Karla's Cottage

I'm a crappy little crafter today

Beth and I had a fun but frustrating craft day at her house yesterday.  Well, I guess I should speak for myself, she was on a roll and doing fine.  I, on the other hand was messing everything up, and at one point, said "I am a crappy little crafter today!" And for some reason, that gave us the giggles.  Whats a craft day without giggles?

I tried to do a St Pat's tag for my swap using a rainbow theme.  It looked like a Jamaican preschool project.

 

I gave up on the rainbow colors and stuck with what I knew I could handle. But that wasn't my only issue. Everything I did, I had to redo.  

These tags somehow ended up finished and not horrid after all, but there was a lot of ripping, replacing, and complaining while doing them.

These are for my St Pats Day Two Tag Swap.  I will extend the deadline till March 7th if you still want to get in on it.  Email me if you do!  All you need to make are two tags, and you get two other people's tags back. 

Well, hopefully. I screwed up on Phyllis's Sweet Treats and Roses Swap and sent her own tag back to her on the recipe book!!

She is in my St Pats swap, so I will make an extra tag to add for her to make up for it. 

While at Beth's I decorated these two old green bottles.  And yes, there were some issues as I worked on these too.  It simply wasn't t an easy day for me.

I was smart enough at this point, to use my text from an old book about rainbows, but not try to add rainbow colors after the tag fiasco.

I listed both of these bottles on Etsy this morning, if you are interested in either. 

The small one has buttons and a pretty little Made In Japan glass cameo in green on it too.

I had forgotten all about these cameos I had. I used to add them to charm bracelets and make earrings from them.

At one time, I had tons of them.  Now, I am down to a couple handfuls. I traded a few to Beth for some of her white, (sorted and cleaned, which is really nice!)  vintage buttons.

Notice the nut cups?  Beth wants to do a challenge- "what do you do with a nut cup?"  Of course, you can always put a nut in it, like she did.  I think that if she is going to make herself a hat from it, she should add some old millinery flowers at least.

Look at what  found! THE nicest, old wallpaper book I have ever seen. Perfect condition!  I just don't know if I can cut it up and use it, the pages are so pristine. And the book itself is giant! (and heavy)

This picture is on the inside cover, she looks pretty high fa-luting, huh? I'd say this was a high dollar wallpaper book from the looks of it, pretty classy.

And unique too, this metallic penguin paper isn't typical of what I usually see around.

Another reason to not cut into it is that the designs are all very large. Small patterns are better for collage work.  These are beautiful backgrounds, I might just save the book to use as a photo back drop.

What a lucky find!  I like flipping through it as if it were a magazine.  And the cost was reasonable, only about $20, it cost more than that to ship it! I think the seller should have used book rate, but I was so happy to get my greedy little hands on the book, I didn't care.

Speaking of spending money on whims, I need to get back to my stairway redo. Time to pickup Sugarwing's daddy so he can help  me pull off the carpet and see just how hard (and expensive) this task is going to be to complete!

Obsession trumps Phobia

Thanks so much to all of you who took the time to comment on my birdhouse decor post Monday.  I always appreciate hearing from you.

When I wrote the how-to's I knew I couldn't exactly tell anyone how to do the decorating of their bird house, that is up to an individual artist's taste. I just wanted to give you some background tips, I hope they were helpful.

The winner of this little house is Bethany.  She was chosen from comments left on that posting only.  Comments from every single post this month (including that one) count toward my February giveaway. 

I hope that Beth and I get a good turn out for our "What do you LOVE about your birdie's home?" party (otherwise known as "Bling your Birdhouse Day")on Thursday, March 27th, I can't wait to see all the pretty birdhouses out there.  To me, birdhouses are such a symbol of springtime coming.  And I am certainly ready for a shot of springtime! 

Today, I am painting my stairway.  Remember how I was entranced by the wallpaper risers I saw on a staircase in Virginia and decided I HAD to have one like that?

Of course, I decided to redo the ceiling and walls since  I am ripping out the carpet, because one redo  always leads to another.

I hired a friend to come and help today because I am too short and too afraid of heights to reach the ceiling in the stairwell, but she came down with the flu.  And being me, with my obsession, I simply couldn't wait till she was better, so I did it anyway. By myself- quaking with dizzy fear every time I had to stretch out to reach a corner of the ceiling, too impatient to wait for a nice tall helper. 

But, by using the same pale pink color on the ceiling as the walls, I didn't have to cut in with a brush- no way I could reach to do that.  And with a long handle on my roller, I was able to reach as much as I could.

I'll show some after pictures this weekend after my son helps me redo the stairs.  Now, if he comes down with the flu too, will I be able to wait?? Nope, I'll drag the power saws out and try to keep all my fingers out of the way.   

