Ravenhill

Red and White Delight

My son made this masterpiece!

He loves crysatals. These are made by mixing lots of epsom salts with water on the stove until it dissolves, then insert a pipe cleaner or two in the shape you desire. Let it sit overnight. If all goes well you get some awesome sparkly and glittery crystals.

I made these for Lilly.

Red and white never goes out of style does it?

I knit up quite big mittens and threw them in the washing machine for a whirl. They came out nice and fluffy and just the right size.

 

This post was looking a bit Christmassy. So while I began writing this yesterday I decided that I had to make a Christmas doll to include in the post. Lilly helped me to select the fabrics. Then today I lazed on the sofa embroidering whilst she danced and sang and played with her dolls.

I made Lilly a doll to stuff too, because she loves to stuff with me. I had a ball embroidering little snowflakes on Rannveig to match the snowflakes on her front!

I decided to play around with the embroidery on the heart too. I think the magical time of anticipation for the upcoming holidays is upon me. Perhaps all this busy merriment was initiated by my mother's call yesterday telling that she would be coming to visit us this Christmas? This little elf finds that to be the most delightful news!

Winter's arrival

Just recently it was looking like this outside, pretty and fall-like:

Last Friday though we were surprised to wake up to this:

(I am behind as usual in my posts!) My husband has taken some vacation time this week and it has meant lazy and cozy days... Anyway, it took awhile to get anywere last Friday morning becuase the fresh, fluffy, cold, white stuff was such a novelty!

You can't beat snow for a good time!

It packed up nicely and really stuck onto her mittens.

I have been delighting in all the cold weather by being home and doing a bit of crafting.

I made this wee mini-quilt just for fun.

And Emma, (sorry she is now on her way to one of my supportive blog readers who said she couldn't resist...) with the pretty blue eyes I made too. She is my newest addition to my shop.

I still have small bits of this wonderful minty green vintage fabric on her headpiece left and really love using it. The fabric on her body with the white background is also a vintage treasure, a Sandvika fabric, made in Norway.

 

Thank you to all the very kind friends who left me words of understanding and sympathy about my headaches. I am doing great this week with none! Happy days are here again!

Black and white

I am making another hat. It will be for me. The kids both have oodles of hats and mittens but not me. My wardrobe needs a little lift. Well, honestly, it could use a huge lift, but this hat will help me on the way to being warm.

I found three skeins of this wonderful fine wool at a flea market last spring. I am making up the pattern as I go. It is going to have a folded ribbing for extra warmth. Black seems like a good color, so simple and it goes with everythng.

I do like black and white. This black and white decorative lassie has found a spot in my shop today. As you can see my embroidery needle was busy decorating her with multiple flowers with copious knots.

I had to see how she would look with a splash of color around her. I like the contrast. I named Fru Ulsrud after a place in Oslo. I have been enjoying naming my creations after areas of my city lately.

You must indulge me in my whimsy...

Let's play!

Ok, I will let you be Bambi today and I will be Fawn. Our cute and whimsical flocked deer toys hail from the Etsy shop full of delight: Carmelos.

Bambi and Fawn decide to go fabric shopping... And where else? At the Etsy shop Sew Deerly Loved.

 

When I saw all the pretty fabrics I suddenly got a bit tired of playing... so I popped into my sewing room to whip up a few new matryoshkas with my gorgeous new fabrics (Japanese Lecien line: Flower Sugar), some old favorite fabrics and some pretty ribbons.

These new martryoshkas seem to want to play too...

 

I tell you, a most jolly Fru Stortinget is now in the shop and filled with good cheer that she would like to bring to someone near or far.

A very perky and pretty Fru Grorud is just dancing about in her eagerness to be a wallflower somewere. Oh, I do hope it won't be long before they find good homes... they are just irrepressible!

Before I wish you a wonderful week I wanted to thank Maureen for the lovely feature on her blog. And I do wish you a happy and productive week ahead. Please drop by to play again soon!

My assignment

When Mom left for home she left me with a little assignment.

She began this dress at the beginning of our visit.

And she knit away steadily. The bottom part was tricky and slow, but then when she got to the black it went quite quickly.

But the end of the visit just came too darned fast and when she asked me to finish the trim on the arm openings and to sew on the pretty clasps.

I enjoyed being asked to contribute! Lilly waited patiently but excitedly to try it on one of her babies.

It fit nicely.

Grandma really outdid herself, because look at these little shoes she made too!

 

You can see how pleased Lilly is with her baby's new outfit.

 

One happy little mama-in-training.

Thanks so much Mom for this marvelous gift! And there is a sweater still being knitted to match too I hear...

Today I have spent some time ironing new and freshly laundered fabrics as well as cleaning up my sewing room. That should hopefully lead to good, crafty things. A clean space is so inspiring!

Wishing you a fantastic weekend!

Pom pom trim

Sometimes you just need some new supplies...

How fun to find these cute pom pom trims at my local hobby shop.

Isn't it neat how one new element freshens up your view?

I love the softness and cuteness of the pom poms.

These new pom pom bedecked matryoshkas are now in my shop.

Happy day to you!

More fabric...

I want to thank you all for all the kindness and encouragement. I can't begin to tell you how much it means to me. Reading your comments makes me smile and help me to feel like what I do matters in some small way.

Some time back I contacted Randi to ask about ordering some fabric from her Etsy shop: Freshsqueezed. We chatted a bit and we ended up agreeing on a swap. I got a marvelous stack of her gorgeous fabrics and she got a dollie from me.

We had agreed on exactly what we would send eachother, but she cheated!!! She was so generous! This stack in the front is an extra surprise she snuck into the package! Thank you ever so much for this wonderful swap!

Fru Lillevik in aqua and orange and red is my latest creation made with some of Randi's fabrics.

I haven't done much sewing this weekend, the weather has been too good for that! The glorious sunshine has been shining its late summer rays on us this lovely weekend. I have done a bit of weeding in the garden too.

