Artsy Fartsy Crafts

Boy's Vintage Camping - Northwoods Room

2012-02-01T07:00:00.000-05:00

So, JD decided that the Vikings inspired room was getting a little old and opted for something a little more woodsy and outdoorsy. So, here is my attempts at fulfilling his wishes...a few of the finer details!!

My dad has collected these patches for years - I put them to use in a shadow box.

Nothing says outdoors like an antler light switch!

I LOVE this lamp!!! I found a vintage minnow bucket on Etsy and bought a small candlestick lamp from Goodwill and a lamp shade from Walmart - threw it all together and created this awesome lamp.

I hung a few vintage bait and tackle tins on the wall next to the shadow box.

Of course we couldn't totally get rid of the Vikings - Adrian Peterson still makes his presence known - just not in such and obvious way! He now "hangs out" in the closet - a little nook - just for Jonathan.

All in all, I love how his room turned out - but most of all - HE LOVES IT!! After our summer trip to South Dakota I was able to add a few more authentic details - I got a real set of antlers, a boys scout thermos and a cool oil painting from an antique store in Souix Falls.

Sheet Music Side Table

2012-01-29T07:00:00.001-05:00

I bought this little nightstand from Target many years ago. The price was right, but I knew it wasn't real wood and wouldn't last for very long. It went into my oldest son's room (he was about 7 at the time) and he really put it through the ringer. Despite the - no drink or food - law, the table had raised areas on the top from liquid spills (and the 1/2 eaten hot dogs dehydrating under the bed are always a delight to find! Maybe that is why he won't eat them anymore???)

Anyway, I decided to give the table a new life in our living room and set about covering her in sheet music. (Notice how I call everything a she in my house...maybe I just want it to be so - as I am the ONLY live girl in the house) Several pictures to follow - Enjoy!

The Pink Piggy Chair

2012-01-27T10:28:00.000-05:00

I thought I would revisit an older post - one of my first chair makeovers...The pink piggy chair - Todd actually named the chair, I personally think it is too cute to be a "piggy!" Here is how she started out:

Do you speak German??

2012-01-25T07:00:00.000-05:00

I would love some help translating the phrases on this beer stein my son inherited from his great grandfather!

Help!

Boo! Picnik is going away!

2012-01-23T15:55:00.004-05:00

I don't know about you - but I love the ease of using Picnik for my less than stellar photographs. April 19th is the last day to use it...but on the plus side - you can get all of the premium features for free until that time.

See what I did today -
BEFORE:

AFTER:

Nice tan, NO wrinkles and NO "blemishes" LOVE THAT...I will be picniking a lot until April 19...I have a lot of wrinkles to get rid of!

Q & A a day: 365 questions, 5 years, 1,825 answers

2012-01-23T10:17:00.003-05:00

Have you seen this book? It is published by Potter Style (isbn 978-0-307-71977-5). I saw it when I was in the checkout line at Marshall's (damn them and their impulse purchase displays!!) I have been trying to keep at it - I love the concept - quick answers to interesting questions. I love that you can track how your answers have changed over the past 5 years.

The questions are random and have quite a range - What is your favorite accessory? What was peaceful about today? Did you have fun today?

The answers are meant to be short and sweet - almost like tweets on paper!

Today's question - Do you need a break? From What? ...well, do you?

Yummy Peppermint Treats

2012-01-23T10:12:00.003-05:00

These treats were defnitely a hit with the kids!

Marshmallows dipped in white chocolate and covered with crushed candy canes. So much fun on a stick!

First Project of 2012

2012-01-02T14:40:00.002-05:00

Meet Mr. Snowman!
He is here to wish you all a very happy 2012 - filled with peace and love! I first saw the beginnings of Mr. Snowman when I visited Amy Power's Blog - Inspire Co. and saw the instructions of how to make one. It looked liked something that I could pull off - so I gave it a try.

I found the paper clay at all the major craft retailers - Joann's, Hobby Lobby, Michaels, etc. I think the hardest part was making a face that wasn't scary!! When I completed my snowman, had him painted and dried - I decided to "age" him a little and put an antiquing glaze all over the finished product. I also didn't want him to be an ornament - but rather a shelf sitter to go with the rest of my snowman collection - so I made him a little base to sit in.

All in all a success...I think he is quite handsome!

Happy 2012!

2012-01-01T08:20:00.002-05:00

I just logged in for the first time in 8 months. 8 months, really?!?! I am not sure if that officially makes me the world's worst blogger or not, but I really have been crafting and such - just not taking pictures and blogging about it. Who knows, maybe I will spend a few weeks trying to catch up - even if I am the only one who cares!

Brrr...I think I need a blanket

2011-04-05T07:00:00.000-04:00

Baseball season is now back in swing. I have spent the last two weekends at the fields - freezing my tail off! Boy don't you wish that were literally true. I would have some kinda smoking hot body!!! LOL!

Anyway, here are the supplies I started with - they were all stuff that I had on hand. If you saw my post from a couple of days ago - you would know that I have A LOT of stuff on hand!

I feel certain that I bought all of the fabric pieces at Joann's - the fleece I got at Hancock Fabrics - and the jeans were a "gift" from my dad. I cut out 12 1/2" squares of all the fabric pieces and used the fleece to line the blanket/quilt. Here is the finished product:

My Mom Cave - be careful, if you fall in...

2011-04-04T07:00:00.000-04:00

My creativity hit a wall...I couldn't figure out why? That is until I looked around my craft room and then, it all became abundantly clear.

No one is capable of being creative in this mess...The pictures that follow may scare you - they sure did me. I was overwhelmed for so long. But, one box at a time, I finally have a clear space to work! Here are the scary "Before" shots:

As I got going - things got a lot worse...

Do you have chills running up and down your spine yet? I seriously felt like they could come and film an episode of Hoarders right here in my craft room. My husband made the mistake of stopping by to see my progress. He ran, screaming from the room. My 13 yr old just said "oh, wow." Have you seen most 13 yr old boy's bedrooms? He could still find the nerve to say that about my room. Ugh.

To save some dignity - here are just a few quick shots of the new and improved closet space. The rest of the room is pretty clean too - but the creative juices caught up with me and I started a new project before I could take pictures.

So, for now - my closet is uber organized - every sort of craft in a corner of its own. We will see how long it will last!

A birthday gift

2011-04-03T16:55:00.008-04:00

I recently made a birthday present for on one my besties, inspired by her desire to remake her living room into a "coastal / cottage" vibe room and completely inspired by this candle holder from LL Bean. So, off I went to try my hand at recreating something in this proximity.

I got a vase from the local dollar tree...
and I picked up these beauties from Michaels...

Now that I had my supplies - I just started gluing, and gluing and gluing...I used some pretty powerful glue to keep that glass on the vase - should probably do it in a well ventilated room. Yikes.
I just realized as I am almost through writing this post - I never took a picture of the final product! WHAT!?!?! Good think Miss Anne lives close. I will have to pop in for a visit.

Goodwill Treasures - February 2011 - part 2

2011-03-01T08:05:00.000-05:00

Some snaps of more of my latest finds - I decided to try and dig though the silverware bins - each of these pieces was only 25 cents!

I also picked up a little glassware...I didn't pay more than $3 for either of these!

Blue & White Beauties

2011-02-27T07:03:00.000-05:00

Some thrift store treasures in my china cabinet:

Goodwill Treasures - February 2011 - part 1

2011-02-25T07:00:00.000-05:00

This lovely serving fork came with the silver tray down below.

I love the fact that it is monogrammed! Not my monogram - but that is cool!

Here is the tray that came with the serving fork.

This plastic, fake wood planter (?) needs some painting - but it should turn out very nice...I will post more when it is done.

This is a Rogers & Co. silverplate tray - picked up for a whopping $1.59!!!

Myott Finlandia

2011-02-23T07:00:00.001-05:00

In my post about the Miss Mustard Seed "Copy Me Challenge" I mentioned that I was scouring the thrift stores for plates like hers. I had found onesies and twosies around and I would pick them up.

