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I need to have a pair of sandals for the summer. Flat sandals this time. It needs to be comfortable but of course it also needs to be cute. I love the mint colored ones. I know, some of the above sandals are a little more green or blue but I absolutely love them all. Number 6 is my favorite. What is your must have for this summer? XO Wilma

I made a quick stop by the thrift store today. Just to see if they have anything new and amazing for me. I also needed some small baskets for a project that I will be sharing with you soon. Of course they had all kind of amazing new things. I found two vintage mermaid tea towels. They are so cute! The blouse I bought just for the fabric. I love the fabric but the model really isn’t my kind of thing.

See more thrift store finds after the jump. . .

When I saw this cute vintage toy elephant I knew it was going home with me. I love bright colors and elephants are just too cute. The large tins will be used in the kitchen. I have way to many tins at the moment, so I have to get rid of  a lot of them. These two are keepers though.

Besides all these amazing finds I bought a planter for the garden, three small baskets and two bed sheets (for fabric). And my big spending? I had to pay 5 Euro’s in total. Ain’t that a good deal? XO Wilma

Today I went shopping for some plants for the bedroom. I love to have some plants there, it makes it so much more alive! I also wanted some small colorful cactus. I found everything and I am so happy with how everything looks in my home! It’s coming more and more together.

I never was able to keep plants alive, but lately I’m doing much better. I still like to buy plants who don’t mind it when I forget them though… Do you have a lot of plants in your home? XO Wilma

I found so many great things this week! We are really busy decorating our home at the moment and I feel so inspired by all of those amazing colorful vintage things that I see everywhere. I need that for my home! And look at that caravan… Isn’t that cute or what?

Find out everything about my favorites for this “Loving this Sunday” after the jump. . .

1. Yes I meant this caravan. How cute is that? I really need one myself one day. I always wanted one but I never had a car strong enough to pull a caravan. Maybe one day… I found this one at A Beautiful Mess.

2. When I see pictures like these I know I need more green in my living room! And more color… There is still so much to do around here!

3. Oh, I love these shoes from Chelsea Crew so much. The color, the shape… They are just perfect.

4. My kitchen cabinets are a mess. When I open the doors everything falls out. There are just to many things in there. I need to organize and this organization idea from Oh So Lovely Vintage may be a good start.

5. This card by Stealing Hearts is so cute… Would be a great valentines card!

6. I’m jealous, very jealous. Look at this collection of colorful vintage kitchenware that I found on Design Sponge. Did I mention I’m jealous?

7. This is a good reminder: “Be Happy”. These cute temporary tattoos are for sale for just 5 dollars at Tattly.

That’s it for this week! XO Wilma

We have a little tradition here in our house. Since my boyfriend is taking night shifts I wake him up with breakfast in bed. He loves it and I love to do something for him. I wanted to do something special today so I made him scones with strawberries and my version of clotted cream. I can’t get the real deal around here but this alternative is absolutely delicious!

Learn how to make scones with strawberries and ‘clotted cream’ after the jump. . .

What you need for scones with strawberries and ‘clotted cream’

For the scones

- 450 grams of patent flour
- 16 grams of baking powder (one sachet)
- 60 grams of powdered sugar
- half a teaspoon of salt
- 125 grams of unsalted, cold butter in small pieces
- 170 ml of buttermilk and two tablespoons

For the ‘clotted cream’

- 200 ml of whipped cream
- 250 grams of mascarpone
- sugar

And of course

- strawberries
- strawberry jam

How to make scones with strawberries and ‘clotted cream’

How to make the scones

Preheat the oven at 220 degrees Celcius. Put all of the ingredients for the scones except for the buttermilk in a bowl and mix shortly. Put the 170 ml of buttermilk with the mix to make a dough. Don’t kneed to long! Roll out the dough until it’s about 2 cm thick and use a glass or round cookie cutter (approximately 5 cm diameter) to cut out rounds. Repeat this until all the dough is used. Put the scones close to each other on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Use the two tablespoons of buttermilk to brush on the tops of the scones. Bake for about 15 minutes until the top of your scones are golden brown. Let it cool just a little bit before you serve them.

