3rd of Advent & Lucia

Last Sunday was the 3rd of Advent, which means only one more Sunday till Christmas!


It was also Lucia.

More Lucia songs here!

So we baked the traditional lusse bullar. Delicious saffran buns!
And I just love when the dough is rising! And the smell!...

You can make them into different shapes and they all have different names.

This one is a dubbel kusse.
I symbolically give it to Vera at Brikebrok
who, on the 1st of Advent, wondered if I had baked the lusse bulle on the photo, which I hadn't.

We also made pepparkakor, the Swedish gingerbread biscuits, which of course noone could keep their hands off!

"Big Jumps" gym bag

For an active little girl who goes dancing I designed this combined tote/draw string bag.

It has the cuteness of a little tote and the practicality of a draw string bag so the ballet shoes don't fall out!

"Big Jumps" gym bag
Pattern by Miss Pelicano

The bag is lined with the polka dot fabric which sticks out at the top with the draw string. The lining/draw string bag is sewn on to the tote.

Outer fabric: "Tossed Ladybugs", Retrodepot Fabrics
Lining: Polka dots from local fabric shop in Lisbon, Portugal

Note: Let me know if you are interested in a tutorial for the "Big Jumps" gym bag! You are welcome to use these ideas but I would really appreciate it if you link to my blog/post! Thank you! And have fun!

Commission - Bags and Purses

I was commissioned 3 bags and 4 purses to be given away as Christmas presents.

I had a pattern in mind with pleats. Pleats have always been a bit of a scary thought, but in the end it's just folding the fabric. I put a simple pleat on each side of the bag and it gives the bag a bit of volume.

Because of the "A" shaped effect of the pleat and the slight "A" shape of the actual bag, I thought "A-Line" Shoulder Bag would be an appropriate name for this pattern. What do you think?

"A-Line" Shoulder bag
Pattern by Miss Pelicano
Fabric by Åhléns

"A-Line" Shoulder bag
Pattern by Miss Pelicano
Fabric from IKEA

This one is the Amy Karol Charming Handbag, from Bend the Rules Sewing, but in an expanded XL version. So now it's more of a shoulder bag, but still quite charming, I think. This is a fun pattern to try in many sizes. The fabric is also from Åhléns.

The orange and the lime green polka dot linings are from a small local fabric shop in Lisbon, Portugal. The light blue polka dot lining is from Panduro.


These are the 4 little purses:

Fabric for purses - left to right: 1. Åhléns 2. Vera Bradley fabric from local shop in Lisbon, Portugal 3. Traditional Portuguese "Chita", from local shop in Portugal 4."Willow" pattern, from local shop in England.
Polka dot linings are from Portugal and Sweden.

I think I like polka dot linings!

Note: The lucky ladies getting these presents don't know about this blog. That's why I can publish the photos ahead of time!

Note: Let me know if you are interested in a tutorial for the "A-Line" shoulder bag! You are welcome to use these ideas but I would really appreciate it if you link to my blog/post! Thank you! And have fun!

2nd of Advent

To celebrate the 2nd of Advent we of course lit the second candle of our Advent candles.

And to celebrate this Season with you have a laugh with my entry for Amy Karol's
Angry Chicken Tie One On - Peppermint Candy Apron gallery.

Here I am!

And here are more photos:

1st of Advent

Today Sweden celebrates the 1st of Advent.
Every home lights a candle on their Advent candles.
We do this every year to celebrate the 4th Sunday before Christmas. Then next Sunday we light the next candle, then the next, then.... it's Christmas!

We eat pepparkakor (like the two hearts above) , the Swedish gingerbread biscuits,

and drink glögg, the Swedish mulled wine,

and as Lucia is coming soon, we eat lusse bullar, the Swedish saffran buns.

Delicious and so cozy!

Every house has a shining star on the window and it's such a beautiful sight! Every home looks so warm and welcoming!



This year I got the idea of using a baking tin as part of the Christmas decoration from Drömhem och Trädgård. No ambition of being the perfect design home, but it was fun to try something different.

The magazine suggests you use a vintage baking tin, but I just used my old one. It looks sort of rustic anyway.
We had friends over for the Advent pepparkakor and glögg and they thought it looked great! Wonderful friends!


This is one of my favourite times of the year!

Puppets go to the doctor

Some months ago I made these sock puppets for my children.
I made them really simple and quickly and it looks more like my kids have made them!

They call them Frans and Frans.

I had to take my oldest son to the children's hospital one day and he took his little Frans with him.

The nurse was so sweet and talked to my son about the puppet.
She said how fun it would be for them to have some puppets at the hospital for the children to play with and for the nurses to use with their little patients.

I promised her I would make some.

And here they are!

Say Ahhhhh!

Now, we'll take them to the hospital.


I leave here a special BIG THANKS to all the nurses who are always so kind and always have a smile on their faces!

I thought of making cute little puppets, but they just turned out like this. Sort of weird. Sort of scary.
I hope the children won't be scared!


My children actually have had loads of fun with them!
I hope all the other children will enjoy them too!


Note: My patterns and names of patterns are registered. You are welcome to contact me for a pattern. You are welcome to use these ideas but I would really appreciate it if you link to my blog/post! Thank you! And have fun!

A table is a table. Or is it?

Challenged by Concha at Saídos da Concha, who was challenged by Alice, who also challenged others, here I am showing my working table.

It isn't actually a table, but it works as one. And as an ironing board as well (because it is one), which is really practical!
Because of lack of space, this is the best solution. I tried several. And working on the floor - which I still do for bigger projects, like when I make clothes - wasn't so practical with two young children around.
I like being able to leave unfinished projects visible and ready for the next move.

And now I also challenge Mona, Mai and Amélie to show their working tables.
Mona, for her collage like houses, Mai, for her delicate and incredible handsewing of all her creative projects, and Amélie for the perfection in her sewing and her short animations.

Then they must also challenge three other people to do the same!

This table business made me think of a Portuguese children's book I bought a while ago.

A Table is a Table. Or is it?
Isabel Martins, Madalena Matoso
Planeta Tangerina

A little girl sees a table and for her that's exactly what it is. A table. She meets different people that day who have so many different ideas of what a table is.
I like the collage illustrations! Just like Mona's collage like sewing.

It'll be fun to see other people's working tables!

And I hope you enjoy visiting Mona, Mai and Amélie!