Sommer......

Ettersom jeg allerede har forflyttet meg hjemmefra så blir det nå en bloggpause. I skrivende stund er vi i Valdres, men skal også en snartur til Bergen - nærmere bestemt Askøy :o)

Har tatt med meg disapperaing ninepatch teppet og har planer om litt håndquilting ;-D
Så får vi se hvordan det går.....

Har også tatt med meg boken nedenfor, som kom rett før vi dro :o) virker som den har MYE fint i seg!!! Når det kommer til blåskjellene så kunne jeg vel strengt tatt levd på det hele sommeren.......

Ha en riktig god sommer alle sammen!!

klem, Yvonne


Due to the fact that I have already left home for some sunny days with my family, there will now be a blog-break. We will be spending some time here in the mountains and a few days in Bergen......

I have brought with me my ninepatch blanket for some handquilting (*OMG*)
it actually might work......

I have also brought the book above, "white embroidering on white" it seems like it has lots of goodies in it ;-D When it comes to the mussels, I could easily live on that throughout the summer......

I wish you all a great summer!!!

Hugs from Yvonne

Hjemme igjen........

Da er jeg tilbake igjen...... Skjønte at noen, nevner ikke navn, synes at jeg har vært borte litt vel lenge ;-D alltid hyggelig å bli savnet!! Bildet over er fra
NOA NOA i Canterbury - kan trygt si at de tjente penger på oss under oppholdet..... tihi.....

So, home again.... Apparently someone, won't mention name, thought I had been gone a little bit too long ;-D always nice to be missed!! The picture above is from NOA NOA in Canterbury - you can safely assume their income peaked as a result of our frequent visits..... giggle...



Vi besøkte en bitteliten kystby, bare ti minutter unna med bil, som heter Whitstable. Anbefales på det varmeste!! Den er full av bitte små hus og mange av dem som bor her er kunstnere.


We visited a small coastal hamlet, a scarce ten minutes drive away, called Whitstable. Highly recommended!! Filled with adorable little houses, and many of its residents are artists.

De har lange promenader langs med stranden som er en opplevelse i seg selv......

The've got long boardwalks along the beach which is an experience in themselves.

Canterbury er nok mest kjent for denne - katedralen i sentrum av byen. Den er storslagen og takhøyden er en opplevlse i seg selv. Da vi besøkte den hadde i tillegg koret øvelse, DET var en mektig opplevlse :o)


Canterbury is probably most famed for this one - the cathedral which is located in the centre of town. It is magnificent and the ceiling height is an experience in itself. When we were visiting we got an unexpected bonus - the church choir was having rehearsals. THAT was a powerful experience.

Vel, er man en middelaldersk kirkens by - så har man også sin egen heksestol. I denne ble mistenkte, kvinner i hovedsak, bunnet fast og senket ned i kanalen.......resten er historie.....

Every decent medieval church town needs a witch chair. The alleged sorcerer, mainly women, was tied to the chair and lowered into the canal..... and the rest is history....


Her er vår vertinne under oppholdet, Helene og min søster.

Helene, our hostess during our stay, and my sister.

Er man i England er det nesten umulig å ikke besøke ett av de mange slottene som finnes på denne grønne øya....
Vi besøkte Leeds Castle som ligger 30 min unna Canterbury.

If you are in England it is almost impossible not to visit one of the many castles which can be found on this green island.... We visited Leeds Castle located some 30 minutes away from Canterbury.

Selv om slottet er stort, så klarer de å lage intime uteplasser......

Even if the castle is huge, they've managed to make intimate outdoor seating areas.


Labyrint må man også ha....
Slottet har siden ca år 1000 e.kr tilhørt den Engelske kongefamilien, men på slutten av 1920-tallet ble det kjøpt av den 26 år gammle Lady Baillie. Hun pusset det opp og i deler av slottet er det innredet en stor leilighet der hun og hennes familie holdt til når de var der i helgene. Da hun døde i 1974 ble slottet donert til en stiftelse, da ingen i familien villa ha råd til å overta - arveavgiften var nemlig på 80%.....

And what is a castle without its Labyrinth...? The castle has since approximately year 1000 AD belonged to the English Royal Family, but at the end of the 1920s it was bought by the 26 year old Lady Baillie. She refurbished the place, and in parts of the castle one might find a huge apartment where she and her family resided when visiting on the weekends. When she died the castle was donated to a foundation as noone in the family would be able to afford to inherit the place - inheritance tax was at the time at a staggering 80 %....

