Random Creativity

A Valentine's Gift For You!

2012-02-12T19:41:00.002-05:00

From me to you.

The little heart stitching angel (from Google free clip-art images) was combined with four images from Dezinaworld (the background, the upper left corner lace design, the button, and the spool of thread under the chair) and I added one other graphic (the chair) from the Graphics Fairy. With the assistance of my Photoshop Elements software I merged and blended them together and added a text message to create an image for my ATC Valentine. I reduced the image to 2 1/2" by 3 1/2", printed it out and glued it to a decorative piece of card stock of the same size. I added two real buttons trimmed in ribbon and lace next to the button image. I outlined the edge of the heart in red glitter and finished it with a gold glitter frame. You may print out my ATC image and decorate it as you wish for you own ATC to keep or give. To do that just right click on the image and save it to your computer.

I would love to trade my ATC with one of you for one of your ATC creations. It doesn't have to be from my image or even a Valentine design. I will trade with the first person to e-mail me telling me you want to exchange ATC's.

My next gift came from post comments and email requests asking, "How did you make that"? A few people noticed my lace envelope in a previous post. I made the envelope for a Valentine that I sent to a special friend. I won't be able to make all of you an envelope but I can show and tell how I did it. My second gift is an easy tutorial on how to make a paper doily envelope.

Paper Doily Envelope Tutorial

Supplies:

10" by 10" paper doilies (a standard 4 1/4" by 5 1/2 " card fits inside nicely)

Scissors

Bone Folder (optional)

Glue

Position the doily in a diamond with the wrong side facing you.

The center of the doily will become the front of your envelope. Fold the left and right side triangle sections towards the center. Gently crease the edges with a bone folder or your finger tip. Take care not to tear the doily.

Fold the top and bottom triangles toward the center.

Unfold the flaps and trim the corners where the triangles overlap.

Apply glue to a few areas in the right triangle. Place a small sheet of wax paper inside the flaps to keep the glue from sealing the envelope closed.

Fold the right and left sides together.

Apply glue to the bottom flap, fold up, allow to dry. Check inside to make sure glue isn't sticking to the opposite side.

Insert your card and use a pretty sticker to seal.

This doily envelope is very delicate and should be hand delivered or sent in an sturdy mailing envelope. There is a technique using freezer paper to make the doily sturdier for regular mail delivery.

Paper Doily Envelope With Freezer Wrap Tutorial.

Supplies:

10" by 10" paper doilies (a standard 4 1/4" by 5 1/2 " card fits inside nicely)

Scissors

Bone Folder (optional)

Glue

Cut a 9 1/4" by 9 1/4 " sheet of freezer paper. Place the shiny plastic coated side of the freezer paper to the wrong side of the doily.

Use a hot dry iron setting to melt the freezer paper (plastic coated sided down) to the doily. To protect your iron you may want to use another sheet of plain paper or fabric between the iron and the freezer paper.

The photo above shows the doilies with and without freezer paper.

Fold, trim, and glue the triangles as suggested in the tutorial without the freezer paper.

As you can see the freezer paper isn't as delicate looking but it is more durable.

If you plan to send it you may want to tack down all the scalloped edges to prevent it being torn in the postal machines.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I'm linking to:

Woman's Thing

Tuit Tuesday

Knick Of Time

White Wednesday
Made U Look

It's Better To Give...And So Much Fun To Receive~Valentines

2012-02-09T21:45:00.001-05:00

Gifts~received…

I received a package the other day from my 6-year-old granddaughter, Mary Jane. She and her mother (my oldest daughter) were treasure picking through a jar of vintage buttons that a relocating neighbor gifted my daughter. They knew I would love to have some of the buttons and they had also found an old, bent, rusty key and saved it for me. I just love these kids.

My little granddaughter is a budding artist and an excellent colorist. IS that a word? She loves to color. She wrote this sweet letter decorated with colorful stencils. Please note her free-hand drawing of a button and a key. She knows all about my Pink Saturday posting so she made sure to put several pink buttons in the bag. Her letter is the best gift and touches my soul.

It’s awesome to receive!

I also received a card from my friend, Marcia at In Stillness and Simplicity. She sent me one of her beautiful lavender Valentine tags. You can see how lovely the tag looks but you can’t tell that the tag held a light scent of lavender fragrance and best of all Marcia included her special prayer wishes. Visit Marcia’s uplifting blog here.

It’s awesome to receive!

Gift~giving…

One of my Valentine gifts to my granddaughter is a heart decoration we will work on together. I used a tablet backing, a doily, and card stock to fashion a sturdy large heart shape. Then I glued the embroidery transfer pattern below in the center of the heart for her to color. I included a pink bow for her to glue at the top after she is finished adding her touches. Voila! A Valentine decoration we created together. I’m hoping for a photo from her of our finished art project to post. Kids love to get mail. I’m thinking there will be smiles from my granddaughter and my grandsons when the mail person delivers the Valentine cards and the package.

It’s awesome to give!

While I was writing this post my daughter called to say the Valentine's and my package had arrived. Mary Jane was so happy she immediately colored our project. She exercised her artistic judgement and decided not to glue on the bow I had sent along. Here are some photos she emailed with our completed project. Isn't it beautiful?

It's awesome to receive...

Gift~giving...
Here are a few more photos of gifts and Valentines I have made to give to some friends and family members. The pleasure I receive in creating things and the joy I receive in giving things lifts my spirit.

It’s better to give…and it’s so much fun to receive…

Thank you to Beverly, Honey, Kim, Liz, and Cindy for hosting these fun parties.

I’m linking to:

Pink Saturday

Potpourri Friday

Made U Look

Time Travel Thursday

Woman’s Thing

At-tea-tude~Tea Cup Tuesday...

2012-02-07T11:14:00.000-05:00

When I retired in December 2010 I received this cute Red Hat Lady figurine from a friend. The lady sitting in the cup has a unique style of creative fashion. Her attire along with her pose certainly express a relaxed, carefree, fun attitude. I think she is a perfect example of the women in the video Terri shared this week at Artful Affirmations. Click here to see the post called "What's So Special About Getting Old."

Last week my daughter emailed me some vintage images she had found online. I knew I had to share one special one with all the Tea Cup Tuesday fans. It is so cute. I printed out a few of the images in different sizes. I used smaller images to attach to tea bag envelopes for Valentine table favors and a larger one to make a Valentine card. I wanted to share the finished card on this post but I ran out of time. It needs a few more finishing touches before it's ready to send it to a special friend.

Go grab a cup of tea and have joyful day!

I'm linking to:
Tea Cup Tuesday
Knick Of Time Tuesday
A Woman Thing
White Wednesday

National Wear Red Day!

2012-02-03T08:40:00.001-05:00

"Go Red" on National Wear Red Day, Friday, February 3, 2012.

The American Heart Association launched this campaign a few years ago to educate women about the risk factors associated with heart Disease. Heart disease is still the No. 1 Killer of women. Click on this link www.heartinsight.com to read more.

I'll be wearing red today and here are a few ladies who are showing their
support by wearing red too.

The background, butterfly, woman and flower are images from Dezinaworld.

The image above is my Mother, June. She loved the color red. The background image and Steam punk flower are from Dezinaworld.

The image of the woman, music background and the roses are from Dezinaworld.

If you are visiting from How Sweet The Sound, it must be Pink Saturday. I hope you are in the pink and having a wonderful day!

Linking Parties:

Pink Saturday

Shades of The Season

What's It Wednesday

Time Travel Thursday

Potpourri Friday

Made U Look

It's A Woman Thing

Celebration of Hope Give Away WINNER!

2012-02-01T10:11:00.000-05:00

The prize is this $10.00 gift certificate below from Shabby Cottage Studio. I counted the entries in my celebration post and those in Gail's special post on her blog. I used the random generator thingy to pick a number. Number 11 was selected. Congratulations Diane at 1 Card Creator! This morning I had received an email from Holly at 2911 Jeremiah Avenue. I subscribe to Holly's daily Calendar of Hope. I enjoy reading her messages. Her special word for today is "Hope". I don't know if you will agree but I think it's serendipitous Holly's message for today is about hope. She shared this scripture passage. "For I know the plans I have for you says, the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you Hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11It is a beautiful verse and very fitting for my celebration. I love the very last sentence. "...Plans to give you HOPE and a FUTURE."I want to thank everyone who left a comment to helped me to celebrate another year of being cancer free. I want to thank Gail for her help with my celebration.

