Come on over!

I see that there is people still coming to this blog daily or adding themselves as "friends" down there on the right side. I invite you all to follow us to the NEW website where the blog has carried on: www.florcita.eu is all you have to type!

There is room there to sign up for a newsletter with tips, links, give aways, sales, discounts and the rest.... so do please update your faves and add www.florcita.eu

I will be waiting for you!

xox Mariana

New website

Starting tomorrow Tuesday 27th October, 2009; I will be posting at www.florcita.eu
Clicking there will take you to a whole new website where my current website and this blog have merged.
So, just this time -pleaseprettyplease- update your Bloglines/favorites, etc and join me on the other site. Lots of new things going on there. Still working on some stuff but we are ready to roll...

We've moved! ---> www.florcita.eu

Monday

Hello all!
Im busy finishing some orders and the website. I think this is the last week that you will come here. Soon, just typing www.florcita.eu you will land in the blog/website/shop. Much easier. I just need to fine tune the last details. I'm importing all the posts from this blog to the new one. Hopefully it will be done soon so we can have a give away to inaugurate the other "home". All these has to happen relatively soon since I'm leaving in a couple of weeks. Worry not, you won't have to miss me. I will be typing but from the southern hemisphere. Might even turn out to be entertaining and interesting. Different adventures.

Ok so... back to work. Have a nice monday everyone.

Remember, soon: www.florcita.eu for the blog/website/shop too!

Friday' s links

This blog has been quiet this week, but not because I haven't been working. In fact, I've been editting, resizing pictures, learning HTML, discussing with the desginer (aka my husband) and that sort of stuff because I've decided to unify all the blogs and websites I have into one thing. Intead of having Florcita's art blog (this one), plus florcita'news blog which comes attached to my website; I've moved everything to one place where there are sections with info, galleries...etc. So everything together, easy to navigate. Otherwise I spend so much time updating everything (or neglecting it) that... better get organized.


It's Friday again so here is a link for you all to enjoy. This is the trailer of a BBC/Disney nature documentary turned into a film. I saw it on tv when the documentary came out (2007 I think it was) and we loooooved it. We later bought the movie because it has great photography, beautiful scenery of the most far away corners of the world, my kid loves looking at the animals and most importantly it reminds us that we humans are not alone here. We are also part of an ecosystem we need to care for...because we depend on it.
I don't know if I'm the only one who cries with this nature documentaries but sometimes as the camera shoots a mama bear with her cub, I feel close to that female. I know, I sound a bit crazy. But we all look at our cubs with the same eyes.




Have a nice weekend...

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Azul

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Azul
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

Azul:Blue.

Where I come from, in Argentina, people like painting their houses in bright colors. I could voice different theories such as "that helps bright up your city in winter when everything is dark and grey", "it's a way to show your individuality/creativity", "you are just showing off" .... :)
I don't know. What I do think is that -at least here in The Netherlands- life would be so much brighter in the long months of winter if there was some color on the streets other than the brown of bricks and the grey of the sky.
So I looked around in Flickr for some blue houses (the one on the top left corner, is Frida Khalo's "La casa azul"). And these were my favorites.

All the credit to the photographers who took these pictures. If you want to see the photos larger in with credits, click on the mosaic.

If you want to join the mosaic fun, follow the link to Mitsy's blog.

Remember that DaWanda has a discount week which I am joining. So from today until Sunday, there will be a 15% discount on all shops were you haven't purchased before. If you haven't shoped at Florcita now is the time!

Magnum Wrap and Dawanda discount

I've been busy this weekend. All of a sudden everyone is celebrating their birthdays around here so we are jumping from party to party... which is fun.
I did manage to squeeze in some work and I tried this gorgeous merino Kap I recently bought. Soft and warm...but really really soft. I wanted to make something simple... a few flowers in a field... just white and red and some accents on grey. That's it. It ended up being way bigger than I thought it'd be and it's a mix I think between a warm wrap for you and a throw for home decoration.


More pics here.

