I have these shoes up for auction over at Peggy's website. Bidding on these shoes ends tomorrow. So far there's one bid for $7.00. I pay shipping to wherever they go...anywhere! :)
There's lots of other stuff to bid on, too and some of them end later than this one. It's all to help a family that's going through a really hard time. Peggy was so kind to arrange this auction. I can't imagine the work it must be taking!
See y'all later. I'm working on something new for the shop.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Cleaned up and ready to go.
I cleaned my desk. I've been having fun just drawing whatever comes to mind. I'm working on a little paper lunchbag book, just so I can experiment with different things. I've joined in a "chunky book" swap and I wanted to play a little bit before I start it.
Here are a few pics of the things I've been doodling.
This is the cover. Sort of a self-portrait..if..I...could...fly. :) (oh and my hair is that short; I got it cut).
And this is a picture of the last gift bag I did. I didn't quite capture the colors. They're more vibrant than the photo shows.
Here are a few pics of the things I've been doodling.
This is the cover. Sort of a self-portrait..if..I...could...fly. :) (oh and my hair is that short; I got it cut).
And this is a picture of the last gift bag I did. I didn't quite capture the colors. They're more vibrant than the photo shows.My happy messy place.
Cozy, huh? This is the view from my computer desk. As you can see, it's not even dark out but this room, even with its big picture window, stays fairly dark. It's a very nurturing place to work.
Here's a little bit closer view of the mess. This is how it looks when I'm in the throes of creative bliss.
This is a coat rack in the corner. I have lots of things hanging there that I just enjoy looking at. I have the gift bags I've been making hanging there. In fact, I think you can see the boot one I haven't put up in the shop yet.
Hope everyone's having a good day. We just got back from our "date." Had a nice time.
See ya later.
Here's a little bit closer view of the mess. This is how it looks when I'm in the throes of creative bliss.
This is a coat rack in the corner. I have lots of things hanging there that I just enjoy looking at. I have the gift bags I've been making hanging there. In fact, I think you can see the boot one I haven't put up in the shop yet.
Hope everyone's having a good day. We just got back from our "date." Had a nice time.
See ya later.
Monday, August 28, 2006
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Looky! or is it Lookie? Look!
I was messing around in a search and found the magazine I work for. (Maybe I should say "for which I work" since I'm talking about a "grammar" job). I'm pretty proud of it. I think the owner/publisher does a fantastic job! I'm really happy to be a part of the publication. I found this picture and some other information (even a peek inside) at the AT website. Take a peek and see where I work.
The September issue will include an interview I did with Kim Werker! I'm very excited about that. She runs the crochetme.com website and has written some awesome books, including the newly released Get Hooked. Get Hooked is geared toward "teens and tweens" but is completely relevant and enjoyable for those who have kissed their teen years a bon farewell as well. It's available in most book stores and Amazon, etc. I've fondled another of her books Teach Yourself Visually: Crochet a few times at Barnes & Noble.
You just never know where life is going to take you. For me, working on this magazine is beyond anything I had allowed myself to dream. I'm enjoying it for all it's worth!
Friday, August 25, 2006
I have copied this post from Hidden Haven Farm. If you are a crafter who can donate something, I thought you might be interested...or you might be interested in bidding...or just thinking positive thoughts or praying. I think all the info you need is in the following post from Hidden Haven Farm (oh and this Lisa is not me..don't be confused):
Helping a Blog Neighbor
Please, Please post this on your own blog so we can get the word out to as many people as possible!I will start the auction next week with each item having 5 days of bidding time before its closed and winner is announced. So lets see how many items we can auction off and how much money we can raise for Lisa and family.Edit to say you don't have to be a blogger to donate an item for auction or be in the USA. We have people donating from all over the world. Just email a photo of the item, a small description and price to start bidding at. I will post all the items on Hidden Haven so everyone can see all the items and hopefully bid lots!Ooops, my email addy: happe2b50@yahoo.com Already getting great response... thanks everyone! this is going to be a great auction and Lisa will be so blessed!I posted about a blog friend and her husband going through some rough times and ask you to visit her blog.http://www.crazycowcountryfarm.com/2006/08/ever-stuck-your-husband-with-needle-i.htmlThank you everyone that left her such kind comments. I had several emails about wanting to do something more for her family so Ms. Robyn and I put on our thinking caps and came up with what we think is a great ideal. We are going to have an internet auction right here on Hidden Haven! I know all of you are crafty or have something hidden away that you would like to donate for auction. If you will email a photo of what you are willing to donate and a starting price I should start the bid at plus a little description I will post the photos of what we will be auctioning off along with the rules of the auction. Everyone can bid in the comments and that way see who is bidding and the highest bid. When the auction is over the winner will pay through paypal and when I have received the payment I will contact the person who donated that item with the address so they can mail it to the winner. I will collect the auction money in my paypal and then send the total amount raised to Lisa and family. So besides donating I will be asking that you mail your item also. That may make you want to keep items small or light in weight. I also ask that you post about this auction on your blogs so your friends will see and hopefully bid. It would be so wonderful to raise a lot of money to help this family. So everyone pull out those craft items, those collectibles, artwork, books, etc. and lets show the world what good blog neighbors we are.