I truly hate heights and today's project was stressful.  So I took a break to get out side into the fresh air and shopped downtown a bit.  It was actually sun-shiny  and bright, no wind, no snow, no rain!!!

I found this little French Grammer book from 1927 at the Goodwill store across the street from Home Depot where I had to stop for more paint.

Then I hit two antique malls downtown Lawrence and found a bonanza of hats!

I always feel so lucky to find pink and white hats at affordable prices.  And even luckier when they have roses on them!

This beautiful bauble is missing a couple stones, but imagine it glued to a box covered in pretty vintage wallpaper, with a spray of millinery flowers over the missing stones! 

But the best thing I found today on my $50 spending spree during the  one hour break that I took from dangling over the stairwell to paint a ceiling?

A vintage Easter dress for Sugarwings!!!!

Dotted swiss dappled with rose buds, with a frilly petticoat and a matching head band for only $20 all wrapped up into a dainty little size two frilly package just meant for my fairy grand baby to look adorable in.

She might just have to wear it every time she comes over here to play, not just save it for Easter.   

How cute is she going to be in this?? And she LOVES dress up. I think she'll be excited to see this.    I certainly was!

Now, if I could just find a matching dress for Sugarwing's Cuddly Cousin, they'd be pretty cute doing their piano duets for the family.

We were having a birthday party for my neice this weekend, and these two were the evening's entertainment.  What's more fun to watch than a couple of smiling baby girls who want to put on a show?

I did some short cut cake decorating for the party. Wal-Mart, (of all places! You don't expect to find lots of cuteness there. ) had these little pink puppy cakes for $3 each.

I baked a layer cake, iced it in chocolate, plopped a puppy in the center of it, then wrote her name in white icing.

I took my new favorite snack, Strawberry Whoppers, and added some along with more white icing around the base of the cake and put the rest of the Whoppers in a dish next to a glass filled with horns.

My Sissy made these pretty, glittery pink birds for me for Christmas and I left them up for Valentines day. Then for Nicoles birthday party, and now I think they'll be up till Easter.  I'm sure I'll think of another reason to leave them up, I enjoy having them there.

I hung some party hats that matched the horns (bags of 6 for a dollar at Dollar Tree) and filled them with dried roses, then hung a couple of my hand made tussie mussies up with them. Simple and easy decorations for a simple party. 

We set out pizza toppings, small Bobboli crusts and everyone fixed their own dinner, not too much work for me at all.  I was able to relax and enjoy the show that the little ones were putting on for us over at the piano.

I love to be able to kick back and enjoy my guests and not have things too fussy!

Short cuts and tips on blinging up a birdhouse

Beth and I are having a party.  A self swapping, self linking "What do you LOVE about your Birdie's home?" party.   Details are HERE.  And we hope you can all join us and show off your own birdhouses. Either something you have made by hand, or just a favorite of yours on display in your home or gardens.

I'll be giving one of my own away today, if you leave a comment on this post, and will give a 2nd away the day of our party, Thursday March 27th.

And if you'd like to make one, and could use some tips, here are a few things I learned while decking out a few birdhouses.

First thing I noticed, was that my hands look awful in these photos.  Oh well, as  grandma,  I am getting used to things like that. Wrinkling up old skin, knobby knuckles, saggy neck.  Back to birdhouses, and away from old lady skin issues (which I could go on forever about, and you really don't want to hear).

I've bought houses in an assortment of sizes and shapes.  Some from the craft departments of Wal-Mart, Hobby Lobby and Michaels in unfinished wood or paper mache, some already painted and with cool shapes in the garden department at Hobby Lobby.

All are smaller, some mini, none made for outdoors, they are for decorative purposes only. 

The prices have ranged from 67 cents to about $5 at the most.

A minor buffing up with a sanding block will take off any rough edges.

And I discovered that the homes were much easier to decoupage onto if you don't have to worry about crevices and corners and edges.

So, I base coated all the cracks, and up under the eaves, the perching post, and the inside of the hole as well as any other spots that looked like it would be hard to cover in papers.

No reason to paint the entire piece, since most of it will be covered up.

Although, for this one, I purposely painted all of it, just so there would be some contrast for the photos I was taking of the steps.

And notice that I didn't sand the edges first? I wanted you to see the rough wood, it shows up better on the blue house, look inside the hole at the jagged edges.  A quick little twist of the sanding block inside that will knock those bits down pretty smooth.

Here is a short cut I came up with for making the houses go more quickly.  I have been making a LOT of houses, so speedy tips help me a lot.

I used glitter paint to draw lines across old sheet music. You could also use plain glue or glitter glue.

I sprinkled glitter over the lines.

