Violet presents: Monsieur Tobias

Weten jullie nog wie ik ben? Ik ben Violet en woon nu ongeveer een jaartje hier. Daarvoor woonde ik een korte tijd bij Marja van Rosabear, die mij, het moet maar gezegd, gemaakt heeft. Ik heb het naar mijn zin hier, het is wel eens stoffig en ik mag niet teveel tegen LiLi praten als ze achter haar pc zit, maar verder is het ok.

Bonjour mes copines from all over the world!
Remember me? My name is Violet and I joined LiLi's household about a year ago. Before that I lived a short time with my creator Rosabear's Marja.
It's nice here, sometimes a little dusty...I can see LiLi quite a lot, as she is sitting here in this room too, behind her computer, but she doesn't say much though, she is always shshshshing. She tells me to be quiet otherwise she cannot think in English...Pfffffff...

So today I was filled with soooo much joy to see that there was a companion for me in the house! Yess!

Ik was toch zo blij toen ik vandaag ontdekte dat deze knappe kerel helemaal uit Canada was komen vliegen. Zijn naam is Monsieur Tobias en wat is hij knap hè? Ongelooflijk dat Margaret Bouwmeester van the French Bear hem gemaakt heeft en het is nog moeilijker te geloven dat LiLi hem zomaar gewonnen heeft!
Well look at this handsome guy! He comes all the way from Canada! He talks French to me girls, ohlalala! I was melting straight away, you can imagine that! He said he would like to be called Monsieur Tobias. Jaaaah (yes in dutch) Tobiaaaa (pronounced the southern european way). Sigh...


Ik geloof dat ik verliefd ben... zucht....en LiLi ook!
Ooohhhh I think I am in love!
No! I am sure of that!
He is still recovering from his journey, you know that this lady put him in an envelope???!!!
Dear Margaret Bouwmeester of the French Bear, would you believe that I am not mad with you?
On the contrary, I am so grateful...and happy! And LiLi?
I think she is in love too, she smiles all day and takes Monsieur Tobias up and then she puts him down again, takes him up again and smiles at us. I can see she is very happy too.
Alright, not only did Margaret put him in an envelope, she creates this guy, now isn't that a miracle or what?
We both want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts, Margaret, to bring Mr. Tobias into our lives.

I think this is friendship for life Margaret! What do you think Marja?
Thanks for being so generous, to share your talents.

September is European heritage month. I am not sure about all European countries but here in the Netherlands, as well as in Belgium and Germany this weekend is 'open monument' weekend. Do take your chance to visit one of the monuments that are open for public on this occasion. Here in Dordrecht you can visit 50 monuments tomorrow, some of them are private houses, so grab your chance to peek inside!

Vergeten jullie niet dat het dit weekend open monumenten weekend is? Hier in Dordrecht zijn 50 monumenten geopend, waaronder particuliere woonhuizen, heerlijk binnen neuzen dus! Bijvoorbeeld in Huis de Onbeschaamde.
Who doesn't want to peek inside this house? One of Dordrecht's most famous houses 'huis de onbeschaamde' = 'house the shameless'. If you don't understand, just click the photo.


Here the backside of our city hall, which is open too tomorrow. If you go there do visit the attic and the prison over there. Have a great weekend, wherever you are and whatever you do.
Thanks for visiting us, also on behalf of Mr. Tobias, xoxo LiLi M.

Maar wat je ook doet en waar je ook bent, ik wens je een heel fijn weekend, bedankt voor je bezoek weer namens iedereen hier, maar speciaal namens Mr. Tobias en mij,
xoxo LiLi M.

Support the breast cancer foundation!

Sorry, I kept you waiting. This was just one of those weeks. There wasn't a day without a visit to the dentist, the 'eye'doctor, the one who puts braces in our childrens' mouths and so on. On top of that I had my first cystitis (of course a word from the dictionary; an inflamation of the bladder). But I'm ok now! (thanks Stacey for your inquiry) 

There was the Sweet and Sinister swap to be finished:

This package is on it's way to Wanda.

You want to peek inside?

That's it folks! It has to be a surprise to Wanda!

It was raining cats and dogs here all week. We think that is fall...