Helping a Blog Neighbor
Please, Please post this on your own blog so we can get the word out to as many people as possible!I will start the auction next week with each item having 5 days of bidding time before its closed and winner is announced. So lets see how many items we can auction off and how much money we can raise for Lisa and family.Edit to say you don't have to be a blogger to donate an item for auction or be in the USA. We have people donating from all over the world. Just email a photo of the item, a small description and price to start bidding at. I will post all the items on Hidden Haven so everyone can see all the items and hopefully bid lots!Ooops, my email addy: happe2b50@yahoo.com Already getting great response... thanks everyone! this is going to be a great auction and Lisa will be so blessed!I posted about a blog friend and her husband going through some rough times and ask you to visit her blog.http://www.crazycowcountryfarm.com/2006/08/ever-stuck-your-husband-with-needle-i.htmlThank you everyone that left her such kind comments. I had several emails about wanting to do something more for her family so Ms. Robyn and I put on our thinking caps and came up with what we think is a great ideal. We are going to have an internet auction right here on Hidden Haven! I know all of you are crafty or have something hidden away that you would like to donate for auction. If you will email a photo of what you are willing to donate and a starting price I should start the bid at plus a little description I will post the photos of what we will be auctioning off along with the rules of the auction. Everyone can bid in the comments and that way see who is bidding and the highest bid. When the auction is over the winner will pay through paypal and when I have received the payment I will contact the person who donated that item with the address so they can mail it to the winner. I will collect the auction money in my paypal and then send the total amount raised to Lisa and family. So besides donating I will be asking that you mail your item also. That may make you want to keep items small or light in weight. I also ask that you post about this auction on your blogs so your friends will see and hopefully bid. It would be so wonderful to raise a lot of money to help this family. So everyone pull out those craft items, those collectibles, artwork, books, etc. and lets show the world what good blog neighbors we are.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Collaged Gift Bag
I worked most of yesterday (off and on, of course) on this gift bag. My plan was to offer it in my etsy shop but I'm not satisfied completely with it. I used decoupage glue on it and when the light hits it, you can see the streaky glares. I'll use the bag, though. I like the way it turned out except for the mod podge.
I found these great perforated cards in a magazine. It's an ad for dressbarn. I think it was in Country Living. I glued magazine pictures over the advertisements, then placed them on the gift bag and added lace trim, ribbon and buttons. I also made 2 matching gift tags. I like them better than the bag, actually.
I took closeups of the tags but they were blurry, sorry. I either need a new camera or a new photographer. ;)
I found these great perforated cards in a magazine. It's an ad for dressbarn. I think it was in Country Living. I glued magazine pictures over the advertisements, then placed them on the gift bag and added lace trim, ribbon and buttons. I also made 2 matching gift tags. I like them better than the bag, actually.
I took closeups of the tags but they were blurry, sorry. I either need a new camera or a new photographer. ;)
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Bee-utiful baby shoes
I finally finished these shoes. I've been painting them or painting "at" them for almost a month. I didn't like the colors at first, then I put on some unrecognizable twiggy flower thingy. When Emily said, "they're cute but what is this?", I knew I had to change them. So now they have this cute little bee buzzing around the heel and I'm pretty pleased with them.
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Mo Jo
Boy, you guys really didn't like that last one, did you? LOL
Well, we've all mentioned times of being unable to find our crafting mojo, our muse, inspiration, etc....so today I put together this little gal.
My first thought was to make a doll so that we could each have one. Small, pin-size and maybe even wearable. Then I thought of making her with beads...then I thought of a doll. I was thinking up all sorts of things that I apparently can't do. lol All I could see was this skirt thing, in every version of her I came up with. I pinned these fabric pieces onto a patchworked piece of fabric, but it wasn't quite coming together, so I started putting her on paper. I didn't like her for most of the day. I put her away and when I came back to her, I could see that she needed legs...and then the little toes made me fall in love with her.
So, here's Mo Jo. I'm keeping her right at my desk to help me keep that crafting thang going.
I've been having fun and it's easier to try out different things when you don't have to run all over creation gathering materials. Lovin' my craft space. :)
Ok...well, now I'm just ramblin' so...see ya later.
Well, we've all mentioned times of being unable to find our crafting mojo, our muse, inspiration, etc....so today I put together this little gal.
My first thought was to make a doll so that we could each have one. Small, pin-size and maybe even wearable. Then I thought of making her with beads...then I thought of a doll. I was thinking up all sorts of things that I apparently can't do. lol All I could see was this skirt thing, in every version of her I came up with. I pinned these fabric pieces onto a patchworked piece of fabric, but it wasn't quite coming together, so I started putting her on paper. I didn't like her for most of the day. I put her away and when I came back to her, I could see that she needed legs...and then the little toes made me fall in love with her.
So, here's Mo Jo. I'm keeping her right at my desk to help me keep that crafting thang going.
I've been having fun and it's easier to try out different things when you don't have to run all over creation gathering materials. Lovin' my craft space. :)
Ok...well, now I'm just ramblin' so...see ya later.
Monday, August 21, 2006
Collage
I've been admiring altered art for a long time now. Longer than I've been doing this blog or other crafts. I've worked on some altered books, which is fun. If you don't know what they are just type altered books into the search engine. You'll be amazed at how many you'll find. I'm really fascinated by this particular type of art. I think collages are very interesting. I have a confession, though. Some of the more popular styles really creep me out. The sepia tones just send some "fight or flight" signal to my brain. I can still appreciate the work in them and the artistic quality but it just doesn't appeal to me.
So, I tried to do something along the same lines but brighter. Colors I love with more modern pictures. I like it but I am just as creeped out by the 21st century disembodied angel from Elle magazine. Tim thought it was majorly creepy. He hated it. I'm happy with it in some sick weird way. It's creepy but doesn't make me feel like bugs are crawling on me, so I think I hit it somewhere in the middle.
Is there anyone who understands what I'm saying? ?
I really enjoy the cutting and gluing and thinking but it's weird to spend so much time doing something that I know I'm not going to like in the end. Yet, everytime I look at it, I think...I kind of DO like it.
Who knew that collaging would become the crisis of my 40s?
Here's one of her peeking through the geraniums. Now that's really creepy. :D
So, I tried to do something along the same lines but brighter. Colors I love with more modern pictures. I like it but I am just as creeped out by the 21st century disembodied angel from Elle magazine. Tim thought it was majorly creepy. He hated it. I'm happy with it in some sick weird way. It's creepy but doesn't make me feel like bugs are crawling on me, so I think I hit it somewhere in the middle.
Is there anyone who understands what I'm saying? ?
I really enjoy the cutting and gluing and thinking but it's weird to spend so much time doing something that I know I'm not going to like in the end. Yet, everytime I look at it, I think...I kind of DO like it.
Who knew that collaging would become the crisis of my 40s?
Here's one of her peeking through the geraniums. Now that's really creepy. :DSunday, August 20, 2006
Healing properties of glitter.
This is not my usual thing but has really fed my soul this weekend.
Little tags that I painted, glued, glittered. They have fabric, ric rac, beads and lace. I can't explain why it brings me peace, but I'm grateful.
