I need your (little) help

Hello!

How are you?

Things are going very well here. 

I've just come back from a week spent in beautiful Ireland (take a look in my Flickr album) and now I'm ready to start the last part of 2015 (autumn? already??? °__°).

Before starting with my usual show&tell about sewing and creativity, I'm here today to ask you a little help.

I'm taking part in a photo contest called #vistidallalto. The game consists on uploading snapshots of Sicilian places taken from above. The prize? Two books about Sicily!

You can help me leaving a "like" to my photo on the contest's facebook page. Thank you in advance for you help!

About my photo...

... it captures a medieval church in the little town of Calatabiano, seen from the castle on top of the hill.

I wrote a post about this place and its traditions here.

Have a good day!

July in 31 photos - days 6-10

Second step of my July photographic project.

I'm sharing with you today the photos about days 6-10.

I'm very happy that Pam decided to follow me in this photographic project and she's uploading daily photos into her Instragram album.
She is working very well, surely better than me (today is day 13, and I haven't edited and published my photos about days 11 e 12, I'm so late!!!).
Remember you can join, too.
Follow the (super simple) rules here!

Day 6: Sunday: some embroidery after lunch. I've experimented a bit with monocromatic embroidery - flowers totally improvised by me.

Day 7: Working from home. I'm preparing some of my lessons of the week (they are about tourism).

Day 8: I'd love to swim in the beautiful Ionian Sea (we live very closed), but today I can't, so I'm letting images and words speak about my needs :)

Day 9: Final exhibition for the girls who attend the school where I work ad a teacher. They were fabulous!!!

And S. and I spent a very fresh and funny evening outdoor, watching the show and meeting friends and coworkers.

Day 10: lunch with both my parents-in-law (and S., too) after a visit to the hospital for my father-in-law (nothing serious, don't worry). The right occasion to "inaugurate" one of the tableclothes I made by myself last month!

Happy sunday!!!

2012 in review: numbers!

After my return to home I finished to answer to Reverb 2012 prompts in my moleskine (started last december) and this really helped me to review my 2012.

But it's not enough for me, because, you probably know, I want to see numbers, especially when I'm thinking to what I made with my hands and what I've accomplished.

 

So I looked in my Flickr sets (a very helpful tool to take note of your achievements) and I noticed I had a very productive year, although I was thinking the contrary.
 

 

You can click the links before to go the my flickr folders: in almost all the photos' description I wrote the link to the related post in this blog, if you're interested in some projects.

 

For me and my friends I made...

- 5 t-shirts

- 2 refashioned t-shirts

- 1 skirt

- 2 neckwarmers

- 2 crocheted basket with recycled t-shirt yarn

- 1 crocheted bear (Mr. Buh)

- 1 fabric dog (Oscar)

- 11 snowflake ornaments

- 1 embroidered tablecloth for my kitchen

- 1 patchwork "thing" for my bathroom

- started to make jewelry

- a shirt for my niece (not documented)

- a bag for a woman I know

- a small pouch for mum (not documented)

- refashioned 3 skirts for my mother-in-law (not documented)

 For my shop I made...

- 14 bags (*___*)

- 5 brooches

- 5 fabric bracelets

- 3 moleskine covers

- 17 decorative stars

- 4 pairs of slippers

- 4 coin purses

 

And I also know that:

- I experimented with painting, drawing and collage

- I wrote 2 tutorials (fabric bows and fabric peonies)

- I sold 40 items

- I took and edited hundreds of photos, for me, my shop, my blog
- I wrote 140 posts for this blog (!!!) and 1 guest post for Pam
- I've been interviewed by Diane

 

I'm pleased, yes, I am :)

What is it? A collage?

Two days ago there was a large space next to the kanelbullar's recipe in my moleskine pages. And it wasn't empty, but full of colors and images.

 

 

What is it? A collage?

No.

Two :D

 

 

After more than one year I jumped over my fear and I started to glue images on the page and I finished to make two collages.

The bug input went from that golden frame I found in a magazine. The original plan was to write into the empty space (I like to write into frames!), but it inspired me to create a sort of "paint" and a collage was born.

So natural and so exciting.

It's a new way to create images; you use images created by other people to create other images, a process so different from drawing (= you create images by yourself).
I found this creative process so "intriguing" :)

And less difficult than my previsions. Loved it!

Now I feel like I can't stop making collages. Eh, eh.

 

My mind is full of questions about these two collages I created this week. Have they a meaning? What are they speaking of? Have they to represent a subjet?Or not? Can I call them "collages" if they are simply a group of cut&glued paper without a precise pourpose?

But I don't want to torment myself. I simply want to experiment and make beautiful images for my journal. And learn new thing.