How to make the ‘clotted cream’

Whip the whipping cream until the cream forms soft peaks. Mix the mascarpone in and add sugar to taste.

How to serve your lovely home baked scones

I love to serve my scones with some strawberry jam, some ‘clotted cream’ on top of that and with, of course, a few pieces of fresh strawberries.

Hope you liked this recipe. Bon Appetit! XO Wilma

1. Quite an Impressionist Dress / 2. Kaleidoscope of Vision Dress / 3. Adore a Borealis Dress / 4. Get in the Groove Dress

I’m in love with maxi dresses at the moment. They are just perfect to show of my growing baby belly plus they are super comfortable. I just bought a simple black and white striped one and now I’m looking for more. When I saw these amazing dresses from Modcloth I just had to share them with you. They are all so happy and colorful! Where do you shop for maxi dresses? Let me know! XO Wilma

You may know that I love to buy most of my stuff second hand. I love doing that. When you buy something second hand you pay so much less than when you buy things new. I also love the fact that items  had a previous life and that they show some character. An item you buy second hand is even  more unique than a store bought one. But there are downsides about buying everything second hand. I still don’t think they are as big as the cons but they are there and they are really  important to take in to consideration. Plus if you know about the downsides you are more likely to make thrift shopping a success!

Read the 10 downsides of buying second hand (or how to make thrift shopping a success) after the jump. . .

1. You are more likely to buy stuff you don’t need.

When you are able to buy things really cheap the changes are that you are buying more than you need. That fabric is so lovely (but you have no idea what to do with it), that lampshade or chair is just a bargain (but you don’t have place for it in your home) or those pans have the most amazing print on them (but you already have more than enough).. These are real examples from my thrift shop experiences and it’s something I’m still struggling with. I have SO MUCH STUFF. I’m busy trowing and giving lots of it away. I just can’t keep everything. But it’s way better to keep this in mind BEFORE you go thrift shopping. Don’t buy stuff you don’t need. And if you do you should trow something else away. I’m working on this one.  I hope I to master it one day.

2. Buying second hand takes patience.

Finding exactly what you want or need can take a lot of time when you buy second hand. It’s not as easy as buying from a store. For example when we needed a ‘new’ couch we had to wait for almost six months before we found the right one. If we would have just bought a new one we could have been ready in days. But if you buy second hand you have to find the right deal. We didn’t want to spend too much at our couch, it had to be leather, it should be modern, in the right color, not to beaten up and from a thrift store with a delivery service because a couch doesn’t really fit into my car. In the end we found a black Ikea Klippan couch with a black leather chair (also from Ikea) for just 35 Euro’s including delivery. Other times you have to wait way longer than just six months. Especially with rare items. It may take years before you find that perfect chair, but if you do you couldn’t be happier.

3. Many second hand items need some work.

If you buy something second hand you have to be prepared to do some work yourself. It’s not like buying a new item that’s already completely finished. Especially for furniture this is the case. That table or chair is probably used for years and years and is now in desperate need of some tender love and care. But if you do the work your item will be one of a kind afterwards.

4. You don’t always know if it’s still working.

In some cases when you buy something you are not able to test if it’s still working. For example a vintage camera is not easily tested at the thrift store. Also on flea markets you have to take someone’s word for it if you want to know if appliances are still working. And believe me; it doesn’t always work. But if you accept that possibility and if you don’t pay a lot of money for the item it doesn’t have to be a really big problem. But know that not everybody knows exactly what they are selling or are completely honest about it.

5. You don’t always know the previous owner.

If you don’t know the previous owner, you don’t know their lifestyle and cleanliness. So some items who are not easy to clean, like a matrass for example, you shouldn’t buy second hand. It’s just not very healthy. So before you buy something you have to think about how you would clean it. If it’s impossible to clean it completely you have to consider if that’s a problem for you or your health.

6. You have to be willing to negotiate.

If you really want to have a good deal you need to negotiate on the price. In most thrift stores and at markets it’s easy to negotiate on the price of the items but you have to dare to do it. Not everybody likes negotiating on prices. I’m not always doing it, especially when something is already very cheap, but on bigger items I usually always do it. Buying cheap is one of the good things about buying second hand.

