Karla's Cottage

Its a start!

You still have the 31st to enter the drawing for my December Giveaway, and the 50% off sale in my shops goes through the 1st.

Thanks to all of you who have shopped with me!

I'm getting a jump on my New Year's resolutions and getting some repairs done.  My house has been terribly neglected in 2009.  We replaced the closet door months and months ago, and I just NOW, finally, repainted the door and the trim around it, plus the wall that got dinged up in the process of changing the door out.

I painted the door white, then added glaze to a paper bag brown color, brushed it on and wiped it down with a damp cloth. Quick and easy and such a difference.  Why did I wait months to clean up this area???

My resolution is to not let things slip by me anymore.

(oh, and see the hand weights? They will be getting a lot more use in 2010, that is another resolution!!!)

This corner was never finished when the door was replaced.  Yesterday, I called the guy who did the work and he is coming back on Monday to fix this floor.  While he is here, I have a list a mile long that he is going to do for me.  Little things that have been bugging me around the house, like doors that just don't close right, a cabinet that needs hung.  Yes, my son is a carpenter. But between taking care of Sugarwings, work, and school, I'm lucky to get him to do anything at all.

He helps with housework, cooks, and gives me neck massages all the time (he is also a massage therapist), so I am not complaining. Instead, I am calling in a handyman who will get the list knocked off in one day. 

I'm starting the new year with a whole new outlook.  The fun and chaos of chasing a 3 year old has caused me to neglect my home, and I am not going to let that happen any more.  Things I can't do, don't have time to do and can't get the guys who live here to do are going to be done by our friend, Don, the handyman. 

Some things, I am facing and conquering on my own, like this. Months ago, the screws crumbled and broke off on the knobs of this old cabinet.  Yes, I knew it was coming, they were wonky for a year or two. But I ignored it.   I've been living with a knobless cabinet in my bedroom since summer.

  I am fixing this little problem right now.  Well, this afternoon, at least because there are no screws the right length in my tool kit. There never seems to be the right ones, does there? That is what stopped me every time I thought about fixing it. I had the knobs, just the wrong screws.  So, today, I am taking some glass knobs to the hardware store and getting the right ones. 

 

After changing the screws on the cabinet and mailing some packages, my New Year's Eve will be a quiet one.  We've filled the wheelbarrows with wood, so we can have a warm and toasty house tonight.  I'll probably rent a couple of movies, and curl up with Sugarwings to share some popcorn.

 

Hope your New Year's Eve is a fun one too, and 2010 brings you the accomplishments you want to achieve as well as lots of joy.

(Maybe one of my resolutions should be to NOT go too crazy with picnik editing??? This photo is a tad bit over the top, huh?)

God Bless you, even if you are are a Nebraska fan

Boy did we ever get the snow.  My handsome husband spent the day driving around in the  4 wheel drive pick up and pulling stranded people out of the mess. He was having so much fun doing it, that he came home to pick up Sugarwing's Daddy and his cute gypsy girlfriend to go out and be good Samartatins with him. 

We live in a town loyal to Kansas Jayhawks, and my husband grew up in Nebraska, so has a Cornhusker sign on his big red truck.  One guy that he pulled out of a drift said to him, "God bless you, even if you are a Cornhusker fan." 

He wasn't the only person out saving people from the drifts.  Living in the Midwest is pretty nice. Strangers will come out in the cold just to help you if you need it. 

Luckily, we had a little Christmas party for Sugarwings and Pixie Pie before the storm hit, because our big Christmas day event was canceled due to the weather.  We were able to safely get Sugarwings and her Mommy to their family in Kansas City, so they could all be together on Christmas Day, though.  It was very important to get them there, since Nanny passed away this week. Those siblings all needed each other.

 

(As you can tell from Sugarwing's shirt, my husband is also a Jayhawk fan!)

On Christmas Eve, we did our gift exchange and Sugarwings insisted on being Santa and loading the gifts in her new sleigh to deliver them.

The only trouble was, that the red velvet pants that I'd just bought for her, were not quite the right size and tended to slip a bit.  She walked right out of them a couple times, but was not going to let that stop her from delivering Santa's gifts!

Twinks was asked to play "Max" and Sugarwings was the Grinch for a while too. That sled got quite the workout in the house, but when her daddy tried to take her out to use it in the 4 foot snow drifts, she didn't want to have anything to do with it or the cold.