I hope you are enjoying a beautiful weekend too and will be starting the week with fresh energy and enthusiasm.

Oh, what a wonderful visit it was with my mother! I made these while she was here and they were very much inspired by the visit to my husband's grandmother's and her beautiful gardens.

Everywhere you looked there was somthing magical to see.

Or something sweet.

Here Lilly and Gramma were peering at some treasures.

Nothing in the garden seems left to chance, even the birds are well cared for.

 

Every year she and her gardens appear in magazines, newspapers and tv programs. Here is a spread in Hjemmet from this summer.

And the gardener herself, our beloved "Oldemor" meaning great-grandmother in Norwegian looking marveous for her age of 87. The photo above was taken by Lars Lindberg.

 

Surprise in the mail

Oh, you will need to hurry. There is only a short time left...  Whitney of Whisker Graphics is hosting a give away of one of my matryoshkas! Please go on over to join in. Her give away closes on Monday, August 2nd.

You aren't going to belive it, I have the nicest tale of a true blogging friendship. A short while back Melissa, one of my readers who frequently has left me kind words of encouragement or thoughtful comments wrote me an email to tell me she was putting together a little package for me.  That started it all off, the delicious anticipation of this mystery package coming from far away.

Then it arrived! The most marvelous package of goodies of the finest kind has arrived. I don't know how I can begin to thank you Melissa for the treats! The excitement and pleasure I had in opening up this pretty package is difficult to describe. Above you can see two patterns from Melissa. They look like great fun to make. 

What gorgeous bold and bright fabrics, and so many of them! Plus, something new to me, velvet rick rack. Oh, this is so pretty and soft. I had never even seen this line by Jane Sassaman before and it is so fun and colorful.

The fabrics called to me and I wanted to make some wonderful new dolls to match the delight I felt in this kind and generous gesture. 

Here is Fru Strandenes, a sweet and sleepy little decorative charmer. Thank you ever so much Melissa for all this fun!
  

Sew Love Fabrics bundle

I really should be cleaning the house but...

Lookie here!!! Aren't these eye-popping gorgeous?

The wonderful fabrics came in this bundle of goodness, from my dear friend Ruth at Sew Love Fabrics.

 Jennifer Paganelli´s new Poodle line is looking so fresh.

These pretties from Laura Gunn above are from her newest collection, Poppy. I didn't expect to make any of these fabrics into dolls, but somehow I did. The colors and designs on these fabrics are gorgeous and the hint of fall in the air lately has made these rust colors appealing to me.

Laura has a wonderful touch with her work, and these fabrics are such a pleasure to work with.

Each of these little sweethearts listed here from front to back: Fru Anderssen, Fru Gress, Fru Turkis, and Fru Stavanger (so sorry, Fru Stavanger is already sold) are in my shop now.

Oh, dear, I couldn't forget Fru Rosenrødt! Here she is in the front, with the fresh roses of the season to pretty her up. We are trying to tidy and pretty up the house today for our special guest arriving tomorrow! How does one tidy up the house when it is raining out and the children are so busy with one project after another all over the house? Good thing my mother will be too excited to see us to think about how clean it is here.

Wild strawberries

I know we are a bit late compared to the rest of the world, but it is still strawberry season in Norway.

Walking in the woods these days you don't have to bring a snack along.

Everywhere you turn these bright red beauties encourage you to feast.

They surround themselves with pretty friends too. Isn't it enchanting how the bright red juicy berries are interspersed with the fine Queen Anne's Lace?

I had to buy the pale seafoam green frothy lace that now adorns Fru Sommerlig when I saw it at the Quilting Annual Meeting a few months ago. Rarely do I use my new materials immediately, usually they sit around in a dark cupboard or in this case my picnic basket filled with ribbons and laces.

Today I listed several new things in my shop, besides little strawberry girl.

This little purse is for my shop, and I think I want to make one for me.

I was completely flattered when I read this feature today on CraftyCrafty. So happy to know that people appreciate the tutorial I made. I plan on doing more, but we are pretty much in summer mode here now which means not a lot of crafting is getting done. I will have to show you my summer knitting and my summer flea market finds soon though!

I also keep making new friends. PeasandPotatoes a really sweet new Etsy seller of lovely and vintage baby clothes asked me if she could list my shop on her shop announcement because she thought her friends would like my things. Wasn't that nice?

I hope you are enjoying wonderful days whatever the season in your part of the world. We are doing our best to soak up the warm sunshine while we can!

 

  
 

My happy little summer world

Everything is summery and bright and pretty in my little world these days.

The children are home with me all day long, free as birds from school and nursery school. Their joy and playfulness seems to rub off on me and my creations.  

We actually do a bit of summer school at home though. The fun part is their eagerness to sit down to our home "school". Well, my little one is actually the most eager, perhaps because she hasn't really gone to school yet?

It is so sweet though because my son will now sit down on occasion and read a book for little one. Today they played monopoly together and didn't quarrel once.

I hope you like the mushroom decorations? I had to make more when I got this delicious package from a wonderful Etsy seller: Paper and String.

As usual I had some help with opening...Rrrrrriiiiip...

Then we had to look at each and every lovely one of them! They are just so color saturated and pretty! I like the weight of them, the wool in them must make them more substantial.

Now I have the colors I need to make more blossoms for the mushrooms.  I have added a few of them, some dolls, and garlands to my shop. I hope you had a happy weekend and are ready for a wonderful week ahead! I am crossing my fingers for another beautiful week and some great times at the beach.

 

Crazy for Patchwork Pillows and a Winner

The other day I was asked if I would do a custom order for patchwork pillows. It was such a ball that I have made more! For these I have combined Heather Bailey fabrics from all three of her collections. I don't know how those silly dolls, Fru Leren and Fru Mongstad snuck into the photo. They like to do that. They are so used to being in the limelight...

