Ripple dreams... part 7

Wow, I got 6 ripple rows done on my ripple blanket this week which is great as I can already cover myself with my blanket when I'm crocheting. It's nice and warm and I can't wait to get it finished completely so that I can actually wrap it around me when vegging out on the couch.Oh, and while I'm at it, remember the butchered bunny?
I re-made him and put him in my shop and he is now in Etsy's voter! Waaah!
You can imagine how excited he is so he promised me he'll wiggle his tail for every vote he gets! :)
You have to log in at Etsy to vote though: http://www.etsy.com/voter_list.php?ref=voter&room_id=97 Thank you for voting!

My creative space

I don't think I've ever posted my creative space so late but I just had to enjoy the entire day outside! It was actually the first spring day that made me put on a skirt, shirt and feel the sunshine on my head! I loved cleaning up the garden, get the garden set cleaned and sit outside enjoying my first glass of white wine to celebrate that spring has arrived...
I had an awesome day, and you? :)

Want to show your creative space? Hop over to Kootoyoo's to play, it's fun! :)

Looking for fish

A crazy idea in my head made me go look for fishes. You know, just plain plastic toy fishes from about 6cm or 2,5inches or a bit smaller but certainly not larger. Important fact: the tail needs to be nice. I like the tails on the second and third fish below. The first tail is too wide and not typical fish enough for my taste.
Anyway, my search has been horror. I went to every toy shop in town, visited the thrift shop every other day and I digged in the toyboxes of my niece and nephew to find what I was looking for but it just doesn't seem to exist.
Being kind of desperate, I asked my dad, who loves to go fishing, if he had any lures to spare.
We went to the fish material shop yesterday and I bought these 2 below but I'm not really thrilled about them. The tail of the first one is too long and the tail of the second one is not really a tail, it's a flat piece so that fisherman can add it to their hook. I might use the head in this case.
So I'm goingto experiment with those two for now.
But I thought the perhaps you could help me on my search? Go through the toy box of your kids, keep an eye out in the thrift shop,...
If you have any fish laying about that you would like to get rid off for art purposes, don't hesitate to contact me. I'll be happy to hear from you: mitsy@artmind.eu
Just don't send me anything yet, but show me a picture first so that I can see if it's useable and if it's THE fish I have been looking for. I'll pay for the fish and shipping or if you like an exchange better, we'll trade a fish for a singing bird! :)

Flickr Favorites

1. 77/365, you're never fully dressed without a smile!, 2. Rebel!, 3. Looking up, 4. What box shall we think outside of???, 5. The Eye, 6. Last day in Paris, 7. 153.365 ~ . the balancing act., 8. hah!, 9. White

I hardly ever make mosaics with more the 4 pictures but that would have made this weeks challenge even harder. Actually, I forgot all about the challenge and prepared a mosaic and when I went back to check out the link of last weeks favorite, I saw that I challenged you to make a self portrait! Duh! :)

So, I got to work and wrote down a few words to describe myself. Then I tried to find the right pictures in Flickr. Not an easy task as some are creepy and some are dull but let me explain a bit...
1. I smile and laugh a lot. I like to believe it will make me old and wrinkled and then later, when people come and ask me the secret of becoming that old, I would answer: 'smile and laugh a lot'
2. I'm a rebel. Jip, I really am. I dislike being walked over and I often 'fight' for people who are done unjustice. It's not always easy being a rebel but I can't change it, so I try to live with it.
3. Looking up is what I've learned over the years. It has made me stronger and more aware of things. Not being afraid of facing things but take it all in in pride.
4. I like to think outside the box. It is good to look at things from another perspective.
5. I don't like to look back. Memories are great but I don't hold on to them. It's the present that counts. This picture is a bit creepy but it also shows that it's not always easy to look at the present. It can be a struggle but there is no point of living in the past.
6. Small things are often really big for me: a little note in the mail, a blooming flower, an old couple sitting hand in hand in the park, an unexpected gift, an encouraging word,... it makes my world much fuller, nicer, richer.
7. I try to balance things. Not an easy task and I often don't succeed but when I do, I can fly.
8. I'm a patient person. Unless someone puts a cake in front of me...
9. I need space. Space in my head and in my heart. I also love wide open spaces where there's no one except me. Too bad we don't have many of those in Belgium.

Phew, this was quite a challenge but it also felt good to reflect a bit on myself. I hope I haven't scared you away and actually, I'm curious to find out more about you.
I'd love to meet you but if you don't feel like playing the 'selfportrait' game, don't. It's supposed to be fun and if it's not fun, there is no point!

I'm so glad that my favorite mosaic from last week was loved by many!
Very subtle, very delicate, very beautiful...

If you like to play this week, make your mosaic and add a link to your blogpost (NOT your blog please) or Flickr in Mister Linky (click on the button below and fill in your name with the link to your blogpost or Flickr picture).

How to make happy Decopatched clouds?

Living in Belgium certainly has it's advantages: yummy chocolate, good beer and the real 'French' fries, with mayonaise of course...
Like every other country, it also has it's disadvantages: it rains a lot here.
And while the clouds are forming in the sky, looking daunting and grey, I dream of happy clouds. You know, colored clouds that make colored rain and makes everyone happy, even when it rains.

When I think of clouds, I also think of Maartje from Mamutopia on Etsy. She also has a lovely blog where I quite often take a peek to see with what fun creations she has come up with and I adore her weekly happy stats on saturday's.
Recently, I noticed that she has been producing an awesome amount of clouds. That's why I asked her to help me with my happy clouds. She send me some so that I could use them for making this happy cloud tutorial. Thank you, Maartje! :)

Here is what you need:
Decopatch paper, Decopatch glue, glue brush, pencil,
scissor, glass bottle (IKEA), glasses, jars,...

Draw clouds on the Decopatch paper.
This can be random clouds, I used Maartje's because
I love 'em & to hide I can barely draw. :)

Cut out the clouds.I think I have enough clouds. Apply some Decopatch glue on the bottle with the brush.Add the Decopatch cloud.

Take some more glue and brush it over the cloud.
That way it's protected against water.
Note: it is not dishwasher safe and can only cope
with a slight bit of cold water so it's used for
decorative purposes unless you add a thick layer of varnish.

The glue leaves a bit of brushmarks on the bottle.
If you don't like that, take some hot water,
a bit of detergent, a cloth and rub them away. Let it dry & then drink from the happy clouds.

I love drinking water and I fill one of these every day right from the tab. Hmm...

Ripple dreams... part 6

After a few hectic weeks, I was really happy to pick up my crochet hook. It's becoming harder and harder to choose the colors as I think I've used most of the pretty ones already.
Since I ordered 33 different colors, I started to use some darker colors so that they would not all come together at the end. I hope it doesn't look too dark - what do you think?I now have 17 rows of the 33 done - that's halfway of the first part of the blanket.

My creative space

The other day I saw some pretty pink Decopatch paper in my supply shop. And since I don't really have pink singing birds yet, I decided to make a little flock.
I also have some birds waiting to be photographed and listed but I'll do a shoot when I have 'em all done.
And completely off the subject: the letter 'm' is acting really weird on my keyboard. I have to press it really hard or it won't show. It bugs me as I use that letter a lot since my name starts with an 'm'. :)

Want to show your creative space? Hop over to Kootoyoo's to play! It's fun! :)