Next, I used a paint brush to spread the rows of glitter out a bit flatter.

With decorative scissors, I cut narrow strips of sheet music, just perfectly sized for gluing onto the edges of the roof or around the base of a bird house.

For this house, I decided to glitter the painted roof. I used the same glitter paint that I used on the sheet music. 

It was brushed on after the paint was dry, and then I sprinkled more glitter over it while it was still wet.

After all my prep work was done, I gathered up my supplies.  I looked around to find colors and tidbits I wanted to work with. 

Go ahead and pull out extras, you are never sure how much you will end up using, but having a pile to chose from, already selected, and in the chosen palette not only saves time, but is an inspiration for the project.

You will need:

a sanding block (or sand paper)

an exacto knife (and be generous with yourself- replace the blades as needed!! It really does make a difference to have a fresh blade)

glue (I always store mine upside down so it flows better)

a Popsicle stick or something similar to burnish paper down with

scissors

goodies to add to the house

Here is a point where you might want to make a pattern. I just go ahead and use my wallpaper.  I fit it to one side of the wood at a time, bending and creasing to show myself where to snip it with the scissors.

You can also trim it with your exacto knife.

If you are making more than one birdhouse of the same design, or have a limited amount of old paper and don't want to waste any, it might be a good idea to make a pattern this way and then using the pattern to cut out your chosen papers.

I poke the perching post through the paper, then trim around it with the exacto knife. 

After the paper is cut, I liberally add glue to the house.   Attach the paper, and using my exacto knife, poke a hole into the area where I think the house's hole should be.

I then saw with the exacto knife to the edge, and around the hole to cut it out.

Wooden Popsicle sticks or coffee stirrers are great for rubbing the paper down.

Once the glue is dry, I lightly sand the edges with the sanding block again, being careful to not tear the paper. 

Now we get to the fun part.  Decorate it!  Baubles and buttons  and doodads and glitter and stripes of coordinating papers.  Old jewelry, ribbons, lace, what ever makes your bird joyous.

I have a few more houses to foof myself.  One is actually a little Swiss music/jewelry box that I got for a quarter at a garage sale.  But of course, this decopauge technique will work on all sort of different things, not just bird houses.

Another suggestion I have to offer is, that whether you use scrap booking paper, vintage papers, or whatever you decide, the papers do seem to look better with a smaller print, or an over all pattern. The smaller the house you cover, the smaller the print you should try to use.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask.  My husband is leaving to go back East and I am going to be lonely. So any question is welcome, I could use the company! 

I hope you'll make a few and join the party on the 27th!  Feel free to add this button to your blog so people will know you are participating.

I'll be adding bling kits to my Etsy shop and fill them with fun bits and pieces to work with if you need supplies to make a house. 

And remember, I will give away one of my creations to someone who comments on this posting, plus another to someone who leaves a comment on our party day.

  And if you would like to be in my St Pats tag swap, you have until March 5th to send me two tags and I will send out two tags to you from another swapper.    Email or comment to ask for details.

One thing I love about blogland, is all the holiday decor! I haven't gotten into decorating for every holiday like this since my boys were toddlers! Most years, I totally ignore St. Pats or Easter as far as setting out pretties or making things for them.

I haven't seen much about St Pats in blogworld, we have all jumped ahead to Easter.  But Easter seems early this year, so I can see why.

Speaking of Easter,   My pink bunny watercolor is finished and hanging in my studio, although hopefully not for long, I have it in my Etsy shop now.  This is an original watercolor I have added to a  vintage wallpaper base, then dooded up with some of my favorite pretties.

Have fun blinging out that birdhouse!

Edit, added on:

Here are some highlights of the $10 Cottage Collage Birdhouse Bling Kits I added to Etsy today.  More coming, no two are alike and they take a while to photograph and list!!

Keep in mind that these kits would be pretty used in many projects, not just a birdhouse, and that there is more in a kit than is needed to finish a small house.

Some Easter-y cuteness

Today, was a blingy birdhouse day, getting ready for my tutorial on Monday on how to foof up a birdie home.

But, I figured that I'd need to straighten up my work table a bit if I was going to be taking step by step pictures. That turned into a major clean up/redo, trying to make my area more efficient. It took up most of the day, but it was worth the effort, it is so nice to have a cleaned up workspace!

Here is one thing I came up with, a shopping cart full of partial rolls of vintage wallpaper, handy and easy to get to as I needed them right by my chair. 

On Monday, I don't know if my post can actually be called a "tutorial" it will be more like some helpful tips and suggestions on how I do my own birdhouses.

