Christmas Swap!!!

The moment I've been waiting for: a new Christmas swap organized by Fabiola at Miominimondo! I had so much fun last year putting together the Christmas gifts to send to my swap partners that I couldn't wait for the new edition of this game! :) I also LOVE seeing what great ideas other people find for a swap and often look at the photos in amazement... Such talented people out there!

If you are also looking forward to making new friends and exchanging beautiful handmade mini gifts, come and join Fabiola's swap! All you have to do is leave a comment and start making those little things! :) You only need to make 2 gifts for this Christmas chain, one for the person/link before you and one for the person/link behind you on the list. Easy, right? :)

Well, my children and I are already watching Christmas cartoons and looking forward to the Holidays. What about you? :)

Hugs,
Simona

Gifts for the Birthday Swap

Although I am not very active concerning posts on this blog, I do take my time to visit you, my dear mini friends, and witness most (if not all) your progress on your mini projects. On the other hand, I am rather surprised to see that,in spite of my absence, I already have a handful of followers, so I want to thank everyone and tell you that I am thinking of organizing a giveaway very soon as my way of showing you my appreciation.

Meanwhile, I want to show you the gifts I made for two of my mini friends who take part in the birthday swap organized by Kaisa. I am talking about Cristina

and Teresa
 

There is a hat, a laptop, wrapping paper, vintage labels, botanic atlas, pictures to be framed, carpets, trays, baby onesie etc. I would be happy to know these are things these miniaturists are going to use some day... It is so much fun doing stuff for other people and hoping they will be pleased with their gift! Happy birthday again, ladies!

Until my next post, I'm wishing you happy crafting and playing!

Hugs,
Simona

Have You Ever Seen Something So Beautiful?

And it's all free! It could be yours if you choose to follow Conny's blog "It's A Mini Life". She is having this giveaway to thank all those following her. Isn't she generous? :)

Let's Have Some Fun!

Hello again, my dear special friends! Yes, I know, a lot of time passes between posts, but I hope you will stick by me. I always hope to have a little more time to craft miniatures...

This time, I want to write about something Rosella nominated me for, and I thank her, it was a surprise to see the name of my blog on her list!

I have to share 5 habits or secrets with you, and I will do this just for the fun of it - I know I'm not that interesting to give me your time, but please bear with me! :)

1. Number one thing is my faith, I'm an Orthodox Christian, and I strive every day to overcome my weaknesses, which are many... I hope God so help us all and that we all get to spend eternity in His loving arms.

2. I cook three times a day, a fresh dish for every meal for my children and husband.

3. The miniature blogs are a dangerous zone for me because I tend to forget about the work I need to do around the house when I look at all your amazing posts and witness your wonderful talent...

4. I love, love, love chocolate, especially the Belgian kind (with milk).

5. I studied foreign languages as I am so interested in discovering other cultures and visiting new countries, I'm really fascinated. I haven't had a lot of opportunities so far, but I hope someday I will be able to travel more with my family.

I should pass this game to other people,but I decided not to nominate blogs (as they are all beautiful) but rather ask my partners for Kaisa's Birthday Swap 2012 to do the same as I did and list 5 things about themselves. I would  LOVE to know you better, ladies!

Mary Has A Giveaway

And a fantastic one it is! Just look at this:

I love the furniture, the flowers, the tray... everything! The winner is one lucky person...
If you want to participate, go to Mary's blog and follow her, the leave a comment.

Hugs,
Simona

A Lost Gift

Recently, I have received a gift from Gill. My birthday was in February, but the gift she sent me back then lost its way, so she was kind enough to send me another wonderful gift. I love everything she has sent me, I appreciate all the work and effort that have gone into it, it's just amazing! The cookies look so real you could eat them... :) I will soon find a way to incorporate these things in my projects. Thank you very, very much for everything, dear Gill !!!

Hallelujah!!! Hallelujah!!!

My friends, the Orthodox Christians are preparing to celebrate Easter. Everyone else, I hope you had an amazing Easter and that you have more peace in your life and soul now. I am inviting everyone to view this, although the only thing related to miniatures is the size of these people (they are children). However, this  is unbelievable... I hope you feel it! THANK YOU, GOD! THANK YOU, JESUS!!!!!!

Thank You For The Most Wonderful Gifts!!!

The best thing about miniature blogging is making friends and discovering wonderful, lovely people who understand your passion and who are eager to help in some way! I said it before: to me, it's just amazing how some people from different corners of the world come together and are so selfless in what they do! I have never seen competition in the miniature blogging world, just a feeling of mutual admiration and acknowledgement. I feel at home amongst this kind of people. 

Today is my birthday and I just wanted to thank everybody from the bottom of my heart for sending me your handmade gifts and warm wishes. I hope all the good things that you wished for me will find a way back to you and bless your life as well!!! You were so kind to me and so, so generous! I hope I will be able to bring as much joy to you when we celebrate your birthday as I was now because of your love and kindness! Thank you very much!!!

