My Little Hockey Man!

I have always loved being a hockey mom.....but having

the cute hockey jewels makes me love

it even more. Lisa (from Lola Rue) made me this awesome

piece. Well she didn't actually make it for me....

but I saw it in her shop and had to have it. It

is a vintage locker tag with the number 48 etched into

it. That's Lincoln's hockey number! On the back she

embellished it with vintage rhinestones. It is

absolutely stunning. We traded for it. I gave her one

of my felted necklaces and she gave me this!! All

the other hockey moms are so envious of me. So.....

now I am on the hunt for their boy's numbers.

Won't that be fun....we will be the envy of the

whole Buckeye League!

Isn't he just growing up????? He is just

changing so much. It seems just like yesterday

I was swaddling him in my arms. (He still let's

me hold him.....but mum's the word ok????)

I am really proud of him. He is turning out

to be just the young man I had always hoped he

would become. I can't believe he will be in

high school next year and playing varsity hockey.

I hope he gets to keep the number 48....but if not.....

at least I know where to get another cool necklace.

I hope you have a delightfully....energetic.....productive.....

& creative day. Blessings!

Hope's Must Have Kitchen Essentials

I wouldn't go & say that I am the best cook

on the planet. I would categorize myself as

a good cook though. More importantly, I

would categorize myself as a very

organized cook. Yes....all these measuring

cups are mine. I call them baking essentials.

I like to have a lot of them. Lately it seems that

there are usually about 3 cooks cooking in

my kitchen. I love cooking together. It seemed

that each time I needed a dry measure....it was always

wet....with say peanut butter....or oil. That's when

I had a light bulb moment. Have more sets of

cups.

Yes....I do need all these spatula's. Actually....

I have more in the color red. These are actually

one of my most used kitchen essentials. Do you know

how clean you can get the peanut butter jar

with a tiny spatula? Jeff looked at all my cooking

things one day and remarked.....'I think some of your

tools need to move to the garage...like mine'. I don't

think so.....MY tools make our home run more

smoothly.....your tools are like an accident waiting to

happen. Besides...mine are so nicely organized. I

actually like looking into my 'baking drawer' and seeing

everything all organized....at the ready to cook

something fabulous!!!

And yes......of course I need all these measuring

spoons. Most of them cost only a quarter

at garage sales. Who wants soy sauce or Worcestershire

sauce dripping down their hands....or

worse the side of the bottle....only to dirty up

the refrigerator? Why yes...these are time saving

tools....that make my life easier. Don't forget the dry/wet

measuring problem either!!!! Baking powder....baking soda....

soy sauce & Worcestershire sauce don't mix!!!!

I know....I know.....the photo is horrific! But I just

had to show you these scrapers. The stainless steal one

is the biggest blessing in my kitchen. It is a breeze to clean

the counter off into the trash....or my hand with this!

Cooking rolling day....a breeze!

Noodle making day....a delight!

Pie crust rolling day....HEAVEN!

Oh....I forgot....I buy Pillsbury Pie Crust....who can

make better crust than them????

The brown scrapers are fabulous to clean out

my cast iron cook wear. Yes.....I really do use cast

iron! It cooks the best....and makes my food taste

the best. Anyway....the scrapers are a must for those pans.

I hope you have liked reading about my kitchen

essentials. Do any of you have any great tips

in the kitchen? I am always looking for

ways to make my life easier & more productive. I hope

that you have an artfully creative day either in the

craft room....or the kitchen. My favorite rooms in the house!!!

Altered Bottle Swap

I am so excited to share this with you. I love how

it turned out. It is a little late for my

lovely swap partner....Miss Jennifer Babcock of

Covered in Glitter

http://www.glittermyday.blogspot.com/

but I think she will be happy when she

finally receives it. She is hostessing a swap a month

and so far....I have signed up for both. I hope you will

join in for the swap for March....sign ups will be

towards the middle of February.

This is a close-up of her cute face. For those of you

who know me.....I love Frozen Charlottes. I am

always thrilled to give them away as

supplies or just as excited to create with them.

