FELTFINLAND

Happy Household

2008-07-20T22:07:00.002+03:00

A good day for both of us! Finland won the Ladies relay in the World Orienteering championships and Great Britain won the men's relay, so we are both happy! Well done boys!! The lawn got mowed, the weeds got pulled up and I got through a shed load of washing - all finished off with a sauna and cold beer - lovely!

The Great Outdoors

2008-07-19T17:51:00.003+03:00

Back home after a few days 'holiday' if you can call running around a hilly rocky forest with a map and compass 'holiday'! We went orienteering near Jyväskylä and stayed in a spa hotel so for me at least it was a holiday from cooking,tidying, washing etc!!! The kids had a great time in the pool and the steam sauna helped work out the aches and pains. I spotted this little toilet house as we walked round the hotel grounds - wasn't sure whether to laugh or be offended! Here are the kids on a string orienteering course, wish mine had a piece of tape to follow!!

Triffid potatoes!

2008-07-15T22:15:00.002+03:00

Gardening advice needed - Are my potatoes supposed to look like this?! They are taking over the garden! Hopefully we may have a few potatoes to show for it along with the 6 beans , 4 peas and 8 carrots and even possibly a leek or two. We have also had plenty of luck fishing so a large fish soup is on the menu! Now we head off for a few days 'holiday' - a couple of days orienteering near Jyväskylä, a nice hotel with a pool, child care provided whilst husband and I wander around the woods, no cooking! Think I might just sneak my felting kit in when no one is looking!!

One month later..........

2008-07-02T22:03:00.002+03:00

A month with nothing new , my apologies. June was a busy month with every weekend being spent away from home. Fun but tiring, and the humungous piles of washing that materialise after a few days away from home! - takes me all week to clear it and then it reappears, Arghhhh!
What were we up to you may ask? Visits to the summer cottage - more fishing with a couple of good catches, the interment of my father in laws ashes - simple but very moving, midsummer jollifications(and yes it rained), orienteering in Jukola Viesti, the biggest relay race in the world( I think)with some friends over from UK - exhausting but a great weekend. I have even managed some felting and the snowmen are slowly multiplying!
Holiday time is now here, the children have finished daycare so my peace has been shattered. I have been digging out the old favourites to keep them busy, bubbles, the paddling pool and making slushies! Happy Holidays!!

Fish and Felt

2008-06-02T12:48:00.002+03:00

I really enjoy a spot of fishing - you can't beat bobbing about in a boat on the lake, staring intently at an orange blob, waiting........! Aleksi came along this time and he caught 2 little fish. He was so happy, he didn't stop giggling and singing( not ideal fishing conditions!!) It was very therapeutic as I find felting is. Both needle and wet felting are my therapy and with luck I may even make a bob or two. Anyway this dodgy lot appeared last week. Plenty more to come as little ideas keep popping into my head which ultimately become their head! So back to the day job - more felting...and might even do a spot more fishing at the weekend!

An inspired morning

2008-05-22T22:07:00.003+03:00

It all came together this morning - plenty of wool, hot soapy water and elbow grease and these appeared. Very happy I was too! I hadn't actually planned anything but then things happened and I was on a roll! I love doing the needle felting, managed 2 smalll and 1 rather large tonttu (gnome) hat whilst I watch Man U v Chelsea, but I love it when the wet felting projects all come together. A good day!

Organised Chaos

2008-05-21T20:52:00.002+03:00

My workshop aka the spare room looks like an explosion in a wool factory! As much as I try and sort it out it just gets messy again - sounds a lot like my daughters bedroom. My 4 year old son is really good about tidying his room but Elli has other ideas. Wonder where she got that from :)
I have managed a bit of creating, lots of little bits - scarves, hats and noses for snowmen, a couple of candy canes and the odd gingerbread man. I have had a gazillion ideas for caricatures and have been scribbling little pictures to remind me. I so often have the best ideas at the most inopportune moments so have started to carry round paper and pencil! Looking forward to a creative day tomorrow - I hope!