I guess I could have called it "Birdhouse Bling Short Cuts and how to Avoid Things that I Learned the Hard Way"

Beth and I are having a party and showing our birdhouses, kind of a
"What do you LOVE about your birdie's home" day on Thursday March 27th.

We are asking everyone to post photos of birdhouses you have fixed up and want to swap or sell,( or just keep and enjoy. )

Or, if you'd like, just show off some of your favorite birdhouses you have around your home or gardens.  Although, hopefully not all of you have gardens buried in the snow like mine is right now.

Most of the bling kits I had listed on Etsy have sold, but I have a couple left and will try to get more made up.  And if you are interested in being a part of our Bird House Bling Day, you can read the details on this post.

Sugarwings and her little cousin, Madison, are coming over tomorrow and I wanted to have a gift for the little girls.

With Easter coming up, I thought they'd look cute in matching shirts.

Michaels had some glitter and pearl paints on sale for TWENTY FIVE CENTS each!!! And I wanted to play with them, so baby girl's shirts were just perfect for experimenting on.

And it looks like the poor little child could use a new shirt!!

Actually, she had an impromptu sleep over here last night and ran out of clothes.  Her grandpa dressed her in a pair of his socks and one of my painting t-shirts while we waited for the dryer load containing some things that might fit her a bit better.

Once we had her dressed a bit more appropriately, and she went back home, I hit the studio, got it cleaned up and got a few things made.  A few birdhouses, the painted shirts, and also this piece. 

The glue is still wet, and you can see the clamps holding the vintage velvet ribbon hanger in place as it dries. 

The picture is a watercolor I did of a pink striped bunny. I mounted it on a sturdy piece of cardboard, over two really pretty wallpapers (vintage- of course!). 

I had some gorgeous old velvet ribbon in white and pink, used that, a string of pearl beads and some millinery flowers to "frame" it. 

Hopefully, I will get it listed on Etsy tomorrow.  I am ready to quit for the day now and go relax for the rest of the evening.  My husband is in town for a couple of more days, so I need to spoil him with some home cooking, not sit out here on the computer all night!

Nest-a-palooza or Nesty Etsy

More snow??? How could that be?? What about that global warming I was promised? This has been such a cold, never ending winter.

I decided to make my own spring time. I spent a day making spring themed nests and other things with birdy and fairy elements.wreath sold

A funny thing about this latest snow storm, the sun is shiny and bright between the flakes floating down. Actually, they aren't floating, they are the big, fat, splatty flakes.

So, I was surprised that the light coming in my studio window was so pretty. I took advantage of it and photographed all the things I was making and listed them on Etsy.

I don't even know how many things I have made or listed today, I am a MACHINE! Bam- one after another.

Do you ever have one of those days when everything just flows together as it should? When you seem to never run out of ideas and the work just keeps coming? I could use more days like this. 

This painted bowl is something I had made a while ago for an article in Paint magazine. (not today) It is actually a light fixture that used to be in Sugarwing's room, but we had to add a ceiling fan in there instead because the upstairs was too stuffy for a baby to sleep in. I now use the fixture as a bowl on this gazing ball stand. 

These teacup nests weren't made today either, but I listed them while I was adding all the other nesty type things to my Etsy shop. So, I can still feel productive about them, even though they were made earlier!  sold

A regular customer asked for more Peat Pot Pretties, so I made these and listed them as a hold for her. sold

Yesterday at Hobby Lobby, I bought a bag of tiny wooden eggs for 30% off of 99 cents, and painted them robin's egg blue. 

It was pretty easy to do, I mixed up the paint color, rolled the eggs in it, then rolled them in glitter while they were still wet. 

By the time I was done glittering eggs, my fingers were 10 times their normal size, and looked like big old giant Smurf hands, but then Smurfs are teeny, so that might not be a good comparison.

But not everything makes sense. Do fairies actually have eggs?  And why does my blue bird have robin's eggs?  (shoe with pink ribbons is sold)

This little painting is also something made earlier, that I finally got listed today. I added two of these rose portraits to my shop this morning. Or is it afternoon? This day is all running together at this point.  Maybe I should stop for nourishment.

roses on sheet music sold

I am so happy with my little Etsy store.  I know it is only  a "virtual" store but it feels real to me and I enjoy arranging things and adding things to it, just like I used to at the antique mall I sold from for years. Or from  the gallery gift shop I used to help run.

I just added another wallpaper folder (from the ones that Somerset Life is featuring in the Spring issue)sold

This one is still in the shop too, but the third one has sold already. (the green one has sold too)

What is that poem about sleet and snow and the post office? Anyway, I might be snowed in, but the mail arrived safely.

With gifts! Could this day get any better?  I read a few chapters in a really good book,  then had plenty of creative time, plus good light to take photos and list things to sale, I got an email from the Fabulous Fifi who might be interested in an idea I presented to her, talked on the phone to a couple of really good friends, and now presents????? 

