One of our stops in Amsterdam was Penelope Craft Shop.
Run and owned by Malia who moved here from the States four years ago.
I found the shop on a Ravelry forum and we felt very welcomed as soon as we stepped into this shop packed with luxurious yarns.
We spend some time there thursday afternoon and then came back for craftsnight in the evening. A group with women from alla over the world - America, Canada, Venezuela and one girl who was half Swedish half Swiss, all living in the Netherlands.

We took another trip to Penelope during the cloudy saturday and went home with empty wallets..


Anna-Carin went for this method of shopping "I may buy as much as I can hold in my arms at the same time"


Madelein Tosh Merino Light


Zauberball


Holst-yarn from Denmark


Anna-Carin found something nice in a book for mens knitwear. I don't know if it was the man or the knitwear that made her smile..


I want them all..

Later I'll show you which yarns acctually made me empty my wallet!

I have a ton of beautiful pictures and memoreis to share with you! But since I also have my dear friend visiting me from Sweden I'm gonna spend my time with her and not with the blog.

But I'll give you this!


Anna-Carin trying out her new alpacka moustache at Penelope Craft


Tulips at Keukenhof


Acting out when A-C tried to take a picture of my new cardi..

I look forward to show more of all the fun we had!

Saturday afternoon, after a half days work, I went to the springfair at the Boschove with Sabine.
It wasn't so much that had begun to bloom but some tulips stood proud in what becomes the kitchengarden later on.
I found two different Dahlias that had to come home with me, and also two different Galadiolus that I had to have. One was dark purple, almost black according to the picture, and the other was burgogne red with yellow edging. I'm so excited to see what they'll look like for real!


Erythronium 'Pagoda'


Buxus chicken in the herbgarden


Tulip with speckled leaves, unfortunatley with out namelable


Mixed tulips and an insanly beautiful Hyacinthus


Epimedium

How to make a gif
Made a pair of striped socks for Mirandas birthday.
Knitted top-down in three different Delight skein that were leftovers from earlier projects.

Yesterday I and Sabine visited Belmonte Arboretum. They have a collection of Prunus trees that we heard were in full bloom at the time. Something we ofcourse wanted to go see. Blooming Prunus might be one of the spring-events that I long for the most.
I think it has to do with the big japanese Prunus tree that grows in my parents garden.



Prunus


Prunus serrulata Lindl. 'Kanzan'


Prunus & Magnolia


Prunus serrulata Lindley 'Ariake'

'
Prunus serrulata Lindley 'Ariake'

Here she is, the one and only Svalbard!



100% BFL, single


100 grams, 655 meters of pure handcrafted happiness!

I know a whole lot of friends that also work with gardening, and alot that don't that find Primula a most boring "buy, use, waste" plant that's only good for a splash of colour during a week or two.

You could say that they fins Primulas plain boring..


Primula vulgaris 'Ken Dearman'


Primula 'McWatts Cream'


Primula 'Baleriana Cobolt Blue'

Now, what was is you said about Primulas..?

Had a great and sunny day at work! And I was very happy to see that the peas I planted in my kitchengarden (read; leafcompostheap) yesterday had not taken any damage by the few hours of nightfrost, peuw!

Discovered this fringy Pulsatilla in the rockgarden - Pulsatilla 'Olga's Traum'
It's a little crazy and I'm not sure if I like it or not, it's not really a Pulsatilla for me, but if I think outside the box I guess it's kind of beautiful!
I once had a guestteacher at Uni who hated all filled flowers, he said something about them being "mutated monster who he had only one destenation for - the compost!"


Pulsatille 'Olga's Traum'


Pulsatilla 'Olga's Traum'

The most exquisite Dogtooth Lily or Erythronium are blossoming in a somewhat forgotten corner..







But I didn't forget to catch the blushing beauties on camera

Now we have our hands full with taking cuttings!
We propagate over 1000 different perennials with cuttings in the spring. From every variety we take 100-300 cuttings. Let's say we take 100 from each, times 1000 different perennials, that's 100 000 cuttings. Each and every cutting cut from the plant by hand and then carefully placed in cuttingtreys, placed in the mistchamber and looked after like they were new born babies.


Busy with Phlox cuttings


Checkerboard of darkred and bright green in the mistchamber


Newly waters Hylotelephinum (Sedum)



Shades of grey and silver among the Hylotelepinum

My darling parents send me a carepackage for easter containing some salty liqourice, a reflectorwest for dark nights on my bike, my gardencap and some napkins with gardening motief!

AND two secret gifts..


The nice content of my easteregg


The secret gifts consited of a Ekelund kitchentowel with springflowers and a adorable tin-box with a botanical drawing of three different Iris's, in the tin-box was a soap, wonderfully scented with fruits and flowers with poppyseeds for peeling!

Love you<3

This Fritillaria persica also deserves some attention!


Fritillaria persica


Fritillaria persica

The Fritillarias are in full bloom at de Hessenhof!
As a kid this was one of my favourite flowers, growing in one of the corners in my parents garden, taking over from the spring bloom after the Hepaticas left it.
I'm still dazzled over the intricate pattern of the Fritillaria meleagris and could admire it for hours..


Fritillaria meleagris, know as Snakehead lily in english and Kungsängslilja in swedish




Fritillaria meleagris


Fritillaria meleagris

Yesterday we visited an orangerie, a nursery and conservatory for mediterranean plants such as fig tress, different citrus trees, olive trees, kiwi tress and other exotic plants as cactie, Agapanthus, Agave and much more.

The orangerie is owned by the parents of the wife of one of our belgium friends.
It was a nice and exotic place, nothing like other nurserys I've visited before. Naturally all plants were situated in greenhouses, packed together, lemons and oranges haning from everyother tree. Almost felt like we took a trip to the mediterranean and not just a tour in the neighbourhood!


Imagin all these agapanthus blooming at once!


Don't want to imagin the price of these trees..


Wouldn't mind having one off them though!


Or maby all of them, in a orangerie of my own!

As it's easter and I'm not working on monday I took the oppertunity to visit my friends in Belgium.
This time it's even more nice to be here than usual since I'm not only greeted by my dear friends but also by Ioko, a 10 week old, chocolatebrown labrador puppy!

Ioko comes from the organization Hachiko that with the help of "ordinary" familys train dogs to be able to help disabled people in their daily life with things like opening doors, picking up keys, taking clothes of and so on.
The dogs spends 1,5 year in the family, where it has to learn several commandos.
Then the organization trains the dog for another half a year and then the dog is fit for getting his or her "boss". When the dog is fully trained it knows about 80 different commandos. Everything from peeing when told to, to walking backwards and stay put until it's asked to leave.


Morning cuddles


Sometimes you get a picture like this..


..and sometimes Ioko is about to give the camera a lick before you know it..


And after cuddles, modelling and cameralicking it's naptime, sleep tight Ioko!

Now and then I get some updates from my mother about what my darling Muffin is up to.

And this is what he and Älva was doing the other day - both Älva and Muffin likes to lay in paperbags, plasticbags, handbags and cardboardboxes. In this case Älva was happy in her paperbag when Muffin got and idea. From the sofa down on the floor Muffin took a leap and landed on the paperbag to keep Älva from getting out again.
He was very pleased with him self and his mischief!

Gotcha!