Handmade & Heavenly by Nora

Taking Care of Me

2012-01-21T01:03:00.000-07:00

Let me start this post by saying I AM NOT AN EXPERT. I have not had any cosmetology classes. Everything I'm sharing with you today has come from trial and error, my need to save money, look good, feel healthy/better about myself, and an intense desire to get away from the excess chemicals that we're so used to seeing in products that go ON OUR SKIN! Our skin...the largest organ on our body & so easily damaged.

I don't know about you, but I'm tired of makeup & moisturizers that leave my skin irritated and flaky. I'm tired of being allergic to all of it...the redness, the bumps, the ITCHING. Ugh! I'm tired of the PRICE of products that promise to work and don't deliver. I don't wear makeup every day. I'm not beauty obsessed, but as is human nature, I do like to look good & on occasion make up does give me a little pick-me-up that I just can't get anywhere else. Today, I'm going to share my recipes for cleaning my face, my new lotion love, and a serum that cosmetics companies can't even come close to!

TAKING IT OFF

My eye make up that is. For ages I used Almay or Neutrogena oil-free eye makeup remover. Over the last couple of years it's really begun to irritate my eyes & leave my vision blurry for a couple of hours after use. Not good. I don't wear waterproof mascara any more (makes my eyes hate me). There are some recipes out there that use mineral oil, olive oil, or coconut oil...CAN'T DO THAT...if oils get into your eyes, the ONLY way to remove it is surgically. What do I use, then? 3 items in a 4 oz bottle....

1tsp tear-free head to toe baby wash

6-8 drops grapeseed oil (yeah, yeah I just said "no oil" but this one is different & I'll explain in a sec)

3.5 oz distilled water

It works, doesn't leave my eyes burning or blurry, and I'm happy. NOW...the grapeseed oil...it's not a lot of oil and grapeseed is considered a "light" oil which means that it won't clog your pores or suffocate the skin of your face like coconut or olive oil and especially mineral oil. It has antioxidants to help fight signs of aging, vitamins that your skin actually CRAVES, and doesn't leave behind any sort of residue. I also take a warm washcloth immediately after using & lightly blot my skin off.

CLEANING

The simplest...EVER. Dr. Bronner's baby mild (unscented) liquid castile soap. Four drops in my hand, a little warm water, rub gently in circular motion over face, avoiding eye area, and rinse off. Works beautifully. If you're acne prone, this is good for you, too.

ONCE WEEKLY EXFOLIATION

In the shower I keep a small tub of baking soda that has been pre-moistened with distilled water into a paste. I scoop out a dime sized amount into my palm, add 4 drops of Dr Bronner's & GENTLY scrub, then rinse. The reason I emphasize gently...baking soda is a natural abrasive...rub too hard & it's like taking 80grit sandpaper to your face...not cool. But a light circular motion scrub (believe me, you'll feel it) will do the trick.

TONER

Another 4oz bottle, but this one contains

2 crushed aspirin

2oz apple cider vinegar

2oz distilled water

Vinegar is an acid, but it levels the pH in your skin...if you drink a shot of it every morning you're helping your skin, hair, & digestion...we'll have to do a vinegar post soon so you can understand why I love it so much.

MOISTURIZING

Grapeseed oil. Pure and simple. Put some on a cotton pad & gently pat around my face. It's usually soaked in by the time I'm finished brushing my teeth.

MIRACLE SERUM

2oz brown or cobalt glass bottle (available at your local health food store)

dropper lid (some bottles come with them, so check)

1 oz grapeseed oil

1/2 oz jojoba oil

5 drops rose essential oil

5 drops roman chamomile essential oil

5 drops bergamot essential oil

3 drops lavender essential oil

Nightly. Using my weakest finger (left hand ring finger) I place a small drop & pat it over my eyebrows, upper eye, and under my eyes. I also put it on the bridge of my nose. Heck, there have been a few times that I put it on my whole face. It feels that good! This close-up of my gray peepers is how my makeup looks the morning after doing a serum treatment. Not bad, if I do say so myself!

No flakes, the skin is smoother, and purple/puffy....don't know what you're talking about! *LOL*

And finally, my new neck-to-toe miracle moisturizer. I'll give you the original recipe that I've been sitting on for nearly a year, tell you why it's good, but not great, THEN I'll share my tweaks to it & let you choose.

ORIGINAL RECIPE
16oz bottle baby lotion
8oz Vaseline
8oz vitamin E cream
Pour ingredients into a bowl & mix until it resembles pudding. Spoon into containers.

Smells great, feels fantastic....at first. Then after about an hour, you start to have this sticky/slick feel that takes about TEN HOURS to go away. Why? Short answer - too much Vaseline. Now I live in Utah, and with our desert air, my skin has been dry for YEARS...flaky, ashy, and my feet...oh, my poor feet. I'm a barefoot girl, but I really hated my feet. White around the edges, cracked, peeling, and over time, they really hurt.

Someone out there is going to yell "Get your blood sugar tested, Ditzy Girl. You're diabetic!" I can assure you, I'm NOT. I get a little low every now and then, but that's because I burn up everything I take in and has nothing to do with this. This is me hating shoes, running around on carpet, concrete, and my feet paying the price. No amount of soaking, scraping callouses, and paraffin moisture wraps made it go away. I was beginning to think nothing would help. Till this. Here's what I ended up with:

MAMA'S MIRACLE MOISTURIZER
yields 56 oz
16 oz bottle baby lotion (your choice, but remember the fewer ingredients, the better)
8oz Equate petroleum jelly with aloe & e (WalMart)
(2) 16 oz tubs of Clear Basics Vitamin E cream with jojoba & aloe (Family Dollar)
1 Tbsp grapeseed oil (yeah, I can admit it - I'm addicted to the stuff!)
Save the vitamin e tubs for refilling. Pour ingredients into large bowl & mix until it looks like pale pink pudding. Scoop back into containers & use when needed. It feels AMAZING! Absorbs quick, but you don't dry out or itch 3-4 hours later. And my tootsies? They love me again! When I first used this, I put it on before going to bed, thinking that if they were white/dry again by morning, I'd be so upset. This picture was taken the next day.

You should be able to right click & open in a new tab to see that there are no dry areas on my foot. I'm very pleased with the results. And 56oz of lotion for under $8? You can't beat it! It's become such a hit in our house that Middle Child and Biker Boy both took off with their own containers when they saw how much of it I had...and they use it every day!

Thanks for stopping by & letting me share my thrifty skin care tricks. I hope that you might be able to use one or all of them for you and your family. Have a great rest of your day!!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-18T08:59:00.001-07:00

PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo.

Happy Tennant Tuesday

2012-01-17T23:33:00.000-07:00

It's drool time...okay it is for ME...I've earned it. {grin}

For the record...I don't CARE that in 3 months his sweet little baby girl, Olive, will be 1yr old. I don't CARE that 2 weeks ago he married his sweetie of 3yrs. I don't WANT a 12-step program to get over him. He's purdy, he's talented, he's Scottish, and he's HAWT!!!

I have some really great recipes to share with you on Thrifty Thursday and Frugal Friday, so if you're ready to save some serious moolah, check back with me then. Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

Tennant Tuesday/Wordless Wednesday Combo

2012-01-11T23:49:00.000-07:00

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-04T23:29:00.001-07:00

source unknown

2011-12-30T09:20:00.000-07:00

I so needed to see this today...

