Misty's hobbies

MY FAVOURITE THINGS TO DO .....

During working hours I work with my brains and hands, but in my spare time I 'd like to work with my hands and my fantasy. In summer I prefer to grow flowers outside, go swimming and do little real cooking - but during the rest of the year I keep busy with various different things.....................................

COOKING

Sometimes we just keep things easy and have a pizza or some French fries, because we have lots of other things to do. Most of the time though I have fun in the kitchen with my pots and pans. If you're interested in some of my recipes - just push the button to my cooking page :o))

GROWING ORCHIDS

There are two kinds of orchids: the ones that grow in a warm greenhouse (25 degrees Celsius or higher) and the ones that grow in a cold greenhouse (around 18 degrees Celsius). So growing orichids in your windowseat can surely be done and is great fun. I keep about 12 different orchids in the windowseat of my livingroom. During summer you can put them outside on a rack - out of the hot sun of course. The best way to keep them is in a pot with a hole in the bottom - with a saucer underneath it for water supply. Be sure to give your orchids new soil once a year - and when they bloom add some fertilizer. Special supplies can be bought at most garden centers nearby. My orchids are my pride and joy - they bloom at least once a year. To me they bring a piece of the worlds most exotic places into my home and into my heart. I can recommend anyone to do the same.

The following orchids (in various sorts available) can be grown inside your house very well:

More information can be found at the site:
"Growing orchids at home"

DRAWING AND PAINTING

Everyone learns how to draw and paint in pre-school, but not everyone has the talent to develop these skills to create art. Because that's what it is ... an art. Before you even start you need to realize that there are basic rules for drawing and painting. In the evening hours I followed an art class to learn these basic rules concerning colours and perspective. Up to now I've preferred using plain pencils and colored pencils. Especially the last ones are amazingly usable for drawing - you can create similar effects with them as with watercolors. I bought a book by Bet Borgeson some years ago, that includes lessons in using colored pencils. The book also shows results from her students and I must admit I'm not nearly as good as they are. But maybe one day I will be .... practice makes perfect :o))

Links to "Bet Borgeson Studio" and
"Bet Borgeson Biography"

Another favorite is Marjolein Bastin - a Dutch artist who makes great watercolors concerning nature. She´s very famous in my country for her work. Many of her paintings have been made into cross stitch patterns, dairy's and postcards. I keep dreaming some day I can paint as well as she does .... *sigh* .........

This is a link to her short "Dutch Biography"

PENCIL DRAWING BY BET BORGESON
Bet Borgeson

Marjolein Bastin

NEW: PIXEL PAINTING ART !!

Since I got involved in designing cross sittch patterns I constantly
was hunting for a technique to create good basic images for that.
Now that I've found the art of pixel painting - I've not only found
a good technique to create great basic images but I've also added another hobby to my list: the art of pixelpainting !! It's a perfect
way to combine all my interests ........ Follow the link below to my
Arts & Crafts page and more about this graphic technique will
be revealed to you :OD !

KNITTING / CROCHETTING
AND CROSS STITCH

During autumn and winter these are the nicest things to do in the evening hours. Sitting watching TV and just knitting a sweater or crocheting a new curtain for one of my windows. Also many people around me were pleased with a gift which was handmade. Finding a basic pattern isn't difficult - but adjusting it for that special person is. And I keep trying to do just that, so it will be an original and unique gift. To show you everything I've created would be a hard thing to do, because I've made so many things, but here's an example of my skills, which by the way is hanging in my living room. At cross stitch I'm at my best - I really love those old fashioned sample cloths ........ If you are in the possession of an original pattern: I can always use one more :O)) By the way - my favorite colour is bleu!

Fairly recently I've bought some new software for my computer ... a hobby cd-rom Pattern Maker (from Hobbyware) which has the software to turn drawings, photographs etc. into a cross stitch pattern. I've tried to convert fantasy stuff & Westie drawings into a pattern .... and it worked out great! So I've got some projects lined up for me already .....

MY EMBROIDERY

Links to DMC Needlepoint:
"DMC Creative World - Welcome"
and
"Welcome to DMC" (USA)

CROSSSTITCH PATTERNS OF
MY OWN DESIGN :

Recently I've been very productive ... since I have
bought my new software there is no holding back.
Now I make many original crossstitch
designs of my own ... which of course are protected
with my own copyright! Some of them are on my
arts & craftspages ... so come over and have a
peek ... use them for free .... but please give
me the credits for creating them!