Little tags that I painted, glued, glittered. They have fabric, ric rac, beads and lace. I can't explain why it brings me peace, but I'm grateful.
Creativity
Finally, I felt a bit creative last night. Almost everyone was out of the house and I was able to play some chick music and shed some of my icky feeling.
I made this bookmark, complete with beach blanket, beach ball, flipflop and a little craft book (not actually readable). There are some plastic bird charms, too. I thought it would look cool with this magazine picture of a deck, but it gets a little lost, doesn't it? Ah well.
I did some yard saling yesterday. I hadn't planned to but I was just puttering along when suddenly I was in the truck and it was taking me from yard to yard.
I haven't taken pictures yet, but I got a set of dishes. They're Andre somethingorother, vintage gold stoneware with brown flowers. Now, if you had told me a year ago that I would actually pay money for these, I would have laughed right in your face. Now I have 22 pieces. She was selling it for 10 but since it was toward the late side for yard sales, she gave them to me for 5 bucks. I love them. I cannot figure me out sometimes.
I stopped at a sweet little shop called "Sherri's" not too far from me and bought some little bird plates on hangers. They have this neato black iron thingy around them. I'll get a picture eventually.
I picked up 4 small really old lamps for $1 each. They all work, though one may have a short so Tim is going to look at it for me. I love them. I may dress up a couple of the shades with fabric later. I have them sitting all over the place. Last night I had only lamps on with my music playing and my craft desk all open........a good time. yep.
Let's see...oh yeah, I also got a small ironing board. I've been wanting one for those times you just have a little tiny thing to iron. I'm so glad I found it and it is in great condition; like new.
I think that was it.
I made some tags and things and worked on my altered book...glitter and glue is always good for a pick-me-up. I'm still having fun getting my stuff together. I took all my beading stuff out of the basket last night and put it in the desk drawer. That was really great. No more bending over to grab my pliers or whatever plus I now have an empty basket that can be used for something else. hmmm...maybe a picnic!
I hope everyone is having or has had a wonderful weekend. Mine has been my favorite kind...fairly quiet and uneventful with time to play and cut and glue.
I made this bookmark, complete with beach blanket, beach ball, flipflop and a little craft book (not actually readable). There are some plastic bird charms, too. I thought it would look cool with this magazine picture of a deck, but it gets a little lost, doesn't it? Ah well.
I did some yard saling yesterday. I hadn't planned to but I was just puttering along when suddenly I was in the truck and it was taking me from yard to yard.
I haven't taken pictures yet, but I got a set of dishes. They're Andre somethingorother, vintage gold stoneware with brown flowers. Now, if you had told me a year ago that I would actually pay money for these, I would have laughed right in your face. Now I have 22 pieces. She was selling it for 10 but since it was toward the late side for yard sales, she gave them to me for 5 bucks. I love them. I cannot figure me out sometimes.
I stopped at a sweet little shop called "Sherri's" not too far from me and bought some little bird plates on hangers. They have this neato black iron thingy around them. I'll get a picture eventually.
I picked up 4 small really old lamps for $1 each. They all work, though one may have a short so Tim is going to look at it for me. I love them. I may dress up a couple of the shades with fabric later. I have them sitting all over the place. Last night I had only lamps on with my music playing and my craft desk all open........a good time. yep.
Let's see...oh yeah, I also got a small ironing board. I've been wanting one for those times you just have a little tiny thing to iron. I'm so glad I found it and it is in great condition; like new.
I think that was it.
I made some tags and things and worked on my altered book...glitter and glue is always good for a pick-me-up. I'm still having fun getting my stuff together. I took all my beading stuff out of the basket last night and put it in the desk drawer. That was really great. No more bending over to grab my pliers or whatever plus I now have an empty basket that can be used for something else. hmmm...maybe a picnic!
I hope everyone is having or has had a wonderful weekend. Mine has been my favorite kind...fairly quiet and uneventful with time to play and cut and glue.
Friday, August 18, 2006
I've been a terrible blogger this week. I apologize. The magazine I work for is going to print Monday and I have been editing lots of stuff. I also just haven't been myself this week. Instead I've been mopey and sad and generally feeling sorry for myself. I'm almost over it. Not quite.
I made myself a craft space. I have a rolltop desk in the front room that was basically a storage bin for notebooks and pencils. I cleaned it out and put almost all my craft stuff in it. It's so nice to have most of what I need right there in the same place! I have decided that the entire front room, in fact, is going to become my craft space. It is basically wasted space because we never sit in it or anything. I love the room. I have from the first time I saw it. It just isn't where we hang out. So, I am taking it over. I am finding it fun and challenging to make it a craft room that doesn't look like a craft room. I am finding ways of keeping my things there and having it still look like ...just a room. :) Baskets are great for that and pretty dishes. When it's light enough in there, I'll take a picture. I still have quite a bit of stuff in the dining room, also quite camouflaged to look amazingly like...a dining room.
Emily will be going home next week and the boys will go back to school soon. Turns out that Michael will be going to high school. His SOL scores were too outstanding, apparently, for them to hold him back. I sure hope this is the right thing. I had come to terms with his being retained a year. Now I have to come to terms with him moving on. I'm sure one day I will look back and wonder why I worried about it all so much. Right? Won't I? Just nod and smile.
To avoid venting my life to all of you, I will end this post now. You can thank me in cash and fabric.
Oh, I got some love-in-a-mist seeds from PlainandSimple today. She deadheaded some flowers a while back and had lots of seeds and was offering them to anyone who wanted them. I asked for these. I received them today. It was so much fun finding this sort of mail in the box today. She included a lovely card with such beautiful sentiment and I will treasure it. I have it sitting on the bookcase in my dining room. It goes nicely with my little pink space.
I hope everyone has a nice evening (or whatever it is wherever you are). Emily is staying at my ex's tonight. lol Isn't that a hoot? She and my kids have bonded so well that she goes there on his days. lol I love it. It really makes me happy.