You have all been so nice! I have felt positively lifted several feet off the ground from the enormous amount of good cheer you have given me! Thank you for all the encouragement, both for the things that I make and for the tutorial. I was nervous about it since I had never done one before and wanted to make it very clear. I so appreciate all of you who wrote to me about it. Then it was a huge thrill when Hege wrote me today and let me know that she had already made a little flower to decorate a pretty dress!

I want to thank in particular

Catherine

Melissa P. who also has already made flowers with my tutorial and has posted them on the flickr group!

saffiertje

for assiting me in telling the world about the give away! Eeek! We have two winners!

I used a random number generator to help me pick the winners of my Twine and Heart give away. A warm congratulations to Clare and Linda!

Guess what? I was featured on Cuteable! And a mama and baby showed up here. The very kind Tara also featured my matryoshkas today. I fear my matryoshkas might let it get to their heads... all this fame... Many thanks to you for these fun features!

I haven't made any non-floral dolls for some time now and these adorable Japanese fabrics (the deer one on Fru Osterberg is from Lecien and the lamb is Japanese but I am sorry I don't recall who made it) inspired me to make some non-flowery dolls. The chicken fabric on Fru Bondegård is an old favorite of mine.

I had time to list the dolls in my Etsy shop tonight, but it is getting late and I will have to leave the patchwork pillows for another day.

I decided I would try my hand at crochet today, and maybe I will have something pretty to show you soon... Are you doing any crafting today?
 

Birthday party

My little one turned 5 recently. What a fun age for birthdays! The anticipation of it was tremendous, the counting down the days and planning the party. She seems to be a big planner, just like me. I made her this bunting for the party with Heather Bailey Nicey Jane fabrics. We still haven't taken it down from the kitchen. It really brightens it up.

For the party with her friends she wore the beautiful dress my mom made for her. The pleats are so pretty! She also chose to wear the floral pants that I made underneath. She was quite the flowery one that day!

Here she is standing still for a moment and you can see the dress a bit better. The fabric is gorgeous. The row of carved mother of pearl buttons on the front makes it even more special.

You can see one of them up close above. 

Mom called me her little flower when I was little, and I named my little one after a flower. She is growing up too fast, but blossoming nicely. Before I get teary I will show you a bit of what I put in the shop today.

Fru Asperud and her friends would like to travel, make new friends and spread good cheer.

Cherry Blossoms

Inspired by the cherry blossoms in our backyard.

I made Fru Stemland, who is in the shop.

May you too have a beautiful weekend!
 

Spring has really come and soon so will a visitor!

We are in the throes of excitement here as we await a visitor from far off. My dad is hopping on the plane tomorrow to visit us! Yippee!

So I have tried to get some goodies into my shop beforehand!

As usual I have had a ball playing around with different fabrics: colors and patterns.

I just had to show you how incredibly fast Norway has burst into spring! 

Color has once again returned in full spectrum, the greys, taupes and other dull colors are being taken over by vibrant greens and dotted with lovely blossoms here and there.

Delicate wildflowers just budding can be seen underfoot in the woods and when I relax in the sunshine in my backyard I breathe in the sweet smell of violets that are all around in my flower beds. My little one is keeping the vases full of the prettiest blossoms.  

I combined several very special vintage fabrics on Fru Holmedal as well as some of my hand embroidery, and she is available in my shop (Sorry, she has already sold). 

 

Just can't stop

The flea market season has really gotten me into vintage fabrics. I drew in a little gasp when I spotted this sweet print and piled it and another just like it up on my growing stack of fabrics. I promise that my arms were aching later in the day after carrying around so much fabric as I was looking for even more.

After washing and ironing the fabrics I was ready to dive into my fabrics to find some good matches. I also dug out my laces and it was so much fun.

This new vintage fabric find reminded me about some previous vintage fabric treasures and so of course I made some more. Doll making is like eating chocolates for me once I get started I just can't stop!

They are now all now in my shop! Happy spring!!! 
 

 

What I am working with today

These new ladies are just listed in my shop.

I do hope someone fancies Fru Hoel below, I worked ever so hard on all those blossoms.

After a trip to the mail box today, I can show you these:

 

They are perfectly bright and cheerful to match my mood on this sunny day!

I bought them here.

Hopefully I will have some new things made with these to show you soon...

You can use either side of the ribbons, for even more color possiblities.

What are you going to be getting creative with this weekend?

Going away for a sewing weekend!

Well, I found out on my last post that when it comes to sunshine and spring weather, there aren't too many who are willing to share. I grudgingly have to admit I understand. I had a ball reading all the funny comments, thanks so much for making these chilly days more fun!

I am going away tomorrow for a sewing course and weekend!

I am practically giddy and don't know if I will be able to sleep tonight. My husband said at dinner: "Well, it has only been a decade since you have gone off on your own for a night away from the family." He is nice to encourage me to enjoy myself. I hope he is still just as supportive when I arrive home on Saturday evening after leaving him alone with the children for nearly two days and he sees me laden down with bags and bags of fabrics.

I finally opened an on-line shop in Norway! It was something I have considered for ages but just got around to it now. My shop there is called Ravenhill, I know, really original. The site is called Epla, meaning apple. I think it might be fun for my non-Norwegian readers to see what creative people are making in Norway.

Should you ever want anything from my Epla shop don't hesitate to ask me, I can easily transfer it to Etsy instead.

While I am gone you might enjoy this fabulous blog I recently found and fell in love with.

A bit of vintage

 
The arrival of spring invariably means babies; baby birds will be hatching, as well as bunnies, ducks, and even dolly mummies. 

This new mother is in a perfect daze of joy with motherhood and amazingly dosen't seem the least bit sleep deprived. The brown and white and mint rose fabrics on mama are both vintage fabrics. Combining vintage fabrics with new ones is such great fun.

I need to show you this sleepy lady, because I learned a new embroidery stitch! Bullions: those are the stitches making up the petals of the flowers on her temple. I was so happy to try, make many ugly ones, and now be approaching mastery of these stitches.

