Irish Blessing

This is so totally and uniquely beautiful, I had to share it here with you especially today being St.Patrick's Day.
Do not be put off by the first part which you and I may not understand although it still sounds so soothing. I am sure you will want to listen to this more times than just once.


The Song comes from the CD "Healing Angel" By Roma Downey (Monica in Touched by an Angel), with music by Phil Coulter.

Hyacinths in bloom

Above is a picture of one of my hyacinths ready to bloom...

and here is one in bloom. I have never taken care of hyacinths before and I think they are beautiful flowers. The bulbs will bloom in future seasons with proper care. I have done some research on the net to learn more about the bulbs and the lovely flowers they produce. Funnily enough on the first page I found an article about Hyacinth Bucket (which she pronounces as Bouquet), the character portrayed by Katherine Patricia Routledge in Keeping Up Appearances. We always enjoyed that show and its re-runs : )

My husband bought me these three bulbs in a basket which I am keeping in my kitchen for the time being since there is good lighting there but I may transfer it to another room later on. Hmm, maybe I could use the flowers in full bloom for 'one of my Candlelight suppers' as Mrs Bucket would say LOL!

P.S. Sorry about the picture not being very clear.

Artisans Market Valletta ~ March 6th 2010

It started off as a dull grey day with clouds promising rain, but my husband and I along with our son ventured out early and were in St.Georges Square by 8am. No tables had been set up as yet and we chose the spot that was actually the same one as I had during the Christmas Fair.

It was quite a chilly morning but we definitely prefer it to a hot day.
As soon as the set-ups, tables and chairs arrived and were duly distributed to the waiting artisans, everyone was happy to have their crafts displayed and set up so that by around 9am the market was set to go! We were by now happy to enjoy a cup of take-away steaming coffee while we waited for the crowds to arrive.
The turnout was pretty good, quite a good number of tourists as well as locals attended so it was a busy scene. One of my first sales was a decoupaged tealight my daughter helped me with and when she joined us later, she was happy to know it was sold although I secretly know the feeling of not wanting to part with something you made!

The above collage is made up of pictures my son took of my craft display and the one below (pics I took) shows the different trades and crafts that were taking part. Although sales were not as good as our Christmas Fair, yet I thoroughly enjoyed the experience especially getting to know the other artisans there.

We were very lucky that it did not rain, thank God, and around mid-day the sun came out and it was quite hot for about an hour or so! So with favourable weather, my family to help out, new friends, nice comments by people who appreciate handmade products as well as having the opportunity to sell my own crafts, what more could I ask?

I would like to thank the team at Malta Crafts Council for their continued help and support and for giving us the opportunity to display and sell our handiwork.

Pictures

1a Filigree craftsperson

1b Filigree Jewellery display

2 Fabric weaving machine or loom

3 Ceramic Jewellery

4 Natural Handmade soap

5 Ceramics

6 Qubbajt (Maltese nougat)

7 Maltese honey and wax products (incl. a real beehive with bees)

8 Local artist's paintings

9 Basket weaver with his raffia products

10 Some of my glass products & you can also see one of (my sister) Sue's handmade frames.

The day really ended well for when we got home I found mail from the Crafts Council inviting us once more to take part in Fairs that will be organized in different towns and villages around the island so I guess I'm going to be busy, busy once more!

Flat Stanley visits my Craftroom

I have had an important visitor this week...Flat Stanley has travelled over the Big Pond to visit Malta and my family and he was sent on this great adventure by a very special young boy whose name is Matthew and whose Grandma is an online crafting friend of mine. Flat Stanley has visited my crafting room and with a little help (since the brush was almost as big as he is), he has also helped with decoupaging my glass products in readiness for a CraftFair this weekend.

We are working on a journal and some more pictures for Matthew's school project...what a great way to study...I wish we had teachers who thought of teaching this way back in my schooldays!

Flat Stanley is a great little 'boy', very well behaved and I thank Matthew for letting me help in this great project!

My First Christmas Artisans' Market

I am a little late in posting this I know but hey, better late than never, right : )

Above you can see my craft table at my very first Artisan's Market. This was a special occasion organised by the Malta Council of Crafts and which took place in the newly opened and renovated St George's Square opposite the Palace in Valletta.

These are pasta shell angel ornaments I made as Christmas tree decorations...some had magnets attached to the back to be used as fridge magnets and others had pins to be worn as brooches. At the back you can see my hand painted goblet candle holders.

Here you can see the angels again alongside my decoupaged Christmas plates.

In this last picture are some of my other angels and some decoupaged tealights.

We had to be there rather early to set up and the day started off being rather windy but soon the sun was out (as you can see from the pictures) and it turned into a beautiful day, sales were very good and my family was there to help out so it was really a fruitful and enjoyable day!

P.S. You can click on these photos for a larger image, you can also read the poem that I wrote to go with the pasta angels.

A Special Valentine's Gift from God

This is a bookmark/tag shared by a friend some time ago.

It is so beautiful, I thought of sharing it

with you all here.

Have a lovely Valentine's Day filled with God's love.

I'm back again and hope to stay...

I can't believe I have not posted since the beginning of January! And we are almost mid-February! For one thing I have been busy with family, crafting, putting Christmas decorations away and for the longest time it seems trying to nurse a cold/cough that I just could not get rid of... I thought I was doing everything right, taking my meds, resting, staying away from the cold and yet it still took quite a while but here I am finally. I do hope my comeback means I am here to stay! Sorry I did not post and thanks to all who have been looking for me.