a little reminder, Gem&Em

Hi folks,
I just wanted to remind you of my new blog. As you know I stopped blogging here, and started blogging at Gem&Em. There I blog together with my friend Emma. Here are a couple of projects we shared over there:

From left to right: twisted bandana hairdo, DIY vinyl record notebook, Why I love analog photography, DIY backdrop earring. These posts are all by me.

Emma likes to share delicious recipes on our blog, Like this one for oven dried apples, and this one for Chia pudding with banana-peach sorbet.

I hope you'll hop over and take a look at our new little space :)

love,

Gemma 

6 things that happened lately

These last weeks a lot happened in my life, and when I was scrolling through my older blogposts I realized this blog isn't something I want to give up, so I thought lets update you guys! here are 6 things that I have been on my mind lately:

1. I graduated
I passed my final exams, and with that finished my high school. I have been in a waldorf school for the 6 years of my high school and I have got to say that I loved it. All these years I made some great friendships. And I am definitely going to miss my classmates and the school itself, but I also look forward to the next step in my life, university. *this photo of our school building is not mine, but I couldn't find the original owner* (for architecture lovers who like to see more photos of the building just google 'marecollege leiden')

2. I got selected for my study
The study I chose has a numerus fixus, which means that they only let 330 students in each year. You can get in by drawing of lots or a talent based selection. And I'm proud to say that I am one of the 50 selected people. I'm going to study Industrial Design and Engineering at the Technical University of Delft. I am really exited because the study fits me very well, its creative but also technical. There will be a lot of change in my life the coming year, a new school, new people, a new city, and a new house cuz I'm moving out next year. A great adventure is ahead!

3. my chickens got baby's
13 of those fuzzy little things are walking in my garden and I adore them.... :)

4. I had my birthday party
I'm turning 18 next Sunday but I had my party this weekend. We had a bonfire in the backyard and it was fun and cozy. We had a great time

5. I went to Portugal
When the exams were over me and my friends took the plane and flew to the sunny city of Porto. Oh my we had the best time, after a busy year of learning for exams and making projects we had finally had time to completely relax. And what a beautiful city Porto is.We were there with 16 people and we had rented a cheap apartment, really everything is cheap in Porto, the food the apartments, the transport. Perfect for us :P

6. the summer holidays started
So I hang out a lot with the boyfriend and the friends, were shorts, smell flowers, go to party's and sleep the entire morning... hehe. Aaaand I'll be going to Finland to visit my lovely friend Emma.

flowers

There are only a few weeks of school left for me. Then there will be exams and then the glorious summer will make its way into my life. I'm going to do so many awesome things this summer, including Portugal, Finland and lots of spare time. And then I'll enter a new stage in my life, University. pam pam pam pam. I'm really looking forward to these things, and often that means I'm kind of waiting for the summer to come. I guess I should live a bit more in the moment, and enjoy my last days as a 'child' (I'll be 18 soon, and I guess that means I'm almost an 'adult'). blah blah, here are some pictures of flowers, cuz the greens in my garden are beautiful these days. I guess I'll should be studying now. hehe

sun sun sun

I always get so happy when the first warm days of spring arrive, and the sun rays warm your skin so gently.
ps. I reached the 100,000 views, thanks everybody and especially picmonkey for putting me on their front page a little while ago, that really helped. 

 

update

Hi guys,
woah who's that?! Don't be afraid, it's just me the person who vanished from the Internet, and probably will disapear again.
It's been a while since my last post, and in that time happened some things. I have been incredibly busy with a project for school. It was a major project in which I invested 75 hours, it was a project about photography. I made my own camera and darkroom supplies (including the chemicals) from very common stuff, like instant coffee and ducttape. If you'd like to know more about this click the like to see more button.
here is a photo I made with my self build (pinhole) camera.