Be Mine ~

2012-01-27T18:00:00.125-05:00

Elizabeth Johnson @ Wind and Honey Creations inspired me to make a Valentine Squirrel.

If you click here you will be taken to Elizabeth's blog and her Valentine drawing demonstration. She invites you to watch her video demonstration and then try your hand at drawing the cute squirrel and then make a valentine.

I made a Valentine Tag with my squirrel and with his bright pink heart I knew I would have to save him to share on Pink Saturday.

I scanned my original drawing, then reduced the size. I printed a copy and cut out the squirrel. I used StazOn around the edges and a white Gelly Roll pen to write the heart message.

I have much to learn and need to practice drawing more but it was fun and he is a chubby sweetheart of a squirrel. I took an Enchanted Bird drawing class with Elizabeth last summer during the Artful Gathering Event 2011. You may remember my chubby blue bird drawing. Click here if you would like to see my post about drawing the enchanted chubby blue bird.

Hummm...

I'm beginning to see a trend here with my chubby critter illustrations. You know, I just had an idea, I'll be right back.

While writing this and talking about my enchanted bird, I got the idea to make an Enchanted Bird Valentine. Thanks, Elizabeth!

An Enchanted Bird Valentine

Elizabeth teaches classes on her site and at the Artful Gathering Event. If you would like to know more about the event click here to visit the 2012 Artful Gathering site.
Click here to visit Beverly, our P.S. hostess, at How Sweet The Sound

There is still time to enter my Celebration of Hope Give Away. A $10.00 gift certificate for the Shabby Cottage Studio. The give away ends January 31st. Click here to leave a comment on the give away post.
My daughter thinks my squirrel looks just like the ones that come to our patio bird feeder. Here is one of the visitors, it was a cloudy day.

- Angel Friends. - Hope Tags

2012-01-24T12:32:00.000-05:00

A some of you know I'm celebrating a special anniversary this month and as part of the celebration I created a digital collage. To make the collage I used an image and a background from Shabby Cottage Studio along with the beautiful quote "Hope" by Emily Dickinson. I then took my collage and reduced the size to make a set of nine art tags. Each tag is unique even though they all bare the image I created. At the top of the image is this text, - Angel Friends. - The variation of design on the tags are a reflection of how different each Angel Friend can be. A few of these tags are going to my Angel Friends, the remainder will be available in my Etsy store.
There is still time to enter my give away just click here to leave a comment on my give away post and be a follower. If you would like a second chance to win the gift certificate you can click here. It will take you to Shabby Cottage studio. Leave a comment on Gail's post about my give away.

The back of each tag is stamped with birds and butterflies.

I'm linking to:
Knick Of Time Tuesday
Tuit Tuesday
Shades of The Season
Bloggers Bodega
What's It Wednesday
Wow Us Wednesday
White Wednesday
Time Travel Thursday
Made U Look
Show and Tell Friday
Potpourri Friday

Pink Saturday Rescue and Revive…

2012-01-20T15:00:00.000-05:00

Last summer I found several items at a thrift store. Things I thought I would eventually up-cycle. I don’t always have an exact plan as to what I will do with an item at first. Often it takes months for me to decide what technique I’ll use. One item I found was a little stool. I sanded it a little and painted it white. Then it sat for months. Nothing would tickle my muse. I glanced at it one day and thought perhaps I could make it into a little tuffet. I considered painting it with pastel designs or making a little fabric cushion for the top. I could not decide and walked away from it again. Then one day I was browsing through the free images June at Dezinaworld has in her Olde Curiosity Shop. Oh my! There she was, the perfect little image for my tuffet. The perfect image for my “Little Miss Muffet Shabby-Chic Tuffet!” Thanks once again to June. Another one of her awesome vintage images provides the just right inspiration to spark my muse.

The nursery rhyme is; “Little Miss Muffet, she sat on a tuffet eating of curds and whey; There came a great spider who sat down beside her and frightened Miss Muffet away.”

I’m going to put this rescued and revived shabby-chic footstool in my Etsy shop. The stool is about 10 ¾ inches tall and 8 inches wide. It has the complete “Little Miss Muffet” nursery rhyme written around the edge of the seat. Below the verse is a layer of soft, pale pink, lace. Cotton Candy and Crystal Stickles glitter drips down the legs. Strands of pearls decorate the leg turnings. A sweet addition for a little girl’s bedroom or playroom; a perfect place to perch a stuffed toy, doll, or a stack of vintage nursery rhyme books.

Thank you Beverly for the fun party each week. Visit here at “How Sweet The Sound” to connect with more Pink Saturday participants.

* GIVE AWAY - Don’t forget about entering my Celebration of Hope give away. To find out more, scroll down to last Saturday’s post or click here. Good Luck!

I’m linking this to:

Pink Saturday

Blogger’s Bodega

Etsy Cottage Style

Black and Lime Unintentional Irony

2012-01-17T17:57:00.000-05:00

You must use the colors black and lime to make something for the “Spot Prize Challenge” this month at Dezinaworld. That is the only rule our hostess, June, set. You don’t even have to use any of her images to enter the challenge either but it would be nice if you did, how generous is that?

Inspiration for my door hanger came from two of my favorite ladies. June at Dezinaworld provided the FREE image and the color prompts of black and lime. Gail at Shabby Cottage Studio inspired the design layout of multi-layers, special edging, and embellishing techniques in her new FREE video tutorial, called, “Beloved”.

I find this piece amusing. It is a door hanger. June’s image background speaks of love. I layered the image over some additional text, lyrics, from a song “I hear you knocking but you can’t come in…” I then added a key (perhaps to the room) dangling on black lace to the top of the hanger. The pieces simply fell in place as I worked. I imagine it would make a cute door hanger statement on certain occasions.

If you do not know these two ladies I suggest you visit them. June has wonderful images in her store and she recently decided to stop selling her images and just give them away! Really, you need to visit Dezinaworld and see what she is giving away. Because she has a design team who creates wonderful examples of art with her images to share with us all she will except donations. Gail, at Shabby Cottage Studio also has a fantastic store of images, other supplies, and classes. She also has free tutorials. Her new video tutorial “Beloved” is an audio and visual delight with step-by-step instructions on how to make an exquisite art tag. It too is free. These are two ladies who are so very generous. Thank you!

A cloudy day made for poor photos and true sharp colors.

Don't forget I'm having a "Celebration of Hope" Give Away too. Scroll down to my last post of click here.

I’m linking this to:

“Spot Prize”

“Wow Us Wednesday”

”Time Travel Thursday”

“Potpourri Friday”

“Show and Tell Friday”

"Celebration Of Hope Give-Away!"

2012-01-13T15:27:00.000-05:00

“Celebration Of Hope Give-Away!”

What is HOPE?

Webster’s dictionary definition: A feeling that what is wanted will happen; desire accompanied by expectation.

Emily Dickinson’s definition: Hope is a thing with feathers that perches in the soul – and sings the tunes with out the words – and never stops at all.

January 16 th. marks an anniversary of Hope for me. 2012 is the sixth anniversary of when I had surgery to remove advanced stage uterine cancer from my body. The plan of attack was a complete hysterectomy followed weeks later with several rounds of chemotherapy and then radiation treatments. It took months for all the treatments to be completed but I have always felt that God guided my Oncology Surgeon’s hands and he removed all traces of the cancer during the surgery. The team of oncology specialists could not be sure the cancer was gone and highly recommend the additional treatments. I agreed to their treatment plans and we will never know for sure if they were needed. I know what I believe. I believe God, prayers, and the support of family and friends carried me through the battle.

For many people after being cancer free for five years they say you can call yourself a survivor. When I reached my five-year anniversary I thought I would be in the clear, however my oncology doctor told me that I am a survivor but perhaps after another five years have passed I may be in the clear. So every year in the spring I have an MRI or a CT-Scan. I cling to the HOPE that the cancer will not return. You may think why doesn’t she wait to celebrate until after the yearly test. Because I believe it was taken care of on January 16, 2006.

