A Morning Walk ~ Part 1 ..

Hello my dear friends,

two days ago it has once again started snowing here in south-western Ontario and you all know how much I love snow. Of course I just couldn't miss the chance to got for a walk before the beautiful white stuff was gone again. (little did I know it was only the beginning) The park and the pond just down the road from where we live and it is such a lovely place to spend time.

I took my camera along to capture everything I saw and took over 120 photographs ( I know a lot!) in 50 minutes of walking. I have now narrowed them down somewhat and I would love to share them with all of you. I won't be able to do this in one post, so the next post will also be all about my peaceful walk on a snowy morning. If you have nothing else to do in the nest few minutes why not grab a cup of coffee or tea ...

... and walk with me!

Heading down the path that enters the park you could already hear a lot of noise comimg from the creek.

And it didn't take long ...

... until I saw the first duck and where there is normally one duck, there will be more.

And there was!
I was happy that I had the corn and grain along that I had bought for these feather creatures and so were they. More and more came out of the water to eat a little.

These two came walking down the path in a hurry before everything was gone.

I left them to eat in peace and headed over to Cat Tail pond.

On my way there I saw something I liked. It seems our city has taken a better step to controlling the damage the beaver that lives here makes. Instead of doing the worst thing they already once did and I am sure you know what I mean, they now are fencing trees so the beaver can't get to them. A much better solution in my mind ... don't you agree?!

Cat Tail pond was beautiful and peaceful and so lovley to look at. The old willow tree in the back came down last year some time but it is adding to it's surroundings.

  Walking a little further down the path past the pond, more tree with fences  ~ such a good sight.

Heading back the other way ...

... I just couldn't resist taking a few more picture of the frozen pond.

 The old  tree that was placed there for anyone ot sit and and enjoy the view is resting peacefully under the white blanket of cold.

But not those feathered creatures. 

As soon as they saw me coming closer to the creek they all came in search for more food.

And this time there were even more ducks! Unfortunately I wasn't able to take a photo when the all flew up back into the waster due to a dog heading their way ~ it looked so amazing.

Once the dog was gone, they again returned to the land ...

... and I gave them the last little bit of grain I had and continued my walk.

And that will be for tomorrows post. I hope you have enjoyed  your 'little walk' so far with me and maybe you will join me again for the second part of it.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.

My Sweet Valentine ..

Hello my dear friends,

with Valentine's Day it's way I wanted to create some thing sweet and petite and that is what today's post is all about.

I remembered that I had a few old pocket watch casings laying in one of my drawers for some time now. Looking at one of them I thought it would be perfect for a Valentine's Day creation and it was!

 My first idea unfortunately didn't work out so a little more thought went into what to do. Not too long after that, I decided on something different and it turned out to be perfect.

I love to crochet and especially tiny little things and that was no different this time.

I made a few tiny hearts, ...

... a few little pink flowers ...

... and some tiny little white blossoms too.

I gathered a small piece of tatting and last but not least some seam binding.
 Just like the tiny hearts the seam binding started off in the wrong color ...

... but that was soon changed.

All those lovely bits and bobs neatly put together and ...

... joined with the old pocket watch casing became my newest creation.

I named it ...

'My Sweet Valentine'.

Oh my little Valentine ... you are so sweet!

It was actually a little challenging trying to take some of the photographs for this post. The little pocket watch casing is old and the top is a little heavy with the glass in it and every time I just got ready to take a photo of the open case, the lid would shut on me. It took me several attempts to get the photos just right but in the end everything was just right ~ just the way I like it.

Thank you  for taking the time to stop by and I hope you have enjoyed your visit to Todolwen and my newest creation too.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.

My Garden Critters ..

Hello my dear friends,

you all know how much I love the critters that visit our garden and today I am sharing a few new photos of with all of you Lovelies. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

I always love it when the blue jays visit. They call out load and make me aware that they are there, in hope to receive a few peanuts.

A little cardinal came by too ...  

 ... and found a few little red berries to feed on.

And of course there are all the cute little squirrels ....

 At time we might have ten all at once in our garden, playing around, chasing each other and looking for a treat in the shape of a peanut or a piece of apple.

Just look at all the little food prints in the snow!

Everyone is very happy until this stunning creature showed up in our neighbours tree and then all of the sudden all the furry critters were all gone again. I don't blame them, do you?! I would be worried if I were a squirrel.

A beautiful and majestic bird but this time he left without a catch.

The next fethered beings that should 'fly in' will be the local ducks again but it will be a little while before they do because the pool is still solid ice. I am already looking forward to their first visit of the year and watching them swim in the pool and of course I will share a few photos of it too.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.

Silent Night ..

Hello my dear friends,

as I mentioned before I am quite far behind with things I wanted to share with all of you Lovelies here on Todolwen and this is one of them.

It was a silent night and holy night this past Christmas Eve.
 Everything was so beautiful, calm and all was bright. The moon stood high and shone down on us that night and it was so peaceful. That is what that night was all about ~ peace on earth to all mankind and believing.

 It felt like heaven was shining on us and right into my heart. I am so grateful for this and I will treasure it for a very long time. I was so fortunate to be able to capture that moment in my photograph and I hoped you have enjoyed it.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.

Spring Tulips ..

Hello my dear friends,

do you remember my little 'Tulip' pincushions?

I had made last year them from pewter candle snuffers I had found.

If you don't ~ here they are ...

I enjoyed making them so much! After that candle snuffers became a thing I would look out for or something similar like it since then but so far I haven't come across another one yet. I did come across something else very neat though. I am actually not sure if I have shared these findings before or not  (I am a scatter brain at times) so I am doing so today (maybe even for the second time). 

 They are two pewter tulip candle holders!

Aren't these just so pretty? ... 

They are the matching candle holders to the candle snuffers I had worked with.

Of course I wanted to work with them right away.

There is the saying ...'There is no time like the present ' and that is what I went with and that is why I am sharing my newest pincushion with all of you today. You know me and pincushions ... they are one of my most favorite things I love to make and I don't think it will every change.

Seeing these little pewter tulips made me think of Spring when the actual flowers start growing in so many beautiful colors. That is the reason why I am named my newest creations my 'Spring Tulips' pincushions. The perfect name for them in my eyes. Another big part of this creation was color. You all know that I am not one to often use color in my creations but this time it was a must. 

And here it is ...

... my first 'Spring Tulip' pincushion.

I named it ...

 ... 'Lovely Lilac'.

I used cotton velvet for the actual pincushion in a delightful shade of lilac which I then embellished with a small piece from a vintage doily. Crushed seam binding in a lighter shade of lilac was also must for this piece. The final touch was added in the shape of a little old rhinestone earring.

 Simple but yet very lovely.

 

Just like in the past, I find fewer bits and pieces have made this creation come together just right.

 I am happy that it has turned out the way it has and I you have enjoyed my newest creation too.

Since flowers grow in bunches, there will be another little 'Spring Tulip' pincushion to follow this one some time soon.

Thank you for visiting me here at Todolwen and I hope you have enjoyed your stay.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.