I {heart} Gent

Axel and I spent the afternoon in Gent on Saturday. It's terrible, really, to admit that in all the years we've been together we haven't taken much time out to just explore and relax. Our staycation this summer really reminded us to do this more often. So we made dinner plans in Gent to celebrate our anniversary and went into town hours early to "browse."

Click on the photo to see more pictures of our day out in Gent.

It was busy and very hot so headed to the underground carpark at KOUTER, when we popped up out of the parking lot onto the market we found a wonderful international market going on. Stalls from all over Europe .. I bought this lovely coinpurse from a man who was selling all kinds of leather goods made by his family in Hungary.

Then we headed toward the GRASLEI, we didn't really have anything in particular in mind .. except ending at the restaurant for our reservation at 6:30. But then we remembered that I wanted to hold an iPad 2, we've been talking about getting one but didn't want to take the plunge until I had at least had one in my hands. SOLD! I can hardly wait, even though I know it will disappear with Axel when he goes on tour for two weeks the end of September.

Still heading into the center of town, we stopped in at one of my favorite shops: Dille & Kamille. Even Axel doesn't get bored in here .. it's full of all kinds of great kitchenwares, garden items, children's toys and more.
We bought ourselves the perfect anniversary gift .. a ravioli form!

After that we just kind of wandered here and there following our feet through the crowds - it was really busy! The best times were went we wandered down the empty streets without any aim, but darn there, we forgot to take pictures.

We even found an English bookstore with lots of old hardbacks including Pollyanna of the Orange Blossoms and a couple of other historical reads for me.

Oh yeh, I wanted to run into the yarn/fabric shop. I had no idea Stoffenidee had moved (two years ago!), but the new shop owner was very very friendly and pointed us in the right direction. I swear I have the most patient husband. Off on a jaunt, past Gravensteen, a bit further and yep - there it was! I love their new location and they were soooo much more friendly this time. Is it because I speak Nederlands now? Although, when stuck they were happy to switch to English and then back to Nederlands when we figured it out again. Came out with a sweet bag full of yarn for this project and an impulse buy of yarn and whoppen needles for the simplest shrug or "teapot warmer" as my friend Janice would say.

There's more fun girly stuff to share, but this post is already getting long and I've probably bored you so I'll do another tomorrow and show my LACE PURCHASE .. it's to die for!

We ended the evening at the Raj along the Kraanlei. We sat outside, the weather was amazing, the service great but the food sadly wasn't much to write home about. Pin It Now!

Lettuce Pause

Two weeks ago I bought the tiniest of lettuce starts on a local market. 10 for 1€ ($1.43) so we bought a variety and I planted them up in window boxes in the kitchen. Look at them .. they're huge!

Tonight's dinner? Salad! (Check out The Little Grey Cookbook to find out what we put on it.)

It looks like we can finally stop buying it - hip-hip hooray!

Do you yearn for fresh vegies too but don't have a garden of your own?  Have you thought about joining a CSA (Community Shared / Supported Agriculture)?  I am so excited that we have one near us.  It's the first year but capacity often fills up fast so we jumped on in.  I know -we have a garden- but now I can concentrate on some unusual things and stuff to preserve, etc.

So ... if you live near Kalken ... be sure to check it out.  Here's an email we received today from our "farmer."  There's more info on the website but be sure to contact Rony he'll answer all of your questions!

Hoera!!! Het heeft geregend, en het werd tijd! Al wat gezaaid werd de vorige weken, is gekiemd of staat zelfs al boven: erwten, spinazie, rucola, meiraapjes, raapstelen, tuinbonen, ..., het gras op de paden. Ook de ajuintjes die voor de regen geplant zijn, beginnen al te groeien.  Totnogtoe nog niet teveel onkruid ... hopelijk blijft het zo.

Alle ajuinen en sjalotten zijn geplant, de aardappelen nog niet ... nog 30 kg pootgoed te gaan. De rogge die we in het najaar lieten zaaien heeft de grond schitterend doorworteld, maar is nu redelijk lastig om zonder drastische maatregelen weg te krijgen ... redelijk arbeidsintensief. Ondertussen staat het plantsysteem hier ook op punt, en loopt alles redelijk vlot.

Een deel van de aardbeiplantjes zijn ook al geplant. Mmm. En Eva heeft een hele resem kruiden gezaaid in trays, lijst zie volgende nieuwsbrief.

De tomatenplantjes groeien dag na dag  ... we moeten dus dringend de tunnel plaatsen. Een aparte oproep volgt. Het is een grote klus, en we kunnen zeker wat helpende handen gebruiken.

Iedereen welkom op het veld !
Groetjes,  Rony & Eva 
www.oogstgoed.be

If you're not near us .. then check out where one is locally in your area.  There are so many reasons to do it:

• no packaging
• fresh from the ground and into the pot (with a quick rinse of course)
• many CSAs are bio (ours is - yippee!)
• your kids get to see where there food comes from

I apologize for the multiple posts today .. but I've been having problems with my photos showing up in google reader and on facebook.  This seemed the only way to check ... hopefully I fixed it :)

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It's been too long ...

Yes, it's been ages since you heard from me ... at first I thought it might be just the summer ... then the summer turned into autumn, there was a winter to be endured, spring came and went and another summer arrived full of activity.  It's nearly 16 months since my last flight from the beautiful Pacific Northwest.