I have no artistic ambitions, I only want to enjoy creativity :)

Thank you!

Today I want to send a huge "Thank you" to all of you, my readers, on-line friends and supporters.

Some days ago I looked at my blog statistics and I jumped on the chair when I saw this:

 

The graphic says that the visited pages of my blog in october almost doubled (compared to the average of the visits in the past months).

I'm so astonished by that line running to the top of the graphic!

 

I don't know why it happened. No news here in the blog, recently. I simply went on writing and sharing a bit of my creative life like I've done in the past.

But this little event makes me so happy :)

 

At the end of october my blog also received its first Flattr [*] donation! :)

Thank you, unknown reader, for clicking on that little green button here on the right! You warmed up my heart! :)

 

**** THANK YOU ****

 

[*] If you don't know what Flattr is and how it works, you can read Hanna's and Carina's post.

Papilio machaon on my dahlias

My dahlias are still alive, thanks to this warm october.

And last saturday they gave hospitality to a beautiful creature: a papilio machaon!

 

 

Isn't it amazing?

I love it!

Butterflies are one of my naturalistic passions and I started a photographic collection of italian butterflies (a sort of) some years ago.

You can find it (summed up) in this flickr set.

 

Taking photos of these lovely creatures isn't simple, because they constantly move here and there, but if you are patient you can get good images like this.

Last saturday weather was cloudy and windy, so taking these photos has been very difficult and they are not perfect (so different from the beautiful photos by Marco!).
But I'm happy the same. I did my best with my little and old camera :)

 

 

Papilion machaon is one of my favourite butterflies.

I'm quite sure it has been voted as the most beautiful european butterfly some years ago (but can't find the source of this info, sorry!) and images of machaons often are on european postage stamps (like this one from Poland).

The caterpillar looks great, too!

 

 

I haven't photographed this butterfly before last saturday and I'm so happy it is in my collection now! :)

Simple joys are the best!

 

 

A little note: Machaon is also the name of a greek mythologic character.

His brother is Podalirius: this is the name of another butterfly, similar to machaon but with a different shape and less bright colors, I photographed some summers ago in my parents' garden (not a good photo).

 

Thank you, Mother Nature, for all this beauty!

Misadventures in dressmaking (how I altered a sorbetto top)

I made this top, my second top ever!

I like it :)

It fits well on me and it's well sewn.

But I have to tell you the truth about it: my project was to sew a 'Sorbetto tank top', following the famous pattern by Colette (free download), and something went so wrong that I totally changed the design -__-

The cause of my misadventures is not in the pattern: it works great and is really well constructed. But I made some mistakes.

Firts mistake: I diligently measured myself to pick out my size, cut the pattern and basted it. And it was too big!!! Believe me: too big!

I don't know why. It's a mistery!

So I reduced its width with the help of another t-shirt I have.

Second mistake: I picked up the wrong fabric for it.

I used a light jersey (bought at the outdoor market for 2 €) with that lovely 70s print. But it was too light: the front pleat couldn't stay still in its place (even after pressing) and constantly moved in all possible directions. Poor me!!!

So I unstitched it and found a solution: two pleats only in the upper part of the top.

Uhm, not bad!

I like how the fabric gently swirls around my belly :)

After this step I realized I wasn't making a sorbetto top, but something else.

So I finished it my way: I added the sleeves (pattern here) and finished the neck line with a bias tape cut by me from the same fabric of the top.

And that's all.

Sometimes things don't go according to your plans, but the result is ok all the same. Lesson learned!

Bye!!!

My angel top for Spring top sew-a-long 2012

This is my top per "Spring top sew-a-long 2012":

I'm so happy to have tried to make it and so excited to be part of this lovely "parade of tops" :)

If you need informations about this "competition" you can follow this link.

About my top...

Design

I used Rae's free pattern "Angel top".

I altered it a bit in the sleeves (I wanted them less "swirling"). This was my first time with this pattern and I really enjoyed it. It's super simple, ideal for beginners in clothes' making. Only two pieces of fabrics to sew! :)

Thank you Rae! [*]

And the cute thing is that you can make it in every size you need, because you have to design your pattern measuring yourself.

Here a detail of the sleeve:

Fabric

Light jersey with a lovely (in my opinion) pattern of stylized and modern flowers. It is a bit transparent, so I'm going to wear it with a black vest under it (as you can see in the photo).

I bought this fabric for only 2 € (2,60 $) at the outdoor market. Cheap and satisfying :)

Colors are black, different tones of blue (from azure to ultramarine) and white.

In my previous post about this top I published other two photos of it.

Do you remember?

Me wearing the top on my balcony:

The sleeve:

[*] You can visit Rae's blog to follow the spring top competition, but also to check one of her patterns and tutorials (some are free, some are for sale).