Vi hadde en fantastisk tur!!

We had an amazing trip!

The Day After.......

Ja, da er nok en 17. mai over - tidenes kaldeste..... Må jo si at bunad var et fantastisk plagg å ha på seg i går. Barn så vel som voksne merket at dagen i går var lang. Så i dag har vi gjort rolige aktiviteter - som å blåse såpebobler, en liten tur ble det også plass til :o)

Well, another National Holiday is over, the coldest in over 50 years - we actually had snow. Our National costume was a the perfect outfit to wear, due to the fact that it is all made of wool. Both children and adults had the need for a slow day today - so making soap bubbles and going for a short walk have been ideal activities :o)

Her er et bilde fra Karl Johan, vår paradegate i all slags vær. Det var mye mennesker til tross for værgudenes manglende samarbeidsvilje... Hørt fra noen turister i det de hev seg inn og ble med barnetoget: "Let's join the Parade..." Bildene under er skolefanen til vår eldste datter...


This is Karl Johan - Oslo's Parade street - in any weather. A lot of people had travelled down town to wach the children's parade despite the weather....The pictures above is the School Standard of our oldest daughter's school.

Vår niese hos sin andre tante, i vår familie er det bunad som gjelder denne dagen, uansett alder...... Vel, det er et par menn som visstnok ikke er helt klare, men jeg har en følelse at de jevnlig blir bearbeidet. Min kjære bærer bunad - som det kun finnes én av!

The family's youngest, our niece with her aunt - National costume for National holiday is a tradition in our family regardless of age.... My husband wears his every year - and yesterday I think he was very greatful for the warmth it provided.............


Vår yngste måtte være hjemme på torsdag pga av omgangssyke, heldigvis var formen på topp igår :o) Pølser og brus ble spist, men isen var det ikke stor interesse for ;-D

Our youngest had to stay home on Thursday due to illness. Luckily she was back in shape yesterday. Soda and hot dogs were all consumed, but ice cream was not on the menu - too cold ;-D


I år ble alle forberedelser ferdig tidlig - ikke egentlig planlagt, mer et resultat av "hjælp, sykt barn - hva gjør jeg med all denne tiden...." Så på få timer var leiligheten rengjort, bunader børstet, skjorter vasket og strøket. "Aldri så galt at det ikke er godt for noe :o)"

Due to being home with a sick child, I had loads of spare time to use, so all my preparations for our National holiday were done in very good time. By the end of Thursday our flat was cleaned, the clothes were brushed and the shirts were washed and ironed.

Ønsker alle en riktig god uke :o)
Wish you all a great week :o)

Så kom hverdagen......

Tusen takk for alle hyggelige bursdagshilsner jeg har fått i påsken :o) Netttilgangen har vært svært begrenset i fjellheimen, men jeg fikk lest kommentarene på mobilen min.... Har heller ikke gjort noen form for håndarbeide, så nå er dere advart ;-D

A hearty thank you for all those wonderful birthday greetings I received in the course of Easter :o). My internet access has been somewhat limited in the mountains, but I managed to read all the comments on my mobile... Nor have I done any form of crafting - you are hereby warned ;-D


Som dere ser fikk jeg veldig mange fine gaver. Gleder meg veldig til å lese bøkene, vel, Franske Stemninger tok jeg for meg i påsken - utrolig fin!!!

As you can see I got a lot of lovely presents. Looking forward to read the books, though I must confess, I read one of them during the holiday, French Moods - absolutely great!!!


Av mannen min fikk jeg nytt kamera!! Hurra!!! Dette er ikke speilrefleks, men veldig nære og ikke minst MYE lettere å bære med seg. Jeg fikk en nyere utgave av det jeg har brukt til nå - og har vært veldig fornøyd med :o) Så jeg håper dette blir bra også :o)

From my dear husband I got this camera!!! I got a newer edition of the one I've been using so far. Hope that this will be as wonderful as the one I've already got :o)


Utrolig glad for denne glasskålen - har tenkt å bruke den til å ha smykker i på badet.....

Very pleased with this glass bowl, will use it for my jewelery....


