Pure cotton - pure wool - pure living

It might have something to do with getting older. It might have something to do with consience. It might have something to do with ideals.

Guess it is simply about making a decision and sticking by it!

I know how to knit, crochet and all that. I can knit beautiful sweaters and cardigans - all of it things to wear.

But why not try to make something that doesn't end up in the closet.

I started making baskets, I even made some gorgeous rugs, but lately I have been making dish cloths.

Sounds utterly boring right? But I got tired of the dish cloths made out of some kind of plastic. Yes they are out of a kind of plastic, eventhough they are nice and soft. There are small plastic parts in there.

I found some nice 100% cotton yarn when I last visited my mom in Denmark

So now the  dish cloths are being made. The lavender one is already done, now the coral one is on the way - I want 10 or 12 of the cloths. One for each day - and enough so that I don't have to wash every day.

Being pure cotton means they can be washed on 60 degrees Celcius - meaning they get clean. And they suck all the water up from my kitchen table when I do the dishes.

I do so like my dish cloths. And it's all about making a decision. I want to get rid of as much plastic as ever possible. I'm in no way a fanatic - but I will work hard to get rid of it.

My Baskets

I am totally in love with my baskets - and I want to share them with you.

I found out some time ago, that I could make baskets out of yarn - not wobly ones, but sturdy baskets. Soft baskets exactly right for all those things we have, that doesn't deserve scratches. And to be honest - they look quite good.

 Here they are - all fit in one.

White, black and Grey

 

Here is the smalles - only about 10 cm

 

 

 

Here are the 2 biggest - about 15 and 20 cm

 

 

and here are all 3

 

 

 

They are all handmade by me - crocheet - can be washed and all. You got to admit that is pretty practical - if they go on the Floor they wont break, there are no sharp corners - it's a win-win situation.

 

Now I just have to see if I can sell any!!!



 

Do you ever feel guilty?

I do.

Every day.

I know I shouldn't, but that's how it is.

I feel guilty about all the things I never have time to do. I always lack hours. I need way more then 24 hours a day - I need at least 36!

What to do?

I have tried to run faster, work faster, think faster. It doesn't help. I only get more stressed. I have for years tried to find a way to keep up with work, housework, family and different hobbies.

I have tried to clean the house completely, promising myself that I would keep it that way. Didn't last. I only got irritated that I still made a mess of everything and that I often was too tired to clean up after myself. And truth is, I even got angry and husband and child for not keeping everything as clean and tight as I really wanted it.

I found that I had way too much of this

while this was looking at me - laughing at me

my knitting and my books - just waiting for me - waiting for me to stop feeling guilty and start enjoying them instead.

So I started my To-do-List

Everyone knows the to-do-list - I think we have all at some point in our lives tried them. Honestly they are the most fun when we write them for others - am I right?

Here is mine

I am sorry that the picture is so hazy - but I'm sure you get the point.

I bought a very pretty book - but any piece of paper will do - and then every day when I eat breakfast I write the things for today.

The first day I didn't have so many things, but still I didn't have time for them all. So the next morning when I wrote the new list, I took all the items from yesterday - that I didn't have time for - and listed them for this day too. Admitted that can sometimes give some very long lists, but  - 

 I do not feel guilty anymore

 

 

I know that what I do not have time for today - I will have on my list and therefore it will not be forgotten, It will just be a bit delayed.

I am not saying that this will reduce stress for everybody - but it sure did reduce my stress - So now I have time for this blog, my Instagram, my knitting, my reading - and my cleaning - because now I do not waste so much time feeling guilty.

Are we clones? NO - we need to think

I just spent some days in the mighty capital of England - the breathtaking London - which I will come back to in a later post.

In the airport on my way back, I suddenly found myself highly amused. I was witnessing something that happens every day, but I guess it was the first time I really gave it any thought.

Many of us was sitting at the gate waiting for it to open. Nothing strange in that. More people coming to all the time, as the plane was fully booked. We were all sitting nicely, reading or fooling around with our phones. The obligatory few kids were also running around making noice and having a good time.

Then the magic began. Two people stood up, took their trollies and handbags and walked towards the gate! Lots of heads turned, watched and then decided that they haven't heard the nice, uniformed lady by the gate say anything yet. Decided to stay put, cause the gate wasn't open yet.

But.... an older lady packed her book in her handbag and stood up, followed the two people, and the spectacular show began.

All of a sudden almost everybody got this stressed look in their eyes. They all forgot that 45 seconds ago they decided they hadn't heard the lady tell us to form a line in front of her.  And the truth is, she hadn't said anything yet, because the gates were still closed. The dang plane wasn't even there yet! I mean there are windows all over the place. It was very obvious that the plane wasn't there yet. And still almost everybody got busy, stressed, panic was heard in their voices when they called out to the children to make the come and stay calm. Coins, magazines and phones were dropped on the floor, because everyone was now in a hurry.

A few of us just sat there, mesmerized by this show. Another woman looked at me, shook her head with her brows lifted in amazement.

What is it that makes us copy this irrational behaviour? As soon as we see a line form, we feel an inner urge to join and be part of this community of line builders.