But that project was finished weeks ago. Right now it's winter, or at least it should be, where I live there hasn't been a single snowflake nor daytime freezing. We had the warmest December since ever. But I'm not that much into cold weather anyways so I'm not sad or anything. hehe. I have been to Keulen and Bonn in Germany. That was awesome. Although life can be busy I am happy. I noticed that doing nothing doesn't yield happieness. I was longing for having nothing on my to do list, but when that time came it was just empty. One or two days off are great but if I have longer vacations I really need to keep myself active. But whatever. I wasn't unhappy or something just a bit bored.
Well I guess I'll continue being busy learning for my exams for now.

bye,
Gemma

oh where do my bluebird fly

 quote from where do my bluebird fly by The tallest man on earth

I'm going to The tallest man on earth! I had bought the tickets quite a while ago but I haven't told you till just now. It's going to be so much fun, if you follow my blog you probably already know that I love his music. I'm going to the concert with my boyfriend and a friend.

lately I'm pretty busy with school n stuff, thats why I'm not posting that often anymore. But my life is going pretty well, It just took me some time to get in the school rhythm again. I've been writing some poems lately, in dutch so I'm not going to share them. yesterday I had a very happy moment playing banjo at sunset in my backyard. And the photo above is from a little feather collecting photo trip I had last week. And I love listening to the new vinyl record I bought, The last waltz from The band. I can find some happiness in these things, and even though I have some bad days too I think my life is quite enjoyable at the moment, a little busy but enjoyable.

happy moments

the last weeks of my vacation consisted of hanging out with friends and Tim. Me and 3 friends of mine went camping at the seaside for three days, it was a lot of fun. And a few days ago I bought a vinyl record player, for only 8 euros, oh how I love flea markets. finding something at a flea market you where searching for a long long time is a really happy moment to me. my dear summer holidays, I am going to miss you. I only got 2 school less days left before my senior year starts.

happy moments

This Saturday I got my banjo. And I'm so happy with it. It is a gorgeous thing. every time I attend to play it I get insanely happy. I can't wait to be able to actually play a song.

maybe I'm going to make a little series of this, telling you guys what things make me happy.

oh and last two weeks I was on a vacation, so don't worry about me disappearing.

lately

though it isn't as warm as it was when I took these photos, it is still summer like with all little flowers and sunbeams. And I really like summer. Wonderful gracious summer. My life has been so so busy lately, I have had an exam week and Wednesday the re-exams will start. but after that its over, it will be all over, and the the glorious summer vacation will come like a messiah into my life and set me free from all the obligations. I am so longing for that time.

ring + hipsterday

Since there were two ill teachers at my school, a lot of classes got canceled. To fill in our free time my school thought of something, we got to make our own ring, out of silver. It was great and I really liked the classes. I really like the way mine came out. And I'm going to wear it a lot. We were taught by Ralph Bakker.

we had a little vacation and me and Anke, a friend of mine, had a hipsterday. We planned to do this a long time, but back than it was winter, and we couldn't go outside to take nature pics. You can see the result below. Also see our pinterest board about it.

reflection

remember the project I told you about? I was chosen to attend 3 photography workshops and exhibit at a art+music festival. Well I have to say the festival was great, there was a bluegrass band. And I really really like bluegrass hehe. It was great and there where some great artworks. The theme was to show something you're angry about or like to see different. There where art works about homo-phobia, violence in video games, fast food, bullying, girls wearing to much makeup, and one about the fact people say really nasty things about Justin Bieber, he is just a kid making music, not liking him is okay but saying he must burn in hell goes a little to far don't you think?
my artwork is about apathy, sometimes I waste my day lying in bed or sitting behind a computer all day. And when the day is over I'm always a little angry/disappointed in myself. When you go out doing something life is so much more fun! that's what mirror-me is trying to tell sleepy-me.
the festival was organized by the ark of art

tim

yesterday he came back, from Italy. He had been there for 5 days. I had missed him a little. And when I was lying in his arms last night I realized how much he means to me, how much I love him. It wasn't the first time I realized this but last night the feeling was so strong. he is my personal guitar player, photography buddy, lover and friend that gives me free hugs and kisses. I love the way he lifts me up and teases me acting like he is going to drop me in a ditch, and that he keeps giving me little knickknacks with harts on it, and all the sweet things he does, and late evening walks we have, and that we can talk about everything, he makes me smile even without telling jokes. and in a month we will celebrate our 2 year anniversary.
what I'm trying to say: Tim, you are the best that ever happened to me, I love you!

future

 what the future will be like we can't know, but we can make plans to built ourselves a great future. in my case I want and will go to university after my highschool. And today I did a little orientation.