I tested her "buttercup bag" (lovely and simple to make) and bought "bonsai bag pdf pattern" but haven't tested yet.  Oh, and there is another free pattern for a lovely top, too!

A preview of my new top

Before entering my new top in "Spring sew-a-long 2012" competition, I want to share it with you.
As you can see in the photos, it's a super simple model, ideal for a beginner, but very satisfying if I consider how it fits well on my not so perfect and "abundant" body. This was my first time with knitted fabrics and I had no problems with it! Happy me!
And the most important thing about this top is that I reached a goal with it: I won my fear!

This is me wearing it in our bedroom:

And here I was wearing it in our super windy&sunny balcony (colors altered a bit):

A detail of the sleeve:

When I'll take a good photo of it, I'll submit it in the Flickr pool of the competion and I'll write a post with detailed informations (fabric, pattern, etc).

I hope all these posts about my new "top mania" isn't annoying you, because I have a second top to write about! :P

It's made of a wihite knitted fabric with blue, red and azure stripes. Probably it has an 80s style. Or nautical? Uhm, you will judge.

I probably have no chances to win the "spring top sew-a-long" competition, because a lot of skilled dressmakers are contributing with their lovely and complex tops. But, hey, it's just for fun! :)

Please, be honest with me and write a comment about this top. Do you like it? What do you think about the fabric?

What I'm doing now

A lot of silence in this blog recently!

Why?

I'm reading a lot of books about Sicily, making summaries on a big workbook and repeating what I read ... I became a student :)

Oh, yes. I hope to pass an important (and difficult) exam: it will make me a guide for tourists here in Sicily. And this is THE job I want for me!

So I'm working a lot and I study everyday.

My holidays at my parents' home finished and now I came back in my home in the south. My home is so cold! >__<

But sometimes I make a big cup of hot herbal tea for me. Mum gave me this mug: I love it! It's so "wintry"! :)

Happy 1st birthday to my blog!

I started to wrote this blog 1 year ago! Happy birthday, my young blog! :)

Here the first post.

I was so scared about writing in english and not in italian, but I really wanted to connect my self to the world.

Right decision! My english (though it's still not perfect, I know) sensibly improved and I've also met a lot of people in the world.

Do you remember?

I've been interwieved by Carina, Fernanda and Alice.

I gave my little contribute to Dala Horse craft-a-long with my stamp.

I wrote a post for Pam about italian celebrations of Santa Lucia's feast.

I had a lot of fun and met lovely people :)

Today I'm surfing through my blog's stats and this is what I see:

- I wrote 142 posts... a post every 2/3 days! Great :)

- June and december a lot of visitors came to visit me (around 1300-1400)

- The most popular posts are this one about moleskine journals and this about mum's handmade nativities (probably because recently Pam wrote about them in her blog)

- My readers generally come from Italy and USA, but also from a lot of european countries, Russia, Pakistan, India, Brasil and Australia. OMG!

- Only 27 people are my followers. This make me a bit sad, so, if you want, you can become my follower; it will be a lovely birthday gift for my blog :)

This year has been great!

:)

100th post! And a little surprise for my readers :)

Yes, this is my 100th post for this blog :)

Well, I know this is not a big goal and there are a lot of blogs where you can read hundreds and even thousands post. It doesn't matter for me: this is my little blog and I can enjoy and celebrate every little goal I reach with it :)

Do you agree? I hope so.

100 post are an important goal for me: I wrote 100 post in english!

Wow, I'm impressed by myself :P

Starting this blog and writing it in a language I don't know very well has been a challenge at the beginning. And I'm happy to have been so stubborn to go on: I used my vocabulary and, little by little, I wrote 100 post and I improved my english (probably you're thinking that my english is not perfect and you find tons of errors in my writing: I'm sorry, I'm doing my best).

I have to celebrate these results!

I wrote 100 post in 8 months: they are approximately 3 post a week.

I like this kind of statistics, they really show what you have done.

People came to read my pages 4700 times (if you are curious, here you can find the favourite most visited).

Followers are 20.

And after these (boring?) statistics... the surprise!

I want to thank all my readers for being so supportive with me durig these 100 post.

I've thought for a long time how to thank you in a tangible way and finally I decided for a coupon code to use in my shop.

From today to 8th september entering the coupon code 100POST a 25% discount will be automatically applied in your cart.

I hope you'll appreciate.

A new happy life

Hallo! I'm back! :)
How are you?
I'm really happy to be ready again to write a blog post and connect myself to all my friends in the net.
I'm writing on my kitchen table in our new home. Outside it's very hot today (probably around 38° C); sun is burning and all is dry. But we are so lucky to have a fresh home: it is near the country and a fresh wind comes from the fields. So sitting here by the pc is lovely!

