Desires of the Heart

Bring on the pansies!!!

2011-02-27T19:45:00.000-08:00

Well, this is my house, no not today, but very soon, I hope!! Today, we are socked in with heavy fog all day and another 6 inches of the white stuff on the ground!! I just can't think about it anymore. So, I am looking at my gardening books and magazines and dreaming of warmer days to come!
Soon, I will be hearing the frogs in the pond across the road, the first sign of Spring to me. I love that sound!! I am hoping my ground cover will be a bit more prolific this Spring in the Secret Garden, and there is a rumor afoot that there might actually be electricity hooked up this lovely fountain!! Wouldn't that be wonderful? I have a hard time keeping the rabbits from eating everything I plant in this area, but I keeping persevering!!

Would love to have a bunch of ferns take hold under the trees here.

Easter comes late this year, which I think will be so nice as all those cute little Easter outfits might actually be seen without the coats which cover them up so often here!!!

Thought you might enjoy seeing one of my miniature Easter baskets. They are such fun to make!!

Hope you have all had an enjoyable and restful weekend. Lets all think about all the things we want to plant. Yes, the SUN WILL come out tomorrow and Spring will arrive again.!!

Singing His Praises,

Linda

Dreaming of Spring decorating

2011-02-20T14:43:00.000-08:00

I am soooooo ready for Spring and all that comes with it!! Would you believe these are my bookcase shelves that I did last Spring and liked them so much, I just left them up all year!! It is balmy here today, a little windy and overcast, but still a pleasant change from the Artic expresses that we have had this winter in Kansas.

Love my little sheep collection and I am ready for Easter, arent I? I am way ahead of the game this time, ha. I am so pathetic. We have been working on so many projects (downstairs) in the last few months, my house (upstairs) has suffered. But, I am NOT giving up. I will keep preserving with my ideas and brain storms to make our home as welcoming as I can. It is me, I can't help myself!! I have found that working at home has made me even more of a homebody than I was before though, and that is not necessarily a good thing!

Sometimes, I have to make myself go get groceries. After I am out, I am fine and could go all day, it is just the want to. ha. I am spending too much time in my grubs with my hair undone, I guess. Any ideas from any of you who work at home?

Have been going through closets and drawers little by little as I plan to have a huge garage sale this spring. I just have WAY too much stuff and I am finding that I cannot keep it clean if I display it. That, and I am finding that my taste is changing a little and I am liking things a bit more streamlined I guess. BUT, it is NOT NEARLY AS MUCH FUN as my usual weekly trips to the Goodwill store!!! I still indulge every now and then, ha.

Hope it won't be long before we can really get out and enjoy being outdoors, planting flowers, etc.

There I go again with all my plans!! Lets see, I would like a new bed in the back yard, a brick walk, a little privacy screen for the trashcan, a little patio area off the deck, some new bushes in the back beds, more roses, a new bed in the front, a fountain in the secret garden............

Have fun with your ideas, girls, we have to keep our husbands busy so they won't be bored, right?

Singing His Praises,

Linda

Merry Christmas to all my friends!!

2010-12-25T17:42:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to everyone of you and all of your families!! I am still here even though you haven't heard from me in a while. It's been crazy in my world for several months, but I am learning to cope better with the changes in my life, I hope..... I wish each of you the most wonderful Christmas with those you love and a year ahead full of bountiful blessings from the Lord above. He is so good to me and patient with my mess-ups.

I am so grateful for a loving family and husband who is my best friend on this earth. We have a new grandbaby we are anxious to see soon. This time we have a BOY to go along with the eight little girls in our lives!! What a blessing grandchildren are!! We watched a Hallmark movie today and one of the characters said that children "force" you to live in the moment because that is how they live. I am continually striving to get better at living in the moment, aren't you?

Schedules are usually begging to be broken so the fun can begin.

I want to work at letting it be okay that I did not do everything on my expected task list every day.

I am grateful that I have a loving Heavenly Father who always has time to fit me into his schedule if I will just show up....

Hope to visit with you more in the future, dear friends.

I will close with a picture of some of the minis I made for our miniature club gift exchange. I really want to duplicate the whole thing in full size too!! There I go again.... making plans.....

Singing His Praises,

Glory to God in the Highest, Peace on Earth and good Will toward Men.

Linda

Heart of the Home

2010-10-12T10:02:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends, Welcome to my Kitchen, the "Heart of the Home". We do spend a lot of time in these rooms, don't we girls? I really enjoy my kitchen in this home. I tried to think of everything I could when we were designing it. Of course, the sky was not the limit and as there was also the BUDGET, I think we did pretty well. It certainly meets our needs and is large enough to accomodate our family when the three families are here.

We recently purchased this new breakfast area table and are really liking it! For some time, I have wanted a bar height table, but was concerned about purchasing sooooo many stools and then also finding stools that you really felt like you could sit comfortably for a length of time without a part of your anatomy going to sleep!!!! These are sooooo comfortable and the table has a place to rest your feet, so they don't go to sleep. The center has a lazy susan in it.

It is square, but the little side extensions pop up to make a 60" round table, enough for eight stools, which is what we could accomodate before with the regular table in this area. Some day, I think the possum belly cabinet will move to a different place and probably get painted. I may find something less deep to put in its place on the far wall.

I set the table for you.................I have absolutely no idea what we will be having...........how does tuna noodle casserole sound?

The breakfast area looks out to the new deck that we have so enjoyed this summer and also leads out to the smallish screened in porch. I just love it when the weather changes and I can leave the door open!! We eat out here a lot when the weather is nice, and it is just steps from the kitchen. I can even pass things through the window above the sink...... so handy!

My very old kerosene stove, I have enjoyed having this so much. I got it for $50.00!!! many years ago.

It is green and white, but looks a little bluish in this photo.

Sorry, it was suddenly overcast outside when I took this pic!

Looking through to the porch area.

I chose dark mahogany stained alder cabinets and really like them.
I would like to put some light fabric or paper in the glass-fronted cabinet where I keep most of our dishes. They would really stand out more this way.

My little coffee and beverage area. Glasses and cups are above this area.

The focal point of the kitchen is the mantel over the stove area. I designed this and my DH built it for me. It turned out just like I had hoped. I enjoy putting seasonal decorations on top.

The island is in the center and it is very large with no cooktop or sink in it on purpose. I can spread out quite a buffet on this area!

It also works just wonderful for cutting out sewing projects and hanging wallpaper!!

I chose to paint the island an off white and put beadboard on the ends to make it a little more cottage looking.

No granite tops in the budget, so I chose a limestone looking formica with a stained border and I do like it a lot.

This is the pantry area. Just a peak, as it, er, is not like I would like it to be, know what I mean? ha. We used an old door that we had been carrying around with us for years here. The chalkboard is a recent addition that I put together. Sometimes, I just hang a seasonal wreath on the door and I love that too. I did put up a grasscloth wallpaper just to simply give the room some texture and add a pleasing background.

Wish I had just a tad bit more room here on top of the cabinets.....my only real regret, not using 9 foot ceilings in this room!! The budget came into play. Oh, well, if I had more up there it would just be more to get positively "furry" wouldn't it?

I think one of my next projects will be to paint my very used and enjoyed breadbox an offwhite and add a blue and white knob. Sorry, I have no cake in the dome to serve you!!! Cake doesn't last long around here!!!!

I do have some healthy pretzels in an old jar with a bail handle on it that came from my MIL.

On around the room and back to the pantry door. I asked for a wall oven and a regular stove so that I would have two options..........................BOY, was that ever a good decision!!! It is soooooo much easier when we have company!! If I am in a real hurry when making cookies, I just use them both and am done so much more quickly!!!!

Maybe you notice my "almond fridge"..... that thing is still ticking after more than twenty years!! When we finish the basement, we will move it down there and get a new white one to go with the other applicances better...... but it really does not look that bad.

Guess you noticed that I pretty much like kind of minimal stuff on the counters, it just makes me happier. But, I can assure you, it does not ALWAYS look this way. It seems my daily quest is to get the clutter off the island and the area in front of the phone. ha. When we were raising our boys, this was a CONTINUAL battle, I'm sure y0u can all relate.

I am so thankful for my beautiful kitchen...... yes, I know that not everything is the latest and greatest, but to me it is beautiful because the Lord blessed me wtih it and I love how it all came together!!

How about an oatmeal fruit bar and a cup of coffee? Thanks for visiting me, dear friends, I enjoyed showing you around so much and now, my kitchen is really CLEAN and uncluttered. ha.

Thanks to Sheila of Note Songs for hosting such a fun party!! Be sure and check out all of the other wonderful kitchens where women love and create for their families!!

Now, I am off to be inspired by everyone else!!!

Singing His Praises,

Linda

The Splendor of Fall

2010-10-10T15:59:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends, Hope you all had a lovely weekend as we did. The weather is just getting more and more glorious here and I have to remind myself that the days will go fast and soon it will be too cold to go out and enjoy the beauty of the Creator. I try to pause now and then and have a cup of coffee on the front porch just to drink it all in. Sharing pics of my entry. It is pretty small, so I have quite a bit crammed in a tiny space, but enjoy it. This is a wreath I put together a couple of years ago. It did not sell at my annual Open House, so it became MINE. I love it hanging on our old window that looks into the family room.

I just love geraniums! I know.... a very ordinary flower, but to me a geranium just says "welcome" on the porch. These were especially beautiful this summer and somehow I managed to keep them going even through our long terrible hot spell in August! They will soon succumb as we have already had a few frosty mornings.

The view from my rocking chair on the porch and one of my favorites. In the next couple of weeks, the color will really start coming on the trees.

For most of our married life, we have not had the blessing of many trees, so it is soooooo wonderful to have a few to gaze upon!!

We worked more on the basement this weekend. We are nearing completion of a bedroom and a bathroom. It is soooooo much work and has to be fitted in around our other jobs, but we are making progress little by little. Hope to show you some pics soon. I am using an old buffet for a vanity cabinet and have decided to paint it white, DH gave me his blessing..... what a guy!! Now we have to decide on a countertop that will not break the bank.

Some of my very favorite old post cards and scripture cards. I change them out as the year goes along for the various holidays and such. Got a few new ones on a recent antiguing day.

I am so grateful for all the blessings God has given me and our family. Lately, I have been more and more mindful that I just need to be more grateful. I think the world could use more of this, don't you?

Singing His Praises,

Linda

Morning sunlight

2010-10-03T19:25:00.000-07:00

Good morning friends!! Hope you all enjoyed a fantastic Fall weekend as we did! We had an overnighter with our granddaughters and enjoyed them so much, but alas, I did not get any pictures, we just spent time together enjoying the great weather. Watched old episodes of "Get Smart" with them......too funny. I can remember when we watched this show in the 70s. It's corny, but clean if you know what I mean. We had a wiener roast Saturday evening complete with S'mores. Just simple fun time together. Then church on Sunday with everyone. Got to hear our son sing at church which is such a blessing to a mother.

I am loving the early morning sunlight coming in all the windows and decided to take a few shots. Pictures never convey the beauty of sunshine do they? We have a new kitchen table and chairs that we are really enjoying these days. I was about ready to paint my oak pressback chairs after I had already painted the bottom of our table, but was really wanting a counter height table with stools that were actually comfortable enough that you could linger in them a while if you wanted to. This set is perfect and there is even a place to put your feet so they don't go to sleep! It is square, but the little sides flip up and form a more than 60" inch circle, enough to seat 8 people! It was just what I wanted in every way. We will use the other set in the basement when we get it all finished.

A few Fall decorations, I did not go all out this year, kept it kind of simple, but I like it.

I just love how the mantel looks in the morning. I just added faux pepper berries and orange calla lillies to my usual greenery and added a wicker tray and a brown willow plate.

Hope you are all looking forward to an incredible week. Enjoy your Monday, friends.

Singing His Praises

Linda

Miniature Dress Forms

2010-09-19T17:40:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends, I have managed to work in a little creative time lately and have been working on miniature dress forms for our miniature club here in town. We each take turns leading the projects each month and it is my turn for September's meeting. So, this is what I have come up with. The bodice is made from vintage seam binding and a length of lace gathered for the skirt. I used fine needlepoint canvas to make the hat by cutting a sqaure of the canvas and wetting it. I slipped it over the "ball" of a ball peen hammer and held it with a small rubber band until it dried and trimmed it up. It turned out pretty cute I think.

This one is a little more shabby with bits and bobs of old trims and lace. I molded the form from sculpy and the stand is a cabinet knob.

Another cabinet knob, this will be the base for our project, but I painted some of them all oil rubbed bronze and left some pink so the gals would have a choice.