Last week, while taking a day off - I ventured into my favorite thrift store. I call it my honey hole! Anyway, I came across a stack of these lovelies. Seriously - there were 9 dinner plates, 16 small dessert plates and 11 bowls...for, get this, $15!!! I could seriously feel my throat closing, my palms were sweating and I didn't think I would make it up to the counter with the dishes. I was certain the second I stepped away from the shelf, someone else would swoop in and take them. It didn't really matter that there was only one other person in the shop and we were definitely NOT looking at the same things!

I finally got them home, cleaned them and they are now as deliriously happy as I am...I think dishes can be that happy, right?? My collection of these style dishes has now grown! They are all a little different but I love that all the same. I thought I would add some of the china markings from the bottom of the dishes that I have. The group that I picked up at the thrift store are Myott Finlandia.

This is from a bowl in the same design that I bought over 10 years ago.

A sweet little cup I picked up at Goodwill.

This marking is on a set of 3 plates that I got from Goodwill as well. Furnivals Limited!

More Family Heirlooms

2011-02-21T07:00:00.000-05:00

My oldest son was given this beer stein by his grandfather last weekend. It originally belonged to his great-great-grandfather! I am dying to know what it says - google translate didn't make any sense!

Gift from Grandma

2011-02-19T07:00:00.000-05:00

See my little 2 or 3 year old self. I have no idea when this picture was taken or what me and my older brother were doing - but it was definitely at Grandma's house. I know that because I was clutching her porcelain doll. I had always loved that doll. I wanted to hold her and carry her around wherever I went and my grandmother let me...I only hope that I can do the same when I have grandkids!

I don't ever remember if my cousin and I fought over her - we were only 3 months apart (she being the older of the two of us) - and the only girls in a sea of boys! I don't recall her holding the same fascination - maybe she did?? But as we got older and my grandmother began parsing out family heirlooms, Lisa (being the older and therefore first granddaughter) got the doll. I can tell you that I was green GREEN green with envy.

Many years have passed since that all took place and my cousin agreed that she never held the same fascination that I did - and agreed that this doll needed to come and live with me! Isn't she beautiful.

The Cheese Plate

2011-02-17T18:20:00.004-05:00

I made this plate for a friend - a Green Bay Packer Cheesehead!! I was supposed to bring it over for the Superbowl - but in my haste to finish the macaroni & cheese (cheeseheads, remember) I left the plate at home.

I used vintage cheese labels that I got from Cathe Holden at Just Something I made. I plan on giving it to her soon! I just cut out the individual labels and decopauged them onto a plate I picked up Goodwill for 79 cents.

Trying my hand at Jewelry

2011-02-15T07:00:00.000-05:00

It is amazing what a little Glossy Accents, some paper scraps, buttons and some bezels (which I picked up from Hobby Lobby - on sale 40% off!) can do! Here are few more -

Boxes, boxes, boxes

2011-02-13T11:46:00.006-05:00

At least a year ago, I bought a bunch of paper boxes - with the idea that I would decorate them...I have finally gotten around to it! This one is my favorite so far. I used an old pattern that I picked up at goodwill for 57 cents. The rest of the stuff I had laying around the craft room. Time to start using supplies - not admiring the accumulation of them!

For this box, I used some Lilly Pulitzer wrapping paper and topped the box with a ribbon rose.

All the papers and "buttons" used on this box are from Heather Bailey. I love the bright fun colors she uses in her fabrics and was so excited that she came out with papers to match! Click here to visit her blog and here to visit her online store. (No, I wasn' t paid to endorse - just love!!!)

The final box is definitely Miss Mustard Seed inspired. I used some vintage sheet music I got from a co-worker (thank you, Alex) and I painted the top with some silver paint. For a little rustic touch - I painted the pine cone with the same silver paint and glued it to the top to use as a handle.

I wanna be Miss Mustard Seed

2011-02-06T13:09:00.020-05:00

Have you ever stumbled across a design blog and thought - YES! This is what I want my room to look like. We live in a very traditional house, in a traditional neighborhood, in a traditional city, in a traditional state!

I have been trying to figure out - what is my style, what makes my heart stop? And then I saw a picture of Miss Mustard Seed's dining room - there it was. I was mesmerized. I have redesigned my space with VERY strong influences of MMS.

So, here it is - my dining room ala Miss Mustard Seed...

Let's start with the old: It was fine. I mean, I liked it - but I didn't love it. I wanted to love the space. It is the first room you see when you walk in our front door and I wanted it to feel more like a space you wanted to be in - not just walk on by! I made the curtains about a year after we moved in the they are nice - but fancy. They are aqua / brown and have a silk lining and have nice pretty baubles hanging from the trim. So out with the old and in with the new:

Shall we take a tour? Where are all the MMS influences?? I would have loved to have been able to paint my table/china cabinet. The mister almost went into cardiac arrest when I suggested it - so that will remain the same (for now!) Here is the vision, the start of it all - Miss Mustard Seed's Gorgeous Dining Room!
What's not to love, right? Well, I started with the curtains. I had seen the fabric MMS used at Joannes and a couple of other online sources. I liked it - but wasn't as big a fan of the birds as I though I would be when I saw it up close. After a few hours online I found this wonderful fabric at Fabric.com, they had it on clearance for 11.98 a yard. Joanne's had the same fabric - but definitely not the same price! When I went to place my order they had a couple specials going on - free shipping (cha ching) and if you spent more than $100 you could take an extra 25% off! Seriously - I ended up getting 12 yards for $107!!!
They came out - exactly how I wanted them (I followed along the same curtain making instructions, provided by MMS here). You see that lovely mirror on the wall...can you believe that many years ago, my mom purchased it from Home Interiors. It was originally a shiny, shiny brass color. After some silver spray paint made for plastic (because, yes, it was plastic) and some black glaze, it is now a tarnished silver look.

Next, I tried my hand at finishing a piece of furniture - improving it with the magic of paint and glaze. This corner unit we have had since we moved in together, before we got married. It was a lovely shade of avacado green - here is the transformation:

Up close and personal...MMS has some great tutorials on painting - you can find them here and here.

Here are some more MMS inspiration areas in the dining room -
Artwork: I found this image from the amazing Graphics Fairy - a close and personal friend of MMS!! I printed the image out on heavy resume paper and then put it in the frame I got from the local Goodwill store. Of course the frame was originally gold, I painted the outside silver and the inside trim a nice french blue. The candlesticks were another vintage Home Interiors plastic gold travesty. Like the mirror, I painted and glazed and now have tarnished silver loveliness on the wall. This is another corner of the dining room - I haven't painted this piece, because I don't know if it is staying in this room for the long run. But it is a great spot to hold some of my smaller dishes. The plates on the top shelf are Ironstone - and we all know how much MMS loves her ironstone. Most of the plates and goodies that I have found to decorate with I discovered at my local goodwill.The place settings that I have put together are a study in thriftyness. The bottom chargers came from Hobby Lobby and are...shhhh...plastic. I have a cream colored plate next - picked those up at Tuesday Morning for about 3 buck a piece. The blue and white plates that are next I got at Ross - for 2 bucks a piece (wish I had someone to pass dishes down to me - but my families budgets were more like 70s corelle ware than lovely Enlgish transferware!) The cute silver dishes on the top came from my very favorite thrift store and were only 85 cents a piece!! Here is MMS's version:
Pure loveliness, right. I have actually started a collection of the plates that you see her using in her place setting - I saw a stack of three on the shelf at Goodwill and scooped them up - I didn't even realize it until I started doing this post that 1.) I bought a bowl that matches them about 10 years earlier and 2.) That they were the plates MMS uses! Wierd how that worked out! The Hurricanes on the table I picked up on clearance from JC Penney (while I supposed to Christmas shopping) I found the lettered balls, once again at my very favorite thrift shop - a little typography for MMS!

This little chair was probably one of the first projects I had tackled. I made the slipcover out of muslin and the skirt on this little lady is very reminiscint of MMS and her wonderful slips - she has some great tutorials here.

My final MMS inspiration Vignette - I didn't paint this piece either - I loved the patina on the finish and just didn't want to change it - All of the items (chest included) came from the thrift store. Seriously, I love that place. I also included a wreath - made with sheet music to incorporate MMS' love of sheet music. Here are some more close up shots -
I just love the title of that book - "Your House in the Country." It is full of very practical advice for those housewives, making due in the 1930s! I don't live in the country - but if you asked some of my co-workers, they would swear I did. Spotsylvania county sure sounds like the country to those folks in D.C.! (did you notice the plate??? Very MMS!)

