I just can't get enough!

After two weeks away we got home to my clematis in bloom! I didn't think it would blossom as it's always blossomed much earlier, in late June, beginning of July. It's a Ville-de-Lyon variety with a rich deep pink colour and it adds lots of colour to our balcony. The clematis loves the hot sunny balcony!

 This year I wanted to train it to climb above the balcony door which leads into the living-room. And it's worked so beautifully that when we're sitting on the sofa we can see the flowers just over us! And It makes me so happy I can't stop looking at it! I just can't get enough of it!

And now that I've finished my studies and got my Bachelor of Arts in Education I'll have more time for the other things I like doing. So when Autumn, and then Winter settle in here in Sweden and the balcony goes into a long hibernation I'll be going back to lots of sewing, which was what this blog was originally about!

By the way, the cucumber was delicious! Sweet and really tasty! But that's a bit difficult to show you here!

Cucumber No.1!

It's here! My first very own home-grown cucumber! Talk about local produce! Couldn't get more local than this!

We were away on holiday for a couple of weeks and this beautiful cucumber was on our balcony waiting for us! I think it needs a few more days to grow a bit more so we haven't tasted it yet. But it looks great! I'll let you know what it was like.

It's amazing how incredibly easy it is to grow your own veg in a container, on a balcony. And although my produce isn't going to feed us through the long Swedish winter, it's a delight to be able to eat your own cucumber No. 1!

On my balcony - Cucumbers!

Growing your own vegetables is easier than you think! If I can do it, anyone can! And not only do you get to eat what you plant, but you also get to enjoy the bright luscious flowers that announce what there is to come! You don't even need a garden or an allotment! All you need is a container. Or several containers. This year I tried growing cucumbers. I grow mine on our balcony in a pot approx. 25 cm in diameter and 30 cm high. It'd probably be better if it was bigger, but they seem to be doing really well!

I always get loads of green flies, black flies, aphids... on many of the plants on the balcony, so this year I decided to follow the advice in one of my favourite planting books, "Organic Crops in Pots", by Deborah Schneebeli-Morrell, which I came across last year in England. Apparently aphids don't like the smell of the orange tagetes! So this year my balcony is covered in orange tagetes, which aren't even my favourite flower, but have definitely become my favourite friend! So far, the aphid situation is totally under controll! Now I'm just waiting for the first cucumber and as at home we all like cucumber, everyone will be very happy!

So I realise that I started this blog for my sewing projects. But since I haven't had the time to do any sewing for the past year, why not show some other things that I like and are also my own produce! I hope you enjoy them as much as Ido!

On my balcony - My little lilac

Not having a garden is a sad reality. But luckily I have a big sunny balcony where I can make some of my dreams come true! Gardening is a passion and I would like to share with you the beautiful things that grow om ny balcony.

In May, Sweden is covered in lilacs and the scent they spread in the breeze is so sweet! When I was little and still living in Portugal, I had a book which I loved, called The Party of the Lilac Fairy (the book was in Portuguese but this is what the title meant) and I could read it and look at the pictures for ages dreaming of lilacs. So you can imagine how happy I am when they all come out here in the Spring! So I've always dreamt of having a garden full of lilacs. I'm still dreaming of that. But now I have my own little lilac on my balcony!

It's a dwarf lilac (microphylla 'Superba'), perfect for container planting and it's so hardy it survived the harsh winter we had last year! I was too lazy to cover it and was so happy when the first new buds started to appear! I placed the lilac by the balcony door and when the door is open we get this wonderfully sweet scent filling the living room. and then you just feel that Summer is coming!

 I love my little lilac!

Autumn in Stockholm

Stockholm is absolutely golden in Autumn.
Although there hasn't been any sunlight for the last week, this is how it can glow on sunny Autumn days!