I took Emily shopping today for school clothes. We had a nice time. We went to Goodwill where she didn't find anything, but I got some old jewelry for the beads and the smallest pair of baby shoes yet. They don't look like they've ever been worn. Then we went to Two P's in a Pod, where Emily and Patty (one of the owners) really hit it off and talked horses while I looked around. I bought some magazines, Cottage Living, from 2005 for 25cents a piece. I'll sit down with those in a bit. Then we went to the Discovery Shop but their prices have really gone up so we didn't buy anything there. Finally, I suppose it was inevitable, we hit the mall. Emily is a good shopper. She got some things on sale at Penneys, then we went to Goody's and I can't remember if she got anything there...and then we were starving. The mall is under construction so the entire food court was GONE..so we went across the street for lunch at Wendy's (mmmm, i had a fountain coke for the first time in ages. It was soooo good) and then back to the mall to see what T.J. Maxx had. I think she bought a little light jacket there and that was it. On the way home, we stopped at WalMart and she bought some things. I bought some coffee. lol A quick stop at the grocery store and we were all shopped out. She got some nice jeans, a few shirts, a jacket, socks, underwear...and she's good to go for school.
Ok, I'm really going this time. Talk to y'all later. :)
I made myself a craft space. I have a rolltop desk in the front room that was basically a storage bin for notebooks and pencils. I cleaned it out and put almost all my craft stuff in it. It's so nice to have most of what I need right there in the same place! I have decided that the entire front room, in fact, is going to become my craft space. It is basically wasted space because we never sit in it or anything. I love the room. I have from the first time I saw it. It just isn't where we hang out. So, I am taking it over. I am finding it fun and challenging to make it a craft room that doesn't look like a craft room. I am finding ways of keeping my things there and having it still look like ...just a room. :) Baskets are great for that and pretty dishes. When it's light enough in there, I'll take a picture. I still have quite a bit of stuff in the dining room, also quite camouflaged to look amazingly like...a dining room.
Emily will be going home next week and the boys will go back to school soon. Turns out that Michael will be going to high school. His SOL scores were too outstanding, apparently, for them to hold him back. I sure hope this is the right thing. I had come to terms with his being retained a year. Now I have to come to terms with him moving on. I'm sure one day I will look back and wonder why I worried about it all so much. Right? Won't I? Just nod and smile.
To avoid venting my life to all of you, I will end this post now. You can thank me in cash and fabric.
Oh, I got some love-in-a-mist seeds from PlainandSimple today. She deadheaded some flowers a while back and had lots of seeds and was offering them to anyone who wanted them. I asked for these. I received them today. It was so much fun finding this sort of mail in the box today. She included a lovely card with such beautiful sentiment and I will treasure it. I have it sitting on the bookcase in my dining room. It goes nicely with my little pink space.
I hope everyone has a nice evening (or whatever it is wherever you are). Emily is staying at my ex's tonight. lol Isn't that a hoot? She and my kids have bonded so well that she goes there on his days. lol I love it. It really makes me happy.
I took Emily shopping today for school clothes. We had a nice time. We went to Goodwill where she didn't find anything, but I got some old jewelry for the beads and the smallest pair of baby shoes yet. They don't look like they've ever been worn. Then we went to Two P's in a Pod, where Emily and Patty (one of the owners) really hit it off and talked horses while I looked around. I bought some magazines, Cottage Living, from 2005 for 25cents a piece. I'll sit down with those in a bit. Then we went to the Discovery Shop but their prices have really gone up so we didn't buy anything there. Finally, I suppose it was inevitable, we hit the mall. Emily is a good shopper. She got some things on sale at Penneys, then we went to Goody's and I can't remember if she got anything there...and then we were starving. The mall is under construction so the entire food court was GONE..so we went across the street for lunch at Wendy's (mmmm, i had a fountain coke for the first time in ages. It was soooo good) and then back to the mall to see what T.J. Maxx had. I think she bought a little light jacket there and that was it. On the way home, we stopped at WalMart and she bought some things. I bought some coffee. lol A quick stop at the grocery store and we were all shopped out. She got some nice jeans, a few shirts, a jacket, socks, underwear...and she's good to go for school.
Ok, I'm really going this time. Talk to y'all later. :)
Monday, August 14, 2006
Emily's purse
This is the purse that Em made. Isn't it great? She just decided to do it and started cutting. I'd still be thinking about it! Everything was so straight from the second she cut it...then she didn't want to stop so she put all these great beads on it. We both just love it. Don't you?
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Ahhhhh....got in a project.
Here's the fabric. It's from a sheet I found today at the church sale. I confess, a year ago this would not have done a thing for me, but now I'm suddenly in love with it. It makes me so happy. lol I'm so weird.
Here's what I did with it.
Thanks to Amy's instructions and encouragement and just her enthusiasm over her own, I have made a new cover for my ironing board. Since I spruced up my laundry room ("room" is a stretch...I have to hold in my stomach to walk into it lol) I realized I could hang the ironing board on the wall. It didn't look too nice there in the old cover though. Now it looks awesome hanging there and makes me smile. :) Thanks Amy!
Now I want to put a few stitches into my needleroll since it's SAL weekend, but unfortunately, I have dishes that I haven't finished yet and it's time to take Tim's mom to the bathroom and put her bed rails up and all that good stuff...and I'll probably flop into bed before I get any stitching done.
It's been an awesome day, though, and I have all day tomorrow to get some stitching done so I'm a happy camper.
Goodnight guys.
Here's what I did with it.
Thanks to Amy's instructions and encouragement and just her enthusiasm over her own, I have made a new cover for my ironing board. Since I spruced up my laundry room ("room" is a stretch...I have to hold in my stomach to walk into it lol) I realized I could hang the ironing board on the wall. It didn't look too nice there in the old cover though. Now it looks awesome hanging there and makes me smile. :) Thanks Amy!
Now I want to put a few stitches into my needleroll since it's SAL weekend, but unfortunately, I have dishes that I haven't finished yet and it's time to take Tim's mom to the bathroom and put her bed rails up and all that good stuff...and I'll probably flop into bed before I get any stitching done.
It's been an awesome day, though, and I have all day tomorrow to get some stitching done so I'm a happy camper.
Goodnight guys.
WIP
I have been up to my eyeballs in magazine articles. I finally got them all edited and sent to the publisher so now maybe I can get back to blogging and sewing and painting.