   
Fru Westerby is just resting her eyes a bit. Her lace collar is atop a pretty vintage fabric, a Norwegian one by Sandvika Veveri. Whenever I find a vintage Sandvika fabric when thrifting I give an inner squeal of delight. They make such beautiful fabrics and they were made right outside of Oslo. Fru Westerby's mint green headpiece is also a vintage fabric. I have very little of it left and just use small amounts on special things.

Hope that you are having a most excellent start to the week.

New fabrics, pouches and a new blog crush

 

Saturday I went shopping with my Christmas gift card from my husband and came home with a nice little stack of fabrics.

I went looking for aquas and turquoises but there really wasn't much to find in those colors, but I had much luck in the pinks, yellows, reds and oranges.

The white polkadots on the sunny yellow seemed just right to line this pouch that I made.

This floral fabric is a heavier weight, with a linen feel but I think it is a vintage cotton. It has been in my stash for awhile and it is one of my favorites. I used a bit of vintage trim for the side tab and really like how it looks.

These new pouches are now in my shop where it is looking so sunny and bright. Norway is brightening up these days but we still have piles of snow, absolutely no sign of bare ground, and some mornings it is bitterly cold and frosty.

Mornings like this I am so glad to be able to return to my warm house to de-thaw my fingers which have turned numb from the photo session outdoors.

Before I go and make my son his afternoon snack (well, it is more like a huge meal, he eats so much...)I wanted to show you a most wonderful blog.

Emmiline did an amazing and entirely wonderful feature about my dolls yesterday. Anyone who regularly reads my blog has likely had it up to here with my dolls, I just don't seem to be able to stop making them... but I thought you might enjoy her blog because it gives the most marvelous glimpses of her lovely Norwegian home. Just take a look, you will see!

 

Shades of blue

I am in a fine mood, jolly good, never better. You see the sun has been shining on us daily and it acutally warms. Everywhere you go outdoors, you hear a drip, drip, drip. I am now hopeful that we will see bare ground sometime before May. Ohhhhh, if you haven't lived though one of these loooooooong winters than you do not have any comprehension of the sheer JOY to feel the warmth of the sun again.

So the color theme on today's post in no way reflects my mood, no I am SUNNY. However, the blues are the color of the big cloudless sky and it is so beautiful! So to celebrate the blue skies...

I was in such gleeful spirits after the freckle-inducing session in the sun. I sat in the backyard, decked out in my snowsuit, sitting on the lawn chair, knitting away. Afterwards I wanted to make something special and I once again cut into my cherished vintage pansy fabric. 

I like the shape of the pouch, it is the same curved bottom that I have so often used for my drawstring bags but this time it is on a zippered pouch. I think the zipper might be vintage too. It has a sweet drop pull.

Having accomplished something today other than sunning myself I thought it time for a cup of tea, but then the ble teapot and Lilly's rose cup remined me of a doll I wanted to make... so it was off to the sewing room for me again! Fru Himmel (Fru Heaven) is a corny name but that is what she is called, and it suits her perfectly. My dear daughter has even more whimsical names for her dolls, like: Emily Rainbow Lilly. Yes, all one name.

You can find the pouch and Fru Himmel in my shop. Oh, my goodness, I will have to make more pouches this pansy one is already sold.

I hope you are having a happy, sunny weekend!!!

 

Easter Matryoshkas

Easter is fast approaching and I have made a few matryoshkas for my shop with decorated Easter eggs on their backsides.

Please welcome Fru Bekkely and Fru Falkenhaug, they are both sporting the cute bunny fabric by Lakehouse Drygoods.

Fru Rosenlund and Fru Solberg are also ready and waiting for new homes where they hope to spread good cheer and the delight of handmade and handstitched. As you can see Fru Rosenhund feels full of hope and is entirely eager to meet her future owners, while Fru Solberg is feeling slightly apprehensive.

Catching up

I don't know why but January always seems a great time to finish up forgotton projects, do mending and take stock of my goals. So each week now I have been slowly but surely finished up project after project.

Here is one such project, finally completed. These linen and vintage lace and button dolls were cut up and on my sewing table taking up space and to put it bluntly, getting in the way of whatever I was working on. Then finally, I decided it was time to finish them up. What a lovely feeling to have finished and have really cleaned up my sewing table.

I have actually been sewing lots lately but today was the first day with any amount of light to take photos of what I have been making. I can't tell about some secret Valentine's Day gifts I have made yet, but soon.

New Norwegian Tilda fabrics

It brightened my day to visit Emma's wonderful blog and discover she had included Lilly's little slippers in the cheerful and pretty line-up yesterday!

I have been to the local hobby shop for a bit of after Christmas sale shopping.

I found a couple of Tilda fabrics on sale and the brown that wasn't.

The black and white heart trim I think would be marvelous paired with some natural linen.

I have made a few dolls with the new Tilda fabrics.

Both Fru Bergman and Fru Dommerud are now in my shop hoping to soon travel to some exotic location to spread good cheer.

Japanese magazines and mushrooms too

I discovered this new embroidery magazine, Needle, while cruising the internet today and thought you might like to take a look. They seem to have the entire first issue online and for free!

I just got a big order of Japanese crafting inspiration in the mail from Amazon in Japan. It is funny because the first time I ordered from them I had to wait for an entire month for its arrival. This time it was a mere 3 days!

I was positively blown away when the package arrived at the door! Yes, they send it door to door!

The base rate for shipping from Japan is steep but then there is just a small fee per book on top of that making it affordable if you buy less frequently but in large quantities at once!

There is something about this Japanese style that is so appealing.

I also find the photo instructions most helpful. As my son says it would be nice to be able to read Japanese too.

I will surely be sharing more of my new purchases with you soon!

I don't know whether or not you have noticed that I have a few new dolls in my shop that don't have hearts on their behinds, but mushrooms! Above is Fru Hammerstad.