Okay I have promised you a giveaway. I was in doubt all week. What would I give away that would appeal to everybody? Well let me think a while and I'm giving away a special appetizer now. A kind of a teaser. But one of major importance:
As October is breast cancer awareness month, I have bought three little lucky bracelets to support the dutch cancer foundation, that mainly supports research to cancer.

Thanks to research breast cancer doens't always mean 'the end' but we can still do better. Here in the Netherlands this year there is special attention for the emotional problems that occur when having or surviving breast cancer. Please support Pink Ribbon in your country. And don't forget: it's important to do your self search every month. Early discovery increases the chances of curing this disease.

Just give a comment on this post and maybe you win this lucky bracelet to support the dutch cancer foundation. For every comment I will donate one euro to the KWF, the dutch cancer foundation, so don't be shy, though I will count every person once. I will draw a winner October 9th 10.00 h pm CET.
I'll come back as soon as possible with another give away. October at LiLi's is going to be a give away month!
Before I forget: please visit the button floozies' give away too, the more visitors, the more money is going to the american breast cancer foundation.

Je hebt van die weken...dan kom je gewoon niet aan bloggen toe. Tandarts, opticien, othodontist en ga nog maar eventjes door en dan ook nog eens voor de eerste keer in mijn leven een blaasontsteking, terwijl ik net zo goed zonder kon.
Wel heb ik de Sweet and Sinister swap op tijd naar Wanda gestuurd.
Tjsa en dan had ik jullie natuurlijk een weggevertje beloofd, maar tussen de bedrijven door zat ik steeds maar te twijfelen. Wat vindt nou iedereen leuk? We hebben de grijs club en de glitter club en ga zo maar door, dus ik wil er nog even over denken, maar ik ga natuurlijk niet eindigen zonder give away. Een soort aperitiefje, maar dan zeker zo belangrijk als het hoofdgerecht.

Het is oktober, dus extra aandacht voor borstkanker.
Daarom heb ik 3 armbandjes gekocht om het KWF te ondersteunen. Het KWF doet voornamelijk onderzoek naar voorkoming van kanker. Maar dit jaar gaat de aandacht in het geval van borstkanker vooral uit naar de gevolgen op emotioneel/psychisch gebied.
Je kunt zo'n armbandje winnen door een commentaar te geven. Voor ieder individu dat commentaar geeft, geef ik 1 euro aan het KWF. Op 9 oktober om 22.00 uur doe ik de 'trekking'.
Vergeten jullie niet om iedere maand jezelf te onderzoeken? Het is niet te hopen maar als er dan toch iets is geldt: hoe eerder je erbij bent, hoe beter.

Met een bezoekje aan de Button floozies, zie button aan de zijkant, steun je de Amerikaanse breastcancer foundation. 

Wait a minute Mr. Postman!

Hi all!

As I told you in my last post, I'm going to dedicate this post to our best friends; the postmen and -women of the world. A little while ago I needed some cooperation of somebody and of course Mr. Postman helped me!
My hubby told me lately; Hey LiLi, here is some news that's seriously going to affect you, hahaha! He meant a news message about the dutch postmen who are negotiating about their jobs and salaries at this moment and of course they were threatening to strike (and actually did yesterday in the Hague). Ok, you can go on strike for one day...but that's it guys!

Maar even een korte Nederlandse vertaling/samenvatting erbij. Ik denk naar aanleiding van de reacties, dat daar toch behoefte aan is.
Deze blogpost wordt opgedragen aan alle postbodes ter wereld!

We all love to send and to receive mail, don't we? Oh, when you pick up your mail and you see one or two handwritten envelopes, it just makes our day! Here in the Netherlands there is one postman for the regular mail, which fits through the slit of your letterbox and another mailman who drops the packages. Of course we only 'know' the latter. Have you ever seen this:

The parcelman writes his name on our parcels, delivered by Wim, I like that! Or he leaves his phonenumber, in case you weren't at home, so you can call him to drop the parcel at a convenient time. Since Wim I never have to wait until the other day and going to the postoffice myself to collect a parcel! No mailman like Wim! The only thing that Wim still has to learn is not to write my house number on the front of a beautiful package, but otherwise Wim, you do a terrific job!
Je gelooft je ogen toch niet...mijn postbode (die de pakjes brengt) zet zijn naam op de pakjes. Wim! Of hij laat zijn telefoon nummer achter zodat je hem kunt bellen wanneer hij dan wel welkom is met zijn pakje. Sinds Wim ben ik geen een keer meer op het postkantoor geweest om een pakje op te halen. Geweldig Wim, je moet alleen nog leren dat je niet mijn huisnummer bovenop een prachtig pakket moet schrijven, maar verder gaat het heel goed met Wim.

