Plans for 2008

A new year and a new header! But first I'd like to thank everyone who's been visiting my blog this year! Your appreciation and kind words mean so much to me! I'd also like to thank my blogging friends all over the world. Thank you for sharing you work, thoughts and lives with us! The inspiration and generosity in this community is amazing! You all make me feel so rich! I wish everyone a Happy, Healthy and Creative 2008!

I've been making a few plans for 2008. One of my friends give a workshop in the end of December every year. We are a group of women that meet up to make a "shield" for the new year. We choose symbols for our hopes and dreams for the year to come. This is my shield for 2008.


I joined Sharon B's Take It Further Challenge a couple of weeks ago. I'm really looking forward to it.

Yesterday I found another challenge called Creative Every Day 2008 that I decided to join. Leah who runs the challenge writes: This is a low pressure challenge, with the idea of bringing more creativity into our lives. Sounds great!

I've been admiring Terri and Natalyas weekly journal quilts. Congratulations to both of you! I don't think I can make a commitment like that but I'm going to try to make a monthly journal. Maybe I can do what Ruth is planing to do and use the TIF Challenge as a starting point for my journal pages, we'll see...



I'm also planing to participate in the challenges on the swedish fiber blog Indigo. The picture above is from the December challenge. The theme was Sparkle and Glitter.

Another thing that I'm looking forward to is to learn a little bit more about Japanese fiber art. I'm going to take a sashiko workshop in February. If anyone would like to join the ichiban stitch group your very welcome!

Make My Day Award

I got this adward from Gunnel, she says I´ve got it for all the time I take to post here on the blog to give other inspiration! And what can I say but THANK YOU!



Now it´s my turn to give it away to up to 10 people, that I think make my day!

Give the award to up to 10 people whose blogs bring you happiness and inspiration and make you feel so happy about blogland! Let them know by posting a comment on their blog so that they can pass it on. Beware! You may get the award several times! :-)

and I give it to:

Denise, Susan, Andrea, Neki, Jude, Lynda, Bina, Vero, Doreen and Natalya.

Christmas Cards

Just wanted to show you the Christmas cards I made for the swap.











For Beate, Gunnel and Kate.












For Annie, Doreen and Vero.

The backgrounds are needlefelted and the trees are made of angelina film.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Cards from All Over the World

I've been participating in a Christmas card swap but I haven't showed you all the beauties I've been receiving. Saving them for Christmas... Here they are.


This lovely card is from Beate in Germany. She's the one who came up with this great idea of swapping Christmas cards. Thanks Beate! I've had a great time! Also, Thank you for the beautiful card!


Next card is a Christmas ATC from Annie in the US. It's wonderful Annie! Thank you!


Doreen in Australia made this gorgeous card for me. Thank you Doreen! I love it!


Doreens Christmas card came together with this ATC. The texture is wonderful, wish you could see it "live". Thank you Doreen!


Here's a card from Gunnel. She lives in Sweden just like me, but in a different part of the country. Gunnel has been making yo-yo's for all her Christmas cards this year. Yummie! Thanks Gunnel!


This pretty Christmas card with snowflakes is made by Kate in the UK. Thanks Kate! I do hope we get a white Christmas this year.


Last but not least, beautiful stars from Vero in France. Thank you Vero! It's lovely!

I wish you all a wonderful Christmas with your near and dear ones! I'm off to see my family for the holidays and that means I'll be offline for a week or so. See you when I get back!

Stockholm in the winter

Vero, this post is for you! You said you wanted to know what Stockholm looks like in the winter. It's a little bit for you too Susan. I hope you make it to Sweden next summer. It will be warmer than in these photos, promise!


The Public Library. One of the most famous buildings in Stockholm.


View from The Royal Palace. The building to the left is The National Museum.


Christmas is here!


Say Hi to my friend Rudolph!


Christmas shopping in Old Town, the medival part of the city.


Christmas decorations at NK, one of the big departmentstores downtown.

International Embroidery Symposium in Sweden next summer

A friend of mine called Pian Bates is organizing an International Embroidery Symposium in Sweden next summer. This is what she writes about it on her blog.

There is to be an International Embroidery Symposium in Sweden next summer - beginning of August 2008.
We hope that people from all over the world, interested in embroidery and stitching will join us.
What would be of special interest - traditional or free creative embroidery or both? Any suggestions - teachers, lecturers and subjects etc will be gratefully received. Please let us know as soon as possible.
The place of venue is outside Gävle - north of Stockholm.