On other news, DaWanda has a discount week which I am joining. So from today until Sunday, there will be a 15% discount on all shops were you haven't purchased before. The discount price is already set on the webpage so what you see is what you pay. If you've never purchased from me and were waiting for lower prices...well, here is your chance. And if you did purchase from me and you are looking for something... just contact me: info@florcita.eu Returning costumers are favorites :)

Anyway, another week comences... hope everyone is healthy and ready to roll :)





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The DaWanda "Wall Fall Sale" will run from Monday 19.10 at 12:00 CEST until Sunday, 25.10 at 23:59 CET.
In all participating shops (where products will be marked with a little flag icon), in which you are shopping for the first time, you will receive a 15% Discount off the original price during the sale period! The reduced price will be calculated and displayed during the order process, and in your shopping basket. Please note - the discount will only apply for your first purchase, so it's best to pack a few things into your shopping basket at once!
Have you told your friends about the Wall Fall Sale yet? New users receive a 15% discount on their first purchase in all participating shops!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------that's the official announcement.

Friday' s links

Love the drawing in this one. Another simple and to the point from www.wwf.org

Details and tips for those who asked.

Last week I presented in this post a group of wraps (for you) or throws (for your house) called "Retazos", which in spanish means "Scraps". After listing them in my shop I was too tired from editing pictures, so I just added a mosaic here. Well, as there were some questions sent to me, I thought I would show some details of each.

1- Purple Poppies in the Field: I actually really like the pictures I took with this wrap. Not because of me modeling...ahahah nonono... but because we are in a pretty medow, a bit windy, with autumn light and horses in the back... nice mood.



I used some hand spun yarn, different shades of purple, bamboo and a blend of hand dyed merino + silk for the poppies which make the flowers soft and with a little bit of a shimer. It is all wet felted which meant that I worked each piece of surface design with my fingers (and water and soap...).

2-Wrapped in gold: This one demanded lots more work (days) because I worked each individual square separately, and then felted them together. There are over 25 different pieces that make the whole wrap. It has an autumn palette with lots of browns, orange and a bit of gold...


I used merino, linen, bamboo, silk, silk rods, hand dyed and hand spun yarns, hand carded wool, prefelts I made myself, and even some stitching for decoration. A whooole lotta work. And I love it. But I can't keep everything, can I?... can I?

3-Wrapped in Red Cherries: Red, pink, fuchsia and white are the colors. For this one I had a different approach since I layed the whole design at once and then felted it (as opposed to working on each panel individually).


Again lots of different fibres: silk, wool, linen, hand spun and hand dyed yarn, bamboo, prefelt (made by me again), hand carded wool. If you see on the bottom right picture, there is a ceramic heart like this added as a pin (or better seen on this other simple neckwarmer in my shop, although this last one is much bigger), which comes as a gift if you order this wrap THIS week (which already has free shipping!).

*For all those felters that asked me if I used needle felting for the designs, the aswer is no. I rarely use needles in my felting. Sometimes for a small detail but I always do everything "by hand". However, needle felting is an option for whomever wants to use them.
*Prefelts, which I use quite often when I want a defined shape on my design, I make myself ...and it is no science to do so. I wrote a post about it here.
*The use of yarns in felting is a good, simple addition which can bring a whole new texture to your piece. Felt provides a very tactile experience. I repeat that while working you have to "look with your hands". Whether you use commercial yarns or your own hand spun, it doesn't matter. Just remember that the more "acrylic" the yarn has, the harder it will be to get "attached" to the wool you are felting. I always try to use yarns with at least 40% wool in them (and a blend with bamboo or silk if they are my own). But a whole world opens up for you because nowadays there are such gorgeous yarns out there in the shops.

Well, this is already too long. If there are more questions don't hesitate to ask in the comments or email me at info@florcita.eu I don't mind replying and sharing. I don't have secrets really, this is all the product of my own experimentation (which I always highly recommend... ).

Don't forget that this week there is FREE SHIPPING FOR ALL ORDERS, if you are looking for gifts... now is the time! Check out this post with more details if you rather a private order instead of using e-commerce platforms.

And now back to work...

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: suitcases

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: suitcases
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

Where are mine? Has anybody been to the attic lately? How many can I take? how many kilos in each??
Yes, suitcases are already starting to cross my mind although Im not doing much about it yet... It always happens to me when Im about to go on a big trip... I start thinking about it, I pack in my head a few times and just a day before the trip I get it all together...
For now, beautiful shoots of vintage suitcases. All the credit to the photographers who took these pictures. For more info, click on the mosaic.
If you want to join Flickr favorites, hop on to Mitsy's blog!

