Karla's Cottage

Practical Magic in all of us

Do you ever read Alice Hoffman?  Its been too long since I've picked up one of her books.  They always have a thread of magic woven through them,.  Some of her stories are pure magic, some just have hints of it. But the most mystical of them all is Practical Magic. 

That book was an all nighter for me. And when the movie came out,  I didn't see how it could possibly measure up, but man. I'd watch that movie over and over just to get another glimpse of the house. But the whole thing is worth watching again and again even without the eye candy.

So, when I heard that Justina and Anna were having a Practical Magic party, I had to join in!

(right now, I'm out of town, and pre-posted this- but I will be party hopping and checking out all the garden spells and pointy hats when I get home)

I've always loved the witchy side of life.  The hint of magic in all of us.  Having Sugarwings around and seeing the world through her eyes has brought out the magic and fun in my life even more.

 
   

I've also discovered as I get older that playing dress up is just as much fun as it was when I was little like Sugarwings.(This picture is not doctored!  I'm standing in front of a "light birdie" that the sun coming through a prism on the window has made)

 

At my Sissy's 60th birthday party, we all dressed up as fairies and witches and one of the highlights of the night was to dance  around the house to "Put the Lime in the Coconut" like the sisters did in Practical Magic.

 

Maybe what I love about the book and movie so much is the sisters.  Mine are my best friends, and I miss them every day.  There is power in the love of  sisters.

Magic is all around you, just waiting for you to find it.

 

Life is too short to not be hunting the magic that is waiting for you.

  


No matter how silly you might look while doing it.  

 

You don't need a crystal ball to find the kind of magic I'm talking about.

 

All you need to do is pay attention, open your eyes to the beauty around you.

 

Be light hearted.  Let yourself fly.

Show love, give love, be loved. That is the greatest magic.

 

Being creative is a way to find the magic inside yourself too.  Lose yourself in making something.

Create something to decorate your own home, as a gift, or just for the pure sparkling joy of making it.

These crowns, that I made are all from images and some techniques we provided in Romantic Gothic Ghosts. (although the crowns themselves were not taught in the classes)

I've enjoyed doing the class so much.  To me, Halloween isn't about the scary stuff, its the mysterious that I find intriguing. Practical Magic probably should have been on our list of Gothic Romances in the review Beth did in our tutorial.  That luscious house, the gorgeous gardens, the teaser of the unknown, all  evoke the feeling we wanted to purvey, and what the class is about!

Yet another reason why this blog party drew me in.  I've been knee deep in Gothic witchiness for the last few weeks!Its not too late to join us if you'd like to create some moody Halloween decor for your home too.

And please remember, that for my September giveaway, I'll be drawing a name to win one of the projects that I made for the class. All comments count.

Thanks again to Justina and Anna for coming up with a great theme and for hosting the party.

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I will be away from my desk and unable to answer comments or mail packages until Wed.  But please do leave a comment if you'd like to be entered in the September giveaway of one of my completed projects for Romantic Gothic Ghosts.

PS- I know I'll be spending  too much in Texas, so I'm having a sale in the Boutique to replenish my funds.  Type in this code:

Roundtop

and you'll get 20% off of every purchase!

Accomplishments

I got done all the things I needed to today!

1-My partner in faux finishing and I worked on the bid for the HUGE job that starts after my trip.

2-I painted this baby shirt for my niece's baby shower, since I will miss the party while on my trip.  The tiny shirt is painted with an "N" for Nebraska, but with flowers added since she is expecting a girl.

3- I painted this "simplify" sign for a reader, Kathy, who saw another one I had done and asked me to paint one for her.

Notice, the sock on the table? I didn't have a rag handy and had to pull a sock off my foot real quick for a wipe up.  It happens in art sometimes.

4- I wrote a submission for an article with the photos we worked on this week. 

5- I made a cute package to send the submission in to the editor.

6- I got all the water sprinklers in place for my son to water our new plantings while we are out of town.

7- I bought a bunch of groceries for my son to eat while we're gone.  But he doesn't eat much, he has lost 100 pounds in the last year. The guy lives on turkey sandwiches.

8- I had a BBQ with Sugarwings and her parents, and got lots of good cuddles, even though she was making green snot bubbles most of the time. I think I might be guaranteed to have a runny nose about half way through my vacation.

9-I worked on my art journal to take with me so I would have pictures of Sugarwings that I could stare at while I was missing her. This photo uses a tag I bought from Beth's Etsy shop.http://bethleintz.typepad.com/

10- I mailed my May Bucket prizes and took care of some Ebay stuff.

11- I planted all my veggies and got my garden ready for the season. The sun was going down as I finished in the garden, and the wild flowers I planted earlier at the edge of the woods were looking so pretty against the darkness of the trees behind them.

Wild roses grow up the trees and the air was filled with their scent.  Geez, now I am homesick again. It is hard to leave my flowers behind for ten days.

Tomorrow I pack, mail Ebay stuff, rent a ton of books on tape, suds up the 3 dogs and throw them all in the car once they are clean.  Even the puppy who gets carsick.  Nothing makes a trip go faster than a good book on tape and the smell of dog barf coming from the back seat.  I think I'll need a few rolls of paper towels for the trip too.

The Ideas that Friends Add

Tomorrow, I am having an egg party.  I've asked a group of friends to come by and have their kids color boiled eggs while the adults work on hollowed out ones to make keepsake eggs.  I'll have dyes, glitters, paints, collage items all out to tempt everyone to make something special.

We'd had a group that got together semi-regularly for "Craft Night" with wine and projects and it has fallen away, with everyone so busy with their own lives. I am hoping that this egg decorating party will trick them all back into the habit of  crafting together!

My buddy, Beth, http://bethleintz.typepad.com/gathering_dust/ , and I do projects together quite often.  Sharing ideas and tips with another artist can be inspirational, educational and also provides the social outlet that often, artists miss.  We all work alone so much.  Here is a ATC that I did with Beth this week, the gold on  the crown was her idea to add.  Sometimes a friend has the eye to point out just the touch you need to finish something up right!

Our Craft Night Group is a mix of different medias.  Diane is a photographer and she brought her equipment and we all learned how to take portraits of each other.  Here I am, in my paint clothes.  (most of my clothes do have paint on them).  Diane is not only a photographer, she is a really GOOD, professional photographer. I worked with her on a Romantic Homes shoot, she does beautiful work. 

Shanna is a mosaic/stained glass artist.  She shared her expertise to teach everyone mosaic principles.  Here is a bird bath I started one Craft Night, then was hooked and stayed up all night to finish.

See why I want to get the group back together?  So much to learn, so much fun to have together!