Let's see what Wim delivered this week...
I received two prices from bloggers:
Even laten zien wat Wim deze week bezorgd heeft;


Ik heb 2 blogprijzen gewonnen, yes!
Lovely wrapped parcel...Lucky me!



And inside this beautiful heart made by Jeanette
Prachtig pakje met mooie inhoud gemaakt door Jeanette


I received this from Jeanette, who had a celebration over at her blog that she finally made the decision to go on with one blog only. I told her that I could hardly manage one blog and a household, so that would probably be a wise decision. Do you believe this heart is just one of the consolation prices? I love it. And that beautiful wrapping of handmade paper was soo nice.

Earlier this week, the bell rang like there was a huge fire outside; ding-dongding-dong dingdong ding! Oh, that must be Wim, he does that all the time when he wants to deliver a package. It was a box from Lori. I was the lucky winner of her fabulous 'one year blogger' give away. Now I have to admit that sometimes I get so excited when I receive such a parcel that I totally forget to take picture of the wrapped packages. Or worse; I think (mmm is think the right word? no much worse: I was positive) that I took pictures of those beautifully wrapped parcels....but apparantly I did not. But I saved the wrapping paper and the seam bindings...


En dit won ik ter gelegenheid van het 1-jarig bestaan van Lori's blog!
Wat ontzettend mooi gemaakt allemaal!

This was some give away huh?? Feeling jealous? Ha! I just know you are!
Some close ups to make this feeling last a little longer...



What an artist Lori is! This wallhanger coordinates so well with the colorscheme in my little studio, though I have to tell you honestly that one can hardly see a colorscheme whatsoever in that messy room!
I love its contents too, the lovely cabinetpicture, the cute bunny card, the smelling tag...it actually smells of vanilla coffee, I love it! oh and did you see those vintage velvet leaves??



Another close up: the gorgeous bird. Of course with party hat. I just love it. Look how well it coordinates with the bird box I received from Elizabeth on Valentines day!



And another close up; the bon bon cup filled with beautiful white buttons, the ledger paper labels, I love them!



Don't forget to look inside the artists ledger paper box, the bunnies have just escaped, but the spools with more vintage ribbons and seam binds and millinery flowers are still inside. Have I mentioned everything? I love it all!!

Sometimes, in fact I have to admit sometimes is almost always, I am a very spoilt girl. But I enjoy it!!
Last week a received another parcel and a lovely card from Marloes aka Tante Tee


En kijk eens wat onze opper Picasa girl Marloes aka Tante Tee mij stuurde.
Wat is het toch een attente meid. Naar aanleiding van mijn blogpost over poppen verzamelen kocht ze zomaar dit boek voor mij bij de kringloop en stuurde het gewoon op als een verrassing. Nou dat was het ook!! Ik heb haar een aardigheidje terug gestuurd, maar omdat ik weer eens 60 dingen tegelijk deed, ben ik vergeten postzegels op de envelop te plakken...het moet niet gekker worden. Maar ik draag natuurlijk niet voor niets deze post op aan alle postbodes ter wereld. Jullie kunnen nu mooi eens laten zien wat jullie waard zijn!

When she was in the thriftshop she saw this book and remembered my little doll collection as shown in Show and Tell Sunday. So she just picked up that book and sent it to me, how sweet of you Marloes. I have sent you something in return, which might not arrive as I forgot to stick stamps on the envelope...but I'm trying to influence the post service by this blog post ;-).
Just show them how right I am with this post ladies and gentlemen of TNT!


