Leaving a place is painful and overwhelming especially when it has been your home for so many years. So many memories and childhood memories for the kids. Düsseldorf is a great city and it will forever have a very special place in our hearts. We have met nice forever friends which we will keep and are very happy Düsseldorf made us meet.  Me and Loren had the chance during kids last schooldays to make a last bridge walk and hang out at one of our favorite places, the Bookstore downtown. Emotional and I let myself shed a few tears.  

Düsseldorf and Wittlaer being our home and everyday life for the past five years are coming to an end. This summer we are moving back to Sweden and Örebro. Many mixed feelings. Five years is a long time. And this is home although of course going to Sweden is going home but very clear when we are flying back to Düsseldorf that this is also home. Our comfort. Our routines and where we belong. Kids were so young when we moved here that they have lives most of their life in Germany. Only gone to school here.  I have used my Düsseldorf illustration a lot on my creations - bags, pencases, earrings etc. and I because they will not sell as well in Örebro. I got a chance to participate at International School of Düsseldorf in Kaiserwerth - the biggest expat/english speaking community. My last market here which feels weird.  My friend will keep my Düsseldorf products and bring them with to markets but without me. 

May is a beautiful month although this year has been much colder than usual. Kalkum Schloss park is our go to place during the spring - it has a nice little pond where the kids can collect tadpoles and let them go again after. They are happy walking around looking and collecting for hours. It is a great spot to enjoy nature. The geese walk past with their baby geese. It is amazing to watch the moorhen chicks running on the water lily leaves and to hear the frog croak loud. If you are lucky you can also see the turtles living in the pond. And by dusk the muskrat comes swimming around the pond.  The pictures of the books - well first of all I love books! I have been done a good job this week and gone through all my books and the kids books.. I don't need to keep all the books that I read - right!? And in my life I have transported many books around the world from Sweden to Prague back to Sweden and some followed to Moscow and then back to Sweden and then a new bunch of books to Düsse...

My creative work during week 19 has mainly been going through some of my illustrations and added them to my portfolio on c ccillustrator webpage. I have also uploaded my Düsseldorf gift bags and wine bags in my webshop.  Our Düsseldorf time is coming to an end this summer so I have gone through my prints and cards and I will bring them to Düsseldorf International School market end of May.   

First of a few long weekends during May month in Germany. I had booked a trip with friends driving to the coast of Belgium which is 3,5 hours away from Düsseldorf ( depending on traffic around Antwerpen and Kennedy Tunnel). We booked hotel on the beach in Blankenberge and only 10 min on a fast train to Brugge. I am making the most of living close to everything since we soon will be living very far away from everything. This trip was planned as a birthday celebration trip for Filips 8th birthday together with close friends and I was thinking Belgium waffles, fritjes and chocolate will be perfect ingrediens for a great weekend. Brugge is a city I really wanted to see and experience and I was super excited to go on this trip and also to see Belgium beach in Blankenberge. I had explain for the kids that our hotel is right on the beach, but I guess they couldn't quite picture it because they were soo amazed when we got their. The weekend was great and the weather was on our side, warmes...

Week 11 in Düsseldorf and we finally got some feelings that spring will actually happen this year.  A couple of very nice warm and sunny days got our mood up and I got inspired to go out and winter clean our backyard so it actually looks like a place where you want to go out to and not like a complete mess. I walked over to our local garden center here in Wittlaer and bought some daffodils narcissus, pansies and primrose. Mila told me "I love this time of the year when you buy flowers and plant them in the garden, then I know it is spring and nice weather" 

Week 9 in Düsseldorf gave us spring weather and for a day winter with heavy snowfall. It was so beautiful with all the big snow flakes and covering the landscape with fluff. I had had to stop in Rhein park to get a picture of the blue ribbon of crocus covered in snow, beautiful and little sad at the same time. The snow was gone by the afternoon so Düsseldorf back to spring feelings. I have been working on making a lot of hairbands lately, ready for spring. I have a few cute fabrics which I bought at a small local flea-market which I have utilized but also polka dots fabrics which I have bought new for this season. I have also updated my web shop with my newly made hairbands - it is  a bit of work to get good pictures but I am working on it and I hoping the photos in the shop is representable and show the true colors.   

