500

Wow, can't believe this is my 500th post already. Little did I know what was ahead of me when I started this blog over two years ago. How much it would change my life, how much it would change my crafting, how much it would inspire me, and especially how much it would allow me to meet such wonderful people (you guys !)



I know I'm not the most faithful of bloggers. Sometimes a week goes by when I don't have anything to talk about or show here, and yet you're still here. I appreciate that, as I appreciate each and every comment that you leave and every e-mail you send my way, so thank you all for that.



I'm celebrating this with a couple of announcements. First, I'm finally having that shop update with the rest of the items I promised last week, mainly summer bags and softies. Second, I'm finally making the transition to etsy. I first opened an etsy account way back when I started selling my crafts, but I never really invested much time on it. I figured now was the time to do it. It makes things easier for me to manage, and the community there has grown so big and so inspiring that I can't help but enjoy all the good company. So please feel free to visit my new shop anytime. The old shop will still be active for a while, since I'm keeping the rest of the trims and fabrics there.



And because it's my 500th post after all, I'm having a give away too. Not bookcovers this time, but maybe you'd like a new softie ? Actually, if you're the winner I'll let you choose, so just leave a comment here saying if you'd like a sad bear or kitty softie (like the ones above) or a new design (which I'm yet to make, so it will be a surprise) and if you feel like it, just share something about yourself (like where you're from, or what's your favorite book, movie or song, or where you're going on vacation, just about anything really. I'd just like to know a little more about you guys), and I'll draw a name sometime next week.

weekend

on a whim of the moment on Saturday, we decided to paint the rest of the hallway green, to clash with the red. Couldn't take any decent photos to show you the real color, so this is the best I was able to manage.



(Dawn, your beautiful artworks are one of the first things I see every morning)



and some bits of sunday lunch





... and a little wip

doll quilt inspiration

so I was crazy enough to sign up for doll quilt swap II. I figured that it would be a nice way to start and try my quilting abilities, and I guess there's not much damage I can do if I try a doll quilt size first, right ? So if you're my swap partner and you're reading this, I apologize in advance for whatever the result might turn out to be. I'm a little bit in awe of all this, since my partner is actually quite an experienced quilter, but I've taken the challenge and will see this to the end.
The only request I got was no pastel colors, so I thought I could at least combine a couple of my favorite colors (I'm not a pastel person either). This is the fabric selection I got so far. It looks so pretty this way I almost don't have the courage to cut it all up, but don't worry, I will start working on it this weekend.

And to give me some inspiration, I round up some of my favorite doll quilts out there:



1. Doll quilt, Mama Urchin, 2. Strippy doll quilt front, Losabia, 3. Strippy Doll Quilt, WendysWTN, 4. doll.quilt, JoyBucket, 5. Beth's first ever quilt, Losabia, 6. Doll quilt, Jenny B, 7. Doll Quilt Swap, The Harvatines 8. Doll Quilt, Crafty Ginger, 9. Doll Quilt Swap: American Geese, Krom Mama

And sorry I couldn't update the shop with the rest of the items this week, but hopefully that will happen in the next couple of days. Enjoy the weekend !

shop update

new bookcovers available here

(coming up later in the week: bags and softies)

♥ Rosa's new trim

(e para ler todos os dias ... as aventuras da Inês no Japão)

e ainda para amantes de gatos, o atum (via patrícia)

espaço little objects

disponíveis na Papel e Cª (em boa companhia da Carla e da Marisa)

available at: Papel & Cª
Morada / Address: Rua Prof. Bento de Jesus Caraça, 23 - Porto


(photo by Marta :)

♥ alentejo

a lovely place to rest for a couple of days: albergaria monte da rosada







too bad the weather wasn't that obliging or I would've spent all days by this pool (next time, I hope)





and there was enough time for quick visits to the villages around, and for buying some very good wine













And last, but definitely not the least, the best food in town (it's a good thing we only stayed for a couple of days or my clothes would probably not fit me anymore):

São Rosas
Largo Dom Dinis 11
Estremoz

Cadeia Quinhentista
Rua Rainha Santa Isabel
Castelo - Estremoz

Adega do Isaías
Rua do Almeida 21
Estremoz

more photos here

the indian quilt

The photos from this exhibit, and the quilt posts from Mary and Rita just reminded me of this indian quilt that I purchased during my last trip to S. Paulo (and which for some reason I forgot to show here).

I'm still hoping that someday I'll be able to make my own quilt - maybe a project for this summer ? Amanda, I see, is planning a summer of quilts, and I can't wait to try Amy's tutorials. Until then, I'm just happy on how this looks on our bed. Beautiful, isn't it ?

hello sushi

wip

this is how my studio desk is looking at the moment ... to say that I have a lot of work in progress is an understatement.
A lot of it will be finished in the next day or so, I hope, and then we're going out of town to get some rest for a couple of days. Sorry about the recent posts with so many photos but not much writing, but that's how much time to blog I have these days. Next week I'll try for a bit more substance, I promise (and that shop update, also coming soon)

last weekend

a dear friend's lovely wedding (who is probably now arriving in the Maldives ... oh, the envy :)

sunset origami

in my studio, at sunset ...







origami strings by my friends M. and S.