On my arts & craftspages you wil also find a variety
of art-links which might turn out to be handy when
you want to design your own patterns.

During my lifetime I've been very productive so I
have gained a lot of experience with crossstitching.
The things most important are on my tips page ...
but if you still have a problem after reading that
page don't be to shy to ask me! And if I can't help
... I'll tell you so ... so please don't blame me for
not knowing it all *grins*!

GO TO MY
ARTS & CRAFTS
PAGES ...

FIXING OLD PINE FURNITURE

Antique hunting is a sport ...*grin*. Sometimes you can find the nicest stuff at the most oddest places. When I started out on my own again I didn't have much furniture, so I bought some old furniture at a junkmarket. And as time went along I found out that not everything they sold turned out to be junk at all. The first thing I found was an antique rockinghorse at a recycleshop. It had a real leather saddle, iron stir ups and a real tail and when I cleaned it up .... WOW - it turned out to be a beauty.

Then my brother in law (from Amsterdam) showed me how to fix old pine furniture. He's was very experienced at that - he had lots of nice stuff to show for it. So with his help I started out on my first piece: a dining room table with four chairs. It took us two weeks to finish it - but the results were enormous! From that moment on I was infected by the pine-bug and in the years following I collected and fixed all kinds of pine furniture. Right now I can't buy any more stuff - my house has been completed now. So I will share the secret how to fix pine furniture with you.

You start out buying a piece of pine furniture and stripping it of it's old paint or wax. The best way to do that is to steep it in ley (I have this done by a special firm for me - it's a tricky job). So what you get is a plain wooden piece of furniture. For me the best way to preserve this is NOT to wax it. If you do wax it - you will have to wax it and wax it again and again every 3 months. If you have children and / or animals in your home you don't want to do that ........ *nasty grin* because stains are hard to remove!

So I use this method:

Buy some antique color woodstain (based on water) - get yourself a glass jar - pour 2/3 woodstain in and put some sticky tape on the jar to mark the level - now add 1/3 of ammonia to it and again mark the level with sticky tape. Finally add some drops of black Indonesian ink and again mark the level. (Carefully keep the jar in a safe place if you need to make some more in the future - you want your furniture to have the same colour - right?) FIRST sand your furniture to remove splinters!! Now paint your piece of furniture with the emulsion and let it dry. Then softly sand it very lightly with very fine sandpaper. Now you can apply 2 or 3 coats of varnish (blank) on your furniture - sand lightly and take off the dust between every coat. Let it dry ....... and voila .... you have an antique piece of pine furniture. And the good news is ........ you can keep it clean with just a wet cloth ..... so no more stains .... no more waxing .... :O))

Hope you will let me know how it works out for you !!!

ANTIQUE CUBBOARD

MY LOVE FOR NATURE

Dogs and horses have always been my greatest passion. The places I love most are the sea and the forest. But also my garden keeps fascinating me. In general you could say I love all of Gods creations - because to me they are all miracles which I enjoy every day of my life. So let us also leave some for the generations to come - and be careful with all living things on our planet. Mankind has been too destructive already in the past. Organizations well known in keeping nature for the future are Greenpeace and the Word Wildlife Fund. Keep up the good work!

Link to:

Link to:

CREATING WEBPAGES

Since Johan came into my life, my knowledge about software has revolutionary increased. One of the things I learned thanks to him was how to create my webpages. In the beginning there was a fear for the unknown, but things went better once I stepped over that threshold. Now and again I still get stuck somewhere and he always helps me out. We built our website with the help of the programs WebExpress 3.0 and Paint Shop Pro. Both are very easy to use .... even for a clumsy clod like me ..*grin* ... so if I can work with it ... everyone can!

In the future I would love to create my own bordersets and put them on our website for general use. I've created some based on Marjolein Bastin's watercolours .... but I'm not sure I can use them because of the artist copyrights ... I've still got to look into that! The ones I used so far for my webpages were someone else 's creation and felt like " borrowed or stolen ". I guess because I´m quite a creative person it doesn´t feel like an original from my own hands. That is why I think the makers should get the credit due to them. So thanks for the great stuff !!