Let’s get on with the celebration! I’m giving away a $10.00 gift certificate, like the one pictured below, to “The Shabby Cottage Studio.” Many of you are familiar with Gail and the Shabby Cottage Studio. She has an awesome collection of images and mixed media supplies, and on-line classes to purchase. I would love a gift certificate from her store and I think you would too. To have a chance at winning this fantastic prize you must be one of my followers and leave a comment on this post. Sweet Gail is going to mention my give-away Monday on her blog and if you would like a second chance to win my gift visit her at Shabby Cottage Studio blog and leave a comment on her Monday post, click here. You have until January 31 to enter. I will collect the names from the Shabby Cottage Studio post and from my post to pick a Hopeful Winner. Good luck everyone!

I hope you win!

The digital collage at the top of the page is one I did about my cancer journey some time ago when Gail use to have the Mind Wide Open Challenges.

The collage at the bottom I created for this post. I used three images from Gail's shop. They are called; Orange Roughy Paper, Sheet Music, and Fairy World. I changed the color of the background sheet, Orange Roughy to a more pink hue, I added the music and the fairy image, and the quote from Dickinson, I adjusted filters in my Photoshop Elements 7 program to merge the different images and achieve the final effect. I learned how to do this by taking some of Gail's on-line digital classes. She is one of my angel friends who contributes to my art therapy without even knowing how much joy she brings.

I'm also linking this post to Beverly's Pink Saturday Party at "How Sweet The Sound" click here.

One more thing, Hope you all have a Happy Pink Saturday!

Tea Cup Tuesday ~

2012-01-10T11:06:00.000-05:00

It's a dreary day here and I'm not able to get enough good light for my photos. I'm not going to let that stop me from joining in the Tea Cup Tuesday blog party at Terri's Artful Affirmations. She has some ~~expensive~~ beautiful tea cups posted this week that look like fine art paintings. Click here to visit Terri and other tea cup fans.
My set of four tea cups were a gift from a friend long ago. I love the colors and the pattern, Blossom Time. I'm looking forward to the arrival of blossom time here but winter is only beginning for us. A hot cup of tea in one of these cups will transport me.

I Have a question for all my tea cup collector pals. Is there a way to repair what I think might be called checking on bone china? I have a tea pot that has tiny lines on the base. I'm not sure how it happened, I had the pot for years and then one day I noticed the lines. I'd like to restore the pot if possible.

Time For Changes...

2012-01-06T17:14:00.000-05:00

Here in Pennsylvania, January is usually a cold, harsh month. It is also a month with bitter memories for my siblings and myself. On January 7, 1964 our father passed away, then forty-five years later, on January 1, 2009, our mother passed away. That year I didn't wish anyone a Happy New Year.

However, January is a time for new beginnings, it is a time for change. Some people like to make resolutions in the new year, personally I'm not very good at sticking to them. I do make lists of things I'd like to accomplish each day or week or month. I thought a pretty journal would be a perfect place to write my notes and lists for this new year.

The clock and butterfly graphic are from Dezinaworld. The awesome vintage trumpeter lady is from Plush Possum Studio. The Susan B, Anthony stamp is from Wikipedia. The quotes are from Stamp in Up and Studio G clear stamps. I used several colors of Stickles glitter, a paper flower for her hair, a white feather for the fan, a butterfly and key charm, a silver brad in the clock and seam binding trim to decorate the plain spiral bound journal.

I'm linking this to Pink Saturday. Please say hello to our pink party hostess, Beverly, at How Sweet The Sound. Click here to visit her!

Wishing you all a Joyous and Happy New Year!

A Thoughtful Gift...

2011-12-28T12:38:00.002-05:00

My favorite Christmas story is "The Gift Of The Magi." I mentioned this last year in a blog post. It is a favorite story for my dear friend Cindy Adkins too. Several weeks ago I received a package from Cindy and written on the package were the instructions, "Open on December 25th." On Christmas morning I opened my package to find a truly thoughtful gift. I made a visit to Cindy's blog Whimsical Musings to find that Cindy had also posted a Christmas story about her gift to me. I love my journal and the thoughtfulness of the gift. Look at all the details Cindy used to tell the story. If you do not know the story here is a link to a U-Tube reading of the story that I thought was nicely done.

I'm linking this to:
Shades of The Season
Knick Of Time Tuesday
White Wednesday
Show andTell Friday
Pink Saturday

...A Midnight Clear...

2011-12-23T09:00:00.000-05:00

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the Angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men in whom His favor rests." Luke 2:13,14 (NIV)

"Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you; You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Luke 2:10, 11,12 (NIV)

Wishing you and yours Christmas blessings of
Peace, Love, Joy, and Hope.

Linking to:

Pink Saturday

" 'O Christmas Tree, 'O Christmas Tree...

2011-12-21T10:45:00.000-05:00

Linking this to:

Shades of the Season

White Wednesday

Some Of My New Favorite Things...

2011-12-18T16:09:00.000-05:00

Bottle brush trees and wreaths are for train yards. Well that is what I use to think when ever I would see them. Then I met Terri at Artful Affirmations. Terri does these wonderful FREE video tutorials on her blog. I watched the one she did for bleaching bottle brush trees and wreaths. I liked the idea so much I had to get some and try the technique. I bleached one tree and one wreath to a shade of light green and one of each to an off white color. I then dyed one set with food coloring to a shade of pink. I added glue and glitter. They remind me of gum drops and I love the way they look. For now they are just mixed in with other table decorations. Next year I'll use them to make some ornaments.

I'm linking this to:
Deck The Halls Sunday

Christmas Gifts Made With Love

2011-12-14T16:08:00.000-05:00

Blogland is my main resource for inspiration and ideas. Magazines are another. The December/January issue of Country Living magazine featured one gift project idea that I liked immediately. The project was created by contributing editor Cathe Holden. She had collected vintage images from our good friend Karen at The Graphic Fairy. Then Cathe assembled the graphics into 4 game boards. She then created PDF files to print out. She gives great directions to make this awesome game in the article.

Concentration, a memory game

Cathe's game pieces were displayed in an antique toy truck. I loved that idea but I couldn't find a proper toy. I did find a French cookie tin at a flee market that was the perfect size. I really like how it looks. I made a digital collage of sorts with the name of the game, credits, and a message to my gift recipient and added it to the inside lid. I hope she likes it.

I'm linking this to the following Blog Parties:
Shades of The Season
White Wednesday
Show and Tell Friday
Pink Saturday

Tea Cup Tuesday ~ My First Time

2011-12-13T14:16:00.000-05:00

I'm excited to be invited to the tea party. Below is my antique mall find. No saucer, hope you don't mind. I'm new to the party and new to collecting tea cups. I hope you'll let me know if I did well on my selection.

I thought it was a pretty cup and someday I might find a saucer.

The tea cup party is being held at Artful Affirmations. Hop over to say hello to our hostess Terri. Make yourself a cup of tea and visit some of the other participants. Click here.

Deck The Halls Sunday ~ "Goodwill" Ornaments and Gifts

2011-12-11T18:52:00.001-05:00

Here are some Christmas ornaments and gifts I've been working on.

The baby's 1st Christmas shoe ornaments are for the new members of our family. Scroll down to the post below this one to read more about this project and the inspiration for them..

The wall sconce below (purchased at a thrift shop) is one of my up-cycling projects, or as I like to call them, rescued and revived treasures. I wanted to try my hand at making something in the Primative Style. I hope they like it!

Linking this up to Terri's Artful Affirmations' blog party.

Hop over to visit Deck The Halls Sunday

I'm also linking this to Knick Of Time Tuesday click here to visit and see some fantastic vintage style pieces.

Inspire ~ Encourage ~ Stimulate ~ Excite

2011-12-07T17:48:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago my friend Cindy Adkins from Whimsical Musings showcased a vintage baby shoe she had transformed into an adorable work of art. She is selling the shoe in her Etsy shop. She made a suggestion in her post about how the shoe would make a wonderful gift for baby's 1st Christmas. I really loved the shoe and the idea and I had a good reason to make two. We had two births in our family this year. A new grandson was born in March and a great granddaughter was born in May.

