Slovenian Specialties

The Castle at Lake Bled

We sat in the shade looking out over this beautiful lake and tried our best to stay cool whilst we were introduced to the specialty cake of Bled. It's similar to a Vanilla Slice but ginormous, crispy and utterly delicious.

D & D lakeside

Lovely pic of Donna dipping her toes in the crystal clear turquoise lake at Bohinj

Dolores did her amazing impression of a rally driver and drove us right up one of the highest mountain passes where we were overwhelmed by the spectacular views at every hairy bend.

Bosom buddies!

Here's the proof that we were 1620 metres high.

We had left our hats behind so, at over 40 degrees, emergency measures were required to protect us from the sun but, despite looking like mad English women abroad, I still got my nose burned. 

The next morning a dab of lipstick to my nose scared the wits out of Donna who thought it worse than it was!! 

Roasting in the sun, overlooking the mountains, we devoured the huge delicious smoked Slovenian specialty sausages, Kranjska Klobasa, for lunch with sauerkraut and crispy bits of pork.

 With a huge portion of apfelstrudel for pud and another local treat, Struklji, we were so full and needed only salad for evening dinner. 

The building in the distance is the restaurant where we ate our lunch!

Just read this menu....we gave the sausage in Hegs Grease a miss! 

Here's the local weather forecaster. If the donkey's tail is swinging... forecast wind.

If it's wet, forecast rain..... etc.,!!!

WOYWW 162 & D,D & J in Slovenia

WOYWW 

This sorry state has been created after dumping so much on my desk after returning from our jollys. Donna kindly brought me home and we had some extra crafting time together which all added to the messy melange which now lies waiting to be tidied.

I finished off my mini book pendant from Donna's workshop.

These pages for my Holiday Memory Book were made when we played with spray starch backgrounds, Distress Ink techniques, Stencilling and Paste stencilling and Dylusion Sprays.

There'll be so many more desks on view if you escape to Julia's stamping ground where each week we show and tell just what is happening in our creative spaces.

It is a great snoop but it is also a place to make crafting friends and I have been lucky to make some very special ones and, as a result, I've just been to foreign lands with Donna to visit Cardarian in Ljubljana. 

We're back from our most wonderful adventure in Slovenia so the wacky sunglasses have been stowed away and the cardigan is back on now that we're back to the cold and wet of England and no longer roasting slowly in 40 degrees as we did over there. Such a contrast! 

Comment from one of us at 1am, whilst late night crafting on the terrace........ "Oooh! it's much cooler now!" Temperature check... it was 31 degrees!

Dolores, of Cardarian's Happy Place, gave us the best of times, taking us to so many amazing places in her beautiful country, but we thought that we would hatch up a brilliant ruse and tell everyone it was so dreadful that no one else would want to visit so we can go again!! So keep the secret!

We ate wonderful food, laughed so much together and crafted until the wee small hours each day. The perfect crafters holiday. Amazingly we didn't drink very much, (no honestly, we didn't,) as we really were tooooooo happy having crafting fun to spare time to pop a cork or lift a glass.

I have so much to show and tell and this is just a starter.... be warned that there will be more photos day by day.

Dolores is a star and after we left she went into hospital for an operation on her knee (no! I assure you that it wasn't our fault). She is now home recuperating.... from the operation silly not from our visit. That is to say, she is lounging and being cared for by her loved ones ready to dance the okey kokey, (which we taught her!) as soon as she can. Get well soon Dolores and do take it easy!

Huge thanks to Dolores, and also to Donna, for everything that went into making our time together so special.

Ljubljana 

Nice touristy photos of our trip here....but for all the mayhem and madness pop over to Donna's for the video evidence.... HERE! There may be a rush in Primani for wacky sunglasses now!!

Dolores, Donna and Jo, waiting in the noon day sun for the funicular up to the castle....

High above the city

The restaurant at the top where we had an amazing lunch.

The old town, Donna, Dolores and her DD Anna who was our special tour guide for the day.

The market

The spice girls selecting from the wide choice on the market.

amazing graffitti in the old town amongst the bars and shops.

I came home to a lovely surprise... a fabulous ATC from Vicki of sandylonelycards in Australia.... thanks so much for thinking of me and I love it!

There'll be more pics very soon....Lakes and mountains, castles and caves...

Concertina Niche Card

With being away so much I haven't crafted for a while, (other than my crochet on the move), but I found these photos in my files and realised that I had never posted them. A chance to post some crafting!

This is a concertina niche card that I made after I missed the workshop given by my friend Paul of the Artsiders.  Paul is really talented and makes some gorgeous shabby chic cards.

Inside

The Front

The Outer Cover

Here I used my favourite background of Distress Inks and stencils.

I then spritzed over it with gold Glimmer Mist to tone it down.

The niche before I stuffed it full of sewing ephemera

The niche before it was spritzed with inks.