	MY FAVOURITE THINGS TO DO .....
	During working hours I work with my brains and hands, but in my spare time I 'd like to work with my hands and my fantasy. In summer I prefer to grow flowers outside, go swimming and do little real cooking - but during the rest of the year I keep busy with various different things.....................................

	COOKING
	Sometimes we just keep things easy and have a pizza or some French fries, because we have lots of other things to do. Most of the time though I have fun in the kitchen with my pots and pans. If you're interested in some of my recipes - just push the button to my cooking page :o))

	GROWING ORCHIDS
	There are two kinds of orchids: the ones that grow in a warm greenhouse (25 degrees Celsius or higher) and the ones that grow in a cold greenhouse (around 18 degrees Celsius). So growing orichids in your windowseat can surely be done and is great fun. I keep about 12 different orchids in the windowseat of my livingroom. During summer you can put them outside on a rack - out of the hot sun of course. The best way to keep them is in a pot with a hole in the bottom - with a saucer underneath it for water supply. Be sure to give your orchids new soil once a year - and when they bloom add some fertilizer. Special supplies can be bought at most garden centers nearby. My orchids are my pride and joy - they bloom at least once a year. To me they bring a piece of the worlds most exotic places into my home and into my heart. I can recommend anyone to do the same.

	The following orchids (in various sorts available) can be grown inside your house very well:




	More information can be found at the site: "Growing orchids at home"

	DRAWING AND PAINTING
	Everyone learns how to draw and paint in pre-school, but not everyone has the talent to develop these skills to create art. Because that's what it is ... an art. Before you even start you need to realize that there are basic rules for drawing and painting. In the evening hours I followed an art class to learn these basic rules concerning colours and perspective. Up to now I've preferred using plain pencils and colored pencils. Especially the last ones are amazingly usable for drawing - you can create similar effects with them as with watercolors. I bought a book by Bet Borgeson some years ago, that includes lessons in using colored pencils. The book also shows results from her students and I must admit I'm not nearly as good as they are. But maybe one day I will be .... practice makes perfect :o)) Links to "Bet Borgeson Studio" and "Bet Borgeson Biography" Another favorite is Marjolein Bastin - a Dutch artist who makes great watercolors concerning nature. She´s very famous in my country for her work. Many of her paintings have been made into cross stitch patterns, dairy's and postcards. I keep dreaming some day I can paint as well as she does .... sigh ......... This is a link to her short "Dutch Biography"	Bet Borgeson Marjolein Bastin

	NEW: PIXEL PAINTING ART !!
	Since I got involved in designing cross sittch patterns I constantly was hunting for a technique to create good basic images for that. Now that I've found the art of pixel painting - I've not only found a good technique to create great basic images but I've also added another hobby to my list: the art of pixelpainting !! It's a perfect way to combine all my interests ........ Follow the link below to my Arts & Crafts page and more about this graphic technique will be revealed to you :OD !

	KNITTING / CROCHETTING AND CROSS STITCH
	During autumn and winter these are the nicest things to do in the evening hours. Sitting watching TV and just knitting a sweater or crocheting a new curtain for one of my windows. Also many people around me were pleased with a gift which was handmade. Finding a basic pattern isn't difficult - but adjusting it for that special person is. And I keep trying to do just that, so it will be an original and unique gift. To show you everything I've created would be a hard thing to do, because I've made so many things, but here's an example of my skills, which by the way is hanging in my living room. At cross stitch I'm at my best - I really love those old fashioned sample cloths ........ If you are in the possession of an original pattern: I can always use one more :O)) By the way - my favorite colour is bleu! Fairly recently I've bought some new software for my computer ... a hobby cd-rom Pattern Maker (from Hobbyware) which has the software to turn drawings, photographs etc. into a cross stitch pattern. I've tried to convert fantasy stuff & Westie drawings into a pattern .... and it worked out great! So I've got some projects lined up for me already .....
	Links to DMC Needlepoint: "DMC Creative World - Welcome" and "Welcome to DMC" (USA)

	CROSSSTITCH PATTERNS OF MY OWN DESIGN :
	Recently I've been very productive ... since I have bought my new software there is no holding back. Now I make many original crossstitch designs of my own ... which of course are protected with my own copyright! Some of them are on my arts & craftspages ... so come over and have a peek ... use them for free .... but please give me the credits for creating them! On my arts & craftspages you wil also find a variety of art-links which might turn out to be handy when you want to design your own patterns. During my lifetime I've been very productive so I have gained a lot of experience with crossstitching. The things most important are on my tips page ... but if you still have a problem after reading that page don't be to shy to ask me! And if I can't help ... I'll tell you so ... so please don't blame me for *not knowing it all grins!*	GO TO MY ARTS & CRAFTS PAGES ...