Proverbs 18:21 reads: Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

His Eyes

2011-12-27T23:05:00.000-07:00

The eyes. It's said that they're the windows to our soul. So expressive. So beautiful...

Drawing you in...

Holding you captive...

When he's looking at something with curiosity...that puzzle he can't quite figure out...The Doctor looked at so many things that way.

Even in black & white is eyes are intense! Feel like he's looking right through you...

And Heaven forbid he gets upset with or disappointed in you...will you be able to bear it?!?

I'm not the only one that thinks David's eyes remind them of Galaxy Minstrels...most of his fans feel that way (BTW...that's an M&M in the middle for size comparison).

Deep, rich, chocolaty brown....oh, yeah, that works for me!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T11:02:00.000-07:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-21T10:54:00.001-07:00

Tennant Tuesday

2011-12-20T23:13:00.000-07:00

Just gonna sit here and drool for a bit...don't mind me....

*sigh* Very nice!

Playing "Catch Up"

2011-12-19T16:02:00.005-07:00

I cannot believe that it's been nearly a month since I've been on here. This is what happens when life gets in the way of all the things you want to do. Figured since the next 6-8 weeks aren't going to be much better, I'd make today a show n tell kind of day. Ready?

I managed to do a bit of thrift store hopping. I picked up these adorable glass pieces, for less than $5 combined. I found the LONG pearl strand at a converted house in Ogden, called Pnuji's Place, and had to stop myself at just one pretty...she has some milk glass and other goodies that I'd LOVE to get my hot little hands on!

I finally managed to get my funky window in the master bedroom covered. Again, thanks to a thrift store jaunt, I picked up six of these Battenburg panels for $8...only needed four for the window, so I plan on using the remaining two for my back door.

Here's a single panel so you can see just how pretty they really are...

One of our friends didn't get to participate in our Christmas in July swap (we had an odd number sign up, so she volunteered to sit out)...we've all been sending her gifts over the last six months and this is my contribution. I got the stocking at Dollar Tree, then used some tiny doilies and trims that I had and stitched them on. I think it turned out gorgeous & if I know Sharron, she's gonna love it!!

I'm really pleased with how it turned out.

I've got the top of my entertainment center all decked out with my winter forest again. I've added some white bottle brush trees this year and an angel that I got at JoAnn's last year on clearance.

I saved one of the trees for this little project. I had a new blogging buddy send me a GORGEOUS antique Ball canning jar with a zinc lid and I just had to use it one of the darling ideas that we were gushing over on Pinterest...I think it looks fantastic sitting on my bookcase with my shelf of antique books.

Thank you Linda (beautiful hostess of the Prairie Flower Farm blog)...I love this jar and will treasure it and our new friendship always!

Well, that's what I've been up to lately. I'm hoping to be able to share some more really soon. I'm making some last minute Christmas presents, burning files to DVD/CDs for the end of the year and I've got to save everything I've ever purchased from PC Crafter since 2007. They announced a week or so ago that they're closing down their website, which really stinks, because so many ladies are being left out in the cold in regard to the purchases we made with them. They smacked us TWICE when they said if we have any money sitting in our "PCpurses" (aka store credits) that we don't get it back, but we're more than welcome to spend it at their new focus...cricut.com. Sorry, Provo Craft, I don't own a Cricut, I never will, and the way that you have handled the closing of the PC Crafter website makes me want to sell my Cuttlebug, dies, and folders. There are so many things they could have done differently. Trust me when I say that I can be perfectly happy using Tim Holtz dies/folders by Sizzix, my Spellbinders, and throwing a little money toward some yumminess over at Paper Trey Ink! *sigh* Okay, kiddos, I'm jumping off my soapbox...tons still left to do before the end of the year.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

I don't get it...

2011-11-25T09:19:00.004-07:00

Call me a dork, if you like, but I CANNOT for the life of me understand WHY we'd have a day of THANKSGIVING followed by a frenetic weekend of consumerism & blatant commercialism.

The next 28days are going to be hectic....by our design...folks running back n forth trying to find the perfect Christmas gift for people on their lists, attending party after party, standing in line for hours to ship things in the mail, and never stopping to relax and enjoy the reason this time of year is really for.

I've never been a fan of Black Friday...I've done it TWICE in twenty years and regretted both times. The last time was 2001 and I swore never again. I stood for half an hour in line, while the woman behind me repeatedly banged her shopping cart into my back, hips, and legs. I lost it, tossed the items I was going to purchase onto a nearby shelf and told her flat out that I was going to forget that I was a Christian for five minutes and shove that shopping cart right up her backside if she didn't knock it off. People around me clapped, while she looked at me like I was nuts, then I left & went home to my family. Right where I should have been all along.

Guess folks really don't have a gratitude attitude after all. People are rude, disrespectful, and sometimes downright mean when it comes to getting that last item on the shelf. That desire to be there first and say they got it at the best bargain price...yeah, you may have, but at what cost? Lost sleep, gas & mileage on your car driving all over the place, fighting the crowds in the name of getting a good price, and more importantly...missing precious time with your family. I'm sorry, to me it's just not worth it.

I'm HUGE on hunting for bargains...you can ask anyone that knows me. I'm a thrift store junkie. If I can find it on the side of the road for free and still usable, that's even better. I enjoy making things with my own two hands. Always have. I also know that the truest gifts you give to someone come from the heart NOT the wallet or the fanciest stores.

Love, kindness, respect, generosity of spirit, & your time...those are the gifts that truly matter this time of year. Heck, let's be honest here, they matter ALL times of the year, not just in that little 28day window that makes people feel all warm and fuzzy.

You want to do something meaningful this year...something that will REALLY give you the warm fuzzies? Donate that money you'd spend on expensive electronics for your kids to a children's charity - St Jude's, Bikers Against Child Abuse, Cystic Fibrosis, Muscular Distrophy Association, Muscular Sclerosis, Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, The Shriners Hospitals, Ronald McDonald House...KNOW in your heart that you helped someone that would appreciate another day on this planet with their families.

You just feel that you HAVE to buy a gift for your neighbors that you really only see in passing on the street or in the next pew at church on Sunday? Then stay away from the big box stores that took all of our work over to China and away from people here...buy from a local store or go on Etsy and buy from a crafter living in the United States.

Are you talented enough to make something yourself? Hit the Salvation Army stores, or other local thrift stores for items that can be re-purposed and given an extended life.

Go to the homeless shelter with your kids and serve food for a day...you'll understand what gratitude truly is.

Take a book or your family Bible to the VA Hospital and read to our soldiers that can't be home this season because they're recovering from injuries they sustained protecting your freedoms.

Get back to the basics people, the things that truly matter...you'll be glad that you did. AND you'll be teaching a future generation that the best things in life aren't things.

EDITED TO ADD: Here's a great site to search out American-made products - http://www.madeinusa.org/

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-23T22:05:00.002-07:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-16T23:40:00.002-07:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-09T18:02:00.002-07:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-02T21:31:00.001-06:00

DT Time!

2011-11-01T21:58:00.003-06:00

As "Hamlet" the tormented Prince of Denmark

Just being his lovely self

at a photo shoot

Yup, it's a fact, I'm not the only one...do a search on tumblr & see how many David Tennant/Doctor Who blogs you pull up!

As D.I. Peter Carlisle in "Blackpool" - this show only gave you a taste of David singing. If you were lucky enough to catch him & Catherine Tate over the summer in "Much Ado About Nothing" then you got to hear him sing SEVERAL songs. Like this one:

That's it for me...raging headache...you'd think I was the one gorging on Halloween treats (I wish!). See ya tomorrow!

