Right before Christmas I made a bunch of tiny lucky stars with the girls. They are a little over 1 cm in diameter and they are fun to make and super cute in the window sill or on the new years eve table. Furthermore they are super easy to make and super addictive! And if you make them from scraps of used gift-wrapping paper like we did they are highly sustainable too.

My girls are 8 and 10 years old and they got the hang of folding these small beauties pretty quick. The puffing part, where you squeeze the sides to make them three-dimensional and make them pop is a bit more tricky. You’ll need some patience, not too short nails and a bit of practice but they got pretty good at it – even better than me with my clumsy grown-up fingers.

You’ll need strips that are 1 cm wide and somewhere between 20 and 30 cm long. You’ll need paper that is not too thick. We found that gift-wrapping paper was perfect and ordinary writing paper a bit too thick.

I found this useful video on youtube that runs you through the process. There’s no speak – it’s sort of selfexplanatory so mute the video and listen to this instead! The music is made by a Japanese husband and wife team called lullatone. Soundtracks for everyday adventures – what’s not to like! They make the best lullabies and music for children too. Check out their blog here

Christmas is close. We like to make some gifts of our own and this year Ulrikke came up with this clever little number; friendship bracelets neatly nested in their own little matchbox giftboxes. She made them for her two best friends and she liked making them so much that she was very keen to show you all how easy and fun it is to make your own!

It’s a wonderful project because you can adjust to your needs and likings – put something else in it, decorate it another way, twist and tweak it to your fancy. But it’s easy to do and the kids can make it on their own for little secret gifts while you unwind in the sofa with some chocolate and the magazine you didn’t have time to read – or other Christmas related stuff you can’t wait to do!

Ulrikke wanted to do a video to take you through the process. So here it is; an easy-peasy DIY-guide to making your own tiny giftboxes with friendship bracelets.

She doesn’t speak English (yet) but it’s sort of self-explanatory and it actually might be quite amusing to listen to if Danish is utterly foreign to your ears. Scroll down for a list of supplies and a few tips, tricks and thoughts. And have fun!

List of supplies:

• Matchbox
• Vintage children’s book or other papery goodies that tickles your fancy
• beads
• glue
• measuring tape (make sure it’s OK to cut a piece of before you start cutting your mother’s best measuring tape)
• snap fasteners
• Yoyo-maker
• tiny piece of fabric
• hot glue gun

Tips and tricks:

Use a water soluble decoupage glue for the best result – but any old water soluble glue will do. The hot glue gun is the best option to attach your decoration to the bracelet but you could also sew it on if you like.  Make sure to fold the ends of the measuring tape – and make allowance for the extra length when you figure out how long you want it. We used about 19 cm for 8-year-old wrists.

Twists and tweaks:

Fill the giftbox with something else: a tiny toy, a pretty mini-picture of the kids, a piece of candy, a little letter, a gift certificate or leave the matches in it and don’t cover the sides – a perfect gift for the grandparents.

Make a minicollage on the matchbox instead of using a ready-made cut out from a book.

Make another sort of bracelet. You could crochet something, macramé or pleat or make you own home-made jewellery  with supplies from a hobby store.

And why should you do this? When there is probably so much else on your list you need to finish before Christmas. Well, because it’s priceless to see the pride and joy in your kid’s eyes. Because you might get inspired by the sheer pleasure and thrill of crafting a pretty little thing. Because this is a perfect mini-break from all the stress. And because this is a doable manageable and little project if you keep it simple. Don’t overdo – just do!

Merry Christmas!

My humble home is, as you probably already know very colourful. We like our colours good, rich and vibrant around here. And we live with colour all year round.

For that reason I often tend to go rather simple around Christmas time. I like the white base and how it makes the colours pop. This year I found a branch that blew of a tree in the local park last weekend. I took it in to dry, gave it a good brush to remove all the grit and gravel it was covered in and gave it a good lick of white paint. I stuck a few of my favourite Christmas ornaments to the branch with thumb-tacks.

That’s about all the décor I need for Christmas.
What do you need for Christmas?