I can't give credit for this lovely ladies, I had used them for inspiration and they were in my picture file.

So pretty, aren't they?

I am getting better and faster with my job as medical transcriptionist, which is so much better for the creative side of my life! :-) I HAVE to HAVE
some time to create, or I get really unhappy..... I'm sure you all know what I mean.

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Till next time, hopefully soon....

Singing His Praises,

Linda

Still Playing House

2010-06-01T15:05:00.000-07:00

I know, it's been a looooooooonng time. But I am not giving up!! Still learning to balance my job and house stuff and still have some little bit of time left for my blogging. I came up with a vignette for the mantel and I REALLY LIKED IT. Just a mixture of neato stuff I have around taking up space in other places. I really have enjoyed the little girl bust. do you notice her necklace and tiara? We were sitting watching TV one evening just as the sun was starting to go down, and look what happened!! The sweet little princess is in the spotlight! It only lasted a few minutes and then it was gone. I grapped my camera to try to catch the image.

Still need to do something about the fan, don't I?

Hope you all had a great Memorial weekend. We throughly enjoyed it, but really did not do anything big. Just stayed home and worked on stuff in the yard and our NEW deck. Pictures soon to follow. Darling DH just outdid himself on this one!! It is sooooo beautiful and will be so nice to entertain outside.

I got a painting table set up in the garage and started spraying away all those great thrift store finds. I think I have about four or five boxes of miscellaneous items that need to go white or ORB. So, I got a pretty good start on it.

Most of my planting is done, may add a few more pots to the deck, but for the most part it is finished. The weather was just wonderful and it was so refreshing to just spend more time outside.

Until next time, be blessed and happy dear friends.

Singing His Praises,

Linda

Playing House

2010-03-22T13:03:00.000-07:00

I'm linking up to Marty's Table Top Tuesday party. Be sure and visit all the other beautiful collections at A Stroll Thru Life. Enjoy!

Happy Spring Dear Friends!! I have been really busy with my new job and it has not left me as much time for blogging! BooHoo, However, I AM really likeing the work, and it gives me a chance to stay home, which is perfect to me!! Anyhow, I recently changed a few things in the hallway and thought I would share them with you. This little table is a "dresser" that I found for 19.95 at Goodwill a couple years ago. The proportions were great, but it was a little too deep to fit in the areas I had in mind, so my wonderfully talented DH cut about 4 or 5 inches off the back of it and then re-attached the back and the legs. Since it has drawers, those too had to be shortened. I usually have it in the entry way, but decided to put in at the end of my long hallway to see how it would look and I really like it here. I like how the black looks with the picture too. This used to be over the mantel until I changed to my round mirror a few years ago. I need to hide the cord, don't I? Things really who up in pics, don't they? :-) The lamp also came from GW as did the umbrella basket below the table.
I am really having fun with my new hall bookcases too!! Have been doing it all in a Spring look with mostly whites. I will share more of the vignettes later, but this is one of the shelves that is at eye level. Lots of junking finds here: The stand, the little girls bust, the mirror, and see the little jar with the eggs. I picked up the lid about a year ago and knew someday I would find the perfect jar for it. Another find from GW! That place can really make my day!!

Hope Spring has finally arrived. We had 4 to 6 inches of new snow on Saturday, but by today it is mostly gone, and HALLELUYAH, THE SUN IS SHINNNNNNNNNING!!. That makes such a difference in the way I feel. This has been such a gray winter!!

Hope your day is filled with Sunshine Too!!
Singing His Praises,
Linda

Happy Valenines Day!!

2010-02-14T11:50:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentines Day everyone. Hope you all have just the best and warmest day with your"forever loves". We went out for a special lunch after church today and enjoyed a warm meal while the snow flakes are flying outside!! Winter is still raging it seems around here. But, our hearts are warm with love for each other, family,and friends. A home to keep us warm and safe. What more could we ask for? My guy built a fire and we snuggled on the couch watching the Olympics for a while.

Thought I would share with you two of my favorite V-Day postcards. Isn't the top one sweet? I didn't get my traditional Valenine heart cookies baked this year. My new job is keeping me very busy, but I am enjoying it. Just nothaving as much time for all the other things I love to do. Are there ever enough hours for all the things we WANT to do?

I did manage to get a little time to visit my favorite Goodwill store and found a few treasures. Some old Christmas tinsel trim, an old angel ornament and some decorative Christmas Carols which would be neat in a Christmas assemblage. Also a pretty blue and white teapot ( like I need more blue and white) but I could not resist. I also found some pretty glass candlesticks to make little cupcake servers.
Love the little brush Christmas tree and look at the neato Bronze picture frams with the base for baby shoes!! The shoes are gone, but I am sure I will be able to come up with something else to glue to the base.

How do you like my collection? Been playing a bit with Polyvore.com. It's really fun to put things together for no $$$!! We are in the beginning stages of finishing our basement and this is the look I am going for. We are going to do the board and batten walls in off white and maybe a light golden tan on top. I love the casual look of all these items together. There is a very cool shop here called Gallery Classic and the owner really knows how to combine rustic things with elegant things. She coined the phrase "Rustic Elegance". I like it a lot. I plan to use lots of wicker and texture. Some painted pieces maybe in the robin's egg blue with tones of brown, honey beige and sage green. I think it will be restful.

Missing you all, hope it won't be so long between posts as this last one. Praying each of you are enjoying a blessed Sunday with those you love.

Blessings, Linda

Still looking a lot like Christmas!!!

2010-01-03T15:09:00.000-08:00

Okay, so this is how our tree looked the evening of the 25th. All ready for our kids and grands to come the next day to celebrate!!!

And this my friends is how our tree looked on January 1, 2010!!!. That's right, it's just the same!! You see, we had a mysterious visitor come to our house on the evening of Christmas and it wasn't SANTA CLAUS!!! No, girls it was Mr. Stomach Flu who came calling, and he left us both sick as dogs for almost a week!! Oh my, this will be a Christmas to remember and not for good reasons!!!! I seriously thought of just packing it all away for next year. Then I could say I was all ready for Christmas of 2010 in January!! But, I guess that really wouldn't really be fair to the granddaughters. We will hopefully get together with of family next weekend.

I have already started taking down stuff and packing it away, except for the big tree, which I will leave for another week or so. It feels good to kind of start putting it all away. This Christmas arrived way before I was ready this year, and the weeks of December just seemed to fly right by. My mother always told me it would be like this and I didn't believe her!!!

I have the "urge to purge" ( maybe symptoms left from the flu)!! Ha. But It is time to go through stuff and weed out what I don't just LOVE and pass on the rest to someone else. I have never liked the word Downsize..... it sounds like I'm ready for the assisted living center or something, but I do feel that eventually the possessions of life can sometimes FEEL like they own us and weigh us down. Is anyone else wrestling with these feelings also? I mean, I really love my Junk, I really do!!! A lot of my friends cannot relate to my love of JUNK anyway, so this is difficult to describe, but I KNOW many of you can relate. I really hate to get rid of something BEFORE I've had a chance to make it into something else. The joy is in the transformation itself!!

Maybe I need to take a lesson from the birds, Just look at them. They don't have a possession in the world and they are taken care of so well, aren't they?

Isn't he so beautiful?

Still enjoying the lights on the house at night. I think the icicle lights are soooo beautiful!! We still have lots of snow and it keeps snowing little bits almost every day. So beautiful!! Was so good to get out to church this morning. We helped take down decorations there too and pack them away for another year. After lunch then went by Walmart to pick up a few items and of course I found a few Christmas items that were 75% off!!! I couldn't just walk out empty-handed could I? So, I managed to pick up a few little things here and there to add to my already overflowing decorations. I am afflicted!!! Is there any hope for me??

I pray that the New Year will bring each of us a sense of His presence inside us and guide us into how much is enough.

Blessings, Linda

Happy New Year!!!!

2010-01-01T12:52:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year dear friends!!!!! I hope this past year had been one to reflect, learn, and give thanks for, as we all look on a clean, fresh, piece of paper to write another chapter on!!

Remember when you were young and you got a clean fresh piece of pretty paper to create a work of art on in school? I was always so excited to see what I could transfer from my mind onto that piece of paper. Our lives are so much like that, we are all artists!!! First, we are inspired by a dream of something, and then we sketch it out on paper for just the right proportions before we begin to color it in with the colors we love best. We also have the "Master Creator" to help shape, mold, and color our design. Our lives are filled with these little masterpieces that we and the Father create together. Sometimes He tells us to "go ahead" and do what we want, and sometimes he whispers gently in our ears to let him take over and watch him work, and we are amazed at his handiwork, his knowledge and skill to bring out just what we dreamed of!!!

May you all know the feeling of creating with the "Father" as your teacher as you paint in the colors of your life.

It has been now nearly a year since my first post, and I have so enjoyed this journey on paper!!!. To meet so many new friends and women who "get me". I have drawn confidence from that, to know that I am not alone and not as weird as I sometimes feel in this world. So many kindred spirits that I would have never known, had it not been for taking that first step of putting it on paper. I am so grateful for Dawn at The Feathered Nest for guiding and encouraging me to try even when I didn't know what I was doing. In many ways, I still don't know what I am doing, but I sure am having a good time!!! Thank you for all of your kind comments to me to inspire and encourage me. I really appreciate each one of you who have taken the time to leave me a little comment here and there.

May we all look forward to 2010 with creative anticipation of what we will create together!!

Linda

Have yourself a merry little Christmas!!

2009-12-24T14:28:00.000-08:00

Hello my friends!! It's been a while since I've posted. I have been sooooo busy!! You see, last week I began my medical transcription intership!!. Oh my, it has been overwhelming at times, but slowly I am getting the hang of it all! There are so many new things to learn besides the acutal transcription work, but I am hanging in there!! I really do find it interesting and am glad I will be able to work from my home. I did take time out last Thursday to host our miniature club Christmas party. We had soup, salad and all the trimmings with toffee browies and frozen custard for desert. It was so good!! There were girls in the kitchen and the diningroom. Thought I would share pictures with you!!

Sorry, this picture was dark and a little blurry too!! After our lunch it was time for our annual "mini" gift exchange!! Everyone makes a miniature gift to give and exchange. This year there were some beautiful items created, so I thought I would show you some pictures of these tiny works of art!!!

First up a tiny tussie mussie and tree ornament made by Blossom. She made it for her granddaughter to bring and exchange, so Blossom made two gifts. Isn't it sooo sweet?? Blossom LOVES any thing pink!! You should see her magnificent dollhouse!!!

See the tassel?

Minature quilt and matching pillows made by Allana. She has some new quilt program on her computer and she can PRINT out these gorgeous designs!!! She said she can make a design from anything. This one is in colors of blue and yellow. Gorgeous !!

These little wreaths were made by me. A larger pine wreath in greens, reds, and ivory, and a smaller bead wreath like the ones everyone is making this year in full size.

Blossom again made this tiny silk purse with lace and tiny, tiny pink crystals and pearls. Isn't it exquisite?? Also, the tiny ornament to go on MY tree. Yes, this is the gift that I drew!!! I was thrilled!!!

A very tiny Candy - Cookie tree made by Charlsia. The cookies and candies are made of tubes of fimo clay which are formed in a design in tiny pieces. Then the larger piece is rolled out to become a very small cylinder. The design stays, and then the pieces are sliced off with a razor blade. This is the same technique that hard candy maker of old used. Soooooooo sweet!!!

Joann sculpted this tiny fairy!! She is about 5 inches long! She is made from oven-bake clay and handpainted. The wings are from a pheasant she said. Isn't she beautiful? WOW so impressive!!

This little bed was not actually a gift in the exchange, but a sample of an upcoming class taught by Allana. Isn't it so beautiful?

A tiny arbor for a winter vignette made by the talented Debbie. What wonderful addition to any dollhouse landscape this would be!!!!

Tiny chest filled with Christmas wrapping supplies and so cute!!!! Well, now I'm embarrassed!!. I made a list of who brought what but forgot to check it twice!!! so I can't give the artisan credit where credit is due. But narrowing it down, this precious little chest was made by either Carol or Lyn.

Little Miss Candy cane dressed by Joyce. She used a little doll she got at Dillards that was an ornament. Redressed her and worked on her hair. She also makes the little bears out of pipe cleaners. Her little red shoes are made from some kind of plastic tape. She is soooooo precious, isn't she?

I scanned this old postcard to share with you.

As well as this precious old card. It is tiny. Didn't scan as detailed as I would have liked, but isn't it beautifull?

May every one of you in this wonderful family of Bloggers know the perfect peace that only Jesus himself can bring to your hearts. May you make wonderful memories this Christmas with all those you love.

