keeping busy....

Hello again! Am I happy that we are having another loooonnngg weekend???? ..... Oh yessssss!
Unless you are a teacher (in a public school) You have NO IDEA how demanding it is!  You have no idea how tiring it is being 10 steps ahead of your learners, trying to accommodate each one's demands, personality traits and trying to mould them into better human beings. Don't make a mistake.... I love children and seeing how they grow once they understand a new concept and how to apply it to their lives and schoolwork. BUT the red tape and paperwork is such a pain and time-consuming!

Anyway i lose myself in my hobbies, friends and family. My hobbies bring me a wonderful sense of accomplishment and peace. I have absolute freedom doing what I enjoy so much!

One of my passions is crocheting. I am not a 'pro', but I love learning new stitches and patterns. I love playing with colour and looking at nature and seeing how God is such an artist and places colour in the perfect place. We can just observe and try follow His example.

A dear friend, the late Petro Nel taught a group of us the "Babette Blanket", by Kathy Merrick. Originally published in "Interweave Crochet", Spring 2006. It remains one of my favourites and takes pride on my bed in winter. I used 6 x colours of Pullskein double knit and a no.4.5 mm crochet hook.

I found this pic in my folder of a different version of beautiful colour, but unfortunately cannot remember where it comes from. Sorry!

So, stay warm and keep those hands busy. Take care and chat tomorrow!

Good evening all!

How was your day? Well, the case is done and filled with my favourite things!!! Thread, cottons and my quilting utility tin! I just LOVE it!

                                                Have a wonderful evening and God bless!

Good evening! I hope you all had a good day!

This is the end result of my painted and decorated old suitcase!

I added some photos, a half crocheted doilie and a few scrapbooking bits and pieces. Hope you love it as much as i do? I will post a pic of the contents inside it.. ....tomorrow sometime!

                                             Have a beautiful and peaceful evening!

Good evening! I cannot believe that the weekend is already over and we face a new week full of challenges.

I just love old suitcases and decided to revamp this one and once done, have put it to good use. I will show you at the end of the post. Wait.......!

I sanded the case very lightly just so that the paint could have a better grip, once applied.

The inside looked worse than the outside. Even a case will have many stories to tell; if only it could talk!

After the first coat of Annie Sloan paint.

 I also painted the inside of the case and then added some subtle dabs of the dark wax. I love the effect.

I can't wait to show you the rest of the pics of the completed product!
Goodbye for now and take care!

GOOD MORNING!!

What are you doing on this beautiful Autumn Saturday morning? I have bought a few balls of wool to complete this Ripple Blanket that's going to a friend and did some (quick) shopping for the man in my life!

The late Petro Nel taught us this pattern some time ago.

I used Charity double knit and a number 4.5 size crochet hook. I have another 8 rows to do then all should be good. Then just some edging in grey.

Guess what's in the bag..........?

Yes! A collection of crochet hooks! I just love the different hooks, especially the wooden ones, as they are hand carved!

Oh yes!! Speak of crocheting....... and knitting..........

I came across these pics of a baby pullover that my colleague and friend Linda knitted for her first grandchild. She needed to decorate it a bit and asked for my help. I just love the way it turned out!

Well, it's weekend again!

It couldn't have come sooner! What a week! How was your week? 

I'm thinking of giving this "koskas" a re-vamp! Painting it off-white. What do you think? I am tempted to leave the top shelf as is and the rest of it painted.

I'm also thinking of painting this old school chair and decorating it a bit. I had it in the kitchen, but at my youngest son's request, have now moved it into the garage until further notice.....

The beautiful painted bucket was gifted to me by a dear friend. I often use it to pack logs into for my wood fireplace.

Anyway I trust you will have a beautiful weekend. God bless!

Hello again! Hope that you had a good day?

Driving back on Monday from Johannesburg, I passed fields and fields of Cosmos flowers. It's that time of the year again in South Africa, with the change of season to Winter, that they appear. They grow randomly in the veld and even alongside our roads. Apparantely the seeds were brought over from the UK during the Anglo Boer War, as cattle fodder. Their simplistic shape and perfect petals, ranging in colour from white through maroon to pink, are eye-catching. I always marvel at their beauty and absolutely love them!

I have a spiritual experience when I look around me at nature.

How I love old rusted gates and fencing. They have many stories to tell, of people and animals passing through along a road to.....somewhere....

I trust that you have enjoyed these pics as much as I do. Take care. Chat soon.

Well, we are back into the swing of things and a new week has started.

 What a very sad, draining and emotional day it was today. I said goodbye to a very dear friend who had cancer. This is a first for me; losing a friend. Sometimes the pain is so bad that one doesn't know how to feel or react. Should we just ............"BE"? I don't know.
It rained quite a bit during the funeral, which added to the sombre atmosphere. I know that she would like me to post happy things and she loved visiting me whilst i was busy crocheting, quilting or restoring something. I found these pics of a Granny Blanket that i crocheted for her  once upon a time, but unfortunately i cannot find the finished product. She chose the colours and i often found the blanket lying around her house, which gave me an indication that it was being well-used.

Sleep tight friends of my blog and have a wonderful day tomorrow.

Hello there again! It's good to be back, under very sad circumstances! A very dear and good friend passed away last week! It's strange how one's priorities change and how differently we can look at life after a great loss! So i decided to look at all the nice things I have made, since she loved them and loved watching me work.

Here, I have crocheted some flowers and mandalas and sewed them onto an old cushion.

I love love colour and texture!

Have a good evening and God bless.