September ...

September is already on it's way.

There was some sun,

there was a splash of rain ...

Nooo ... not as big a splash as this ...
this splash was made for the
(still on-going .... no we can't stop)
on-line felting class of Corinna Nitschman

But
the month started with a long-desired wish :

solar panels

Our roof faces south-west, so why not !

Happy now !

*

The postman brought a long-expected package from Germany !

Some months ago I got a proposal for a swap

from a German blogging-friend, Heidi

a special pendant for her and a handmade stoneware bowl for me.!

I send her the pendant and patiently waited.

She needed some time to make the bowl ...

bring it to the kiln ...

then it was holiday-time ...

so she send it the end of August.

Ahhhhh, had a fright when it arrived : a big hole in the package ...

but luckily Heidi had packed it safely in two cartons !!!

phew !

Isn't that a beauty ?

Love the design she made of the flowers I could choose :

Fritillaria and Snowdrops !

And with it came a piece of her solar-dyed fabric !

SO happy with it all !

THANKS  HEIDI  !!!

*

And on went the making of felted shells

(I must confess : it starts to look like an addiction ...)

Two new spiral ones and an "old" one,

and two more "normal" shells, but forgot to take a picture.

And, to unlearn, another pair of wrist warmers.

:-)

what a friend !

Some people might say that :

Blog-land isn't the real world .....

and that you should stick to friends nearer to "home"

I don't agree with that.

Of course I love my "real life" friends around the corner.

But a lot of times, people I encounter in Blog-land,

become friends,

just as good as the "real life" ones !

It's not the first time that such a Blog friendship/admiration

results in something special

like this swap.

(and it will probably not be the last either)

This time I had a swap with Jana

She makes such wonderful felted flower mandalas

and I love the way she writes

about all the things that move her

in her work and daily life.

Yesterday her package to me arrived

and I was very still after I opened it.

The most beautiful rainbow coloured flower mandala was in it.

And yet there was more

There was a lovely card, packets with seeds, 

a smoke bundle of fragrant herbs,and some homemade fudge.

THANK YOU SÓ MUCH, JANA

you made me very happy and privileged person !!!

Because little grandson was there when the package arrived

he loved to take part in the unpacking

and admiring the wonderful soft flower !

His dear knitted bear got a warm blanket

This was my part of the swap

The felted "Earth" necklace went to Jana

(well, I was in the mood for mandalas, when I sent my package to her)

What a wonderful (far away)  friends I have

!!!!!

swap time

Yes, I did it again :

I asked someone if she fancied a swap with me

;-)

This time it was Lynne

We met in Blogland and also had some e-mail contact

(that way you can talk a bit more personal)

Some time ago

she made these lovely stitched pincushions

out of felt and woolen fabric

really sweet.

So we agreed on a pincushion against a mandala drawing

Two different sides ... and a lovely card 

(with some other work of Lynne on the front)

Here it proudly stands in front of my "Concertina" felted vessel

I was sóóóó glad I recieved an e-mail tonight

that my drawing arrived safely at Lynne's house

(she had been away and I already feared the package had gone missing)

I did my best to capture Lynne in the mandala drawing :

she plays the fiddle, loooooves (all kinds of) music,

has this wonderful hat when performing

and has a lovely garden

.....

(and I heard "the Firebird" and it all came together)

A swap well executed

;-)

something new ...

From time to time,

no matter what I'm making,

I start something néw, or even pick up something óld,

to get my mind from the thing I'm doing just then

(it might be the restless-nature-bit in me ... ?

anyway, that's how it goes)

something old                                             something new

Some days ago I discovered (through another blog) the name 

Sophie Digard

There is not much to be found about her,

just that she discovered crochet some odd years ago,

learned how to do it, 

and

got hooked !

I was so thrilled about the colours and patterns she uses 

that I wanted to try it right away !

So I left the little mitered (old) vest to dry on the blocking board

and started to make lots of little squares 

that will be part of my interpretation 

of Sophie's wonderful work.

But there is more "new" !

(had to do a bit of late-night babysitting before I could finish this post)

When I saw that Eva Nerling, a great German artist (and blogger),
made some new watercolours, I sent her an e-mail about it.
In fact we agreed to a "swap"

Today came the package with one of the watercolours for me

THANK YOU, Eva 

(Ha, ... I'm over the moon)

(Eva has to be a bit more patient before she receives my end of the bargain)

we have a winner ....

Yes !

Late last night I wrote all the names that

answered before midnight October 2nd on little cards

and this morning I let my RNG

in the form of an origami die, decide for all of you ...

and the winner is :

Mo'a

( sorry for all the others ... next time better ! )

Please Mo'a send me an e-mail with your address

and this little fiberrainbow-heart will fly over to you !

*

In all the hurry of stitching my giveaway I totally forgot

to post about my wonderful swap !

Some time ago I suggested a swop with my dear blogging friend Sus

and she agreed to that :

one of my mandalas against one of her daily drawings.

She got my "Snake" ( on black paper ) and I safely got her

  "Snow goggles"

I'm very glad it worked out well !

new mandala season

Yesterday evening we had our first

coming-together of the mandala drawing group.

This time the inspiration will come from

the ancient Maya Tzolkin Calendar.

It is quite complicated in the beginning to understand :

it's about "solar seals", "waves", "colours" and "numbers"

and every day of the year has a combination

of these elements

in an on-going cycle.

( A bit like the Zodiac or the Chinese Years )

Yesterday was the day of

Yellow seed

the wave of the Red dragon and

Tone four

And this is what I came up with

As you might notice : there's a feather in it .....

The logic explanation would be Jude's  Magic Feather Project

but ... the feather just "appeared"

in the meditation we always have before we start drawing.

( Yesterday I send off one of my mandala drawings of last year :

to Alaska

in a swap with Susan , ..... I'm so delighted ! )