 Week 5 of 2023 and after a fair share of very grey days here in Düsseldorf it was very very nice to see some sun rays again. I know it is nearly like spring here if you compare it to Sweden but after 4,5 years here I have now a higher standard for what spring is and to be honest I can't wait for it ( I am guessing I am not the only one)  Last week I was busy going for some necessary but not so fun appointments. A friend of my told me that she tries to book all necessary check ups in January so she will be done with it, I like that idea instead of avoiding to book and just thinking about which I tend to do. So I have removed birthmarks ( I was soooo nervous) done an ultrasound on my breast to make sure all ok, and now I should also book dentist appointments for me and the kids. Dentist for me definitely before moving back to Sweden because In Germany check up is covered by insurance and also simple fillings and in Sweden a small robbery for just a check-up.  On the creati...

This week I have been making some new gift bags. A friend from Sweden came to visit on Sunday and she had ordered bags and hairbands, with instruction that she likes stripes, polka dots and turquoise. That gave me an excuse to go to this nice fabric shop Dori & Ellen in Lindtorf, Ratingen to pick up some new spring color fabrics for bags and hairbands. I made some bags and hairbands in different colors to send with her but also continued to make some more for the webshop. Check it out I managed to upload a few bags in the size of a hard cover book, just in time for the Swedish book sale coming up in Feburary.  I am constantly looking for new ideas and things to make and explore, thats what drives me. A friend of mine got a Cricut cutter for Christmas and she has showed me how it works and what you can do. That gave me inspiration that I can iron-on printed pictures to my bags. So I ordered transfer papers for laser printer and started testing. I am using my Düsseldorf and summe...

Alright here is one of my New years tasks to myself and my creativity - to continue the weekly update !  It is week 3 of 2023 and lets do this !  A few weeks before Christmas I was selling my stuff at Kiwifalter's Winterfest here in Düsseldorf.  Vonkreation  was also there selling her nice cups, bags, shirts etc. All her stuff and ideas are super cool and I asked if it would be possible to print one of my illustrations on an enmal cup. The enamel cups are cute and great for picnics to serve coffee or even better Glühwein. I picked my Düsseldorf motive and also got help to pick a nice German quote used during Glühwein season " Lasst uns froh und munter sein".  I am very happy with the result and I will bring them with to nice adventures in the nature in the future. 

Last weekend it was finally time for Winter market at Landhaus Freeman a very nice and popular restaurant here in Kalkum, Düsseldorf. It is so nice of the owner to organize these great cute and well attended markets, normally one market each season. I am very happy to participate at these markets and they have made me more and more confident to be there and to show and sell my products.   This year I brought with my hats and I had made some new for this season. I would say that the fabrics and patterns I have bought this year at a craft fair here in Germany are more earthy tones. I don´t want to fall into the grey and beige trend because I believe in colorful especially for children. I hope I did I managed to stay colorful I hope but I will pay extra attention on this next year.  I also brought my hairbands and scrunchies. My Christmas gift bags made out of fabric was very popular this year that I almost sold out. I also sold postcards and prints of my Düsseldorf motive. ...

  Kids with friends have watched Ghostbusters and yes decided to all get dressed up as Ghostbusters this year. Our friend Ange is a master in creating costumes and made great Slimer costume for herself and made ghostes for me and Loren. The Halloween celebration in our area here in Düusseldorf is well attended and organized since it lives a lot of expats in our neighborhood. 

This week's update is all about the Open-air Easter market at Landhaus Freeman here in Düsseldorf. Landhaus Freeman is a popular restaurant with a big and well-visited beergarten. The open-air market is set up in their big garden and visitors to the market can have a brunch, lunch or just a drink. This weekend it was super busy and in order to get table for eat you would have had to made a reservation in advance. This was my third market at Freeman and I have to admit I am starting to feel more and more comfortable setting up my stal and being at the market. First time was truly petrifying - to show all my hand-made stuff in public when I hardly show it even to friends. I also realized that I have managed to produced quit a lot of different stuff and it was great to see it all organized and colorful.  This market was an Easter market and as I have showed in this blog before I have made gift bags Easter bunny bags however I mostly sold hats,hairbands and Düsseldorf cards. The weathe...

 Last week was amazing. Düsseldorf got sun and summer temperatures. We sprung to life. It is a life after winter after all (although mild winter here it is still winter) Nature is waking up. Birds, bees and flowers are busy. The Grüne Mitte park just a cross the street from us are full of happy kids and happy parents all afternoons. And all the Magnolia and cherry trees are blossoming and it is all so beautiful. That I had to buy antihistamin for the high pollen count doesn't matter. I have been able to sit outside in the backyard in t-shirt and shorts zipping coffee and threading my Easter bunnies. I am tanned like I have been on vacation for a week. Lets enjoy this. Lets enjoy nature and the small things that makes you happy. To look away from screens and depressing news and enjoy the nature and when brown and grey becomes green in many cool nuances.