It is snowing like crazy here right now, so we will be having a white Christmas for sure!!! Our children, all but one family, hope to come to celebrate with us on Saturday, so that means I still have another day to "get everything done"! I am keeping food simple this year and no one will mind. We always eat way too much anyway.!!!!

Warm Christmas Blessings to you all, Linda
and many thanks to all of you for blessing my life through your blogs and comments this year.!!!

Christmas Tour

2009-12-10T20:07:00.000-08:00

Hi Friends, Today I'm joining in the Tour of Homes with the Nester!! I'm showing the remaining Christmas decorated rooms in my home. To see all the homes of the tour, click HERE!! It's so much fun to see how each one interprets CHRISTMAS in their homes using the talents and creative gifts given to us all.

I have always loved Christmas for the reason that it focuses our attention on the great gift the Heavenly Father sent us on that dark night in a little stable, so ordinary and yet so extraordinary in the way he chose to bring Jesus and the salvation he brought to a world without hope. Today he comes and takes up residence INSIDE each of us who invite him in. There is always room, because without HIM there is a "space" that only He can fill.

The world needs Him more now than ever before, and yet He waits patiently and quietly for the doors to be opened. Praying that the Lord will speak to your heart in a still and quiet voice to tell you that He loves you more than you could ever imagine.

And now, on with the tour!!

This picture is in the guest bath. It is actually a "framed" gift bag. I loved the Santa and also the monkey, so I thought why could I not frame it? You see, I have this little affection for monkeys....... I know, I know, it's weird, I've just always like them.

This is the window in the entry. It is clear, not a mirror. Rather than a solid wall, we had an old window frame built in to let in light and add character. I have vintage Shiny Brites hung on the garland. The iron piece hangs on the other side.

An old wash bowl filled with old looking ornaments in silver, gold and white on the diningroom table.

I keep thinking I want to work in some red into this room also, so I put a few balls on the sideboard. What do you think?? It might look more country French with the 3 primary colors. I don't know. I like just the golds, whites, silvers, and blue too!!

Does anyone else every wish you have several houses to play in? Sounds silly I know!! These days, I can barely get the one house in shape!!

This is the little fake dormer over the diningroom. I have lace curtains to eventually hang on the window, just haven't yet asked DH if he would go up the ladder and do that for me yet.
For Christmas I have a lighted tree on the table, the rest of the year, a lamp.

My fontanini nativity set. I think the pieces and the colors are so beautiful!! A dear friend gave me some of her pieces when she had to downsize recently, so now I will treasure them in my home for years to come and they are a precious reminder of her.

These are my "star" trees. I really enjoy them and the way they sparkle and shimmer in the lights!!. I think next year, I want to hang some stars from the light fixture also.

The master bedroom, sorry I forgot to pick up the camera cap!! Just have a few extra touches of Christmas in this room. The biggest piece is my "angel tree". I have collected angels for so many years. Colors are mostly pinks and creams. It's so beautiful to lie in bed and enjoy the lights and the glow.

This tree is in my art studio and holds special momentos from the past. Old pieces of lace and crocheted work, dolls, and things from my childhood. See the baby shoe? It was mine.

The little green tatted basket was a sweet gift from my Aunt Jo. She does such beautiful work!!
I love the porcelain dollhead with the real fur hat and the angel that is very old.

The blue beads were the only gift I ever received from my paternal grandmother. The rhinestone bracelet I received from my parents for 8th grade graduation. The baby hairbrush was mine.

Pieces of jewelry and other special things I have received thru the years, another tatted piece from Aunt Jo. Sorry about the glare on the mirror ornament!

Well, hope you enjoyed seeing the rest of the house. I look forward to seeing all the other great homes on the tour!!! Many thanks to the Nester for hosting this fun blog party!! She is a daily read for sure!!

Warm Christmas Blessings, Linda

Home for the Holidays

2009-12-09T16:44:00.000-08:00

Hi Girls!! Today I am joining in the fun with Rhoda at Southern Hospitality blog.com to share my Home for the Holidays photos of my home wearing it's Christmas attire. I will show you pictures of my kitchen and family room today. Please click HERE to see all the other great decorating ideas to gain inspiration from!

Also, I am linking to Julia's Hooked on Holiday houses tour. Go and check out all the other holiday homes HERE!!

This is my kitchen. I have the stove mantel decorated with apothacary jars and Christmas trees. The jars are filled with my collection of vintage "Shiny Brites". I love them and pick them up whenever I can get them for a good price.There is a little glare in this photo. We had 6 inches of snow on the ground this morning and it was really bright when I took this picture!!

Again, this was taken in the early morning and it creates a lot of shadows that I don't particularly like but it is what it is. My little "feather looking tree" is filled with vintage ornaments. It is acutally a fibre optic tree with a wheel so it changes colors also. I have a string of little lights on it as well. To get the layered effect, I simply cut out the branches I did not want with wire cutters.

Oops, I forgot to turn it on for the picture. Obviously I took this photo before the snow came!!

I have quite a Santa collection and choose to display all my small to medium sized ones in this little cupboard. I have kind of a fruit theme in my kitchen so the garland has beaded fruit in it.

This is on the coffee table in the family room. I just put a wreath on the table and arranged unbreakable ornaments in it. The little batting Santa sits in a hurricane vase.

The first Santa I ever made.

Over the piano, I made the wreath to coordinate with the garland on the fireplace mantel. See the cute monkeys? They like to sing Christmas carols around the piano!

This photo has some glare too, sorry it just didn't take very well.

The tree, I love how it turned out. Takes a while to get all the ornaments on it but it is worth it. Not too impressed with the prelit part. We've already had to cut out several strings that burned out. So, I'm back to stringing lights and I don't believe you can have too many lights on a tree. The more the better is my motto!!

The other side of the room. I recently moved this curio secretary in here because it had been in the hall niche where we just added to bookcases. I think it works okay here.

Hope you enjoyed these two rooms. I will be sharing more next week. I'm anxious to see everything the other bloggers have to share. Have a great and wonderful day!!

Blessings,

Linda

Here Comes Santa Claus

2009-12-08T19:02:00.001-08:00

I am linking up to Susan at Thoughts from over the Rainbow for her Deck the Halls Tuesday blog party!! See the other displays HERE.

Hi Friends!! We are all so busy Christmasing our houses aren't we? I love how my house looks at Christmas, so warm and cosy and I have always had a special feeling for Santa Claus or St. Nickolas. I believe he represents a "spirit of giving" and the love of children. St. Nick was a real person who lived in Turkey and was a bishop in the Catholic church. He was orphaned at an early age and used his money to give to poor children and those in need.
As I said in my last post, I started making Santas many years ago and they have evolved through the years. This Santa is one of my latter ones, pardon the brightness, I used a flash for this picture a few years ago, and I cannot take another as he went to a home in another state. He was custom created for a special family to represent them and all that they hold dear. By the time I get one done, it is hard to let him go!!, but I love the process of making these kind old gentlemen come to life!!

This Santa went to an LSU fan among other personal references. All done in purple and gold.

This Santa lives with me!! I have 2 new bookcases in the hall to display all my Santas and have been having fun filling it up!! I think I'm going to have to pare down my collection though. I ran out of space for them all!!

Since I also do miniatures, I had to make a tiny display for all my mini Santas. There are about 200 or so, it's been a while since I have taken the time to count them all!! Many are handmade, some just repainted, and some are tiny Hallmark ornaments that were the perfect size.

The" gift box" is plexiglass on 2 sides and the lid and front can be removed. There is also a light inside ~ it's one of the favorite things I have made.

This is my new bookcase!! It's actually 2 (purchased at Walmart) cases that were the perfect size to fit in this niche we had in the hallway. We already had the beadboard cupboard beneath them, so we just painted everything white and put beadboard on the backs of the cases instead of using the cardboard backing that came with them. I love how it turned out! and and looking forward to seasonal displays all year as well as a great place for family pictures. I plan to store games and such in the base cabinet for the grandchildren to have easy access.

See the picture of the old gentleman with the pipe? I recently found this picture at the Goodwill Store!! I was so excited. Doesn't he look like Santa??

The only problem is one of lighting. The hallway has two fixtures and the bookcases are between them, so I think we will try to get some kind of a track fixture that doesn't look too contemporary so we can aim little spotlights on the bookcase.

To take these pictures, I put a table lamp on the opposite side of the hall on a table and it cast too many shadow, but you get the idea, not to mention that it snowed here all day and so there wasn't much natural light in the house. But it did put me in the Christmas spirit to finish up my decorating and do some baking which is a good thing!!!

Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedules to visit!! I wish for each of you dear friends a wonderful CHRISTmas season!!

Blessings to each of you, Linda

A few of my Favorite Things

2009-12-04T09:21:00.000-08:00

Hi Friends!! I thought I would do a little Show and Tell today of a few of my favorite Christmas decorations and ornaments. I am linking to Cindy at My romantic home for her Show and Tell Friday. Be sure and check out all the other enteries too!

Above is the first Santa I made many years ago. I took a class at a local quilt shop from a doll artist and learned to sculpt and make the armature for the Santa. He is made from Super Sculpey, painted and dressed in antique fabrics and furs. I feel my skills have really improved since this one, but he will always be very special to me.
I also put together a sleigh full of toys, some of which I made and others were repainted.

One of my favorite ornaments. I see it needs a touch-up of paint.

I have collected angels for many years, and this one will always be a favorite as it came from my good friend Gail who passed away from cancer about 3 years ago. She gave me this beautiful angel for my tree right after she was diagnosed. I miss her very much.

The little "wax" angel in the background is one of my favs. I picked it up many years ago at a sale or something. I have never seen one like it, obviously handmade I think, with mohair wig and pearl strand for her halo. She is so delicately painted. The angel in front is made from a purchased angel head and shoulder and a long tassel for her skirt. The bodice is made from wired ribbon.

And this is "Willie" our yellow and white cat of some 15 years. He loves it under the Christmas tree with all the twinkly lights. We always think he is ready for Christmas when it arrives. ha.

Well, that's just a few things to show you. I will be joining some of the Christmas tours in the next few weeks to show you more. I'm almost done!!

I am soooooo excited! I have just passed my medical transcription finals and will now be moving into an internship position. There is still much to learn, but I really do enjoy it and find it interesting and best of all I can work from home. There is no where I would rather be.

Hope you all have a good Friday and a wonderful weekend.

Blessing, Linda

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!

2009-11-23T20:43:00.000-08:00

Praying that each of you has a happy and wonderfully "thankful" Thanksgiving with your families and loved ones. All our children and grandchildren will be with us to celebrate God's goodness to us as we love and encourage each other. I have been so busy with my school work that I have had little time to blog lately. But, I am ALMOST DONE!!!!. Then I will begin an internship program for a couple of months before employment. I am thankful that this old cerebelum (brain) of mine has been able to learn some new things!! ha.

Doesn't this turkey look appetizing?? Well, not really, but I can assure you it is delicious!! My DH smoked our turkey last weekend and cut it all off to freeze for Thursday. I did not want to spend my afternoon on Thursday "picking the turkey"!! I have broth saved for the gravy and I think it will be easy to put it all together.

It's beginning to look a lot like.............

Christmas!!!! Yes, I have a little bit of a head start with the diningroom Christmas trees. They are mostly decorated with stars I have collected through the years. I always add a few new ones every year. To finish, I add cobalt blue bulbs to tie in with all the blue and white in the diningroom.

A peak!! I will show you more later!! May all of you have a wonderful time during this special holiday in our country. I'm so thankful that we decided many years ago that a special day dedicated to "the giving of Thanks" was needed!!! We can take nothing for granted. We must concentrate on what we HAVE and not on what we DON'T HAVE!! And.................we have sooooo much, don't we?

Blessings and Love to each of you, Linda

This and That

2009-10-31T13:02:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends, Sorry I've been away so long. Several things have been the reason, number 1, my camera has been in the shop being repaired after I dropped it, and it took a while to get back but it seems to be working fine now, which makes me very happy! Then secondly, I have been very busy with my online Medical Transcription course. I am now at the end of all the curriculum and am working on my final exams. I really like the typing and I find the reports very interesting as I have always been very interested in medical things. It is challenging work but so far so good. I haven't had as much time to play around with decorating and art things as I would like, but this I think is a good anwer to wanting to earn some extra money and yet wanting to be at home. I'm excited about it!

Do you like my little black boxes? Aren't they cute? I found them at the GW a few weeks ago. Not sure just what I'll put in them, I guess a little of this and a little of that!! he, he.