In this photo you can see the sight from our balcony on the back (second floor); I sit here late in the evening to read.

Here are some news about my new life in Sicily:
- I had no time to feel bored during this first week here: our sweet home needs everything!
Can you imagine how difficult is living here without a washing machine, iron, tv, wardrobe? Difficult, but romantic :)
We only have a complete kitchen, two bathrooms and some old beds a friend gave us.
We make something everyday to give life to our home and now, after a week, the situation starts to be normal.
- I start all my days with a fresh orange juice made of fruits my boyfriend grows in his orange trees garden. Yes, some kinds of orange trees gives fruits in summer, too. Our fridge is full of this delicious fruits and lemons. And we have a little vase of basil, too.
- I'm spending my days cleaning the home, eating fantastic pizza (the yummy pizza you can find only here in the south of Italy, believe me), going to different stores to buy what we need for the home and visiting friends.
Well, S. is working, too! He has a job, of course!
- Vincenzo, the upholsterer who gave me old damask sheets, saved for me a big bag full of pattern books he doesn't use anymore in his shop. Oh my God! You can't imagine what I found in that bag: silk in bright colors, damask, clothes with modern patterns ... my personal wonderland!

They are so beautiful and big! I'll sew a lot of big bag for sure soon!
- I'm waiting for some craft-books I've ordered before moving. One is about amigurumi :)

I  have two crochet-hooks mum gave me, polyfill fibers and some recycled cotton to use. I'm ready to learn something new!
- I see everyday military airplanes in the sky above my home: they fly from Libia to the USA base of Sigonella, not far from our little city. And it's scary and sad. War is so close to us and we rarely think to this terrible situation.

At the end of this post I want to thank Francesca: she made for me a beautiful Etsy Treasury the day when I left my old home. The title is "A little fox going to the South". I've really appreciated it, it's in my heart!
And I want to thank all of the friend who sent me messages on my cell phone to support me in that teary moment of my life. All of you are special for me. All of you!

If you have questions about Sicily and my new life in this region, please, leave a comment, don't be shy!
Bye! :)

Goodbye

I have a big surprise for my readers.

Tomorrow in the afternoon I'll leave my home in the north of Italy to live in my new home, with S., in the south (Sicily). I'm going to live 1200 Km far from the place where I grew up, studied, met my friends and where my whole family still live.

A new life for me and S. Together.

Honestly, it's great, but a bit scary and sad for me. I'm afraid of homesickness and I haven't a job there. But, hey, it's the right thing to do and I'm happy about my decision. Happiness needs hard choices, sometimes.

I don't know if this blog will be updated regularly: we have a lot to do in our new home and I haven't internet acces yet.

But I'll do my best to write some blog posts soon. It's a promise!

Goodbye!!!

Uh!
Before leaving this page I have a question: Isn't my new banner beautiful?
It's clear, funny and have a professional look.
Francesca made it for me. She is a talented web designer and has an interesting Etsy shop (Myminimallook) where she offers custom banner.
Thank you, Francesca, I love it!

New year's eve: a message in a bottle :)

Happy new year!!!

I hope you are enjoying your firts 2011's days. I am, though my love (S.) is ill and we are doing nothing special. But, hey, we are together :)

I want to show you what I found at midnight of 31s december... We uncorked a bottle of wine to say hallo to the new year and I noticed that at the bottom of the cork there was a word: TALENTO (the italian word for "talent", as you can imagine).

It seems to me a sort of message for my 2011. Well, ok, universe, I'm accepting your suggestion: in this new year I'll do my best to nurture my talents!

And I know what this means to me: I'll have to pass over the fear to show them and to be not good enough.

2011 started with a good piece of news for me: I am the happy winner of a 20$ gift voucher of Katie's shop!!! I'm really a lucky girl!

I'm thinking to spend it for a subscription to her lovely zine :)

Hallo, I'm Madame Renard :)

It's winter time, not my favourite period of the year.

But I'm happy, because I have so many ideas and projecst in my mind right now! Starting this blog is one of these ideas and probably the most important of them.

I need to document my life and my rediscovery of creativity. It's part of a general purpose to express myself, my personality and my skills.

In this blog I want to talk about my craft activities (mostly sewing, but also knitting, carving stamps, and so on), my interest in writing and my passion for art, photography, nature and books.

Is it an exaggerated goal for me? Probably it is, but I like to think big!

This blog is also an attempt to improve my english (I'm italian). I'll do my best, but I'm not sure the text will be void of errors. Pardon me and feel free to write me for corrections or suggestions.

If you want to have an idea about what I do, you can look at my photos in my flickr album.

Bye!