I cut out this poor little chicken last week but have not got around to sewing her. There will be a beak. People here keep asking me that...well, Tim wanted to know if it would have lips. :D
I cut this out of a piece of needlework that I got in a grab bag from "Art on a Mission" which is a little store where people donate artful things, whether linens, china, framed art, crafts..etc (usually higher end stuff) and the proceeds go to the Rescue Mission. I get a good bit of my linens from there. I must admit, it's been a while since I've bought anything there because their prices started to escalate a bit over the past few months.
Tim and I made it out to a yard sale (or two) early this morning before anyone else was awake. We got so much stuff. We went to a church sale where we were told to fill a plastic grocery bag as full as we could get it for one dollar. Well, do you know how many craft items you can fit into a plastic grocery bag? LOL I actually felt guilty walking out because I got so much stuff. He got a whole bag of stuff, too and it cost us 2 bucks. I got 20 or more packages of seam binding, trim, lace and bias tape. I got thread, beads, vintage (I'm pretty sure) felt cut-outs with Christmas motifs, fake flowers, aprons, ohhhh a neat vintage sheet that I'm going to use to make an ironing board cover, paint, glitter, a glue gun.............so much stuff.
Our only plan was to go to that church sale but we saw a sign for another yard sale and decided to go since it was nearby. Tim loves cigar boxes and we hit the motherlode. He got an big plastic bin full for $5.00! He jokingly asked the man if he might throw in a Cohiba ....well, when he went in to get bags for the boxes, he brought Tim a Cohiba. I thought Tim was going to cry. LOL Now, a Cohiba is an expensive cigar, so this gentleman made NO money at all. He was so kind and interesting. When we got home, Tim was looking through all the boxes (and gave me 2 of them ...yay) and he found one with some cigars left in it. He took them back to the man. He was so shocked he told him to keep them. I think they ended up splitting them. lol I also got some jewelry (for tearing apart) there and got Michael some blow pens and colored pencils (which he'd been asking for). When Tim was going through some of his stuff, he threw a really nice plastic case to me and said to give it to Michael for his pencils. Tim also got a leather purse. hehe He cut it up to make a sheath for a knife. There were other odds and ends that escape me right now. I bet we got nearly a hundred dollars worth of stuff today for less than ten. A good morning....and probably a total of 20 minutes. LOL I love yard sales that are near home.
Here are some pictures of the goodies, because I know you guys love looking at other people's haul as much I love looking at other people's haul.
I just had to come back when I saw this pic, to say....it looks like a little button funeral. lol This was one box Tim gave me (in addition to the two cigar boxes). It was a box for a very expensive lighter. I put the buttons in there while I was sorting stuff...and it looks like a little button casket, doesn't it? I'll put them in a jar pretty soon. :)
I cut out this poor little chicken last week but have not got around to sewing her. There will be a beak. People here keep asking me that...well, Tim wanted to know if it would have lips. :D
I cut this out of a piece of needlework that I got in a grab bag from "Art on a Mission" which is a little store where people donate artful things, whether linens, china, framed art, crafts..etc (usually higher end stuff) and the proceeds go to the Rescue Mission. I get a good bit of my linens from there. I must admit, it's been a while since I've bought anything there because their prices started to escalate a bit over the past few months.
Tim and I made it out to a yard sale (or two) early this morning before anyone else was awake. We got so much stuff. We went to a church sale where we were told to fill a plastic grocery bag as full as we could get it for one dollar. Well, do you know how many craft items you can fit into a plastic grocery bag? LOL I actually felt guilty walking out because I got so much stuff. He got a whole bag of stuff, too and it cost us 2 bucks. I got 20 or more packages of seam binding, trim, lace and bias tape. I got thread, beads, vintage (I'm pretty sure) felt cut-outs with Christmas motifs, fake flowers, aprons, ohhhh a neat vintage sheet that I'm going to use to make an ironing board cover, paint, glitter, a glue gun.............so much stuff.
Our only plan was to go to that church sale but we saw a sign for another yard sale and decided to go since it was nearby. Tim loves cigar boxes and we hit the motherlode. He got an big plastic bin full for $5.00! He jokingly asked the man if he might throw in a Cohiba ....well, when he went in to get bags for the boxes, he brought Tim a Cohiba. I thought Tim was going to cry. LOL Now, a Cohiba is an expensive cigar, so this gentleman made NO money at all. He was so kind and interesting. When we got home, Tim was looking through all the boxes (and gave me 2 of them ...yay) and he found one with some cigars left in it. He took them back to the man. He was so shocked he told him to keep them. I think they ended up splitting them. lol I also got some jewelry (for tearing apart) there and got Michael some blow pens and colored pencils (which he'd been asking for). When Tim was going through some of his stuff, he threw a really nice plastic case to me and said to give it to Michael for his pencils. Tim also got a leather purse. hehe He cut it up to make a sheath for a knife. There were other odds and ends that escape me right now. I bet we got nearly a hundred dollars worth of stuff today for less than ten. A good morning....and probably a total of 20 minutes. LOL I love yard sales that are near home.
Here are some pictures of the goodies, because I know you guys love looking at other people's haul as much I love looking at other people's haul.
I just had to come back when I saw this pic, to say....it looks like a little button funeral. lol This was one box Tim gave me (in addition to the two cigar boxes). It was a box for a very expensive lighter. I put the buttons in there while I was sorting stuff...and it looks like a little button casket, doesn't it? I'll put them in a jar pretty soon. :)
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Surprises
I spent my morning doing something I had not planned. I was sitting at the computer when I heard lots of crashing and banging. At first I thought the cat had pulled something over but I couldn't imagine what she could pull over that would just keep going and going and going. I got up and went toward the noise...my bedroom. A bracket had broken and the shelf that runs the entire width of the room had fallen. It had fallen on one end and was acting as a slide for everything from the other end. lol Fortunately only two things were broken. One didn't matter. It was only a jar that I had painted. The other was a really sweet and beautiful angel that my son had given me for Christmas one year. I had it hanging from a little hook beneath the shelf. I may be able to glue her back together.
