speedy the Cat's Friends Challenge #12

When my thoughts began a downwards spiral today, I knew it was time to be occupied with something creative to clear my head. What better than to do a card blog challenge.

First I thought of Crazy4Challenges #46 - and I wanted to use one of the digi stamps just purchased from SomeOddGirl. But was missing something.... Then I remembered Speedy the Cat's Friends Challenge #12: and the color scheme: red, orange and yellow.

Here's my result:

I could not resist using the A May Day digi stamp together with some sun flowers (they are originally sold as table decor at a local supermarket chain)..... and to make the orange paper less plain, I simply stamped it with a no-name flower stamp in red ink.

Inspiration to...knitting

The other day, a friend of mine asked me: "What was the inspiration that made you start knitting?" My reply was "I wanted to see if I could to it" - a challenge to my-self on my to-do list generated after I was diagnosed with MS.

Today I looked for something in the box with my knitting stuff, when I found a picture, which I had forgotten all about... It was a picture of a cool skarf worn by Julia Stiles' character in the movie Bourne Supremacy - I saw the movie at the cinema and afterwards I just wanted my own cool scarf just like that.

First knitting project however was not the scarf - I have actually never made it - that was a sweater, that a colleague back then persuaded me to do - turned out that she had been a knitter, since she was five years old. And just hearing her talking about yarn, patterns, ideas, projects and her familys ever growing wishlist for her knitted clothing....

Lately I have been inspired by the knitting novels by Maggie Sefton and Kate Jacobs - and have actually been knitting almost reguarly since I did the baby hat project earlier this year......

Where do you find your inspiration to the things you like ??

Alphabet Wednesday - R is for...

R is for...

Recycle

Nature is not and endless source of raw materials - and a lot can be recycled if we have the chance to do so.. or if people took the time and effort to do so....

Respect

Who can say (sing) it better than Aretha Frankling....??!!

Reuse

One benefit of the Financial Crisis(yep, believe this is one) is that people hae started reusing things again like we did in the old days, when money were scarce

Roosevelt

Theodore, Frankling and Eleanor.... All three of them helped make historical landmarks

Rösti

Swedish version of hashbrown potato - yummi

Rubber Duck

One of my most cherished possesions

Rubber Stamp

An addiction - that is not hazardous to my health - but maybe to my wallet ;o)

What's in a Number....??

We teach kids how to count  1..2..3..4.. etc. But in some situations they get confused and start asking questions about a missing number - but that's cultural differences playing a role, which may be hard to comprehend for the foreigner.

13 Have you ever encountered the following an a lot of European countries or in the US?

• The 13th floor in a building
• The 13th gate at the airport
• The 13th row in the airplane
• 13 at dinner - often the teddybear is invited as the 14th guest

4  The EastAsian equivalent to 13

17   Italians write the number in Roman letters as this XVII - often changed to VIXI - which means "I have lived" - no wonder they regard this number as unclucky.

8  is considered to be a lucky number in Chinese culture - yes there was a reason why the olympics in Beijing started August (8th month of the Year) 8, 2008

7 and 11 are also considered in a lot of countries to be lucky numbers..... oh wait, is that how the convenient store chain 7 Eleven got its name??

But if you have read Douglas Adam's "The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy" - you will know that the answer to all questions is 42    :o)

One - deux - tri - fyra - fünf - seis -qi - thmaanya - ni -juu.   

No Time to Stamp Challenge: Christmas in July

Yeah yeah... I know what you are thinking - but it's never too early to get your Christmas Cards done... especially if you also make a lot of other cards for other occations.... dabble with other creative ideas... look after your full-time job... oh yeah almost forgot: going to night school two nights a week... (the latter one is because I keep my options open - not just the type of work that I currently do...

Oh... my thoughts are wandering again - back to the Christmas thing: No Time to Stamp's challenge this week did not include a sketch, just the idea to make a Christmas Card - guess a lot of us are dreaming of a bit cooler temperatures right now.

The idea for this card slowly crept into my mind on Monday when making my card for the Taylored Expression challenge, and this challenge really fuelled the idea.... I am so gratefull for this challenge, because I just made all the Christmas Cards that I want to send this year, including a couple of extras if the mailing list increase during the next 5 months.

The sentiment - GOD JUL - is Danish and translates to MERRY CHRISTMAS - just a tribute to the viking blod in my veins.

Materials used:

Double sided tape from Panduro Hobby
Penny Black stamp: Favorite Time
Scissors
COPICs
Sentiment from Creative Company
Golden mini-brads
Paper:
Red, white and green from TUKAN
With stripes: bought in a market in Seoul, South Korea
Adhesive silver paper from Konrad Hornschuch AG
Water Color paper (below the sentimen)- imported from India

CCEE1027 - Summertime and the Living is Easy challenge

Just had to do this one - I wanted to use the digi stamp SandCastle Violet from The Wild Flower Patch. I purchased it a while ago because it reminded me of all the sandcastles I used to build at the beach in the summertime - then adding some paper with rocks (my parents got pretty tired of me always brings rocks home from the beach) - there just had to be some girly flowers.... and then....

Hmmm thought about the missing piece for a while and thought of a napkin - used the usual technique of  decoupaging it onto water color paper - and the motif of the napkin: a light house since Violet is at the beach playing with the sand.