Here is a close-up of the added embellishment.

That was part of the assignment....to add

an embellishment. I know Jennifer loves

silver soldering....so it was fitting to

add that as part of the bottle. She does a lovely

job herself. I met her at Silver Bella....and

actually she was my Silver Bella Lil' Sis. I was

honored to get to know her...her mother...and

what a treat to meet her 13 year old daughter who got

to miss school and attend Silver Bella. I think it is quite

a learning experience!!!!

Here she is....all finished & ready to be shipped

off to Texas. She is filled with mica and pearls in

lovely shades of grey....pink & white. Jennifer

will love this color combination. She is wearing a

crown with a tulle veil. The veil is filled with vintage

sheet music and adorned with seam binding in

shades of cream...white & pink. I hope you have

enjoyed seeing the un-veiling of my altered

bottle. I hope Jennifer will love it. Have a wonderfully

productive & creative day. Blessings.

My Mother's Pearls 100th Post Give-Away

Check out this scrumptious 100th post

give-away. My good friend Sue from My

Mother's Pearls is hosting this. Not only will

there be ONE lucky winner.....but TWO!

There is a pink crinoline & a yellow crinoline.

I sure hope I am the lucky winner of one

of these pretties. You can access her blog by

clicking on my sidebar. You have 3 chances to win

if you follow her guidelines. I hope you have

a wonderfully creative and blessed evening.

Early English Ironstone

I love a good collection. These pictures are not

mine. However....my collection

is pretty awesome. Pictures to follow on

another day.

I have been collecting early English Ironstone

for about 20 years. I bought my first

piece at an auction with Jeff.

I liked the lines of the sugar & creamer

set that I bought that day.

Little did I know it would turn out

to be something I would seek out my

entire life.

It goes with everything I own. It's creamy

and dreamy. All the shades of white a

different pale shade. I love the grazing

and the crackle of the old finish.

I especially love all the different

markings. My favorite....

and the marking that will make me

purchase each & every time is

Meakin. I love the earlier pieces that

they created. The period I aim for

is 1850-1890. But really any piece of

white ironstone has enough draw to bring me

right in. I want it.....I need it.....like a

junkie needs her drug.

If you start collecting white ironstone

you will love it. It will nestle right

into your home. Try placing all your

seasonal garden plantings in the

pitchers and you will be amazed. Wait

till you place that first peony....or those sprigs

of holly....or the hydrangeas! Then....I

know you will be hooked. Someday.....when

I capture the beauty of my collection....

I will share with you. Until then have a wonderfully

creative and blessed evening.

Vintage Jewelry Boxes....a Must!

I love a great vintage jewelry box! The

crushed velvet compartments

really make me jump for joy. What neat storage

vessels they become. What fun you can do

with them. I recently put this together to

send to someone....well someone I thought

needed a little pick me up. I think

she will be so happy when she opens it.

Lot's of trinkets & just all around fun!

I am ever so partial to a good pink or

blue box. These boxes...all though

originally used to store gloves make awesome

jewelry boxes too. I like to use them at

art shows to carry merchandise in....and then

use them as the actual display piece. I don't know

if patina is the right word for describing the way

a piece of fabric has aged....but these vintage

beauties have just that special 'patina' to them. What

kinds of things do you like to store your vintage

collections in? What would you send trinkets

to a friend in? Do you know just the right way

to make someone feel delighted with joy? I hope

you have an artfully creative evening. All the best that life

has to offer....and many blessings to you!

A Tragic Loss

I woke up yesterday all energetic & happy

to start the day. I was going to box

up & mail out my swap package to

Alanna George......then I read my

email. My dear friend & swap partner

Julie Baxley had endured a home fire. It

destroyed everything....all her personal affects.....

her home.... & her beloved fur children.....the

loves of her life. Her 2 cats. She is a beautifully

gifted artist. We attend Silver Bella together. Above

is a montage she created. It is lovely don't you think?

Here is a picture taken on our first night at

Silver Bella 2010. I was exhausted after a long day

of travel & SHOPPING....Julie looks full of life & smiles.

