A special gift for a special friend!

My very special friend Véro is expecting her first child. How exciting! The first baby amongst my friends and family! I wanted to give her (and her baby) something very special for the occasion. What’s more special (and more personal) than a hand-made gift? Nothing, so I decided that I would sew up a baby quilt for the two of them. Something they can use now but also keep for life!

Once again, picking out the fabric is my favourite part! It’s so exciting to chose the different motifs and try to imagine what they will look like once assembled. I just fell in love with the fabric that has the different animals, and what about the yellow fake wood! Love them all!

The longest part of the whole process is actually quilting together the different layers. It’s a tedious but well worth while because the effect is extra comfy and inviting!

A little hand stitched animal on the backside of the quilt really makes for a personalized gift!

Voila! Enjoy my friend (and new tiny friend to come)! A gift from me to you, made with love!

Weekend delights: Apples and Friends!

This weekend I headed back home with three of my friends for some outdoor fun and some indoor relaxation! On the menu….. apple picking and some good old pie baking!

Saturday was a bit of a grey, wet day but that didn’t stop us from doing the usual round about. First stop, a farmers kiosque that sells products from the garden and home-made baked goods. 

Second stop, the orchard. 

It’s a bit late in the season, but we were able to pick some delicious Macintosh apples and some juicy pears!

After our fun in the cool September drizzle, it’s straight home to bake up some delicious pies and some sweet apple sauce! Yum

What decorates my walls!

My home is an eclectic mix of different elements that I’ve collected over the years and through-out my different trips.  I thought that I could show you all a glimpse of some of my favourite things that hang on my walls. Here’s a little tour of my favourite pieces!

The living room

Here is a set of 3 water-colors that I bought on one of my trips to Morocco. These represent scenes from the Essaouira fishing port and were painted on site by a local artist. It’s hard to believe that these cost me only 20$ for the set of three!

This piece is very special to me because it was drawn by my husband. This intricate weave of swirls actually represents Arabic scripts… don’t ask me to translate!

The Hall

This is the very first piece of art that I hung in my very first apartment. A lithography of my home town. A little something my father gave my when I left home to come to university here in Montreal… 9 years ago already! 

This is the poster from my final design exhibition from the University of Montreal. I see it every day and it reminds me of  the four great years that I spent studying industrial design and all of the wonderful people I met during that period of my life.

The Kitchen

I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned this before, but my father owns some restaurants. This is actually an old breakfast menu that used to hang in one of the restaurants. I worked there many many summers (the morning shift actually) and this really reminds me of my childhood and all of my summers there!

The Bedroom

 This frame really means a lot to me. A few years back, my grandmother gave me the paper dolls that she played with as a child. These are literally about 80 years old. I really loved the faded colors and the detailing of the faces and clothing. I thought that they needed a special place, so I showcased them in this framed montage that hangs on my bedroom wall.

Last but not least, these neat little frames that mimic the old Polaroid pictures. I have a montage of different shots of my husband and I hanging just over our bed. 

Fall is back ... and so am I!

I’ve always loved autumn. Back to school time, the season’s changing, the crisp cool weather settling in again…. It’s such a great time for new beginnings. That’s exactly what I’m doing. Starting again! I know that I’ve been away for an exaggerated period, but now the cool crisp fall breeze makes me want to come home and start sharing with you all again. It’s with great pleasure that I am now back, full of pep and ready to go. I’m looking forward to sharing with you all again the things from my life that keep me inspired, as well as a few of the things that I’ve been up to while I was away for these long months.

Glad to be home, at the Cherry Pie Blog!

Catherine