Wishing You A....

2011-10-31T11:57:00.001-06:00

It's Tuesday!

2011-10-25T11:18:00.005-06:00

This week it's pictures....with a twist! For the last few years, I've been collecting "motivational posters" that tripped my trigger. A lot of these, I'd love to give credit to the gals that made them, but sadly, the DT forum is no longer available to access and that's where I snagged them from.

{If you're having trouble reading any of these, just click the pic & it will enlarge for you.}

Okay....yeah....I totally went there...but, in my defense, if you've ever seen him as Brendan Block in "Secret Smile" you'd go there, too!!

Isn't it just?!?

This is from my favorite clip out of Red Nose Day (the UK version of Comic Relief)

If you're a Doctor Who fan you'll find this funny because The Doctor as of this year, should be approximately 907 yrs old!

There's no arguing this one!

'K! That's it for me. We have a cold snap coming our way tonight & there are errands to be run. See you lovelies tomorrow!

No Post...

2011-10-22T14:38:00.001-06:00

Celebrating with Youngest Child...he's nine today.

Catch y'all later! xoxo

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-19T12:34:00.003-06:00

Happy Tennant Tuesday!

2011-10-18T22:09:00.003-06:00

I've totally earned this today:

Every.....
single....
little.....
bit.....
and some chocolate....
nah....this will do....just fine....
*THUD*

The Homecoming Dance

2011-10-16T22:22:00.003-06:00

Last night, Middle Child took his girlfriend to the homecoming dance at his school. Earlier in the week he asked me to make her a corsage. When I asked what colors we were doing this in, the answer I got was "red and black." Anything special you'd like me to do with it? "Nope, just work your 'mom magic' and it'll be cool." Okie dokie...challenge accepted!

After a quick trip to Michael's for the wristband and flower, then a hop over to JoAnn's for some lace and ribbons, I was ready to play. I grabbed my needle and thread, stitched the lace to resemble leaves, made some loops out of the ribbons and anchored them with a few stitches. Then I dug out my glue gun, plugged it in and went to town. This is what I came up with:

Red silk rose, red 1/8" satin ribbon, 1/4" sheer black ribbon, black lace, and borealis stretchy wrist band (you'll find them in the wedding section for about $4 & they're amazingly easy to work with).

Here's Middle Child "allowing" me to take a picture before his sweetie arrived. He took her to her school dance last month and I wasn't able to get any pictures. He's growing into a fine young man!
And here they are! She LOVED her corsage, it matched her sweet little dress perfectly, and YES, her hair is pink/red/burgundy. Normally it's brown toward the back and on the sides and front is colored like a rainbow. On most people it would look freakish, but on her...it's just too stinkin cute for words!
In heels she's about 5'10" which is perfect for his 6'2" lanky frame and they're absolutely adorable together. The end of this month will mark 7 months for them and he's still as crazy about her now as he was while he spent 3 months working up the courage to ask her out.

That's it for me. It's been a long weekend...still trying to get this stuffy nose/plugged ears/tight chest thing GONE...it's wearing me out! Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

Saturday version of Frugal Friday

2011-10-15T09:35:00.003-06:00

No pix to post on this one, but it's really too good to not share with y'all. Last night, after making a wrist corsage for Middle Child's girlfriend and their Homecoming Dance, I made my own make-up removing cloths...

I took:

a roll of paper towels cut in half

4 c of distilled water

3 Tbsp of coconut oil

the last of my Lauren Hutton facial cleanser

Then I followed the steps on THIS BLOG. The recipe is originally for making baby wipes, but these can go on baby's bum AND/OR your face...we all want something gentle on our skin that does the job that doesn't contain a ton of unnecessary chemicals.

I'm pleased to report that these really work! It even took off my Neutrogena waterproof mascara without making my eyes burn or giving me that 30 minute residual blurry vision that some wipes can give you. Here's a quick cost breakdown so you can see the savings:

Viva towels - $1.98

3pk of Rubbermaid tubs - $1.88

coconut oil - already had on hand, but approx 75¢

distilled water - already had on hand but approx 20¢

facial cleanser - already had on hand but approx 50¢

COST - $5.31

1 tub of 30 wipes - $7-12 depending on the brand & store

Now, because I ended up with two tubs, counting the sheets on your roll, you're making probably TRIPLE the amount of wipes....which means if you bought from the store, you'd spend $21-36 for what we just put together.

SAVINGS: $16-31!! Now, I don't know about you, but for ME, that's a good reason to dork dance! *LOL*

Ten hours after removing my makeup (aka this morning when I got up) my skin doesn't feel tight or oily or like I have any make-up residue left behind. Just smooth, fresh, happy skin. Next batch, I think I'm going to back down on the coconut oil (1Tbsp instead of 3) and toss in some organic aloe gel, Vitamin E oil, and grapeseed oil, since it's better for your face. I'm definitely keeping this one in my cleansing regimen!

I know, I know...where are the pix of the corsage?!? Tomorrow I'll share those...the dance is tonight. Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-12T14:16:00.002-06:00

Tennant Tuesday

2011-10-11T22:11:00.002-06:00

Still feeling under the weather. Think this sinus infection is trying to move south to my chest. Biker Boy has said that if I'm not better by Thursday, he's hauling my butt to the doctor. For now, I'm taking my herbals and sucking down my 6-8 cups of tea (grated fresh ginger, quick shake of cayenne pepper, splash of lemon, & black Utah honey).

I'll leave you with some eye candy that always makes me feel better....

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!

Do you like to play with paper?

2011-10-08T14:30:00.003-06:00

Yeah, me too. Sorry that I don't have any projects to share with you today - I've been under the weather this last week - allergies have backed up into a sinus infection. What I do have are some fun candy alerts over in my right sidebar that you might want to get hooked up with.

Today, I'm adding Pixie Dust Paperie to the list - they have a GORGEOUS kit up for grabs that will help you scrap the upcoming Christmas holiday or make some fantastic cards for friends and family. Click the picture in the sidebar to be taken to the drawing or click on their name in this post to be taken to their blog so you can see all of the cool things Kirsty and her friends do over there.

Good luck & happy crafting!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-10-05T22:08:00.002-06:00

Tennant Tuesday

2011-10-04T16:21:00.005-06:00

David was recently voted "The Greatest Doctor of All Time." Would you like to know why?

It all started with "The Christmas Invasion" where The Doctor regenerates for the tenth time since 1963...

He spent 3 full seasons & some extra episodes (almost 5yrs) turning The Doctor into an even more beloved character than he already was...though he was "rude and not ginger."

There were many memorable scenes between The Doctor and his traveling companions ~ Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, Sarah Jane Smith & K-9 (remember them from the Tom Baker days?), Captain Jack Harkness (even though he was never an "official" companion), Martha Jones, & Donna Noble...it's quite possible that I'll share as many scenes as I can find here with you! {consider yourself warned!} *LOL*

One of my favorite Doctor Who episodes..."Blink." Here, see for yourself:

No matter how many times I watch it, I still get the shivers...just LOVE the dialogue! The Weeping Angels are almost as creepy as the Vashda Narada...but I'll save them for another time...

Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

The Power of Lyrics

2011-09-30T17:19:00.002-06:00

My eyes are open wide
By the way I made it through the day
I watch the world outside
By the way I'm leaving out today

I just saw Haley's Comet, she waved
Said, "Why are you always running in place?"
Even the man in the moon disappeared
Somewhere in the stratosphere

Tell my mother, tell my father I've done the best I can
To make them realize this is my life, I hope they understand
I'm not angry, I'm just saying
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance

Please don't cry one tear for me
I'm not afraid of what I have to say
This is my one and only voice
So listen close, it's only for today

I just saw Haley's Comet, she waved
Said, "Why are you always running in place?"
Even the man in the moon disappeared
Somewhere in the stratosphere"

Tell my mother, tell my father I've done the best I can
To make them realize this is my life, I hope they understand
I'm not angry, I'm just saying
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance

Here is my chance
This is my chance

Tell my mother, tell my father I've done the best I can
To make them realize this is my life, I hope they understand
I'm not angry, I'm just saying
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance
Sometimes goodbye is a second chance

Wordless Wednesday (double shot)

2011-09-28T10:11:00.002-06:00

Tennant Tuesday!

2011-09-27T23:15:00.003-06:00

Yup, it's that time again....

Yummy....Scottish tan! {aka freckles}

And just so you can HEAR him....BBC translated 'Hamlet' from stage to DVD after worldwide demand, based on David's performance.

And his Scottish accent...

I'm off to slide into the gutter now...see y'all tomorrow!

Very Pinteresting....

2011-09-26T15:08:00.004-06:00

Just thought I'd share a bit of what I've been looking through over on Pinterest today:

{PLEASE NOTE: the titles under the pix will take you to the actual sources, NOT the Pinterest pages}

Sloppy Joe Grilled Cheese Sammies

Paris by Anti Pati

(thinking about printing this one onto some fabric...just not sure if I want a pillow or a t-shirt...)

Kai Lounge Pool Float

(just looks so COMFY! and it's kinda warm here today, so being near a pool would be nice...)

Drawer Pull Hanger Bar

(wouldn't this be cute for necklaces & scarves?)

Detoxifying Smoothies that have bonus benefits

Chicken Enchiladas in chipotle sour cream sauce

Being totally jealous of Becca's Cards

Christmas ornaments

I'll warn ya right now...Pinterest is highly ADDICTIVE...some folks get sucked in & aren't heard from for days on end! I can, at times, be one of those people, but today I have to help Youngest Child's teacher mark reading fluency charts, so I'm setting it aside...at least till tomorrow! *LOL*

Had a dream this weekend...I was leaving my house to run errands and found two white hawks lying dead on my doorstep. I just looked down at them for a moment, stepped over them, and never gave them another thought...wonder what that means?

Show n Tell

2011-09-24T20:44:00.003-06:00

Confession: I haven't used my COPIC markers in a while...nearly a year, in fact. I love them, though. When I was coloring my stamped or digital images 9 times out of 10 I used my COPIC markers...they're so easy to use and blend like a dream.

We were issued a challenge at the COPIC Markers blog to color a given image with 6 colors (some folks used less). Since I don't have the entire line of Sketch markers (300+colors) I figured this would be a good one for me to enter. I needed to be creative again, I needed a challenge to get my juices flowing, and it's also nice for those that are interested in COPICs or thinking about making the investment to see that you don't need an entire product line to get really amazing results. We were allowed to enter as many times as we'd like...I submitted two.

My first entry..... {you should be able to right click on the photos & open in new tab to see them a bit larger}

My second entry I decided to go monochromatic....
So, what do yo think? Could you color an image with 6 colors or less? I bet you can! The challenge ends tomorrow and you can see the entries HERE.

DIY Mascara

2011-09-23T22:42:00.004-06:00

Okay, so I mentioned last week that I tried making my own mascara. It was a semi-success and I thought I'd share how I did it. First, I figured out what ingredients would be "good" for my eyelashes, so I grabbed some vitamin E oil, organic aloe gel, and for the "coloring" I thought that activated charcoal would be a good choice.

A small pot from the natural food store and a couple of toothpicks to stir my chemistry experiment...
There are no exact measurements, I just kinda went with my instincts on this...a small squeeze of aloe, 4-5 drops of vitamin e oil, and 2 capsules opened, then stirred... {sorry it's a tad blurry}
A $3 pack of mascara wands from Sally Beauty Supply...
And the result.....
Not bad, but I think it could be thicker for more volume. I'm pondering adding a smidge of emulsifying wax, but I need to talk to some "experts" before giving it a try...I'll let ya know how it turns out.

I also thought y'all would like to see the progression of my hair growth since I donated 10 inches to Locks of Love back in late March. This is about 2 weeks after the cut & as you can see it's a good bit above my shoulders...
In July, with longer bangs and it's brushing my shoulders....
And as of last week....my bangs had hit my chin, so I grabbed my scissors & chopped 'em off, and curled it. When it's straight, it's 2 inches BELOW my shoulders. Love that my hair grows so fast!
I have a crafty/creative share for y'all tomorrow, so I hope to see ya again real soon. Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!

Tennant Tuesday/ Wordless Wednesday Combo

2011-09-21T22:45:00.002-06:00

A Different Kind of Candy

2011-09-15T16:25:00.005-06:00

The blog candy alerts that I've posted in the past usually have tied to crafts. This ties to creativity of another kind...makeup as art. I have to confess ~~ I have makeup issues. My mother used to inundate her bathroom with Clinique and a few other pricey brands. I swore I'd NEVER spend for foundation what I could spend on an entire outfit in my closet. To me that was crazy! I was, for years, the "cheapo girl" - Maybelline, Cover Girl, NYC, Rimmel London, etc - and I was good with it. (NOTHING against them...for their cost, they were good makeup brands at the time).

Now, after 3 kids, living in the mountain desert for almost 15yrs, and just flat-out getting older, my skin needs have changed, so my makeup needs have, as well. I don't wear makeup most days. I'm too busy & don't get out as much as I used to so I don't need it as often. The biggest reason, it really screws up my skin. Too many chemicals. They either leave me with big dry flaky areas or I blister and break out. I even have problems with it making me itch and BURN. Not cool any time, but on your face? YIKES!

About 5yrs ago, I moved to Neutrogena for my mascara & have done really well, and the Physician's Formula for eyes, lips & foundation was working. Now the makeup is giving me problems, and the mascara? OMGosh...itchy, blistering, watery...making my eyelashes fall out! I cannot believe how sensitive I've become to things that I took for granted every day. It's very disheartening at times.

I'm considering trying new brands, but some of the "better" cosmetics are so EXPENSIVE...I bought a sampler of Bare Minerals last month to the tune of $20 plus tax...folks, I've had lip gloss pots that were bigger, lemme tell ya! I'm okay with their foundations, but I really like their concealer. Nice & smooth going on and doesn't cake up in those teeny creases...you know the ones I'm talking about.

I even like the matte moisturizer from Lauren Hutton, but at $30 for a small bottle, I haven't ordered any in quite some time. I'm perfectly content with my Dr Bronner's/baking soda facial scrub, apple cider toner, & grapeseed oil moisturizer. For now, it works and works well, so I'm sticking with it.

I have found a place online where I can buy minerals to MAKE my own - foundations, eye shadows, & lip colors. I just have to wait till I can afford it...the starter kits aren't cheap. Everything but the mascara. I did make some of that last month & it was a success, to a degree, meaning my eyes didn't water or burn, but it's missing something to make it thicker & I think I know what it is, but I want to verify with some experts first. I'll share that with you tomorrow.