What did I do to deserve such a good life? Plus, tomorrow, Sugarwings and I get to pick my husband up at the airport.  See, life is REALLY good.

My present was a OWOH giveaway that I won from Angie.  It comes with a delicious vanilla scent, that is just driving me crazy, it smells so good. Did I mention that I worked through lunch today?

I think I'll take a lunch break then, will have time to do a bit more work before Survivor starts. Yep, tonight is Survivor.  This day is about as perfect as a day can be!! (well, if the Office was back, it could be better, but I have no complaints today) oh, I almost forgot that Idol is on too!  Wow, this day just gets better and better.  And LOST is on , how could I forget Lost??! I will have my bottom firmly parked in front of the TV all night!

(And that is about the only time that the words "firm" and "my bottom" will ever be used in the same sentence)

And don't forget to come by on Monday for my tutorial on Birdhouse Bling!   I'll be giving away a birdhouse that day and will have directions on how to go about making your own.

I have TWO bird house bling kits still left in my ETSY shop, I will try to make up some more by Monday.

Also, it isn't too late to enter my St Pat's wap.  All you do is send 2 tags to me by March 5th so I can get them mailed out to everyone by the holiday.

Buttons, Baubles, Bottles, & Bears, plus a sick Baby

As much fun as I had out east, it is so good to be back home. But look at this, I came home to a sick baby!  She really, really, wants to try to play, but simply isn't up to it, she is droopy and worn out.

Even with a new hat for dress up and a new doll that was waiting in a package on the porch from Fluffy Flowers, Little Sugarwings just can't manage to muster up the energy to play.  We've been cuddled up watching Care Bear videos and now she is napping.

I had even more packages waiting for me when I got back from my trip.

Somerset was done photographing these vintage wallpaper folders filled with ephemera.  So, now I have them photographed and ready to list on Ebay.  These 3 will be in the next issue of Somerset Life. 

This roll of wallpaper was waiting for me too. I had a bit of an Ebay frenzy while on vacation.  I didn't have any work to do, so am afraid that I got a bit carried away with the bidding. I guess I will be expecting a porch full of packages any day now.

This isn't my favorite pattern, but it really will make a nice background for many projects. It would be hideous on someone's wall though.

The hats are some from my shopping day in Lucketts, VA. (previous post)  I am not a huge yellow fan, but I bought these for the flowers, and most of those are white. Plus, $3.50 each??? What a deal!

For  a while, I have been collecting old fabrics to make spring time slipcovers for my couch.  I got two more in the mail (Ebay again), the last two on the right.  I plan on dipping all of the materials into a tea dye to coordinate them more.

They should be gorgeous with my French book decoupaged wall behind them after they are on my sofa.

I will use an actual fiber dye in a tea stain color, so they will be washable and color safe.   The only trouble is, that I will have to face the sewing machine again.  Oh no! 

Here are the two pretty birdies in trophies that Robin gave to Beth and I.  My dilemma, was which birdie could I chose?? They are both so cute.

I went with the one with the pink roses. I simply am a sucker for any rosey buds!

Here are a few of the bottles I filled my suitcase with.  There are more still unwrapped.  I plan on filling them with vintage buttons, making labels from old wallpaper and ephemera, then tying up the necks with soft ribbon and a charm. 

This little fawn was a dollar at Lucketts.   How could I let her stay there? I knew she'd be happier at my house with some old millinery flowers as a welcoming lei around her neck.

I always decorate with china figurines of deer for Christmas, but I think she will be quite nice at Easter too. If you think about it, the fawns are born this time of year, not in December! 

These buttons were $1 a bag in Leesburg.  The simple mother of pearl ones are teeny, meant for doll clothes or baby clothes, I think. These won't be going into my button jars to sell, I'll save these to make paper doll dresses.

And look a the tiny white butterflies!!  Oh, the things that I can do with those! I can't wait to start.

But for now, I hear the baby monitor calling out for Grandmama. My poor little sick girl is up from her short nap (3rd one of the day) She is going to need some snuggling.

I prefer white furniture to the White House

I'm having a lovely time in our apartment out East. Although it is hard for me to not have anything to do.... I am used to keeping busy.  I need to set up an art studio next time I come out or I will go crazy.  I've done some shopping, some sight seeing,and I filled the freezer with ready to go meals for my husband.  I must be bored, if I want to spend the entire afternoon of Vaelntines Day baking and freezing food.

Luckily, Robin, a blogger friend, met me today to keep me company.

We met at Starbucks, and both got phone calls from our husbands to check on us, the guys were worried we were meeting up with internet predators instead of blog friends!