Today I went to the open day of the Technical University of Delft. I went to the Industrial Design Engineering faculty. And I loved it. When you study industrial design you learn to design product from wind proof umbrellas to sustainable cars or a new pretty coffeemaker or maybe special running shoes. It includes a lot of physics but also design classes. And that is the combination I search for in a study. I think it's exiting to think of my future plans. I might move out my parents house too. 
Right now I'm in the pre exam year of my secondary school. So I have an other complete year to think of my study, future job and what I want. I'm really happy that I found a study I'm exited about. Because I am going to spend at least 5 years and my job is probably going to be in the same category it is important to find something that you like.

well I haven't been posting a lot this month. But I am not so inspired lately. since the spring is gone again it even snowed a little bit. But next week I'm going to participate at an art project. I am really exited and I will show more later.

valentine

 I love that boy. We had a great valentines day.
ps, for the recipe of the cake click here

bruxelles

I went to Brussels with Tim and his parents, we had a lovely time. I liked the Margrit museum. I didn't made much pictures, but I wanted to share these two. The one above with me on it is made by Tim

looking back at 2012

2012 was the year I turned 16, the year I traveled a lot Rome, Barcelona, Brussels, it was the year my blog turned one year old, the year I wrote my first DIY posts and the year I bought my DSLR. But I did much more here's an overview what I did.

January

I started the year in Finland, visiting my friend Emma. We had lots of fun. Back in Holland I had some sunset walks with Tim.

February

 February was my Ice skating month, I love ice skating it's so awesome to slide over the water where you have sailed once too. 

March

after the cold February came a sudden temperature switch, It was short pants time. O how I love short pants time, hehe. That month I wrote my first DIY, witch meant a huge increasing of my blog statics.

April

In April I went to Terschelling with school there we had to make a map of a piece of land. It was fun being outside with my friends. That month I also got my SLR camera, a fifty year old Zenit-E.

May

In May I bought my DSLR camera, and it was worth its price. That month I also had my one year relationship anniversary with my boyfriend Tim. 

June

June was my birthday, we had a bonfire in my backyard. I went to a musical about the second world war, that's the airplane picture. And I went to the biggest flea market from Holland.

July

In July the summer vacation started, and Emma visited me for two weeks, we had a great time. But just before the vacation I had a yumyum birthday high-tea to celebrate the birthday of a friend of mine. I also visited Tim in his vacation house.

August

In August our first baby chicken was born. I went to see the sunrise with Emma. we celebrated our one year bloggership. Isn't my blog cute with its little party hat, for some reason he didn't eat his cake. And I went to buitenkunst, You could translate that as  outsideart, a camping where you can go to art workshops each day. 

September

In September the rest of our baby chickens where born. Further I enjoyed the last month of summer eating pizza and watching sunsets.

October

In October we went to Barcelona. And our chicks grew up a bit as you see. 

November

ROMA, in November I was in Rome, O gosh what a beautiful time we had. I was there with school. In Holland I wore my winter clothing but there I didn't even wore a jacket. It was great.

December

In December the first snow fell, but that only lasted a day or two. I went to my first concert. And today I'm celebrating new year.

I wish you all a very happy 2013

*I stole this idea from my friend Emma.

sweet hollidays

O sweet holidays, two entire weeks of lazy sleepy mornings and afternoons with my boy. Today we went out for a walk and he took the pics, I can't take pictures of myself of course pretty much all the pictures of myself here are taken by him. The day after tomorrow were going to Brussels together. O how I love vacations, two entire weeks sleeping eleven hours a night. I hope you all had a nice Christmas and I wish you all a very happy new year, have you already made some new years resolutions? I'm considering a photo a day project aka project 365.
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