There was absolutely no reason to make this line yet.

1. Plane wasn't there yet
2. The ground hostess hadn't called us yet
3. We all had numbered seats.
4. There still was 30 minutes till take off.

And still it happened, why? Why do we not think? Why do we copy? It was like cloned behaviour.

This form for behaviour probably goes on many times a day, in many various aspects of our day. Maybe it is about time we start using our heads, and not just rush into flok behaviour.

Life Hacks?

We all know, that there is no need to do everything the hard way. Sometimes we work very hard to do it the easy way!

I have read what seems to be millions of post with "The 10 life hacks you cant live without" or "5 life hacks that will make your life so much easier". I must admit most of these so-called Life Hacks annoy me utterly. There are 1 or 2 really good advices but then the rest is how to store plastic bags in a recycled pringles-tube or how to make an old shoe carton into a really pretty durable holder for all your tupperware lids.

Needless to say, I have had it with LISTS of life hacks. There is no need to make a top 10 or top 5. Especially when you have to fill it up with more or less rediculous stuff.

I must, however, admit that I have 1 (one) life hack.

I have this friend. She can get everything cheaper than everyone else! Effortless! She knows exactly where to buy everything. She knows everyone that has a garage sale, everyone that sells new products with just a minor flaw in the packaging. She never pays full price.

People like that intimidates me. Why can they get everything cheaper when I can't?????

My only advice is to hook up with these people - get them to share their knowledge of "secret" places to shop.

I did. And yesterday my husband and I went shopping. Our old barbeque was worn out - on the was to becoming hasardous to use.

So we packed ourselves in the car and plotted the address into the navi. Not only did we get so see a lot of new places, small cities and pretty houses - we also found this guy that had a in-house shop selling barbeques. Brand new ones, with only a flaw in the packaging.



 

He had 3 full rooms in his house - big rooms - and a huge tent in the garden full of Barbecues/grills and garden furniture. Amazing. And I am still no good at bargening but we got our new Barbecue/grill A Landmann Triton 2.0 for 40 Euros under normal retail price. And why? Because there on the packaging is mark for a grill app that doesnt exist anymore! I am thrilled.

So my life hack for today - for all that want to get as much value for their money as possible - Hook up with these wonders of extraordinary people. Make them your friends. They love to share their passion for bargains, so enjoy their friendship, and dive into their world.

Selfmade is well made

When I stopped working at my school, one of my colleagues gave me some blue cotton yarn. A very beautiful blue colour. Question was then, what to make out of this beautiful yarn.

The process where you think and re-think a project has always been the most exciting process for me.

There was only one ball of yarn, so the project couldn't be too big. The quality of the yarn was too good to just make pot holders out of it - several days this project took complete hold of my mind.

Finally it was there - I wanted to crochet a small bag for my phone. Project = solved. But......what should it look like?

I went to my mother's place in Denmark, and brought with me the blue yarn as well as some white yarn - you never know, and some lace! After all it was for me.

I spent some evenings doing and un-doing this bag, but finally it was there.

Now I just have to sew in the yarn ends, and decide on the lace. Life is full of decisions !

Oh and the plank - 60 seconds now and 30 on the side planks. Side planks are killing me!

I have an App

In 2013 and 2014 I had knee surgery - I got two brand new knees. Needless to say, due to the pain of authritis for so many years, I didn't do much exercise. And I do love food. Kind of a bad Combo - I have had many excuses for not moving as much as I should, and eating way more than I should.

But with this new lifestyle I decided that that needed to change. But you don't make a toned body out of my body just so overnight. Slowly does it. I have tried so many times to get a more toned body and to get a more reasonable diet. Always succeeded for a few weeks, then there was stress at work or something else, and the whole programme was droped on the floor.

So - now it has to work.

And here my beautiful app enters the stage

It is called Coach by Cigna, you can get it here

http://www.cigna.com/about-us/coach-by-cigna/coach

or in the appstore or Google Play. It is free and it is easy.

You start out with answering a few questions and you then get a suggestion for some programmes. I got mine some time ago, and never really got going. But as I have mentioned before - new life.

I have only followed the programmes for 3 days. And I must say, I am impressed. Nothing more nothing less.

They start out really slow, which is importent for a person such as myself, the non-sportive-type. The excercises take up no space, doesn't require any special equipment. This is important for me, as I am often on the road, or only have the livingroom to work out in - and I don't want a million different excercises that I can't make anyways.

There are very few excercises and you can do them when ever you feel like it. Fits super to me.

I can now with pride in my voice say that I can do the Plank for 30 seconds!

Today I was also asked to do what ever I wanted just that it involved movement for 15 minutes. I wanted to walk, but it rains today, so they suggested dancing! - Been years since I danced. But ok - I found myself dancing for 15 minutes to the radio - I listen to Bremen 4 - excellent radiostation here in Bremen, Germany - but it is hard to dance to the commercial spots, but then I just hummed or sang what I could remember from the last song. I danced and flapped my arms like a bird, it must have been fun to watch, as it was fun to do. I did my 15 minutes of movement. And thereby completed todays programme.

I will fill you in on my plank excercise tomorrow.