A Perfect day

2008-05-12T21:22:00.007+03:00

Yesterday was Mothers Day in Finland and what a lovely day I had. The Flags were flying and I enjoyed a lovely breakfast in bed with cards and presents, enthusiastically delivered by the children. We then head of to the coast and in a lovely secluded area had a picnic followed by a walk through the woods, admiring the blueberry bushes laden with flowers( bodes well for this summer). Back home I managed a few chores in the garden, namely digging out the compost box, ready for the summer! The lawn has been cut and the garden looks so good. A BBQ of chicken Tikka was devoured in the evening sunshine and with a glass of bubbly in one hand I managed to snatch an hour doing a jigsaw puzzle while husband watched the ice hockey( and Finland beat USA!!) A perfect day!

Spring has well and truly sprung

2008-05-10T22:07:00.002+03:00

What a glorious day - the trees now have tiny bright green leaves, the bulbs are blooming(those not eaten by Mr Hare!), the squirrel has got his russet red coat on , the grass has been cut, along with gazillions of dandelions(bizarrely adored here in Finland - well they are about the first flower to appear after winter so anything that isn't white or brown looks good!) The kids had a lovely day playing in the garden and we had our first supper outside. Things are looking good!

The Highs and Lows

2008-05-09T12:18:00.003+03:00

Life has been a rollercoaster these past few weeks and it is only now showing signs of slowing down. On the up side I was approved for a business start up grant which means that for the next few months at least I have some money coming in and I can really get to grips with making FeltFinland work. My business is also now registered so it is official - I know own and run my own business!
On the down side my father in law passed away - he had been unwell for quite sometime but it was still a shock when it happened. Fortunately we saw him that morning and he got to see the children one last time.
But as they say (without sounding callous I hope) life goes on and it does. I am in the process of needle felting 26 snowmen's heads and bottoms and numerous tonttu (gnomes) hats! I have a load of wet felting ideas in my head and hope next week to get my hands soapy! I can't wait - I really enjoy needle felting but you can't beat the satisfaction of turning a load of fuzzy wool into (hopefully) a beautiful creation with just soap, water and one's hands.Brilliant!

All creatures great and small

2008-04-23T09:29:00.002+03:00

I love them - we have a family of red squirrels in the garden who demand peanuts, magpies who have stand offs with the squirrels over the peanuts, a couple of pheasants who potter around doing their thing then there is a ruddy great big hare! He is huge, twice the size of my cat! It is great to have all this wildlife in the garden BUT dear Mr Hare has just eaten my glorious display of crocuses. They had just bloomed in the spring sunshine and gave a great splash of yellow and purple in our currently brown garden. Now they are gone, munched, no more - I am devastated! However my son saved the day by coming up to me in the garden as I mourned my crocuses and with a gentle pat on the back and a big hug he said 'Don't worry Mummy, it doesn't matter' It's true - it doesn't matter and far worse things will happen that we will have to deal with. Sometimes we need 4 year olds to remind us of that.

Extremes

2008-04-14T22:24:00.007+03:00

They say variety is the spice of life - well we have experienced both extremes of the spectrum these past few weeks - starting off with having to drill a hole in the lake to get water to wash with, collecting logs for the fire early morning in -17 degrees C and hunting for Easter eggs before they got buried by more snow! Then having flown across the pond we sat sipping cold beer by the warm pool, splashed in some great waves and ate huge pancakes for breakfast! Of course we met Mickey and had many a ride on the carousel in glorious sunshine. We loved it all!

Home again

2008-04-08T18:43:00.002+03:00

Well I am back home in body but my brain is not sure if is still in the USA or in England! We have gone from 85 degree F heat in Orlando to 4 inches of snow at Mum's in the UK and now a grey damp Finland - no wonder I am bewildered! Time to download photos, put on more washing and try empty the suitcases by the weekend(not sure that will happen!) I love going away but I love coming home too....

Holiday time!

2008-03-25T22:23:00.002+02:00

We all enjoyed a lovely Easter break at our summer cottage, near Lappeenranta, about 40 kms from the Russian border. Lots of snow, clear blue skies - it was beautiful. I love the way of life there, back to basics and at the moment with the lake frozen there is no running water. So drinking water from the neighbours well and washing/sauna water from the lake, after my husband has drilled through the ice! Logs need to be collected to keep the fire going so plenty to do! The children had fun with a egg hunt on Sunday morning,nearly a disaster as it started to snow big time but my eagle eyed son managed to find them all.
Now we are off on a trip of another kind - the other extreme you might say, Orlando, Florida to see Mickey and his mates! At least it won't be -17 degrees C there. It will be nice too for the kids not to have to wear winter suits and boots for a few days. Time for some fun - I can't wait!