Fru Dahle.

and Fru Langsom. The mushrooms take a bit more time but they are so much fun to do!

Little slippers

Today a few of my newest matryoshkas were featured on Cuteable! Fru Stabekk wasn't featured but she is one of my newest creations in my shop.

The icy air doesn't seem to want to let up and as I have mentioned before is giving me a wonderful excuse to stay indoors and keep warm at my sewing machine. What is the point of going outside actually when it is -20 Celcius? So I made these slippers for little one to keep her small toes warm on our now chilly hard-wood floors.

I used this Japanese book for the pattern. Here is the link to it on Amazon.jp:

The slippers make the second project I have completed in this book and so far so good. I have enjoyed both immensly and they have both turned out as I had hoped. I blogged previously about another Japanese book and my projects here and here.

The bottoms are three layers, with the bottom two quilted together as you see above. I used the same fabric for the insole and underside, and for batting I used a vintage wool blanket. The thick blanket and quilting give good structure to the slippers and warmth as well.

I dug into my mother-of-pearl button jars to find a couple of matching buttons to add as decoration on the straps. I have used snaps for closure. I still (sheepishly) haven't learned how to make button holes. Maybe Mom will teach me on our next visit? I selected Jennifer Pagnelli's wonderful fabric from the line Dance with Me for the outer fabric.

And here we were today playing concentration and little one is wearing her new slippers.

She still doesn't even know all the numbers or letters on the cards but she can match them! Getting a photo is hard work too when they are moving around as much as this little energetic one does. It is a good thing I have learned how to lose with grace because it happens alot when I play cards with my kids.

I hope you will have a lovely weekend!

Lilly's new doll and doll clothes

Lilly was excited as can be at Christmas when she opened up her doll and doll clothes from Grandma and Papap (her grandfather.)

She was promptly named after me, because of the curly hair.

Here is one of the beautiful peices of clothing my mom stitched up for little Emily. I wish this little red fleece with the beautiful black glass buttons was in my size!

Mom made this beautiful dress too. The fabric is delicate with the pretty blossoms scattered all over it and is so lovely, trimmed with dainty lace. Lilly's intense concetration gives a good indication of her pleasure in playing with her new dolly.

Giving of gifts

I wish I had done better at taking photos of all the gifts I made this year. I just spoke with my brother who thanked me for the fingerless gloves I gave him, my great aunt loved the mittens, another aunt has surely now opened up the socks I made...etc.

I did take a few photos of my latest project though, completed just in the nick of time, Christmas eve...

It is a pot-holder made in Yoko Saito style, using the house book as my guide. I did a post about this wonderful book last year. I just signed up for a course with the very same author when she comes to Norway in 2010. I keep thinking about the upcoming course with great excitement and anticipation. I am still not even positive I have a spot but my fingers are crossed...

I found making the potholder for a dear friend to be so such pleasure. Doing it though made me realize I would like to have stacks and stacks of taupe fabrics and that I have so very much to learn when it comes to selecting colors.

I really would like to chat more but it is so late now that I should be asleep. One last thing. I am having a HUGE sale in my shop until January 1st. I realized today how much I love to shop at after Christmas sales and thought it would be great to treat everyone with a wonderful sale. I have also begun to list a few new dolls.

Nighty night!

Little hands making

I have been busy these past few days getting orders together and sent off to all over the world. With my 25% off sale things are hopping in my shop! Things are clearing out fast! I am so pleased to see that the majority of my orders are repeat buyers. I guess that means they like what they are getting and that is so gratifying to me. Knowing that people are happy with my creations makes it worthwhile and satisfying.

Customers in my shop are the nicest people! Sometimes they let me know that the reason they are buying up oodles of dolls is to give to everyone for Christmas. Other times they tell me how much they have wanted to have one of my dolls and that the particular one they bought just called out to them.

We are also busy these days indoors (outdoors is unbearably cold) making Christmas decorations. Here are my husband's big hands helping my 4 year old's little hands to make a chain for our tree.

The joy in making something with your own two hands is so intoxicating. I can't think of a better addiction to have than making things.

Happy weekend and happy crafting!

P.S. My 25% off sale is still on until Wednesday, December 23rd should you be wanting to treat yourself to a little something!

A Grand End-of-Year Sale

I am now having a Grand End of Year Sale!

For one week I am offering 25% off all items in my shop. (Wednesday, December 16 through Wednesday, December 23.) After you have made your purchase and payment I will reimburse you the 25% off all items purchased. The 25% sale does not include shipping costs.  

 

That means these mama and babies are now only 30$ instead of 40$. It is my way of saying Thank you for a wonderful year of blogging and another great year as a shop-keeper.

Christmastime in my shop

Christmas goods are finally in my shop! The seemingly endless overcast days are making photographing anything an immense challenge. I did have such fun making these Christmassy matryoshkas and want to make more for my home too so we can be surrounded by the good cheer of the season.

Now for the give away!

Using the very handy Random Number Generator I have selected two winners of my Christmas craftiness giveaway.

A warm congratulations to Selina and Simone!!!!

When I have your address I will mail the goodies right off to you! May you enjoy them to the fullest!

 

I was lucky!

Look! I won another give away! I feel very lucky. Rachel was the hostess for this give away of these sweetly decorated bobby pins by Carmenesque.

 

Thank you so very much, these are really pretty!

She put them on right away.

This weekend I put my new BariJ fabric to use.

Fru Hokstad (sorry she is now sold) and Fru Skeie are now in the shop.

Fru Godthumør is also in the shop.

We had such a nice weekend, but it sure went by awfully fast... Wishing you a happy week!

Black and White Tuesday

I didn't have time to do this post on Monday as I had intended. I am sorry about not posting much lately. The children are still sick and I have little time for anything. I did go out for a long walk on Sunday though.

While fall has been bursting with brights: gold, red, rust, yellow, and browns it is challenging to see the beauty in the lights and darks of the season.

