Nathalie's Blog

Michelbouch, the new town I'm living

2011-08-28T11:30:00.001+02:00

In march this year we have moved from Esch-sur-Alzette, the second biggest city of Luxembourg to a village called Michelbouch with about 100 inhabitants. I love it there. It's very quit and beautiful village where you can spend a good time. In the surroundings you can find farms, farmland and forrest . Michelbouch is a part of the commune Vichten about 50 km north of Esch and 20 minutes from the Belgium border. A great place to live. There are several other villages around and the clue is that the next small cities are only 10-15 minutes away from here. That's one of the differences between a tiny country like Luxembourg with short ways to bigger countries. There is only one negative point maybe to say: to come around you need a car - buses are there but not that often and not always in times when you need them. But until now haven't missed them really and I think that that is something you should count with when you are moving to the countryside.

Above: a view from our balcony

Liichtmëssdag

2011-02-01T11:27:00.000+01:00

I told you that I will tell you about the tradition where children go from door to door when I was talking of Halloween. So here I am.
Liichtmëssdag, that's the name of this holiday and tradition. In churches they will talk about the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple. Let me tell you something about the tradition and the background of Liichtmëssdag which I found at Wikipedia.lu .
Before I start to write about the background of Liichtmëssdag let me try to find an English explanation of the name as I didn't find any translation. "Liicht" means light, the "Mëss" is a mass/service in the church and "Dag" means day. So you see already that it is a christian tradition what we often forget. So it's the day which brings some light in the dark time.

So let me start with the explanations of the tradition
Liichtmëssdag takes place every 2nd of February and it's the day where the children in Luxembourg bring the light.

Short history:
Like many other holidays Liichtmëssdag is originally a heathenish tradition which became by the time a christian one. It goes back to a Celtic holiday where they were celebrating the goddess Brigid which had the purification and fertility at the end of the Winter as theme. The farmers had a procession with torches to their fields and prayed to the goddess that she cleans the soil before planting.
In the 5th century the pope replaced this rite with the "Lutefest" - the holiday of the light, which should remembers the day where Maria brought Jesus to the temple to be purified. In Jews rites mothers had to present their first born son 40 days after birth in the temple. In the churches torches were exchanged with candles. The candles were blessed and taken at home and kept to completely burn them during a danger ( thunderstorms etc.)

Tradion:
In France they bake on Liichtmëssdag pancakes. Maybe to represent the sun which shows up after a long winter. It exist even traditions where the first pancake is thrown on the cupboard to get a good crop during the year.

In Luxembourg:
In Luxembourg that day children will bring the light. That means they go in the early evening in small groups with "Liichtebengelcher" ("Liicht" = light, "Bengelchen" = a small stick) from house to house. Formerly they used a slow match wick attached on an ordinary stick. Today lampions which are very often crafted in school (they can also be bought) with a small light bulb (for security reasons no candles anymore) are used. Children sing a song called "Léiwer Herrgottsblieschen" (explanations will follow)
Traditionally they sing that song after having rang on the doorbell. They hope that they get some sweets or money as award.
Härgottsblieschen refers to the holy Blasius whose name's day is the next day

The song:

[]Léiwer Härgottsblieschen Dear Holy Blasius

Léiwer Härgottsblieschen,- dear Holy Blasius
Gitt ons Speck an Ierbessen - give us bacon and peas
Ee Pond, zwee Pond, - one pound, two pound
Dat anert Joer da gitt der gesond, - the next year you will be healthy
Da gitt der gesond. - you will be healthy
Loosst déi jonk Leit liewen let the young people live
Loosst déi al Leit stierwen, let the old people die
Kommt der net bal, - don't you come soon
D'Féiss ginn ons kal. - our feet will become cold
Kommt Der net gläich,- don't you come soon
Da gi mer op d'Schläich. - We will "tiptoe"
Kommt der net geschwënn, - don't you come soon
D'Féiss ginn ons dënn. - the feet will become thin
Kommt Der net gewëss, - you don't come for certain
Da kritt Der e Schouss voll Nëss. - you get a lap full of nuts

—-- Artikel wurde auf meinem iPhone erstellt

Patty, the mascot of Emilie Lahr as bead 1st embroidery project

2010-11-10T14:37:00.000+01:00

As you know I always try out new techniques especially in beading. This time I tried bead embroidery and I chose Patty, the mascot of Emilie Lahr and the association Save Emilie Lahr as inspiration. It has so many beautiful colours in it.

It's not exactly how I wanted it to be but I think for the first project I think it's not that bad. To see the original cat Emilie was drawing and also if you want to know more about Emilie Lahr just have a look at this site.

For the backing I used felt and the beads I used are diffrent types and sizes of rocailles, tubes and paillettes.

My thought of Halloween

2010-10-09T11:16:00.001+02:00

Halloween is a "tradition" known in Luxembourg and neighbouring countries from american TV shows which is every year more and more celebrated. Here the only reason that this holiday exist is commercial - many shops make business with this newly invented holiday in this part of the world.
That's why I don't see any reason to celebrate this. If it is to go on a halloween party (which also mainly end for many people in to much alcohol) or to give children on trick and treath any sweets or anything else when they think on ringing on the door.
There exist already a long and old tradition in Luxembourg where children go from door to door in February with a lampion and a lovely song to enlighten the dark winter called "Liichtmesdag" where they get some sweets and often money. Maybe in February I should write more about this tradition.
Sure commercants prefer Halloween as they can gain much more on costumes and decorations than on a small paper lampion - often children craft them in school or at home. •••Nathalie•••

Strawberry Lemonade

2010-06-01T21:58:00.000+02:00

I found at my friend Nicol's blog a recipe for Strawberry Lemonade which I really liked. I decided to add it also to my blog.