Van Picasa girl Evelyn kreeg ik zomaar een hele stapel Kings and Queens dozen toegestuurd, dit naar aanleiding van mijn post over gratis en voor niets (klik this kind of trash aan). Hartstikke bedankt Evelyn. Natuurlijk komen ze in mijn knutselkamertje...maar nu nog even niet....
And one of the Picasa ladies, Evelyn, sent me this entire pile of Kings and Queens boxes after she read here that I collect this kind of trash. I still have to fold the boxes Evelyn, but you know I have to wait until I have enough time to rearrange everything in my little studio and then it will be such a beautiful sight all these pink boxes instead of all different shoe boxes...thank you very much!


En dan is het ook eens hoog tijd dat ik aandacht besteed aan de ATC die ik van Elly kreeg. Ik was natuurlijk van plan om gelijk ook ATC's te gaan maken en die vanaf deze plek ook weg te gaan geven, net als Elly. Het is er helaas nog niet van gekomen, maar binnen een paar weekjes....dan...en dan krijgt deze ATC wel de hoofdrol die hij verdient! Nog even geduld Elly, maar ik wilde je nu toch eens eindelijk vanaf deze plek bedanken.
And this was beautifully wrapped in my mailbox several weeks ago. It's an ATC from Elly. I was thrilled to receive this and I was planning to continue the ATC-chain and make a blogpost with my self made ATC's too, but I haven't made any yet :-(. But I will, in a couple of weeks.
In that post your ATC will be starring again Elly and that wrapping too.
It just takes too much time now and I thought your lovely ATC deserved a place in this post too. Thanks again.

Not only did I receive there was some serious swapping too;
first of all: the miniswaps with both Beth and Karla.

en dan waren er de miniswaps met Beth en Karla
Op de foto's zie je wat ik van beide dames kreeg. Wat ik terugstuurde staat in Karla's blog.
After the first show and tell on buttons, Beth and I decided to swap; she liked my large linen button cards and I was in love with those lovely american little button cards with pictures and buttons. And while discussing, we decided to make a nice ephimera swap too.
Just look what she has sent me: buttoncards and vintage valentines and other greeting cards. In the Netherlands there are no vintage valentines, as Valentine is only celebrated since the last couple of years.



And american vintage wallpaper (I was soooo looking forward to have one single piece of that)! Btw the postman valentine card on top of this blogmessage was sent by Beth too.



And this was what Karla sent me.
And inside:



Postcards and a lot of millinery flowers, which are so hard to come by over here.
And in return I both send them this. And of course I have send Beth also the button cards.
Now I just heard that Beth's envelope hasn't arrived yet. Well it better arrive soon, Mr. US mailman, otherwise I have to take back my words and compliments in this post (except for Wim of course)!
Mmm nu hoorde ik net van Beth dat haar swap nog steeds niet was aangekomen...Nou mister us postbode zorg er maar eens snel voor dat dat pakje wel aankomt. Anders zie ik mij gedwongen om al mijn positieve woorden over postbodes terug te nemen, met uitzondering van mijn positieve woorden over Wim natuurlijk!


Dit zijn de pakjes voor de junque in mijn trunkswap. Benieuwd wat er in zit? Dan moet je here kijken! (here=hier natuurlijk)
Another swap was Junque in your trunk. It isn't completed yet, but when it is, I dedicate an entire post to it. In the mean time you can watch what was in these parcels over here.



I have had some price winners too at my blog. First Wil who won two hair clip cards. But I decided to make a personalized portfolio for her, filled with ephimera, similar to the swap with Beth and Karla. Wil didn't have a blog at that time, but now she has. When you visit her beautiful blog please say 'Hi' from me, and apologize from me as well... Sorry, Wil, I have stolen your pictures from Picasa, as I forgot to take a few before mailing my own creations....

Ik had ook wat prijswinnaars op mijn blog. Het is al even geleden...we beginnen bij Wil, die tegenwoordig haar eigen blog heeft. Vergeet haar niet even te bezoeken en zeg dan gelijk tegen haar dat het mij spijt dat ik haar foto's van Picasa gejat heb...Ik was nl. zelf vergeten foto's te nemen, bedankt Wil! Wil won een gevulde portfolio die ik speciaal voor haar gemaakt en samengesteld had. En wat oude knoopjes.