Today, though, I thought you'd like to know about a GIVEAWAY from Jangsara...yup, you guessed it...makeup! {You knew I'd get to the candy portion eventually, right?} Sign up once between now & the 30th of this month & you could win what's pictured below. Click her name under the picture to head that way....good luck!

Jangsara

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Happy Tennant Tuesday

2011-09-13T16:21:00.003-06:00

Here's your weekly fix...okay FINE...*sigh*... MY weekly fix of David. *LOL* These are shots taken from BBC Scotland's movie "Single Father."

Two Recipes for You Today!

2011-09-08T23:05:00.003-06:00

Yes, I have two recipes...aren't you excited? The first one is a cream soup base recipe that I found yesterday thanks to Pinterest. I've had to tweak it though, because the original recipe called for 1/4 cup of bouillon cubes and most on the market contain MSG. I'm allergic to MSG. Now, when I say "allergic," I don't mean "Ugh! My tummy was upset for two days." No, no, no my friends...allergic...as in "Oh my gosh! My tongue is swelling, my throat itches, and my lips feel REALLY weird!" ALLERGIC. I'm not the only one that suffers from this issue and sometimes it can be difficult to find food that you can make without MSG. This soup base, happens to be one that we CAN work around the MSG issue...

First, gather your supplies - measuring cups, measuring spoons, powdered milk, cornstarch, spices, small spoon for stirring, & a container. This will yield a 3 cup batch, so make sure your container can hold what you're putting together.

In the container mix:

2 cups powdered milk

1 1/2 cups cornstarch

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

1 tablespoon dried chopped garlic

3 tablespoons dried onion, minced or chopped

1 teaspoon black pepper

Gently stir, until all ingredients look to be incorporated fairly well. They'll look like this...
This is officially your substitute for any "cream" soup that your recipes call for. The original recipe said 2/3 cup of dry mix with 1 1/4 cups of water is equal to 1 can of condensed cream soup. I think that you can use 3/4 cup of water AND 3/4 cup of chicken, beef, or turkey stock and be just fine, since we went sans bouillon cubes in this batch. To get the equivalent of a family size can, you'd use 1 1/3 of the dry mix & tonight in my crock pot, I just used the stock that was already in without measuring. Worked beautifully.

I did find out that should you want to add in the bouillon cubes, and you still want to stay as MSG-free as possible, think about Wyler's brand and Hormel's HerbOx. Both manufacturers say "No added MSG...contains naturally occurring glutamines." Personally, with the real chicken broth that I used tonight, I didn't miss them one little bit.

Now, here's your second recipe, that will cook up in a 6qt crock pot:

On HIGH, cook 5-6 medium frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts in 5 cups of water for 3-4 hours till all of the pink is gone. Pull out the breasts and shred. While you're shredding the breasts, put your dry cream soup mix (1 1/3 cups) into the broth sitting in the crock pot and stir gently. Add the shredded chicken back into the pot.
Add in cooked bacon (I didn't have any to fry up, so I just used a small bag of fresh bacon pieces that I had in the cupboard), and 1/3 cup frozen chopped spinach. Continue to cook on HIGH for one hour. Add in elbow macaroni (approx 1lb bag), 1 brick of room temp cream cheese (DO NOT skimp on this step & go with low fat, get the rich stuff) and cook for 30-45 minutes, stirring to aid in the cheese melting and avoid sticking to the bottom. Add 1/2 cup milk and 1-2 cups of shredded cheese. Reduce heat & let mixture warm back up gradually.
Serve and enjoy! This was SO GOOD...seriously smelled AND tasted just like my favorite pizza from Papa John's. Lucky Me, there's just enough for lunch tomorrow.Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-09-07T20:51:00.002-06:00

Happy Tennant Tuesday!

2011-09-06T13:01:00.003-06:00

An open letter to "The Powers That Be" at NBC Offices -

Please, please, PLEASE....put the pilot for 'Rex Is Not Your Lawyer' on the air & give it a go...David worked so hard for his American accent and his loyal fans here on this side of the pond would LOVE to see him weekly! Won't you give him a chance to show you what we, the fans, already know? He's awesome!

Source

signed,

A shameless, hopelessly devoted fangirl

Miscellaneous Monday

2011-09-05T20:36:00.003-06:00

*sigh* I was trying to make some word art for y'all , as a gift for my not being here the last few days, but everything I came up with was rubbish...it's making me bonkers. Pretty sure it has to do with having the monkeys all by myself this weekend. While I empty my mind & gear up for the week, I'll leave you with one of my favorite groups, Mumford & Sons, singing "Little Lion Man." Hope you have a great week!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-31T23:35:00.002-06:00

It's Official

2011-08-26T07:24:00.003-06:00

Here is the message on The Angel Company's website:
"It is with great sadness that I must announce we are hanging up our wings. These past several years our industry has faced enormous challenges and as a result, we have seen many companies close their doors. We continued to hope we could see The Angel Company through this recession and back into prosperous days and we held onto this hope as long as we could.

One of the largest challenges affecting each of us is our industry not being able to support all of the direct sales companies in our field. Even in a healthy economy, we are a niche market trying to compete for a very limited number of distributors. As a small company, this has been a grueling challenge for us. Times are tough for everyone ~ in direct sales and retail environments.

I would like to thank each of you for being an customer and Angel these past 14 years. Indeed, it has been a pleasure to serve you.

The Angel Company"

We Angels were told several days ago. While I haven't been active for the last few months, thanks to the crummy economy, I really LOVED being an Angel and had hoped to be able to restart my sales in the company this fall. I adore the friends that I've made across the U.S. I'm probably not going to be with another direct sales company because I can't afford the initial investment requirements right now. Maybe a year or two down the road, we'll see. I need the income, especially with everything that's transpired over the last week now more than ever, so rest assured that I will find something.

You've already noticed that my blog is taking a new direction, and you can look forward to me being here, sharing thrifty ideas and DIY projects. I noticed that I have some new stalkers/followers - WELCOME!

Yes, I will get back to making cards & doing paper crafting, along with my painting and embroidery...I need the therapy & have OODLES of stash to get through! *LOL* Never fear...the craftiness will go on!!!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-24T22:25:00.002-06:00

Tennant Tuesday

2011-08-23T21:21:00.002-06:00

I went & saw this Saturday. The 1985 version had Roddy McDowell as Peter Vincent, magician/illusionist/vampire hunter. While Roddy was good in the original, David absolutely ROCKED in the updated version of the movie. Perfect mix of terrified, pensive, cocky, funny, & knowledgeable...proving yet again what a great character actor he truly is and why Doctor Who fans all around the world still want him as their Doctor.

Miscellaneous Monday

2011-08-22T22:30:00.005-06:00

Yup, I've got the blues today....

I actually LIKE these blues, though...they make my eyes, brain, & heart happy. Blue is so cool, literally AND figuratively!

Tennant Tuesday/Wordless Wednesday Combo

2011-08-17T14:03:00.002-06:00

Miscellaneous Monday

2011-08-15T22:54:00.005-06:00

REDS!

Most people think red is an angry color. I don't know...it kinda makes me feel cheery!

Frugal Friday

2011-08-12T22:18:00.002-06:00

Today, I'm going to share a recipe that I've put together for use as an acne toner solution. I've been using it for almost 4 months. My boys have been using it for nearly 3 months now. At first, they didn't like it...claimed they smelled like a Caesar salad. Now, they both use it every day, 2-3 times a day AND they're asking me to make bottles up to give to their friends! *LOL* To me, that classifies as a hit!