Some of you had asked about the painted tree.  Its on a 4 x 8 sheet of plywood, and I had painted it to decorate for my antique booth at the holidays. I put hooks into the wood and sold ornaments off of it. But this year, I brought it into the living room for Christmas. We used it as a backdrop to take some holiday photos of our little girls.

And since there were little girls around, no vintage ornaments were on the hooks this year, they went up on the chandelier out of reach, instead! Hey, I might be a sucker for those kids, but I am not a fool. If I care about something, it goes where no grabby little hands can get it.

 

Its been an odd holiday.  Sugarwing's Nanny passed away, we had a huge snow storm that canceled most of our plans, and so many other people's too. But we made the best of it, and celebrated what and when we could.  Holding those you care about close when you can and grabbing snippets of joy where you can find them is what matters.  Enjoying the funny, little moments like watching a miniature Santa walking right out of her red pants, and helping strangers stranded in a ditch are things that made our Christmas '09 something we'll remember.

Of course that fridge full of food to feed 20 some people who couldn't come to dinner is a reminder too.

Merriest of Christmases to you!

We've had a lovely day here for Christmas Eve, despite the fierce blizzard outdoors.  Due to the snow, I didn't get out today to finish my shopping, but honestly, the few items weren't missed.  We all had each other, and after losing Sugarwing's other grandmother this week, that is even more important.

We've stayed warm and enjoyed each other's company with a day of good food. (vegetarian gravy and biscuits for breakfast and Pad Thai for dinner) The food was especially wonderful today, since I didn't have to cook! My son and his girlfriend took care of all the meals today.  I'm fixing a big meal for dinner tomorrow and we have a large group of family and friends coming (if the blizzard lets up!) so I was happy to have today off.

We're not sure how  many are coming Christmas Day.  I'll fix a Honey Baked ham, chicken and noodles, mashed potatoes, baked sweet potatoes, corn (frozen fresh from last summer's farmer's market) green bean casserole, and others will bring side dishes too. 

So, tomorrow's meal will be very traditional.

Due to the weather, Sugarwing's hippy chick mommy couldn't make it to Kansas City today to see family, so we picked her up in the 4 wheel drive and have her here with us to stay over night.  We'll brave the bad roads tomorrow to get her and Sugarwings to be with the loved ones they missed seeing tonight, but for now, I am greedily enjoying having a full house and my girls being here with me. 

Although, I've not spent the whole day with everyone, I've been at the computer off and on scanning photos of Nanny's life and editing them for a slide show to play at the memorial service.  Its a relief to have something to do to help. 

We didn't know we'd have Sugarwings and her mommy in the morning, so we creatively had Santa come during her nap today.  But at three years old, I doubt if she'll be wondering why there is nothing under the tree in the morning.  She's had her fill of gifts today! And when they both get to Kansas City after the storm lets up, I think there will probably be a few pressies waiting for her there too.

Its been an odd, and unconventional holiday so far. But a loving one.  I hope yours is warm and cozy and full of love too!

Christmas Eve

We are certainly having a white Christmas here! An ice storm is brewing, and lots of snow is expected over that.  The house is rattling and shaking with the storm, but we are warm an snug inside with the fire blazing and the oven filled with pies baking.

Janice has found a home, we had quite a few calls from my Craigslist ad.  Someone who lost an elderly pet just this week wanted a cuddle bug of an older dog to try to fill the void for them.

Pixie Pie and Sugarwings have been a big help in the kitchen getting ready for Christmas.  We've still not told our Fairy Baby about the loss of her Nanny.  The service will be on Monday, so we are letting her have a happy holiday for now, since plenty of sadness will be coming her way after the weekend.

Thank you all for your thoughtful messages, and I will pass along all the hugs you offered.

Zipping around

This guy has been zipping around our house all afternoon, racing from one wall into another, never giving up and never slowing down. That's kind of how I've felt this week getting ready for Christmas!  Not only did I have the regular, shopping, wrapping, baking, etc, we had the added pleasures of unpacking a 14 foot U-Haul trailer. 

