Plant Diary Entry 01 - Tradescantia Cuttings

During a visit to the gorgeous plant store Wildernis in Amsterdam, I bought a small tradescantia zebrina (also called wandering jew). I was really drawn towards the beautiful colors of the leaves. The purple underneath is so vibrant. The top of the leaves have these lovely, shiny silver lines. The colors will fade to a less vibrant green if the plant does not get enough light. So if you happen to get one, make sure to put it in a spot with bright indirect light. In general it is a strong plant and accidentally over or under watering won't cause too many problems - unless you do it too frequently of course.

I quickly discovered the tradescantia family has a lot of very pretty types and I especially fell in love with the tradescantia fluminensis/variegata variations. All the different names can get confusing, I still get it wrong. But I'll do my best to leave a list of the types shown in the photos. I'm no expert by all means, so I apologize if I made a mistake somewhere.

It sounded quite tempting to go and buy all the types and variations that I liked, but I didn't quite have the space for so many large plants. Therefor I decided to try something I hadn't tried before: ordering cuttings online. After a bit of searching I found a European Etsy seller that offered different types of tradescantia cuttings. I was very happy to have found a seller that didn't live too far away, especially since I knew the cuttings would be on its way to me without having any access to light or water on their way to me. Earlier this week, a week after it got shipped, a whole bunch of cuttings arrived. I received around 8 different variations in a really good condition! Most of them have been put straight into soil in order to perk back up and to adjust to their new spot, while the smaller ones are in my new propagation station.

This station (available at Hart en Ziel) was a birthday gift from dear friends and I was so happy I was able to use it right away! I didn't want to get the smaller cuttings into soil right away. This way, they get the time to grow (more) roots before getting their own pot. The fun part is that I get to see the roots slowly growing.

While typing this post I already noticed a difference from when I took the photos. Most cuttings in the soil seem to be standing firmer. I might have to groom the cuttings a little when they're all settled in their new environment and I'll do my best to keep you updated. But by the looks of it, things are going really well and I'm so excited to have these new plants in my home!

To finish this post, here's the list of all the cuttings in the photos. I didn't photograph all the cuttings I received yet and I'll make sure to mention them later so you get to know these too.

• Tradescantia Zebrina
• Tradescantia Fluminensis "quicksilver"
• Tradescantia Fluminensis "variegata"
• Tradescantia Fluminensis tricolor
• Tradescantia Fluminensis (green leaves)
• Tradescantia Zebrina Purpusii
• Crassula Ovata Gollum, which is a succulent, but it was in my propagation station too

First Video!

Making a time lapse video has been on my "I seriously want to do this one day"-list for so long and I finally took the time to make it happen. I made an original illustration out of one of the animals I drew for my Animal Tuesday project. Seeing this video being on my Youtube channel makes me really proud! I can't express how excited I am about this first video! I've learnt so, so much while recording, editing and showing it to friends. A next video will follow as soon as possible! Make sure to subscribe to my channel to stay up to date.

A print of the moth will be made available somewhere this week. Keep an eye on the shop or Instagram to see it getting listed.

A Print for a Good Cause

A couple of days ago I got really inspired by a sculpture Stephanie of Petitplat was making (also shown in the second image on the right), so I decided to draw the whale she was sculpting. I've drawn a whale before for my weekly challenge and I knew I was going to enjoy making this whale filled with corals for sure! I posted it on Instagram and a few days later I received a request of a really kind customer to have that drawing printed. Stephanie was kind enough to approve of it (as I drew what she made), so I now have a limited amount of A5 prints available in my shop. That's not all! I decided to start a charity fundraising with this print. Per sold print, 6 USD (half of the purchase price) will be donated to Sea Shepherd, an organization fighting any form of cruelty towards the wildlife in the world's oceans.

It would be really great if you'd help out raising money for this great cause and/or spread the word!
Make sure to check out the shop of Petitplat too, she makes so many beautiful things.

Last, but not least, the necklace shown in the first image is by the talented crafters behind Star of the East!

Field of Poppies

The camera madness continues. This is a small illustration I made a while ago and I'll have print available of this very soon. I plan on making other illustrations available as print too, so stay tuned if you're excited about this! In the meantime, please make sure to check out the webshop as I'm having a July sale! Use coupon code CHRISTMASINJULY for 20% off.

Camera Madness

Those who know me, know it's been difficult breaking free from drawing plants and animals all the time. Things are slowly changing, though. A dear friend and I started having small drawing sessions recently. Drawing together has been so much fun, especially when my cousin joins for a session. I really enjoy these little moments. But, to be honest, I still ended up drawing animals each time. Just not last time! My friend has an amazing collection of (vintage) cameras - amongst other amazing objects. So for the short time we had, I sat down and did pen drawings of two of her cameras. Later that week I drew my own camera. Sadly, my own collection sort of ends here.