Don't forget about this week's FREE SHIPPING FOR ALL ORDERS. Keep reading the post bellow for more info on private orders or check out my shop (don't forget to add "red tanseys" on the message to seller so I substract the shipping costs from the final price).

A bag for me and FREE SHIPPING!

I've been working on several custom orders over the weekend. As time goes by and my departure day grows closer, I seem to get more work instead of aliviate the agenda. But I did manage to squeeze in making a bag just for myself. I never seem to keep anything I make...
Since red is my favorite colour -in case you hadn't heard :) I made a seed bag like those in my shop, all red with some tanseys designed in grey on top, lined with a fantastic red Harris Tweed. Simple, but just what the doctor ordered ....

And here comes the big announcement: All week this week there will be FREE SHIPPING on all orders.
*For orders via my Dawanda shop , just add: "red tanseys" on the note to seller while checking out (easier than having to go product per product changing the shipping costs...thanks!).
*Private order? you ask... well, checking out my website or shop you can see my work. You just have to drop me a line: info@florcita.eu saying what you wish and I will send you a money request via paypal. Simple.

It all comes wrapped with silk paper and with a nice ceramic tag included.

Hope everybody is doing alright!

Friday' s links

Because life is not just about felting... well, my life at least. In this household we do a lot of things to try to change the way we think about our life and how it affects the planet. I could list numerous things that we have slowly implemented and included in our daily life like recycling, making compost, growing our own food, harvesting water, reducing the amount of plastic we buy (as per wrappings, bags...), etc. But instead, I want to do something else that I think is very important: sharing information. So every friday I will add a book, articles, links... Because the first step is to understand and believe that change is needed. For our children.

Short, to the point... video from WWF:

Felting...by mistake

A few weeks ago I made this handbag in a grey coarse wool (steinschafwolle) which I made especifically to be HUGE. Not a middle sized bag... nono... HUGE. My 15" laptop fit in there. I felted the straps in by using some metallic props I had. So, all ready I used it a couple of times with great success and admiration (mwaahhahahaaaa...).
Looked like this:

It' s hanging a bit croocked... I know. And there is not much to compare with when it comes to sizes. Maybe only the very trained felting eye can see the difference with the next set of pictures. The stripes are the outside of an embedded LARGE outside pocket.

What happened is that one day last week, I came home... it was raining outside, I had groceries... one of those messy days. I left my handbag on top of a pile of laundry in the laundry room where I took off my coat and shoes and kept going with groceries, kid, dog ...dinner... you know...the rest.
Next morning I was feeling a bit under the weather and my husband thought...hmmm Im going to give her a hand... Dread those moments, ladies! So he diligentely took everything out of my handbag -which was still hanging around the laundry room- and put it in the washer along with other clothes. When I heard the beeep beeeep beeeeeeep announcing that the washer was done I went and started to take things out and then I saw it... the bag... which had shrunk 1/3 of its size. We wash our clothes in a cold cycle always (green option)... but still... soap, friction and water (even cold water) kept felting the handbag. This particular wool felts very easily, so I ended up with a yet sturdier than before, compacted fibres...and a bit smaller handbag :


Laptop doesn' t fit in there anymore... but put a melon in there, handbag won' t break!
So, to those whom aren't felters: the same thing happens when you put a pure wool sweater in the washer... it shrinks... it felts. That is why, unless you want to pass it onto your kids, we wash wool by hand. Now, if you are a felter, and you got bored and tired and don' t feel like finishing the job (and don' t care to roll it up and continue later) throw it in the washer. Only (HUGE) disadvantage is that you can't control the process... so if it got croocked in the washer and it felts like that...it stays like that. And Im not to blame if a sock gets felted onto it... well, call it nuno felt!

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Rainy days

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Rainy days
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

Rainy days indeed... rainy weeks I should say. It's a very wet autumn so far. Previous years we' ve had fabulous autumns with warm afternoons and soft lights. Not this year it seems.
Wet and all I kinda enjoy these first weeks of autumn. A blanket, a cuddly afternoon with tea and cake... not so enamoured of chores and long queues at the post office though...