That's the way Julie is.....ALWAYS. She also always

wants to help & give. Our little Gnome friend was visiting

us....a token from Karla Nathan. She lost everything....yet

was more concerned with others. I found her commenting

on FB about others happiness....about the beauty of

others children. I would have been crying a pity party.

Not Julie. She....on the morning after the fire

was letting us know she wouldn't be mailing

off her Valentine's to us. Tragically....along

with everything she

owned they were

burned in the fire. That's Julie....worried

about our happiness. I just love her. I wish I

could carry this burden for her.

Here's another piece of this talented artist's work.

Julie is faithful. Her art reflects her faith. Yet

another quality that I adore about Julie.

I scored this awesome photo from Miss Jodie

at Everything Vintage. Which brings me to another

point of topic. I am writing about a friend who

has lost everything. Yet....I am able to find examples

of her work and cherished photos on the web. What a

marvelous tool in the face of something tragic. Also,

what a great way to let others who know Julie about her

loss & to give everyone who reads this a glimpse

into the artful soul of a beautiful & talented lady. I love

sharing these photos with you today.

Here is the ornament that she sent at Halloween. She

always personalizes things so nicely. Here....she added

a 'V' for Valita. I know that I treasure each of

her pieces. They are fun & thoughtful. Sending out

the package of Valentine Ornaments will be bittersweet.

Knowing that my beautiful ornament made by

Julie won't be in the bundle of lovelies.....destroyed

by fire....I know that box will be filled with love. Love

from all the swap ladies who lovingly create ornaments for

our sweet swap hosted by Alanna George. I am happy that

Julie will receive her ornaments from us....and I have added

a little commemoration extra about the fire. I guess

when you love your friends.... commemorating

the happy & sad moments is what life is all about. I know I

have come to love each of these ladies through their

art. If anyone reading this would like to know

where to send something to Julie, contact me here or

send me an email for her contact information. Blessings

for an artfully creative day.

Love is in the Air

I want to give you a little peek. A peek into

some of the swaps I have been working on.

This is a swap with a group of past &

present Silver Bella girls.

Started by Alanna George because of the

fact she would be unable to attend

Silver Bella 2010.... she asked if we wanted

to do a spring ornament swap last winter. 15 of us

eagerly joined. Let me tell you....there are some

very talented women in this group.

So while I squealed

and opened that first box of ornaments.....in my mind

I knew I wanted to be in another swap. Then we swapped

for a Halloween Ornament Swap. We again were not

disappointed. So....without a moments hesitation....

the Valentine Ornament Swap began. So now as we

scurry about packaging the lovelies into

the finest wrapping and get them boxed up to send

lovingly to Alanna....I thought I would give just

a little peek at my pretties.

In my mind I cheat just a little. I have been

going the easy route and making a

soldered ornament. The girls seem

to enjoy them & boast about them....

so....I add to the swap with a little

soldered lovely. It's what I am into now...so

that's what I have been doing.

My photos don't do them actual justice. I

think you can get the general idea. I really don't

want the best photo....since it is really just

a peek. After I receive the whole swap.....I will

post more photos. I hope that you have enjoyed

this little snippet of my Valentine Ornament

Swap.....because love really is in the air

around here. Blessings for an artfully

creative evening.

The Numerous Blog Responsibilities

I love having a blog. I love knowing that

really there are people out there who

read my blog....even though they never

post comments. That's okay....I lurk on a few

blogs too. I knew that when I first started

my blog there would come with it a

certain amount of responsibility. I love that too.

Recently I came home from a long hockey

weekend. Typically when I am gone I don't

post to my blog....or even check it. Sometimes....

I don't even follow blog etiquette and

post to all you wonderful friends out there in blog

land that I will be away. I know you all forgive me. So....I

was really excited to check my followers and found

that I had 3 new ones. I WAS so EXCITED!!! I check the first

new follower.....ummm really a sorted...checkered life she was

leading. Like stripper possibly....maybe swinger....ummm

looking for the kind of fun.....well the kind of fun this blog

isn't about. Check the next new follower....ummm...same

type of girl. Beautiful....like most of my followers....these girls were

just beautiful....and shall I say also buxom if you know

what I mean. Well I politely just removed them from

my list of followers. I couldn't believe it. Actually....I was

wondering what they were seeing in my blog. Then....like a bolt

of LIGHTNING it struck me................................