I made sure to get a photo of the guy behind Robin so I could show my husband and pretend that he was right.

Here he is, my new buddy, Thrifty Miss Priss.  He does look a bit shifty.  But he seemed so nice on the blog!

The REAL Robin was such fun, we ended up talking for 2 hours. She brought me the cutest nesting birdie in a trophy, I promise to get photos of it when I get home, what a perfect gift!!  She made one for my buddy, Beth too.  Beth and I are getting together on Thursday for some co-craftiness, so I'll take it to her then. In the mean time, I'll set them both on my computer where I can enjoy them and try to decide which one I can part with!!

I am in love with the antique shops around here!!!  I wished I had a truck with me instead of a camera while shopping.  This is the dining set I have been day dreaming about forever.  But it would be a bit complicated to get it back to Kansas, and my luggage is already full.

I bought a set of these little plastic plates for Sugarwings and I to play tea party with.  That is easy enough to pack.

And when I bought a few of these old blue bottles, I thought, that isn't so bad either, they'll be fine in my bags.

But then, I found more bottles.  And some paper mache buckets.  And some more bottles. Then I found even more bottles. 

I'm sure I'll figure a way to get them all home, and turn them into decorated button jars.  Yes, I am just sure I can make them fit. Somehow.

Did I mention that I also found some old hats?

This seems to be the land of prom gowns and flowered hats.  Everywhere I look, I see gorgeous, feminine, flowery things.   

The hats I bought should be fine, if smashed, I bought them mostly for the flowers, I peel them off and glue them onto other things.  And these hats I found are ENCRUSTED with flowers!

I've found so many curly-q, carved chairs too.  All of this furniture is just my style.

I need a truck!

It causes me pain to go home without this $89 table that just screams my name! I just don't find stuff this cool at these prices back home. And here I always brag about shopping in Kansas and the low prices.  Well, yes we have great prices, but our stuff is more country looking, or primitive, or traditional.

Of course, there is stuff in this style back home too, but not in the abundance that I've seen it here, or at the prices I have seen here.

Also, I came across more than one store that was predominately pink and white!

Heck, I feel like canceling my flight home and renting a U-haul and buying a load of stuff to redecorat my house.   

One thing I could take home with me, was an IDEA.  Look at these stairs!!

I have a plan to pull up the ugly carpet from my stair way, and cover each riser in a different vintage wallpaper, then paint the steps white. Trouble is, my stairs were built to be carpeted, and are very unfinished looking.  It will take lots of bondo (meant for car repairs, but great for painted furniture repair too) and sanding.  I'll have to router the edges too.  The steps at my house are plain boards, builder grade, not cool, old stairs. I now, HAVE to make them LOOK like cool old stairs.  I have a mission!

Here is another tempting piece from Lucketts.  Just a bit big for my suitcase.  Heck, I am wondering how I will make hats fit, what am I even doing thinking about buying salvage?

In the spring, Luckets has an outdoor flea market.  Oh, I will be back for that!  The outdoors is pretty cute and fun to poke through now, just picture this area filled with 60 different dealers.

What a pretty thought!

I also went to downtown Leesburg.  It was quaint and wonderful, but I didn't have much time.  A lot of the decor there is more traditional or formal like I expected this area to sell. 

And OLD.  This is a gown that might have been worn by Dolly Madison, from the looks of it! 

We ate dinner at Rivercreek Country Club over looking an extraordinary view of the Potomac while in Leesburg.  My husband had to work there for the day, I had tagged along and gone on the shopping trip while waiting for him.

We also took a train into downtown DC and looked at dinosaurs and monuments and the White House.  

But of course, to me, nothing downtown DC compared to the dining room table I saw at Lucketts!  Am I shallow?  I was defiantly feeling like Becky Bloomwood in the Shopaholic NY book, when she pretends to go on a museum tour and ducks out to shop. If I could've gotten away with it, I would have gone back to that antique mall and skipped all the dino bones.    Yep, that is shallow, alright. 

Maybe it was because it was such a chilly gray day, and I was bundled up like a cocoon to keep warm as we walked the city.  If I go back in the spring with the cherry blossoms in bloom, maybe I will get into exploring the city more.

Some how, I think I'd still prefer the white, ornate furniture to the White House!

I'm spending a lot of time blog browsing too, since I haven't got any work to do.  And Ebay browsing, which can be dangerous when you are bored and killing time!

But here is a blog that will keep you from boredom- check out Angela's pink round up for Valentines, so many pretty pink links to visit.

That is where I am going now.

Marty Jo and Karkie Jo

Happy Birthday, Mom!