All the credit to the fantastic photographs whom took these pics. Click on the mosaic for a larger view and the name of said photographs.
If you want to join the Flickr Faves, hop on to Mitsy' s blog to sign up!

Tomorrow, more goodies... :)

International Year of Natural Fibres- Day of Felt

I don' t know if you' ve heard already that this year, 2009, has been declared by the UN as the International Year of Natural Fibres. The goal here is to bring back attention to the 15 most used Natural fibres and their characteristics, and the fact that by supporting these fibres you are supporting some of the poorest farmers and herders in the world.
Those fibres, such as wool, silk, mohair, alpaca, Angora, camel...etc, I use for felting and spinning. So they are very important in my work and by extension, daily life.

On adittion, 3rd October was named "Day of Felt". On this day, feltmakers from all around the world will gather and produce a piece of handmade felt and later show it for their neighbourhood, town, city, family and friends to see, apreciate and learn about it.
Felt United is an effort started and directed by Ellis Vermeule and Cynthia Reynolds, to gather, organize and expose felt pieces produced this day around the world. The idea is that on artisans will make a piece following a theme (color wheel portion: red, orange and yellow) and later submit it (pictures) to be exhibited in a multimedia library of woolly works.

So, I started working on the piece I am submitting, not thinking especifically on this day, but because this portion of the color wheel -red, orange and yellow- is one that I like very much using. Just another work I thought, and if it works out, I will submit it.
I gathered all my reds, oranges, yellows (a bit of pink and fuchsia too). Merino, silk, silk rods, bamboo, linen, locks. Hand dyed wool, hand spun yarn. A large piece of cotton fabric for the base and a whole lot of time... My idea was just to paint with the whool. To build a huge piece of fabric with colors that merge into one and other. The starting piece was long and wide: 2,50m long by 80cm wide... ending up, after days of felting, at 1.90cm long x 50cm wide. It took a whole lot of felting. But the result is a very compact, even nuno felt with windows into the fabric, and on the wrong side (although both sides are worth showing) a myriad of waves made by the rouches and gatherings in the fabric, product of the fibres going through its weave with the felting motions. I find it beautiful and bright. It livens up the grey autumn sky.


Some details:


This is the best way I found to photograph it' s entirety:

...hanging from the clothes line...

It will make a fantastic warm yet light wrap for the coming months. Or a throw for the couch... While I was running around in the -already very sad looking- garden to take pictures, my neighbour followed me down the fence asking me how much it costed, if she could have it, what was it made of...and I got to tell the story, so I guess my part has been done. This one stays with me though...
Do visit those links up there: UN' s page on Natural Fibres. Lots to read and learn. Felt United' s page for a lot of interesting work from around the world.

Happy day Felters...

What have I listed today? Retazos

What have I listed today?
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

All of these wraps! No more photo editing today,. No more cropping and light balancing... and listing! Everything is in the shop now.
Tomorrow, with more time, I will post individual pictures and tell you the story of this new line, Retazos... spanish for "scraps".

If you click on the mosaic you can see bigger pictures and on the shop there are more detailed pictures as well.

Enough computer work for today!

Dyeing adventures...

A few months ago I received from Monika from Red2White a little package in return for a package with wooden and ceramic buttons I sent her. Among other goodies, she included a bag of 100gr of logwood (Haematoxylum campechianum) and alum. Coincidentaly, as if the universe was trying to tell me something, the next day I received a book called "Colors from Nature - A dyer' s handbook" from Jenny Dean, the book' s author and all around dyeing guru.
Months passed by before I got around to put it all to work. I read Jenny's book which comes with all sorts of recipes and instructions for safety, extracting color from dyestuff, preparing dyebaths and applying it as well as mordants and its percentages. And the recipes are separated by colour in case you thought this was too complicated.
So, I presoaked and mordated 100gr of merino, 100gr of cotton, 100gr of bamboo and 100 gr of a blend of silk and merino. I later added 2 t-shirts and a few pieces of cotton fabric and lace I had laying around.

Clockwise: Jenny's book - logwood chips - logwood chips soaking - logwood chips dryingto be used another time...