Here is a better shot of the wreath I made. A little bit of modge podge, strips of sheet music paper, and some other pretties - and I have quite a nice little wreath!

So, that about sums up my obsession with Miss Mustard Seed. I am linking up to here "Copy Me" challenge post. I hope she knows, I took her rather literally. I am so please with my dining room, I can hardly stand it. I just sit in there with a stupid grin on my face. Miss Mustard Seed, I hope you are proud of your influence on me and take my "copying" as a true tribute to your abilities! I am going to leave this long, long, long post now - with one question...My dining room chairs - blue velvet or the original cream?

Valentine's Day Banner

2011-01-27T14:14:00.009-05:00

I am not a big decorator of all the holidays - the biggies, yeah...but Valentine's Day usually doesn't make the cut around my house. But, we have a snow day and I had some great supplies laying around with nothing to do - so, why not! Here is what I used to make my "Be Mine" Valentine's Day banner.

First up was the red jute/burlap - I got mine from Joanne Fabric - in the remnants bin...
Can you believe the price!! I only used about 1/8 of a yard...so it was about $ .30 worth of burlap!

I made a pattern out of vellum paper - I used the size of a small paperback book at my template. Here are the dimensions -
I cut out 6 "flags" to use for my banner. Next, I reverted back to my childhood - and tracing, using the window as my lightbox. I cut each letter from the paper and taped it to the window and then taped a "flag" over that and using the handy, dandy sharpie - traced away!

It only took a couple of minutes to trace each letter. After I pulled it off the window I went back over each letter to make sure it was really covered by the sharpie. When I had all of my letters lined up, I felt that it needed a little more oomph...so on to the next set of supplies - glue and ribbon...
I glued ribbon around the edges just to finish it off. I am not good with fuzzy edges - so I also used fraycheck on the ends of the ribbons, just to make sure! Once I had it all done, I got out the jute string and created the final banner. I also made the heart out of some other scraps I had laying around. Who knows, I may start decorating for all the holidays now! Here are the final shots:

Blessed Christmas Wishes to you and yours!

2010-12-25T00:01:00.000-05:00

Homemade Holidays - the gifts! Part 3

2010-12-22T09:53:00.000-05:00

Scarves, scarves, scarves...I have only finished 2 so far. Hope to get some more done before time is up!!!

These were so much fun to make and weren't too difficult either. I hope the recipients love them too! Maybe I can get the ladies to model them after they are opened!

Homemade Holidays - the gifts - Part 2

2010-12-21T09:46:00.000-05:00

Miss Alexis is the princess in our family - the only girl, surrounded by boys! I love that I am her Godmother and I love that I can make girly things for her!!! She just started dance lessons - so I thought she definitely needed a little bag to carry her ballet shoes in.

I started with some soft fine-wale corduroy. I have been making bags and purses for several years, so I didn't use a pattern, I just started cutting. I used an image from the Graphics Fairy for the ballerina and added her initial to the bag (an iron-on, darn I wish santa would bring me an embroidery machine!!!) Of course the tulle around the top!

Here are some up close shots of the ballerina image. I added the tulle skirt and crystals for that little extra something!

Homemade Holiday - the gifts! Part 1

2010-12-20T09:38:00.000-05:00

A pillow for Jackson! My nephew is a cowboys fan, God love him! It hurt my hands a little to touch this fabric, but I pushed through the pain and created this pillow for him as one of his Christmas gifts. This boy is an amazing kid - the struggles that he has had to endure and he has fought through make him an inspiration.

At four months old, Jackson contracted meningitis. We almost lost him - but he hung on and fought! He came away from that experience with some real challenges - loss of hearing, some brain damage and some real physical challenges...but that didn't stop Jackson.

This is a picture of Jackson this spring playing baseball for our Little League's Challenger division. He is an amazing kid, I love him dearly and this little pillow is just a small token of how much I love him! Jackson has a lot of struggles still to face and his health is a question every day - every sniffle can send him back to the emergency room - but he is a true fighter and a hero!

Thrift Store Treasures

2010-12-19T09:33:00.000-05:00

When I saw this metal "scoop" just laying on the rack at our local Goodwill store, I understood why so many people had passed it by. Originally, it was painted a lovely mustard color...almost blindingly yellow. I wish I had remembered to take a picture so I could show a dramatic before and after - I just get so darned excited!

Anyway, I got this home and mixed some paints together to get the blue color I wanted. I painted and painted and painted - it took a few coats to hide that yellow! Once I got it covered and the paint dried, I used some antiquing stain to highlight the really cool details.

I am so happy with it! Can't you see a little bird making its home in that nest?

Homemade Holidays, Part 3

2010-12-18T09:24:00.000-05:00

Sheet music, sheet music, sheet music...I know it was Miss Mustard Seed that started me on the hunt for sheet music. She has done some really amazing things with it! If you haven't checked out her blog yet, I highly recommend it! I think this wreath is the first sheet music thing I created. I started with a dollar store foam wreath - modge podge - and very sticky fingers! The sheet music that I used for this wreath was images I got from the Graphics Fairy - wow, another great site that you MUST visit!!!

After I got the sheet music (which I cut into thin strips to make it easier) glued on, I thought it needed a little something extra - so I added the flower, doily and feather - which were left overs I had laying around the ole craft room. I thought it went nicely with the NOEL frames, don't ya think?

Homemade Holidays Part 2

2010-12-17T09:18:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I showed you the sheet music NOEL frames that I created for my 1 (so far!) holiday display. Today, I want to show off my toile candles. These were super easy to make - and because I got carried away, I didn't stop to take pictures of the process. There are many, many, many tutorials on how to make these candles - so don't stress! I purchased the candles and the tissue paper from Hobby Lobby. I started with the plain cream candle, cut the tissue paper to size, then grabbed the heat gun from my supply cabinet and went to work.

It really only takes a few seconds of the heat gun heating the paper to get a thin layer of wax to form around the tissue paper. I think i finished the two candles in less than 10 minutes. I love that they look great for the holidays - but the toile is not holiday specific and I can use them again later!!!

Homemade Holidays

2010-12-16T09:07:00.000-05:00

So far, this is the extent of my holiday decorating. We have decided to install hard wood floors in the house - they come to install tomorrow!! Therefore, no tree, no decorations - as all the other rooms had to be emptied out to make way for the new floors!

I had to have some Christmas showing around the house so the chest in the hallway got the treatment. I am not sure that it will still look like that by the weekend when I have ample time and ability to decorate the whole house, but I am happy with it for now!

With the exception of the tablecloth, I "crafted" everything you see. I am going to start with the NOEL frame set. I bought the frames from Joann Crafts for $1 each. They might have even been on sale for less, I just don't remember. They had been sitting in my craft closet for quite some time. I used sheet music from an old hymnal that I picked up at the thrift store (which, by the way, is where I got the chest) and decopauged the sheet music pieces randomly all over the frame. I finished by hot gluing red velvet ribbon around the outside of the frame.
I cut out the N-O-E-L with my handy dandy cricut and used some scrap paper to fill in the back of the frames. I really like the way they turned out!

Pottery Barn Inspiration Hand Towel

2010-12-15T09:59:00.003-05:00

When I saw the cute ticking strip hand towels in the Pottery Barn Catalog I knew I needed them...but, as with most item in the catalog - I could not justify paying for them! So, I made my own version. I think I may have mentioned before that I do not have an embroidery machine - so I knew that monogramming was out. Instead I used a vintage tea label graphic from the Graphics Fairy instead.

I like my version just fine!

Eeeek - Long time no post!

2010-12-15T08:54:00.002-05:00

I hadn't even realized that it has been August since I have posted anything. Where have I been? I don't really have a good answer to that question...running around like a chicken with my head cut off?? Being the wife of a high school football coach can be tyring - and busy...especially when the season doesn't go as you had hoped! So, I guess that is where I have been. Dutifully sitting in the stands, cheering on the boys of fall - no matter the outcome!