.................................of course they were interested in

my blog. I was posting things like......I LOVE to SWAP!!!!

Check out the new SWAP I joined!!!!! My goal for 2011....join lot's of

new SWAPS!!!!! I was posting to my friend Kristin at Retro' Art Cafe

about her shrinky dink journal. I was excited because I had

purchased some shrinky dink paper over the holidays.

We were talking about how we hadn't done it in years and

how we were excited to take it to an 'adult craft'. Now.....see

how this is going????? Funny....I remember when I purchased

some frozen charlotte dolls from her.....she posted to me.....

'Hope.....your heads are on their way!!!' So....I'm just

saying...there are a lot of responsibilities to having a

blog.....I just never new some of them would be reading

between the lines. So.....now when I see I have a new

follower.....I check their references so to speak.

Do they really like a good swap....one that maximizes their

creative potential? Or are they the kind of person that wants to

SWAP?????:? Me....I am all about the creative potential....why just

today....I have been working on 3 swaps!!! I hope you have found

the humor in this....I know I got a good laugh! Blessings for

an artfully creative day.

A Sampler Swap

As I promised myself this year in my list of

goals....I am challenging myself to

participate in more swaps. I love a good

swap. The anticipation of waiting

for them to come in the mail.....

all lovingly packaged. It is a simple joy

I just love. As you can tell by my sidebar....I do

partake in a few. I belong to a wonderful group

of Silver Bella gals that will be sending off

our third independent from Silver Bella swap

next week. The group is 15 strong and we make ornaments

for different holidays. We have done a spring swap....a

Halloween swap....and this one will be a Valentine swap.

The group is hosted by Alanna George and let me

tell you the talent is strong. Last year at Silver Bella I participated

in Chantal Johnson....from Wishblooms....her sampler swap.

This is what I sent. I had to make 4 I believe. I was trying to

be fancy.....and I really liked how it turned out. She made our samplers

into little sewing books with embroidery scissors.

Really a wonderful keepsake. So....this year

I thought I would go out on a limb and join Linda's.....from A

Swap for All Season's 5x7 sampler one on one swap. I will get my

partner shortly and eagerly wait to get started. Sewing really isn't my

thing....but I love the calmness of it. It is relaxing and by

participating in these little sewing swaps it forces me to get

out of my comfort zone. I have joined a few more....but let me

finish them....and I will post about them later. Hope you

had an artfully creative day today. Blessings for a beautiful

tomorrow.

My Possum Story

Some might think this is cute.

I don't. Especially at 2:30 a.m. when you hear

a blood curdling scream. 'Mom.....we

have a rat!' We were knee deep in

renovations....the 12" crown moulding had

been removed from the base boards. A huge expanse

of crawl space could be seen. The dirt floor remains of a

generations old possum colony had been exposed.....and

now it was time to meet the humans. I can see why the kids

thought it was a rat....it's long nasty tail....it's beady little eyes.

This is more of what I saw. Plus add to the humiliation.....
that you think you have a rat in your home. A
mouse might be bad enough. I was devastated. In fact....
I was balling my eyes out and wanting to go
to the nearest Holiday Inn. We were all pretty shaken.
The next day I called my good friend Kevin....lucky for
me he owns POW Extermination. Get it POW.....because they
get it done. They get rid of vermin. He said....'I don't see any signs
of rat infestations. It would be really evident.' Gnawing....pawing....
all sorts of rat behavior. But the kids said they saw a RAT!!!



......so the next day....it all came clear to me. We
didn't have a rat....we had a possum! The dogs were
going ballistic. One was hunkered up all safe on
the couch. The other one....was protecting us. Treed to
the back of the couch ready to pounce on said RAT....um....
possum. Lincoln yanked forward the couch....Liberty lunged
forward....grabbing the RAT.....um possum by the scruff of
the neck and immediately ran out her doggie door.





