maandag 18 juni 2018

My Dad Abraham

It has been silent on my blog a couple of years.

Why was I absent?
I took care (with my brother) of my dad who had Alzheimer's. He lived with me for over a year and spent his last months in a nursing home where me and my brother visited him every day until his death.

It was a very difficult time but also a time with much love and laughter. My dad recognized us till the end, although he couldn't speak or walk any more.

I have never seen so much love in anyones eyes then on the moment my dad "said" goodbye to us, his kids and grandkids. He looked at each one of us with total acceptance and love. 
It was a magical experience for all of us and a priceless last gift.

From that moment on he refused to eat or drink. His decision and we respected it.

What am I up to lately?
The most beautiful thing happened to me after my dad's passing!!!!
I had sketched and drawn my dad many times in the last years and got a request of Catherine V. Holmes if it was OK to use a particular drawing of my dad for her new book "shading Techniques".
I thought at first someone was pulling my leg, but when I received a contract from the publisher, I was flabbergasted. I was allowed to write my own text and use my name too!

Sold on Amazon 
Published in the book. 






















When the book was published in September 2017, I got really emotional because my dad postumous travelled across the globe (with a little help of Amazon and the teaching qualities of the book).  His dream fulfilled at last!



zondag 17 juni 2018

Crocheting Cornflowers



Hello readers and fellow crocheters!

What amazed me the most on the Internet and Pinterest is, that there are a lot of generous people that are sharing their knowledge. It did restore my faith in mankind somewhat.
One of these people is the very generous and talented Sam from the blog Creazone di Sam 

She makes and invents the most gorgeous realistic crocheted flowers!! And lately, as an extra bonus, she translates her patterns in English and Spanish!!
All her patterns are free.... amazing generous woman!!!

I was particularly charmed by her cornflowers!!!
Her pattern was easy to follow. Only I crocheted the flower in white cotton 40
 (so it's smaller) and hand dyed it.

Before painting
I use fabric paint
I use fabric paint and mix it till I have the color I want.
After that I cover a metal wire with cotton yarn and dye it green. (Flower stem)
Then I assemble the flower wit a little glue, where needed.
Here you can see the construction on the back.  
And finally, after molding each petal with a tweezer, I used spray starch to keep the cornflower in shape.
I allready have 5 cornflowers and 4 leaves. I will show you the result when it's finished!!
And I want to thank Sam for the pleasure she gave me by sharing her patterns so I could  crochet these cornflowers!!! Mille grazie! !! 
Total height including stem: 8 cm