I began the quest to find the shoes. Unfortunately I could not find vintage shoes. I did find a more modern pair of white baby shoes at the Goodwill and decided they would be a perfect weight for a tree ornament. While my shoes look nothing like Cindy's shoe, her shoe was the source of inspiration. Thank you Cindy.

I love the way they turned out. I hope the babies will enjoy hanging them on their Christmas trees for years to come.

If you could use more inspiration you might want to read Cindy's new book Mixed Media Art: Living Your Passion and I know you would enjoy taking her free seminar "Launch Your Creativity." To find out more click on the link above or click on the links on my sidebar.

I'm linking this to more inspirational sites:

White Wednesday

Show and Tell Friday

Pink Saturday

Deck The Halls ~ Pink Saturday December 3, 2011

2011-12-02T22:35:00.000-05:00

The tree is up and decorated with our favorite ornaments. Here are just a few, the glass ball above, is Baby's first Christmas from 1975. The wooden figures below, Popeye The Sailor Man and Little Red Riding Hood from long ago (they are from my DH's childhood). And my pink glass humming birds.

Wishing you a Happy Pink Saturday! I'm linking this to Pink Saturday with Beverly at How Sweet The Sound. Please stop by to visit her, click here.

Food, Favors and Decorations ~ Thanksgiving ~ Pink Saturday 11/26/11

2011-11-23T18:17:00.001-05:00

Thanksgiving Day!

Over the river and through the woods to my brother's house we go...

Our family traditionally has pot-luck style holiday celebrations. Everyone brings a dish. My brother and his wife hosted Thanksgiving dinner again this year for 12 family members. We took an apple pie, a pumpkin pie, potato filling, napkin rings, and cornucopia favors. Here are some photos of the pies, napkin rings and the cornucopias.

I used scrapbook designer papers to make the cornucopias. A few faux autumn leaves and a pheasant feather are hot glued to the top of each cone. I punched holes in the sides and added a jute cord hanger. They are filled with gold wrapped chocolates and pistachio nuts.

The napkin rings were made with craft paper. I inked the back of a real leaf and rubbed it onto the craft paper. I applied a coat of Mod Podge to the print. I cut out the shape, punched two holes in the center area of the leaf and added a ribbon to hold the napkin.

We spent the day feasting on delicious food, watching the parades on TV, having family fun, and thanking God for the abundance in our life.

I'm also tthankful for Beverly our Pink Saturday Hostess. Please click here to visit her and some other PS participants.

Now the preparations for Christmas begin!

Thankful For Friends continued... and Deck The Halls Sunday

2011-11-20T12:11:00.000-05:00

My Pink Saturday post was going to be much longer but due to either our poor internet connection or my old computer I wasn't able to complete the entire post. Hopefully I will not have any problems today. I'm going to link this new post up with Terri's "Deck The Halls Sunday" blog party at Artful Affirmations. Click here to visit Terri.

My PS post is about a dear friend who lives close by and how she helped us recently. I also wanted to share in that post why I am thankful for several sweet friends who live far away as well. I am thankful for the following ladies because they cheer me on and inspire me with their awesome creativity. Below is the result of their latest inspiration.

Cindy Adkins from Whimsical Musings, one very special dear friend, recently shared one of her tutorials (here) on how to make a Victorian Christmas ornament book. She used images for her book from one of June's collections at Dezinaworld for the pages. June is another one of those sweet far away friends. Visit June here.

I borrowed Cindy's idea for the book and then added my own idea of including pages of Christmas Carols. I used the collection set from Dezinaworld called "Christmas Joy" for the image pages. I created the carol pages using a sheet called "Musical 1" from Dezinaworld for the background of the song lyrics. I selected the carols based on what I felt the images were portraying.

I am also thankful for Terri from Art Affirmations. She is a sweet lady who shares so many wonderful video tutorials on projects and techniques. Click on the link at the top of this post to visit Terri.

Thankful For Friends Near And Afar ~ Pink Saturday November 19, 2011

2011-11-18T19:00:00.001-05:00

I'm very thankful for my good friend, Dolores, and her family. During our recent 5 day power outage (no elelctric or heat) they invited us to stay in their home. When Dolores invited us she also included an invitation to bring my love bird, Peaches. They already had a bird and 3 cats. Here are photos of River enjoying the company of Peaches. I think Peaches was so happy about being warm she didn't mind him nosing up to her cage at all.

Thank you Veterans ~ 11/11/11 and Happy Pink Saturday ~ 11/12/11

2011-11-11T21:30:00.000-05:00

Friday, November 11, 2011 is Veterans Day.

I want to thank all of the men and women who served in our armed forces I am truly grateful to you for my freedom. God bless you all.

For my recent birthday I requested a Lucky Treasure Bag from Dezinaworld. My lovely daughter granted my wish. It was so fun to open. All the little packages were wrapped in reusable papers and ribbons. Each one held treasures of lace, fabric scraps, buttons, beads, a lovely pink feather, a lavender sachet, ephemera and more. If you would like to know more about these lucky treasure bags click here to visit June at Dezinaworld.

If you haven't already please stop by How Sweet The Sound to say hello to Beverly our lovely Pink Saturday hostess

So Happy Autumn Is Back! ~ Pink Saturday November 5, 2011

2011-11-04T04:30:00.001-04:00

My Pink Saturday fun ended at 11:00 am last Saturday morning when Mother Nature decided to participate in Halloween. She gave us an October snowstorm, a definite trick and not at all a treat! The heavy wet snow brought down a lot of trees and electric lines. By Sunday afternoon we decided it was too cold and we wanted a warm cup of tea or hot chocolate and needed to leave. But before we could do that we had to shovel a pathway to the cars and remove the snow from the cars. Then we needed someone to cut up and move the trees that had fallen in our driveway and we needed someone to remove the snow as well. (We live on a wooded lot with a 100 ft. long stone/gravel driveway.) Luckily by the time our driveway was clear enough to get the car down the roads had been plowed and the tree debris was pushed to the sides of the roads. We stayed in a hotel for a few nights then we stayed with friends.

Wednesday afternoon the electric was restored to our home and we were so glad to come home. There is much to catch up on and there is a lot of cleaning up to do outside. I am so grateful we were safe and that the trees did not fall on our cars or our house. I am also so grateful and thankful for wonderful friends.

Thanks to all who visited me last week and left comments. I did try to get back to everyone but if I missed you please forgive me.

Stop by How Sweet The Sound to say hello to Beverly and visit some of the other P.S. participants.

One good thing about last weekend was this lovely birthday collage my friend Cindy made for me. Click here to visit Cindy at the Shabby Chic Gilrs Club. Thank you again sweet Cindy Lou!

Enjoy Autumn!

Happy Pink Halloween Saturday ~ October 29, 2011

2011-10-28T21:28:00.000-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday and Happy Halloween!

Hope you enjoy our haunted house display and two of our favorite little witches with cute pink cheeks.

For more Halloween and Pink Saturday treats please hop over to How Sweet The Sound to visit our hostess Beverly. Click here!

Pink Saturday Apron! ~ October 22, 2011

2011-10-21T15:14:00.000-04:00

I'm so excited I won one of Connie's aprons! Connie from Living Beautifully has been giving away aprons throughout the month of October and I am one of the lucky winners. Hop over to visit Connie's blog. She is still giving away her exquisitely sewn vintage aprons.

Happy Pink Saturday. Please stop by How Sweet The Sound and say hello to Beverly our super Pink Saturday Hostess.

It's An Enchanted Bird ~ : ' )

2011-10-17T13:20:00.000-04:00

This summer I attended the Artful Gathering Event. It was an amazing online art retreat. I was only able to take one of the fantastic courses they offered. I decided to take a drawing class with Elizabeth Johnson. During the classes I experienced some health issues and didn't get the project finished before the classes ended. I did purchase a DVD from Elizabeth and I'm glad I did. Elizabeth is an awesome instructor, she teaches step by step instructions and she introduced me to Derwert Inktense colored pencils. They are a fun new art toy that I love playing with. Here is my finished enchanted blue bird.