From making this card I had the idea to make a concertina tag bag and the instructions for this are in my 21st May post on the sidebar. It's made in exactly the same way as the card but with one end missing and, of course, the concertina sides are cut to fit the size of the tag.

Here's another card using my latest fave stamps by Michael Powell from his Urban Stamp range.

Inside

The Concertina Sides

The Front

Thanks to her very generous invitation (does she know what she's up for?) I'm off to Cardarian's Happy Place in Slovenia, with my friend Donna, and besides plans to visit some beautiful places in a country I've never before visited, we will be doing lots of crafting on the balcony in  the shade, whilst trying to stay cool. It's 35C there!! Hopefully, I will be able to post some of what we get up to.

Watch this space!

Lavender at Inglenook Farm

Making these lavender posies reminded me that the local fields of lavender would be in bloom if mine was already out at home so we decided to take a trip to see them. I was worried I'd miss them and it would all be harvested if I left it until I returned from my visit to Cardarian's Happy Place in Slovenia, so off we toddled to the only organic lavender farm in England....

here's the link and I really wish we had "smelly blogs"...

Inglenook Farm 

Moss Nook Lane, WAll 8AE, on the Rainford bypass near St Helens.

I bought my plants from them some years ago and have three different varieties. Each smells so different. It would be understandable to expect the deeper colour of Pete Pan to smell stronger but the best is Munstead on the left and next is Hidcote, the right hand one.

We were disappointed as surprisingly the fields were not yet in full bloom

The essential oils and products from these plants are superb and I have used them for years.

I think I may manage to see them again so we plan a visit when my DD and family come over soon from Germany to visit. I promised the little fraulein some fish and chips and mine were so delicious at Inglenook.

The farm has really developed from just producing the oils and now has a really excellent restaurant, cafe, craft shops, art gallery, wood crafts as well as the essential oils shop, beauty and holistic therapies, farm shop and a variety of chucks and animals around the place. 

Gordon, who carves these birds and animals is self taught and it was interesting to talk to him when he took us around his woodshed and showed us his work in progress. 

We are thinking of buying one of these for in the garden but can't decide which one or where to position it.

Here's an owl in progress and one of the birds "in flight" above the wood pile.

The chucks found the shavings warm and cosy

These little Shetlands are only quite young and so sweet that I could have brought one home but it didn't want to get into my shopping bag.

There were fluffy white silkies (fowl) and goats too and as the farm is situated less than a half hour from home it is a place we will visit over and over. A nice little, short, relaxing day out.

WOYWW Robots & Gift Packages

It's a varied untidy desk his week, in fact it's a table looking out onto the garden where I've been messing about.

Why am I showing this today? If you visit Julia, our Boss, at stamping ground blog, all will be revealed and you can join the weekly mega snoop around the globe of all the loony lovely people brave enough to show the state of their creative workplace. It's a revelation!!

 I prepped simple craft make and takes for the Summer Fete at the Deutch Kirche (German Church)which I attended with my friend Jacqui, in the centre of our city, and whilst it was mainly for children, quite a few ladies enjoyed having a go. Here rest the remains of my endeavours still waiting to be cleared. A nice bunch of lavender there too drying in the window.

We made simple, small, gift packages in which we popped a chocolate and the mini handbag with a bangle handle holds a post it note pad. They were all really popular and a wide range of ages and levels completed them successfully. Some came back to make all of the items through the day! It was really good fun and such a happy day and, with almost everyone speaking German, I felt as though I was back in Germany with my family. Shame I never had a minute to take some photos of the lovely handicrafts cakes and bread on sale. I did sample the most amazing flowery herbal punch... Waldemeister Bowle... delicious and quite potent!

Initially I created the robots as an item for the boys to make but the girls really loved them too and some ended up decorated all pink and sparkly!

There is acetate behind the apertures which is effectively "see through" when coloured and hung in a window.

Use brads to attach the arms and legs.

If you fancy keeping any children occupied through the school holidays you are  welcome to print off these templates, 3 different robots with 2 on each sheet. I find that I can cut out duplicates if I lay 1 or 2 plain sheets behind the print out (print it on card).

Older children would probably be able, with supervision, to cut out single printed sheets for themselves.

More fabulous WOYWW Birthday ATCs to share and thanks for these 3 gorgeous gals, go to,  L to R Bridget Larsen, Cardarian, and Tuire.

Thanks (L to R) for a fab topical Jubilee atc from Michelle of the Hobbyroom, the lovely living atc of poppy seeds and heart card is from LLJan and the beautiful sparkly wisteria Dream is from Lisa of the craftgarden.

Exciting times next week as Doone and I will be flying off to Slovenia, woo hoo!!! I'm so excited! We're going to wear our WOYWW badges in a far off land and visit our lovely WOYWWer friend Cardarian who has so kindly invited us to craft and have fun in her beautiful country. We are taking a couple of T shirts and a few pairs of undies and the rest will be crafty stuff.... I do hope Slovenia knows what it has got coming and I wonder what will be on our workdesk next week?? Be sure not to miss it.