I can honestly say I'm quite settled in Belgium.  And I'm loving it (ok ... I hate the wind & winters) but the rest is a all doable and more often than not very very enjoyable.

My Courtyard Flower Garden
Using 1-1/2" hex and a selection of
fabrics from Fasset, Mably and Jacobs.

Life here has been incredibly busy, last December we moved to a bigger house (smaller yard) which includes built-in shop space.  In February Jovita's Patchwork Atelier opened ... the new shop is even smaller than our little one in Mukilteo but it has been warmly welcomed by many.  I still carry the gorgeous ribbon from Germany and silk of course.  New additions have been the wonderful and colorful works of Philip Jacobs, Brandon Mably and of course,  Kaffe Fasset.

I am also doing a lot more hand-work which I've always enjoyed.  So English Paper Piecing, Needleturn Applique and Wool Applique keep me quite busy.  When I'm not "working" you'll find me puttering in the garden, cooking up a storm, playing with our animals or sitting with my knitting or crochet.

There's a lot to catch you up on including projects, anecdotes from life in Europe, design ideas, free patterns and tutorials.  So I hope you'll bookmark my blog and come back often to visit.

xox Jovita Pin It Now!

The Kiss of Spring is a Wonderful Thing!

Editor's note:  This entry was originally posted on my old blog 29APR2009.  Life has changed, the blog has changed and the shop now has a new home.  But it's history and some of it's interesting ... and I hope you enjoy some of the background.  signed JG, 12AUG2010

Phew - I am so glad Spring has finally arrived ...

First thing you'll notice is that it's been ages since I've posted ... why? Well, there's been a lot going on and I hope you'll understand.

1. I wanted to move my blog - involves finding the right location and the actual move - accomplished yesterday.  We hope you like the new look.  It turns out that move wasn't right either.  I'm hoping this new start will be the right one.
2. In January I had to make the very difficult decision to close our showroom in Everett (Washington).  Decisions like this make me want to stick my head in the sand ... but made it needed to be and I think (eventually) it will feel as right as it should.  It was the right decision, I know that now and am loving having the shop here in Belgium.  But a visit to the NW would not go amiss, I am missing everyone sooo much!
3. I travelled to the US for 10 weeks - yes, 2-1/2 months - all in one go.  That's just too darn long to be away from home but there was a lot to do.  It turned out I bounced around staying with a bunch of friends which was a lot of fun but did cause (just a little bit) of disorganization.
4. Therefore ... many things fell by the wayside - the blog was just one.

Here's a picture of the container we shipped to Belgium - thank goodness to a number of friends who helped me pack it just two days before I flew out ...

I returned back from Seattle last Friday and am becoming reacquainted with my home and garden.  Ha - if I thought my "work" list was long ... you should so the household list of things to do.  That of course never ends.  We moved to a bigger home/shop in December '09 and I'm slowly (painfully slow) getting it re-decorated and looking more homey.

Regardless, I'm going to forge ahead.  You'll see many changes at PEACOCK & periwinkle - yes, we are still around - we still carry ribbons, silk and many other wonderful things that you have always enjoyed from us in the past.  Yes, indeed, P&P has gone through some changes.  The shop is now branded "Jovita's Patchwork Atelier" - to make it more European multi-language friendly.  But P&P will still be around more in it's original capacity as a "resource center."  I hope to tell you more about that soon.

So - rest assured I'm back and eager to show and share everything I've been up to ... stay tuned!  Well, it turns out I wasn't as rested as I hoped.  It took me nearly a year to build up the energy to re-open the shop and another summer to be ready to tackle blogging again.  Long may this new burst of energy last. Pin It Now!

Quilt Show – Gent, Belgium

Today I visited a Quilt Show in Gent presented by the Vlaamse Quilters Guilde.  It was just what I needed for some contact with “quiltsters” (feminine form of quilter) here in Belgium.  From the moment I walked into the show I felt welcomed and at home among women who also share my passion.

I began in Nederlands, she answered in English, asked where I was from and took €2,50 (just $4) for the entrance fee.  Everywhere I went, women were smiling, nodding and enjoying themselves.  The show included the largest number of Dear Jane quilts I had seen in one location.  This is probably my favorite Dear Jane so far.    

Both simple patterns, but very red – these two quilts really caught my eye!  Hmmmm, maybe ideas for quick but eye-catching quilts to use up some of my stash . . . ?  

           

Next I wandered outside to the circus style tent and found my absolute favorite . . . that I liked this very yellow quilt was quilt a surprise . . . not sure why, I’m still exploring that.  But I fell in love with it more and more and more.  

Of course, the best quilts are also best viewed from the back.  The subtle daylight showing through from the front really softened the entire effect – and of course really highlighted the exceptional hand quilting.

There were more – 141 – in all and I could go on and on.  But the highlight of my day was truly visiting with the ladies.  I enjoyed a cappuccino and piece of home-made cake with Loes and Dora.  Then I joined the Open Quilting Bee in the courtyard – the weather has turned warm, but there was cloud cover and a gentle breeze.  This guild breaks for the summer holidays and resumes in September, so many ladies were milling around and catching up with each other, their projects and families. They were all very welcoming and I exchanged small chat in a mix of English and Nederlands. 

But oi vey – I also heard a lot of French – I may need to learn it sooner than I thought.

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Merry Christmas from our Home to yours ~ a personal note from Jovita & Axel

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