Lincoln and I bolted out the door....not the doggie
door of course....and I said get it Lincoln!!!! He was
scared so I started beating the ferocious RAT....um....
possum in the head with a hoe. It flattened to the mere
size of a pancake. I scooped it up with the hoe and took it to
the driveway so I would be able to show my husband....ummm....
let's say my kill to make him happy....when he got home.
No sooner had I placed that sucker down on the driveway.....
it was gone. I thought our stable hand had disposed of it....
but no.....that RAT.....ummm possum....well you guessed it....
it was playing possum. So now we had a brain dead....possum
playing POSSUM running around.






This possum.....um not so lucky.....or is he just playing....
POSSUM????? I hope you enjoyed one of the many
adventures that I have taken in my humble
little farm life. I am not a farm girl at heart....but I do love
our quaint little life here. For those of you curious about the use
of possum/opossum....you can use them interchangeably according
to my dictionary. Do any of you have funny stories...I would love
to hear them....at first I was a little scared to tell this one.
I thought you all might think I lived in squalor...but then I thought
it was just too funny not to tell. I hope you have a clear image
in your mind at what I might have looked like beating
a poor defenseless possum with a hoe. Blessings for a fun filled
evening.

I want Sparseness in my Life

I promise you that I have been very energetic

these past couple of weeks. I have been

so diligent at clearing out. I think they actually quit

taking donations at one of the smaller....more

quaint re-sale shops here in town because

I was taking in too much. The sign on the door

said 'No more donations until further notice!'

YIKES!

So I switched and started taking in more

to the Goodwill.

This is the kind of chaos that we have been

living in the last couple of weeks.

On one hand it feels great. On the other

hand it feels chaotic. It is really hard

to relax when you know you have such a mess

under foot. Which makes me start thinking about

my goals for 2011. Do you realize that by

achieving some of your goals you have to break

some of your goals? Like for example....at the top

of my goals....and remember they weren't in any

particular order.....but let's face it they kind of are.

'Enter studio and create daily.'

It is really hard to do that when your studio is torn

up because you are re-organizing. But I am committed

to believing that you have to work all your goals.

So.....that is why I have been just adding little blurbs

into my blog.

....and the really funny thing about all this

donating and clearing out....

each time I pull into the local Goodwill

it about kills me not to go in. I want to

go in and shop. I am staying committed and focused

until I achieve the sparseness that I want. Then....and

only then will I feel that I have achieved my goal.

I hope that YOU are able to have an artfully

creative day....because I am going to have another

day of weeding out.

P.S. More dates with Jeff is last on my 2011 list of goals.

He certainly is not last on the list. So Jeff, if you

are reading this post....I love you honey!!!

Picture Perfect Pretty

I had the opportunity to have my children

photographed this past fall. We

went to Richardson Studio here

in Bloomington.

It was a tremendous experience

This husband/wife duo have

immense talent. They captured the

true beauty of my kids.

Her eyes do it for me every time.

It was so fun to take in what

I considered a trousseau. Lindsey packed

up all her favorites....and from there

the experts picked out their favorites.

Then they set the stage for our photo shoot.

They made Lindsey & Lincoln

feel confident & expressive.

.....and added un poco skin.....which about did

this momma in. But when I saw the

actual photo....I melted. Tasteful with a

little 'art' mixed in. This momma is really

proud of these photos. By the way....this will not

be a portrait that is hung above our

mantle....however....I think it truly captures

the beauty of Lindsey and will be

enjoyed for years to come from a beautiful

scrapbook that they put together for us.

Blessings for an artfully creative day.

Felted Flower Inspiration

I've been perusing the Internet getting excited about all

kinds of felted flowers. There are so many

great examples. They really inspired me to

get creative.

Since I took Betz White's felted frame class

at Silver Bella I can't get my hands

on enough wool. In fact.....part of the reason

I haven't been blogging about anything

I have created is because I haven't

created much since before Christmas.