Left: fibres soaking. Right, first dip of merino into the dyebath.


Clockwise: cotton, bamboo, merino, cotton fabric, merino + silk blend, t-shirts, some poly-something old curtain with lace and the last picture it' s the whole thing drying outside. On my Flickr you can see bigger pictures and the color in all it' s glory.

I was amazed at the depth of the color. I was expecting much lighter shades... but nope! Deep purple. I heard later from Jenny -when I emailed her half way through the whole thing- that logwood does bleed a lot and it takes a lot of rinsing before you stop seeing purple down your drain. However, as much as it was bleeding, the color on the fibres was and is still very strong. I didn' t care much for the merino and bamboo because their fate has been decided already and they shall be felted soon... I guess with all the water used in felting I will have a purple mess but it doesn' t necessarily have to be bad... I see an experiment aproaching! hahaha The cotton I will spin first even If I get purple fingers, and later rinse thoroughly. I find it easier to rinse once a fibre is spun.
I saved most of the dyebath and the purple water coming out of the fibres when I was rinsing them. According to Jenny' s book (did I mention she was the dyeing sensei...?) both dyebath and dyestuff can be stored for later use.


All these months reading books, blogs about dyeing. Talking to Monika and other fibre artists who are experimenting as well, I felt a bit daunted... overwhelmed. Words like Alum and dyebath and percentages scared me a bit. The safety aspect as well considering I don' t -yet- have a separate space where to try this, so its the family's kitchen.
I did realize that if one reads all the material, if one takes the time to "study" the moves and take simple precautions (like buying good, thick rubber gloves, having separate buckets, and cooking implements as well as putting some newspapers in case you are messy), it doesn' t have to be a difficult thing... and the results are marvellous.
One thing I keep repeating to whomever wants to hear me when we talk about natural dyeing is that when you go research about dyestuff you learn about a lot of things, not just colors: botanics, history, anthropology... you follow accounts of merchants in centuries past and learn about Europe' s trips around the world in search for the good stuff (like dyes and spices) as well as learning what people aroung the world were already using (and still do)... I find it fascinating to realize that those plants in the field which we all consider weeds, are actually plants that were used for dyes in the 16th century...
Anyway, if anybody is interested in giving natural dyeing a try, I suggest you get a hold of any of Jenny Dean' s books, or visit her blog and talk to her personally. She is incredibly kind with her knowledge. Never holds back.


And this is just the beginning....

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Dyeing

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Dyeing
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

Pots of colors, bright skeins og hand spun wool hanging to dry... hand dyed silk...red red red... the exciting world of hand dyeing with natural pigments. These pictures are from photographers that have been travelling to Nepal, India and Marokko... when I think about those places, color and spices arethe first things that come to my mind.
I haven't had time to finish working on the pictures from my dyeing adventures yesterday, but I am thrilled!
I have been working on so many things, so much stuff to upload to the shop and show you here... maybe I manage this week.

Do click on the mosaic to see the pictures in their larger version and to get the info on the talented photographers/travelers who took them.
if you want to join the mosaic fun, hop to Mitsy' s blog.

While I'm dyeing...

I' m in the middle of some natural dyeing... so, while I wait (and nervously run back and forth checking that everything is going well), I wanted to show you this little matchbox books I made over the weekend, to include in every order that is going out now:


For the gods of crafting! hahaaha I just took out the first batch of wool... DEEEEP PURPLE! hahahaha smoooke on the waaater....chanchan chaaan chan...ok...
Anyway, the little books were fun to make and add some color to the package. I see that the ceramic tags that go with the orders are a success too...



I have a second type of tags which just came out of the oven, but they have to do with a bit of rearranging the logo/marketing side of this little biz (yes, I know... it' s taking me a while, uh? Well... I'm learning!):


These are also ceramic tags where I' ve drawn with a glazing pencil. I wanted the scratchy, pencil look on them... as if a little kid had been drawing. They were later fired a second time with a cover of transparent glazing just for a bit of protection and shine...

Well, you see..tags I have! hahahaa
And now I also have some cotton and bamboo dyeing... intrigued. Will show you latet this week how it looks.

So, happy monday.

