Garden Party to come

Hello fellow bloggers,

We are actually having a garden party today so bear with me and come and visit me late today since I am very busy organising this party. We are celebrating the baptism of our granddaugher and I am hosting two party's this weekend. We had one on saterday for 30 family members and today I am hosting another party for about 80 people. I do all the catering myself so come and visit our party's and my garden later today!

Its fun to have a little grandaughter...

In january I was told that our grandchild would be a babygirl. I was very trilled about this. Girls means flowers and pink and doll's and dresses and this is a lot of fun for a crafting grandma!

In the beginning of the pregnancy I bougt fabrics for boys and girls because my son and his girlfriend wouldn't tell us the sex of the baby. But in january the other grandma discovered the secret by chance and since I was pushing them to tell me, so I could make boy or girl things the happy parents to be, told me too.


I kept it a secret for my husband until the day the baby was born. He had no idea that all that pink fabric I was working with, indicated that we where expecting a granddaughter.


A few weeks after I was told my daughter guessed it too. She saw one pink thing in my sewing room and said..so it's a girl then?? I didn't care to lie about it.



My sewing started with this little quilt with a stork. It was to adorn the boxes with sugared almonds that we give here in Belgium as favours to all the visitors of the new baby. As long as I know this is a tradition.We always give sugared almonds. But the last 40 years the almonds are substituted with chocolade almonds that are covered with the same sugar coating. They are packed in beautiful boxes and pouches.

The quilt hangs on an old standing childrens dress hanger.

In front you see the boxes of almonds. These boxes where the " official boxes".
I know my daughter in law who also likes to craft wanted me to make these favours myself but my son was so quick in choosing these brown and pink boxes that I had no chance to think of something to make.

Of course after a while my creative juices began to flow. On the blog of Polka Dot Pineapple I saw these what she call's "moneyflowers".

I changed them somewhat in that sense that I changed the skewer to wich she attached the flower, to for a coloring pencil and put the pencil in a tin flowerpot filled with the sugared almonds.
This was the treat for visiting children.

I also needed something some favours ( we call them "doopsuiker" freely translated baptism sugars) for my groups of patchwork lady's.
After 27 years of teaching patchwork and quilting I am closing down my groups to care for my granddaughter when her mamie has to work and after teaching and being together for so many years, I thought they deserved a special favour too. Of course they awaited a handmade favour.
So I made up these petal bags and also filled them with "doopsuiker" and so the lady's would have a choise I also made some little tissue holders in the same fabric.

When my daughter in law saw these she of course also wanted some of these to put on the "official" tray and I ended up in making about 100 of these favours.

This is only the start of course of what I will be making for Anne-Fleur. Another little quilt is in the making but will have to wait to be finished until after the baby's baptism in two weeks time.
Have a lot of work in the house and the garden to make it ready for this big family do so I will see you back in two weeks time to report on the party.
Thanks for stopping by!

Anne-Fleur

Vorige week zaterdag op 2 mei werden we de trotse grootouders van Anne-Fleur.
Zij is ons eerste kleinkindje en het is een emotionele en drukke week geweest.
Daarom had ik nog niet eerder tijd om dit bericht te plaatsen.
De geboorte was niet gemakkelijk, niet voor Anne-Fleur en ook niet voor haar mama dus daarom moest Anne-Fleurtje een dagje in de couveuse.Maar nu is alles goed en sinds gisteren is het hele gezinnetje naar huis.Binnenkort meer foto's van haar en van de spulletjes die ik voor haar gemaakt heb.

Last saterday we became the proud grandparents of Anne-Fleur.
She is our first grandchild and of course we are delighted. She came on this world a week later then we expected and weight a good 3330 grams with a length of 51 cm.
It was not an easy birth for her and for her new mom so Anne-Fleur stayed in a heated bed for one day. On sunday we took this picture. All is well now and since yesterday the new little family went home together.
It has been a very busy and emotional week and I had no time to post it earlyer. Later when all calmes down I hope to show you more pictures of her and the things I made for her.