	FIXING OLD PINE FURNITURE
	Antique hunting is a sport ...grin. Sometimes you can find the nicest stuff at the most oddest places. When I started out on my own again I didn't have much furniture, so I bought some old furniture at a junkmarket. And as time went along I found out that not everything they sold turned out to be junk at all. The first thing I found was an antique rockinghorse at a recycleshop. It had a real leather saddle, iron stir ups and a real tail and when I cleaned it up .... WOW - it turned out to be a beauty. Then my brother in law (from Amsterdam) showed me how to fix old pine furniture. He's was very experienced at that - he had lots of nice stuff to show for it. So with his help I started out on my first piece: a dining room table with four chairs. It took us two weeks to finish it - but the results were enormous! From that moment on I was infected by the pine-bug and in the years following I collected and fixed all kinds of pine furniture. Right now I can't buy any more stuff - my house has been completed now. So I will share the secret how to fix pine furniture with you. You start out buying a piece of pine furniture and stripping it of it's old paint or wax. The best way to do that is to steep it in ley (I have this done by a special firm for me - it's a tricky job). So what you get is a plain wooden piece of furniture. For me the best way to preserve this is NOT to wax it. If you do wax it - you will have to wax it and wax it again and again every 3 months. If you have children and / or animals in your home you don't want to do that ........ nasty grin because stains are hard to remove! So I use this method: Buy some antique color woodstain (based on water) - get yourself a glass jar - pour 2/3 woodstain in and put some sticky tape on the jar to mark the level - now add 1/3 of ammonia to it and again mark the level with sticky tape. Finally add some drops of black Indonesian ink and again mark the level. (Carefully keep the jar in a safe place if you need to make some more in the future - you want your furniture to have the same colour - right?) FIRST sand your furniture to remove splinters!! Now paint your piece of furniture with the emulsion and let it dry. Then softly sand it very lightly with very fine sandpaper. Now you can apply 2 or 3 coats of varnish (blank) on your furniture - sand lightly and take off the dust between every coat. Let it dry ....... and voila .... you have an antique piece of pine furniture. And the good news is ........ you can keep it clean with just a wet cloth ..... so no more stains .... no more waxing .... :O)) Hope you will let me know how it works out for you !!!

	MY LOVE FOR NATURE
	Dogs and horses have always been my greatest passion. The places I love most are the sea and the forest. But also my garden keeps fascinating me. In general you could say I love all of Gods creations - because to me they are all miracles which I enjoy every day of my life. So let us also leave some for the generations to come - and be careful with all living things on our planet. Mankind has been too destructive already in the past. Organizations well known in keeping nature for the future are Greenpeace and the Word Wildlife Fund. Keep up the good work!	Link to: Link to:

	CREATING WEBPAGES
	Since Johan came into my life, my knowledge about software has revolutionary increased. One of the things I learned thanks to him was how to create my webpages. In the beginning there was a fear for the unknown, but things went better once I stepped over that threshold. Now and again I still get stuck somewhere and he always helps me out. We built our website with the help of the programs WebExpress 3.0 and Paint Shop Pro. Both are very easy to use .... even for a clumsy clod like me ..grin ... so if I can work with it ... everyone can! In the future I would love to create my own bordersets and put them on our website for general use. I've created some based on Marjolein Bastin's watercolours .... but I'm not sure I can use them because of the artist copyrights ... I've still got to look into that! The ones I used so far for my webpages were someone else 's creation and felt like " borrowed or stolen ". I guess because I´m quite a creative person it doesn´t feel like an original from my own hands. That is why I think the makers should get the credit due to them. So thanks for the great stuff !!