I had to completely re-organize my

studio because wool has over come me. I can't

walk without tripping over felted wool sweaters.

Jeff brought me in 2 large....wonderful....

deep low shelves. I put in a center island so

I have a great work station with stools.

It seems when I come up with a great idea....

Jeff is right there along side of me complimenting

me and making my creative space so

much better. That is one of the many

reasons I adore him.

I think these were cut out with a sizzix.

I have used my sizzix to cut out some

very thin felted wool. It makes for

such a cute technique. If you scroll

back a few posts back you can actually

see my felted pin cushion rings. I cut those

out with the sizzix and also added

a felted ball that I embroidered some

french knots on.

These struck me as so cute. I think these

were probably wet felted.

I am not sure....but that is my take.

I will post pictures about the craft room

after it is finished. I can't wait for you

all to see the progress. It seems as

if we all want to see the spaces that we create

in more than what we actually create!

I know when people stop by they want to come

in to the studio more than any other

room in the house! Blessings for an

artfully creative day.

Hold Dear.....The Shop

I got really excited tonight when I was blog hopping.

I found out my good friend Michelle Geller

is debuting her brand new online store....Hold Dear.

You can access the site through her blog.....

silly me can't quite figure out this

whole linking thing but just type it in.

http://www.michellegeller.typepad.com/

or just click on my link....it should direct you.

She debuts Wednesday, January 5th at

6:00p.m. Pacific Time.

Look at some of the yummy things.....

Santos Hands.

as with Michelle....she always has the coolest
paper goodies.


and me oh my.....look at the wonderful
vintage tickets.




......and it probably wouldn't be complete
with out her awesome Dennison Labels.
Michelle first taught me about these
neat things....and now I am hooked. Her shop is going
to debut with all her yummy vintage treasures & supplies.....
but soon she will be adding journals & jewelry.
I know you won't want to miss this.....she always
has the best vintage stuff.

Veggies for 2011

As my friend Heather so aptly pointed out this morning,

she likes that I stated my GOALS for 2011....

and didn't make any resolutions. That is really what is

more important anyway. I know when I feel the best....

it is when I eat more fruits & vegetables. It's

hard to do that....especially when your mind

considers FAT.....SUGAR.... and WHITE FLOUR

food groups.

So that is what I am planning on doing. Do you

see that word PLANNING? Well that is what

I need to do to incorporate more fruits & vegetables

into my diet. I plan on having lot's of

vegetables and fruits on hand. Then....I can

make omelets....stir fries.....snacks.

I am not saying that I am the picture of health. Not by
any means. But I know that the foods that God
put on this earth....not the foods we have processed
on this earth....are what I need to be eating. And I truly feel
that many of these foods must be organic. I try to buy
certain foods organically. Like peppers. Like celery. Like
carrots. Like apples. These foods are found very easily in the
organic section of my local Kroger.



Really.....I do love most vegetables. I have some favorites.
Sugar Snap Peas....these little babies are by far
an Ellington favorite. I quit buying them fresh and have
been opting on purchasing them in the frozen section
in those new little steamer bags. If I need them in a hurry I pop
them in the microwave for 1 minute....then run them under
cool water the rest of the way. They are just YUMMY!
Yellow....orange.....and red peppers. Another Ellington staple.
Roasted Carrots. I know....they caramelize and get really sweet....but
hey...they are still a veggie & my kids love them. We eat them in
a bowl with some cottage cheese. It is bright & beautiful eating
them this way.




...and really....who doesn't adore roasted vegetables.
The smoky subtileness is delicious. I love adding some mild
goat cheese to a thick slice of grilled farm bread and then
layering on the roasted vegetables. Here I would love to also add
some GOOD balsamic vinegar. A big roasted portebella....some roasted
peppers....and some roasted asparagus. Really...this wouldn't be
torture at all...in fact this is sounding really yummy. I really am
glad I want to incorporate this healthier food fare into my
2011 diet. It is going to better for all of us. Here's to
my realistic goals! Bon Appetit'!