Karla's Cottage

Hearts

I'll be having lots of hearts and wings in my booth at Good JuJu.  This canvas has plaster texture in a heart shape with the roses painted inside. I have a few more, not sure if I got pictures. All are unique.

And remember the jewelry trees I did for Xmas? 

I loved doing that so much, I could not stop!

So, I turned my shape from a tree to a heart.

This one is a combo of the textured canvas with a button collage.  And in front you can see some of my wings.  They are made from a 1800s ledger and I swear, that book was one of my best ever purchases. I have sold rolled up pages from it, used it to line shelves, decopauged it onto table tops, backed collages with it, and now have made wings and hearts. 

And there is still some left!

I almost didn't buy it because it was not cheap. But man, that handwriting! Wow, so pretty. I am glad I went against my cheapskate instincts and bought it anyway.

I also beat out my cheap side and decided to keep these wings that my son helped form instead of selling them.

Since my booth is chocked full of wings and hearts I doubt if one set will be missed.  Heck, I’d be thrilled to have even half of the ones there sell out.

And I sure do love making them.

 

 

The Key to My Heart

 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Don’t forget that the 15th of February is one of the most magical days of the year- 50-75% off chocolates!

 

 

Listen to Your Heart, a class in Deland, FL

My dear, Special K, the divine hostess, Karen Hillman has invited me to teach a Valentine class on Saturday, Feb.8th at her Cozy Castle.  

Whenever she comes to my home, she comments on some hearts I have hanging in my dining room.  They were made during a girlfriends’ craft day at my good friend,Tami’s house. 

So we will be making a version of those.  Which makes it even more special to me. Craft projects made together with people you care about, already are infused with love, right?  

Perfect for Valentine’s Day!

My kits will include a collage sheet printed onto linen, so everyone can choose their favorite photo to add.  And faded, old, millinery blooms will in in the kit along with soft, pure silk ribbon to hang the lace covered hearts from. 

Oooh, and the lace! YUMMY!

Yes, this is the Good Stuff, all the way.  Class size and extra kits to sell will be limited due to the amount of this decadent lace that I have.  There are two vintage gowns that I am taking apart to use, and I think the previous owners were pretty petite. 

We will also be learning a quick and easy beading trick. 

I’ve salvaged some vintage curtains that used to hang in my kitchen to make tiny, little tokens to hang from the knot of silk ribbon.

Your sewing skill level can be any level for this class.  You can blow us away with your needlework, or get out a bottle of Fabric-Tac to assemble it.

I am not much of a sewer myself...

My Mom, who was a highly skilled seamstress, would be shocked to know that I am attempting to teach a class that involves needle and thread. But the main focus on this isn't the actual stitching of it, it is the foofing and decorating that is the best part.

Well, for me, the best part will be a day at the Cozy Castle with friends.  Karen is an extraordinary hostess and has a beautiful home.  I was lucky enough to teach with her there last year, and am thrilled to have a chance to say farewell.

She has sold her historic home, and will be moving this spring.  It is a such a beautiful place, I will miss it and am honored to get one last visit.

Please contact me if you’d like more info, I would love to see you there.

Thank you, dear Peeps!

The ladies who came to A Lovebird’s Song were generous in gifting each other and me, too. 

My pal, Carol made this holiday banner and it is ideal above my work table. 

There were so many caring and kind, gifts, flowers, and treats!

Thank you all, for coming to spend a day with me and for being such nice people to hang out with. 

Happy Valentine’s Day!

As I was petting Twinkle recently, a torn, dried up leaf, in the shape of a heart, fell off of her.  

I love finding unexpected, accidental hearts.   Thank you, Tinks!  Of course I’ll be your Valentine. 

Valentines on the Mantle

After spending so much time on spiffing up the studio for  A Lovebird's Song, I kind of called it in for the rest of the house.

I added vintage candy boxes to white flower pots that were already on the mantle and hung a bit of lace with some old Valentines clipped to it.

The lace had hearts on it, and the cards were the 3-D, folding kind.  

Those are so pretty, simply hanging them up made it all look special.

I did a bit more for the guest bathroom, it got some rosy curtains that used to hang in the studio at one point, and some new towels.

Well, I guess that isn't a whole lot, is it? But it was a refreshing change to get me out of a mid-winter, post Christmas, decor slump.  A small change can do big things for a room when you are cooped up inside on cold days.

 

I 

Valentine shopping bags by Maggie

My talented pal, Maggie Raguse (and Birdsong Peep), has once again, designed some adorable shopping bags for Kroger.   In our area, Dillons stores are the local Kroger franchise.  If you are looking for one of these cuties, look up what the chain is called in your area. 

Then, you’d better rush to get one, because they sell out quickly!  They are very sturdy too, I used the Christmas versions in place of paper gift bags for presents. 