It's really simple & has 3 ingredients:

2 aspirin, crushed into powder

2oz apple cider vinegar

2oz distilled water

Mix the ingredients in a 4oz flip top bottle. I use travel bottles that Biker Boy brings back from his road trips...hotels are cool that way & so nice to save me some money! Shake before each use, pour onto a cotton ball, & gently blot on your entire face, avoiding your eyes.

The aspirin contains acetylsalicylic acid for drying up the acne and the apple cider vinegar balances the ph levels in your skin. It's some fabulous stuff & I hope you give it a try.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-10T19:25:00.002-06:00

Happy Tennant Tuesday!

2011-08-09T15:42:00.002-06:00

Unless you're a die hard Whovian, most people don't know who David Tennant is. He's member of the RSC (Royal Shakespeare Company) born in Scotland and a versatile character actor. You've probably seen him before and don't even remember it. Did you watch Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire? Remember Barty Crouch, Jr? Then you've seen David. It's okay, when I watched this movie with my kids, at the time, I didn't know who he was either.

This is a fan-made video to the music of Cris Angel's show "Mindfreak" but all the video clips are of David as Barty Crouch Jr...enjoy!

Miscellaneous Monday

2011-08-08T23:41:00.003-06:00

Sorry I'm so late getting here! Got a recipe to share with you today & it's quickly becoming one of my family's favorites. We just finished off a 6qt crock pot full of this...I seriously NEVER have leftovers!

Italian Ranch Chicken & Rice

6-7 medium sized boneless, skinless chicken breasts (frozen is okay)

1 brick cream cheese, room temp

2 cups water

1 can (reg size) cream of chicken soup

1 packet buttermilk ranch dressing mix

1 packet zesty italian dressing mix

1/2 cup chopped frozen spinach

1 1/2 cups instant white rice

I put the frozen breasts & water into my 6qt crock pot on HIGH for 2-3 hours (you can do this on LOW 4-6 if you have to go somewhere & be just fine). After the chicken has lost all of its "pink" bring out each breast & cut into good, bite-sized cubes & return to the crock pot. Add spinach, dressing mixes, & cream of chicken soup. Stir to mix. Cook for one more hour. Add in the cream cheese. It will look like this...

Add the rice & cook for another 30-45 minutes & you get THIS....
Serve with a small salad or fresh veggies and fruit & you have yourself one stick-to-your ribs awesome dinner! If you try it, please come back & lemme know what you think.

Linking this recipe to -

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Keep It Simple Sunday

2011-08-07T18:56:00.000-06:00

REALLY needed this one today!

bleh!

2011-08-06T00:22:00.001-06:00

I hate that I missed Thursday & Friday's posts...headaches & kids just don't mix! I'll have something together later for Stamp n Scrap Saturday....

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-03T20:32:00.003-06:00

source

Tennant Tuesday

2011-08-02T14:17:00.003-06:00

We used to have this thing over on the David Tennant message boards before they closed where every Tuesday we'd come on & wish each other a "Happy Tennant Tuesday!!" In honor of those, I'm carrying on here on my blog, because hey, it's mine & I can! *ROFL*

In 17 days I have a date with a friend {waving at Keddy} to see this movie on opening night. David is reprising Roddy McDowell's role as Peter Vincent, Colin Farrell is going to be "the baddy" (vampire)...and it promises to be a rollicking good time, as you're about to hear David testify to....enjoy!

*sigh* Now I want to slap his snotty assistant, help him loosen those leathers, & my tongue tingles every time I see that appendectomy scar! Sorry, y'all....shameless fangirl here! *LOL* I'll crawl out of the gutter later, but this is good stuff...I'm gonna watch again.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Stamp n Scrap Saturday

2011-07-30T11:56:00.003-06:00

No project to share today, just some links to my favorite places to get digital stamps. I love my rubber & clear stamps, but having digital stamps...they're just so versatile! In the right photo editing program you can change their outline color, color them in, change their size to suit your needs. Heck, you can even design a repeating pattern to make your own custom background paper to coordinate with your main image.

And storing them? No boxes, no binders, no shelves...the only space they take is on your hard drive & if you burn them to a CD or DVD, then you've got YEARS of enjoyment from your digital stamps!

The following list is a mixture of freebies and vendors that you can purchase digital images from. I have made friends with a lot of these amazing artists over the last few years & can't wait to share their talent with you.

Bugaboo Stamps - stamps to purchase & a new freebie every Friday for you to play with.

Squigglefly - always adding new artwork AND new artists...be sure to check out their freebies tab!

Sugar Nellies - not only can you buy rubber from these wonderful folks, they have an AMAZING collection of digital artwork to purchase by artists like the talented Diane Duda.

Leanne Ellis - a very sweet & talented lady from Swansea, South Wales. I've been fortunate enough for her to allow me to use some of her artwork here on the blog before (I have a section dedicated just to her in my LABELS at the bottom of the page).

Mo's Digital Pencil - Maurie "Mo" Manning has some whimsical lovelies for you to purchase & play with

Stretch n Bubbles - one of my first dalliances into the world of digi stamps...something for everyone

Phindys Place - darling digital stamps

Sassy Cheryl's Digis - whimsical artwork by Cheryl Alger

Cheryl Seslar Designs - features colored AND black/white artwork for your enjoyment

Softpencil Studios - I'm giving you the link to her new shop, scheduled to open 7August2011

Beccy's Place - cute freebies

Digital Two for Tuesday - freebies every week, mostly vintage artwork

Free Digital Stamps - a DAILY listing of freebies found all over the WWW

If you snag any of the free images, PLEASE leave the artist that gave you the gift some love. A simple "thank you" really can go a long way. These folks give their time and talent away, so it's nice for them to know that their hard work is appreciated.

Also, be sure to read each artist's TOU (terms of use) for their artwork - most will specify if the art is for personal use or if you can resell. These pieces ARE bound by international copyright & we all need to respect that!

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Frugal Friday

2011-07-29T22:24:00.002-06:00

Today's Frugal tip: how to save yourself about $60+ per year. Do you use Febreeze? I used to. I don't know of anyone that doesn't really. Dog odors, their car, smelly bathrooms, teenager rooms...you know what I'm talking about. That stuff is EXPENSIVE! Don't you get tired of paying nearly $6 per bottle? I sure did.

About 5 months ago I started scouring the internet for DIY Febreeze & boy oh boy did I find some interesting recipes, under names like "ghetto Febreeze" (that one makes me laugh every time & pretty much what we call ours here!). Here are some of the recipes I wrangled & bookmarked, so you can choose:

1) From Instructables - trigger bottle, 1/2 cup rubbing alcohol or vodka, essential oil of your choice, water - fill bottle with ingredients...the website calls for 30 drops of oil adding up as your sniffer prefers. I've used this one, but only about 1/2 the oil (a mix of lemongrass & lavender) & rubbing alcohol instead of vodka. It's good & it works. The alcohol smell IS a bit strong at first but quickly dissipates in the air.

2) From EcoMOMicalme - spray bottle, funnel, 1 cup baking soda, essential oil of your choice, water - using the funnel add baking soda to bottle, mix in warm water to fill the bottle, & add 10-12 drops of essential oil. Shake to use. The baking soda is your odor destroyer & the oil will give you the pleasant smell that you're craving. She offers a "not so green version" on this link as well.