Elizabeth's blog is Wind and Honey Creations. If you ever wanted to try a drawing class Elizabeth offers online classes.

Happy Pink Saturday

2011-10-15T13:01:00.000-04:00

Pretty pinks. I found this beautiful pot of pink mums at Lowe's. As with so many things proceeds from the sale will be donate to breast cancer research.

The pink stonecrop is growing in our flower bed, this is how it looked last week. Today it is sort of brown and shriveled.

Happy Pink Saturday! Please hop over to How Sweet The Sound and say hello to our P.S. hostess Beverly.

Calling All Angels...

2011-10-07T07:30:00.001-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday my friends!

October is breast cancer awareness month but this week I'd like to make you aware of another type of cancer. My PS post this week is dedicated to my niece Samantha. I want to help her promote her new Etsy shop because proceeds from her sales will be going to a worthy cause. Please read her Etsy profile statement below and then hop on over to her shop by clicking on the photo.

I think I see some pretty pink flowers.

Sam's Etsy Shop

Samantha's Etsy profile statement:

"I've always loved making things, being creative, reusing old pieces... Etsy is giving me a chance to do something fun, practical, and hopefully worth owning/wearing! :)

I was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma on September 8, 2011. I've decided that $1 from any item $10 and under, and $2 from any item $11.00 and above, will be donated to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (and the Light the Night Walk) to help raise funds that will go towards finding a cure.

It's important to give back, and If I am lucky enough to sell items on Etsy, I'd like to be doing it for a good cause. "

To help Samantha reach her fund raising goals I will be donating $2.00 from the sale of any item in my Esty shop Stonecrop Cottage during the month of October. I'm also requesting that all of my Prayer Warrior Angels in blogland will add Samantha to your lists.

Last but not least a big thank you to Beverly at How Sweet The Sound for hosting our fun Pink Saturday blog hops!

Autumn Lace

2011-10-04T06:00:00.001-04:00

I made these pouches and I wanted to enter them in the Autumn Lace challenge at Dezinaworld last week. Due to being ill for a week I didn't make the challenge deadline and have not been out to play until today.

I missed you all!

They were fun to make. CAN you guess what materials I used to make my pouches? The Halloween images hanging by the tiny clothes pins and the ones tucked inside the pouches are from Dezinaworld.

Trash to Treasure

2011-09-23T09:30:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Rebecca at the Blog Challenge Garden I will never look at a tissue box the same way. Her challenge for this week is to make a tag that is 90% recycled trash. My tag below on the right is all trash. I used trash from two different tissue boxes, the mint leaves and the word are from a chewing gum box and the odd looking tubular beads are from a broken necklace. For the tag on the right the top of a tissue box made a great frame for this fairy image from Dezinworld. The flower gems are new but the little butterfly in the bottom corner was a discarded charm.

While there is some pink in the fairy tag I thought I'd share a picture of my little fairy princess (great granddaughter Lena) and Penny (my grandkitty) to celebrate Beverly's weekly Pink Saturday.

I'm linking this post to:

Tag Tuesday at the Blog Challenge Garden

Members Gallery at Dezinaworld

Pink Saturday at How Sweet The Sound

BUZZZZZ...

2011-09-18T18:37:00.000-04:00

Have you been hearing a loud buzzing noise? Well if you haven't you should. My sweet friend, Cindy Adkins at Whimsical Musing, is the source of the noise. She has added three new e-book publications about blogging to her huge list of accomplishments. I'm pretty sure Cindy is in creative mode even when she sleeps. Here is the link to her blog where you'll be able to read more about her latest exciting adventure. Her books are available at Amazon.com.

We Will Not Forget...

2011-09-09T15:17:00.000-04:00

Tag Tuesday and Pink Saturday

2011-09-02T15:00:00.040-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday!

"Have a Heart" is the theme Beverly selected for Tag Tuesday this week.

I'm linking my post to the Blog Garden Challenge and to Beverly's Pink Saturday at How Sweet The Sound.
Please stop by and visit their blogs for fun and inspiration.

Go Away Irene it's Pink Saturday!

2011-08-27T11:20:00.000-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday!

I didn't have time this week for creating and I'm fresh out of pictures of pink things. But I enjoy Pink Saturday too much not to participate. My post today will be the Pink Saturday button. Please click on it to visit our sweet hostess Beverly at "How Sweet The Sound." Say hello to her and then try to visit some of the other P.S. participants.

If you scroll through some of my older posts you may find some creative inspiration. Have a wonderful day.

I'm thinking about and praying for all of us in Hurricane Irene's path this weekend. Stay safe!

Tag Tuesday, Pink Saturday and Happy Birthday~ August 20th

2011-08-19T15:00:00.104-04:00

My "Rose" tag was inspired by Rebecca at the Blog Challenge Garden. The theme this week is to use a vintage photo. My tag shape and the vintage photo are from Dezinaworld.

I also took some pictures of our Rose Of Sharon bush. I altered one of the shots with digital filters and digital stamps to create a "rose" background for my tag staging photo. Perfect for a Pink Saturday post too. Please hop on over to visit Beverly at How Sweet The Sound.

Bee Careful!

Today is my DH's birthday. We are delighted and grateful to God that he is home and recovering from his surgery. Thank you for all your prayers. He will begin radiation and chemotherapy treatments in a few weeks.

Pink Saturday and Blessings~August 13, 2011

2011-08-12T13:45:00.000-04:00

This is a very special Pink Saturday. Beverly at How Sweet The Sound, our P.S. hostess has teamed up with Kelee Katillac and several others to help raise money for an awesome organization. Please watch this video. Then visit How Sweet The Sound and the Design Gives Back site and as many of the other sites as you can. You and I can help to give hope to another individual or family just by leaving a simple comment. Please read the tips below from Kelee to see how you can help.

Here are some suggestions of how it works from our friend Kelee Katillac at the Katillac Shack:
"There will be many places for folks to help earn donations by JOINING - Commenting - Like ' ing - Or Posting. Here is how it works in 4 WAYS:
1) Comments: Comments at any of the host blogs earn $1 each
2) Joining Google Friend Connect: We are creating our volunteer blogger roster of the future thru Google Friend Connect it will be up on Wednesday.
We will Donate $1 for each person that joins Design Gives Back Google Friend Connect PLEASE come by Wednesday and be the first to connect! :):)
3) Facebook: "Liking" Design Gives Back/ or Guideposts Facebook earns .50 each/ donation from us comments earn $1
4) Anyone that does a post with something positive, uplifting, spiritual or miraculous and a link to the video or embedded video and link to us will earn a $5 donation from us to the charities!!! ----They must email us the link to their post.--- So it gets counted.
Bless your 1,000 Times.....
HUGS with Gratitude and Anticipation!
Kelee"

Before you leave I want to share our personal blessing with you. At times I'm baffled about coincidences and the timing of life events. My husband has had a brain tumor for well over ten years. Recently we were told there is a change in the tumor. On Wednesday, August 10 he had surgery for a biopsy and debulking of a brain mass. You may be thinking, "How is that a blessing?" It is a blessing because the surgery went well and he was taken out of ICU to a regular hospital room Thursday afternoon. He may be coming home Saturday! It will take a while until the final pathology reports come back. We know it is a high grade tumor but we are hopeful that it will respond to radiation and chemotherapy treatments.

T.T. P.S.F.F. Oops!

2011-08-05T18:21:00.000-04:00

Oops! I really didn't want to plant a giant Zinnia in this pot. I actually didn't even know Zinnias grew this tall. The flower was so pretty.

Oops!

Pretty flower

Digital alteration. Face image from Dezinaworld.

Tag Tuesday Challenge "A Face."

Linking this post to:

Pink Saturday

Dezinworld

Tag Tuesday

Lions, and tigers, and bears! No, just a bunny and an elephant...

2011-07-29T15:00:00.091-04:00

My friend Pam Eyre at Cloth and Creation sells beautiful handmade items and she also sells some supplies like her vintage chenille (Etsy link). A few months ago Pam sent me a stack of assorted colored chenille, I finally made these cute toys for my new great granddaughter.