 

Sprucing up in the Studio for my Galentines

While getting ready for A Lovebird's Song, I did a full on, happy new year, delve into the corners, serious cleaning.

I even washed and changed the curtains.

And rearranged some of the storage cabinets.

I went so far as to take everything off the tops of the furniture pieces, wipe it all down, and rearrange them too.

Originally, I was going to box up things to get them out of the way, and just set out some Valentine decorations.

But I got started on cleaning and just couldn't stop.  I didn't even fill a single box of stuff to get things out of the way, I took care of each item  by putting them away properly or getting rid of things I didn't want.

I even dusted branches on the ceiling.  That is a rare occurrence. 

(or should I say, a singular one?)

Afterwards, it felt so fresh and bright, I was pretty happy with myself.

The studio is basically just a workroom most of the year, and gets neglected when I am busy crafting.

I should invite people over more often, maybe I'd keep it tidier.

Because I sure am enjoying having it detailed!

Although, I have to admit, I was beyond exhausted when the party ended.  I threw myself into prepping and cleaning for days ahead, then had an emergency with an icy driveway that had me spreading numerous, 40lb bags of salt on it, out there in the dark, cold, night before everyone arrived the next day. 

And of course, I didn't have my trusty sidekicks, Terry and Guncle Randy to ease the labor load while I was teaching the projects.  

And each year, I do get a teensy bit older.... That is a very hard one to admit.  But I was feeling it!

Still, I adore doing these classes, even if I am a worn out, old lady when they end.

 

 

Food full of love, with a room full of hearts and roses

 As always, I got a bit carried away with the theme for the party....

Hearts, EVERYWHERE!

The freshly baked rolls  were baked in heart shaped muffin tins.

As were the cupcakes. But it wasn't all that clear unless you looked at the bottom of them.

Rainbow carrots were even cut into hearts. 

(That might have been the moment when I realized it had gone over the top, it took longer than I thought it would, even with Kia helping.  But it was kind of fun, even if it probably was not a good use of my time)

Of course, there were cookies cut out as hearts.

The Dove chocolates and Cadbury eggs aren't hearts, but they are "lovebird" themed.

The treat cabinet was strewn with hearts and roses from top to bottom.

Red isn't typically my color, but I do enjoy pops of it at Christmas and Valentines.

Especially when the red is rosey.

And while this calendar page on the Treat Cabinet door isn't purely Valentine's themed, it is from Jan.-Feb. and seemed to fit in perfectly.

Hearts made by Beth are hanging on the other door.

And LuWanda is dolled up in rhinestone birds on lace with a flocked wallpaper heart.

We had fruity iced tea in the Treat Cabinet, and in the kitchen, I set up a hot cocoa and hot tea station.

But to be honest, this is always here.  We like to have the ingredients we need for tea or cocoa ready to roll. And the lace hearts? Those are year round too.  I  hung them up for Valentines Day a couple years ago and couldn't bring myself to take them down.

The chair covers were a very lucky find. I was at an estate sale for a closed catering business, and these brand new, never used, pink, pretties were only $1.50 each!

I almost didn't buy them, then came to my senses.

They were exactly what I needed, right?

Beth had just given me the pink napkins that match them, and the Guncles gifted me with the plates.  Lots of sharing and love went into the table top.

Including flowers from our newest Peep, Amy.

Now that our day full  of Peeps has passed, I think I need to throw a Valentine dinner party to enjoy all the decor some more. 

I do love Holidays and all the pretty things that come with them. 

 

 

 

 

A Lovebird's Song day at the Cottage

I had the BEST day! 

My studio is always more fun when I fill it with my Peeps.

And all of the creativity that flows from them.

I provide kits that contain everything needed to finish the projects as I have made the prototype, and then I set out a few extras, and encourage the guests to bring their own items to personalize.

And it makes me happy to see what everyone comes up with.

And while there is lots of laughter during the day, it is interesting to see how serious everyone gets at times while working hard to make their pieces.

Even Albie was taking it seriously.

The little dogs love it when the room is full of people ready to hold and pet them.  They all got dressed up in their vintage kerchiefs for the occasion.

It is great to see everyone generously sharing with each other too.  Many made valentines, purchased treats or cards to fill our gift bags.

(These were from Beth and she used THE GOOD STUFF!)

I set out old fashioned, paper bags with traditional, doily hearts for everyone to add treats too.  The hearts feature quotes from Conversation Heart candy, and I made mini versions of the wing project to pin to the bags with cleft note brooches.

My contributions to the sacks  included champagne gummy bears, candy, and Peeps.  

Sugarwings gave each of the ladies one of handmade, hot glue, rose topped pencils.

Thank you to all of the attendees for spending their time with me at the cottage, for the kindness of the gifts, for the shared laughter.

What nice people!