3) From Curbly - spray bottle, 1 1/2 cups of water, 1 tablespoon baking soda, 1-2 teaspoons fabric softener.

4) From TipNut (I love this place!) - they offer four recipes here to choose from & I'm currently using recipe # 2

5) From HomemadeMamas - 2 cups warm water, 1/2 liquid fabric softener, 1 teaspoon baking soda

6) From Sarbear's Journey - 32oz spray bottle, 2 cups fabric softener, 3 tablespoons alcohol, water to fill

7) From Keeper of the Home - 2 recipes to choose from; one green using vinegar, water & essential oil, the second "semi green" using an eco-friendly fabric softener from your local health food grocery store & water.

Several options & I hope you find one that you like using. With the two that I use (#2 from TipNut & recipe #1 from Instructables) I have figured that my cost per month is LESS than 30¢ with either recipe so I only spend around $3 a year to de-stinkify my house...and with 4 males here it needs a LOT of it {shudder}. A little research, a need to save money, & willingness to try something new can yield some very pleasant results!

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Thursday Thrifting

2011-07-28T12:48:00.003-06:00

I won't get to go out every week, but I thought Thursdays would be a good day to share what I found at the local thrift stores earlier in the week. Yesterday, I managed to make it to the DI in Harrisville for the first time in a couple months. Wasn't looking for anything big (I still have some furniture projects to get on before it gets cold in October), but I found a few smaller goodies...

4 patterns, never cut apart, from the 1980s (my kids call that "vintage" *LOL*)...$1 (jumper/petticoat) & 50¢ each for the rest. I'll be spending some of the weekend tracing patterns onto freezer paper (a project I'll share on Monday) to keep from cutting them apart. I know, I'm a nut! It's okay, I'm comfortable in my skin!

There were some iron-on embroidery transfers (mixed manufacturers) lying loose on the shelf & since no one could find the packet they came out of, I got all of them for 25¢.

The little wooden tote box ($1) is PERFECT for holding my collection of essential oils, the measuring spoons are for the potions that I'll be sharing soon (like TOMORROW!), the 1c Pyrex measuring cup is for the smaller batches of goodies I'm whipping up, and all that milk glass? Well, I'm a sucker for milk glass. Seriously, cannot stay away from it, though I was proud of myself for putting down 3 vases. The 3 shallow bowls with handles ($1 ea) will bring my ice cream set up to 4 (2 have broken since the last ones I found back in March), the little dessert cup (50¢) has me up to a set of 8, and the 2 smaller cups & drinking glass (50¢ ea) went into my china hutch in the she-cave to hold rayon ribbon pins & spoons...

Total for the day - $10.25...not my best, but still a good haul for 3 sacks full of goodies that I can use!

I want to get better about posting & sharing with y'all, so I've set myself up a bit of a schedule. Here's how I've got it laid out for now: Keep It Simple Sunday (yep! it's back!), Miscellaneous Monday, Tennant Tuesday (none of you that know me are shocked by this, right? *LOL*), Wordless Wednesday, Thursday Thrifting, Frugal Friday, & Stamp n Scrap Saturday. I hope you like the schedule & if you have any projects/recipes/ideas that you'd like me to check out, please feel free to share! Thanks for stopping by and have a great rest of your day!!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-07-27T14:06:00.002-06:00

Homemade Cologne Spray

2011-07-20T21:37:00.003-06:00

I found this recipe in my bookmarks & had to try it. It's AH-mazing!

(this can work for men, too!)

4oz pump spray bottle

1/2 tsp witch hazel

essential oils of your choice (no more than 2-3)*

water

Remove the pump from the bottle. Pour in the witch hazel. Add 3-6 drops of each oil that you've chosen. Fill bottle with water & put pump back in. Lightly shake to mix oils, then spray & enjoy your CHEMICAL FREE cologne.

Keep at room temp or cooler - if you want to make a nice summer spritz to keep in the fridge for hot days, try wintergreen oil or some fresh crushed spearmint leaves in your bottle.

* For the batch I just made I used 3 drops of rose oil, 4 drops of lilac oil, & 3 drops of sandalwood oil - smells light, flowery & almost honey-like...LOVE IT! It almost reminds me of a perfume I used to wear called Ombre Rose.

I have more natural, inexpensive recipes to share with you, but I want to put them to the test before I put my stamp of approval on them. What do you think of me starting a Frugal Friday series for y'all?

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Memories

2011-07-03T16:01:00.002-06:00

Today I washed up a 2lb bag of white seedless grapes and stuck them in the freezer. As a kid, these were our favorite treats when my sister and I went to Gary & Paula's to play with their boys. Aunt Paula would stick some grapes in the freezer while we chased chickens, ran in the field throwing dirt clods at each other, rode bikes up and down between the two hills, and swam in the pool. When we were too hot to do much more, she'd fill up some huge Tupperware glasses of those grapes and we'd sit on the deck, eating them, recharging for the next round of adventures. My sister always poured water over hers and used them like ice cubes till they thawed and didn't hurt her teeth so much. *LOL*

Ah....memories! What fun, summery treats did you enjoy as a child?

Discontinued Items & The Last Fall Supplement

2011-07-02T14:31:00.003-06:00

A list of items that are being discontinued from The Angel Company can be found HERE.

We're downsizing to ONE catalog every year (current one comes out this week). So, until I can figure out a way to embed these pdf forms onto my TAC Info page, you can find the final fall supplement catalog:

Pages 1 through 22 HERE

Pages 23 through 44 HERE

Still taking a bit of downtime to mourn the lost time with my grandmother, and dealing with my very strong anger issues about the lies told to keep us apart for nearly 12 years, but I'll be back soon. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

In Memory Of

2011-06-29T11:21:00.006-06:00

Augusta Elizabeth Hurst-Williams. My grandmother. She lived alone while Grandpa fought in World War II...had 4 sons between 1947 & 1953...2 turned out not-so-good, one could have been better, and one was at her side till the very end. She took care of my grandfather, not knowing till he was nearly done that the mood swings and forgetfulness were Alzheimer's and cancer. She did what she thought was best by him & put him a home when it got too hard for her. The 2 sons were very unhappy with her and SUED HER for their money when he passed. She battled a rare blood cancer and won.

On Saturday, she had a heart attack and quit breathing. We were hoping yesterday that she might actually pull through and outlive the greedy buggers that are circling her like buzzards over a carcass.

What I wouldn't give to be sitting in her kitchen, drinking a cold glass of Meadow Gold milk, munching on nutter butter cookies while she made her out-of -this-world pecan pie, talking, laughing, & circling things we liked in the Montgomery Ward catalog. Or helping her in her flower beds digging up tulips and asking questions about her flowers.

God had other plans for her. We won't get to see you at Yellowstone in August, like we were planning Gramma, but we WILL see you in Heaven. I love you. Kiss Grandpa for me when you get there, okay?

art - Susan Winget

Bad Day

2011-06-25T17:04:00.001-06:00

Catching up with y'all will have to wait another day or so. Just found out my gramma that recently beat a rare blood cancer, is in the hospital. Her heart & lungs tried to give out on her. Heart is beating on its own, now that she's stabilized, but she needs help breathing. I don't know much more than that & it's very frustrating being 1,500 miles away.

I hope y'all understand.

Oh...My...Stars!