I had other important things which were very fragile (probably why they were up there) and none of them were broken. I am grateful.
What a mess, though! Now just tell me this...why did I have a plastic flower pot full of dry dirt in it? Can you answer that for me? That made the biggest mess of all!
A couple of days ago I made the comment that I needed to dust that shelf. Well, it certainly was easier to dust since it was lying on the floor. :D I cleaned it and we put it back up after Tim fixed the brackets (he reinforced both of them while he was at it) and I cleaned each thing before putting it back up. It looks much better now. Things look a bit more arranged now and less just thrown on the shelf. (Probably because that is the case lol).
I've enjoyed your comments on inspiration. It's fun to hear how others draw inspiration...and interesting how that in itself can be inspirational.
Keep Cindi, from Cindi's Sewing, in your thoughts. I spoke to her son earlier and I think she is in surgery as I'm typing this. She was pretty nervous about the surgery so I'm sure she could use your good thoughts, wishes and prayers.
I was just informed that I'll be picking Caleb up from work in a bit so I'd better get ready. I'm still in my scrubs (tim's old scrubs I wear as pjs lol). Horrible I know! Unusual, too...seemed like everytime I wanted to take a shower someone else wanted in and then the shelf....then the dishwasher...then waiting for hot water...then.....then...ok...I'd better get in the shower now. See ya.
I had other important things which were very fragile (probably why they were up there) and none of them were broken. I am grateful.
What a mess, though! Now just tell me this...why did I have a plastic flower pot full of dry dirt in it? Can you answer that for me? That made the biggest mess of all!
A couple of days ago I made the comment that I needed to dust that shelf. Well, it certainly was easier to dust since it was lying on the floor. :D I cleaned it and we put it back up after Tim fixed the brackets (he reinforced both of them while he was at it) and I cleaned each thing before putting it back up. It looks much better now. Things look a bit more arranged now and less just thrown on the shelf. (Probably because that is the case lol).
I've enjoyed your comments on inspiration. It's fun to hear how others draw inspiration...and interesting how that in itself can be inspirational.
Keep Cindi, from Cindi's Sewing, in your thoughts. I spoke to her son earlier and I think she is in surgery as I'm typing this. She was pretty nervous about the surgery so I'm sure she could use your good thoughts, wishes and prayers.
I was just informed that I'll be picking Caleb up from work in a bit so I'd better get ready. I'm still in my scrubs (tim's old scrubs I wear as pjs lol). Horrible I know! Unusual, too...seemed like everytime I wanted to take a shower someone else wanted in and then the shelf....then the dishwasher...then waiting for hot water...then.....then...ok...I'd better get in the shower now. See ya.
Monday, August 07, 2006
You know you're blogging too much when.....
You want to click on magazine pictures to get a closer look.
I just did this, sitting on my porch with a cup of coffee and a Country Living.
It's a rainy day here. Noone could accuse me of being productive. I took my car to get it's state inspection. A $15 dollar light bulb later and I am legal...well, the car is.
I walked through the field to gather some blackberries. I had a few when mowing the other day but they're still red...probably a day away from ripe. I hope I get them before the critters do but I'm not holding my breath.
I've looked at lots of different art blogs this morning. I'm itching to do something but not sure what. Do you ever just click away looking for inspiration? I need to get excited about something. I went through my bag of fabric, stared at my beads....then came back to the computer.
Nothing.
Where do you go for inspiration? What are your secrets for getting the creative juices flowing?
I just did this, sitting on my porch with a cup of coffee and a Country Living.
It's a rainy day here. Noone could accuse me of being productive. I took my car to get it's state inspection. A $15 dollar light bulb later and I am legal...well, the car is.
I walked through the field to gather some blackberries. I had a few when mowing the other day but they're still red...probably a day away from ripe. I hope I get them before the critters do but I'm not holding my breath.
I've looked at lots of different art blogs this morning. I'm itching to do something but not sure what. Do you ever just click away looking for inspiration? I need to get excited about something. I went through my bag of fabric, stared at my beads....then came back to the computer.
Nothing.
Where do you go for inspiration? What are your secrets for getting the creative juices flowing?
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Cuteness
I was curious to see if anyone else was painting shoes and selling them
online. Oh. my. goodness. I found these little converse sneakers on ebay. Aren't
they cute??? I just love them! If you want to check out her stuff,
it's at http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?cgiurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcgi.ebay.com%2Fws%2F&fkr=1&from=R8&satitle=painted+baby+shoes&category0=
along with a few others who are painting shoes, too.
They are painting them to wear and using new shoes.
I've thought of doing that but I haven't made up my mind about it yet.
Anyway, have a look. They're so adorable.
Saturday, August 05, 2006
What's Mr. Froggy been up to?
Funny you should ask. He's been making these amazing stoves. They weigh less than an ounce and will burn for almost 8 minutes on just a tiny bit of fuel (used for demonstration...they'll actually burn for a long time with more fuel) He's boiled water in his camp teakettle on one of these stoves. They're awesome for hiking because they weigh nothing! Anyway, I just wanted to brag a bit and show you what he was up to.
A pic of it burning. Looks just like a gas burner on a stove. He's been having a great time hanging out in his basement workshop making these. There are can carcasses (carci?) everywhere.
Friends
Look what was waiting for me in the mailbox today! This sweet card from my sweet friend, Sarah! It made my day. I mowed, weeded and watered this morning. Then I checked the mailbox...no mail. Just as I took my shoes off, I saw the truck. lol So, I went back out and it was so worth 2 trips! It was such a nice surprise. She made the card and it has these two nice bookmarks attached. It made me so happy! Thank you Sarah, so very much.
Friday, August 04, 2006
Painted baby shoes
Here are some shoes I painted a while ago. I sewed some fabric onto the tongue of the shoes. I don't think I'll be selling these because the inside of the shoe are fabric and look dirty, which I didn't notice so much until last night. Usually the inside of the shoes are not cloth and are washable and can even have a little alcohol rubbed over them.
These shoes were painted last night. I finished spraying acrylic sealant on them this morning. I really like saddle oxfords, especially these little ones so they were really fun to paint. These will go in my shop.