Easterya -

Months ago I started thinking about presents I could take with me to my family... hand made, of course. I've made some myself but I really wanted to take other stuff as well.
I' ve purchased from Easterya a couple of times. Love her jewellery and she is a good friend; so I thought... the women in my family would like something from her too. I think Fab's creations are bright and beautiful and for the type of woman who likes earthy (all natural stones), refined and stricking pieces of jewellery. In my case, whether that is gold, diamonds or just wire and turquoises... I don' t care. A piece has to impress me by it' s design not it's price tag.
So, I told Fabs what I wanted and she put up with me going back and forth, trying to imagine my Mom, sis and sister in law wearing her creations... how big, what colors... all of that. What a patient woman!
Eventually Fabienne suggested a swap, which I love doing (because it isn' t all about money, right?) especially if we both know already that we like what the other makes. Sometimes swaps are tricky if someone suggests it and you like what they make but maybe not for yourself... however, this was not the case. Honestly should reign when it comes to swaps. So, she chose an item from my shop involving silk and soft colors and beading... and I got these:




And a gift for me! :


this is not the time for my family to start reading this blog! ahhahaha I promise a picture with the gifted ladies wearing these beauties.... and I promise you, you will find lots of goodies at Fab' s shop...

Merry Go round- What's next?

It' s time for our Merry-go-round, and this month' s topic is: "What's your next chapter"... well, I have different length answers:

Short Version: lots of projects. I've realized that, whether one goes through with projects or not, having them alone is a strong motivator for improving your own life and work. Lack of projects in your life I think sinks you in a bit of a grey desperation. Been there, not going back.


Long Version: in the short term, I'm leaving to Argentina in a month (as if you haven't read about that yet...). I'm not just going to sit around catching up with family and friends, laying on the beach and doing tourism. I'm going to be teaching, researching the world of wool and different autoctonous fibres over there (like guanaco and llama). Maybe catch a few (more) classes with my old weaving teacher, some stuff about writing books, and a lot of research about dyeing, weaving and design of the orginal peoples (yes, plural) that populated that area, Patagonia, before the europeans arrived. I'm very excited about it. I want to include more of the patterns and designs of the people from my land in my future work.


A middle- length term ahahaha... while Im gone there will be some construction being done for a mini Studio for me, in the garden... with a big fireplace, thank you! I'm tired of moving around the house not ever having enough room for all my tools and materials. I also want to have my own place where I can put a ceramic oven because I'm tired of turning down people who want to buy ceramic pieces from me, but I have nowhere where to make them... I love clay. I've been claying (with more or less success) since I was 5... and I enjoy the combination of clay and wool. Very earthy and natural. I would also like to combine both a bit more.



Long term... well, world domination, obviously! What else? From my Studio/bunker I shall conquer the world of arts and crafts... no? :) Well, this past year I have discovered that the universe had a tricky way of telling me and pushing me down this path. However, this is really what I love doing. I'm happy. I have lots to learn and do... but Im on the right path, I think. I sometimes wish I had a partner in crime because I have loads of projects in my head and when you work on your own sometimes you get no feedback or incentivation...but, oh well... we'll see.

Do read the rest of the entries from the girls in this group. Interesting read Im sure.


Jenny at Jenny Karlsson design
Wendren at Wren
Sara at Sara's Texture Crafts
Charlotte at Fancy Picnic
Agathe at Le Bar du Vent
Fabienne at Easterya
Ruth at Birdland Creation
Lily at LilyPang Art and Design

autumn leaves wrap

autumn leaves wrap
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

Autumn... best thing it has: soft light, afternoons in a sunny spot outside, wrapped with your favourite woolly shawl. A cup of tea, a book.... lovely.
Note those huge clogs there... my husband's... who actually - like a true Dutch man - uses them for gardening, going for walks with the dog or just sitting there on that spot doing some wood carving, That half trunk there is his "carving table"... quite handy for my tea.

Anyway, lots going on backstage here but I wanted to remind you of the weekly free shipping offer for the pendants and some yarn. Just contact me if you rather have a private order. You can always use the contact button on my website: www.florcita.eu Website which will get a re-designing job soon as well (as soon as I finish resizing a ton of pictures!).

