Sunday, December 23, 2012

Wishes Cards N.2

Here some others cards, one is a patchwork of magazines.


Happy Christmas!
Ale

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Wishes Carts

Busy with the Christmas presents, the mind flies to new creations...
That's my last Sunday creation: a couple of personalizeed wishes card made with pieces of tissues.



Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Project first step: IDEAS.

We finally met and gathered some ideas. It came out that two of us has an idea to make a backpack, which it may be cool nowadays.
from my side, I insisted to terminate my huge amount of fresh lavender, and so we will make both product and maybe something more.

We will focus on internet, and then in some local markets. 

I plan to make my lavender bags in the next days and will see what it come up!

Next step: Branding.

For the moment one only thing is slowing down my work... the insanity of wasting time, which paperanstitch kyndly today reminds me.
But I have to overcome my fear and think about OUR project. Let's start! 


 

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Pochette for Portuguese Girl

As usual I concentrate in projects that are presents for someone I know. In this case the present is for a portuguese friend who lives by the sea. Amazing place. I just didn't go, YET.



This is a purse, a case, for whatever you want to use for (i.e. drawings, tools, notes, cigarettes,…).
I made it with materials that remember me the earth and some embroidery that remind me the ocean, like the portuguese owner likes.




I made it in three different tissues in order to give more contrast to the purse.





Direction L.A.! And some pics...

Today I'm leaving. Direction Los Angeles! I would like to find some crafty shops with some cool ideas. Is anybody out there that has a suggestion to give to me?
I leave Switzerland in the beginning of the Fall…going where the summer is still there! So exited.

Again some pics of Belgium...



..and of Switzerland!





Friday, September 14, 2012

Back to Photos

It has been a long while, a kind of Summer vacation of my mind. I didn't forget about the blog, and I made also several stuff with my sewing machine, but I didn't feel like blogging.
I arrived to the point that I had so many ideas that I didn't know to start with.
But now I just would like come back to the simple things I like to do.
One of them it's taking pictures.

I improved my camera skills and I show you some stuff that I did along the summer.

(Oostende, North Sea, Belgium)




It's time to go back to my projects...and I feel like the Fall gives me always some new inspirations...


Wednesday, August 8, 2012

DEAR CRAFTERS OF ZURICH...

Yesterday something very great for my Blog history-like happened: I had suddenly an enormous (for my point of view, OK, not literally indeed!) amount of visitors! I was telling to my self what is wrong with me, that something weird may have happened if some people were watching suddenly my own page... But after checking my super stats tools on the Blog, I found it out!! :D

Thanks to an idea that was pressing in my mind for a long long while, I realized that the only thing to do when you have a pressing need to do something is...TO DO IT!

And than, here I was, writing to a fancy well-acquainted Zurich's website RON ORP about my idea that pushes to became reality:
It's been already one year and half that I live in Zurich and I had an idea buzzing in my mind while I was sewing, crafting, drawing, collecting stuff, taking pictures, speaking with creative people, trying to sell in a local flea market and reading about that in books blogs and magazines: I want to improve my crafting skills, develop what is maybe better for me and maybe sell my stuff...one day. 
And from that came the idea of the Blog, whom some people manage so well to keep it up that I'm still little embarrassed with doing that on my own, feeling that most of the time NOBODY is reading... :))

But what is especially frustrating is that I don't know anybody here around with the same urgency as me, and what I was really missing it was some people and space. Space to make, space on my job time schedule, space to talk and space to express my self about that. Space to commit with some other crafters!

And after the proposal, some very nice and passionate emails arrived to my mailbox and made me smile, smile and smile. And it is to all of you, CRAFTERS OF ZURICH, that I write to, now!

Dear Antje, Adelina, Veronika, Lourdes and Rahel,

Our project is very simple:

@Let's find a place! Nobody of us want to invest a lot of money, so I made a small research and saw that small crafting-places are not so cheap in our Region (look on homegate.ch to get an idea).
I know also that to bring all the material in one spot is always a bit annoying, especially when some of us make easily some sewing or create objects at home, gathering inspiring materials that surround our home.  I have different solutions to that problem:

1) One of us that has a place to offer. A small room, even without furniture, even a garage, where everybody can have access maybe once or twice per week. A place where everybody put helpful furniture, material and so on, to make this environment more friendly.

2) One of us knows a place to rent. There are plenty of places, offices in Zurich that we can actually rent. But we can also ask to a school or an association, if they help us with our project and ask if they give us a room.

3) Let's meet every time in one of our house. In this case, we cannot bring a lot of stuff, but maybe we focus on talking about the new ideas or focusing in an easy project that we have already started and doesn't need a lot of material to bring with.
We can make a meeting one every two weeks for example - at the beginning it sounds not to stressful and it can give us the time to know better each other.

4) Or we just meet in a bar. I know a place very cool that is nearby the HB. It's called EL LOKAL and we could meet for a drink and speak about our projects. After we can also keep in contact with a common email and I can update our meeting or our "crafting creations" through my Blog, for example. ;)

Anyway what is more important is that we have the same idea and the same fresh and creative spirit.
And that we are here in the same Region. 

LET'S MEET!!!