I found a bunch of outlet covers that were still in their packages. They were left here by the former owner, so I've had them lying around for..hmmm...a year thinking I would paint them. Last night I finally did.
Hope everyone had a good day. I worked on my bedroom today. It grew up. My dressing table looks like a dressing table now and I brought a table in from another room to be my nightstand. I hung the big lily painting over it. I'm pretty pleased, although still looking for homes for a couple of leftover craft things that had been on my dressing table.
Other than that, I didn't do a whole lot today. I cleaned the bathroom. I got a new Country Living, so I cleaned in order to enjoy sitting down with it. lol
I had a nice long talk with Emily today. That was nice. We hadn't done that for a while.
I got a very sad call today. A girl that I had a Bible Study class with had a baby and it didn't survive. The church called saying she had requested that I sing for the memorial service next week. The song she chose is so beautiful and lullabye-ish. I hope I can get through it without crying. It's very hard to sing when you're crying!
I hope everyone is doing ok. Talk to ya later. :)
These shoes were painted last night. I finished spraying acrylic sealant on them this morning. I really like saddle oxfords, especially these little ones so they were really fun to paint. These will go in my shop.
I found a bunch of outlet covers that were still in their packages. They were left here by the former owner, so I've had them lying around for..hmmm...a year thinking I would paint them. Last night I finally did.
Hope everyone had a good day. I worked on my bedroom today. It grew up. My dressing table looks like a dressing table now and I brought a table in from another room to be my nightstand. I hung the big lily painting over it. I'm pretty pleased, although still looking for homes for a couple of leftover craft things that had been on my dressing table.
Other than that, I didn't do a whole lot today. I cleaned the bathroom. I got a new Country Living, so I cleaned in order to enjoy sitting down with it. lol
I had a nice long talk with Emily today. That was nice. We hadn't done that for a while.
I got a very sad call today. A girl that I had a Bible Study class with had a baby and it didn't survive. The church called saying she had requested that I sing for the memorial service next week. The song she chose is so beautiful and lullabye-ish. I hope I can get through it without crying. It's very hard to sing when you're crying!
I hope everyone is doing ok. Talk to ya later. :)
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Nifty Thrifty
These are my thrifting finds from Wednesday. Gosh, was that just yesterday? I got some more shoes to paint. I have one pair painted but I haven't sprayed them or taken pictures yet. I got this great hopper! It's a tennis ball hopper and when I first saw it I wanted it. I was so disappointed that it was $7 because that was more than I was willing to pay. I looked at the price again and realized it was $2, not $7! Yay. I have it in my laundry room where it will house extra toilet paper and then the iron fits just perfectly on top and it adds a little color to the laundry room. It matches my bottles. :D
I also got a nice big bag of beads. Most of them are plastic, but they will make some cute bookmarks. I did find some glass beads in there, too and some nice earring findings that I didn't even know were there.
When I saw the mirror, I immediately thought of the mirrors that Debbie found at a yard sale. I was really admiring her little round mirrors so I was tickled pink when I found this little number. It's hanging in the bedroom. I may move it later but I needed something to replace the shelf that I just painted and moved to the dining room.
So, that's my haul. I couldn't take the yard any more so I went out before 8am and mowed this morning. I didn't get it all finished but at least it looks like I care. lol I also weedeated. Man. I couldn't use my arm for hours. It didn't hurt..it just didn't work. Weird feeling. I am grateful that it is now back in working condition.
You guys are so wonderful. I appreciated all the sweet comments. Now I need to go and get caught up on your blogs! See ya later.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Some pics
These are the shoes that Emily painted. Didn't she do a good job? The parrot is incredible and she made them identical on the other shoe, all free hand. Amazing. There's also a monkey and on the back it says "jungle boogie." lol I think they're cute.
These are just some things I painted for the fun of it. Three wooden boxes and a round plaque thingey. A.C.Moore had paint on sale cheap today so I bought some new stuff. I've painted another pair of shoes and added something a little different this time.
Oh, I almost forgot to show you my thrift store finds from today!
Ah, well...I'll do it in another post because I just realized I haven't uploaded them yet. :)
Good morning
Since I'm making your bloglines update, I may as well write something. I've started getting a lot of spam. I don't want to go to word verification yet so I'm just switching to no anonymous comments. I don't really get anonymous ones anyway so it shouldn't make much difference. Hopefully this will do away with those annoying "hello, i didn't quite find what i was looking for" comments. I wonder who it is that clicks on those...someone must, right?
I didn't get much done yesterday. I had a house full of teenagers...a few besides ours. There was lots of laughing and goofing off and man, can they wolf down the food. They played guitar and sang and played video games and arm wrestled and made me laugh too loudly. :)
Nick helped me yesterday and I was finally able to listen to a podcast from Craft Sanity. If you ever get a chance to listen to that, I recommend it. I was particularly interested in hearing Alicia Paulson from Posie Gets Cosy. It's a great blog and a very interesting interview. Alicia is great about sharing what worked for her in getting her craft business going. She's really creative and everything she touches turns into something beautiful.
I listened to part of an inteview with Leah Kramer at Craftster which is the place that got me started down this whole craft road. I was doing research for an article and just happened to hit on Craftster which led me to craft blogs and it has changed my life in significant ways. I am so much happier now. Crafting just fills up some place in my heart and head. I am so grateful to have found the craft blog community (and flickr..oh my..I'm a flickr addict these days).
It was when I taught myself knitting and crochet (thanks to a few wonderful websites) that I was able to stop smoking! Yay! It was 7 months ago yesterday that I have been without even so much as a drag off of a cigarette. I cannot even tell you how my life has improved because of that but I can sing so much better, walk without getting winded, go out without wondering if my hair stinks or my clothes, I'm saving money and I'm not embarrassed. I was very embarrassed about smoking. I only started a few years ago and it just wasn't me. The best thing about not smoking....Tim quit. He had smoked since he was 15...he's 53 now and he's not smoked for several months now. I'm so proud of him! I know it was a lot harder for him than for me. He still wants a cigarette every day. I don't.