Eggs galore!

2008-03-16T22:40:00.002+02:00

I have been making Easter eggs by the dozen, well at least 1 dozen! They are such fun to make and the possibilities are endless.....
Also talking of Easter, check out the Easter parade at http://qdpatooties.blogspot.com/ ,where I have a couple of entries - a hot chick and a Easter bunny! Some of the other entries are just amazing - what a clever lot we all are!

Almost done

2008-03-14T22:07:00.002+02:00

My website is almost done but still needs a few finishing touches. Once I'm happy then I will go 'global' -in other words e mail everyone I know to tell them!! I have summoned up enough energy to finish the caterpillar and a pincushion I owed as a swap and tonight managed a few more Easter eggs. I really enjoy making them as the design possibilities are endless and they look great in a little nest!

Non creative week

2008-03-07T21:19:00.002+02:00

It's actually been a bit of a 'non' week in all aspects! We have all been struck down with the flu so lots of paracetamol and hot drinks all round. Plus just as we thought spring was on its way , it snowed - lots - so winter is temporarily back well and truly. I managed to get to my business class but with the tutor deciding to choose this week to speak Finnish(usually the course is done in English), me blowing my nose like Dumbo and being deaf in one ear, I'm afraid the finer points of Pricing and Invoicing passed me by. Hopefully I will have better luck in next weeks Book keeping class!

Ahead of the game

2008-02-26T18:14:00.002+02:00

I have had a good felting week and have finished a lot of projects. The dragons egg is on its way to the USA, the happy car is now with its new owner and my friends baby is admiring her bee mobile. Now I need to find something else to felt! Any ideas?

Fame(and fortune!?)

2008-02-23T17:56:00.003+02:00

I'm famous - well sort of! An article was written by a friend and it has appeared in the March issue of Taika, a finnish craft magazine. It is in Finnish but my friend Elina, assures me it says lots of good things about me!!
I feel now things are slowly coming together with the 'business' - the website is almost ready, not quite though , still needs a few tweaks. I still have loads of forms to fill but I am gradually working through those. Soon all will be official (I hope!)

A productive week

2008-02-17T21:22:00.005+02:00

I have had a good week felting. I have managed to finish a few thing and of course start a few more!!
Here are the latest results.........

Next to come - a dragon's egg, car for a birthday boy, bees to finally finish and then who knows.

Circlin' the wagons for Holly

2008-02-13T11:34:00.003+02:00

I have been very lucky with my health and only recently when Aleksi was diagnosed with diabetes did I really appreciate the Health care system here in Finland and also in the UK. So it must be really tough when you haven't got that system to catch you if you fall. Holly from oceans of fiber http://www.hollyeqq.com/is having some medical problems and needs some support, especially financially. Sandy from http://homesteadwoolandgiftfarm.com/ is running a sale/ auction of fabulous yarns and other treasures to help support Holly.
My contribution is these two - Brad and Angelina, needled felted and wearing the latest in woolly scarves made with holly's wool. Please visit Sandy's website and support circlin' the wagons for Holly.

Busy, busy!

2008-02-09T12:06:00.001+02:00

Well, I have had a few productive felting days, snowmen, dinosaurs, easter eggs, rabbits, a wool inspired picture and bees! Keeps me on my toes - I quite like having a few projects on the go at the same time as needling dinosaur legs for hours on end can be exasperating, especially when you are trying to get them the same shape and size! Today will be scarf for snowman and a caterpillar, plus some dino spots if I get the time. I'll post some photos when there are done!

February already!

2008-01-31T13:12:00.000+02:00

Where did January go? It's February tomorrow and before we know it, it will be Easter! At least I have managed to do some felting, actually making snowmen for next Christmas. At this rate it will here in a flash! It feels good to be back creating again and I plan to wield the soap and hot water tomorrow - I love wet felting. So many ideas , so little time!

No excuses

2008-01-27T15:36:00.001+02:00

I'm all set up now in my little workshop, computer up and running with the new wifi Internet my dear husband installed, virgin radio is on and I have no excuses now for not writing my blog! My internet page is almost ready at www.feltfinland.com so next weeks task will be sorting and uploading photos. Very exciting!

Us

2008-01-18T21:32:00.001+02:00

Us
Originally uploaded by feltfinland

I LOVE black and white photos. My niece took these at Christmas and seeing her new camera inspired me to invest in a new one too!