The same goes as being a mother of a baseball loving son, playing travel baseball throughout the fall season. My weekends this fall consisted of attending a football game Friday night, hosting an after game coaches "pig out" at our home - which usually lasted late into the night. Then getting up before light on Saturday morning to drive to the baseball field - to cheer on the "boys of summer!" - once again no matter the outcome, and another trying season!

Not to forget the little guy (who is not so little anymore!) Being present at all of his football games and cheering my head off! Of the three - his team had the most success this season - they ended up coming in 2nd place! I watched my baby (who was the smallest on the team) - who was soooo timid last season turn into a real football player. Of course after he made a tackle - he was always checking the stands to make sure I had seen it!!!

So, I guess that is where I have been for the past few months. I did manage to squeeze a few crafts and projects in. Today, I am just going to relax and enjoy the moment - look back at the good times we had this fall. As a parting "shot" This is my baby - dressed as Gene Shalit for halloween!

Beautiful Mannequin

2010-08-09T19:22:00.004-04:00

I have had a simple craft paper mannequin form in my craft room for about 5 years now. I always knew I wanted to do something with her - but was never quite sure what. Thanks to the wonders of the blogosphere, I discovered the Graphics Fairy and used vintage labels from her site to decopauge the heck out of this little beauty. I am so happy with how she turned out.

I added the pink flower just to spice her up a bit more.

Goodwill Treasures

2010-08-09T19:13:00.005-04:00

I have big plans for this lovely piece. I picked this up for 50 whole cents! I see some spray paint in its future, don't you. I love the fact that it is made in the U.S.A. circa 1977! It had a "sister" at Goodwill, but she didn't have the flowers in the center and was definitely NOT as cute.

Isn't this little angel put sweet - it looks like he is blowing you a kiss! I think he may have been a dollar - possibly 2, but I couldn't resist.
The candlestick "in its original form" was a very dark and ugly wood color. A little spray paint and sandpaper was all it took to purty her up! The bucket was in the dollar bins at Michael's a while back. I covered it with moss ribbon and made the flower from white muslin.

Just a few things to make me happy, keep me busy, and keep me sane!

Simple girly artwork

2010-08-09T19:05:00.003-04:00

I know I need to start every post with the disclaimer, "Why don't I have a little girl?" Well, I don't. Two boys - who are definitely ALL BOY! So, in order to claim my little piece of happiness, I create in my craft room - and generally create very girly things.

I created this very simple piece of artwork with one 10x10 canvas, 1 sheet of scrapbook paper and 16 small flowers.

I believe I got the canvases from Joann's - buy one get one and I know I picked up the scrapbook paper there for about 25 cents. The flowers were a close-out special last year from Stamping Up! I bought about 6 or 7 packs of them, knowing that someday I would put them to good use. Now, If I only had somewhere to hang this little cutie!

Lavender Sachets

2010-08-08T10:36:00.003-04:00

What is all that racket? Oh, sorry, that was just me...sneezing my head off.

I love the way lavender smells. Fresh lavender is wonderful, but apparently sends me into violent sneezing fits!

I made the lovely sachet above using a piece of linen and an image I found on the net. The image was ironed on using ink-jet t-shirt transfer paper. After it was sewn and cooled I thought a little sparkle would dress it up just a bit more...so out came the crystal stickles. I love it! Here are a few more that I whipped up...

Ruffled Roses Inspiration

2010-05-25T15:53:00.010-04:00

This shirt, found in the Soft Surroundings catalog, serves as the inspiration for a handy new little bag I made today. I got some mens shirtware inspired fabric from joann's and started cutting out the shape of the bag - and then started ripping strips for the roses. I like the first attempt - but think future bags might need to be a little smaller?? What do you think?

Baseball - the meaning of life?

2010-05-21T09:48:00.004-04:00

Crafting has been seriously put on hold the past few weeks. My life has been at the baseball field. I really am one of those baseball moms. I travel from ball field to ball field and yell like hell for my kids - good, bad, ugly. The picture above is Cody getting ready to hit his third home run. 2nd for the season. So far this Spring season he has hit 4 whoppers over the fence. It is great - but not the be all end all for me. I think I feel so much more proud of him - in the dugout - on the bench getting his teammate riled up for the inning.

We have been trying to instill the feeling of leadership, sportsmanship, and love of the game in him rather than just being that kid who can go out and knock one over the fence (although - let's be honest, I am sure it feels pretty awesome. I think he is starting to get it. What it means to be a positive force on the bench. Bring your teammates up - not down. Jonathan is just starting to get into baseball - all the other baseball moms call him smiley. Jon doesn't care if he gets a hit, doesn't care if he crosses home plate - for him it is the little things. Getting his bat on the ball - no matter that it went foul and counts as a strike. When he makes contact, the smile on his face truly brings tears to my eyes.

I have only missed like one or two games in my kids baseball careers. I am the scorekeeper for both teams and I wouldn't change anything about it. I love it! I love it! I love it!

Do you remember the first time your child looked at you with pure joy and pride in their eyes? I do and I get choked up when I think about it. For Cody - he was about 3 1/2 and we were at the mall. They had one of those indoor playgrounds. His baby brother was about a month old and we had gone to grandma and grandpa's for a little break. Grandpa and I were at the mall watching Cody play on the giant pieces of fruit! The huge slice of watermelon was the one piece that Cody couldn't get up. He struggled and struggled and kept falling off. He never gave up! Finally after about 3o minutes of trying he finally pulled his chubby little legs up and stood on top of that watermelon - like he had just climed Mt. Everest. He looked at me with that look - and said "I did it Momma, I did it!"

For Jon - it was during his first flag football season. Jon is more about "fellowship" that being that star athlete. Coach found a good spot for him - he played center. He could be part of the action - but didn't need to be so intense. Well, toward the end of the season he was on defense and ran down the ball holder and finally got a hold of the flag. I will never, never forget the light shining from my son's face. It was like the heavens opened and God sent a sunbeam to little Jon. I can tell you that I was not the only one in the stand with tears in their eyes. If you looked up joy and pride in the dictionary - his face was there beaming. As he ran by he asked - "did you see me mom?"

Glitter in the air

2010-04-23T12:12:00.003-04:00

I don't know about everyone else out there - but Pink's new song "Glitter in the Air" really gets to me. I heard it two or three times before I found out it was her. "Have you ever held your breath and asked yourself, will it ever get better than tonight?" She is usually know as such a rocker chick. Glad to know she isn't afraid to show her soft vulnerable side as well. I think I will sign off and go listen to the song again!

My very First Slipcover!

2010-04-20T14:56:00.005-04:00

I have seen so many others out there in blog land making the cutest slip covers. I finally just decided to give it a go. I am a crafty person, I like to sew, I can make a slip cover, right???

I purchased some muslin from Joann Fabrics for $2.99 a yard (?) with a 40% off coupon - so the fabric was way cheap! I didn't follow a pattern, I just started cutting pieces of muslin and pinning it all together backwards. It took awhile but turned my boring, formerly green (now spraypainted black) ladderback chair into a real charmer~

I really didn't want the chair to get lonely, stuck in the corner by itself - so I whipped up this pillow to sit on top. I made the "roses" out of some ribbon - gathered along the bottom edge. It added just that something!

More Inspiration

2010-03-09T16:06:00.005-05:00

When I saw this picture - I knew I had to replicate in my house, somehow, some way! This is one crafty home decor enthusiast - Her blog - Imperfectly Beautiful has some great things. Here is my inspiration:
While I love the browns and blues - it doesn't really jive in my living room. So I looked around at stuff I had in various rooms and the basement and this is what I have come up with:

When I "finished" (are we ever really finished) I decided it needed a little something extra. I am having a love affair with all things French lately and wanted the look of french linens. Well, you can't just waltz into Joann fabrics and get some french linens - you know! I have looked a little online and the real deal is way out of my league. So, I decided that a little muslin, some tape and red paint will give me the effect I wanted for about $3! I am happy with it (for now!)