Veterans day is coming up and I found this really neat flag case at Michaels this summer. Since we lost my father-in-law last January, I thought this would be a nice gift for my husband to put his Dad's flag and some of his medals, awards, ribbons, etc. And it also has a place for a 4x6 picture! This is such a great display I think, and my husband if very proud of it. It will hang in his office.

This year has gone by so fast, it makes my head spin, and Thanksgiving will be here before we know it!! I always feel a little conflicted about Thanksgiving, as sometimes I feel the need to go ahead and start putting up my Christmas decorations (BECAUSE THERE ARE SO MANY OF THEM) to get a head start on December which always seems to end up with me thinking that if I just had ONE more week, I would be ready. Do you all do that? I'm going to try and get some things done ahead, cooking, wrapping and such. But then I say that every year!

One more thing, I went to the Goodwill last week and Guess What? It was CLOSED because of mercury contamination indefinitely!! Wow!!. Do you suppose it was one of those new CFL bulbs that got broken? I've heard some bad rumors about Haz-Mat teams being called to clean up after those things. I do not like the light they give off AT ALL!! So, guess who is hoarding light bulbs? I buy them everytime I go to Walmart and I've noticed that the cheaper ones are getting harder to find on the shelf. Four bulbs for $.77 is way cheaper than 4 for $7.50 or more, and from what I've heard they don't last quite as long as they are saying. Oh well, just thought I'd mention it. Let me know what you all think.

Hope you all have a very happy and safe Halloween. I have made Chili and Apple Crisp today, as our kids are coming over to celebrate birthdays.

Blessings, Linda

Fall decorations

2009-10-01T15:19:00.000-07:00

Hi friends, Today I'm joining the blog party at Rhoda's Southern Hospitalityblog.com to show you what I spent my day doing. It was a fun and relaxing way to spend a beautiful fall day. I had all the windows open. There is a cool breeze and the leaves are falling. Just a generally good day. If you want to see all the other blogs participating in the party just click here.

This is my family room mantel. Things changed here were the greenery with berries in the two vases. (I really need to to something about that ceiling fan!) Play like you don't see the dated globes, okay?

Added some beaded pumpkins here and a brown willow plate. I have had two of them for years, I never see them anywhere else. They must be rare.

A close up of some items on my buffet in the dining room. The fall frame holds a framed greeting card I have had for years. It has such a beautiful verse!!

This is the first thing you see when you step inside the door. I found the window at a garage sale before we built the house. Since our entry is small I wanted to use it to open up the space. The little tree is a Christmas clearance item from Michaels that I decorated for Fall.

The dining table holds two new cage lantern things I just recently found at Hobby Lobby for $10.00. I love the lanterns that are so popular right now, but they are pricey. With these, I just put hurricane vases inside to hold the candle or any other item I want to use inside. At Christmas, they will be pretty with "snow" and Santas or angel figures. I put the vases on top of two blue and white saucers to add some color. Then arranged a "Berry vine" garland around them. They are sitting on my thrifted gold chenille afghan.

Various items arranged on the buffet over one of those sparkly netting garland things used for Christmas trees and such. My three tiered stand just has little pieces of floral materials, leaves, flowers and I tucked in a couple of small pieces of blue willow.

A closer look.

Do you recognize this weed? It grows prolificly along the road sides and empty lots here in Kansas. It's called curley dock.. If you cut it when it's just beginning to turn a light brownish pink color from green, it will stay that way. It ultimately turns dark brown so, you have to get it around the first part of June. It's a great filler to use for arrangements, wreaths, or just by itself like here.

Over the kitchen stove, I may put some apothecary jars up here also with maybe hedge balls or dried Sumac berries.

The front door, I found a great buy on these Mums yesterday and they looked so healthy. I tucked in brances of bittersweet cut from our property and also some of those great looking hedge apples. Do any of you use these in your fall decorating? They are such a pretty color.

Do you see the hedge apples?

Kind of strange looking, Huh? But they do look great with all the other colors of Fall and at least on our property, they are EVERYWHERE!!!

Happy Fall to all of you. May you enjoy every minute of this glorious season as it goes by sooo fast!!! Thanks for visiting me today!! Blessings, Linda

Mom's kitchen renovation ...

2009-09-26T15:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, so this picture is obviously NOT a kitchen renovation picture. You must indulge me a little, as it wasn't all work and no play, we did have a day of play time with our kids and grandchildren. Isn't she precious? She just loves this kitty! She's just shy of 9 months old.
Grandpa and the other girls had fun planting a tree in the front yard as a surprise for Mom and Dad when they came home from an all afternoon conference they attended. They were so excited. We had already planned to buy a tree for the kids and the girls insisted that we must have flowers and mulch as well!! My creative tendencies must be passing through! Ha.

Okay, girls what do you think of the new kitchen. Isn't it great? Oh, I'm sorry, these MUST be the BEFORE PICTURES!

The whole kitchen measures about 10x10, so it is pretty tight. I grew up in this kitchen and it holds so many good memories for me. My dad did everything himself, cabinets, countertops, flooring. He had to always look for ways to save money. I love that about him. He was industrious and learned how to do it yourself, before DIY was a buzzword.

My Mom has been widowed now for almost 30 years and has managed to continue living by herself and making do. She has worked hard to raise 4 kids on a modest income, gardening and canning and sewing our clothes. We never felt like we needed anything and had a rich life. She is now 85 and as you can imagine, has accumulated a lot of stuff. We are slowing trying to go through some of the things and weed out a bit.

We replaced the old worn mirror with a cute one I found at Hobby Lobby and it is the perfect size. Beadboard was installed on the backsplash and painted in Frozen Pond Behr's paint and primer in one. She loves her bird figurines so we kept those close and added a few pieces of colored glassware.

The microwave has always been on the countertop, so we made a shelf for it over the stove. I think we got it too high, so next trip, we will move it down a couple of inches. I plan to paint the cord white so it doesn't show so much and anchor it to the side of the wall bracket.

This area will eventually have a banquette built in on both walls, we just ran out of time and the next step will be laying down the new oak laminate floor. Then the banquette will be last. It will be finished out in the beadboard also. But for right now, this will work just fine. We convinced her to take the leaf out of the table as the space is just too small. I think when the benches are built she will be able to get more people around this 48" table than she thinks.

We convinced her to turn the Fridge and we put in a new 36" base cabinet beside it. The cabs my Dad had built on this side were only about 12" inches deep. This side of the room looks very different, but it has really opened up the room. I am making a new window valance for it with the fabric I showed you in the previous post. I realize the accessories look spare, but believe me for now this is a GOOD thing.

Back on the other side of the room, The new countertops and sink have made such a difference and the painted cabinets make the room soooo much brighter!! My brother and sister have helped with all this financially and physically for which we are thankful. It has been a pretty major project to do on a limited budget and small increments of time, but I am praying it has been worthwhile. Sometimes it is really hard to know how to help an aging parent. I have many frustrations in this area, but I try to just keep giving it all to God to work it out and to work through all of us. I'm sure many of you can relate. When we get EVERYTHING done, I will post pictures again. Thank you for so manys sweet comments about this endeavor. I wish you all blessings and a beautiful Sunday. Linda

Fun Stuff for Mom's kitchen

2009-09-17T11:17:00.000-07:00

Hello my friends! Today I thought I would show you some of the "Fun Stuff" for my mom's renovated kitchen. I've been combing the thrift stores for little items that would bring a bright touch to her little kitchen and I'm excited to see it all come together. We are leaving tomorrow to go for several days of work. We have a new laminate floor to put down over the old asphalt tiles. Plan to install beadboard paneling about 3/4ths up the wall. We will turn the fridge and add a new cabinet beside it. Paint the walls, (not sure if this part will happen this trip, but I'm hoping that we can. There is wallpaper to remove. Then lastly we hope to built in a banquette for seating. I think we'll be using a different table that will fit the size better. I'm sooooo anxious to show that finished result!! but I have to be patient, so here is some of the fun stuff I have collected to pretty it up.
I found the bread box at the thrift store and painted it a fun limey green. The 2 white cannisters came from the Goodwill and I got them for $3.00. The 4 perfectly matching blue coffee mugs will go great with the new wall color-- a dusty greenish blue. The striped fabric will cover the cushions for the bench seat. I found the yellow goblet and the soap dispenser at the goodwill also. each was .75. The striped placemats are from Pier I and I had to pay full price for them, but they were still a good price at $2.00 each. I found the "There's no place like home" sign at Hob Lobby on half-price and also the 3 little pictures which have all the colors we are using.

Striped fabric perfect colors was from Joanns at 60% off.

This floral will be used to make a window topper of some sort. Not sure yet just what style it will be. The color scheme is cream, the greenish blue color "Frozen Pond" Behr primer and paint in one , Yeah!! and the depression glass light green with touches of yellow. I think it will be so cheerful for her. She has needed this update a very long time. I just hope she likes it! So that's what I've been up to painting cabinets and such and redoing my thrift store finds. Oh also I am working hard at becoming a Medical Transcriptionist. It's been hard, but I think I'm making progress. I am taking an online course and when finished I hope to be able to work from home--my favorite place to be. Hope you all have a good weekend. I'll have more pictures when we get back. Thank you all for your kind comments. They mean so much to me. I enjoy all your blogs so much and hope to have more time to visit you all soon. I think I am figuring out more about blogging little by little. I send you blessings for home and family. Linda

September song

2009-09-12T19:10:00.000-07:00

Hi friends, It's been a few days since I've posted. Lots going on and the days just seem to flitter by, don't they? I really find it hard to believe that September is already here!. The leaves are just starting to yellow out a bit and some are falling already, but basically everything still looks beautiful, since we have had such an unusually cool and wet summer. I love the view from our front door. Never get tired of just sitting on the porch and admiring all that the Lord has made.

I have come down with a nasty case of Poison Ivy, ugghhhhhhhh!! It seems to be spreading, so I will most likely have to get something from the doctor next week. I've been working on a few projects I hope to show you soon. Last evening we got to get a first look at our new niece or maybe it's great niece, I'm not sure, but I am little Olivia's great aunt and proud to be so. She is so tiny even though she was well over 8 lbs. Isn't she cute?

She couln't stay awake very long....... back to baby dreams. So sweet. Hope you are all having a good weekend. I send you blessings, Linda

Kitchen Renovation in progress

2009-08-27T18:02:00.000-07:00

This is the result of several long weekends at my Mom's house. She has needed a kitchen re-do for many years and we finally decided to just START! The cabinets were made by my Dad in the early 50s and were built to last. However, through the years, styles have changed and things were looking a little depressing, don't you think?

. Since the cabinets have such sentimental value to the family, we decided also because of a low budget, to add trim to the doors and paint them all. This took some persuading, but finally she agreed to let us start the process. My DH cut strips of 1/4" MDF and put on each door to resemble a shaker style. Then they were all painted. We live about 2-1/2 hrs away, so every time we've been to see her recently, we brought home doors or drawers to work on. Finally we have them all complete on this side of the. room.Our task this last weekend was to take out the countertop which had been covered with red lineoleum and metal trim. Very fashionable in 1954!!! and replace it with a stock formica countertop and add a new sink. It was a task, but went very well.

We then added a backsplash of beadboard which will travel all the way around the room.

Several layers of wallpaper need to be removed so we can paint the top third a pretty robin's egg blue-green color. The wallpaper is my sister's job. My two brothers will be removing cabinets on the other side of the room to make way for turning the fridge and building a banquette for dining. Also a new laminate floor is waiting to be laid down over the old gray floor tiles. So, several more trips to go before it's all done, but I thought I'd show you a glimpse of the project. It's amazing what just painting the cabinets has done to make the room a happier place to be.

There is always SOMETHING that can be done to give a room a new look and it doesn't always have to cost a lot. We purchased the drawer and door pulls in oil rubbed bronze at Walmart and they look very smart! Hope to show you more photos soon. Everyone have great weekend. We are having all our kids and grandchildren here on Saturday to send off our youngest son and daughter in love to Louisiana. I dread it, but they must go where the job takes them at this point. I just wish they didn't have to take the little 2 yr. old with them!!!!! ha. Blessings my friends, Linda

Guest room favorites

2009-08-19T13:52:00.000-07:00

Hi friends, Sorry I've been away for a few days. A lot has been going in my life. I am currently taking an online course for Medical Transcription. It is requiring a lot of time and energies. So much to learn. My "playing" is limited it seems. I really think I will enjoy it once I really get it down. My "learner" is a bit out of practice, ha. I took these pics the other day, when I was playing with my camera. Oh, and I also DROPPED my camera from a step ladder I was trying to go up! Haven't taken it in yet, but it seems to be working, I am just not able to "see" if I am focusing. Not sure what can be done, but needless to say, I am very upset with myself! This picture is of an old dresser we have in the guest room, I refinished it many years ago and bought it at a garage sale for $25.00. The lady told me it came to the state on a covered wagon. It is really pretty. The mirror was missing, and I never replaced it, so I have just hung prints and mottos inside the frame. I rather like it this way. I really love the old "cottage" prints with the thatched roofs.