Back to my movie... how many times can I watch "Four weddings and a funeral" and actually laugh....?

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Delights of Autumn

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Delights of Autumn
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

I drink tea more than coffee... although I do like a nice ristretto every now and then. To me, one of the joys of autumn is to be able to take your steamy cup of tea to the bench in the garden, maybe a blanket of a big shawl too... and enjoy the soft light of this time of the year.

All the credit to the talented photograhers who took these pictures. Click on the mosaic for a larger view and their names! If you want to play along, go visit Mitsy' s blog!

Lastly, scrool down a bit to the previous post, and remember all those pendants have free shipping this week!

Glass and Wool -Pendants

A new week. New surprises... new work. For those of you who like to make a statement with your jewelley, who aren' t afraid to wear bold pieces...Voila! A new series of "Glass and wool pieces~ pendants".

Light is the key word here. We are not talking about weight but the reflection of light in the glass and how the wool changes it' s color slightly and the glass sparkles:

"Red window":


"Portal of Light"


"Green light"


All three of them are listed in my shop where you can also see more pictures of them, details and how they look on.
THIS WEEK, the shipping is free for all those who -in the message checking out- add the word LIGHT. It' s an offer for all those who come to this blog! Remember that I do take private orders as well! Just contact me: info@florcita.eu and add the word LIGHT on the message!
It' s not complicated, right??? :)

So... FREE SHIPPING for these pendants (writing LIGHT! in the message)
And still FREE SHIPPING on the "EAT YOUR GREENS" set of hand spun yarn! (described on this post).

So, there you go...

Give Away Winners!

I know... you' ve been biting your nails all day! I know! Did I win, did I win? haahhaa Sorry... it was a nice autumny day here so we went for a hike... glorious! had a lot of fun.
But here are the winners. Remember these 3 pendants were in the pot:



I made a list with the names of all that entered attaching a number in the "order of appereance":
1-Kim
2Julie
3-Alison
4-Monika
5-Heidi
6-Eveli
7-Mariel
8-Lily
9-Sil
10-Jen
11-Weird
12-Mitsy
13-Carla
14-Inger
15-Carolyn
16-Barbara
17-Christie

...and then used the randomizer from random.org and drew 3 numbers:




So... 4) Monika, 15) Carolyn and 7)Mariel Congrats! You've won a pendant each!
Do contact me please through the contact button in my Website, with your address so I can send them to you as soon as possible!

To the rest, do not despare! More Give aways to come! Thanks for playing though... :)
A FREE SHIPPING WEEK for certain items is coming. Maybe it's an item you were thinking about purchasing? They will be announced on Monday! So, stay tunned.

Have a nice weekend!

mantita-dekken-blanket

mantita1
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

Just a lsat minute post to remind you that today is that last day to enter the Give away! Don' t forget to leave your name in this post if you want to participate.
Tomorrow we will announce the names!

And here my other blond guy :) my son with his new blanket, all handfelted (no sewing) in merino wool. Excellent for this coolish autumn days... on the couch, watching a movie, reading a book... aaaah the joys of autumn!

See you tomorrow!

Window Farms ...and almost "Give away day!"

Hello all!

Besides felting and making ceramic goodies (running a house, biz, being a wife, mother, friend, volunteer...) I also take care of our 60m2 veggie garden. It' s actually a family venture and we are happy to say that every year (we are on our 4th year) we get more and better produce and a whole lot of knowledge. This year we' ve harvested tons of food: lettuce, spinach, beans (still today, more than 9kilos!), onions, garlic, carrots, pastinaak, tomatoes, aubergine/eggpplants, raspberries, strawberries, red currant, white currant, black currant, grapes, pears, courgettes, leak, aromatic herbs, broad beans, broccoli....and something more Im forgetting probably. We are now starting to gather the autumn fruits such as walnuts, apples and hazelnuts... and huge pumpkins! Our 2 freezers are FULL.

Many people say, " yeah well... lots of work! Lots of patience! I don' t have time, I don' t have room, knowledge...etc". We do have room because we bought this old house just because there was room enough for a garden. The knowledge we didn' t have but because we are slowly trying to turn to the eco/green path and do as much as we can to have a more self sustainable life; we've learnt. A bit of reading and a bit of empiric testing. And here we are, harvesting monster zuchinnis which in a shop cost fortunes... we harvest them by the bunch.