Ballard Designs Inspired

2010-03-09T15:49:00.006-05:00

I love Ballard Designs. I drool over the catalog when it comes in the mail. Just a special little gift from Mike the mailman. However, I don't know real people who can afford the stuff in there! Seriously - way too pricey. So, what's a girl to do? Improvise! I decided to give the jute covered bottles a go. I have seen others in the blogosphere do it, why can't I??

So, I started with an empty Bombay Gin bottle. Just happened to have a couple of them just laying around. Hmmm....I don't drink Gin! My hubby went to his 2nd home, The Home Depot Sunday morning and made the fatal mistake of asking me if I needed anything, like DUH! Just a little jute! Yes, I had to explain what jute was - he was like "Oh, you mean twine." Well sort of! He ended up coming home with sisal string - which I had to take back for JUTE - it was in the next bin over!!!

So, with a bottle of gin and a pack of jute - a glue gun and a free hour I got to getting and wrapped my bottle. I had a little piece of leftover blue satin ribbon from some other project and thought that the color worked nicely with the color of the bottle. The jewels hanging from the ribbon was actually a piece of an elastic bracelet that I picked up on clearance from Charming Charlies. There are 5 similar parts on my craft room floor waiting for me to do something with them! I really like how it turned out. I guess we need to have a couple more parties so I can get some more bombay gin bottles!!!

Thrift Store treasure

2010-03-09T15:39:00.007-05:00

Funky, huh? I saw it at the thrift store and just knew I had to have it. Nothing a little spray paint and fabric couldn't fix?? I was just in one of those moods...make something new out of something old. I have been hooked on watching American Pickers and it just makes you want to go junking. Here are a couple more "before shots."

I ended up paying $45 for the chair - way more than I wanted too - but I knew if I left the chair in the store, I would regret it later. The money goes to the hospice, so it is all for a good cause. Are you ready for the makeover??? Check out this beauty!

Like it? Now tell me, why do I only have boys in my house??

Valentine's Day calls for something a little special!

2010-02-13T15:05:00.006-05:00

How do you change a drab black purse into something totally fabulous (in my opinion at least!) Add a gorgeous flower!!! Here is the before of a purse in my closet:

It works - but gets a little boring, don't ya think?? Todd and I are going to a Valentine's Day dance - a first for us. We usually don't really celebrate, but what the heck, right? He was kind enough to take me to Talbot's today to look for a sweater to wear (he did wait outside in the truck - so I did have to hustle a little!) I found a cute red cardigan with rhinestone buttons and it was on sale! SCORE!!

So, I came home and started thinking about accessories - I love purses. No, seriously it is an addiction. I knew I had this cute little number in the "bin" but it just needed a little something. TADA:
I constructed this "flower" out of some red raw silk fabric I had laying around doing nothing! I hot glued a pin on the back and added it to the purse. I just love it!!! Here is a closer look at the flower. If you want to know how I made it, just let me know!

Ok! Enough posts for today! Happy Valentine's Day.

Denise

Ummm, what time did you say it was???

2010-02-13T15:01:00.003-05:00

It took awhile, but i realized I had no clock in my craft room - that can be a good and bad thing. Some days you can kinda forget that the kids like to eat meals - within a prescribed time frame!! I will be up there in my room, crafting away, oblivious to the sounds of starving children (yeah right) in the living room! So, to remedy the situation I made this clock. I started with a 10"x10" canvas frame (1/2 price at Joann's) I covered that with fabric (I think this particular piece came from Key West Fabrics) and then topped it all off with a clock kit (also from Joann's - used a coupon for that.) All told I probably spend about $10 to make this!

Denise

Sewing supplies organizer

2010-02-13T14:59:00.003-05:00

Always looking for your scissors? I made this with a variety of scraps I have laying around. Took all of 30 minutes to throw this together! I think the ruffle on the bottom pocket took the longest.

Denise

Have a ball!

2010-02-13T14:54:00.003-05:00

I know these glass balls are usually reserved for christmas crafts, but I was bored - stuck inside for the umpteenth day in a row and I decided to play around. I put about 20 drops of Green Galore re-inker from Stampin' up in the ball and swirled it all around. I then added some glittered acrylic paint and swirled that on top of the green color. Turned it upside down and let it dry. I used one of the Sharpie paint pens to paint my name and the polka dots.

Looks cute hanging in my craft room!

I have more posts for today - compilations of crafts during the snow days. Enjoy!

Denise

Another snow day?!?!?!?!?!

2010-02-05T16:17:00.007-05:00

OK, Seriously, I live in VIRGINIA! This is our 3rd major snow storm of the year - we are all going to be a little stir crazy when this weekend is over. The latest estimates put the snow at possible 36" before all is said and done. Really - 3 feet!! Ugh! On the bright side - i am getting some crafting done. In today's post, I think you will see a trend emerging...It is the "Help me, I need Spring" theme. While all the snow is falling and we can't get out to the craft stores, the grocery stores or anything else for that matter, take a gander at these projects and think about Spring - maybe even summer and enjoy a little picnic in the warm sunshine. Can't you feel it on your skin right now?

Project one was all about the invitation! You are cordially invited to a picnic with me! Let's imagine what we would have in the basket - fried chicken, some coleslaw, biscuits, brownies - some lemonade for the kiddos and perhaps some wine for us big kids. I can hear the kids running around playing a game of wiffle ball. Right?? The stamps, solid papers & buttons I used all came from Papertrey Ink (the ant was a random stamp I have in the collection...and the picnic plaid paper I got a Joanne Fabrics)

Here is a close up of the ants marching across the picnic cloth. I love the "Let's do lunch" bit! I couldn't just leave this as the only picnic related project...I am totally in love with the next one!

Remember the recycling of my kids jeans that I have been doing? Well, I had some random "legs" left and I was trying to figure out what to do with them - so I came up with the cutest little napkin rings!! I got the overall button parts at Joanne's along with some adorable cherry fabric and some large white ric-rac. The red and white checked ribbon is just a random ribbon from my rather extensive stash of ribbons. I just love the way these turned out, can you tell? I added a couple more shots so you can see the cherry fabric too.

Hopefully, I will get some more projects done before the storm is over! Until then,

Denise!

New room, new inspirations

2010-01-18T12:08:00.003-05:00

Now that I have my awesome new crafting space, I started to hit up on my new year's resolution - finish the multitude of craft projects I have had laying around for MONTHS!!

I looked at my facbric closet (oy!) and decided to start using some of it. I started with this cute fabric cube - it will hold some of the mountainous supply of fabrics that I own.

These purses I found 1/2 finished in a plastic bin the basement. Seriously only took me about 20 per purse to finish - why did I leave them just sitting there - for 3 years??? They turned out cute.

And finally, because I love me!! I dressed up this plain jane letter "D" with some of my ribbon stash.

Craft Room Makeover - the after pictures!

2010-01-18T10:52:00.007-05:00

Here, finally is the room!! I would still like to paint, I have a light yellow called Shortbread, picked out. Just dont' have the energy to paint yet.

When you walk in the door you are greeted by the Stampin Up Armoire. Can you believe I got this at a yard sale for $10?? I painted it inside and out and put new hardware on it. But what an amazing storage piece for such a low price tag.

I finally have the storage space for all of my Stampin up stamp sets. I can really see what I have and start putting them to use again. I am getting excited to start doing some crafting.

The bed is dressed with a pink and white striped comforter and has a green and white polka dot blanket and pillow. Just girly enough!!! The french memo boards are one of my projects - there are three more that are almost done leaning over by the door. Just need to find the best buttons to accent them!

I do have quite a stash of buttons - they are all from Papertrey Ink and I got the cute little spice jars from World Market. They are the perfect size to hold the bag of vintage buttons. The shelf holding the buttons came from my Mother -in-law. It was a plate shelf she had in the attic. I painted it up and backed it with the blue gingham fabric. I think it is such a cute background! The white storage unit came from Target and I put it together and backed some of the cubbies with pink paper with white polka dots. Love it!
I got this storage cabinet from Target too. The ribbon holder above came from Michaels and so did the tool organizer on the top. I use this cabinet for storage for my cricut and other handy tools! Like my binding machine. Soon, my Letterpress set will go here as well. I got one for Christmas - but it is backordered until the end of January...patience!!
This is my desk. I got the desk on clearance from a kids furniture store. I think I paid $25 for it! The board on the back I covered with ribbon and it dressed it up just enough.