Here are the rest of the fantastic gifts I  have received from my mini friends for my birthday (thanks to KAISA who organized this birthday swap!):

Just look at this lovely stuff that Rosella sent me (along with a letter in Romanian...)! Everything is made for a couple (maybe my husband and me? :)) I would love to see that happen: my husband playing with miniatures... ).  I can't wait to furnish a mini bathroom with these! Thank you!

Maria, your gifts are so beautiful! Thank you for the time you took to make all these precious miniatures for me! I love them!

Teruka, this is just beautiful! I love the detail on the pillows and the basket is full of goodies... also for the bathroom I am planning! :) Thank you!

Cristina's mini gifts are simply beautiful! Everything looks so real and she thought of all the things a girl might get on her birthday: jewellery, flowers, cake, clothes... Thank you, Cristina!

Sandra sent me all that great stuff came beautifully packaged, as you can see. And look at those flowers!!! I know this is a mini blog, but still I would not have the patience (let alone the talent!) to make something like that. Thank you very much!

Drora, you touched my heart! I broke down when I read that the shells come from the Sea of Galilee... It suddenly made me feel overwhelmed and transported me to the time when Lord Jesus was walking the Earth...and the sea... Thank you so much!!!

I saw this beautiful set of broom and dust pan on Patty's blog and... what do you think?! She sent them to me, together with these beautifully decorated cookies. Aren't these sweet? :) Thank you, Patty!

And wow, isn't this a gorgeous display of Easter products?!? It really left my mouth watering, and the pastel colors look so attractive... And those cookies are REALLY tiny! Thank you so very much, Karin, your work is just amazing!

And she also added a handmade card! :)

Thank you, ladies! You have helped me celebrate the most extended birthday I have ever had. :) I have been partying since the beginning of the month, every time I received a new gift! :)) One more gift is probably on the way, and I will let you know when I get it. Meanwhile, I hope your day is going to be at least as good as mine, and a great big hug to everyone! You are wonderful!!!

Paris, Mon Amour

Hi friends,

As I said in my last post, I am adding now the pictures I took for this roombox I entitled "Paris, mon amour". It was made for my sister-in-law for her birthday in December. She loves Paris and even has the chance to go there a few times a year as part of her job. Actually, I think every person who goes there is likely to fall in love with it, it's just fascinating!!

 

I wanted to obtain a vintage feel of the room. The entire room is in scale 1/24, and almost everything in it is handmade by myself. The wallpaper is a dusty pale-green cardstock.The floor is bamboo.

I made the entire furniture from pieces of wood I bought from Opitec. The books are pieces of wood from a bracelet, painted white then covered in coloured cardstock. The same I did for the feet of the bookcase. The Bible is a metal opening medalion, the Eiffel Tower is a piece of jewellery, the perfume bottles on the tray are - of course - beads, and there are also some pictures of the birthday girl with my children. The orchid is made by me from Sculpey clay and planted in a medicine cap, the stand is a marker cap that I painted white white with acrylics. 

The view from the small window is a real pictures I once took of the streets in Paris. The desk and chair are made by myself and it took me a whole afternoon, as I did not follow any template for the chair. Besides, I had a rough time because I had to cut everything with a cutter as I do not have a little sow yet. All the pictures you see on the walls are cutouts  from a brochure about Paris. I framed the ones that represent paintings of the Versailles and of Sacre-Coeur. The little rug under the desk is also a piece of paper, a picture of a rug from a home decorating brochure. The little Christian orthodox icons on the wall show her faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Well, that's about it, I hope you enjoyed looking at my pictures and thank you very much for your visit! I am just a beginner in this beautiful miniature world, so I appreciate your comments even better! I have a lot to learn from you all !!!

Hugs,
Simona

Gifts I Have Received From Minifriends

This passion of mine for all things mini has put me in touch with other people who like the same things, which is the best part of blogging: making friends all over the world. Although I did not have the time to post anything in January, I am really sorry I did not show you all the cute stuff I got for Christmas and for my birthday... These ladies were so kind to me and they brought me such joy by offering these presents! So, I will post a few pictures of these gifts keeping the order in which they arrived:

Thank you Pepi! You are so talented and I appreciate everything you put into the gift, especially since you had some health problems,but you still did this for me... Thank you very, very much!!! Everything is amazing! 

Thank you, dear Staci! Your gift was a great joy to open too and I can see all your effort to make these lovely things. I love your gift, thank you!!! Plus, she has offered me a free shipping voucher for her shop on Etsy (here).

 

 Ciao, Faby! I could not believe my eyes when I opened the gift from you: I finally had my own bottle of champagne... :) I will use it on the 28th of February to celebrate by birthday! Really, bottles were something I wished for  since I discovered the land of minis, and I've never had one until now. Also, the rest of the gift was amazing! Thank you very, very much for everything!!!

 

 Kaisa, I could never thank you enough for the joy you brought me when you decided to send me this gift! It is absolutely awesome and it's something I've been wishing for... The bread looks so real I wanted to taste it! :) Thank you very much, you are great!

 I will be back soon, but probably not until tomorrow or the day after! So have a good night and next time I will post the pictures I've been promising you for my roombox "Paris, mon amour". :)

Hugs,
Simona