a sunday afternoon ritual.

xx

abbey

afternoon tea

I thrive on traditions. They're roots to my past and promises for what will come. Things like how we make pac men out of cranberry slices on Thanksgiving dinner, and why we always have to sing along to a certain song, and how we go up to the lake every year. Traditions from the simple to the complex, the sentimental to the silly, all still sweet because they're years of memories wrapped up in threads of the past, tied to the fabric of my life. One of those is our afternoon tea. Over the past year or so, we've been tea drinkers -- sometimes I feel as if a hot steaming cup of white chai is better than a cup of black coffee. (I know, I know...maybe it's because I've secretly wished I was British?) When the tea kettle starts whistling and the fragrant smell of chai or passionfruit fills the air, we all pull out our mugs and sip the sweet drink slowly. Perhaps I'm a bit sappy, but it's one of my favorite things in the day.

Do you have any traditions?

xo
Hannah

moustache stamp

Today's post is written by Fernweh reader Charity, a pretty crafty gal! Leave her some love in the comments. If you're interested in submitting a guest post, find out more here.

I know that everybody likes moustaches. No idea why. Maybe because they're just something unique and stylish?

But that is neither here nor there. So back to my point, I decided to make a tutorial on how to make moustache stamps in a few easy steps. I enjoy using them to decorate cards, notebooks, small burlap sacks and other little oddities.

Supplies: 

-eraser {white}

-small knife, blade {etc}

-pen

-ink 

-paper

STEP 1: Draw the exact shape or style of moustache you want right onto the eraser. You may want to practise on paper first.

STEP 2: Now get your small knife {I just used a pocket knife}and define the lines of your 'tache. Cut in as deep as you want it to be.

STEP 3: Next, scrape away all extra eraser, digging from underneath what you outlined and pushing it out. Now your stamp will be raised above the base.

STEP 4: Get out some ink, any colour will work depending on your choice {or what you want to use it for}. The more ink, the more filled in the stamp of the moustache will be. I use a Color box /pinwheel for my stamping.

STEP 5: Now stamp. You can stamp cards, bookmarks, notebooks, cloth bags, and numerous other items.

And voila, you have your very own, handmade moustache stamp and at a lovely price.

Now go out there and give it a shot. 

Thanks Charity!

a different part of california.

I've been to California numerous times to visit family, but usually my trips have been restricted to the more northern parts of the state. Last week, though, I ventured into the infamous metropolis that is Los Angeles.

It was, in a word, huge. I've said before that I'm a city girl, but this almost made me rethink that. If this is a real city, maybe I'm just more of a smaller urban environment girl. I like the variety and all the things to do, but it just felt a bit overwhelming at times, and it took forever to get from one place to another, giving me a whole new perspective on traffic. There were so many people and cars! But, who am I to complain? All of that aside, I greatly enjoyed my time in the city. I saw loads of art + architecture, went shopping (always a plus!), and ate a lot of great food. I got to see lots of things I'd only heard about or seen in movies or on TV. Oh, and I took some pictures.

Kendall

i love home

As the weather gets warmer, my fernweh intensifies. I want to be anywhere but my sleepy village--NYC sounds good, or maybe at Abbey's lake, or even the seaside in this country.  But for now, I'm here. And that's something I have to accept.
There are moments when I love this place, and I try to remember those reasons when I end up wishing I was elsewhere. I love how my cat curls up on my lap whilst I type, and the pearly light that comes from overcast days, and when my grandparents can drop in for coffee because they live close by.
The nearest town to me is very popular with tourists, and this year I'm making an effort to do some of that touristy stuff. Open top buses and free museums and ice cream in the park. These are the things I need to remember about the place I live. Focusing on why people want to visit here in the first place makes me a bit happier about having spent fourteen years here. The three photos at the top of this piece are just nuggets from the last week of why I liked living here. No--why I love living here.
Tell me--what do you love about your hometown?

xx
Libby

silence

These moments are for quiet and for hush. For sitting and drinking tea and watching the world from your window. For feeling the peace of the weekend that comes before the storm of a Monday. As the mug warms my hands and the sun shines onto the flooring, there is a moment of silence.

I have a feeling this might just become a Sunday ritual. Finding the space and the time to just sit--this needs to be done intentionally and often. 

signs of spring

The skies are pearly grey and heavy with clouds and the temperatures are far from tropical, but I can feel the soil shifting under my feet. We're moving into spring in a slow but sure way, with flower buds and blossom on trees and lingering light. The signs of spring are all around me. I can feel it when I stand on the lawn--a whisper of the coming change in seasons.

xx
Libby