With the portfolio I have added some vintage buttons.




And there was a February give away too. Linnea Maria won a victorian pop up card made by me. But I decided to design a pop up especially for her in her scandinavian 'french ruin' style. You can see all that I have send here.



Ok I'll show another one here too...
In februari won Linnea Maria een door mij zelfgemaakte victoriaanse pop up kaart. Ik besloot er speciaal voor haar in de scandinavische stijl een te maken. En als je dan toch bezig bent...
Je kunt here zien wat ik haar gestuurd heb. Here is weer hier...tsjonge wat heb ik me weer op de hals gehaald met de nederlandse vertaling van deze blogpost met ontelbare linken!!!


another proof that I'm not always behind my computer...
I made this kind of an art journal, it really is a note book to write what you need from the grocery store and other things that easily slip the mind. It was a present for my aunt, just because.


Backside
Nog een bewijs dat ik toch niet altijd achter de pc zit;
voor mijn suikertante maakte ik dit 'art journal' nou ja het is gewoon een opschrijfboekje. Mijn tante wordt 80 dit jaar en is pas weduwe geworden. Moeilijk om iets voor haar te bedenken waar je haar echt een plezier mee doet. Daarom maak ik meestal speciaal iets voor haar, dan kan ze in ieder geval zien dat er tijd en aandacht aan besteed is.



Two tags I have made. One has gone to Germany another one to a Picasa girl in hospital.
Ook altijd leuk om te doen; tags maken. De linker is naar de zieke picasa girl Katja/Hélène gestuurd, de rechter was toen al in Duitsland gearriveerd.

Sending and receiving its both nice. But sometimes you are just overwhelmed that some people are so generous. I have mentioned this before but I'm going to end this post with a card I received from Michèle. She just send me a lot of lovely goodies. Just because she knew I would like them. I was so impressed by that gift. Not only because I was happy to receive buttons and other things I can not easily buy over here, but that a blogfriend just has made an effort to please someone else, in this case me. Sometimes people say that no one cares about each other anymore. Well we in blogland know that there is a very positive and caring feminin vibe going on. I'm so happy and proud to take part in it.

Iedereen vindt het leuk om pakjes te ontvangen. Wat mij opvalt is dat er ontzettend veel vrouwen actief zijn op het internet die het ook ontzettend leuk vinden om dingen te geven.
Daarom eindig ik met de kaart die ik 'zomaar' met een aantal hele mooie knopen en knopenkaarten van Michèle kreeg. Ik was er zo blij mee, niet alleen omdat die knopen en die kaarten die zij stuurde hier nauwelijks te krijgen zijn, maar omdat ze de moeite had genomen om zomaar, belangeloos iemand, toevallig en gelukkig was ik dat, te plezieren. In tegenstelling tot wat tegenwoordig vaak gezegd wordt dat iedereen alleen nog maar aan zichzelf denkt, weten we in blogland allemaal dat er een hele positieve stroming is waarbij vrouwen wel om elkaar geven en aan elkaar denken. Ik beschouw mezelf als een gelukkig mens dat ik hiervan deel uit maak en ik ben er ook nog eens trots op!

One of the cards that was in the button package from Michèle.

And the winner is...

Today we are going to find out who the winner is of that awesome Cath Kidston book. I' ve made little papers with the 45 participants. 44 girls and one guy. A few of them haven't commented my blog here, but they used the picasa-forum (about 6) or gave comment in my personal mailbox (about 3). My roommate Eugene, who should be changing hats this moment, as he always does twice a year, has lent me his top hat before changing it with his summer Maurice Chevalier hat. Thanks for cooperation Eugene!


*Eugene with summer hat.


*Eugene's winter hat

Another roommate, Cecile, is insisting on being a member of the jury, so you all know it's going to be a fair drawing.
Now there could be the sound of drums, but I was planning to make it an illusionists' show, so were having Carl Orff (Carmina Burana) in the background. I don't think disappearing and appearing of that hat does show well in photo's, however ;-))




And now for the moment of truth the winner is: (you are listening to the choirs in the Carmina Burana right now):







Elizabeth ( Sweet roses and vintage chique)!! (http://sweetrosesandvintagechic.blogspot.com)
I don't know if anybody can read this! Just click on the image!