She's been gone a few years now and it still seems like just yesterday.   I am always thinking of reasons to call her, and then am sad I can't pick up the phone and let her know about the latest thing going on in my life, the funny things Sugarwings just said, or just to complain about how cold it is outside.

My mom spoiled me when I was little. Spoiled me rotten. She used to make the best silver dollar pancakes and feed me breakfast in bed.

On school days.  Now who does that???? My boys were lucky to get a Pop Tart on their way out the door.

She made homemade play doh and finger paints for me, as well as sewing one Barbie dress after another for my dolls as I sat under the sewing table and played. She always had time to take the scraps from her projects and turn them into doll clothes.

Mom was a quilter and a wonderful seamstress.  I wish I had inherited some of that skill from her. 

She made this log cabin quilt for me in the 80s. Luckily, it isn't trendy and dated, it is as pretty now as it was when she first made it. I guess I have always loved these colors.

  I had a blast going through her sewing room, picking through her fabrics for just the right combos to make this quilt.  Her sewing room was the heart of her house and when she died, I could hardly bare to go in to it. I remember sitting on the  cement basement floor in there sobbing as I held onto a pile of fabrics.

That room had so much of her in it. I wish now that I had scooped up and saved more of it for myself.  I'd love to see a pile of her materials stacked up just one more time.

Of course, Mom always got carried away with projects. If she was making a quilt, she would make a bunch of pillows from the scraps. Never just one or two.

hmm, who does that remind you of?? I do take after her in a lot of ways, even if it doesn't involve sewing.

She was funny, too.   She loved to be SILLY.  There was nothing on earth she enjoyed more than being goofy with my sisters and me. 

I find myself singing the same silly made up songs to my dogs and to Sugarwings that my mom used to sing to me when I was little.  I hope that someday my kids remember me as silly and goofy and fun the way I remember my mom.

I hope they remember the little ways I spoiled them too.  And that they will cherish the things that I have made for them over the years the way I cherish hers.  I  hope they will always remember me, the way I will always remember my mom.

Moving on to happier thoughts-  I need to announce the winner of my OWOH giveaway and thank Lisa  again for her gracious idea and the time she put into it.

The winner is:

Heather of Blum Studios. 

And the winner of my one year blog anniversery/Valentine's prize is:

Jessi at Wild Rose Stamper

Thanks to everyone who commented and came by to visit.  I still have the February prize to come and all comments for the month count in it.   Also, I am giving away a couple of birdie houses.

One for the tutorial and one for the day of the party I am co-hosting with Beth.

And you still have a couple of weeks to enter my St Pats Day Two Tag Swap. All you need to do is send two Irish themed tags to me with a self addressed stamped envelope. (or put a dollar in the envelope to cover postage if that is easier for you)

And I will take two tags from two different swappers, put them in your SASE and send them back to you. 

If you will have them to me by March 5 ( Friday), I can slip them back into the mail over the weekend, so they go out on Monday. 

I am having a great time in the DC area and found the BEST antique shops!! Photos later.

A heart here and there

Of course, now that it is too late to make use of them for Valentines Day, I found a bag full of heart charms!  Some really pretty ones too.

On the other hand, when would I have had time to make enough Valentines to use all of these up? Its not like I haven't been making things every day anyway.  When would I have made something more?  Sometimes I have to just realize  that there is only so much time in the day!!

And they certainly don't rot, so I'll set them aside for next year.  Also, a heart here and there is always nice year round. Especially in my Sugarwings Scrapbooks.

She certainly has my heart!

I adore this Sugarwings Valentine that was made by the other Karla, Sugar Bear.

You know what else I love? Strawberry Malted Milk balls. How sweet and pretty they are, so tempting and pink and crunchy.

Valentine's Day is the anniversery of the day my husband adopted our boys.  We always  celebrate with a family dinner out. But this year, we had to have our bash early, due to Rich's travel schedule. So I am going to DC with him and we will have a romantic Valentine's getaway togehter, for the first time in, well, let me see, 20 years???

I will be posting from DC and will announce the winners of the OHOW giveaway as well as my one year blog anniversery drawing from our apartment out East.  I will mail the gifts when I get home next Monday.

For my anniversery (has it really been a year??) I have this large shipping tag with a sweet vintage birdie on it (in honor of my "bling your Bird House day" coming up soon)

There is also an embellished matchbox, with a rose and glitter theme, and some heart charms for the holiday.

I included the matchbox because it reminded me of one of the first swaps I was in as a blogger, Natasha's Shabby Chic Matchbox Swap.

I've loved all the swaps I have been involved with over the last year. Even though, when I first heard about swapping, I thought it was a weird thing to do. But man, try one, just one, and you are hooked forever. What is it about them that is so addictive?