This little wall cabinet sits on top of a chest, I purchased it at Hobby Lobby, but it has a very old look. It is sitting on top of a chest of drawers, also from a garage sale. I faux finished the top to look like marble as the veneer on top was ruined. This is a great way to salvage a piece like this.

This mirror came from Hobby Lobby and is hanging in the guest bathroom. I love the black color. We put black and white checkerboard tiles in this room. I like the way it turned out. We put a sink top on an old buffet to use it this room. Sorry no picture of it. Maybe later.

Looks like summer is nearly over and time for all our granddaughters to head back to school, I didn't have the quality time I usually have with them this summer because of my schooling. They are all growing up so fast, and our youngest son and daughter-in-love are in the process of moving 3 states away!! I am really bummed about that! But these days they must go where the job takes them. Hope you are all having a good week and enjoying the remaining days of summer. I send you all blessings, Linda

Sunshine in the Morning

2009-08-07T09:37:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday everyone! I have been pretty busy doing other things beside creating, so I am just going to show you more pictures of our home. This is the master bedroom and it is so pretty in the morning! Even better in the winter, when the sun comes in at a lower angle. We have a king-sized mattress on a queen-size bed, Yes you can do that. We just put the bed on a hollywood frame and fastened the headboard and footboard to that. And I don't think it looks bad at all. The walls are two colors of scarlet red, one brighter and one darker. The brighter color went on first and the other color (with glaze added) was rolled on and ragged off. Old baby diapers work great for this! I finally found a comforter I liked and have it on now, but alot of the time I use a beautiful king-sized hand crocheted spread that my mother (bless her) made for me. It is a treasure. The curtain panels are Waverly and I bought them way before we even started on the house because I loved the colors and I love flowers. They have a vintage look I think. I decided to combine them with bamboo shades from Target.
Our three daughter-in-laws hold a prime place on the wall on my side of the bed.

This is on around the room to the right. A cozy reading spot. The wicker chair is very old, but in great shape. I found the needlepoint cat at a flea market and made it into a pillow.

I'm looking for the perfect mirror to go here. Probably round. The dresser had an attached mirror, but I took it off because I thought it looked too country.
The tall glass and brass box hold favorite pieces of jewelry, so I can see them all the time. I used the base from a silverplate chafing dish to elevate a silver tray to hold various pretty things. All of this sits on another silver tray.

The other side of the bed. I made the memory box after our 25th wedding anniverysary reception. On the wall, a favorite Sandy Lynam Clough print.

Okay, this area needs work. Ha. There's a little dust inside. Mostly it holds books, pictures and the small TV. I have thought about painting or papering the inside to make it pop more.
Well that's it. Hope you all have a great weekend. Summer is fleeting by! It is hot here this week, we have been spoiled by all the previous cool July! Hope to have three of our granddaughters here next week before they start school.
Blessings to you all,

Linda

Family Room pictures and an award

2009-07-30T14:58:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends! Hope you are all having a good week. I've not been too ambitious around the house. I've been studying for a big test I will have soon. More about that later. Thought I would show you a few pictures of our Family Room. This is our upright piano. When we had the house built, we designed a nitch for it to fit in and it worked out well. Then I found this really pretty mirror at Kirklands, that was perfect to go over it.
See how the mirror above the couch goes so well with the topiary prints I found at Kirkland's? I really like the way this turned out. The wall cone is a floral piece I made. Our coffee table is a garage sale find. It had broken and bubbled veneer on it. I just poured boiling water on it and we scraped it all off to reveal beautiful rustic oak. It really holds up to rought treatment and our little granddaughters love to play and eat around it.

Our mantel was a find at a building supply store that was being discontinued. It was really marked down and fit our dimensions perfectly. We stuffed it in our van and hauled it home from Bentonville, Ark. The only problem was that I had wanted a white mantel, but everything else about it was perfect. My husband said he wouldn't mind it I painted it, but so far that has not happened. Not sure what to do. I like the way it looks this way too. I love the little lamps that I found years ago at K-mart and I change out the florals seasonally.

I was recently given the Kreative Blogger award by Pamela at Lady Pamela's Cottage!! She has a wonderfully beautiful blog and you should visit her!Thank you Pamela for this honor!! The award is supposed to carry with it the response of "7 ways I love to be creative". I had to think about this a little bit, but here is what I came up with:

1. I love to decorate!! One of my passions has always been to make my home a sanctuary for myself and my family. Having raised three sons, this was not always an easy task, but I like to think that I had an influence in them in making their homes warm and inviting also. I have never had a big budget to work with when decorating, so I learned to shop at garage sales and thrift stores early on in my life. (Now, it is my very favorite way to shop! The thrill of the hunt!! I have no trouble visualizing how things will look and can usually find a way to create the "look" without the "label". I like things that have a history to them-- Not all of our antiques are "family pieces" but they still have a history to me. You know, where you were when you found it, how it looked, what you did to it and how much you paid for it! Ha.

2. I love to work with my granddaughters on creative projects,--scrapbooking, miniatures, cooking, Fairy gardens, and art. Each one of them has a creative gift inside them and I want to encourage and nuture those gifts, so they can be developed and enjoyed by them and those around them. I love encouraging them in music, dance and all of the arts. I also love to encourage my daughters-in-love to find their creative gifts also.

3.I enjoy creating one-of-a-kind "Old World Santas". I started making these several years ago and they are so much fun. First the face, the armature, the costume, the hair and all the embellishments, toys, etc. I love to create custom heirloom Santas for families, incoporating their personal history, hobbies, pets, children, etc.

4. I have always loved flowers and growing them in my garden. This started a love of making arrangements with silk florals several years ago. I enjoy putting together the colors and textures and using one-of-a-kind unusual containers for the arrangements. After working at this in a furniture store for a few years, I began a business out of my home and enjoy this medium very much.

5. Miniatures are near to my heart. I first started in miniatures in the 70's, making small items for type tray displays, and this hobby grew into dollhouses and room boxes. It's fun to make a room in miniature, because it doesn't cost nearly the same amount and it stimulates my mind to see, how can I duplicate that in 1/12th scale? Tiny things have always intrigued me.

6. I love to sing!! My spirit soars when I sing about the Lord of my Life! Music is a powerfully creative thing in our world and I'm thankful for the gift of music I was given.

7. I'm a JUNKER!!! Yes, I'm one of those people whose heart starts pumping when they see a garage sale, a thrift store, or something put out by the curb! I love taking something that someone else has cast aside and giving it new LIFE!! I look at trash the same way that God looks at me, not what I am, but what I WILL and CAN become. I have found there are few lost causes, and it really gives me joy to recreate something into something else. One of the perks of turning 50 was that I now get 25% off on Tuesdays at the Goodwill!! Ha.

Well, that's probably more about me than you ever wanted to know! But I'm sure many, many of you in the land of Blog can relate. I remember when I first found a decorating blog, and then another and another! I was SO happy!! I said to my husband that evening, Guess what happened today? I FOUND MY PEOPLE!!! He looked at me sooo strangely and said what do you mean? I said," I found people who like to save old buttons, trim, fabrics, bump chenille, and millinery flowers, junky furniture and such, just like me!!! What a happy day that was!! So now, I know that I am not the only one who _____________. ( You fill in the blank!! ) Thank you my friends for inspiring me every day, I hope once in a while I can do the same for you!

Blessings, Linda

My Studio ~ Where I Create

2009-07-23T13:32:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends! Today I'm participating in Karen Valentine's party Where Bloggers Create. For a complete list of all the girls who are joining in, click HERE. There are soooo many beautiful spaces to enjoy. So, get yourself a glass of something good, and join in the fun! Thank you Karen, for coming up with this great idea for all to share in! We all have a space where we get creative. Some of us have large spaces and some not so large, but each is special in it's own way to the artist who inhabits it. I will share pictures of my space with you. It's not huge but very adequate and a sunny room to be in, which I love. As you enter the door, this is the view you see.

My "unfinished" dollhouse is front and center, seems I never get around to working on it. It's on the "someday" list.

My bookcases are old laminate pieces that I painted at the beginning of the year and like them so much more now. The room is painted a spring green. I've decided that green must be my favorite color as I am always drawn to it. The color is brighter than it appears.
The large platter is begging for the word "CREATE" inside. I'm going to spell it out with green pearl beads when I get around to it. My neighbor gave me the wicker dress form.

Some of my favorite postcards and scripture cards.

An old spool cabinet that I've had for many years. I kept my jewerly in it, so it was way more than half empty! Ha. One day I decided to move it into the studio to hold all sorts of little things. It works great!

One of the Santas I have made. This one is a "Kansas Santa." He has the "Wizard of OZ" characters in the pack on his back.

Most everything happens at this work table, found at the Goodwill. I have a beautiful view to the Southwest, lots of trees and flowers under my window.

Hankies on clips for a window valance.

This door leads to my closet.

Closeup of my little dolls and bears. I keep my m-o-p buttons in this apothecary jar.

This doll and case was all made by a doll artist named Betsy Rouse. It's one of my very favorite things.

This is my sewing machine cabinet. I still need to get it painted white to match everything else. The quilt hanging was a very special gift from a dear friend. I just love it.

The remaining wall with countertop sitting on 2 old treadle sewing machine bases. I made a skirt to hang between them. The curio and small chest were painted out to match and stacked.

Another project in the "waiting room" is the large white frame. I want to put a tack board in it and cover it with a plum colored fabric. I may put chicken wire over that, not sure at this point. For now, I hung a little baby dress and an old print I love.

A box I put together.

I found this rack at the Goodwill, it perfectly holds 12x12 scrapbook paper.

A miniature Store window I put together many years ago.

Oops, Santa again!

This is a Christmas room I have been working on. It will fit in an 8x10 frame and hang on the wall.

Two recent miniature projects.

A "Victorian Bedroom" done many years ago.

"Sort of" organized closet.

A wooden plate I did a few years ago. I love how things look against a black background! Well, that's probably way more than you wanted to see! I love having this space and am so grateful for it. I feeds my creative spirit and helps me forget the cares of this world when I'm in there. I am fairly new to the blogging world, but have enjoyed it so much and gained so many friends from it. I FOUND MY PEOPLE, is how I like to say it!! Thank you for visiting, I hope you will come again. Now, go and see all the other wonderful spaces!

Be Blessed, my friends,

Linda

It's a party!

2009-07-12T15:00:00.001-07:00

I've been busy getting ready for a shower I'm giving for my niece, who is expecting in September, their first child, a girl! I do believe this is the first baby shower I've given in many years, so it has to all come back to me. The shower will be out-of-town, so I won't have to clean my house!! ha. I wanted to do something different for invitations, so I used one of my borrowed pictures from Heide, I believe. I think this image is just the cutest thing!! I bought the ready-made card stock blank invitations at Michael's on clearance.

Found a little "O" stamp and added it for a little sparkle with glitter. Also the seam binding at the top with an mother-of-pearl button. I really liked the way it all turned out.

This banner was at Hob Lob in just the right color. I added the ruffled crepe paper to the back edges. Perfect!! Sorry about the smoky look, don't know what caused this. I promise the smoke alarms were not going off!!

A little decoration I already had and foofed up a bit.

This old birdbath will be on the porch to greet guests as they come in.

A small favor for each guest. Found the perfect boxes at Hob Lob and tied with seam binding I already had. I thought my little tiered stand with the bird on top would be perfect.

Each guest will receive a small wire bird nest with three pink eggs as a favor. I glued a magnetic strip on the back so it could be used to pin up a note.

I am planning to make 2 kinds of cupcakes for the refreshments, they ones with the cute birdies in the nest that I've seen several places in Blogland. The usual mints and nuts as well as some cheese on crackers for those that don't want the sugar. Sparkling pink lemonade to drink. I will try to take some pictures to share from the shower. Hope you are all having a wonderful and peaceful Sunday. Be Blessed, Linda

Guest Bath

2009-06-27T17:17:00.001-07:00

Hi girls, I thought I'd show you pictures of my guest bath. This is the vanity. It consists of an antique dresser that I found at a garage sale. We trimmed a little off the sides so it would fit in the space we had and ordered a cultured marble top for it. Then we mounted the beautiful mirrror on top of the splash back. I think it turned out really well. The dresser has a serpentine front (which you can't see very well in the picture. My DH cut out portions of the first and second row of drawers to accommodate the plumbing. Then I refinished the whole thing. The lights have beaded wine covers over the globes, which you can't see very well. To take this pic, guess where I'm sitting? You guessed it, on the toilet. ha. See the wall reflected in the mirror? I'm thinking of having a transfer made with a favorite verse on it, only backwards, so that when you turn to look in the mirror, you see the words, clearly. Does this sound corney? Of course, I have a verse in mind, but my Missy K suggested "The Lord is with you wherever you go." Wouldn't that be funny? Still thinking this over. I have a lot of collected and repainted scripture plagues on the side wall, so this is my scripture bathroom.