10 HELPFULL TIPS TO TAKING GREAT PHOTOS

Lately I read an interesting and very inspiring crafter's book which is about how to take great pictures of your own creations! Watching the Blogsphere for a while with its incredible fine and clear pictures makes you understand how much is important to develop great pictures, not just for selling but even for creating a very interesting and inspiring images for others' contemplation.

I found "the Crafter's Guide to Taking Great Photos" in Amazon, after reading very positive reviews... And I can confirm them! Even if you are not a great photographer, but you want to use at best your camera, here you can get super tips! Inside there are a lot of nice photos, and even nice ideas for making new crafting stuff....

Let's sum up the 10 MOST HELPFULL TIPS
suggested by expert crafters which learned how to take really great photos:

1)  Prefer natural, soft lighting and try to take the photos in indirect sunlight whenever possible.

2) A clear background is essential, even if you have to move around some furniture.

3) Natural-looking photographs are always better than excessively vivid colors or overly contrasting tones.
 
4) Use props and furniture to show how a product could be used, and also give the viewer a sense of what style and aesthetic your products are associated with.

5) Shoot with the focal point on the area of the piece that you want to highlight.

6) Make sure that the background is not too busy and that the focal point of your photograph is the product and not a prop.

7) Styling is important but keep it simple. If you have a good product and a good light, you can take a beautiful photograph.

8) Consistency is very important if you have an online shop.

9) Save you digital photos to an external hard disk!

10) And don't forget: Editing! Even the slightest tweak can brighten or sharpen an image.

And if you want to know more about it, go to know Heidi Adnum who lives in the snappy Australian town of Newcastle - We were there last year and even though it was raining, we did an interesting tour and saw nice handmade shops and special live music places.

@@@Have fun with the camera!!
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Saturday, July 28, 2012

Brussel Mijn Schatje

Hei! I'm in Brussels and I actually want to go today a bit outside from my normal subjects and themes. This is an amazing city with amazing people. You can feel at ease on the street even if you didn't have the time to take a shower or you are walking without a real goal. I suggest not to waste to much time in watching the grand place or the Atomium when you are here, but just take the opportunity to know the people. I always feel good here and the reason why I feel so good it's that there is a great bunch of beautiful people. Those are some of them…



 And this is the real protagonist of Brussel: Did you know the famous BELGIAN FRIES ??


Thursday, July 19, 2012

Leather Pochette

Hello! As I promised (to my self ) to post at least once per week, while keeping me up efficient in learning to sew new materials, here I'm with my new leather handbag, or I'd better say "pochette"!
I show you step by step how I made it.




I made it to match with my beige - first and probably last one - Louboutin! And to match with my new orange dress. Let's see if the look can be worn on the next Sunday's friends Wedding. If the weather forecasting doesn't make mistake, we should have a fresh evening. If not I go for the sandals ;)



I made it simple, with soft leather and I like the idea to fold it or keep it under the arm for a more comfortable evening...




Thursday, July 12, 2012

Marine Lavender Bags

I have a big amount of Lavender left from the Wedding's gifts and today I did my first experimental Navy inspired Lavender Bag!


I hope my inspiration doesn't go away with the wind... ;)

Monday, July 9, 2012

Small Bags, Big Bags and Stolen Bags!

HI folk! Right here is my last work. I did 80 small lavender bags for my Wedding guests, gathering pieces of material and fabrics from the last trip: London, Malta and my hometown, Carré, in Italy. I Ordered the fresh seasonal lavender from Provence and attached the card with the date and names. Ah, the writing has been the only duty of my busy Boyfriend. ;)

So this period has been very stressing and full of organizational details. To gather 130 friends and relatives from all around the world and fix and feed them for a weekend, was not very easy. But it was absolutely worth it!!

Friday, when all arrived - try to think of a bunch of students they made parties for an year in Norway and now they see after 3, 5, sometimes 9 years! - was difficult to resist to party all night long; Saturday, after a storm, the weather turned to be perfect. The make up man did an amazing job to hide the signs of tiredness on my face and all the friends surprised us with lectures, videos and so on.
I didn't have such big amount of energy and, come'on, I was under stress until the last minute for arranging here and there small things.. but I was THERE and everybody I care was THERE, so how could I be not happy of the result? :)



Like every worthy adventure, there was also a black mark: a rubbery in the middle of the parking place at the time of the aperitif, where a bag from a Portuguese friend has been stolen. It was on the seat of OUR car, just next to the window, obviously after they have broken it...

The next two days we were in the police with our Portugues friends trying to help them to get their documents back for leaving the Spaghetti Mandolino country.
After then, we all went to the Garda Lake. On Tuesday some other friends reached us - two of them after they have missed the plane. Then, we had never been one day alone!

That was a great honey moon! ;)
Here a bag I made for the summertime....and that I used for the first time in the lake's vacation.


 

Sunday, May 13, 2012

For the mother day, I send this one. The apple is a symbol I've always liked.

Friday, May 11, 2012

Pillows

I made for the first time a cylindrical pillow, with some old fabric and a lot of patience.

The details of the two small ones are matching in a cute way. I wish I had more violet ribbons... I'm gonna make something out with that yellow-brown fabric, for the mother day!

Monday, May 7, 2012

I phone


This is my last mania: Mobile Phone-cases! I tried so many styles and tissues…I made one for fun, the others as presents, but still..
I don't know, I got a bit dazed...and confused!! I need some help: Which one do you like most? Which style should I follow? Which way should I develop more?