I really loved getting back into line work. The end result looks a bit funny because of the weird compositions and lines that aren't as straight as they should be. But I really like it this way. I started drawing the lens and build up from there. You can expect likely work more often, for sure.

Pssst. My dear friend and her boyfriend also have their own business where they sell vintage, retro and antique furniture and home decor. Check them out!!

The New Chapter I Planned 2 Years Ago.

Vanaf het begin van mijn winkeltje is het altijd al mijn doel geweest om mijn illustratie zo veel mogelijk te integreren met mijn borduur- en naaiwerk (ik herhaal mijzelf een beetje), dus ik hoop tegen het eind van de zomer de eerste eigen patronen af te hebben. Ik heb het hier in de loop der jaren al enkele keren over gehad. Hier en hier, bijvoorbeeld. Maar ander werk bleef in de weg komen. Ik ben natuurlijk heel dankbaar voor al dat ander werk! Het is tijd om er een nieuw hoofdstuk aan toe te voegen.

• In de tussentijd is het solden in het winkeltje! Gebruik coupon code SALESJULY bij de checkout en krijg 30% korting!

I've been telling it so many times already, but from the start of my business it's been a huge goal to combine my illustration with embroidery and sewing work as much as I can. I have plans to finish the first own patterns by the end of the summer. It's something I've been talking about for a couple of years now. Here and here, for example. But other orders and work got in the way. I'm very thankful for all the work I've been having! It's time to add a new chapter.

• In the meantime, I'm having a big sales at my shop! Use coupon code SALESJULY during the checkout to receive 30% off!

Scent of Lavender

In mijn vorige post over mijn geborduurde bloemen, gaf mij iemand het idee om met de borduurwerkjes lavendelzakjes te maken. Na lang nadenken ben ik gedroogde lavendel gaan halen en heb ik een eerste zakje gemaakt. Dit kun je al meteen vinden in mijn winkeltje. Tijdens het vullen van het zakje, was ik toch wel erg geïnspireerd door de kleuren van de gedroogde lavendel. Ik denk dat ik dus al een volgend idee heb voor mijn kleurenstudies. Vandaag is het trouwens een hele mooie, zonnige dag! Ik hoop dat jullie even hard aan het genieten zijn van deze prachtige zondag.

In my previous post about my embroidered flowers, someone gave me the idea to make lavender sachets out of the embroideries. After some thinking, I purchased dried lavender and made my first sachet. You can already find it at the shop. While filling the sachet, I got very inspired by the colours of the dried lavender. I think I have new ideas for the next colour studies. Besides all this, today has turned into a gorgeous, sunny day. I hope you enjoy this beautiful Sunday as well!

Simple Things.

Vandaag geniet ik weer even van de kleine simpele dingen. En heel stilletjes afscheid nemen van het roosje. Dat nu als gedroogde bloem een nieuw leven krijgt.

I am enjoying the little simple things today. And slowly, I'm saying goodbye to little rose. Who will get a new life as dried flower.

Wool and Lines.

Het is echt heel lang geleden, maar vandaag heb ik het haken terug opgepikt. Wegens mijn polsen heb ik de wol en de haaknaald een tijd opzij moeten leggen. En wat heb ik het gemist! Ik doe het zeker nog rustig aan. Ik wil absoluut niets erger maken. In de tussentijd ben ik nog altijd volop aan het tekenen en aan het ontwerpen. Ik probeer mij vooral te baseren op bestaande bloemen. Zo heb je als eerste een reeks madeliefjes. De laatste is gebaseerd op een foto van lieve Lotte - haar foto's en liefde voor planten en bloemen zijn ondertussen al een enorme bron van inspiratie geweest. Waarvoor de tekeningen gaan dienen vertel ik pas later.

It took me a while, but today I picked my crochet hook back up. Due to my sore wrists, I had to put my crochet material aside and let my wrists rest. Oh my, what did I miss it! I do plan on doing things slowly. Better not make things worse. In the meantime I'm still very busy drawing and designing. I try to use real flowers as reference instead of drawing randomly. The first serie of flowers is based on daisies. The second is based on a photo of my dear friend Lotte - her photos and love for plants and flowers have been such a huge inspiration so far. What I'll use the drawings for is still a secret - which I'll reveal very soon.

Flower Books.

Soms haal ik mijn inspiratie ook uit geïllustreerde bloemenboeken. Deze prachtige exemplaren kreeg ik als verjaardagscadeau van een goede vriendin. "A Flower Wedding" heb ik gekocht nadat ik Queen of Carrot Flowers haar post zag over dit boek. Echt een prachtig boek!

I sometimes get my inspiration from illustrated flower books. These lovely examples were a birthday gift from a dear friend. I first saw the book "A Flower Wedding" at the blog Queen of Carrot Flowers and I bought it after I saw her post about it. It's such a beautiful book!