My husband gave up his apartment in Virginia, he will still office there, but will hopefully be home more, and only have hotel rooms a few days a month out that way.  So, we had to make space for all the things he brought back home.  Just as I was enjoying my pretty holiday decorations and thinking how peaceful and nice it all looked, he brought in boxes and bags and 2 extra TVs and extra mattresses and who all knows what.

So much for tranquil and pretty!

 

He works for a golf course company, and every year I paint a Christmas card for him to send out.  In between unloading boxes, and wrapping gifts, I whipped up this little snowman and elf for him to use this season.

While I had my paints out, I painted this long sleeve tee shirt for Pixie Pie.  I hope to paint a matching one for her cousin and buddy, Sugarwings.

 

The cartoon of the two of them together tickled me so much, I repainted it onto an ornament to mail to their great grandma.

Then, I painted on of Sugarwings alone for her special ball for 2009.

This is the one that I made for myself. I have a fondness for little pink putz houses and wanted one that felt like those.

For my brother Randy and his husband, Kevin, I painted their 3 dogs playing in the snow.

Max got a tree frog.

Addie's is a princess kitten.

It was nice to sit down and paint for a couple of hours while I watched the Survivor finale. There hasn't been a lot of sitting around lately!  Today I shipped packages to family far away, and tonight, Sugarwings and I are making candy.  Tomorrow is a big party, a craft day with friends, so after candy making, I need to clean the studio.

I'd better be racing off and get busy!

 

Over the top? Of course!

Can you believe that Christmas is less than a week away???? I am loving my white lights and decorations so much, I'm already sad thinking about having to take them all down. Next year, I am getting my glitz on earlier, so I can enjoy it for longer!

I went with a much smaller tree this year, a little silver one that I think might be just the right size.  It sets on a table top and below that, I've set a display of little trees and a bird cage full of lights.

For a tree skirt, I used the table cloth that I got from my Great Aunt Caroline's home. Her mom, my great grandmother, made it with squares cut from a WW1 silk parachute and hand crocheted squares. 

The silver tree has so much sparkle to it, that I know I will never do a green one again! I've loved the white tree that I used in the past, but this one is even better.  And since it is so small, I can overload it like crazy!

The table it sits on is in front of a mirror, so that the back of the tree shows. I used plenty of decorations on that side too.  Which saved me from a problem I have had in the past, a front heavy tree from so many things loaded only where they can be seen on the front side!  One year, the big old tree came crashing down because of that!   I have always had to tie my tree to the curtain rod with fishing line so that never happened again.

That won't be a problem this year, since the tree is so balanced!  The mirror idea worked out so well, that next year, I will hang an even bigger mirror behind the tree.   Or maybe a wall filled with mirrors?

My ornaments are a little of everything.  Lots of clear glass balls, vintage gold and silver balls, hand made things, bits and pieces of jewelry, keys, and sentimental things from the past.  I have birds on the tree that were mine when I was a kid, and also a couple boxes of Martha Stewart clip on gold and silver birds that look old, but are actually from KMart, two years ago.

The little lamp shades are from a friend's shop. They clip right onto a light bulb.

There are boxes of ornaments that didn't get unpacked this year, my precious hand painted ones for each family member are still packed away.  I will add to the collection again, I paint and date one for all of us every Christmas. But this year, I thought maybe Sugarwings was still a bit grabby and was worried about breakage.  But she has not bothered the silver tree one single time, since she has her very own little pink tree to work on to her heart's content.

If you would like to make some of the sheet music stars, I have a how-to from last year HERE.

By having neutral furniture and walls, I can change the room to any color scheme by switching out curtains, pillows and accessories. For the holidays, I went with all white.  But there is a big splash of color in the painting that I brought in.

For my antique sales in the past, I had cut an 8'x4' sheet of ply wood into an arch shape and painted a winter mural on it. I used to sell vintage ornaments off of hooks that I put onto the painted tree.  But for now, I thought I'd haul it into the living room for the season.

Yes, its over the top.   But that's kind of what I like about it!

PS- the Somerset Life issue that I showed you in my last post won't be out until January.
This copy is an advance one. I still haven't had a chance to look at it, and I can hear it calling my name to relax and sip eggnog by the fire and read it....

New neighbors and starchy snowflakes

What a nice surprise yesterday when I started getting emails congratulating me on my article in Somerset Life!  I've been so busy with Sugarwings while her Daddy and my husband were out of town, that I hadn't even got the mail in yet.  So when I heard that this was out, I had to trot down to the end of the drive and take a peek in the mailbox. Yep, it was here! Now, I just need some time to curl up by the fire and read through it....