Hard to tell, but the walls, were painted a base of light gold tone and sponged over with areas of greens, browns, and corals. It turned out pretty well, but is not showing too good in this picture. The little lamp is a garage sale find. I finally found the perfect shade for it at Goodwill. Then I placed it on a flow blue plate on top of a candle bowl. I thought it looked really pretty.
Wild Black-eyed Susan from the flower bed in a thrifted amber glass.

One of my favorites. Can you guess why?

Hope you all have a great Sunday. It is supposed to cool off here for tomorrow. We have been roasting all this week!! Makes me want to stay in the house!!

Summer side dish

2009-06-24T13:17:00.001-07:00

Hi Friends, thought I would share a favorite green bean recipe with you all today. I took this to our son and daughter-in-love's house for a Birthday/Father's day celebration last week-end. It's easy and quick to fix and something different for green beans. It's called Garlic and tomato Green Beans.

To begin, seed and chop about 4 Roma tomatoes. Reserve until later.

Then slice about 4 pieces of thick bacon into about 1 inch pieces..

Brown the bacon in a skillet. Remove and save about 2 T. drippings.

Take out of the freezer 3 bags of steam-in-the-bag green beans.

Cook on high in the micro-wave about 2 and 1/2 minutes. This is about "half" of the recommended cooking time. You don't want them all the way done.

Add your beans to hot bacon drippings and cook until just crunchy tender or to your taste. You need to watch them closely and keep turning them with a spatula.

Season with seasoned salt to your taste and pepper if desired.

Add in the tomatoes and 2 Tablespoon of minced garlic . Cook, stirring constantly over medium high heat about 2 minutes or so.

Add in cooked bacon pieces and stir till blended.

Now they are ready to be served and enjoyed!

Great to serve with grilled chicken or steaks!!
Hope you are having a great Wednesday, Blessings

Linda

Today's Thrifty Treasures

2009-06-22T07:15:00.000-07:00

Good morning everyone! Hope you all enjoyed a great Father's Day celebration with the special men in your lives. My father passed away many years ago and I miss him in my life. He left to me a love of singing and flowers. My husband is my handsome prince. What a guy and I love him so. He is a wonderful father and grandfather to our granddaughters.

For today, I am joining Rhoda's Todays Thrifty Treasures to share my recent finds while out thrifting. I have recently found some really neat items. Here are a few:
Sorry, you can't see this as well as I had hoped, this LARGE lantern was at the GW for a third of the regular price! The glass is all gone out of it, but I thought maybe a tall blue and white vase with greenery would look good. See the tiny lights? They are a recent gift for Mother's Day, they come on a stem like a flower bush and you spread out the stems which look like branches and put them inside another floral piece, or greenery. They plug in with a transformer. There are several types of bulbs, some bigger and frosted, but they look so neat! I can see lots of uses for my lantern, can't you?

This fairly large display cabinet was also at the GW for $10.00! I plan to paint it white and add maybe a shelf to house pretty things. I'll show it when I get it done. It has joined SEVERAL pieces in the garage in need of a facelift. I really have no excuse now that it is warm out there.

Also, I pick up silverplate trays when I find them at a good price. I want enough to use as chargers for place settings. The smaller one on top would be great with a cloche in it too. The gold cannisters were really cheap, $3 and $4.00! The crackled vase is really pretty and the silver cup shined up really nice for a future floral piece.

Remember, I said last post to pick up stray lids when you come across them? Look at this so cute lid!! Now to find it's companion! Have a great Monday my friends!
Blessings, Linda

What's in "YOUR" cloche?

2009-06-19T10:05:00.000-07:00

Hi Girls, I decided to join Marty at a stroll thru life for her cloche party. Be sure and go look at all the participant's wonderful ideas for uses for our cloches and apothacary jars. They are so much fun to decorate with, aren't they? Most of mine have been thrifted, which makes them even better! he he My little chair of babies and bears.

This cloche is about 1 inch high! Its a bubble holder out of one of those trinket machines from long ago--a perfect cloche for my tiny bird's nest.

Sea shells in this jar. I got it at GW for $8.00!! Yea! I use it for all the seasons with eggs, Christmas bulbs, tall plants, etc.

Another "tiny"piece. It a silver tinsel 4th of July tree in a watch dome.

Miniature wedding cake under a small goblet.

Look for these at garage sales and thrift stores. They were candle holders for metal candle pieces serveral years back. This one is turned upside down. I glued an old glass doorknob on top.

Pretty with one of those fancy water bottles under it.

or a cobalt blue "Vicks" bottle with little zinnas.

This is one of those "floating candle" jars. I found the lid one day at the thrift store. I always buy interesting lids because you will always find a jar for it someday.

Mother-of-pearl buttons

Pretty postcard.

I promised to show the platters I got yesterday at a garage sale for $2.00 each. They are very crazed and stained, but that makes me like them even more!! They are the colors I plan to use when our basement is finished.

Hope you enjoyed peeking under my cloches, ha. Have a wonderful Friday,
Linda

Junken Treasures

2009-06-18T19:01:00.000-07:00

Found a treasure in my Mom's garage over the weekend. DH was hanging new garage doors for her and I went out to see how it was going when I spyed an old wallpaper book lying under a bunch of dirty screws, nails and other trash. I cleaned it off, opened it a crack and let a big spider crawl out of it, then bringing it to the light, I could see that some of the patterns were really cute and could be very useful in art pieces, etc. Bring out the razor blade!!!
I love the blue one with the little bouquets. It came in several colors too.

You just never know when a neat old treasure might be waiting to be discovered!

While out for the afternoon with 3 of my granddaughters, we stopped at a garage sale and I found some very neat old platters. I'll show you these tomorrow. I've been finding some pretty cool items of late. Our Goodwill just lowered their prices after much complaining by the public. I think when you can buy the item for less at Walmart, something is wrong, don't you? Hope you are all having a great week. Blessings, Linda

Spring in the Garden

2009-05-25T19:17:00.000-07:00

I thought I would share a few pictures of our yard and flower gardens. Everything looks so beautiful right now with all the rains we've been having. My perennials are doing great and I recently was given a few more from a lovely lady who lives close by! What a wonderful gift! Plants are a great thing to share with friends.
Our kids gave us these rockers when we moved into our house, we spent lots of time sitting and rocking watching the birds and the beautiful sunsets.

Two pots on each side of the steps. They have growing to do. The purple flower is the center is called Angelonia--my new favorite annual. They come in purples and pinks and are so great, tolerating the extreme heat and drought we sometimes have in the summer.

My pretty pansies are about to fade away. I wish they would last longer.

The boxwoods need a little trimming. I have vining lavender geraniums in the baskets- anxious for them to fill out.

The roses on the arbor are only a year old, so they are coming along. The baptistia ( the plant on the right) just finished blooming. It was so pretty this year.

Carpet roses on the berm. They do so well and I love the first flush of blooms.

My "Secret Garden" in the middle of a group of trees in the front yard. I'm trying to get a ground cover to grow and do well in the shade. So far, not much luck. The creeping Jenny seems to be doing pretty well, I just need a lot more! The stones are actually broken up pieces of concrete from a patio that had to be done over. My DH painstakingly buried each one, a labor of love, but we didn't have to haul off the concrete! Just planted Jasmine vine on the black arbor. Hope it will take hold. I want to make this little area all in green and white -- a Moonlight Garden. It's a cool place to sit on a hot summer day.

This bed is in the back. I finally got a start of wild phlox, I love it! It grows from seed, so hopefully I'll have some again next year, if I don't mistake it for a weed and pull it out! ha. I have cone flowers and black-eyed susan in this area, also this is where I plant my herbs.

More of my secret garden. We haven't gotten power run out to this area yet so I can run the fountain. It's on the list. You know what I mean?

The side bed by the garage. Everything does very well in this area. It gets lots of sun. Have to keep pulling out coreopsis. it wants to take over! The tall thing is a white standard crepe myrtle. It's just starting to leaf out. They are slow.

I was told this little cast iron thing was made to hold coal in a fireplace. Not sure if that's correct, but it is a neat little thing.

My "Flower Bed" The peonies are doing great and I have planted hydrangeas in the center. Hope they do well here. So far I have not had much luck with them, Hope this time it works.

A picket planter my husband made for me. I planted white Angelonia and a new kind of vining petunia. (Supertunia) Raspberry something or other. They are really taking hold and I love the varigated color. They are planted under the bay window in the kitchen area. Hope you enjoyed seeing my garden pictures. We owned our lot almost 5 years before we started our home. We called it "The Promised Land". We would drive out and sit in the trees, dreaming and praying about a yellow house in the middle of the trees. At times, it didn't look like it would ever happen, but God is so gracious and granted us our dream. Isn't our God such a wonderful creator of dreams? Blessings,

Linda

The Glory of Flowers

2009-05-13T15:25:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends, Sorry I have been missing a few weeks, just had a lot going on. I have missed you!!. It is finally getting warm here and time for planting flowers has come. YIPEE!! I have been out digging in beds and cleaning off the winter dead stuff. Got a little sunburn and found out my back isn't as young as it used to be. Ha. These flowers are the faux botanical type, and I love them too, so I thought I'd share a few of my arrangements with you.

This arrangement used those stems that have that dried look. They are getting harder to find, so before they were all gone, I thought I should have one for ME. I really like the way this one turned out. It sets on my bedtable.

This one is all whites, creams and greens.

Our new berm in the back yard is coming along. I have snowball bushes blooming now , with spirea, and a few lilacs. Later will be carpet roses, cone flowers, lythrum, buddlea, salvia and coreopsis. We had to dig out a bunch of dirt on our walk-out side for better drainage, so this is what we did with the dirt from there. My DH worked long and hard smoothing and putting down landscape cloth before planting. It think it will really be nice as it matures and fills in and makes a little delineation between our yard and the neighbors.

Here are some pictures of my screened-in porch. It's not real big, but we sure do enjoy it. The wicker settee is old, the twisted paper type. I covered the existing cushions with new fabric. DH made the shelf above for all my stuff. It's been fun to decorate. Still have to get new pots ready to put out there, and I probably will get a fern, the Kimberly Queen type, they do so well for me.

We really enjoy having lunch and evening meals out here. If its too warm, we can turn on the ceiling fan.

I bought the old stove years ago from my brother. Isn't it cool? I can't imagine actually cooking on it though. We are so blessed these days, aren't we?

Hope to post more garden pictures soon, I and my neighbor were given some wonderful plants this morning from a sweet lady a few blocks from us. She graciously shared what she had so she could plant more and clean out her beds. What a blessing !! If we all share what we have, it's a beautiful thing and that applies to more than just flowers, don't you think? Hope you are enjoying your flowers too. They are a gift from the creator, and make life sweeter. Have a great day, Linda

Tiny treasures

2009-04-21T13:17:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends, I've been playing with miniatures the last few days. This little cupboard was a workshop I took several years ago and had not quite finished it. So, I used an afternoon to put on the finishing touches. Isn't it the cutest thing?

This picture is not as focused as I would have liked, but the piece is made after a full sized example I saw at Sassy Trash last year, from a full-sized door. Sorry, I could not get my link to work for the post, but it is dated December 8,2008 if you want to look it up. They were all so neat and creative, and I thought it would be cute done in miniature. I am teaching the project for the meeting of our club next month, so this will be it. I made two prototypes. I made the yellow daffodills for the little vase,( another unfinished project), and painted the little sign. The cottage house is plastic repainted. It think it was a Christmas house or something.

I especially liked how the green one turned out. The vase of "lilacs" are really little bouquets from the wedding section at Michaels. The Eiffel tower is a jewelry charm. The basket of "lilacs" on the bottom are dyed bird seed of some kind. Then a painted metal tray I did and another little cottage on the top shelf. I would love to make one of these full size, but I need to find a door.
The weather is finally warming up and I have outside trimming to do to clean up my perennial flower beds. Spring is such a glorious time isn't it? Hope you are all enjoying the miracle of Spring and appreciating God's gift of nature.