Hmmm what other personal goodies can I disclose? lol I guess that's about it. Today is date day. I wasn't sure we'd go. Tim hurt his back lifting some patients this past weekend. But he says that he can endure pain for food. Yeah. My kind of guy. I'm hoping to get some more baby shoes to paint. Emily painted a pair. I need to get those pics up for you to see. She did a great job.
I ruined one pair. They were cute but not quite right and I tried to sand off the paint and repaint them...this does not work. I'm determined that the paint will come off one way or another but I will say, I feel good that the paint stays on so well. Even without the sealant on them, that paint was there to stay!
Well, I can't believe you read this whole thing. I appreciate it and I'll try to do a real post with pictures later. :)
Have a good day. You know... I feel like I have that group of girlfriends I always wished for but could never find. You're such a supportive group of ladies and there's never any cattiness (is that correctly spelled? Never wrote that before. lol Catty ness?). I hope you know how much I enjoy this blogging relationship we've formed.
Ok...getting sappy now. See ya later.
I didn't get much done yesterday. I had a house full of teenagers...a few besides ours. There was lots of laughing and goofing off and man, can they wolf down the food. They played guitar and sang and played video games and arm wrestled and made me laugh too loudly. :)
Nick helped me yesterday and I was finally able to listen to a podcast from Craft Sanity. If you ever get a chance to listen to that, I recommend it. I was particularly interested in hearing Alicia Paulson from Posie Gets Cosy. It's a great blog and a very interesting interview. Alicia is great about sharing what worked for her in getting her craft business going. She's really creative and everything she touches turns into something beautiful.
I listened to part of an inteview with Leah Kramer at Craftster which is the place that got me started down this whole craft road. I was doing research for an article and just happened to hit on Craftster which led me to craft blogs and it has changed my life in significant ways. I am so much happier now. Crafting just fills up some place in my heart and head. I am so grateful to have found the craft blog community (and flickr..oh my..I'm a flickr addict these days).
It was when I taught myself knitting and crochet (thanks to a few wonderful websites) that I was able to stop smoking! Yay! It was 7 months ago yesterday that I have been without even so much as a drag off of a cigarette. I cannot even tell you how my life has improved because of that but I can sing so much better, walk without getting winded, go out without wondering if my hair stinks or my clothes, I'm saving money and I'm not embarrassed. I was very embarrassed about smoking. I only started a few years ago and it just wasn't me. The best thing about not smoking....Tim quit. He had smoked since he was 15...he's 53 now and he's not smoked for several months now. I'm so proud of him! I know it was a lot harder for him than for me. He still wants a cigarette every day. I don't.
Hmmm what other personal goodies can I disclose? lol I guess that's about it. Today is date day. I wasn't sure we'd go. Tim hurt his back lifting some patients this past weekend. But he says that he can endure pain for food. Yeah. My kind of guy. I'm hoping to get some more baby shoes to paint. Emily painted a pair. I need to get those pics up for you to see. She did a great job.
I ruined one pair. They were cute but not quite right and I tried to sand off the paint and repaint them...this does not work. I'm determined that the paint will come off one way or another but I will say, I feel good that the paint stays on so well. Even without the sealant on them, that paint was there to stay!
Well, I can't believe you read this whole thing. I appreciate it and I'll try to do a real post with pictures later. :)
Have a good day. You know... I feel like I have that group of girlfriends I always wished for but could never find. You're such a supportive group of ladies and there's never any cattiness (is that correctly spelled? Never wrote that before. lol Catty ness?). I hope you know how much I enjoy this blogging relationship we've formed.
Ok...getting sappy now. See ya later.
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Muted Tones
Look at these itty bitty shoes. Aren't they so cute? I had a hard time starting on them because they're so tiny and I was afraid of messing them up. I decided to tone the colors down for these...they kind of make me think of Beatrix Potter for some reason. In fact, I'd like to find some ribbons with Beatrix Potter characters on them. For now, the yellow works.
I'll be putting these in the shop.
I'll be putting these in the shop.
Little thing with drawers from the thrift store..prepaint
I got this little drawer thingey from the thrift store. I thought it would be good for storing those little crafting odds and ends.
First I painted it pink, very light pink and it just did not appeal to me, so I painted it my old standby color...green.
And now it resides here in my dining room. I was so inspired by a post at As I See It Now that I put my pinkies and greenies together in the dining room and I'm loving it right now. I am finding I am rather fickle about color and something I might love for crafting or just to look at doesn't always work in my living space.
I put some brown in the pink and repainted the shelf (it was the very light pink before also) and I absolutely love it now. It's the shelf I had in the bedroom with the record on it. I like it so much I moved it to the dining room. There are a number of different shades of green and blue on that bookshelf and that little shot of pink is so fun. I wish the picture had turned out better so you could see all the different greens.
Oh, I don't know if you can see the little chest on the shelf below the jars? When Tim and I were first seeing each other, he gave me money and dared me to use it on bills. lol I went to a shabby chic consignment shop and spent it all! One of the treasures I got was this chest. It's been sitting on a high shelf, unappreciated, holding cassette tapes for a few years now. Yesterday I dusted it off, moved the tapes out and now it houses my ribbon! I'm loving it.
I guess I'd better go see what else I can get into today.
First I painted it pink, very light pink and it just did not appeal to me, so I painted it my old standby color...green.
And now it resides here in my dining room. I was so inspired by a post at As I See It Now that I put my pinkies and greenies together in the dining room and I'm loving it right now. I am finding I am rather fickle about color and something I might love for crafting or just to look at doesn't always work in my living space.
I put some brown in the pink and repainted the shelf (it was the very light pink before also) and I absolutely love it now. It's the shelf I had in the bedroom with the record on it. I like it so much I moved it to the dining room. There are a number of different shades of green and blue on that bookshelf and that little shot of pink is so fun. I wish the picture had turned out better so you could see all the different greens.
Oh, I don't know if you can see the little chest on the shelf below the jars? When Tim and I were first seeing each other, he gave me money and dared me to use it on bills. lol I went to a shabby chic consignment shop and spent it all! One of the treasures I got was this chest. It's been sitting on a high shelf, unappreciated, holding cassette tapes for a few years now. Yesterday I dusted it off, moved the tapes out and now it houses my ribbon! I'm loving it.
I guess I'd better go see what else I can get into today.
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