Looks like its a interesting issue, and I've glimpsed through and saw lots of friends in it too, so can't wait to have a good look!

What's keeping me so busy?  Well, things like this.  While Sugarwings is a school today, I dug out this book that was my sons' favorite when they were little. I'm going to surprise her after school with this sleepy bear in her dolly bed and a few Christmas bears in her doll house.

Years ago, we'd buy a new bear to add to the collection every year.  But since my boys have grown up, I kind of stopped getting the bears out. My Christmas palette has changed to pastels, gold, and silver.  But with the fairy grand baby 3 now and loving all things Christmas, I think she'll be very excited to see all these furry guys in red and green waiting in her doll house after school today.

My own house has more of a snowy color theme this year.  I'm glad the cheery and bright bears are finding a home in Sugarwing's room. I've missed them, and will be happy to see them out and about this year celebrating the season with us.

While the guys have been gone and its just been girl's week around here, (actually, its only on the 3rd day, but it kind of feels like a week.  Three year olds need a whole family to help with them, not just one, poor, old, Grammy by herself!!) we've gone to see Princess and the Frog (GREAT!!) and made 6 batches of fudge, plus some glittered snow flakes.

This was an easy project for the two of us.  We dipped these hand crocheted circles (made by my Great Aunt Caroline) into starch.  Sugarwings dumped most of a bottle We sprinkled glitter into the bowl of starch before dipping the snow flakes in it, and then flattened them out onto a cookie sheet.  Now that they have dried over night, I tied ribbons to them to hang some on the tree. The glitter looks better in person, than it does in the photos.

While she has been in school, I've tried to add to the shop, but really haven't got much done.  I've got two sets of these place setting markers. You can write the names on with dry erase markers, or with crayons like I did here.   I can also see them used in craft projects. Pretty, huh?

I've also made some attempts to do my own Christmas shopping, but all I seem to buy are clothes for you know who. My current obsession is that Gap commercial with all the little girls chanting "I love my comfy sweater, how cute are these boots?" and I just keep finding colorful, comfy, cute clothes for Sugarwings instead of shopping for the stuff I should be buying!

That Gap commercial just sticks in my head...

Hey, don't forget that Amy Barickman has given me this book PLUS a $25 gift certificate to download images at Vintage Workshop as a prize for my December giveaway.  I'm also including a two sweet hankies to use when you make a project from the Hankie Style  book.

Candy for breakfast

Over the weekend, we took Sugarwings to have breakfast with Santa.  Our normally exuberant pixie was a bit subdued and couldn't take her eyes off the old guy while she was participating in the craft projects offered for all the kids.  We thought that maybe, she was trying so hard to be good that she almost forgot to have fun.

She was distracted and quiet till she got her turn going to sit on his lap.

 

 
Her request from him?  A candy cane.  Come to find out, the stares all morning had been for the candy that the kids were getting from Santa, not Santa himself. All she could think about was getting her hands on a big hunk of sweetness, knowing that candy before breakfast was a big deal and she didn't really trust that she was going to get any until it was gripped tightly in her fist!

As soon as her candy cane was safely in her tiny little hands, she was all smiles, hugs, and happiness.  Back to her normal, over the top with excitement, self.

I know just how she feels, I'm usually pretty obsessed with holiday fudge! 

Also, when I've stepped into a flea market that looks especially great, I need to concentrate on getting to my favorite things before I can relax and have fun.   

I always have to do a quick double check for millinery or wallpaper if it looks possible that I'll find some!

Which is why I am so happy to see that so many of you love old wallpaper as much as I do. Man, that last batch in the Boutique went FAST!  Today, I made up 3 packs of what I already had cut, each is different, not multiples like I listed the other day, but the same papers.

I might get more cut soon, but still have gifts to wrap, (and buy!) presents to make, and all that other holiday fun to enjoy.  So, this might be it for a bit. 

The Grumpy Fairy books are restocked in the Boutique, so there are plenty of those and time to order one before Christmas if you are still doing your holiday shopping too.  Thanks again for for coming to my shop for the holidays! I'm still sending a vintage greeting card with each purchase as a thank you.