 

The past few days there has been ample opportunity to catch shots of the flowers all dappled with raindrops.

As I said, I donned my cold weather gear Sunday and headed off for a much needed walk in the woods. Oh, this hour to myself after weeks of tending to flu-ridden children was pure bliss.

The trees look pretty stripped of their foliage after the recent frosty nights.

This fine creature posed for just a moment before scampering off. I have to admit that my photography hobby is helping me get out of the house this time of year when the living room's warmth and comfortable sofa is so very appealing.

Fru Sort is the last in this latest black and white series of matryoshkas and she is now in the shop.

The children are home again today, but I seem to have gotten a second wind after long talks with friends on the phone last night. Today is starting off very cozy, looking at bird books all together in bed, and now we are going to play go-fish (again).

9 weeks and a weekend sale

Yes, it is only 9 weeks until Christmas! This sobering fact just dawned on me. I have already delivered several gifts on our visit to the US, but I have a great many ideas for projects as well as people I plan to make things for. I have begun to fill up the shop with Christmasy matryoshkas.

I had Christmas CANDY in mind when I made them! Fru Jul (which means Mrs. Christmas in Norwegian) and fru Stripete (which means Mrs. Striped in Norwegian) are both in my shop.

Speaking of shop, I am having a store wide sale this weekend ending Monday October 26th. I am giving 20% off all items. Now really is the best time to shop with this great discount and it is sure to arrive in time for the holidays!

I had intended to blog more frequently last week but the children have needed more attention than usual as they have both been coughing and waking at night. Since they don't have any sign of a fever it seems to be a cold and not the flu. Thank goodness, but a mother does worry. I hope you and yours are enjoying a happy and healthy weekend!

Autumn

The sun is getting sleepier and sleepier, waking us up later and later for each passing day. The grass is covered with a fine frost in the mornings and we see our breath on our way off to start the day. The air feels crisp and clear, fresh but not really biting yet. Sunshine abounds and stills warms our cheeks and lights up the yellow and orange colored leaves so brightly.

Fall has really arrived here and I am having fun with the pretty colors and images of the season. I love how these little acorns turned out on the backs of my autumn matryoshkas.

They have fronts too.

Please meet Fru Høst and Fru Grøndal.

Fru Høst means "Mrs. Fall" in Norwegian is really is the epitome of this beautiful season.

Black and white Monday again!

I wasn't able to accomplish as much this weekend as I had hoped due to interrupted sleep on Saturday night. My little one woke up with a miserable case of sniffles and very croupy. This made her cry and cry and she got all the more sniffly and croupy. Happily for us all she is much better now.

I did have time to stitch up a half dozen or so of these little vintage kimono fabric heart ornaments. I will include one with each order I mail out the remainder of this month. I do hope people will enjoy them.

I have been working on some black and white matryoshkas.

Fru Rybak and Fru Alfstad, the first two in line, are now in the shop.

Having a little lie down

The latest copy of Sew Hip magazine appeared in my mailbox. Just in time for a well-deserved break! I have been busy with filling up my shop!

Fru Hyggen,  Fru Dahle, Fru Muri, and Fru Karlsson are all atwitter at the prospect of flying all over the world to new homes! 

Now after all my labours it is only right that I make a cup of tea, lie down on the couch and relax, first wtih my new magazine!

One of my favorite sections of Sew Hip is the book reviews. I look forward to checking out both of these books when I get the chance. Tone Finnanger, the author of Sew Sunny homestyle is the lady behind Tilda and is from Norway!

The magazine includes several patterns to make each issue. The turtle is one of them this month.

Isn't it cute?

 

After a good look through my sewing magazine I'll likely work on my crocheted mittens. Anna, my friend and neighbor who offered to help me on learning how to do shepherd's knitting, and I agreed that the old-fashioned and pretty pjoning hook is for the birds. It kept getting snagged on the wool. The modern crochet hook is in use for a good reason and I am using it instead. They are turning out quite thick and seem like they will be very warm. That will be good as the colder days are approaching.

The new arrivals

At long last... a few lovely ladies have arrived!

Please give a warm greeting to Fru Gustavson, who although rather shy, like most Scandinavians, is so warm and sweet-tempered. She is rather quiet and prefers tea-parties to horse-back riding or other more sporty ventures.

I have been busy in my sewing room.

First with my machine...

Then finishing off with needle and thread. Ouch, sometimes I miss and poke my finger!

I am so in love with this Kaffe Fasset floral on Fru Hoff's front side.

Yes, I would also like to introduce Fru Hoff, an outgoing socialite who will loves to make a grand entrance and who always has her dance card full. Fru Akershus is taking a little nap, and her manner is just as her round face and pretty lips would presume: a genuine sweetheart.

Husflid magazine

I never walk away from a flea market empty handed. My favorite finds are of course fabrics, buttons and trims. However, books and magazines can be a great place to find creative inspiration too.

I found a few of these recent Husflid magazines at a recent flea market and thought you might enjoy taking a peek into one too.

These little carved figures have such character. It makes me want to learn to whittle.

I just had to show you these hens and chicks. I did a bit of embroidery today while lying out in the back yard catching the ever weakening rays of the sun. It was just the usual, some french knots on my latest batch of matryoshka dolls. Lilly found a little green caterpillar to play with and amused herself for quite some time with him while I stitched. We played a game of go-fish together after I cleaned out several closets and cupboards. Now there is a stack of outgrown clothes, etc. ready for giving away. It is the official changing of the seasons. Then I stitched again this afternoon sitting next to my son and helping him struggle through a mountain of homework. The poor guy was in tears over not having any time to play outside.

The children are all nestled in bed and I have a few minutes to spare! Tonight I am finally listing some new needlebooks in my shop, one with pink ribbon and another in green. They have been sold out for some time. I will try to keep things better stocked now!