The sketch looks like this:

And here's my go at it:

 

Materials used:
Napkin from Broste
Double sided tape from Panduro Hobby
Scissors: regular and scalloped
COPICs
Decoupage finish from Royal Coat
Water colour paper - imported from India
Design papers:
The flowery paper is from Me&My Big Ideas value pack: Fashion District Edition
Stone from Karen-Marie Klip & Papir A/S

Hey Hey... Are You Ok?

An event Tuesday made me think of Sarah Hepburn's lyrics to "Hey Hey..Are you OK?" from 2005 - remember seing the music video on MTV....

I was away from my cell phone for about 1½ hour while taking a walk - I left it at my appartment on purpose as I did not wanted to be disturbed while walking, and was surprised to see that I have had unanswered calls from 7 friends/colleagues.

Then it rang again - call number 8 and when I answered, I got the question "Have you heard the news" Are You OK?"

What news?! I had no clue what she was talking about. It turns out that a local celebrety has just died (early 50s) and she was diagnosed with MS a couple of years ago - it turned out that some simple infection have eventually killed her.

Having heard that, I immediately knew what all the phonecalls were all about:

"MS is dangerous, it affects your immune system"

"Beware of small infections, they might kill you"

"Please let us know, if you have the slightest cold" 

Etc.

Oh boy! Now that will be blown out of proportions by a lot of people for a while. My closest friends and colleagues however have not reacted that way to the latest news story, as they know that MS is various from person to person suffering from it.... One of them laughed at commotion and said "Well knowing you, I wouldn't worry - It takes a lot more than a simple infection to spoil your day".

And to the concerned people, I can only ask them the following with a smile on my face "Well do you worry when you are walking outside your home? You never know, when you could be hit by a car!" - That type of remark usually makes them very quiet.

CARPE DIEM!

Alphabet Wednesday - Q is for...

Q is for...

Q

In James Bond or in Star Trek Next Generation

Question

Learn more

Quest

Do you know what your goal is?

Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge 76

This is the first time, that I have tried a Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge - and if you read my blog post yesterday, you would know, that I struggled with it for a while.....

The Sketch looks like this:

And this is my result:

After I made the card, I decided to check my email and see Martha Stewart's Craft of the Day - which turned out to be "Make Your Own Garden Stools" - and just look at the pattern of the seats :o) Reminded me of the card I just made.... Maybe I will have a go with the garden stools too.......

I used the following to make the card:

- Punch from Martha Stewart

- Design paper: Rebel Teal

- Penny Black Stamp: Cinnamon

- Freebies from Paper Craft Inspiration Magazine (UK)

- Double sided tape from Panduro Hobby

- COPIC markers

- Scissor

- Ink: Versa Color #8 - Black

- Scraps of paper (the striped paper used is actually torn out of a magazine)

Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge 119

I set out to do a another sketch challenge, but it did not come out the way I wanted to.... But during the attempt I stumbled over three reindeers on a napkin, and I had the idea for this challenge.

By using decoupage finish, I am able to apply the napkin motif to paper - but not any kind of paper is usable due to the finish being liquid when applying it. I therefore use water color paper imported from India - it also gives a certain touch to the napkin motif due to the texture of the paper.

This week's sketch looks like this:

And here is my idea:

Yes, I know that we are far away from Christmas. Yet we are not, since I have to make minimum 20 Christmas cards for myself and an unknown additional number, as friends tend to ask for homemade Christmas cards at the very last minute.... and I have still to figure out, what this year's theme is gonna be. Was hoping to get a little bit closer to THE IDEA, but... hmmm.. doesn't quite feel like it. Only thing I do know - the green striped paper in the background is going to be used both on my Christmas Cards but also in the boxes, that I will be making for the presents.... I got a bunch of it at a market when I was in Seoul a couple of months ago.

Walking With a Troubled Heart

Have had this week off and next week too - good since there are some things affiliated with my job, that is really ramling about in my head: I have fallen for someone, that has really hit something deep inside of me, and yet he is sending mixed signals all the time.

In order to figure out, what to think of it, I have taken numerous walks - by a lot of people, walks are perceived as the most healthy type of medicine. I've mentioned it before, when I school I hated the writings of Soeren Kierkegaard, but getting older has opened my eyes to his words, that is really making me think.

Above all, do not loose your desire to walk. Everyday I walk my self info a state of well-being and wal away from every illness. I have walked myself into my best thoughts and I know of no thought so burdensome that one cannot walk away from it. But by sitting still, and the more once sits still, the closer one comes to feeling it. If one just keeps on walking everything will be all right.

I am truly thorn by believing this man's gentle words and the self-warning the next minute "I am not worth loving"..... I don't know if I can find the solution to my problem with the walks, but I might just get one step closer to it.

Mojo Monday Challenge 145 (MOJO 145)

Finally I had some time to play with the Mojo Monday Challenge.

This week's sketch(es) looks like this:

Since 4th of July is getting closer, the star in the sketch immediately drew my ideas in that direction - I needed to clear my head from everyday problems/thoughts, so I got started and used up a lot of bit and pieces (leftovers mostly), and here's the result:

So now I refound my inspiration to do some cards, and will finish a birthday card a bit later today - gonna focus a bit more on the cards, which I will be needing in the near future (lots of birthdays etc. comming up), and lately it has only been about creating cards for colleagues. We are always collecting change (money) if it's a round birthday, aniversary, birth, resignation etc. and my contribution is usually a card as per request from the colleagues who likes the personalised cards, I always create.