Now, I'm off to get my little fairy grand baby so we can see the new Princess and the Frog movie together. We've been waiting very impatiently for that to come out!

Just heavenly

My email is fixed!!  Weird thing, it was the clock on my computer some how set incorrectly that was messing up my messages.  Apparently, some computers thought I was some robot from the future trying to contact them and wouldn't allow my messages to go through.  I finally just picked up the phone and called AT&T, and the nice guy there fixed it in a flash. 

What a relief.  I was having a heck of a time contacting anyone.  Some of you had asked me to let you know when I listed more Heavenly Wallpaper.  Hopefully, those emails made it through.

I've only listed a very few packets, but HOPE to gather up some more this week. 

Before heading out the door to do some Christmas shopping (I'm getting a very late start this year!) I took some photos of wallpaper to list tomorrow when I have more time.  This certainly is a hectic time of year, just too much fun going on.  Last night, we went to a birthday party and Sugarwings got to play with her cousin, Pixie Pie.  This blurry photo pretty much represents the whole evening, those girls were in constant motion, and no photos of them turned out! 

Here they are jumping on the bed in Pixie Pie's cute room at her grandparent's home.

She has the best vintage pictures on the wall of her pastel room. Feel free to download and print them for your own projects, they are adorable!

See what I mean?  How sweet!

This is my favorite.  I'm going to go to the Art Center today and sign Sugarwings up for Ballet class.  So, I'll print this one to make the tag for her present that will go under the tree, her very first ballet slippers!!!  I'm so excited.  Little girls are such fun to have around!!

Jumping with JOY about the new curtains!

I love these curtains!

Right now, they are just draped over the tension rod, but I think they deserve better than that. I've got some better ideas for hanging them, later when I get time.

Today was spent decking the halls, I still haven't unpacked from Miss Frenchie's sale.  There are more photos from that event to show but I just had to post about my dream curtains first!

When Carol  and I did an article for Romantic Country, she brought similar curtains for us to use to style the photos.  I fell head over heels in love with them, and since then have been looking for some of my own.

Here is one of Carol's curtains, that we draped over a garden chair. This is the back of the chair, tied up with flowers and a vintage bag.

At the time, I didn't know that these panels were called "French netting" but I knew I wanted some.

I'm thrilled to get a set for my kitchen, plus one extra panel that went into the bedroom.  

Right now, I am surrounded by boxes of Christmas pretties and am trying to get my home all decorated for the holidays before some buddies come over tomorrow for a holiday/birthday brunch.  I'd have been ready, but had a little side track this afternoon, Sugarwings dropped by and wanted to help with the decorating project.  She's cute, but her home decor skills need work.

So, I've gotten a bit behind.  Oh well, it will get done. Whats up is up, what isn't will get shoved back into the closet to set up later.

I almost missed book club tonight to stay home and finish my hall decking after Sugarwings left with her Daddy. But then, I realized how silly that was!  My home is about my happiness, and shouldn't be about slaving away to make it perfect!  The friends coming over tomorrow will enjoy their breakfast just fine with only one Christmas tree decorated. I have a feeling that they won't even know the difference.  

So, I went to book club, had a fun evening, laughing with friends and sipping wine and now will make up some fruit salad and an egg casserole for the morning.  Then, I'll see what decorating I can finish up, and like I said, the rest of the opened boxes of decorations gets slid right back into the closet.  If I don't have a chance to get any more done, then so what? I had a beautiful time with Sugarwings, and such fun at book club. 

Those are the memories I'll keep, not the ones about how great my tablescape looked this year.

Hey, I'm not saying that pretty doesn't matter. It matters a LOT to me.  And its worth the extra time to make things nice. But- not worth stressing out about or missing out on other fun times.  So, I'll pretty up and do it with joy. When it becomes work instead of fun, that is when I know I need to step back and take a break. 

Two of my favorite words at the holiday are Joy and Merry.  Words to live by! 

I made this banner from vintage album mats, bits of lace hand chrocheted by my Great Aunt Caroline, and French alphabet cards (although, what does it matter if they are French, if they are only a letter, not a word?? Who knows??)

The rhinestone baubles I added reminded me of the letters on each card.  What do you think? In the close ups, can you see the shapes of the letters in the jeweled pieces?

OK, I'm off to make fruit salad for brunch.