Family Fun on Easter Weekend

2009-04-15T08:59:00.000-07:00

Baby girl #7 loving finding her eggs. It's so fun when the little ones begin to understand what it's all about. We had good weather on Saturday, not so good on Sunday. What a blessing to have all our family with us to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus and the salvation we have through that sacrifice He made for us.

Nap time!!!!

Little girl # 6, We had a great time with the sunflower hat and the groucho glasses. What a combination! Kind of funny, don't cha think?

Baby Z #8 so sweet to love on and so happy to be anywhere! So precious.

Miss A, #3 getting into the act. She's growing up sooo fast!!

The divine Miss M # 2 loves to have fun!!

Missy K, # 1 Don't know why she closed her eyes? I guess she thought no would recognize her this way?

Tinkerbelle, # 5 Doesn't always look quite this serious. She's a cutie.

JJ # 4 She loves to pose. a fashioneesta!

Yvette atThe Charm House is having a giveaway for her one year Blogiversary! Stop by and leave her a comment and you will be entered to win a Target Gift Card!! I'm sure we could all think of ways to use that!! She has a wonderful blog and is so creative. You would enjoy seeing all the things she's been up to. Congratulations, Yvette!!! You're doing great!! Keep it coming!!

Well, Easter has come and gone and now it's time to think about more Spring cleaning, closets, ugh! But it always feels so good when it's done. I'm working on a project for our miniature club to make in May and I'll show you the results soon! Have a Blessed and Creative Wednesday, my friends. Linda

Have a Blessed Good Friday and Easter Sunday

2009-04-10T14:41:00.000-07:00

Busy today with preparations for the weekend and having all our children and grandchildren here. It's a special time when we can all be together and encourage each other. There is much to be thankful for and to give praise for. Thought I would share some of my favorite old postcards with all of you. They are so beautiful. Hope each of you has a Blessed weekend full of much joy and thanksgiving for the Savior who has given us the right to become sons and daughters of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. HE IS RISEN !!!!

Blessings to each of you.

Linda

Mail Box Goodies!!!

2009-04-06T17:03:00.000-07:00

Last week I received the sweetest package!!! It was from sweet Blanca, at

Magic Moonlight Studio. She saw that I enjoyed the cottage style and mailed them to me as a gift!!!! How pretty they are Blanca, and they smell so wonderful!! I really appreciate such a generous gift from someone I've not even met! That's the spirit that lives in Blogland, so many, so willing to give to others and share wonderful treasures from the heart. It makes the world a better place and I am blessed to be a part of it. Thank you Blanca, You're a sweetheart!

Here are the gorgeous cottage tags. Aren't they so beautiful? I will be using these on coming gift packages , you can be sure!!

One of my little tiny Easter baskets in a beautiful glittered egg I received from a friend many years ago. These are so fun to make and put together. The bunny and chick are made of tiny pom-poms.

I thought I would also pose little Miss Mouse in the egg. Do you like her Easter Bonnet?

She has been in a box and I thought she needed to come out.

I am trying to get everything ready for a family weekend. You know, cleaning, and cooking. First, I have to find places for all my piles!! You know, projects in waiting. Then sometimes I forget where I stashed them. Sooooo frustrating. I remember a time I could go to the grocery store without a list. Those days are gone! Hope you are all having a good week getting ready for your own Easter activities. I am truly thankful for my family. We'll have eight little granddaughters this year to join in the fun. So blessed are we, count your blessings too, name them one by one and see just what the Lord has done.
Linda

Glimpses of Spring

2009-03-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends, Well, Spring is officially here. It's been a little hard to see this week-end, as we've has snow, sleet, rain and ice but nothing too bad. I felt sorry for the two little tulips that were trying to bloom. But nothing last forever at this stage, so the next week looks a little better. I have put out some of my Spring decorations and thought you might like to see. I really like this little rabbit with his basket on his back. I've seen him in several shops.

Aren't this little bunny eggs cute?? My DIL gave them to me several years ago.

I love this old print of Easter morning. Choirs are becoming a thing of the past I fear, like so many wonderful traditional things.

A collections of little lambs. Hope everyone has a beautiful Sunday!! Give thanks with a grateful heart.
Linda

Improved Art Studio

2009-03-25T14:29:00.000-07:00

Could you create in this? What a mess and totally uninspiring!! One of my New Year's Resolutions was to FIX it! The following pictures show the transformation. Of course, a lot of it was just putting things where they belong! Ha. I thought I would share my make-over with all of you at Jen's Make-over Open House.

After painting most of my furniture, nothing good, mostly lamintate stuff, it made such a change.

Still trying to decide to paint my sewing machine cabinet also. I'm thinking, yes.

Made skirts to cover up the messes under the tables. $1.00 a yd. at Walmart.

A recent find at the Goodwill, $2.50. Needlepoint and brown velvet. Beautiful!!1

This my storage closet. I need to re-organize it a bit, too.

I decided to use a spool cabinet I had been using as a jewelry box to store other small items as well. I have almost filled it up! Amazing how much I got in it, though.

I cut wallpaper strips and pasted them on the outside of these plastic drawers. I looks pretty good. There are more pics on the next post also.Thanks for visiting. It's so fun to see all the other make-overs !!
Be Blessed, Linda

My Re-decorated Art Studio

2009-03-22T11:38:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, Hope you are enjoying these first few days of Spring. We are finally getting to see glimpses of Spring around here. It seems like it has been a long winter to me. I decided it was time to get my art studio looking more like "Me" as opposed to just a room with my worktable and supplies in it. When we moved into our house in late 2004, I was lucky just to get it all in one room without it looking pretty, as there was still a lot of finish work to be done (our job) and I couldn't justify taking that much time with my room. Anyway, in January I started moving out furniture one wall-at-a time and repainting a Spring Green and at the same time, painting the furniture, mostly laminate stuff from the eighties, off white. It was really tight quarters as my room is not all that large. I do however have a wonderful walk-in closet to store all the ugly stuff! ha! I suppose I have way too many interests, but it keeps me happy and on track emotionally if I can just go somewhere and "make something" . I'm sure you all know what I mean. So, this is the first wall as you come in the door. It is a laminate countertop sitting on two old sewing machine stands. Since this picture, I have made a skirt to fit under the lip to hide the unpresentables. My rack for the scrapbook paper was found at the Goodwill-2.98! SCORE! This surface is great to paint or glue on because you can easily wash it all off.

This little cabinet is a curio cabinet I bought from a good friend when she had to move her parents out of their home. It is perfect for my miniature stuff that has yet to find a permanent home. It is sitting on a little chest end table.

Then I have a stack of three drawers with various materials beside my sewing machine cabinet. This is the one piece, I still need to get painted. Then, the closet door. The clock I made from the plastic top from one of those cardboard table thingies, (from the seventies probably) I painted it and decoupaged wrapping paper pieces on it, then crackled it. The clock fit easily inside the back lip. The beautiful quilt was given to me by a special friend when we moved away. It is a treasure and she picked the very colors that I had in mind for my room. Coincidence? I don't think so. Thanks, Gayle!

A painted plastic thing with velvet glued on and painted plastic cherub (from the cake decorating shop.

This is the facing wall of the room. My husband made shelves to hang over top of this 3 drawer chest, from a hospital sale. On top, my little glass house of miniature dolls, a beaded lamp, an apothecary jar with white shell buttons, and three stacking boxes from Hobby Lobby.
My miniature General Store and Victorian Bedroom Room boxes sit on the shelves.

Then, this is my favorite workspace, sitting in front of two large windows that face southwest. It is wonderful to bask in the sunshine there on a winter afternoon. I love it. My work table was a find at the Goodwill. I has a laminate top somewhat messed up but I can deal with it and most everything will clean off that I get one it. I made a skirt for this table also. The table cost me $25.00.

I have white blinds on these windows, but I like them all the way up and decided to use some of my vintage hankies as a valance. They are just clipped on . May do something different in the future, but for now, it suits me just fine.

Oops, this pic is out of order. Anyway, one the other side of my worktable, I have an old thread cabinet. ( I'll show you it in more detail in a later post). Then, another white 3-drawer hospital chest. My TV sits on this and a stack of wallpapered boxes as well as a wicker mannequin a friend gave me. Then, those eighties bookcases on each side of a butcher block table holding my sorely neglected dollhouse. I really need to get it finished up. I did decide to paint it a plum color. It looks lighter in this picture. The bookcases hold lots of stuff as you might imagine.

A few dried roses from a recent bouquet. They are Sterling Silver, we used that kind in our wedding. They are so beautiful!

The little red box is my collection of miniature Santas. I make Santa Dolls also.

This is back to the counter where we began.

Hope you enjoyed the tour. It has been fun to fix it up like I wanted to. I will show you some more pictures later. This is Sunday. We had such a good lesson this morning about how the Lord is leading us all through the desert to the Promised Land. We have His Word and His Spirit inside us to show us the way, so be brave and take the next step, He is there to help you.
Be Blessed Dear Friends,

Linda

My Collections

2009-03-16T19:45:00.000-07:00

Yvette ~ The Charm House is hosting a day of collections. So I thought I would share a few of mine. First , I love miniature dolls. Some day I have in mind to do a miniature doll shop to show case them all. In the mean time, they are happy in this terrarium.

I also love mother-of-pearl buttons and found a pretty jar to put them in, so I could look at them all the time. They are wonderful for collage projects, jewerly, etc.

These satin white cherubs are something I have always enjoyed finding at thrift shops and garage sales.

Next, I have quite a few cottage type prints. Most have thatched roofs . They are hung in the guest room.

These are a few of my "Mother plaques. I have quite a few and have most of them in the master bathroom. They are so charming and have beautiful verses.

Next up, my blue and white dishes and cobalt glass.

Isn't it fun to see all the different things we find that touch our hearts in some way? Thanks for stopping by. Have a blessed Monday.

Linda

Fabric Collage Bible Cover

2009-03-02T11:42:00.000-08:00

Happy March everyone!! I thought I would show you my latest project. For many years I have intended to make a cover for my Bible that was more to my liking than the commercial ones available today. They just didn't seem to be ME. So the other day I decided it was time to do it and forget about the laundry, house cleaning, etc. that is all around me. It seems I usually pick work instead of fun. I NEED TO GET OVER THAT!!! Ha. Anyway, I used some cream-colored twill that I had. It was fairly heavy and yet soft enough to sew through by hand with a needle and thread. I measured my Bible laid out flat for the dimensions and added about 1/2 " around the edges, plus another about 1/2" to the width dimension so it would have a little ease to fold closed. Then I decided how big I wanted the inside panel to be. It can only be the size of the top and bottom of your Bible. Then add enough another inch for seam allowance and hemming on one side. Then I added pockets for the inside also. They went up a little beyond half-way. I hemmed the tops of these and added a piece of old crocheted trim I had. You could use so many things for this.

On the front I used a old gold-lace border from something I had. I stamped a scripture on a smaller piece of fabric and glued this inside my gold frame and trimmed it out with small braid trim and small lace. I glued 4 velvet leaves to each corner. On top of these, I stitched 4 large mother-of-pearl buttons and a smaller lavender bead.

Down the spine of the cover, I wrote another favorite scripture on twill tape and stitched it on.
Then I sewed all the layers together and included a strip of another crochet trim to use as a closure to button on the back. After I was sure it all fit my Bible, I started whip stiching the rest of the crocheted trim around all the edges. I did this with the Bible in it so I would be sure to only get one thickness of fabric in my needle. It was stitched down the midddle so it was half on the book and half off.

Another large button, a pin, a cross and a locket were then added as well. I wish my picture had turned out better. Jewelry findings and charms were added at the top. It wasn't hard at all, but did take a little time. I think it turned out pretty well. OH, do you see that the trim in the left hand side of the "V" at the bottom doesn't line up? I fixed that later! Ha. It was fun to do something for me for a change and not for an order or a gift. Maybe you could come up with ideas too. I would love to hear from you! Happy creating, I have pictures coming up soon of my newly organized art studio.!!!

Enjoy the creative talents God has given you.

Blessings to you all, Linda

Yellow, White and Blue Dining Room

2009-02-26T16:23:00.000-08:00

Hi Friends, I thought I would show you all pictures of my dining room and all my blue and white. Most of the dishes are from thrifting and garage sales, however I don't find as many pieces as I used to. I have loved cobalt blue since I was a child and got a box of oil paints for Christmas. It was one of my favorite gifts. Anyway the tube of Prussian blue just won my heart and I think every painting I did then always had some Prussian blue in it somewhere! Ha. My dad, one day brought home a place setting of Blue Willow dishes he had received from the gas station with a fill-up. I claimed them right then and asked for them for my someday hope chest. We have used them eversince . It was a Willow Ware set. I had enough for eight place settings. Along the way I picked up other dishes when I would find them as well as cobalt glass. Of course we all remember the Vick's vapor rub jar, noxema skin cream, Evening in Paris, and Milk of Magnesia bottles too. Those were the good old days! Anyway most of my collection is in the dining room. There is still work to be done, but I thought I would show you around. The little window above is a dormer window on the outside of the house. The little landing was a happy accident from the builder. We loved it! My DH goes up the ladder at Christmas and replaces the lamp with a little Christmas tree. We did have the foresight to have it wired so we could turn it on at the switch below!