Ingredients
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
1 cup fresh lemon juice
1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
2 cups cold sparkling water or club soda
Ice
Mint sprigs, garnish
Whole strawberries, garnish

Directions
In a medium saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon peel and lemon juice, stir, and remove from the heat. Let cool completely, then strain into a clean pitcher.

In a blender, puree the pint of strawberries and add to the pitcher with the lemon juice. Stir well to combine and refrigerate until well chilled.

Add the sparkling water and stir well. Pour over glasses filled with ice and serve, garnished with mint and strawberries.

New craft projects

2010-04-22T01:13:00.000+02:00

As you all know I love crafting and I thought it will be nice telling you about my 3 latest projects.

1. from a chair to a table
In the kitchen we used to have a set of 3 wooden chairs and a table painted in white. A few month ago one of the chairs broke and I used the seat of it as table neat the bed. As you can see on the time posted next to the date of this post it is again late in the night and as usally I have problems to fall asleep. Like tonight I was lying in the bed some time ago and got some ideas - This one is that I will make from this broken seat a real nice table. I decided to take of the old white colour - to paint it new, maybe only transparent so that the wood structure can be seen an on the seat I'll glue colourful glas mosaics - so that'll have at the end a nice finish. i always have a lot of stuff to lay on the table so that i also might ad a basket or something underneath the seat to put tiny things inside.

As everybody knows beading is my biggest hobby - so that I also present you those two projects:

2. a bag for my iPhone
I always wanted to have a small bag for my iPhone and I never wanted to buy a conventional in a shop I decided to create one myself. As I never tried bead embroidery before I thought this would be a good opputunity to this now. I just started the embroidery last week and I can only tell you that it has to do with circles, the colours grey, white and red and that I am working with 11/0 toho seed beads.

3. a WC signal for the door
Our appartment has a bathroom and a seperated WC. As we have the luck to have the two rooms we decided that guest should use the WC instead of always running into our bathroom. I also consider a bathroom as a private place so that I prefer that outers don't use it. As it seems to be difficult to understand me I decided to create a sign and hang it on the door. As I love beading I decided to create it with 3.5 mm Toho beads and in the peyote stitch.

This is now a description of my newest projects. Sooner or later I'll post pictures.

-- Post From My iPhone

Gedanken iwwer eee bedingunslost Grondakommes

2010-02-11T16:53:00.000+01:00

Nodeems ech duerch Facebook an och duerch Recherchen méi iwwert daat bedingsloost Grondakommes geliess a gekuckt hunn, hunn ech fonnt dass et prinzipiell eng gutt Iddi ass.

Opp et dann wierklech réalisabel ass an funktionéiert wees ech net an kann ech och net beurtdeelen well ech keen Econom sinn. Mee bon muss awer och soen dass ee jo wéi een et am Alldag gesäit den Kapitalismus den mir haut kennen an och de System wéi et am Kommunismus net wierklech fonktionnéiert, daat kennen mer jo aus der Geschicht an gesinn mer an de Noorichten, resp. mir Erliewen et um eegenen Leif... . Dofier fannen ech daat matt dem Grondakommes do eng gutt Iddi. Ech wees zwar net wéi een daat Duerchsetzen well an a wéi engem Zäitraum, well do muss jo eng ganz Gesellschaft emstrukturéiert ginn.

Bon u sech kann esou ee Gesellschaftswandel ganz schnell maachen waat een jo och nom 2. Weltkrich an der DDR gesinn huet - e beemol hun d'Leit no engem aneren System gelieft... Och wann de System net gutt wuar (wann soss wier en haut nach existent), hu se et awer an relativ kuerzer Zäit färddeg bruecht. Ech wees net opp et beim Grondakommes sou radikal misst hiergoen, mee bon emwandelen misst ee ganz vill...

A wou fenns de Politiker déi daat sollen an d'Wee leeden? Oder mussen daat Bierger maachen? Wann Bierger, wéi muss daat goen? Well et ass jo eis allersäits beléiften Regierung déi all des Saachen décidéieren - de Problem ass, dass do déi meescht net wëssen waat et dobaussen heescht ze schaffen, sech duerchzekämpfen an matt Mini-Léin sech d'Liewen ze finanzéieren (opp se awer matt denen Léin och liewen, daat stellen ech an Fro)

Eng aner Fro ass wéi réagéieren d'Leit dorobber? Get et net vun iergendswelch gieregen Leit ausgenotzt?

Nespresso Despenser

2009-06-24T17:00:00.000+02:00

Since one week we also do have the famous Nespresso machine to do this great coffee. I really must say the coffee smells and tastes great.

Comparing to machines which are build for other pads (e.g. Senseo) this coffee has really a good and nice taste.

Before we never wanted such a machine, always when trying such a coffee it never tasted good. After having tasted the Nespresso coffee during presentations and at my aunts I really was surprised about the good quality of the coffee.

Since we got the machine we naturally also have many of those capsules at home. Now we are looking around to see if we can find a nice dispenser for the capsules. As their are 16 different tastes and the usual dispensers only have space for 4 different ones I am thinking about crafting one of myself. Or how should I organize all of them? Maybe I'll only buy the ones we find in the shops everywhere. Who knows ...