an inky treasure

"tumble down the rabbit hole and find yourself in an inky black-and-white wonderland."  the secret garden: an inky treasure hunt and colouring book by johanna basford is simply beautiful.  

it's a book full of gorgeous black and white line drawings crying out for some colour.  at the same time, i would worry of messing up the pretty illustrations that i don't know if i would have the nerve to start colouring!

the illustrations - a flower garden, a wreath, a lantern, an owl, a backyard, and so much more - are pretty.  each scene has little critters hiding, frogs, bees, butterflies, etc.  there are mazes in which to get lost too.  these illustrations are meant for sharing (as my mother-in-law did, see below) or keeping as your own and framing them.  

there's something so meditative and simple about colouring.  i loved it as a child and wonder, maybe i should pick it up again.  secret garden comes in journals, postcards and notecards.  

what do you think?  colouring for adults...

  

 

we gifted the secret gardens postcards to my mother-in-law who enjoys the relaxing and de-stressing nature of colouring and she loves sending greeting cards so we thought the gift would be perfect.  not long after the holidays, we received one of her postcards in the mail as a thank you.  lovely, right?

petals and penmanship

i wish vancouver had such a cool workshop. 

when choosing flowers for the house i never grab the ready-made bouquets.  it's much more fun to pick and choose my own flowers.  but then i get home and dump them loosely into a vase.  it would be lovely to actually arrange them.

and my penmanship?  well, it could use some help.  seriously, i have a second graders messy hand printing.  at work, i'm always embarrassed when i pass along my counselling notes and every time i promise myself i can write neater.  i wanted to be a teacher when i was a little girl... i don't think my printing would have passed the penmanship test :)

sign me up for this class anytime!  it looks like it would be such fun.





 

the photography is so gorgeous, right?


happy tape

washi tape, you have probably seen it on craft websites, blogs and pinterest.  am i right?  i don't exactly remember when it came into my life but i am so glad it did.  japanese washi is so pretty and simple.  i use it to decorate presents, to tape stuff to the fridge, to hang up photos or artwork and to help seal envelopes.  love it.

here are a few images to inspire your washi creations...





 

 sources: one. two. three. four. five. six.

have a fantastic weekend.  we have lovely melanie and her kiddos staying with us this weekend... kai has been so antsy for today to arrive.  and me too :)



weekend pics, crafts and cabbage

i got out and explored a couple of craft fairs with a friend on saturday.  we have such talent right on our doorstep.  needless to say, i came home with a few local buys.  we went to an incredible restaurant called tacofino for lunch.  it was so good.  they have gorgeous tacos and just thinking about it brings on a craving for them and i can't wait to go back.  do yourself a favour and go if you are in vancouver, i think you'll thank me.

now, some links to favourite local makers at shiny fuzzy muddy and got craft:

felted bowls by hold handmade
jewellery by kari woo
ceramics by heyday design or cathy terepocki
clutches by davie and chiyo
mini moccasins by minimoc
paper goods by the beautiful project
soap by watershed naturals
handblown glass by sandpiper studio



suji's christmas nails... adorable right?





my goodies!





on sunday it was all about cabbage and baby feet.  i have raved about my friend patrycja's cooking and hosting prowess before, well, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.  our visit with her on sunday was extra special because her mom, jagoda, was there with us.   she hosted a mini cooking lesson for stefan - the most delicious cabbage rolls ever.  i swear, we were salivating as we devoured the rolls.  but even before the cabbage rolls were eaten, we ate dessert - yes, first! - and it was out of this world.  layered sponge cake, pudding made with pineapple juice, and shredded coconut.  such goodness.  thank you so much my friends!

and aren't baby feet the best?  baby greyson nursed and slept his time away while we were there but oh my goodness those feet, that pout... my ovaries jumped out of my body :)  and seeing kai being so gentle and enamoured with him made me smile ear to ear.



 

 

  



weekend pics

it was a quiet and "magical" kind of weekend.  firstly, we had two girlies in the house.  for almost 24 hours the girls outnumbered the human boys in the house.  the girls, the daughters of our friends jason and dede, had a play and sleepover with us - they were delightful, polite, and the perfect guests.  the kids ate pizza, crafted pompom mobiles, baked macaroons, chased the cats, ate candy, and went to bed late.  it was pretty awesome. 

 

 

 









 

 



sugar and candy, but of course!





kids did a fine job, yum!

kai taught the girls to 'beatbox'





the girls taught us some playground games... brought back memories!

 





kai and the girlies, 2008



in the morning, after a pancake breakfast, we went to the north pole.  in true polar express style, we were invited aboard a train at the pacific central rail station to enjoy a half-hour christmas magic show.  the conductor shared interesting facts about trains and upon disembarking, the kids received a souvenir ticket to imagine.  which reminds me, i need to dust off the christmas books for some holiday reading - kai and i enjoy reading and watching the polar express each year... a holiday ritual.



speaking of magic, on thursday night (not technically the weekend, i know), kai and i watched a showing of the lion, the witch and the wardrobe held at the pacific theatre.  i must admit i was a bit skeptical about how two actors could do the story justice and do so on a tiny stage that had nothing more than an armchair, a footstool, a chest, a blanket, an umbrella stand, and a wardrobe filled with coats.  thankfully i needn't have been worried, their adaptation of this magical story was remarkable.  the actors were superb, effortlessly weaving between different characters to bring narnia to life. incredible, really.  kai was enthralled.  i was enthralled.  we hope it comes back next year, we want to see it again!

 





the third magical event to occur was the (almost) completion of kai's science project.  we just found out on friday that kai has a science project due on tuesday (tomorrow).  kai neglected to bring home the information way back in mid-november! he knew since mid-november!  so, guess what my boy was doing this weekend (after the girlies left us)?  he worked hard for many consecutive hours... and the science project, about habitats and their animals, inspired the boys to watch some planet earth.

other scenes from the weekend:





new cat toy provided lots of entertainment





greens, very much needed amongst all the sugary treats we have been ingesting... it's a little crazy friends!