A fantastic break

It is delightful to be back! Oh, how I have missed you and blogging! Please forgive me my long abscence. I had intended to blog more, but I really did need a break and it turned into the nicest of breaks as we spent it with my family in Maine! YES! We took a vacation, taking the children out of school for three weeks. For years my family has been advising us to consider a late summer visit. They have said things like, “You know, the end of summer is really the best time of year in Maine.” Or “Not only is it sunny and warm but also bug free in early fall.” Neither my husband nor my children had ever been there this time of year so at long last we took heed of their suggestion. We found that everything they said was true! The bad thing is that my son’s teacher made it very clear in her pre-boarding phone call to me that she didn’t think he should go.

Well, the magnificently sunny bug-free days were pure bliss and although we won’t take him out of school for three weeks again it is hard to have any regrets.

 We couldn’t have timed our vacation better as family and friends all moaned about the miserably rainy weather they had had to endure for months on end prior to our visit. We enjoyed beachcombing, swimming in Damariscotta Lake, picnics by the sea, family gatherings, etc.

The beauty of our surroundings and the quality of the time spent relaxing and visiting with our loved ones has allowed us to return filled up with good memories and joy. Hopefully these along with the stored up rays of late summer sun will sustain us through the upcoming winter.

I am already busy listing a few new items (Fru Bøler is now in the shop So sorry, she is already sold!) and looking forward to making some new things with my renewed energy and enthusiasm after my lovely break. Thank you so much to all of my wonderful buyers who have given me such great encouragement by nearly clearing out my shop before and after my break. A huge thanks to all of my faithful readers and those of you who are so kind to take the time to write me a few words so I know you have been by. It means so much to me to hear from you!

DIY bangs and a custom order

Lilly and her friends are already into Do It Yourself. Yes, her little friend who is actually starting 2nd grade tomorrow decided Lilly's bangs needed a trim.

It turned out kinda cute! This touristy photo was acatually taken by my dear brother while he was visiting and he took Lilly off for an outing just the two of them.

 

I made this drawstring bag as a custom order for a very sweet buyer in my shop.

 

I liked how these appliqué flowers looked decorting the bag.

 

Here's the mama and baby she ordered to go with the bag. Custom orders are fun yet challenging. I want to make sure I interpret the customer's wishes just right.

Hoping your week is staring off well. My little one and I are heading downtown this morning to do some fabric shopping for another custom order! The sun is shining brightly and I expect we will have a delightful time.

My dolls on Heather Bailey!

It really was hard keeping a secret for so long! I knew for quite awhile and was waiting and waiting because I didn't know WHEN! I told you a bit about it earlier and finally it really happened!

My dolls were featured on Heather Bailey's blog, right here!

 

She has a new feature there called Feature Friday where she highlights one artist. When her assistant contacted me to ask if I would like to be featured there I was so excited! Would I!? It is actually really nice to know that the one who put all the effort and creativity (and whom I have enourmous admiration for) into these beautiful fabrics also appreciates what a craftsperson very far away does with them.

I have learned so much from Heather, her sense of color is such an inspiration to me. Her color drenched and frolicy fabrics just seem to beg to be made into something fabulous.

One of the things I have learned too is what colors people seem to like best and least. Would you like to wager a guess?

Sometimes I really doubt that anyone will actually buy a doll in a specific color, ahem, like Fru Tvedt above, which is now in my shop along with many others made with Heather Bailey fabrics. I don't think many have orange as their favorite color or use it much in decorating. When I was little though I recall quite well having pink and orange as my faves, so I couldn't resist making one in these colors. Perhaps there is a girl, young or old who loves these colors too? 

I just wanted to let you know that I decided to have a little break from my shop and blog pretty soon so that I can get a chance to catch my breath before the busy fall and holiday season. I will be open for a couple more weeks and then close my shop and stop blogging for a week or two or maybe three. I found out last week that I get much more done when I am not at the computer. So if you need something I will be open until August 22nd and reopening my shop and starting to blog again sometime in September.

Finds

I'm so sorry to have been gone for so long. First one of our hard drives crashed leaving us computer-less. Then we had to wait for the new one to arrive in the mail. My husband tinkered and laboured into the wee hours of the night but something still wasn't right. A few trips downtown to the computer shop and many kroner lighter, we now have nearly a brand new computer and I am finally back again...

With photos of my new gorgeous vintage laces.

When mom was here recently I was so busy with her I didn't even have time to show you the wonderful flea market we went to and where I bought these. Mom and I sorted through a large basket of laces, vintage and every one unique.

 

The market was bustling that pretty day.

 

This fleamarket is open Saturday's in Oslo during the summer and offers many fine vintage and antique items.

 

This seller had a wonderful collection of textiles and small dolls.

 

I bought these too.

While our computer was down I had a bit of extra time to make things. So I kept myself happily busy sewing some new things for my shop.

Have a great rest of the weekend!

Toes

As it has been much cooler lately I have taken a keener interest in knitting. The winter is approaching and I would so like to have warm and pretty handknits for fingers, toes, ears and necks. Right now I am concentrating on the toes. Maybe it is best to work from the bottom up?

I showed you a few balls of yarn and half started projects quite awhile ago. I just wanted to show that I finished some of them! There was enough of this candy colored yarn to whip up simple pairs of socks for both of my little chicks.

There wasn't quite enough of this yarn to make the entire socks so I grabbed a matching wool from my stash for the toes.

This little lass does have two completed, matching socks to warm her toes this winter but only had one of them on for this shot. Thank you again Mervi for this most gorgeous yarn! Funny because she is knitting socks now too. Must be a Scandinavian thing. We always have the upcoming winter on our minds and how best to prepare for it.

My shop has a distinctive summery feel to it, despite my winter preparations, with the lastest crop of hand appliquéd blossoms decking out my dolls.

Today we all went to a delightful birthday party! Lilly can still wear the beautiful dress mom made her last year.

 

Happy 4th of July!

I hope everyone is having a great day! I made these dolls recently with the patriotic 4th of July colors in mind.

Fru Larsen and Fru Bryhn are in my shop.