White Rabbit

Pink Elephant

(It looks a little like a woolly mammoth)

I have a question. Since the fabric is vintage and from Australia, are these vintage Australian toys made in the U.S.A?

I'm going to link this post to Pink Saturday. Please hop over to How Sweet The Sound to visit Beverly our hostess and check out all the pink posts.

Have a HAPPY DAY!

Ready...Set...GO! ~Tag Tuesday

2011-07-26T18:04:00.000-04:00

WOW! Rebecca at the Blog Challenge Garden didn't pick a specific theme as such for the tag this week, however she did put a time limit on making the tag. She said, "get out all your supplies then set the timer for 10 minutes"!

This was really a challenge for me, I do not like to work fast at all.

But I gave it a try. I used rubber stamps, a sticker, strawflowers, a bit of raffia, some jute and sheer ribbon.

T.T., F.F., P.S.~Inspirational and Fun...

2011-07-22T17:45:00.001-04:00

I'm posting this piece for Tag Tuesday (click here), and Fun Friday, (click here) and Pink Saturday (click here)!

Rebecca at the Blog Garden Challenge requested a butterfly theme for our Tag Tueday Challenge this week. June at Dezinaworld is hosting another Fun Friday event anyone can enter and she is giving away two fun free graphics. And last but not least there is always Pink Saturday! Please visit Beveraly at How Sweet The Sound. Have a magical week! Thanks for the inspiration to creat ladies.

Credits: Tag background is a collage sheet from Shabby Cottage.

The fairy image is from Dezinaworld.

Pink Saturday~July 16, 2011

2011-07-16T12:19:00.000-04:00

A photo of Impatiens growing in a container on the patio.

Below is the same photo with digital alterations.

I may use it as a background for a mixed media piece.

Happy Pink Saturday!

Don't forget to hop on over to visit Beverly, our Pink Saturday hostess, and other P. S. participants at "How Sweet The Sound."

Tag Tuesday

2011-07-14T18:54:00.000-04:00

This week Rebecca decided the theme for the Tag Tuesday tags would be

"Orange and Black."

Image of Woman: Dezinaworld

Background paper: Shabby Cottage Studio

Please hop on over to the Blog Challenge Garden to visit Rebecca and find links to more "black and orange" tags.

Pink Saturday ~ July 19, 2011

2011-07-09T07:12:00.002-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday!

Fun, Fun, Fun things to do in Blog Land.

Every Saturday you could join the one and only Pink Saturday hostess, Beverly, at How Sweet The Sound. See what lovely pink thing she has posted. Then scroll down her page and click on the links to over 100 more PINK posts.

Another fun event going on in Blog Land is Artful Gathering. An amazing online art retreat that will begin next Saturday, July 16. The event will run until Saturday, August 27th. There are lots of classes, games, prizes, and tons of free videos demonstrating products being offered. Click here to visit the site and find out more.

I'm tickled pink!

Oh! One more FUN thing to do today. Stop by to visit my friend Cindy at Whimsical Musings she is having a very special give away.

Hope you have a FUN Saturday!

Awesome Give Aways~Thoughtful Gifts...

2011-07-06T14:03:00.000-04:00

My friend, Cindy Adkins at Whimsical Musings, sent this beautiful digital collage gift to me. The images Cindy used in the piece are from our friend June at Dezinaworld. Cindy is one of the super talented designers at Dezinaworld. Thank you my sweet friend Cindy for cheering me up with your beautiful digital gift.

The background in Cindy's piece is a FREE background that June is giving away just for stopping by. If you want the image and if you would like to have a chance to win a fantastic give away hop on over to say hi to June and visit Dezinaworld. Here is just one of the images she is including in her fabulous give away treasury!

To thank my friend Cindy I took June's free background, added one of the ladies from "Colorful Ladies" sheet she is currently offering in her $1 sale. I did a little digital altering of the colors so I could enter June's "Purple and Green Challenge" click here and in her "Give Away" click here.

The piece reminds me of Cindy, she is a beautiful, talented, friend who does like to dance.

Pink Saturday Fairy ~

2011-06-24T17:00:00.014-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday and Happy One Month Birthday Anniversary to my little fairy elf (great granddaugher) Lena. She is still on a heart monitor but she is gaining weight (she reached 5 lbs.) and she is doing very well. I like to call her my little fairy princess, Tink.

She is so precious. I had fun making this collage for Pink Saturday.

CLICK HERE to visit our Pink Saturday Hostess, Beverly at How Sweet The Sound and to link up with over 100 other PINK posts.

Tag Tuesday # 7 Challenge

2011-06-22T15:32:00.000-04:00

This week Rebecca at the Blog Challenge Garden selected the number 7 for the tag challenge theme. Click on the Blog Challenge Garden name above and hop over to see how many different # 7 tags have been entered this week.

I counted 17 sevens on my tag.

Happy Pink Saturday ~ June 18, 2011

2011-06-17T17:02:00.000-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday!

On our recent trip we visited an antique store in Statham, Georgia. I found a perfect souvenir for a Pink Saturday post. When I saw this hat pin I had to have it, I've always want one.

I don't really need a hat pin for this straw hat. It was a snug fit when I purchased it about 5 years ago after I lost my hair while having chemotheraphy treatments. Hat pins only work well with a good amount of hair.

My hat pin keeper...

Please click here to visit our Pink Saturday hostess, Beverly, at How Sweet The Sound.

Pink Saturday Preemie

2011-06-10T19:50:00.000-04:00

A pink bundle of joy almost 7 weeks earlier than expected.

On May 25th our new great granddaughter made her entrance into the world. She weighed 3 lbs. 13 oz. and was 17.25 inches long.

She now weighs 4 lbs. and is scheduled to come home tomorrow.

Happy Pink Saturday!

Please visit Beverly, our P.S. hostess, at How Sweet The Sound.

Wedding Blog Party

2011-06-10T00:00:00.063-04:00

Stephanie at Angelic Accents is hosting a Wedding Day Blog Party on Friday, June 10th. and we are all invited to attend. Click on her blog name above or on her party button located on my side bar to visit her and all her party guests and peruse the Wedding Day posts.

For my post I thought I'd share a little about my own (not traditional) wedding day. Forty years ago, on a snowy Thanksgiving Day, we were married. It was quite an eventful day with many unusual twists and turns, but by the end of the day we were married and we celebrated with family and friends. Unfortunately we only took pictures with a Polaroid camera and these are the best we have.

The year was 1971, can you tell?

Stuck in the snow

The Bride and Groom

The kiss. Yes, we had a bestman and matron of honor.

Mother of the bride, parents of the groom.

Swapping Fun...

2011-06-07T14:33:00.000-04:00

Fun! Fun! Fun! Swapping with friends is sooo much FUN!

Pam at Cloth and Creation and I decided to have a swap. She wanted one of my Tussie Mussies and I wanted some of her lovely vintage chenille fabric. I was excited to receive her package all the way from Australia. Pam not only sent me the vintage fabric I wanted she also sent two gorgeous fabric tags that she made for me as well.

You are awesome Pam thank you!

Click on the Cloth and Creation name above to hop on over to visit Pam. She and her hubby just finished making a fantastic storage area in her studio space.

Happy Pink Bloomin' Saturday~June 4, 2011

2011-06-03T17:30:00.006-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday!

Here are a few pink blooms in our front flower beds...

Please hop on over to "How Sweet The Sound" to say hello to Beverly, our P.S. hostess, and take a few minutes to visit some of the other P.S. participants.

Take time to smell the flowers!

Pink Saturday May 21~There's going to be a party...

2011-05-20T17:00:00.016-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday!
Next Saturday, May 28th. P.S. will be celebrating a birthday. Regretfully I will not be able to participate in the festivities on Saturday. We will be away on vacation. I may be able to do some visiting a few days later. So, I'm going to start the celebration in my post this week.

Happy Third Birthday Pink Saturday!!

Thank you Beverly for hosting this weekly fun event.

To join in on the celebration please click on the link above or here to visit Beverly and link up with well over 100 party participants.

