# 87 donate blood

I've been meaning to accomplish this item for so many years, today was the day I donated blood. 

Although walking into the hospital felt like I had rewind back to the 1960's, the staff was extremely kind and gentle and made the whole experience a pleasant one. The truth is, I didn't even have a glance at what was happening to my left arm... I just know that I came out of the hospital 450gr lighter!

i want sun! is that so hard to ask?

An early wake up in Figueira da Foz to total disappointment.... yet another cloudy weekend! Weather forecast websites should be prosecuted for creating high expectations...

shop update

Some months ago I bought a bunch of hand embroidered napkins that I'm transforming into runners for bedside tables, but with a twist: inspiring statements! Available here and here. 

If you have a statement you'd like to see as last thing you read before going to bed or the first thing when waking up, just leave a comment and I'll write it in red! 

love is written in red

What I most like about traditional Portuguese embroidered handkerchiefs is the concept: an embroidered message, usually written in verse, and illustrated (or not) with symbolic images of the message being said. So you can easily adapt this concept to any occasion. 

Last year, when she said yes, my special gift was this handkerchief wishing them all the best in their new life together as husband and wife. It was inspired in this beautiful story about life and hope, where a red line connects the whole story. 

PS: The baby boy is almost here. All they need now is a dog.

more kid's books

Lisbon's book fair is a 10 minute walk from home. And although I am almost 30, but I can't help it... I love children's books! So I came home with these 2 wonderful books from the Planeta Tangerina. My next purchase is this lovely book from one of my favorite illustrators, Cecilia Afonso Esteves.

temos pena

And yet another weekend escape, but this time we went camping in the rain near São Pedro do Sul.  Thankfully it cleared up on Sunday. Pedro and the other climbers spent the afternoon hanging themselves from  ropes in the hills around Aldeia da Pena as I laid back against a rock, catching some springtime sun and reread my absolute favorite book: Cien años de solidad, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. So good...

temos pena que a aldeia da pena seja tão longe....

...to the obtuse things in life...

cyanotype - the process

#1 - the night before cover a piece of cloth or thick water color paper with the cyanotype solution and let it air dry over night.

#2 - using cutouts, place them over the cloth and sandwiched between 2 pieces of glass and set it out in bright sunlight for about 10min.

#3 - wash in running water to remover excess chemicals and oxidized the iron salts.

#4 - air dry the cloth.

#5 - do something with it!

love is written in red

Working on a wedding gift inspired by cross stitched Portuguese handkerchiefs. The poem is Soneto do Amor Total, by Vinicius de Morais. 

Susette en Paris

Susette is finally ready and available at the shop.