Summer!

Last weekend my little sister got married, and we spent three days celebrating in 17th century buildings with lovely people and a clear blue sky. We had a great time, and you may say I'm old fashioned, but in spite of the ever increasing divorce rate, I do think it's really nice when two people want to get married.

Summer vacation has begun already, and we'll be spending it both home and away. And even when home, we'll be mostly outdoors, so e-mails will be answered less frequently than usual. If you have questions regarding one of my patterns, I will answer as quickly as possible (as always), but summer quick is simply a lot slower than my usual quick. If you have an urgent question, please consult other sources, such as forums or a skilled knitter near you.

I wish you all a wonderful summer holiday! And with autumn come new patterns, so stay tuned.

Beauty

Ramme gård - what to say..? It took my breath away. The British Shakespeare Company was brilliant, we enjoyed the play a lot. And those surroundings! An ecological farm serving all sorts of ecological goodies, a garden so beautiful it's hard to comprehend, at least here in little Norway. I'm amazed by the fact that one man has had the capability, the creativity, and that wonderful little touch of madness necessary to create such a place. Above is the King's portal, a copy of one made to honor the King Kristian VI visiting Bergen in 1633. It is a creation not to be placed anywhere. It was perfect here.
To the left, the wonderful, lovely, oriental style - or whatever - cafeteria, to the right, once again blue poppies..
This is the river running from the King's portal down to the swan lake (!) where Venus and Cupid reign. The first hovers above the lake, the latter stands among majestic pillars overlooking the scene.

And last, but not least, the forbidden garden - not for the faint of heart, or for the oversensitive ones. If you consider yourself one of the two, rest with me on the bench, and don't scroll any further.

Blue

Blue, but not as in sad. On the contrary, actually. This beauty greets me from below every morning, as does the sun from above. Seems like summer's here to stay for a few days.

And tonight, we're off to another garden, a truly wonderful one. Shakespeare's A midsummer night's dream in an outdoor theatre at Ramme gård. I do look forward to enjoying the play, but even more, I dream about the garden in which it will be played. I wish I had a garden like that - and a few gardeners too. In the meantime, I'm happy for my blue poppy in my own tiny garden. It is really that blue..

Happiness is..

Summer flowers on the table, a spontaneous gift from my kids, holiday not far away, bare feet in the grass, walking in my garden every morning, wondering which flowers will be blooming next.

As much as I like snow, wearing wool, sitting in my sofa, candles, knitting, a cup of tea, I am a summer girl, after all. And I like buttercups a lot.

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About hats

My husband likes wearing hats when it's sunny. He's been wearing ordinary caps until recently, but honestly, those look quite dull on grown ups. So when we found ourselves outside this place in Corso Buenos Aires in Milano, I knew we had to have a look. A bit reluctant at first, my husband, but eventually, he did buy the six pence. I like the hat, I like it even better on my husband's head, and I love that stores like that exists - not to mention this store owner, who even had specific opinions on color choice for his customer!

And I do see the point in hats, but don't have one myself - well I do have a garden hat but it's not for showing. It looks like there are lots of hats on the cat walk this year, and I wonder if I should have one, too. But generally, I find including hats in my outfits difficult. I think I like this one, though. Maybe I'll give it a go. (Picture borrowed from Amazon.jp)

Milano

So much to do at work these days, Milano seems so far away already. I know it's not, but a crash landing into too-fast-to-hang-on everyday life has somehow put an ocean of time between us. I guess that's what happens when you go on a trip like that when it's not really holiday time. You come back to work, and you're the only one with a body still expecting the slow pace.

We had such a wonderful time there together, just the two of us. Five years since our last real holiday, it was about time we went again. I don't have the words to fully describe what it felt like, five days all on our own with nothing to be done. Food, wine, us, in Italy, which we both love. I have the pictures, though:

[ˈnɒki]

I have enjoyed gnocchi for the first time in my life, and I have discovered I need to know how to make those. And I need to be good at it! The meal that made me come to this conclusion was a lunch at Alba d'oro near Corso Buenos Aires in Milano (map). Gnocchi with gorgonzola sauce. Tasted like heaven!