I'd like to bring a few things to the party celebration:

Here is my grandkitty, Princess Penny, wearing her pink feathers and silk ribbon fur bow. I think she ate too much cake and she just can't stay awake.

I have a new interest in making flowers out of paper and or fabric.

I've been experimenting a little.

Here is a paper rose in honor of our hostess Beverly.

Below are assorted fabric flowers. The photo is not as bright as I would like, it's been dreary and raining here for days.

Tag Tuesday May 17-"Let me take you..."

2011-05-18T18:13:00.000-04:00

Rebecca at the Blog Garden Challenge requests our tags feature a strawberry this week for the Tag Tuesday Challenge!

The background of my tag is a close up of a strawberry. The flowers and leaves are from the strawberry plant. The words on the tag and the music in the background are from the Beatles, "Strawberry Fields Forever."

Pink Saturday May 14, 2011

2011-05-13T06:05:00.000-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday

My six year old Granddaughter, Mary Jane, is a budding artist and perhaps a writer as well. She loves to color and draw. She's in kindergarten this year.

I want to share with you the pages of a book she made for me for Mother's Day. The name of the book is Spring and the book is about what happens in spring.

Spring

written and illustrated by

Mary-Jane

The butterflies come

The flowers get water from the rain.

We go to the playground.

This too was a handmade gift from Mary Jane she presented it to me on Easter.

She added just enough pink glitter to qualify her decorated Easter pine cone for a Pink Saturday post.

I Hope you have enjoyed my Pink Saturday post.

If you would like to see more tributes to P. S. please hop over to see our hostess, Beverly at How Sweet The Sound.

Tag Tuesday May 10 Plus A New Challenge

2011-05-11T11:40:00.000-04:00

The Tag Tuesday theme for this week is "The Deep!"

The Deep Ocean that is...

Thanks to Rebecca at the Blog Garden Challenge for the inspiration.

I decided to use Rebecca's theme idea for my entry in Jeanie's (All My Art) new Door Tag Challenge.

Click on Rebecca or Jeanie's name to see other entries and join in on the fun.

Door Tag

All the images are from stamps. They are from a failed attempt pop-up card I made at a stamping workshop long ago. I didn't have the heart to toss the card. I guess I was saving it for these two challenges. Thanks Rebecca and Jeanie!

Pink Saturday May 7th

2011-05-06T17:00:00.011-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday

A few weeks ago I was impatiently waiting for my spring flowers to start blooming so I purchased a Ranunculus or a Mache Rose. It was lovely and cheerful to look at and I enjoyed the blossoms. To keep it a bit longer I took a photograph of it then I altered it to make a digital background.

For more Pink Saturday offerings hop on over to How Sweet The Sound to visit our P.S. hostess Beverly and link up with well over a hundred lovers of pink.

Tag Tuesday (Blue and Green) May 3...Embracing One Another...

2011-05-04T09:17:00.002-04:00

Blue and Green is the theme Rebecca chose for Tag Tuesday this week. Click here to hop over to the Blog Garden Challenge to find an amazing assortment of blue and green colored tags. The fairy image on my "Blue and Green" offering is from Dezinaworld.

Click on image to see detail.

The next set of tags do have some blue and green color as well, however, these six tags are my offering to Jan at the Polka Dot Barn. If you click on her blog name you can hop on over to read all about the trip she and her daughter are taking in July and how you might help to "embrace one another". You can also visit my friend Cindy Adkins at Her Whimsical Musings to see how she is embracing Jan's Road Trip Mission and if you like you can leave her a comment and have a chance to win several awesome give away prizes.

Click on the image to see details

The images used on these tags are from Shabby Cottage Studio and the Graphics Fairy. Click on their names to visit their sites.

Featured In An Etsy Treasury

2011-05-01T16:18:00.000-04:00

Curator, Cyndie, at Vintage Envy has selected one of my tussie mussies for her new treasury called "Ring My Bell and Leave Me a May Day Basket."

I'm honored and thrilled to have one of my pieces included.

Click here to view the entire Treasury and to read about how much fun it is to give a May Day basket.

I hope someone rings your bell!

Pink Saturday April 30

2011-04-29T17:00:00.030-04:00

Happy Pink Saturday!

Thanks to Beverly at How Sweet The Sound.

Click here to visit her and over 100 other P.S. participants.

A lovelyEaster gift bouquet from my sister

Pretty in Pink Butterfly Princess...

My Blue Boy

The egg hunt...

Tag Tuesday April 26 ~

2011-04-27T14:23:00.000-04:00

The theme for Tag Tuesday this week is

"Arbor Day"

Rebecca our T. T. hostess asked that we use a tree as the main focus of our tags.

My Magnolia Tree is in full bloom this week and it is gorgeous. Using Photoshop Elements 7 I created a digitally altered collage with several photographs of the tree and some close up shots of two blossoms.

Click here to travel to the Blog Garden Challenge to see more Tag Tuesday Arbor Day Tree Tributes!

All Aflutter...

2011-04-26T15:50:00.000-04:00

Last week the dreary skies kept me from taking photos and Easter holiday preparations kept me from posting about receiving this package from Lynn at Wildflowers and Countryroads. Look at the beautiful give-away I won!

Just gorgeous! Thanks Lynn for all the lovely feathered friends.

Hosanna...

2011-04-24T09:30:00.000-04:00

Image credits: Graphics Fairy

Happy Easter ~ Pink Saturday April 22, 2011

2011-04-22T17:00:00.120-04:00

We're going to have a Happy Easter

A special dinner calls for a few fun pretty things...

There will be baskets filled with candy...and thanks to Tee there will be Whimsy Pockets filled with candy too! Cindy at Whimsical Musings introduced Tee's Pink Whimsy Pockets with her special Alice give away week. Click on the link above to visit Creations By Tee and see her great tutorial on how to make these sweet favors. Click here to see Cindy's special Whimsy Pockets.

There will be an egg hunt too...

Wishing you all an Easter filled with blessings!

Hippity Hop on over to How Sweet The Sound to visit our Pink Saturday Hostess Beverly.

Tag Tuesday ~ April 19, 2011 ~ Happy Easter

2011-04-19T12:50:00.002-04:00

Having a tag ready for Tag Tuesday on a Tuesday is a first for me.

Rebecca's theme for tags this week is "Happy Easter."
The image on my Easter Greetings tag is from Shabby Cottage Studio as is the brown silk leaf trim along the left side. I added some pink posies, a butterfly I punched out of decorative paper, and a small piece of moss at the bottom edge.

I'm also going to show this tag again because it is for Easter too. I actually used it for a Tag Tuesday theme several weeks ago, I think the theme was called, "Surprise Me".
It's a match box bunny glued to a tag.

Please hop (smiling) on over to visit Rebecca and the other Tag Tuesday participants at the Blog Challenge Garden.

Wishing you all a

Happy and Blessed Easter.

Pink Saturday ~ April 16, 2011

2011-04-15T17:00:00.017-04:00

Sweet 16 party.

Last Saturday afternoon my niece had her 16th birthday party. She choose to have a chocolate cake with a lavender fondant with a strawberry filling. YUM! Sorry, I didn't get a shot of the filling...

One of her interests currently is Ballywood dancing which is what inspired me to make her the journal below. I used a plain spiral bound notebook. I took an image of Ballywood dancers, with the help of Photoshop, I removed the face of one of the dancers and replaced it with a picture of my niece. I added some text to the image. I added some pretty pink decorative paper and silk ribbons to the outside front. A map of India (notice the pink) is on the outside back cover. I added a few other items to the inside including the bright pink envelope containing a birthday card and money gift.

Then I wrapped it in a piece of shimmery fabric. The fabric will be fun to wear while dancing.

Of course it had a pink bow!

Another niece at the party was kind enough to allow me to photograph the back of her hoodie. Wow, the things we do for Pink Saturday -

And that sums it all up "we love pink!"

Thanks to Beverly at How Sweet The Sound we are going to have another Happy Pink Saturday

Tag Tuesday April 12, 2011

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"A chair."

Rebecca (Bellesouth@blogspot.com) from the Blog Challenge Garden selected a chair as the theme for our Tag Tuesday Challenge this week.