This unit holds all of my clear stamps and other non SU stamps that needed a home. It is full - so I may need another one in the future - Did I mention that I am going to Michaels today???

Craft Room Makeover - the before pictures

2010-01-18T10:45:00.007-05:00

**WARNING** This post could scare you!!! These are the awful messy before pictures of my girl/craft room/mommy space.

Scared yet?? I didn't even get the full affect of how much stuff I really have. Oh, and yeah! I have a 60% off coupon for Michaels - and yes, I am going today!!

Sick day crafts

2010-01-12T15:20:00.009-05:00

I guess there is something to be said about being home with a sick kid, I got some crafting done! Cody is now old enough not to want to sit on my lap all day when he doesn't feel good. As a matter of fact, he just took over the recliner and watched t.v. all day - in between his naps, that is! Ok...on to the good stuff.

This was the first project of the day. I bought these frames at either Michaels or Joanne months ago. They came in a 4 pack and I think I maybe paid $4 for them. I dug into my massive button supply and just started gluing. I needed a perfect frame for the picture my 8year old drew for me. In the picture, he is wearing a shirt with an arrow pointing to me that says "I love her." I have a shirt with an arrow pointing to him saying "I love him." He also added a picture of Yogi Bear and Boo Boo bear. So cute!!

When I finished that, I was so proud of myself I decided to try something else...

Here are the "ingredients" I used a small jar from some Classico Pesto sauce and some scraps of fabric, foam and batting to get the project under way - oh, and of course the very important hot glue gun!!

I cut out some circles of foam and glued them to the lid of the jar. Next, I cut a circle of batting and started gluing the batting on top of the foam - pulling a little tightly to make it "pouf."

After that, I glued the circle of pink fabric to the batting, trimmed it all pretty and tied it up with some striped grosgrain ribbon. What do you think about my productive day???

Happy New Year!

2010-01-09T14:48:00.002-05:00

The holidays are over and it is time once again to start fresh! Will I be a better blogger? Will I post more than 5 times this year? That all remains to be seen.

Jon (my 8yr old) asked what my new years resolution is...I took some time and really thought about it and decided that it would be to finish some of the gazillion projects I found lying around in my craft stuff.

I have moved into a new crafting space and haven't even begun to make heads or tails out of all of my "Junk." Right now it is just a HUGE mess. I will post a little later the before / after shots of the new space. The before is really a little scary. Who knew I had that much stuff???

I have this picture posted...doesn't he make you happy?? He does me.

For a friend...

2009-07-14T12:03:00.008-04:00

It is always hard when your friends move away. When I was growing up, my dad was in the Navy and it was usually me who was moving. We lived in 7 different places before I was in 7th grade! I always had numerous pen pals and I guess that is where my fascination with stationary and cards began. Last month one of my best friends from college left the great state of Virginia for new opportunities in the also great state (not as great as Virginia, but who is??) of Ohio. I have made the card to send her along with a little box of goodies.

I also got lucky enough to have a business trip in Dayton, OH last week. Do you know how thrilled I was to learn that Dayton and Columbus are only and hour away?? Well, that sealed the travel deal for me and I pulled off the BIGGEST surprise by showing up on her doorstep. Her husband was in on the plan with me - but she had no idea. I loved it and got to spend almost 24 hours with them.

Here is the card I am sending:

I used a Stampin up! set (Branch Out) for the tree, bird & swing. The sentiment is from a Papertrey Ink's set (Boards & Beams).

I used SU! Read red, chocolate chip, black, and various shades of green for the colors. The button is also from Papertrey Ink's vintage

button collection.

My favorite part of the card is definitely the "rope" I used for the swing! I decided to try and use twine (also from Papertrey ink!) and using an embroidery needle was able to sew the twine on to look like rope! I really do like the way it turned out. What do you think?

Recycling at its craftiest!

2009-06-08T18:43:00.005-04:00

I have to say, most crafters out there are natural recyclers! We save everything, always with the notion that one day I know I am going to use that again. Well, I also have 2 sons and boy do they grow out of clothes SO FAST. Everytime I am bagging things up to send out to Goodwill, I think - gosh this is nice stuff, how can I use this??

I finally found another way to recycle old jeans. I posted pictures of the jeans purse I made awhile back - here now is the Ohh la la Denim French Memo Board

SO, do you have any creative ideas on how to recycle your kids old clothes into beautiful craft projects??

Latest Creation

2009-02-07T10:53:00.005-05:00

Months have gone by and I haven't posted any of the stuff I have been doing. This is the latest. Jon has finally grown out of his size 5's (yes, he is almost 8). So, instead of sending them off to good will, I cut them up and made purses out of them! This is the first one I have completed. When I showed Todd, he said that it is probably the best thing I have made. Here are a couple more shots...

What do you think? Cute, huh? Well the kids are fighting and the dog needs to pee - I better head out!

2009-02-04T19:30:00.003-05:00

February has gotten me into the total organization mood - all those great mags that come out in January must have done it!

I have to take pictures of my new crafting space. It is almost where I want it to be. Just a couple more cabinets and I am good! Both the boys rooms have been re-organized and really look great. I am starting to get the home office together and I will post photos of everything once I am done.

I recently uploaded several old pictures to my facebook page - here is a really great one -

this is me and my big brother - circa 1970??

Anwyay, I will be better about posting. More to come soon.

New Year - time to try new things

2009-01-04T17:40:00.003-05:00

OK - it has only been what, 7 months since I have posted...I am going to try and be better about that. We will see. I have many new things I am going to be using/trying this year -

I got a Cricut for Christmas. I hope to make some fun new projects with that.
I got a mini stepper for Christmas. Let's hope I can make my muffin top dissapear.

So far this break (yeah I took 2 weeks off of work!!!) I made curtains for the den, a cute little purse (pictures to come) from my 7yr old's old jeans, and I addressed birthday cards for everyone all the way through May!

Has anyone else out there tried Tastebook.com? I am going to be trying to create my own cookbook from all the recipe cards and written pieces of paper rolling around in my cabinet. It's pretty easy and I hope the results are as cool as they look.

Lisa Banner

2008-07-18T15:25:00.003-04:00

Ok, can you tell that I am a little bored! Of course I have SOOOOO much I should/could be doing - but hey, this is OJT, right? My friend Lisa owns a cute little boutique in Lynchburg, Virginia and just to play around I made this for her.

Watermark for photos

2008-07-18T08:37:00.003-04:00

This is my first attempt at creating a watermark to put on my photos/cards before loading them to my blog. Simple, clean look. Photoshop takes a long time to figure out, but I am getting there! I am going to try this for some other things as well. Who knows!

Vacation 2008

2008-07-16T12:55:00.010-04:00

This picture says it all! Head for the Ocean. Jonathan spelled it out in the sand and that is where you could find us for the whole week we were in Myrtle Beach. Once again, we had the best weather possible - it was in the 80s and sunny all week. No rain, no extreme heat, just absolutely beautiful.

The boys were trying to "capture" teeny tiny sand crabs here. They weren't fast enough - the crabs were very happy about that. They did get a little mad, however, and one of their bigger, stronger brothers paid Jonathan back with a nice bite on the bottom of his foot. He hightailed it out of the water pretty quickly!

Surfer Boy Jonathan. He didn't do as well on the waves this year as last - but he still had fun trying.

Cody, taking a break after several hours on the beach and in the pool. He much prefers the pool - but really he would take either!

Jonathan will do just about anything for a laugh!

Hey - I was on vacation with my family - this picture proves it. This is the only picture of me though.

We really had a great time and I look forward to going back again. Maybe next year we will be able to take Zeb! That would be a treat. Rotten dog!

Halloween Card

2008-07-16T12:46:00.004-04:00

Wow, I am way ahead of the game for Halloween, if only in the card making realm of things. I love the idea of halloween and I buy tons of crap for halloween, but I never seem to get it out and decorate. What's up with that??? I have no idea what the kids will want to be for halloween this year. The "Deadskins" football players have been DONE! It was easy though and didn't really cost me anything. We have the jerseys all I needed was a little makeup and some colored hair spray!

