The Cheeky Cockatoo or Our New Pillow Cover or My Dream House

Those who read my blog on a regular base might have noticed that i am mildly obsessed with blog giveaways. I am not purposely on the hunt for giveaways, they just happen to pop up in my Google Reader and if i really like the item i sign up. Hell, why not? That's what giveaways are for, right? If nobody participated, then what would be the purpose of hosting one?
I don't often write about it but since last fall i have won about eight or nine contests; the most recent ones were the Plaid Valentine's Twitter contest ( and they sent me awesome, awesome stuff!! Thanks again, Plaid!) and a Milk & Cookies giveaway hosted by the canadian design blog Damask et Dentelle, a great source of inspiration for everyone who loves design, decor and DIY.

I fell in love with Milk & cookies a few months ago and have been trying to win one of her beautiful pillow covers in every giveaway i could find, and so i was thrilled to find out i had won.
There is such a great selection of beautiful patterns in her Etsy shop that it was hard to choose only one, and although i had my favorite i decided to let the Mister pick his favorite style.
The pillow cover arrived yesterday and it is beautiful! The pattern is extra pretty with flowers, leaves and butterflies and the combination of pink and black is just perfect, not to mention the cheeky cockatoo.
So, here it is:

LOVE it! And wouldn't it be great to have matching curtains made of the same fabric??

Thank you so much Milk & Cookies and Damask et Dentelle!!

Those other pillow covers are by Esprit and their quality is anything but satisfying. While the fabric is nice and thick, the zippers are damaged and half of the seams have come loose after washing the covers once.
Does anyone else experience constant trouble with that brand? I used to be a frequent buyer, at least half of my wardrobe is by Esprit and i even had their platinum customer card, but since last year almost every item i ordered online had to be returned because it was either dirty or damaged or had a very weird fit. Not impressive at all for a relatively pricey company. But hey, the founder already owns her villa in sunny Florida, so why would she bother?
But i don't want to be mean. She built an empire and deserves it. Period.

And i will continue dreaming of being rich too. One day i will go to my favorite house right on A1A, knock on their front door, submit an offer that the owners simply cannot reject, and then MisterT and i spend the rest of our life in this beauty overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, and wake up to the sound of the crashing waves every morning...

I wonder if Erin of House of Turquoise already knows about this darling?

DIY Weekend

This weekend will be full of DIY projects. I plan to make another dried flower canvas with the tulips i bought last week and i have a few ideas how to reuse old dryer sheets.

Last night i made another fabric cake topper for my Etsy shop and i think it turned out super cute. If no one buys it ( and that will most likely be the case) i'm going to include it in our wedding scrapbook album.

But i just cannot decide if i should make it a large book or a handy journal.

Can you belive that i have been living with MisterT for eight years now and he never mentioned that he owns an engraving tool??
It came up in a random conversation about our attic stuff a few days ago and i almost freaked out when he mentioned it. I already tested it on a piece of wood and it is amazing! The possibilities are endless and now i want to engrave everything!! I can't wait to try it on glass but have to buy some goggles first ( they are one of the very few items my husband does not own).

Looks like i will be quite busy the next two days. What are your plans for the weekend?

DIY: Easter Wreath

Who is in the mood for spring already? I am, and so i just went through my spring and easter decoration and found this door wreath that i made some years ago.

As a child i loved searching the hidden nest, but as non-religious adult i don't really care about easter and you won't find much decoration in our apartment. Just a few eggs, bunnies and cute little chicks here and there.
The worst thing about easter in my opinion? Those poor front yard trees decorated with terrible cheap-cheaper-the cheapest plastic eggs. Yuck!   Sorry, no offense to anyone ;-)
Other than that i usually like easter decoration and its sunny and cheerful colors.

So, i don't have a tutorial for my wreath but it was super easy to make. I cut a bamboo stem into four pieces and used my hot glue gun to construct a frame. Then i decorated the frame with all kinds of useless stuff and ribbons that i had kept from random gifts and attached everything with hot glue. Done.

