The 1st Advent

"Soon it will be Christmas day... " goes one of those classic Christmas songs. And indeed, it will soon be Christmas. Next Sunday is already the 1st advent. And this year, for the first time in the 11 years of living here in Germany, I finally managed to make a round advent wreath, and a week early at that!

I bought the wreath structure made of Nordmann fir and then put in the candles and decorated it with my eldest while my husband looked after the baby. I realized I missed doing crafts with my eldest since it had been a while since we did something handmade together. 

We went for a semi-natural theme, and used what I already have at home from our previous Christmases: cinnamon sticks, pine cones, wood figures, red berries, and repurposed the star ornaments that I usually hang on our Christmas tree. I wasn't able to buy some white ribbons to emphasize the candles. I will be adding them as soon as I purchase some.

So there... We are now ready for the 1st Advent. What do you think of our creation?

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DIY Home Project: Attic Room Renovation

So I mentioned that we will be moving to a new neighborhood soon in the beautiful city of Ludwigsburg. We are kind of excited, there are so many things happening all at once. Well, not really many but with the birth of our 2nd child and then moving into a new home almost at the same time is a lot, right?

Anyway, the official move will be in less then two weeks. The house is in order and one can already move in, but there are some renovations that need to be done to make it look better. One that needed the immediate attention is the attic room that is to become our first child's room. It is a large room, with two large roof windows but the wallpaper is yellowed and outdated, and the carpet flooring is so worn out we just had to do replace them before the daughter moves in.

BEFORE: This was how it looked before the house was turned over to us.

So we started off with peeling the wallpaper. It was quite easy since the adhesive has already dried out and we did a mechanical pre-treatment: we rolled the entire wallpapered areas with a spiked roller to loosen the contact between the wall and the wallpaper. When it wouldn't peel off after this, we used a steam wallpaper remover. It was quick and easy and chemical free and we were able to peel off the wallpapers in just a few hours. Then we filled out small holes with putty and smoothened the uneven surfaces with sand paper. To make the new wallpaper adhere better to the walls, we primed the walls first. 

Peeling off the wallpaper was "easy peasy".

Then we went down to the main business of putting on the wallpaper. We had to be careful when pre-cutting the wallpaper on the areas with sloping roof as it could be too short and all. The wallpaper we used is Vlies-Raufaser (wood chip fleece) from Erfurt. After the wallpaper was installed, we painted it over with white wall paint. Since the room's deck is made of wood, painting the walls white would make the room brighter and airier. We are planning to paint the wood deck white later on but that will be another project. :)

The first daughter putting on adhesive on the walls. 

It is her room after all so she has to help. ;)

The carpet floor has a gray color. It was a challenge looking for a good and reasonably priced carpet floor in the hardware shops but luckily, someone recommended a shop that has a good and affordable selection of carpet floorings among others. 

It was a lot of hardwork, most especially for our handyman (I am not yet allowed to carry out heavy work due to my C-section) and I can say he did a really good job considering that he has no prior training to do such work. I still have to make the AFTER photo though. Will update this post once I get down to it. 

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How To Protect Your Oriental Rug

Oriental rugs represent an investment much like antiques. Like a fine wine, these rugs get better and tend to hold or increase their value over time. Most Oriental rugs are made from durable wool fibers, and a good quality rug will last a lifetime if taken care of properly.

Whether you opt to grace your floors with Nepal bamboo silk or handmade Pakistani rugs, the uniqueness of Oriental rugs can add a touch of cozy elegance to any home. They do require some maintenance, though.

Clean It

To refresh your rug’s surface, use a sponge or cloth and cold water to wipe it down. This helps remove surface dust and restores the fabric. If you have a spill, spot clean at once. Use a dry cloth to dab the stained area. Avoid using soap or other cleaning products at all times. They can damage the rug’s fabric.

Rotate It

If your rug is positioned in an area that gets a lot of traffic, you should rotate it regularly to avoid excessive wear and tear. Rotating your rug can also prevent fading in spots receiving direct sunlight.

Flip It

The fringes on most rugs can easily tangle. If this happens, do not comb out the fringes. This can damage natural fibers. Simply flip over and shake the rug to naturally straighten out the fringe.

Vacuum It

Regularly vacuum your rug. This not only cleans the rug but keeps the fabric from packing down in areas that get a lot of walking. A good vacuuming will restore the rug’s luster.

Hang It

Mold and mildew can form when moisture builds up on your rug. To help prevent this build-up, hang your rug outside for a few hours to let it air out. This also reduces odors that might latch on to the rug. You should do this a couple of times a year.

Oriental rugs are a big investment and should be treated as such. Proper care will help ensure your rug keeps its value over time.

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DIY Baptism Favors

We welcomed another beautiful angel into the Christian family last November. As a little token for the guests of my godson who came to witness his baptism, I made these little glass jars filled with chocolate kisses. I found this great idea featured on Pinterest and proceeded to make something similar to it. Instead of the candles, I put in Hershey's kisses. Yum! :)

The materials are readily available in any craft shop or paper supplies store. The small glass jars (Mini Einmachgläser mit Deckel in German) and Hershey's kisses Cookies and Cream and Milk Chocolate, I bought online (via Amazon) because they are cheaper.

My ever so helpful little girl was also very happy to do her part in cutting, gluing and putting things together. Unfortunately, I lost the photos I made to document how to make these baptism favors on my old Samsung when it went kaputt last month so I only have this single photo of our crafts day. :(

So what do you guys think?

And oh, my little girl's first communion is coming up so I will have another opportunity to do some crafts, specifically on how to decorate your own communion candle. Will be sure to make photos to share with you all.

Until then!

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Handmade Birthday Party Invitation Cards

My little girl is turning 8 soon and she is so excited about it! So last Wednesday, for our "Basteltag" or Crafts Day we started making her birthday party invitation cards. We decided on the slider card because while watching You Tube videos on how to make them, it was very interesting and challenging on my first since it's my first time making one.

Our materials. :)

Gathering up our materials made of glitter board paper, colored paper, gift wrapper, 3D stickers in various motifs, double sided adhesives, scissors, puncher, ribbon band, self-adhesive velvet border, sandwich plastic bag, and our creative and free imagination, we came up with something that is quite elegant and cute at the same time. 

The invitation details were printed on colored paper using a color printer. The little girl wrote the names of her friends on each card and also her name to make it more personalized.

We made 10 invitation cards for her girl friends.

The inside of the cards have different paper colors. We have light blue, rose and pink. The white ribbon band is used to help pull or slide out the two cards that contain the details of the party. I am really glad we did this together. She was very happy about it and can't wait to hand them out to her friends next week. I also think they are cool and cute. How about you, do you like it? Want to know how to make one for a special occassion? I can show you how or I can make one for you. Just comment away!  

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Beads... Lots of Beads

There was a point in my adult life when I had a fascination and inclination for beads. I would pore over various bead designs and collect them. I literally had a horde of bead designs in my hard drive. Unfortunately, I wasn't really able to work on these beading projects because I had no time to do them. I already had my baby then and so it was impossible for me to pursue these projects. I also lack the basic equipment and of course, a collection of beads themselves.

I have wanted to buy and collect stone beads, wooden beads, glass beads and Swarovski Crystal beads in various shapes and sizes when we were still in Japan because there was a hobby shop near our house. When we moved here in Germany, it was at first difficult to find your way around but now that I've been accustomed to the city and found my way around, I now know where I can get them. There is also this Hobby shop that does not only cater to beading but to other hobbies as well so that it is a little haven for someone like me who has a huge interest in anything hand made.

So just wait till I find the time... there will surely be lots of handmade products to create and explore!

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