Goodbye 2011, hello 2012

We wish you:

- no rain, but sunshine

- instead of sorrow, lots of joy

- good health

- and friendship

May quilts keep you warm, and doors be open for friends and family. You´re welcome.

Happy 2012!!!!

Rob, Caroline and Paco

X-mas gifts

 In the Netherlands we don't do really X-mas gifts. Although it's changing, but in our family we more have a tradition of celebrating Sinterklaas. So all our X-mas gifts came from our friends overseas. Rob and I really had a fun time at breakfast unwrapping gifts. There was my gift from the SSCS 2011, Jo made me this beautifull sewing bag, I adore it, and it contains my apple-corn project now. THANK YOU SO MUCH. And then lovely gifts from Seattle, quilt things and salmon "lekker". The little basket is made by Marne, when I'm in Seattle she's going to teach me how to make it. And the little quilt, that's very special to us. It's made from costume fabrics from Spakenburg. We (Elaine, Marne, Rob, Paco and I) visited the museum in june together. So this is a lovely memory of our time together.

X-mas

Here some pictures of the family, aren't they sweet my little nieces and nephews.

Merry X-mas

In the Netherlands we have two X-mas days. Today it's just a quiet day we spend together. Walking, a little bit of quilting, unwrapping our gifts, some reading, just enjoying time together, after some busy weeks at work. Tomorrow we''re having a family day at my parents house. My brother, sisters, their partners and five kids will be there. It's a long time ago we spend X-mas all together, because my brother and his family lived in China for three years.

X-mas holiday ........

.... 10 days free from work. My study starts the 10th januar, and I finished my paper two weeks ago. Well what are my plans: sewing, quilting,  reading on the sofa, walking the dog.... The weather is just grey and rainy, but after a walk, Paco and I are very comfortable under and up my X-mas quilt, we like to share. In the meanwhile I'm working at a reindeer quilt from Atelier Bep, and cutting lots and lots of houses. You know quiltvirus!

X-mas stockings

Yesterday I made 6 X-mas stockings, three for my nephews Thomas, Nathaniel and Chris, two for my nieces Sophie and Promise, and one for the dog Bo. I will take them to my parents and hang them up there, because we will celebrate X-mas in Epse with the whole family. For the time being they're hanging in our hallway.

I was doing research on the internet about X-mas stockings, what's the idea about this tradition. Well here is one of the stories:

Very long ago, there lived a poor man and his three very beautiful daughters. He had no money to get his daughters married, and he was worried what would happen to them after his death.

Saint Nicholas was passing through when he heard the villagers talking about the girls. St. Nicholas wanted to help, but knew that the old man wouldn't accept charity. He decided to help in secret. He waited until it was night and crept through the chimney.He had three bags of gold coins with him, one for each girl. As he was looking for a place to keep those three bags, he noticed stockings of the three girls that were hung over the mantelpiece for drying.

He put one bag in each stocking and off he went. When the girls and their father woke up the next morning, they found the bags of gold coins and were of course, overjoyed. The girls were able to get married and live happily ever after.(www.wikipedia.com)

Isn't that a lovely story?

Bus 24

Yesterday our friend Miep from Almere (where we lived for almost 20 years) came along. Making our plans we decided to do a short visit at the beach and then visit 1 or 2 museums with our museumcard.

Bus 24 is the solution. The stop is close to our house and it brings you all the way to Kijkduin (beach), along the way you pass 4 museums. Well the plans changed when we came to the beach, the weather was pretty good, we had the wind in our back, so we decided to walk to Scheveningen and ended with  a cup of tea in the Kurhaus (lovely the ceilings, and X-mas ornaments).

Building Spakenburger Houses from scraps

 The first two houses are build. I used scraps from my antique costume fabrics from Spakenburg, except for the light blue and the red-white. It was a little bit puzzling, would I use several fabrics for one house, or just 1 or 2. Well I think I like the blue house best. I think I prefer to keep the houses rather simple. How many I'm going to build? No idea, maybe I quit when I'm through my scraps. Maybe not, they're more work then you think. The house for today is finished. Tomorrow number 3. Or cheating and just make another one this afternoon. OEPS I just read the rules, we're supposed to start the 1th of januar, so just cutting them the next weeks, and no sewing. Or are there more quilters who already broke the rules ; ).

Midwinter Horn Blowing

 

During the advents week before X-mas till the 6th of januar you can hear the horns blowing in the east part of the Netherlands (where I grew up). It's a very old tradition.

But how old? There are different opinions about it. Some say 1500 A.D. is assumed the first year that they blow the midwinter horns, some say it started during the dark ages. There is document of 1815 in the county archive that mention midwinter horn blowers.  A father and son were accused of warning smugglers by using their midwinter horns.

They blow the horns to chase the evil spirits and ghosts away, and to welcome springtime, a new beginning. But it's also a way to communicate, when you hear the horn of the next village, you answer it with horn blowing. 

By the way, it's not done when you blow the horn when somebody else is blowing.

This sunday you could hear the horn blowers in the woods of Exel. It  gives a very special feeling walking in the woods, grey and cloudy,  and hear the horns .

Youtube video Hornblowers of Exel

  

Replacing my laptop through a sewing machine

Yes!!! My paper for my study is now really finished, and this morning I put it on the mail. That means there is now room on the dining table for my sewing machine. And I can assure you that it will be there till the 15th of januar (then my next course starts: Information management).

Woh, imagine 4 weeks without study projects. I ordered my own X-mas present and it already arrived this week., the last 4 books of Jennifer Chiaverini.

On the 15th december the pattern of a new quiltvirus "Houses from scraps" will arrive. The virus is spreading all over the world. Click on "house" photo (right side), if you want to know more about it.  And there is Rudolf, he's the newest member of my homemade reindeer collection.



Rudolf, pattern Atelier Bep



Life can be so good, quilting (with friends) and reading quilt books

. 

SSCS arrived safely in Australia

It always is an adventure if you're sending parcels across the world. But Cornelia arrived safely on Dale's doormat.http://day-daysblog.blogspot.com/

Please, mr Postman

Wait, oh yes wait a minute mister postman

Wait, wait mister postman
Mister postman look and see

If there's a letter in your bag for me

.......

I like this song, especially singing it aloud in the car, you know when nobody can hear you. This song seems to be applicable to X-mas time, when the postman is bringing me gifts on my doormat. And yes there was a package in the mail today,  from my Secret Santa. Isn't this a lovely X-mas stocking? THANK YOU!!!! There is more but we were only allowed to open the X-mas ornament.

And Chookey is very precise about it ; ).