Happy week-peak!

I want to thank everyone for your kind and encouraging comments regarding the robbery of my husband! The guys are released but we know that they used a fake gun and feel much better and safer now.

I realize it was a bit stupid to link up to the Blog Hop right after writing about this incident and that the scary story is the very first thing people read when they enter my blog.
So this post is mainly meant to override the previous one, but since i don't have any interesting to share i'll simply post this image i just pinned.

Pinned via this pin via tumblr 
If anyone knows the original artist or source please let me know so i can give proper credit

How cute is that cat? If it was real and looked exactly like that, would it still try to catch and eat the screechy-birds?

Last night I developed a fantastic idea for an upcoming living-room project. I don't want to reveal any details yet but it is going to include a lot of empty toilet paper tubes and little plants like succulents or similar. How does that sound?

So, like i said, this post doesn't really make sense and i better get some work done now.

Happy week-peak! ( This is not an actual word, is it?)

...

MisterT got carjacked this morning on his way to work.
Ok, technically it wasn't carjacking because they did not steal the car, but i don't know the right term for this. Two men threatened him with a gun and robbed him while he was sitting in the car, waiting at red traffic lights.

They got arrested by the police shortly after because MisterT was able to remember their license plate number, but we don't know if they have been rereleased already. They stole his wallet and probably know our address, and now we are terribly afraid that they might show up in our appartment at night trying to kill us or what.

Not sure how we are supposed to be able to sleep tonight.

I have read a lot of terrible stories lately of people being shot and robbed and it seems as if the crime rate in our city has increased a lot, yet we still felt safe. Until today.

I don't want to think about what else could have happened.

My dear readers, please stay safe wherever you are. Hope you all have a good weekend.

Tulips

It is cold and gloomy outside; melting snow, rain, and grey in grey in grey. And so i could not resist buying those pretty yellow tulips from the grocery store this morning. I love tulips and i love how their color brightens up the room and puts me into a sunny spring mood already ( although i am still hoping for the real winter to arrive). 

RECIPE: Basil Bread

How to bake a fresh Basil Bread in ten quick and easy steps

Ingredients: ( serves 2)

235 ml ( 1 cup or 15 and 1/2 T) Water
15 g Basil ( ca. 2 handful of basil)

2 T Olive Oil
10 g ( 1T) Salt
1 Pk. Dry Yeast
375 g ( 3 cups and 1 T) Flour
--

20 ml ( 1 T and 1 tsp.) Milk 

1 T Olive Oil

Directions:

1. In a mixing bowl, mix water, basil, 2 T oil and salt and mash with an immersion blender

2. Add yeast and flour, knead and form a ball
3. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and allow the dough to rise at a warm place until the size of the ball has doubled. You can place it near the radiator or into the oven at a very low temperature, but keep an eye on the bowl to make sure it doesn't melt.
4. Form a loaf and place it on a baking pan covered with baking paper and a handful of flour
5. Mix milk with 1 T oil 

6. Brush the loaf with the milk/oil mixture

7. Dust with flour 

8. Bake 20-25 minutes at 220°C ( 428°F)
9. Let cool and 
10. Enjoy!

Fabric Bridal Bouquets

I have listed two new fabric bouquets in my Etsy shop, both very feminine in pink hues.
The first one is a pastel, light pink and blush creation to match a soft, romantic and vintage inspired wedding theme.

Blush Soft Pink Bridal Bouquet

The second bouquet is inspired by pink poenies and perfect for a cheerful wedding of any kind.

Pink Peony Bridal Bouquet

It looks so pretty in a vase, too.

Pink Peony Bridal Bouquet

I am constantly trying to learn new techniques and come up with fresh new creations, and i think these two bouquets show how much i have improved since i started my little business.

And now i am curious to hear: what are your wedding colors and what does your dream bouquet look like? Are you making your own flowers?