We are looking forward to ideas from all of you.
Pian Bates

If anyone is interested in participating please send me an e-mail and I'll forward it to Pian. The program should be ready in February and you'll be able to find it at Pians brand new blog Embroidery. If you're interested in teaching please let her know as soon as possible.

Take it Further

I've decided to join Sharon B's new challenge Take it Further that starts om 1 January.

This is what Sharon writes about the challenge.

On the 1st of each month I will post key concept. The challenge is to take the idea, develop it and push it towards a resolved design during that month. In other words you interpret the idea and apply it to fiber or paper.

Every month there will be two options. The second option will be a colour scheme or a design element like a shape, to develop into a resolved design. This means that if you don’t like the concept you can work the colour scheme or is you don’t like the colour scheme you can work with the concept. Or you can work with both.

The actual project you design can be any thing, in any medium or format you choose. It can be a crazy quilt block, a postcard, a journal quilt, a piece of embroidery, a sampler, a fabric book page or whatever sparks your imagination. It can also be visual journal work. In other words pages spreads of designs worked in a visual journal will be seen as a valid entry and included as one of the formats acceptable for the challenge.

I look forward to doing the challenges aswell as following everyone else's work.

More presents...

Last night I went to a Christmas meeting with my local group. Everyone brought a small present to swap. This is what was inside the present I got. Lovely ribbons! God Jul means Merry Christmas in Swedish.


This is a Christmas present from Susan that turned up out of the blue. A wonderful surprise! It's a needlefelted Christmas card, a bookmark and a decoration for the tree. Thank you Susan! They are so beautiful! I wish I could make them better justice photowise.

I think it must be Christmas already!

Have a look at what I got today and I'm sure you agree.


This wonderful ATC is from Francoise. Thank you Francoise!


Two lovely ATCs from Jacqueline. Thank you Jacqueline!


Last but not least, a beautiful ATC from Gina. Thank you Gina!

Meme and ATC

I've been tagged by Vero. You probably feel like you know far more about me then you like to already but here goes!

1. Jobs I’ve had
waitress (way back), shop-assistant (also a long time ago), teacher, massage therapist

2. Films I can watch over and over
I love to watch old films on TV, like “Lawrence of Arabia” with Peter O’Toole, Alec Guinness and Anthony Quinn. You’ve all seen it right?

3. TV shows I watch
House, CSI,

4. Place I have lived
London (UK) and seven different places in Sweden. Yes, I’ve moved a lot! Right now I live in Stockholm, Sweden. Vero, I’ll grab my camera some day and take a bunch of winter shots of Stockholm for you.

5. Favourite foods
Sushi, Cheese, Fishsoup, Mushroomsoup, Homebaked bread and I love my veggies! Fresh fruit of course and smoothies.

6. Favourite colours
All of them but not at the same time.

7. Places I would love to be right now
Some place warm and sunny. Visiting friends in London, on Barbados and in the States.

8. Names I love but would not use for my children
Carl and Adam because that’s the names of my two nephews.

Tag a long if you like!

The ATC is a card I traded with Lorenza a couple of weeks ago.

Pay-It-Forward

A couple of months ago I decided to join the Pay-It-Forward Challenge after reading about it on Judes' blog. The three people that left a comment on my blog was Shirley, Natalya and Ruth. They have all recieved their gifts now so I thought I would show you what I made for them.

I made them a needlecase each. I thought that would be an appropriate gift. First I needlefelted wool in many different colours on to a marigold yellow silk crepe. All the stitching on the outside is made by hand. On the inside there are two pockets for scissors and stuff.

Shirley, Natalya and Ruth, thanks for participating in Pay-It-Forward! I really had a great time making these things. I hope you enjoy them!

Advent Sunday

To day it's Advent Sunday. It's a tradition in Sweden to burn advent candles. One candle representing each of the four Sundays preceding Christmas. You see these candles everywhere, not only in church. Everyone has four candles on their dinnertable or coffeetable.

ATCs and a Bookmark from Sue

Here are some ATCs I made a couple of months ago. The top one to the left has already been traded, the other three are available.






















This beautiful bookmark is from Sue Krekorian. Sue doesn't have a blog yet, I know her from the Unlimited Textiles group. Take a look at the gorgeous quiltie I got from her in another swap.

ichiban stitchi

Neki and I have started a group on Fiber Art/ Mixed Media called ichiban stitchi. It's a group for everyone with an interest in Japanese art and design. Please join us if you like!