Trip to Potsdam and Berlin

On the second weekend in May Ana, Maša and me drove off to Potsdam to visit Ana's exchange roommates. The drive was awesome, the people there amazing and the fact that we could get away from our daily happenings and practices and were able to just relax was priceless.

I will spare the words and just put some pictures on and hope you'll like them. :)

ps: this (Sneky) is my nickname by Ana and Maša

 If you haven't been to Berlin or Potsdam I suggest you take a trip. Potsdam is a really beautiful city and is shadowed by Berlin which doesn't do it justice. Plus it's easy to get to it, even if you're staying in Berlin you can get to it with a train that is in your daily Berlin transport ticket anyway. :)

Concerts in Spring

So March and April were pretty busy this year. Especially because of all the different concerts that were going on.

In March we started with our Academy Chamber Orchestra and performed in Slovenska filharmonija with some marvellous pieces with amazing soloists. Feel free to listen to it and enjoy it here.

Screen shot.

Second up was again our opera, Orpheus, by Monteverdi. I must say that even though we had a lot of everything going on at that point, that was beginning of April, I loved every minute of it and would do it again with joy. You can read my previous entry about this opera here and listen to it again or for the first time here.

Practise. (phone pic)

Then it was time for our next big academic project. This year orchestra, choir and singers all joined for the remembrance of three great opera composer, Britten, Wagner and Verdi. We had the privilege to work with maestro Letonja, who conducted us with care, love and patience. I can only say that I hope I will get to work with him again. In this project I also managed to combine two of my passions, playing and singing. Choir conductor asked me to join the singing forces and because there was a lot of us violas for the second part of the concerts I was able to fulfil my choir class and go stand in the back with my fellow co-singers. You can see and hear our wonderful concerts (only one out of three we did with this programme) here.

Screen shot.

And last but not least was a concert with Slovene singer, composer and producer Gal Gjurin. That was a project we had with symphonic orchestra Cantabile, conducted by always amazing Marjan Grdadolnik. We had amazing arrangements going on and even though there were many songs it didn't seem long at all. Some songs need to be even longer, but we will work on that for the next concert. So thank you, maestro and thank you, Gal.
PS: I hope to incorporate my whip cracking techniques somewhere as well. :D

New DIY sweater, a pouch, cushions, flowers, bags, and a viola case

First of all I have to say that I am not forgetting about concerts or my amazing friends but it has to wait for the next entry. :)

So as you might have noticed I wasn't being the best blogger in past 2 months. They have been really busy and then there was just too many things piled up already.

In the beginning of April an attempt to sew a sweater turned out quite good actually. This picture though is taken before the final alterations were made but it is a really cool sweater and it is working well for me.

The next project was this lovely wedding pouch that I was asked to make by my friend, the bride to be. We picked the fabric in Svet metraže of course and here it is now.

Then it was time to finally make some cushions. My mom got me two from somewhere but these were not really nice so I wanted to put them in a different fabric. Went to Svet metraže with my friend and (well you know what happens) came home with the fabric for these two cushions. But I believe you might have figured out that you can't really have just two, when you have some more lying around and when we have some filling for the cushions in our scouts storage. That's why another trip to Svet metraže was inevitable and because I then took more than was really necessary I just did two more for the chairs in my room. Voilà.

And to expand our pin club which I run with amazing help of two vice presidents, Sally and Ashley, I made another 5 flowers, each one-of-a-kind, for my other American best friends. But for everyone who thinks that's all it takes to be in the pin club you are wrong. The initiation that followed was not a joke. Everyone had to promise to obey the one and only rule: to have your pin with you at all times. Plus you have to know the anthem and chant it three times with some awesome choreography included. It is extremely catchy though so you might hear it from me soon enough. :D

Next up are the lovely bags, made for my favourite ladies, Sally and Ashley. In Svet metraže (where else you know) they picked out there fabric and after a couple of weeks I had one evening when I just decided I should saw them already. I don't have the most representative pictures, the insides are pretty much the same as in this one. The last one I made for me, out of the fabric I had left and it took more time because I had to saw all the smaller pieces together and get some extra from an altogether different fabric but it's looking just as good (some say even better).

And last but most certainly not least is my new viola case. Well not new but it does look so. In the same fabric store that was already mentioned too many times today I found this fabric quite some time ago and bought it so I would make a bag out of it. I still didn't come to that because I want to make a really special one so I will have to take more than two or three hours one day. But then one friend gave me this idea to somehow adjust my viola case with something British and there it was, I knew instantly what I wanted to do. Even though it really bothers me that this pattern is not exactly precise I went for it (instead of the London map I used for the cushions that I was thinking about as well) because I really do love entire UK and it's now 'written' all over my viola case, plain and simple. ;)

Looking forward to read some comments so please do share your thoughts.
Thank you.

Happy Easter

Or Benedictus Pascha. It's what my lovely friend Eva would prefer. ;)

Hope you had an amazing time with your family and/or friends, took some time for yourselves, rest (probably not from what I know but still)

and most of all experienced and felt once more the love of God that is above all.

