Happy Easter!

Rabbits soft and cuddly
Baby chickens, too.
Easter eggs for baskets
White and pink and blue.
Easter cards of greeting,
Music in the air,
Lilies just to tell us
It's Easter everywhere.

/Easter Everywhere by JS Bach/

Easter Eggs

The tradition of Easter eggs comes from an old Slavic custom dating back to pagan times. The best known example of them is the Ukrainian pysanka decorated using a wax-resist technique. I wanted to try something different this year, so I created a bunch of decoupaged eggs, applying tiny cutouts from pretty paper napkins to the undyded, white eggs.

Thoughts of a Cuppa

I used to be a coffee drinker, but I am more of a tea lover now. I feel more vigorous and placid since I stopped drinking coffee. Well, not only has tea been shown to have natural stress relieving properties, according to scientists, the act of preparing and brewing also makes us feel better. I like Frisian-style tea the most, i.e. a blend of strong Assam flavored with rock candy and cream, never stirred. The Samowar Tea & Records store in Lüneburg has a great selection of tea, and there is also a little tearoom in the store where one can have a cuppa in a nostalgic, shabby chic ambiance.

Laboe

The Laboe Naval Memorial in Laboe commemorates the sailors of all nations who lost their lives during both World Wars. It is a 85-metre high tower overlooking the Baltic Sea. On a good day (and we had one), you can enjoy a scenic view from the top. There is also a museum about the history of the German navy exhibiting ship models and naval paintings.
At the site, there is also a former German war submarine U-995 that houses a technical museum. The submarine was captured by the allies in 1945 and then it served in the Norwegian navy. Later it was sold for a symbolic price to Germany and became a museum ship in 1971. Inside the submarine, you can see how complex the inner workings are and get an idea what it was like to be a sailor locked in the belly of such a machine. They must have been on edge. Big time.

Wall Art

There are so many options to choose from to dress your walls so selecting the right wall décor can be a tough decision to make. As for me, I went for something self-made. Collages are relatively easy to make and they may just seem a simple form of art craft, their appeal, however, is anything but. Not only do they exude a whimsical quality, they can also be strikingly odd and funny. They offer more flexibility for transforming the original meaning of images and fragments than any other medium. Anybody can do them, making the art of collage the perfect option to show off your creativity and artistic flair.

Stamp Collection

To tell you the truth, I am more of a stamp keeper than a collector. I do not actively seek out limited edition or commemorative stamps to pad out my collection, but I always save the ones being received in our mailbox. I may just use them for a creative project one day.

Here are my favourite crafting ideas to make with postage stamps:
Stamp Bowl by Bombus
Stamped Eggs by Martha Stewart
Gift Tags
Jewellery by Foxglove Accessories

Shrove Tuesday

Today is Shrove Tuesday or Faschingsdienstag as they call it in Germany. I am not going to attend any fancy dress parties, but it's always nice to think back how much I used to enjoy these events as a kid. I even won a prize for best costume as Isaura and a gypsy girl.