Denne CD'n ble mixet til MEG av min svigerinne - bare til meg!!! Utrolig snilt og veldig mye bra musikk :o)

This CD contains a mix of music put together just for me - for me!!! by my sister-in law!! A lot of good music on it!!


Vi har tilbrakt påske til fjells, nærmere bestemt Valdres. Som dere ser var det masse sne der og dette var rett FØR det begynte å sne for alvor..... Hadde det veldig fint :o) Jeg gikk til og med på ski ett par ganger - forøvrig vinterens eneste skiturer.

We spent Easter in the mountains, in Valdres. As you can see there was a lot of snow there, and this was before it started to snow for real - for two days straight!!!


Vår eldste var med i det årlige påskeskirennet. Hun stormet frem og var helt utslitt etterpå.... Det var ganske tøft å gå, med bitende vind -8 grader og sne som lavet ned i alle retninger....

Our DD1 particapated in the annual Easter cross-country skiing event. She gave it all she had.... It was a tough experience, with icy wind, -8 degres Celcius and snow coming from everywhere......


Vi fikk også besøk av en uvanlig stor mengde dompapper. Rett før jeg tok bildet satt det 6 stk i treet, men to av dem forsvant..... Flotte var de uansett!!

We were visited by an unuasual amount of bullfinks. Just before I took this picture there were six of them in this tree, but two of them flew away.... beautiful none the less!!


Så var påsken over for denne gang.....
Velkommen tilbake til rutiner og forutsigbarhet.
Det er mange gleder i det også..... Ønsker dere alle en riktig god uke :o)

Easter is over.....
The joys of everyday routines are back, and truly, in that there is a lot to be thankful for.... Wish you all a wonderful week!!


Natt i Valdres....

Valdres by Night......

Happy New Year

Another year zipped by.....

I hope you had as wonderful year as we did, and that the New Year will bring joy and comfort to you all :o)

Best wishes for the New year, sincerely, Yvonne :o)


They say change is a good thing and my home is my castle, so decided to change my Blog and give you my dream Castle..... see you in 2008!

Merry Christmas to you

Whiter shades of grey....
It's truly a winter wonderland out there for the time beeing. Nature looks so peaceful - unchanging, like it can stay this way for all eternity..... It's quite striking and breathtaking - to me anyway!


I am so looking forward till tomorrow, when I get to open these gifts from Carol E.
I'm very excited :o)



This is from the latest Tilda book: "Reindeer on stick". I've made it for a-soon-to-be two year old... Hope he will enjoy it when he is big enough :o)
I think this reindeer turned out quite handsome ;-D


For two little girls I've made these ponchos, they are also from the latest Tilda book :o)



I think the birds turned out quite nice, I tried to make them look a little diffrent, so they can tell the ponchos apart....



An angel dropped by when we decorated our Christmas tree....



Santa is in the house, he sings all the carols while he dances, if we let him....
(he has a little button on his back.....) DD1 has never liked him, too noisy, DD2 loves noise, she thinks he is great fun....


To all my friends in blogland, best wishes for the holiday....
I'm truly greatful for knowing you.

A bit of everything.....

One of the few sunsets this season, the boat belongs to my in-laws...

This has been a strange summer...... Nothing like the summer I expected; long days in the sun, taking the girls to the park, ice cream, sewing when the girls were playing, going to the mountains, go camping - just spending time together..... We did spend time together - way too much of it...... Is it possible to get a Disney overdose???

I have managed to get a little sewing done, but it has been slow.... These are the three first blocks of my summer project. I'm almost finished with the fourth also... ;-D This is English paperpiecing, so it's learning by doing - man, I'm learning these days!!!

My handsewing in detail.... as I said learning by doing.... I really enjoy sitting with it, but my attention has been very divided. There has been birthdays to bake for and cardmaking for a friend...

My three year old wanted a chocolate bear cake, so I made one. It was a big hit with the other children at the birthday party as well. My friend had her birhday early in July, so I made her a card to go with her gifts.... Proud to announce that I have recruited another member for the quilting community. She got a bundle of fabric, and has already made a table runner and want to do some paperpiecing after seeing my summer project - fun, fun, fun!!

This is a domestic project I finshed today. The fabric was too stiff to be used as a towel alone, so I lined it with thin towel fabric, very pleased with it. The mitten for barbecuing was a bit tricky, but I managed :O) I really enjoy the fabric, the pattern is wonderful, the red and white gives a calm soothing feeling.