If you'd like to enter my Begosh and Begorra Two Tag Swap, details can be found Here.  Please make sure I send you my address, if you have already said you'd like to be in and I didn't give you my address, will you please contact me again?  Sorry if I forgot to give it to you. 

Same with giveaways. When I first saw one a year ago on someone's blog, I wondered why on Earth they'd be giving their stuff away for no reason.  But I just had to try that once too, and hey look at me! I am the queen of giveaways. I always have at least one going at a time, usually more.

I get such joy from wrapping and sending presents.  I think I'll add another giveaway now!!

For my Bling your Birdhouse Day that I am co-hostessing with Beth, how about if I give away one of the little birdhouses I just made?

I'll give two away!!

I'll give one away on the day of the party and another on the day of the tutorial.  Dates here

It is my 50th birthday year and i have a LOT of celebrating to do! Expect more gifts from me in the future. And thanks sooooo much for the last year, it was the best. I appreciate all your visits and support.  Its nice to know that I am not just sitting here typing to myself.  Although, I'd probably do that anyway, it is hard to shut me up.

Thanks everyone! I'm glad to have all of you as my Valentines!

Begosh and Begorra and be ready for a new swap! Yep ANOTHER ONE!

I'm going to Virginia tomorrow to stay at our apartment there for a few days.  I've posted a bit ahead and they are timed  and ready to go.  I've never tried that before, but it sounds like a good idea!  There just seems to be more to photograph around here than in the bachelor pad my husband lives in part time.

I still haven't packed for the trip yet.  This photo might explain why.  Sugarwings spent the night with us and I had her till 6pm today.

We discovered a new trick- Grandmama's studio floor is perfect for chalk!

My little budding artist also discovered that if you chew up and spit out the blue chalk, it makes a great paint you can smear around on the floor with your fingers.

Sounds like something I would try to do myself.   

The fairy grand baby also helped me to make this today.  Of course,  she mostly wanted to put the blue eggs in her mouth.  I hope my swap partner doesn't mind getting eggs that have been slightly chewed on.

My partner is Heather and her blog is Jeweled Elegance, so I knew I'd need some sparklies on this nest.

I added a crown covered in jewels and glitter, a sparkly robins' egg, and some old flowers that I sprinkled with the sparklies too.

The swap is hosted by Heather at Speckled Egg.  I have NEVER gotten into one of her cool swaps in time, I was so glad to squeak into this one at the last minute, thanks, Heather!

Plus this was a quick one to put together.  Sugarwings and I made this while chasing her around the studio today testing out my supplies. I had all the elements glittered up all ready to go, all we did was glue them into place in this Johnson  Bros. tea cup.

Speaking of birds and their homes, I started a flickr group for our Birdhouse Bling Day.  (details for the swap in my previous post). 

Here is the Flickr site. It is open to the public, feel free to post birdhouse photos whenever you'd like! You don't have to write a blog to use this, its open to all.

And speaking of swaps- is anyone interested in a St Pats Tag Swap?  Just a simple quickie.

A reader, Jenny, asked me if I knew of any St Pat swaps and I hadn't seen any around, so  I asked her if she wanted to do a one on one tag swap.  Come to find out, she is a newbie and hasn't had a chance to swap yet. So I thought, we should do one and show her how!

All you need to do is make 2 tags, any size, any shape, any old way you want as long as they have a St Patrick's Day theme.  Send it to me with a self addressed, stamped envelope (make sure that your postage is covered, this might weigh more than one stamp's worth).  I'll swap them around and send you two back. 

Quick and easy, no large packages and tons of stuff involved, just send a couple, get a couple.   

Have them here by March 5th (Friday) and I'll get them out to you in time to slip under your pillow on St Pat's eve for good luck, and sweet dreams of  green beer.

Also, help yourself to any of these Irish images I scanned.  I thought I had more, hmmm. This tag thing could be harder than I thought if this is all I have to work with.

Sissy, do you have any Celtic type things you'd like to send along and share?

While I was scanning, I copied the cover of Somerset Life and sent it to Sadie Olive (who beautifully laid out my blog for me). She added this one to the list of magazines to the left.  Thanks, Sara!!

As promised, I made up some Cottage Collage Bird House Bling  Kits and listed them on Etsy for $10 each.  There are 3 left I think.

I might be able to make up a few more when I get back from DC.

I also listed a few more things, tried to stock up before I go out of town.

But I'm afraid all orders won't get mailed till after  I get back on Monday.  Then, Tuesday is my Sugarwings day and not a lot gets done when she is around!  They will be packed up that night after she leaves.  Unless you don't mind having your things slobbery and chewed on, I don't think I should let her help.

Well, no more excuses, I need to go and pack for my trip!