I have to tell you we have been HOT! Yes, the heat wave continues. We are keeping cool as best we can.

 

Here the children are trearing down to the beach at full speed ready to plunge into the cooling fjord waters.

 

Actully the early mornings are quite nice as temps do go down considerably at night. We were one of the first to arrive and Lilly paused to look at the birds. I love this hat on her. Mom made it for her to go with a dress that she adored to wear but has outgrown. I am delighted that she can still squeeze into the cute sunhat though.

We are so fortunate to be able to celebrate the 4th with my brother who is visiting this week! He is a great Uncle and the kids adore him. He let the kids douse him with water again and again. He got them back good when he found a large bucket... We all had a ball and cooled down nicely.

These aren't such patriotic colors but they are the dolls I made after my recent shopping spree at Katrine's fabric shop. I am so loving the Japanese prints I bought and used on these dolls. (The dolls are in my shop).

I was happy to find my matryoshka featured on Anna's For the Love of Cute blog here. Thank you Anna, it is sure a treat to have my matryoshka mamas and babies turn up in such good company. I am positively bursting because I have been asked if my dolls could be featured on another very prominent blog. The problem is that I shouldn't let the cat out of the bag yet.

A skirt for Lilly

I thought I would surprise my dear friends, family and readers with a blog post this morning! I have really been terrible lately about finding time to sit down and blog. The sunshine and perfect weather have been calling me outdoors. We just run in once in awhile when we are hungry. Our little pool is filled up and the kids are splashing and sqealing out there from as early as 7 am many days. Sorry neighbors, such summer joy just cannot be suppressed!

Here they are bright and early today. This morning my husband is taking the children to visit Oldemor, my husgand's grandma. I would have liked to have gone too but I needed the day to myself even more. Lilly is wearing the brand new skirt I made for her.

I was just going to put the one yellow yo-yo on there but she insisted on 3. She also chose the fabrics for the skirt. I picked the vintage ricrac. I think we make a good designer team, don't you?

My matryoshka creations end up all over the world. The other day I had an order from someone in the town next door to my hometown! I thought that was fun and even more fun was seeing Fru Herland on this blog. I hope you will read her post because it was so delightful! Thank you so much Rhea. I will definitely drop by and visit Alewives and visit with you when I am in Maine!

Before I run off and do whatever I please I wanted to tell you that I have new needlebooks in the shop.

You might also want to hurry to Jennifer's as she is having an amazing give away that ends tomorrow, June 28 at 5 pm. Please tell her I sent you!

Now I have a custom order to finish. I haven't painted a face in months and am a bit nervous about it. It is probably like riding a bicycle though I will remember how when I sit down to do it. Doing this embroidery on the back was really fun. I really love it when someone asks me to embroider something special on a doll. 

Thank you so much to everyone who wrote such lovely messages on my last post. Your kind words really meant a lot to me. I hope you will have a wonderful weekend!

Let's go shopping!

Sometimes my sweet customers post a photo of my doll on their blog. Mary was one such appreciative buyer and it made me so happy to get her personal letter and see her blog post about my creation. Thank you so very much for making me feel appreciated for my work!

I am an appreciative customer too... but maybe I seem like a funny customer when I arrive at Katrine's Quiltestue with camera in hand and beg for permission to photograph everything in sight before making my purchases?

 

I am sure I look at each and everything at least twice.

 

Everything is so darn pretty!

I don't want to miss anything.

In a short time I am so enchanted by all the glorious fabrics that it is nearly impossible to narrow my favorite fabrics down and pick just a few.

I mean, aren't these blues beautiful?

 

 Katrine really has an eye for color, aren't these dreamy? Many of us don't even think we like orange and yellow very much but when presented like this... what is not to like?

 

Not only are the fabrics for sale incredibly inspiring, but the shop is positively filled with finished projects like this bag, giving you even more reason to buy more fabric.

 

I ended up splurging on more dots and several florals. I will have to show those another day though. I do hope you have enjoyed accompanying me on my little shopping excursion.

Before I drop off to sleep after a very busy day you must meet some of my latest matryoshkas. One is already spoken for but the others are in my shop.

 

Congratulations to...

Thank you, one and all, for your fantastic comments, kind words and appreciation of my pretty fabrics! It has been so much fun having a give away once again and getting mails day and night with so many lovely messages!

My newest creations, Fru Friberg and Fru Baden are all smiles in anticipation at finding out who the winners are!

The moment has come that you have been waiting for. The winners!

Winner of the issue of Sew Hip magazine is: Cee Lew

and the winner of the fabrics and surprises is: Muriel

I have contacted the lucky winners of my give away so I can know where to send the prizes.

Today after all this give away excitement I am ready to sit down to relax and knit on this gorgeous variegated yarn that was a gift from Mervi.

Peachy Keen!

There is still time to enter my Crafty Give Away!

I made this drawstring bag as a custom order recently. I enjoy working together with people and trying my best to make what they are dreaming of. I love how it turned out and would like to make more with pinks and peaches.

I made a few dolls with some peachy pink colors from some lovely Lakehouse Drygoods fabrics called Teatime Florals by Holly Holderman. The first time I set eyes on these fabrics I knew I needed to have them. Her fabrics usually make me feel that way!

Fru Nielsen is already sold.

Fru Eide is just listed and still available. I really shouldn't have looked at the Lakehouse page, now I want more of these fabrics in the blues and beiges. I am trying to be so good. I think it is over a month since my last fabric purchase.

So far this post has been rather subdue, but the peachy pink flowers in my backyard are anything but...

This is the BEFORE shot last week of my lupins that I planted by seed last summer. One week of near 24 hours of daily sunlight does a lot for a plant!

AFTER!I love this time of year when it is light day and night! Everyone is out, we are enjoying the wading pool in our yard, just soaking in the sunshine, and loving every minute of it. Please don't mention the W word. We know it is coming soon enough. Right now everything is peachy keen!