Ah she deserves it!! Congratulations Elizabeth!

Ok that's that. Tomorrow I will publish a post about flea-market finds. Thanks for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!

Girls on wheels...

Hello everybody out there!

Just want to say that I was thrilled to receive so many happy birthday-wishes, thanks! Of course everybody joins the give away. Comments given from October 8th until Sunday October 21st will take part in the drawing, which will be on Monday October 22nd. As I told you before you can win Cath Kidstons In print in dutch translation 'Dessins'.




























Why giving away such a beautiful book? Well, I have got 2! Bought one myself several months ago and received the other one as a reward from the dutch home decorating magazine Ariadne. They featured my Holland trolley about two months ago.

When I go to fleemarkets I always take my trolley with me. I know there are people who insist on never using such a cart with wheels, well if you want to go early to a flee market and really want to buy some bargains, you just need a cart like this. Period. Simple. But they are a bit granny-like and do not quite match with my self-image. So I had to revamp my trolley. I decided to go dutch,



using Delft tile fabric and lots of china 'wooden' shoes. When I was finished I was very happy with my LiLi-like cart. I'm not a very modest person, so I can say freely that this cart is in general quite a succes. People in the street, in the train or on a terrace are asking me about the cart; did you make this yourself, do you sell them etc.? Yes, I have told my husband that its a kind of 'babe'-magnet, even younger male persons inform about this trolley. So you don't need that little dog anymore to contact attractive persons of the opposite sex, mmmm I'm getting a little bit off topic now.

The other day I met S., who was interested in the trolley as well, perhaps I could customize a rollator for her Mother, who refused to use one. So on a Friday morning I visited S. and her mother Jenny. Well, Jenny was quite clear. Nope, she wouldn't use a rollator. Rollators are stupid. You can watch for yourself. Walking behind a rollator makes your bottom stick outside, your arms go too wide and even your face gets a widened look. Jenny demonstrated a woman behind a rollator to us. She convinced me immediately. Jenny definitely was a no-rollator person. But how to do your shopping the easy way? Jenny figured out for herself that a buggy (the one you could use to transport a toddler) was far more better than a rollator. The disadvantage of being told:'you've lost your baby, ma'am', didn't seem to hurt her very much. Nor nicknames that were given to her. I have to tell you that I like that attitude.
So we decided that I would make a bag to fit in the buggy and this is the result:



The burberry-look Jenny-cart.

And now for some details:



I have adjusted this flap filled with marbles to the bigger flap, so it will stay open or closed, just like you want it to be. The wind will not be able to blow the flap away. The 'have a good day' tag comes from an Arrow shirt, that once belonged to my husband. I like that, things that say have a good day to you. I hope Jenny does too.



On the flaps there are kiltpins with golden coins and pearls, just as lady-like as Jenny.



Of course you cannot warm your hands in your pockets while you are walking with the Jenny-o-bile. So a pair of matching gloves is included.



The Jenny-mobile has a secret compartment. Of course it's better not to put your wallet in this cart. But when you have to, use the secret compartment, which I will not reveil here. It's better to use the little purse that is peeking just behind the gloves, on the picture. You can put the little purse on your neck, put your valuables in there and put it under your coat/clothes.

This weekend is Jenny's 81st birthday and the Jenny-cart will be given to her by her daughter. It was fun to work on and I'm very curious what Jenny will think about it.
When we met Jenny and I had a click immediately. Is it because we are both Libra? Or did we met somewhere before?
Age is only a number, concerning to me. Being young isn't about looks, it's about state of mind.
Of course sometimes your body dictates you things you don't like, but which fit with your age. Like using something to lean on, when you go shopping. But in our minds we are young or old people, regardless of age. The dutch historian Annie Romein once said: there are old old cows and young old cows. (translation by me).
I guess I should end to say that Jenny is an old young cow, but off course I won't do that, it would be quite impolite!
No, I just say happy birthday Jenny and many happy returns! Hope you will enjoy your Jenny-cart.

Stay young everybody!