Sometimes the easy way is also the best way – and the most satisfying and beautiful way. That makes me happy to know. I’m staying at my parent’s right now with the girls and while they enjoy hanging out with their grandparents I enjoy the quiet moments I get here and there, getting groceries for instance, all alone in the car, music on and some time on my own. Yesterday I wanted to bring home some foot bath for cold and sore feet. I skipped happily through the supermarket, thinking that that was an easy thought to follow through.
At the supermarket I searched high and low, finding absolutely no bath salt whatsoever! Well at home I decided to make my own version. I whipped up this little number. It’s the easiest foot soak/bath salt/body scrub. Made with ingredients you probably already have at home it is also very cheap.

To make your own bath salt/body scrub you’ll need the following in the ratio described – please go ahead and make a larger portion, it’ll keep for a long time in a carefully cleansed jar:

Salt (4 handfuls)
Olive oil (1 tablespoon)
Honey (1 tablespoon)
a good handful of either fresh rosemary or fresh thyme

Put the rosemary or thyme in a very small pan with the oil and heat it on very low heat for about 15 minutes.You want all the fragrance and the essential oils lifted from your herbs and blending with the golden olive oil. Strain it and throw away the herbs.
Leave to cool for a while, then add the honey and stir. Finally you add the salt and mix it to a pulp.
Put it in a carefully cleansed jar, tie a pretty ribbon around it and you have a great gift for someone special.

Tips and tricks:
You can use any kind of sea salt. For foot soaks fine salt works great, for body scrubs you might want to use a more coarse and flaky salt – though not too coarse or it will feel very uncomfortable to sensitive skin.
For a relaxing foot bath add a few drops of lavender essential oil.
For an invigorating foot bath a couple of twigs of fresh spear mint to very warm water and leave it to cool for a while before adding a tablespoon of your home-made bath salt and dip your tired feet. Peppermint essential oil is also an option, just a few drops will do the trick.

Kick back and relax!

A few iphone snaps from “hotel Nikolaj” Best viewed large. Click on the images to view them large and click again to view the next. Thanks.

The exhibition “hotel Nikolaj” is a collaboration between Gabriel Hernández og Marga Socias from “teatro de los Sentidos” in Barcelona and Danish videoartist Lærke Lauta

It was wonderful and poetic, touching and engaging. Thank you so much!

The girls and I also went to see a great exhibition at Kunsthallen Nikolaj an old church which now is a museum of contemporary art. It was wonderful and Copenhagen was at it’s best, all blue skies and crisp air and people out on the town.

So today was quite a contrast. Quiet. Went to the dentist’s. Going again tomorrow. But I enjoyed my Monday playlist….

This morning when we woke up it was dark. The girls were moaning with discontent, hardly able to open their eyes. I’m no morning person either. The sheets were cosy and warm and the floor was cold to my bare feet when I tiptoed to the bathroom.

The good thing about this, though, is that I get to light candles in the morning and enjoy the flame scattering the grey and dull morning light. I get to feel that little tingle of happiness when the flames flicker and we sit around the table eating and talking quietly. I get to feel the warmth of my coffee against my palm when I curl up on my chair and breathe in the scent of freshly brewed coffee. I feel alive and I enjoy the slow awakening of senses when the autumn is here.

I have taken up yoga again – slowly and cautiously, careful not to make things worse in my back. But with baby steps I feel a tiny improvement every day. I have had back problems with herniated discs for so long that even the slightest change makes me feel both elated and scared – thrilled with the improvement and scared of the next set-back. But I do it – work and focus on getting better. And I do get better – if not physically then at least mentally. The mornings, the yoga, the effort make me feel more open-hearted, optimistic and at ease.

And though the morning was grey when we got up it is now sunny with a beautiful rainbow across the sky from the short and recent rain shower.

I feel thankful and alive. It’s a beautiful day.

My beautiful friend Tif aka Dottie Angel is celebrating the release of her book “dottie angel – the peachy crafty world of tif fussell”

You can grab the book here, and while you’re at it you can get a feel of who she is, this crafty peachy dottie angel. She resides at the most wonderful blog out there in blogland with her clan, used dog and little olive and the chickens and all her craftiness.

I have the most humbling honour to be featured in her book as one of her ‘nice folks’. When the book arrived my heart skipped a beat seeing it’s rounded edges, stitched cover and the beautiful, inspiring and colourful layot. Janine of Uppercase Gallery has done an amazing job.

Congratulations, Tif! You are an inspiration.

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