But as you all know we still do need earthly food to keep our bodies going and because it's Easter and because we had a big party yesterday at our place I figured I should make something.
And thanks to my friend Joy I knew just what to do. On Monday, on the most amazing pre-Easter party with Vsak študent (Every Student) organisation she made these little chocolate nests and I thank her again for the idea.

It's so easy to make. And no baking.
All you need is dark chocolate for cooking, pretzel sticks and chocolate eggs.
To melt the chocolate you might want to add some butter and/or milk.
And don't worry about the pretzel being salty and chocolate sweet. It couldn't work better together. ;)

 Now the first thing you have to do is crumble the pretzel sticks so they fit in the muffin paper cups and put them in the most random way you can so you form a sort of a nest.

Then melt the chocolate carefully so it doesn't boil and become all gummy. pour it over the sticks and make sure it connects everything so it will stick together later.

On top of it put a chocolate egg so the nest is more obvious.

Now you're pretty much done but do keep them somewhere cold before you serve them so the chocolate hardens and holds everything together.
Before you serve them try to take them out of the paper cup and place it on a tray. Et voilà. You're all set for a perfect Easter themed snack.
Bon appétit! :)

DIY bags, tie necklaces and a cake

Dear all, Ana is back. :)
And in order to make her something for the welcome gift I took a trip to Svet metraže
(where I might even start working if all goes well and there won't be enough people who are actually studying something fabric-connected).

But if we go back to our main story I went there and spent another hour and a half picking out the right fabric to make my friend a bag and an additional fabric for the flower... because it seemed right.
When I stepped in the store I realised I might find a fabric that would have something German on and it did take quite some time because the lady there didn't really think they have anything so I just kept looking. And while doing that I got a fabric with polka dots on the table, another one with flowers, found the third one in another corner that is sort of 18th century like with these little engravings on. Plus another fabric with books that I just have to have and am still thinking what I could make out of it that wouldn't be a bag.

After finding the fabric with Branderburg gate on it I still had to talk to a few consultants of mine, just to be sure this will be the right choice.

With a green flower on to match the beetle and to put more colour to it.
And I guess it was. It really worked out well.
Then of course I had to make a cake, every celebration has to have one. So I went and bought pineapple pieces, blueberries, raspberries and some cream. And at home it all transformed into a heart-shaped cake with a German flag on it (blueberries tend to look black so it worked).

And just because I love Ana and I like these tie necklaces I made that for her as well and on it put another tiny flower to match the bag.

Hope you like them all. :)

Below you can see another bag, this one I made for Rahela, similar to the one I made about 3 weeks ago but is shaped slightly different.

Requiem by Penderecki

Yesterday, 13th March 2013, was one of the best days ever. With two of my friends from Academy we went to Udine, Italy, to a one of the most amazing concerts ever. Mr. Krzysztof Penderecki, a 79-year-old composer and conductor, gave an unforgettable performance with a Polish choir and a big symphonic orchestra. Mr. Penderecki conducted his own work, Polish Requiem, written 30 years ago, with two additions, one in 1993 and another one, Chaconne, in 2005, in honour of Pope John Paul II.

For me it was certainly one of the things I will never forget. For I heard his music in The Shining quite some years ago I really liked it. I didn't know who wrote it back then and I wasn't using the computer much so I didn't find out. Then we had a lesson on his Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima on Academy and I knew that was the song I was listening to in The Shining.
So it hasn't been long but I listened to a lot of his music ever since and it is really exceptional.
So the oportunity to listen to his work, conducted by himself was something I couldn't miss and was worth every cent and every minute to get to Udine and back.
Thank you for your words, Mr. Penderecki.

Pay It Forward Blog Style

So here is a new entry that I was chosen to do by my lovely friend Neža. :) Thank you for picking me up in your top 5 blogs with under 200 followers (I am nowhere near that number whatsoever). And I would totally link back to you in my picks but I don't think I'm allowed. If I am, consider it done. :)
So here it is. Paying it forward to some of my dear blogger friends. :)

And here is a little about what the award is all about:

This award was designed to be a blog award in the "pay it forward" fashion. Once you've been nominated, you award it to five blogs that you like that have fewer than 200 followers, to encourage new visitors to visit these blogs.

The rules for accepting this award are:

You need to thank the person who gave you the award and link back to their blog. Post the award onto your blog. Give the award to five bloggers who you appreciate that have fewer than 200 followers. Leave a comment on their blog letting them know that you have given them this awesome award!

Next you need to PAY IT FORWARD!

ash.

My dear dear friend.
And the most wonderful blog there is. Everything in her own style that I LOVE.
I wish there'd be a new entry every day just to make my day.
But never mind, I read the old ones then and they're timeless. ;)

...pikčasta.ptička...
Another good friend of mine. (God, I'm lucky.)
And even though she just started writing it's perfect.
Love the deep stories, pictures, her, everything. :)

Kul je bit' poročen
A great blog, written by a young couple I know.
Again full of strength and thoughts that motivate you every day. :)

Ljubezen nikoli ne mine
Another girl with an impeccable style, her very own and so beautiful.
We share quite some interests and I just love her random entries
and I always look forward to them.

Lucijin kotiček :)
Another small blog like pretty much all the previous.
And another friend that sometimes shares some of her thoughts and pictures with us

also through her lovely blog.