nobody's life is a bed of roses

Nobody's life is a bed of roses.

We all have crosses to bear and we all just do our best.

Henk ended up in the hospital with a heart attack last Wednesday and our life was turned upside down.

Thanks goodness he is back home and is doing well now.

Henk is always positive and optimistic and never gives up, which will help his recovery without doubt.

We're all very grateful it turned out so well and from now on things can only get better.

Lots of love from the both of us.

PS: Normally I choose not to post too personal and serious experiences on my blog, but I wanted to share this with you.

marrakech vibes

This weekend I'm off to Marrakech again. For the fourth time this year...

I'm always happy to return to the Red City.

Next Wednesday we will kick off with a new Cool Crochet workshop in Marrakech. Sophie will join us for the second time.

One week later the second Green Gardens workshop is on the program.
No less than four former participants of the cool crochet workshop, will now join the Green Gardens workshop.
Yay, so nice to see you again Marielle, Ellen Debbie & Tif!

Even though I have just returned from Portugal, I can hardly wait to start with the workshop preparations and meet everyone at Chambres d'Amis.

nature & art

On the last trip to the Atlas Mountains we visited the Anima art garden in the morning.

It's one of the most beautiful and imaginative gardens in our program, created by artist André Heller from Vienna.
The small mirror greenhouse, surrounded by african nature is my favorite 'piece of art', well one of the favorites. I also love the holes in the roof, where plants grow through. Awesome!

In this colorful, surprising garden, I could not help frequent shooting (because of the stunning light and actually all corners in this colorful garden are heavenly and so photogenic), so I don't want to give away too much for those who will join our Green Gardens workshop in October.

By the way, it was bloody hot that day, temperature went up to 40 degrees. Fortunately, there is a lovely swimming pool at our final destination in the mountains. I like it, just keep drinking and stay in the shade.

So we gathered in the cafe. Funny detail, in the tastefully decorated outdoor cafe, they serve Moroccan tea with Viennese Manner biscuits.

Fully inspired we went on to the next highlight, the safran valley. More about this in the next blog post.

PS: thanks Saskia, for taking the 'rock that wall' pic...

green gardens workshop - the premiere

The premiere of the Green Garden workshop in Marrakech was even better and greener than we imagined when we came up with the program.

All the gardens and parks in the medina were already so green and full of bloom!
Blooming pomegranate trees, the beautifully recognizable crowns of fruits already fully recognizable.

During our first morning 'gardens' tour, we all collected leaves, blossoms and seeds, to get started with our herbarium after lunch. Great fun to see how everyone used his own personal collection to make a green diary.

In the afternoon we continued our walk to the local flower market and a public park and ended on the roof at El Fenn for drinks with a view.

At the end of the day we returned to our base camp, the green oasis Chambres d'Amis. Just a bit tired of all impressions, but surely satisfied with our first green adventures.

spring in marrakech

Spring in Marrakech is stunning. During our travels on the cool crochet tour, we visit lots of beautiful gardens. This time of year you can find the red city blooming everywhere!
Together with a group of plant-loving creatives, we enjoyed nature's bounty every single day.

rosy & beyond

Merci mes chers amis!

The past week in and around Marrakech was unforgettable!
The city and its people brought us so many beautiful adventures and joy.
It was very special to share this experience with you.

Thank you so much Ank, Beryl, Carola, Linda, Lisbeth, Lydia, Marieke, Marleen, Pirjo, Sarah-Lou, Simone and Zonna. Xx

gardens of marrakech

The second day of the workshop was all about cool crochet in some beautiful gardens in Marrakech.

In the morning we visited Jardin Majorelle, the place where Yves Saint Laurent has lived for many years.
We picked a shady corner in the stunning garden to make colorful cool cotton pads cover and I think Yves would have been very proud of us.

In the afternoon we drove with some traditional yellow Mercedes taxis to the gardens between the olive grove of Beldi.
We had a sumptuous lunch on the terrace next to the pool and all felt like Princesses. The lunch was followed by a relaxed afternoon on the beds and some lazing crochet.

Walking through the gardens and rose fields, we discovered the workplace of the Beldi flowergirls, which made this 'garden day' even more perfect.