They totally cracked me up - some of our neighbors wanted to withhold the candy though, not a slight on the precious Redskins! Funny thing is - Jonathan LOVES the redskins.

For the card -
Paper: (SU!) Black, Pumpkin Pie
Stamps (PTI) Birds of a Feather
Other: (SU!) Ribbon; (Making Memories) Chipboard Buttons "Halloween"

Boys have birthdays too!

2008-07-16T12:36:00.005-04:00

You would never know that boys have birthdays in my world - it seems like all the cards I make are so girly! Whoda thunk that I have 2 boys - and NO girls. I have several boy birthdays coming up soon - like Cody who will be 11 this year! I don't think this card is too juvenile yet, almost, but not yet. We already gave him his birthday present - a new bat. They are sooo expensive. I had no idea! Anyway, he spent what seemed like hours picking out his new bat and his is as happy as a pig in you know what. The poor neighbors have been hearing him on the hit-a-way since he brought it home.
This isn't him with his new bat - but I thought I would add a shot of him at the All-Star tournament. He was literally inches away from a home run! He was so excited and almost forgot to run. Fortunately his feet kicked it in gear and he made it to second. Cody, dear heart, is not the speediest kid on the field...but we love him anyway! The next game he played the other team intentionally walked him. He was totally pissed, but we tried to explain that it was a compliment! The other team's coach came up and told him so after the game was over (we won!!)

Back to the card - heres the recipe:
Paper- (Cosmo Cricket Cogsmo) Cogs, Mr. Roboto, Bandwidth. The background paper was just something I found in my stash that matched the blue perfectly
Stamps - (SU!) So many scallops
Ink - (Brilliance) Graphite Black
Other - SU! Scallop Punch

How Patriotic

2008-07-16T12:27:00.003-04:00

I know this card is a wee bit late for 4th of July - but hey, I wasn't home! (To be honest, I didn't make the card until after the 4th but so what, right?) We spent the day of the 4th at our friend's parents house down in Calabash. The sad thing is - we never see these friends and they live 20 minutes away. We had to drive 7 hours to spend time together! That is just plain ol' silliness. Anyway, we had a wonderful cookout with LOTS of great food and there were 8 kids running around so all in all we had a fun time. We heading back to Myrtle in time to catch the fireworks on the beach and let me tell you, if you have never spent the 4th of July in Myrtle Beach there is nothing quite like it. I swear, every direction you turned your head there were amazing fireworks going off. The best part was, we just had to walk across the street and plop our behinds on the sand! No traffic, no parking!

Recipe for this card:
Paper: (SU!) Brilliant Blue, Very Vanilla
Ink: (SU!) Brilliant Blue, Real Red, (Brilliance) Graphite Black, (Ranger) Distress Ink Walnut Stain
Ribbon: SU!
Stamps: (My Sentiments Exactly) Pledge; (Inkadinkado) Burst
Others: (SU!) Dimensionals

Weathered Birthday Card

2008-07-16T12:21:00.002-04:00

This paper screamed at me when I saw it at our LSS - which by the way is going out of business. How sad for our town! I know so many people who shop there regularly. Now all we have is Michaels and AC Moore - and let's face it, their paper selection is rather stinky!

Recipe for this card -
Paper - (SU!) Black and Very Vanilla ; (Making Memories) 5th Avenue - double sided
Stamps - (SU!) Weathered ; (Anna Griffin) Sentiment
Ribbon - SU!
Decorative Brad - Anna Griffin "Hannah Collection"

New Blog Banner 2

2008-07-15T15:08:00.003-04:00

Well, this is my 2nd attempt at a blog banner. I finally got a version (an old version) of photoshop loaded on my computer and I have been having fun doodling around. The frog is from on old children's book - I found the book on the guttenburg press site - it is from the 1800's but I can't remember the specifics. Bad Librarian, Bad Librarian.

I have some new cards to post - but I am trying to take make my pictures look better. Not quite there yet! This is the original illustration...

Yee Haw I am back in the saddle!

2008-07-15T13:35:00.002-04:00

I don't know when or how - but my computer is no longer blocking blogger! Maybe I can start posting again. I need to get some vacation photos up and posted. We had such a great time at the beach - and low and behold we didn't have to visit the emergency room once. I think that is a record for our family. To be fair, it was close! I actually had a palm frond (you know the sharp pointy kind) go directly into my ear canal while we were playing miniature golf. I thought I was going to cry right there it hurt so bad. But, I sucked it up and I don't think it actually punctured my ear drum - but I have tried to keep water out - just in case!

The boys had fun and I actually got a little bit of a tan - so all in all successful! We ended up leaving a day early though. Todd missed his dog SO bad. Hearing the he bit Melanie and she had to get stitches didn't help any. That visit from animal control was brutal! Fortunately everyone has recovered and Melanie still loves Zeb. Rotten Dog!

I have been decorating the powder room in the house - so I will post pics of that as well. I wanted the room to be a soft robin's egg blue and I was going to do trendy chocolate brown accents - but, it didn't work out so well. The paint color ended up being purple! So, I have had to go in a whole new direction. Once I get the shelves and artwork up I will take some photos! I also bought fabric for making curtains for the dining room. Busy, busy, busy! Too bad I have this day job that takes up all of my time!

Mojo Monday Week 41 Challenge

2008-06-11T14:28:00.003-04:00

This card was created for my friend Sherry, who just had her 2nd baby girl!

Paper - SU! Vanilla and Close to Cocoa.

I have no idea where I got the pink paper - just in my stash! The patterned paper is by K&Co. "Hopscotch Girl Ballet Toss."

Stamps - SU! Soft and Sweet (retired, I believe)

Embellishments - pink brads with crystal stickles and American Crafts Ribbon.

Sketch to Try

2008-06-11T14:20:00.002-04:00

This is my very first sketch "challenge." It really was fun - especially since I had a need for a graduation card!

Paper -: SU! Black, Whisper white and a silver metallic that I got from Michael's

Patterned Paper - Stemma "After Graduation"

Stamps - I got the graduate stamp from the dollar bin at A.C. Moore and the corner stamp is from the Verve Visual Filigree Fantasy

The ribbon is an AC Moore ribbon.

I made this card for my graduate - Cody - he graduated from the 5th grade today. Boy was I a proud Momma! I thought I would showcase him here in all his cheesiness!!! Happy graduation baby boy.

Summertime color challenge - a wee bit late

2008-06-02T19:58:00.003-04:00

Here is my interpretation of the Verve Visual "Summertime and the living is easy" color challenge. Entries were supposed to be posted by the 31st of May. Oops, I didn't quite make it.

I have never entered any challenge before and I was SO nervous about posting my work. But I really liked how my card turned out, so I thought - what the heck. I will link to the contest anyway.

Here are the deets:

Stamps (from A.C. Moore - Inkadinkadoo)

Paper - SU! Pumpkin Pie, Whisper White & Certainly Celery

Ink for Cones - pumpkin pie

Ink for ice cream and words - regal rose, so saffron, certainly celery, & Bashful blue (I didn't own any sky blue, so I guess I didn't follow all the rules!)

Extras - stickles for the sprinkles, big brads by Queen & Co., and sweet petite ribbon from AC Moore.

Next time I will do my best to get my post in on time!

Strawberry fascination!

2008-05-28T20:22:00.003-04:00

I don't exactly know what is going on with me lately - but I have become obsessed with strawberries - not the actual food item, mind you - I am not the biggest fan of eating them - but I am obsessed with strawberry images.

I saw this paper at Joann's craft store and bought just about all the pages they had - in addition to two different fabrics with strawberries (don't know what I will do with those yet!)

I am really please with how this card turned out - I used SU Real Red paper and ink and Old Olive paper. The strawberry image is from Papertrey ink and I topped it all off with some red gingham ribbon. Yum!

Card for Katie

2008-05-28T20:14:00.003-04:00

Katie and Adam are heading out to Salt Lake City, UT in just a couple of weeks as well as Adam prepares to attend law school. I am just glad I still have Katie's sister Melanie staying at work with me to keep me sane! I can't believe so many of my favorite gals from work are leaving at the same time. Friday is going to be one VERY hard day. Make sure the waterproof mascara is on! I totally love the way this card turned out and it reminds me of a Tiffany box...at least that was what I was going for!