The chair I used is one that I rescued and revived several years ago. You may recognize it from the header on my blog. I pulled the photo into Photoshop and altered it with the posterize filter. The background paper on my tag was from packaging material. I used Inkadinkado letter stamps to make the word sit. I added word bubbles with the quote, "Come sit with me and stay awhile and we shall have some tea". It is one of the quotes that is actually painted on the chair. A little Stickles glitter was used to outline the letters.

Thanks Rebecca for your inspiration. I'm heading over to link this up and then check out all the other chair tags.

Another Surprise...

2011-04-12T07:30:00.000-04:00

I received another surprise today. Cat at Tattered Rebel has selected one of my Garden Party Collection tussie mussies for her Etsy treasury called "My Mother's Nest." I'm honored to have one of my pieces included in her Treasury.

Fairy Dust?

Blog Surprises and Blessings...

2011-04-11T09:00:00.000-04:00

The postman delivered a surprise on Friday. A package from Cindy at Whimsical Musings. Cindy sent her "Faerie Blue" art collage to live with me! She wanted to have her faeries sprinkle their magical dust all around blogland. The package also contained some fava beans that were tossed to her during the St. Joseph Day parade in New Orleans. She gathered as many beans as she could to share them with her art sisters. Cindy is a blessing, she is a friend, an inspiration, and a kindred spirit.

Saturday I found out that Dru from NestinSLT had selected my HOPE banner to be featured in her Etsy Treasury called "Random Thoughts." It is an honor for me to have one of my pieces included in the collection.

Then on Sunday morning it was announced that I had won a lovely bird collection. Lynn at Wildflowers and Countryroads celebrated her 100th follower with her first ever give away.

Could it be the faerie dust? The fava beans?... Three days of surprises and blessings...magical

Garden Parties Continue with Pink Saturday April 9, 2011

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Happy Pink Saturday! But first...

Let's Continue getting ready for the Garden Party with a few more favors. All of the tin cans are decorated with beautiful papers and flowers made from either dried orange peel, or paper, or seashells. There are paper butterflies, beads, silk trim, pearl gems and touches of glitter. Each one contains a tiny straw hat that has been embellished with flowers, ribbons and feathers. Then there are several tussie mussies filled with nesting birds, or a tea pot, tea cup and saucer, or a butterfly in a bed of roses. The decorative paper cones are embellished with, laces, cheese cloth, flowers, and pearls. This Victorian Garden Party Collection will be available for purchased in my Etsy shop.

Thanks to Beverly at How Sweet The Sound we are celebrating another P.S. click here to hop on over to say hello to her. Then click on any of over 100 links on her blog to visit more P.S. celebrations.

Garden Parties

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The warm sunshine and the fragrant spring and summer scents draw us outdoors. It is a perfect time for tea and shower garden parties. A party calls for some decorations for your table or favors for your guests to take home. Here are a few suggestions. More will follow...

Tag Tuesday ~ April 5th Postcard Cut-Up Challenge

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Rebecca's Tag Tuesday challenge for this week is to make a tag using an actual postcard. Below is my entry. The postcard was purchased on a family vacation long ago (at least 20 years ago). Our daughters loved this hotel in Ocean City, Maryland because they served tea and cookies every afternoon in the hotel lobby. If you would like to see more Postcard Tags hop over to The Blog Challenge Garden to say hello to Rebecca and find the links for more Tag Tuesday entries.

Another Peek ...

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Work Table Sneak Peek

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Pink Saturday ~ April 2, 2011

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Happy Pink Saturday!

No, this is not an April Fool's Day joke.

Pink Saturday usually begins on a Friday after 5:00 PM. It is a fun event brought to you by Beverly at How Sweet The Sound each and every week. Click here to hop on over to visit her P.S. post. While you are there you might want to pick out a few of the other participants to visit as well. I'm sure you will have an inspirational trip. I decided to show some of my favorite Easter decorations today.

I painted Peter in one of those popular ceramic classes years ago, (more than 20 years ago). He is sporting a bit of pink. Another old decoration is my yellow (sorry, no pink) fuzzy duck (from another craft class). Perhaps I'll refresh the yellow bow with a pink ribbon. The tin bunny is not as old, and I did not make it, but he is cute and he is wearing a pink vest. Have a great weekend and a super week!

Etsy Treasury...

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Curator, Cyndie from Vintage Envy has selected one of my tussie mussies to be featured in her "You can ring my bell and leave a May Day Basket," Etsy Treasury collection.

I'm honored and thrilled to have one of my pieces in her treasury and suggested as a gift for a May Day basket.

If you click here you can see the entire Treasury and read about how much fun it is to give a May Day basket.
I hope someone rings your bell!

Tag Tuesday ~ March 29, 2011 ~ Vintage Sewing

2011-03-30T13:56:00.001-04:00

Yes, I know it's Wednesday but I want to show you the tag I made for this weeks challenge at the Blog Challenge Garden. The theme Rebecca selected for the tag this week is "vintage sewing". I looked to see what I had on hand in images and then I remembered that I had this vintage sewing needle packet. It was my mother's. I scanned the front and back of the original (the one on the right). I re-sized it and printed the two images onto photo paper, cut and glued the pieces together. I think it looks like all the needles are real in the reproduction, however there are only two real needles stuck into the small piece of gold foil paper that I glued to the top section. I added a button closure to the top of the needle case. I glued the case to the tag. The tag background is a vintage J.P Coats thread image from the wonderful Karen at the Graphic's Fairy. I pinked the edges of the tag and embellished it with a few threaded buttons, some lace, and cotton yarn. Click on the Blog Challenge Garden name to visit Rebecca and find a few more vintage sewing tags.

Pink Saturday ~ March 26, 2011

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Pink Saturday is brought to you by Beverly at How Sweet The Sound each and every week. Please click on her name and hop over to visit her and 100 other bloggers who participate. You will be treated to meeting nice people who like the color pink and who enjoy having fun.

A little Spring thing. Silk flowers and a butterfly from the Dollar Tree.

Tag Tuesday for March 22, 2011

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I want to say thanks to Louise from Kard Krazy for starting Tag Tuesday and hosting the fun challenge. Tag Tuesday really inspired me to make tags. Louise had to eliminate some activities in her busy life and will no longer be hosting the challenge. Rebecca at BellaSouth is taking over hosting Tag Tuesday. The challenges will be posted at the Blog Challenge Garden.

For Rebecca's first challenge she asked us to Think Spring. I've never been to Paris but as I thought about Spring and how to make the tag the song April In Paris came to mind. My tag background is a decorative card stock. The image is from Gail at Shabby Cottage Studio. I added a paper flower, a silk flowers, a paper butterfly, (hidden under the ribbon on the upper right side) and some word balloons. I finished the trimming with a Sheer and frayed metallic ribbons. Please click on the Blog Garden Challenge link to visit all the Tag Tuesday participants for inspiration and ideas.

Thank you Rebecca for hosting the challenge!

Pink Saturday ~ March 19, 2011

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In your Easter bonnet with all the frills upon it...

I could not resist this bargain at Target. A PINK bonnet and white gloves with PINK bows for $2.00.

Don't you love the hang tags explaining what the items are?

I wanted to get them for my granddaughter. Okay, I'll be honest I wanted them for a Pink Saturday post.

I added just a few little flowers to the hat. I think they will be perfect with the PINK flowered sun dress I bought her for her birthday. She does love PINK!

Happy Pink Saturday! Please visit the Queen of Pink Saturday Beverly at How Sweet The Sound.

CSN Give Away Winner!

2011-03-17T10:50:00.001-04:00

Before I announce the winner of the $25.00 CSN give away, I want to wish you all a Happy St. Patrick's Day!

My little porcelain (Dollar Tree Store, purchase) Irish lassie (Isn't she cute?) would like to announce the lucky winning number is: 10

True Random Number Generator

Min: 1

Max: 24

Result: 10

I'm so happy to say comment #10 is from the sweet LV from Thoughts From Meme's Corner. Please hop over to visit LV. She's celebrating St. Patrick's Day too! LV, I'll be sending you an email shortly with all the information.

Thank you to everyone who helped me celebrate my 100th post.