This is our buffet, from the trainstation flea-market. I stripped it down and then one day had the idea of taking an oak footboard we had and attaching it and the mirror to the back. It matches perfectly. I have a white shelf above this that needs some attention! The cobalt blue bowl was from a garage sale and the cup and saucer are missmatches. I added the little blue cornflowers and the white flowers.

More garage sale finds

The blue band around the top was originally going to have a smaller blue basket border in it, but since I could see that borders were on their way out, I thought one day, why not just hang different blue and white plates? DH went up the ladder and measured for each one. How I love that man!

Our English Sideboard. Found at an antique mall at a not to be found again price in the 90's.

It holds a lot of stuff inside too!

Cloches from the Goodwill. A couple of pieces of flow-blue from my long ago garage saling.

An old music cabinet,(these are great) A small wall curio with a child's Blue willow set.

Oops, I deleted the full length picture of this cabinet. (also from a garage sale) It sits on top of a gate-leg table that was my husband's grandmother's. The tall cobalt vase was a recent find at the Goodwill! $5.00!!

Also the other day, found these two candle cups at the Goodwill for .75 each. Hope you enjoyed the tour. I realized I didn't take a shot of the table. It was also a antique mall purchase, but had no leaves, so my DH made four matching ones, We can seat 8 to 10. The chairs are new but matched the turnings on the table and buffet so well we couldn't not get them a few years ago.

Have a blessed day! Remember God is in control.

Linda

Valentine weekend

2009-02-17T14:06:00.000-08:00

This has always been one of my favorite old valentine postcards. Isn't it sweet? It's a little ragged aroung the corners but I still love it. We had a great valentine weekend with three of our local granddaughters. (wish we could have seen them all) Mom and Dad were out of town on a romantic get-away so the girls stayed with us. My DH brought me beautiful pink roses! some of the prettiest I've seen and they all bloomed out instead of nodding off and dying. Don't you hate when that happens? I arranged some of my older valentines around the mirror on which I place the roses with some of my crystal candelsticks. Not a lot of effort, but it was pretty.

On Friday afternoon the girls and I worked on Valentine pages for their scrapbooks. They are all fairly new to this hobby, but are doing so well! This is MissyK working on her masterpiece. I just spread everything out on a table and let them do their own thing.

"Tinkerbell" worked hard on her page, taking great care with everything and had a special message for her parents. We worked together on the glitter part. ha

The divine Miss M took great care with her page also. Trying different patterns and pictures. She loves to create and also paid tribute to Mommy and Daddy. So sweet.

It was fun to spend time with the girls creating, my favorite thing in the world. We ate plenty of chocolate and ice cream all weekend. What could be better? Hope you all had a great weekend too.
Wishing you all the love your hearts can hold,

Linda

Is it Spring yet?

2009-02-08T16:27:00.000-08:00

I am so ready for Spring! Am I the only one? I so doubt it! We've really had some cold weather this winter, though not as much snow as usual. And so far not a lot of ice, but that could still happen I suppose. I made this wreath for a doorprize for our women's retreat at church next month and really like how it turned out. It has purple blue hydrangeas ( I love hydrangeas!) , yellow tulips, white lilacs, yellow berries, ivy and a little lavender stem, I'm not sure what it's supposed to be. Then I filled in with some chartreuse stems. I hadn't done any florals since before Christmas and it felt good, I really need to clean up my floral room. It's in the basement and we are in the beginning stages of finishing off a portion of it. Can't wait to see all the sheetrock dust all over my flowers! ha. I will have to figure out a way to cover everything with plastic or something.

I have been very busy working on my art studio. I repainted the walls to a cheerier shade of green and have been painting all the furniture white. ( my husband said it was okay as most of it was not the good stuff. I am really excited about how it is turning out. Rearranging the furniture has made a big difference, and I've been going through my magazines and tearing out things I wanted to file in notebooks. It takes up a lot less room that way. I have trouble getting rid of my magazines, does anyone else have that problem? I have found that I go back and read them and get just as much as the first time. I always see something new! But, alas I can't keep everything I guess. All the magazines going out of business makes my so sad. Our world is changing and sometimes I don't like it at all. I have noticed though that so many of the magazine have much less content and more ads, which is so frustrating when you want to spend a leisurely afternoon pouring over favorite magazine and it takes 5 minutes to read it. One magazine, I had to let go after subscribing for over 20 years. It was so sad.

Back to my studio, I will post pictures hopefully soon when I get it all back together. Our granddaughters will be staying with us a few days and they want to scrapbook while they're here.

I put this arrangement together for an order I received. The container is a semi-circular sewing machine drawer. It was really a neat looking drawer and I am pleased with how it worked up. It was to represent the state. Can you guess which state? It is made to be displayed on a table and also can be hung on the wall as I attached saw-tooth hangers on the back. It has sunflowers, green hydrangeas, and viburnum stems along with various grasses and twig-looking stems. Then some cornflower stems. I really like the way it turned out.

So keep the faith, girls, Spring is coming eventually!

Be Blessed, Linda

Let the Son Shine In

2009-01-25T15:19:00.000-08:00

Hello friends and family,

I don't have a lot to post today. My husband's father passed away on Friday and since then we have been on the go, getting all the arrangements finalized. Since the services will be out of town it meant we had to travel also to get it all done, but it was only a couple of hours away so for that we are grateful. His passing did not come as a great surprise as he had become weaker and weaker in the past six months. He was ready to go to his Heavenly Father. What a wonderful peace when you know your loved one is now in the arms of Jesus! He had been a wonderful husband to one woman for 63 years and a loving father to his three children , grandfather to nine and great-grandfather to 17. He worked hard to provide for his family and was always kind and eager to help anyone in need. Through the years, he had helped us do so many projects with our home, fencing, building a house, working on vehicles, putting in a yard, so many things. His greeting to me was always, "Well hello beautiful!" It always made me feel good. We will miss his kind spirit and mischievous pranks and teasing. He and my mother-in-law had made all their plans in advance for their deaths. Funeral plans and cemetery plots, music, pallbearers, pastor, everything. It made a hard time so much easier for us setting it all in motion. What a wonderful gift to leave to your family! We have some plans to make of our own to make it easier for our children as well. Most of all, though, He made his plans as to where he would spend eternity, something only each of us can do for ourselves. No one can do it for us. It is cloudy and overcast today and for the forecast the day of the service, but we know that the SON always shines for those that know Him. I love the early morning sun in our bedroom and will share a picture. Is the Son shining in your heart today?? I hope so. Have a blessed Sunday.

Linda

Show me your Heart

2009-01-18T13:53:00.000-08:00

Hi Friends, sorry it's been so long since my last post, I have been trying to figure out how to get my pics to load right and be able to get text in between. I am not very good at this stuff and without the help of Dawn at The Feathered Nest (THANK YOU DAWN!!") and my darling husband, it wouldn't have happened. But hopefully I'll get better with each post. I thought it would be fun to go through my house and see how many hearts I could find to show and tell. I found more than I realized I had. Here are a few for you to see: First, is a tiny mother-of-pearl pin I bought many years ago with a wire name on it and a tiny shell hanging off of it on a little chain. The name is Cera. I thought it was so beautiful even if I didn't know anyone by that name.

This is the cover of a photo album that will hold all our children's wedding pictures. It was fun to do. I just have to finish putting it all together by covering the spine of the album with the fabric.This is the cover of a photo album that will hold all our children's wedding pictures. It was fun to do. I just have to finish putting it all together by covering the spine of the album with the fabric.

This little heart is made out of buttons stitched on a piece of felt. I made it several years ago and have enjoyed wearing it.

This stone- like heart is one of my favorite things and I've had it several years. I love the cherub angel at the top and it also has a key inserted in it, where I usually hang a tassel.

These little blue and white heart dishes came in a set I got several years ago at Kirklands. I decided to set them on easel and put them under glass cloches on my sideboard.

This heart ornament was given to me by my sweet daughter-in-law Rebecca, I keep it out all year hanging from a lamp in my bedroom next to our wedding picture.

This rock was given to me by my granddaughter Missy K when she was between 2 or 3 years old. She said, "Look Grandma, it's a heart just like I love you!" My heart just melted, and it's a moment in time I will never forget. So precious! If you look closely, you can see what looks like veins in the rock. It's a treasure to me.

This plaque I found at Hobby Lobby and it has my favorite verse and the name of my floral business and now the name of my blog. I love it.

Hope you enjoyed seeing my hearts. It was surprising how many I found! Look around and see what you have. Have a wonderfull and peaceful Sunday. Linda

Create in me a pure heart, Oh God."
Ps 51:10

A New Little Girl to love

2009-01-12T10:28:00.000-08:00

Hello friends, Just wanted to let you know we have a New Granddaughter in our family! She was born January 9, and weighed in at 8lbs. 1oz. I think I'll be calling her baby Z for short. She has a very unusual name but it is very pretty. She has a little bit of reddish hair just like her big sisters did. She has 3 big sisters and of course they are so excited about helping with her. The green monster might make an appearance this week I fear but I'm sure it will work itself out. Mommy is doing well but needs a full night's sleep which may not happen any time soon. Do you remember when there were specific visiting hours at hospitals? Not necessarily a bad thing. At times the hospital room looked like grand central. Anyway, we are blessed with this healthy new baby born to our son and daughter in law. They are thankful as our we. I feel so blessed to have all these little girls in our lives! This brings the number to eight and there could possibly be more.! I get to do lots of girl things with them. My DH loves it too.

A few pictures:

A Fresh Pallet

2009-01-07T13:42:00.000-08:00

I have been working getting all the Christmas decorations down and put away. Not the most fun job, at least not as fun as putting it all up. I have so many boxes and tubs of decorations. When it's all bare again, then I see more work. Cleaning that needs to be done. (Those little spiders have sure been busy while we were celebrating haven't they? Closets that need to be weeded out. (How many sizes do I need in there?) Clean out the fridge. (What did you find growing in yours?) Laundry and ironing (yes, I still do that) Cooking, (We're out of frozen pizzas) and reorganizing my studio so I can walk in there. It's such a mess. I want to get it cleaned up so I can work on something creative. The new year always inspires me to try new things and get organized. This sentiment may only last a month so I have to make hay.

While I was taking stuff off the tree, my darling husband was doing this: Ha! He deserved it, He usually has to work on Sunday afternoons so he got to enjoy the football games. Then he got a workout carrying all the boxes downstairs. How I love him! Well, I'm trying to load a picture and can't seem to get it. Sorry, maybe next time.

Still enjoying Christmas

2009-01-01T12:30:00.000-08:00

I thought I would share a few pictures of my Christmas decorations before I start taking everything down tomorrow. Why is it always so much more fun to put up than to take down? Christmas seemed to come so fast this year. It's hard to believe we are now in 2009. But I am looking forward to what the Lord has in store for me in the coming year. Onward and upward!!

A New Beginning

2009-01-01T11:55:00.000-08:00

This is my first post on my blog. I am new to the blog world, discovering it by accident last summer. Since then, I have enjoyed so many of your blogs, meeting new friends and faces. I was amazed that there are so many people who, just like me, love to decorate with thrift store finds, junk treasures and hand-made items. My home is truly precious to me and my desire is for it to be a place of sanctuary for all those who live here and visit. What a wonderful blessing it is to have a home to make your own and to share it with others. My love of decorating has been with me from the time I was young, embellishing, re-arranging, designing always with vision in my heart for what it would look like. I look forward to sharing my projects and desires with all of you and pray maybe I can inspire some of you with my experiences.

I am a real amateur at this computer thing, so be patient as I learn what I am doing. I will be sharing pictures of my home, garden, and re-finishing projects. A designer at heart, my projects include florals, painting, doll-house miniatures, Old World Santas and antiques.

I am blessed with a wonderful husband who encourages me everyday to create and is my rock. We were blessed with three sons to raise. They grew up and found the beautiful girls that the Lord had for them. Now we are grandparents of seven and counting granddaughters!! Could like be better? Till next time. Live creatively! And Happy New Year to each of you. May you all experience the Lord's blessing through 2009!