My first attempt was yesterday, and it resulted in something resembling most of all tasty pieces of mashed potatoes. Gnocchi actually are for the most part just that, mashed potatoes. But they are definitely not supposed to taste like it. Today I gave it another go, with success! Lovely little chevy pieces of deliciously tasting gnocchi. I do have a little something left to do regarding shaping, but for my second attempt only, I'm happy!

More on the trip to Milano later..

Bunad

Yesterday was May Seventeenth, the Norwegian Constitution day. Last year it rained, and there is nothing as sad as rain on this day. This year was different. A sunny day perfect for celebrating. There were (lots of) ice cream, hot dogs, parades, flags, and festivities all day long. And the traditional norwegian costume, bunad. Mine is the follobunad, and is from just south of Oslo, where I've always lived. In addition to what you see below, there is a black brocade cape and an apron similar to the shirt, and shoes, of course. My mother made it for me about seventeen years ago, and I'm really fond of this garment. But as much as I love it, it was a relief to take it off yesterday evening. Except for the shirt, it's all wool, and it is both warm and a really heavy garment to wear.

My new skirt

My skirt survived! I'm so happy I'll get to wear this thing!

I didn't follow a pattern. I'm actually not so fond of sewing from patterns, even though my sewing success rate would probably raise if I did. This time I did get it right, though. I made some drawings, did the calculations, and voila! I really like the narrow pleats in front and back. It makes the skirt a cute one. The best part is the patterned fabric at the hem, though. I bought it as a fat quarter a few years ago, and instantly fell in love with it. But what to do with a fat quarter..? Hem a favorite skirt, of course! I guess I'll have to make more like it for summer.

Skirt in trouble

I've spent the day sewing. A new skirt for myself, if I'm lucky. I'm really, really pleased with how it came out, and I'm already looking forward to wear it in Milano.

The only thing is, I forgot to prewash the fabric..

It's such a newbie mistake, I really thought I'd been there, done that. I have no idea how the fabric will behave when washed. It's in the washing machine right now. Silly maybe. Some would say I should at least wear it once before shrinking disaster becoming a fact. I don't. The skirt is a candidate to the top ten favorites, and I couldn't stand falling in love with it, then loose it. We'll see in an hour or so. Fingers crossed.

Fast!

It's been a whole month since I last said hello. Life is going so fast, I can hardly believe it's almost summer already. I'm knitting and crafting like before, though. I finished my yellow cardigan a while ago. I also finished the boy's sweater from the last post (and yes, I will share the rest of it with you, and that yellow cabled thing, too). I also finished a little project which has already become a favorite. More of that later.
Yesterday I made this bracelet. I have a lot of white buttons from my grandma, and found out this was a good way of showing them off. They're really not much worth while in the drawer. It's a present. I don't suspect the recipient reads the blog, but you never know, so I won't reveal who she is yet.

This week is a festive one. Constitution day is on Sunday, and we'll eat tons of ice cream. And soon we're off to Milano. Me and my husband, no kids! I do look forward to it.

Time goes fast these days. It's ok with me, really.

Sneak peak

Girly as it is, A-lined and all, I thought the theme from the Life sweater would look equally good for a boy's sweater, so I made one. The design is completely different, as I chose a definite masculine design to go with the dancing people. The sweater is finished, my son is happy, I'm happy, and you will get a better look of it in a while. I just want to finish the pattern first. And for those who wonder – the pattern for Life will be available soon, too.

Easter lunch

A few pictures from today's Easter lunch. Colored eggs and saffron tea. We even had saffron bread to get the right color.. Happy Easter to everyone! It's been a lovely one over here, I'm really sorry it's almost gone already. But I guess the contrast is what makes us enjoy the good times so much. Besides, it's spring! (It does seem like my self motivation process for getting back to an everyday life has already begun..)

Easter chicken

I've been silent for a while, blogwise that is. I'm fine, though, just haven't thought of blogging, really.

We've enjoyed a long Easter holiday at home, and it's been a relaxing, productive, cozy, enjoyable Easter. We've been redecorating the hall, making easter decorations, eating chocolate, watching tv, eating good food, riding our bikes, been at the beach, enjoying each other's company and the first signs of spring. My kids made yarn chicken. I think they're amazingly cute! And I've finished a new design. Sneak peak tomorrow.