The sentiment is from Verve Visual's new release as is the filagree design. I started playing around with the desing and finally came up with this one and I am really please with it. The bee stamp is just a random stamp I got from Michaels in the clearance bin - I think it is Tin Can Stamps (?) The blue paper and ribbon are from Papertrey ink and the white and black paper are from SU! I also had to adhere a little bit of sparkle to the card to continue with the whole Tiffany theme.

I hope Katie likes it and knows it goes with her wishing her the best of luck on a great new chapter in her life! I will most definitely be following her and her family's antics on her blog!

Card for Tara

2008-05-28T20:11:00.003-04:00

Tara will be heading to beautiful Charleston, SC in just a few short days to start a new job with the Citadel! She loves the beach and is so excited to be living SO close. I hear she can even see the water from her new condo. I am too jealous. Lunch won't be the same without her either!!
I used a couple different shell papers and a SU stamp set as well as the same Verve Visual sentiment "The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams" --Eleanor Roosevelt. So fitting!

Card for Erin

2008-05-28T20:06:00.004-04:00

I created this card for my friend and fellow librarian, Erin as she heads off to her new job as a reference librarian in the Executive Office of the President's Library! I just knew the "bookabella" stamp set would be perfect! The inside of the card has a great sentiment from the new Verve Visual set. Erin will be missed - but I had to create two other cards as well! 3 of my great "lunch bunch" set are all setting out for new jobs/destinations!

Backyard baseball and cookout with Grandpa

2008-05-28T20:02:00.005-04:00

Cody, Jonathan and Wyatt had a great game of wiffle ball going - eating smores with Grandpa was pretty cool too!

Jon and the "caterpitters"

2008-05-28T19:59:00.002-04:00

Jonathan is in love with 'caterpitters' he named this one C3PO!

Gift Card holder for Garrett's B-day

2008-04-01T19:12:00.005-04:00

This is the gift card holder that I made for Garrett's 5th birthday. I used the Snappy Birthday set from Stampin Up. I got the idea from the Pine is here blog. So cute and super easy to make. It made the gift card not so totally boring! 5 year olds aren't usually all that excited about gift cards - that is why the bag is filled with a gazillion bubbles!!!

Even More Teacher's Gifts - Nugget Tins

2008-04-01T19:05:00.004-04:00

This is another great thank you gift for a teacher. The tin contains 12 pieces of Hershey's chocolate nuggets. The colored paper is from SU!

More Teacher's Gifts - Thank you berry much!

2008-04-01T18:59:00.006-04:00

This is a "mini" paint can decorated as a thank you to that special teacher in your child's life. I put the tape dispenser in the picture to give you an idea of how big the paint can is. It is filled with new "sweet" mint life savers.

I used the SU! tag punches to create the thank you card and the stamp set is from Paper Trey Ink.

Our Furry Friend

2008-04-01T18:57:00.003-04:00

Isn't he cute! Especially when he is outside - not chewing my favorite pair of shoes or eating one of my magazines!!!

Easter Egg Hunt Pictures

2008-03-25T10:30:00.005-04:00

Jonathan was thrilled to search for more Candy - boy the dentist is going to love us today!!!

Cody was trying to act like he wasn't having as much fun as everyone else!

Samantha, Natalie, Eric, Kellie & Wyatt also found lots of goodies in the eggs.

Easter Treats

2008-03-25T10:27:00.004-04:00

These are the treat bags I made for all the kids! They were filled with candy, erasers and a couple of other special things. Pink for the girls blue for the boys. All supplies/stamps came from Papertrey Ink.

Sweetie's Birthday Treats

2008-03-25T10:21:00.002-04:00

Ok, I know, crafts for a dog's birthday party??? Everyone deserves something cute on their special day! I made this bag for Sweetie on her 1st birthday. Just bringing a box of Milk bones just seemed too...ordinary. Jazz it up!

Happy Birthday to me!

2008-03-24T15:11:00.003-04:00

39 and holding...how long will that be my motto? Who knows - but it certainly is for today - the day after. I am writing this to send a big thank you out to all of my girls for taking the time out of their busy lives to call or celebrate with me!

Danielle - thanks for including me in the big dog birthday party! LOL the pups had fun, but so did we. I am going to be better about "accessorizing." I promise! Now that you gave me all the cute jewels, how could I not. 21 years together now! Wow that is unbelievable.

Missy - Thanks for coming and sharing with the dog party. I hope Roxie had as much fun as Zeb and Sweetie did. Poor Zeb could barely lift his head up on Sunday he was so beat! I am going to miss you when you head South - but just another reason for a road trip, right?

Miss Anne - you are a lifesaver! Thanks for feeding me, listening to me whine and offering a shoulder to b*tch upon! I know you are family and you now HAVE to put up with me, but I truly appreciate it, especially yesterday : )

Jenn - You called at just the right time! There is always so much chaos in our lives, but we somehow still manage to hold a 27 year old friendship together!!! Thanks for remembering.

Lisa - Gosh, I wish we could spend more time together! I am so glad you called when you did. Really the insanity that was my house yesterday almost pushed me over the edge. I am looking forward to my birthday surprise that should be arriving any day now! You always know just what I need.

A big fat thank you goes out to all of you! Because of all of you, I managed to make it through a pretty crappy birthday "celebration" without having to fix my mascara. I love you all SO much and with the big 4-0 coming next year I am going to have to take matters into my own hands! Men are men and they just can't help themselves, thank god for girlfriends.

Anyone who posts a comment on the blog will get a special treat from me...

New Blog Banner

2008-03-11T09:50:00.001-04:00

This is my first real attempt at creating a blog banner. I like how it turned out. I took the photo of our blooming Japanese Maple - I flipped the photo to fit in the banner! The flowers were not as clear as I hoped they would be - but I was the genius who tried to take a picture with gale force winds blowing around me.

Teacher's Gifts!!

2008-03-03T14:29:00.000-05:00

Ok - it's the end of the school year and you are desperately trying to figure out something unique to give your child's teacher - well I have the perfect gift idea!! Each set comes with a Pen/pencil holder covered in "school" related paper, 4 pencil "flowers," a post-it note pad and a card - that looks like a mini chalkboard - the message reads "A hundred years from now...it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove, but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child." If you would like to order one of these for the end of the year - contact me for details at plpurses@yahoo.com .

Open House Success

2008-02-25T09:39:00.000-05:00

Well, Missy's "Vend-O-rama" was a pretty good success. I had several ooher's and aaher's over my stuff - and even had some pretty respectable sales. It got my enthusiasm up and I am ready to make some more things and try for a real craft fair! I will be posting more pictures of things that I have made and hope to get some orders for some custom creations!

New Pictures of Zeb - 5 months old 55 pounds

2008-02-18T10:11:00.001-05:00

Martini Card

2008-02-10T21:04:00.001-05:00

Don't ya just love this card? For the image, I used "Cosmobella." I colored her with prismacolor pencils. The ribbon I got from the discount bin at Michaels. It is Martha Stewart grosgrain ribbon. The paper is also from Michael's.

Wellies Card - So Preppy!

2008-02-10T21:03:00.001-05:00

This card just speaks to me! I LOVE the polka dots and the preppy striped paper. I used the stamp set Green Thumb for this card and after I stamped it I covered the image with Stampin' Up's crystal effects. It really looks like a rubber boot. Fun!

Maculine Birthday Card

2008-02-10T21:02:00.001-05:00

Hello Friend Card

2008-02-10T21:01:00.000-05:00

Ginger Rodgers Card

2008-02-10T21:00:00.002-05:00

Dare to be Fabulous Card

2008-02-10T21:00:00.001-05:00

Classy & Fabulous Card

2008-02-10T20:59:00.000-05:00

Birdcage Card

2008-02-10T20:58:00.000-05:00

Desk Set - Teal and Brown

2008-02-10T20:56:00.002-05:00

Desk Set - Pink

2008-02-10T20:56:00.001-05:00

Desk Sets - Martini

2008-02-10T20:53:00.001-05:00