Our three year old needs a new bed, and this is an old bed we were given some years ago from a childless neighbour. It will fit her perfectly, she can climb into bed herself, that will put a smile on her face :O) The blanket in the bed is one of my UFO's. I will finish as soon as possible and make it for her. There has to bee some child elements on it, her favourite is Winnie the Pooh. So a bit of application and stitchery will do wonders.....

These are interior details from my sister's house...... My sister is rather busy in the interior department and I enjoy her style. Love this tin platter with all the different candle holders..... The chandelier is beautiful, and with the wallpaper it really makes the room. Me, on the other hand, I clean up after my children and if it is tidy for a while, I read magazines on the matter and dream of living in a New England styled house....

So until next time, enjoy!!! :-D

Karate, rain and a bit of sewing....

Hero by day - hero by night. That was the camp motto.
So whatever we did during the day, had to be at a level that made it possible to be sociable by night. On the other hand, the evening social life couldn't intervene with the daily activities, so when the session began - you were there...


We stayed at Fredtun Folkehøyskole, in Stavern in the south-east of Norway.


We did have a lot of fun - and very sore muscles. Didn't get bruised, but I did get in close contact with the floor on several occasions..... There are no pictures of me from this camp, since I tend to hold the camera.....


This is my sister going for her green belt. She and the three others from our class did perform a strong grading, and they all got their green belts :O)



Karate is a sport that gives you more than just a way of excersising, it's a way of life. The syllabus gives you something to reach for, and then a higher grade will come to you when you are ready.......

I didn't get any sewing done while I was away. When I wasn't training or eating, I was sleeping..... 2 times 1 1/2 hour activity four days in a row makes you go for all the sleep and rest you can get. Beeing social was part of the program, so no extra rest for the wicked....



I managed to sew this last night - it went very slowly.... I should be able to sew one block on an evening......


Since my return on Sunday evening it has been raining. On Monday we stayed inside and had a home-movie-day. Yesterday we got dressed and went out in the rain... It was quite refreshing......

I must say I am in awe of mother nature. Even on a bad day, she tends to be outstanding.


It gives a feeling of tranquility and ease. You can loose yourself to it and it will fulfill you.... It's a place to rest the mind and the eyes.....

When we got home and out of the soaked clothes, I put these in the oven. Getting dragged outside in bad and wet weather by you parents, there has to be something to look forward to. They got hot coco and buns for lunch :o)

I hope you all have a good holiday in spite of the weather, or maybe because of it.......


Lots of love to you all!!

National Holiday

On May 17th we celebrate our independence day. After centuries of being under Danish and then Swedish rule, we declared our independence in 1814, but we did not become a free nation until 1905.

Today we celebrate this day with children's parades, brassbands and our naitional flag. Everyone dress up in their finest, those who own national costumes wear them on this day, it's a spectacular view of colours. This was first done in 1870.

My children wore Rutastakk, which is from Valdres, where we have our cabin. They were made by their grandmother.


I sewed my costume in 1996. It's does not have a geographical origin, but is inspired by many of the traditional costumes we have and is called Norwegian Folkcostume

In 2004 I made this costume for my husband. This one does not exist at all, I made it to match mine. I had to make it from scratch with no instructions or pattern, only my own idea on how I wanted it to look. He has received lots of positive comments and compliments on its design. Many think it originated from Hallingdal, I take that as a big compliment.

Wonderful Copenhagen

Earlier this month my sister and I went to Copenhagen. Living in Oslo, going there is the simplest thing in the world; you just take the tube down town and walk on to the ship - recommendable.

My gorgeous sister and me......

The trip is a mini cruise; the boat leaves at 5 in the afternoon and arrives in Copenhagen the next morning at 9. You then have 7 hours to spend on shore, after which the boat departs for Oslo at 5 in the afternoon again. We had lovely weather and ended up in a part of Copenhagen called " Nyhavn". Rows of restaurants at the canal waterfront, so we had lunch....

Denmark is famous for its hospitality and design. Shopping is a "must" when visiting Copenhagen, and this time we managed not to spend a fortune as the sun was too bright to stay inside.

We had a lovely time on this trip, as much to do with the good weather, as to tasty food and beverages. To get away from everyday life once in a while is a real energy booster. B-)

THE END