7. You sometimes have to make concessions when you buy second hand.

Sometimes you are looking for an item but you don’t have a lot of time to find it or you are running out of time. If you don’t find it you have two options; settle for something less perfect or buy it new. I have done both. If you really need something you have to make a concession. I have done so on my couch. It isn’t exactly what we wanted, but it will do for now.

8. You have to look at a lot of second hand trash to find your treasures.

If you are going to a thrift store you will find that they have lots and lots of trash. Many items are just too ugly, not complete, too stained or just too out of date. You have to look at all of those items to find your little treasure. It also means that you can find nothing but trash and you leave the thrift store empty handed. But remember; Sometimes just a small treasure that makes it all worth it.

9. It’s not always easy to see what a second hand item could be.

Not every item is already beautiful when you buy it. Some items are, like I said before, in desperate need of some work. If you are willing to do the work, that doesn’t have to be a problem. The only question is: can you really spot the treasure between the trash? It’s not always easy to see what you can do with an item. It may need more than just a little bit of paint. For example: if you buy a cabinet you can paint it, change the handles, put new legs under it, change the glass… Just use your imagination. You can also get a lot of inspiration from blogs and Pinterest.

10. Buying second hand can take up a lot of your time.

If you buy a lot of your items second hand it can consume a lot of your time. You don’t know if you will find the item you want at the first place you are looking. It may take many, many visits to thrift stores and markets before you find exactly what you want. I like the search, I love the feeling of finding something great between the trash. But if you want something quick, buying second hand may not be for you.

I hope this will help you when you go thrift shopping! Do you love doing it or are the downsides to big for you? XO Wilma

Cress is a lovely herb that tastes great on a sandwich with cheese or cream cheese. It’s also a herb that is really easy to grow at home. Within days you can harvest from your own little window garden. When I found these little sake cups at the thrift store I immediately saw some great looking cress planters in them. Because what looks better then a cute little face with some green hair? This is also a great little project to do with kids. The growing of the seeds doesn’t take much patients!

Learn how to make these cute little cress cups with a face after the jump. . .

What you need for cress cups with a face

- white sake cups (a small bowl or teacup will work too)
- black ceramic marker
- oven
- cotton pads
- cress seeds

How to make these cute cress cups with a face

1. Clean your cups very well.
2. Draw cute faces on your sake cups with your black ceramic marker. Bake in the oven according to the instructions on your ceramic marker.
3. Place a few layers of cotton pads in your cups. If your cups are bigger than mine you can also use regular wadding. Water it well. Make sure it’s completely soaked in water.
4. Put cress seeds on top of the cotton pads. Place the your cress cups in a light area but not in full sunlight.
5. In the next couple of days your cress will grow very fast. Don’t forget to water your little plants!

Aren’t they cute? XO Wilma

I love how our vegetable garden is growing lately. Some of the herbs we had last year are still going strong. Others are growing again as a surprise. We also bought some new plants and we planted some seeds. It’s mostly herbs, like chive, parsley and mint and lettuce. We also have radish, garlic, beets and tomatoes. Everything is in pots now because the garden is far from finished at the moment. But next year I want to try square foot gardening. Has anyone tried that? Love to hear how that turned out for you! XO Wilma

Now that I have a little more energy I am starting to finally make things for our little one. This is the part of pregnancy that I was most looking forward to. I love to make things for the baby. It’s great to have something in your hands that is going be used later for or by the baby. These cute baby pants from jersey fabric are one of the first things I have made. Aren’t they cute?

Learn how to make these cute jersey baby pants after the jump. . .

I used a pattern that you can download for free from Made By Rae. I absolutely love this pattern. It’s really easy to follow and your little newborn pants are ready in no time! Rae uses coton fabric but I personaly like the look and feel of jersey and sweat fabric so those were the fabrics I made my pants in. You could also use an old pair of sweat pants or a t-shirt to make these baby pants. You really don’t need that much fabric. XO Wilma