Anyway, for those of you who have always wanted to have a go at growing your own food but don' t have the room, or want to do it at a micro scale, this iniciative might provide info: www.windowfarms.org
And if you are into a more self-sustainable life and feel like learning, discussing the subject and others : www.forestoffood.wordpress.com That blond guy up there, aka Mr Husband, writes it.

Last days today and tomorrow thursday to enter the give away! Leave your names in a comment on that post. Friday we announce the three winners!

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Autumn

Flickr Favorites Tuesday: Autumn
Originally uploaded by Marian Florcita

It' s tuesday again and time for a mosaic with my favorites. It' s autumn. No denying it anymore. I' m wearing a cardigan and boots. I love the palette autumn brings... only it has been raining non stop here so, not so enjoyable.

There were no takers for the "Eat your greens" Free Shipping - Set of yarn. And that is cool. Will post soon something else that might be of more interest to others (explained here).
And now to drop off the little one at kindergarden and then some work.

If you want to join the Mosaic fun, visit Mitsy' s blog.

All the credit to the photographers whom took these gorgeous autumny pictures.

ONE LAST THING! Remember to sign up here for the GIVE AWAY! This friday (18th) we are drawing the names from a hat!

Eat your Greens SET- FREE SHIPPING!

Wow, thanks for your support with the yarns. Two of them are already gone and will be travelling with a little gift each...

As you know, and if you don't ...here it is, I will be going back to my homeland for a visit in a few months. So, just because I feel generous (or I need to save as much as possible so I can spend it travelling in Argentina) I will be having prompt give aways, sales, free shipping type of "events" every week. They will be announced here, in the blog.
Now, one word about e-shops. I understand, as it has been mentioned to me via emails and comments, that people might not feel like opening new accounts on e-commerce platforms and that puts them off of a great offer. I totally understand. Most of my selling happens via private orders anyway, so if you would like something that you see on my website ( under NEWS you see all the new items!) or here, you just have to contact me and we arrange everything via paypal... no worries.

So, first up... FREE SHIPPING THIS WHOLE WEEKEND- 12/13 September- of the following items:

"Eat your Greens" set of hand dyed and hand spun cotton and bamboo yarns. The total quantity is of 120gr:


1-100 % Cotton in olive green (not fully solid). 38gr
2-100% Cotton. Soft greens and yellow...not solid. 25gr
3- 100% Bamboo yarn. Shinny and soft greens to yellow tones. 26gr
4-Soft green Cotton plyed with bright green thread 20gr
5-100% Cotton in olive green and shades of yellow 11gr






(bigger pics here)
120gr is not a whole lot but it is enough to combine with other yarns for weaving, crocheting, knitting... and bamboo can even be used for felting! And it goes for 14 euros only!!

It will be in the shop now, but you know where to find me otherwise :)

Have a good weekend!

Hand dyed and hand spun

Remember a while back I had a couple of posts on my dyeing adventures ? And I had selected some fibres to spin during a weekend... Well, I don' t know about you but week after week have gone by and I haven't noticed. Or actually, I did notice but I haven't figured out yet how to stop time and fit all I want to do in a 24 hour day. So here we are with those fibres, all spun into some singles.

First up I have this set of 4 different fibres: cotton, silk+merino, bamboo and pure merino which I dyed all with the same dye in a scarlet color but with 4 different results:

Clicking on the links above will give you individual pictures.

The wooly ones I have used in felting projects for accents of lines and they work really well. Cotton, as far as I know, doesn't felt, but it's great for weaving, knitting, crochetting, etc.


Merino and Silk blends, unique skeins!

Caribbean waters:


Purple Dusk:



Spanish Spices:


Mandarinas y Cerezas (Tangerines and Cherries):



There are more to come that are already spun and ready to be transformed into something. These ones are all in my DaWanda shop now but remember that I do take private orders as well! Just contact me: info@florcita.eu

Remember to sign up for the Give Away of the three pendants next week. Which color next for the seed hand bags? So far turquoise seems to be leading the way... leave your comment here.

It' s movie time now!!!!