2011-06-23T14:34:00.002-06:00

I know we have some catching up to do...and I'm watermarking pix tonight so we can play catch up over the weekend. I have thrifty ideas, and recipes, and all kinds of fun stuff, but I just had to pop on to share THIS:

I just ADORE David Tennant....is it August yet?!?

DIY gardening...Redneck Style

2011-06-12T09:31:00.005-06:00

Last month, I had a tire patched on my car. Exactly four DAYS later, Biker Boy drove it to work & took a screw into the sidewall that they couldn't patch, so I had to have a whole new set of tires (they couldn't replace just one, because the tires on the car were snow instead of all-seasons & it would ride weird -- great up-selling guys, thanks!). Anyway, when they were done I noticed that they had bagged & put the 3 remaining tires in my trunk & back seat. Not sure what to do with them at first, I just set them next to the shed.

For the last three weeks every time I mentioned them, Biker Boy has said someone is coming to get them. Well, no one has ever shown up to claim them, so on Sunday I gave him the "If they're not gone by Monday, Mister Man, I'm going to do something utterly REDNECK with 'em just to drive you up the wall!!" speech. He rolled his eyes and ignored me. {I love it when he doesn't think I'm serious about this stuff.}

So Monday night I looked at him & said, "I think I'm gonna drill holes in those tires & mount 'em to the shed to make a flower display. Ya know, something nice to look at. Some color. The tires will hold the heat from the day, which is good for plants, & the holes will allow for drainage so they don't drown. It'll be cute!"

He GLARED at me & said, "You're NOT drilling into my new shed!"

"Well, then, how about I mount them to the red shed?"

He chuckled. "That old thing? I don't think the walls would stay up if you did that."

"Fine! How about the back fence then? That way we don't have to look at the UGLY fence OR the TRAILER HOUSE nestled only 3 short feet away from it!"

Poor guy...had to watch him for a second or two...I thought he was going to knock his head off the kitchen counter the way he doubled over laughing. When he could breathe again, he said, "Yeah. You do that & watch how fast THAT piece of crap comes down! You know the park owners won't be in any hurry to replace it & we'll have rugrats & their dogs running all over our backyard thinking the trailer park has been extended for their enjoyment."

*heavy sigh* "Well, YOUR friends haven't come to pick them up like you said they would and I'm tired of them just sitting over there doing nothing. They need a job!" Then it hit me. I've been wanting some raised flower beds out behind Biker Boy's new shed since last summer...there's plenty of garden space there, but we can't afford the wood right now to build any. With the tires, I could bury them a bit, fill them with dirt, and at least put in a couple of tomato plants and maybe a pepper or two. Something. ANYthing!

So, Tuesday morning, while feeling ~~delusional~~ industrious, I unwrapped one of my new "helpers" & plotted out where I wanted them to lie. Using the last of some white spray primer, I pretended to be a crime scene investigator & made outlines of our victims bodies.

Then recruiting Oldest Child & a friend, I bribed them with sodas, ice cream & all things summery for some good old-fashioned back breaking labor. Folks, when I say "back breaking" I'm NOT kidding around here. This soil is clay & now that it's dried out from the winter snow melt it's as hard a a rock! (I wouldn't want to be the one doing the digging...oh, wait...I'm NOT! *LOL*)

LOVE how Middle Child did the "supervising"...he's going to make a GREAT Government employee someday....

Now they're dug out & in the ground, they look a little strange just lying there...guess it's time for a trip to IFA for some soil, compost, and plants!

I hope this inspires you to look at things a little differently...maybe you can find something today lying around your house that's still in decent shape but needs a new job.

I'm off to rest my tired, freshly dolled-up tootsies! I got the instructions for my fancy pedi from HERE, if you'd like to try it for yourself.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

The Lawn Mower

2011-06-10T12:26:00.002-06:00

A preacher was making his rounds on a bicycle, when he came upon a little boy trying to sell a lawn mower. "How much do you want for the mower?" asked the preacher.

"I just want enough money to go out and buy me a bicycle." said the little boy.

After a moment of consideration, the preacher asked, "Will you take my bike in trade for it?"

The little boy asked if he could try it out first. He told the preacher he hadn't ridden a bicycle in a long time and wasn't sure he could still ride one. The preacher told him, "Just keep trying. It'll come back to you."

After riding the bike around a little while, the little boy said, "Mister, you've got yourself a deal."

The preacher took the mower and began to crank it. He pulled on the rope a few times with no response from the mower. The preacher called the little boy over and said, "I can't get this mower to start."

The little boy said, "That's because you have to cuss at it to get it started."

The preacher said, "I can't cuss. It's been so long since I became a Christian that I don't even remember how to cuss."

The little boy looked at him happily and said, "You just keep pulling on that rope. It'll come back to you."

*ROFL* As you can see, I'm feeling better. Thanks for the prayers & love! I'll be back in a bit with project for ya...

Jesus Help Me To Stand

2011-06-09T11:52:00.001-06:00

What a day & it's not even noon. Last couple of days, really. Needed this song today in the worst way. Maybe you needed to hear it too. Back tomorrow with a couple of projects....

Memorial Day

2011-05-30T11:20:00.003-06:00

Today, while you're enjoying your bbq, picnics, fishing at the lake, and time spent with friends and family...laughing and smiling....take a few moments to say a prayer. Be sure to include thanks for those that have passed & served with honor, a thought for the families that are without their loved ones today and having a difficult time, and ask for continued safety for the brave men and women that are sleeping on the hard ground, eating sand, and trying to save their friends while taking enemy fire. It's because of those brave men and women that you were given a long holiday weekend and they deserve to be remembered, even if Congress and the Press barely give them a thought anymore.

The following two songs were written and sung by a friend of a friend. Chuck put into words what is felt in a lot of hearts, not just today, but every day.

God bless our troops ~ past, present & future!

Pondering Brown

2011-05-24T09:07:00.005-06:00

No, not the famous International shipping company. The color. I'm sitting here on a cool, rainy morning, drinking my cinnamon/caramel coffee, munching on toast and strawberries dipped in

I realize that I'm surrounded by the color. Khaki t-shirt, sand colored walls and carpet (which I'm NOT crazy about - it's really more baby poo colored than sand - bleh!), and wood furnishings. Most people turn their noses up at brown. Brown instantly conjures images of mud....dirt....makes you think you have to clean & not many enjoy that particular task. Not me. I actually LIKE brown. Brown can be:

RICH

SOOTHING

COMFORTING

WELCOMING

DEEP & DECADENT

LIFE

CHOCOLATE (everyone's fave - it's definitely mine!)

Brown in decorating can actually be INTERESTING if you use it properly

INVITING

COMFORTABLE

Brown is a great NEUTRAL for decorating

TASTY

Brown can actually be an IMPROVEMENT!

So next time, if you're one of those people that turn your nose up at "brown," reconsider. You might be happy with the color. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Today I'm....

2011-05-14T14:59:00.002-06:00

We have a LOT to catch up on...and we will....very soon...but first, I have to get these projects off of my "to do" list. They've been there long enough!

What the....?

2011-05-13T21:48:00.002-06:00

Just overheard on Travel Channel's "Ghost Adventures": "Remember the security guard said that he got kicked very hardly?"

'Very hardly?!?' REALLY?!?

You disappoint me Travel Channel with your penchant for filming these grammatical geniuses {as she uses the word "geniuses" in her most sarcastic tone}.

I'm finished with you.

Wishing you a...

2011-05-08T16:14:00.002-06:00

Anne's Candy

2011-04-08T17:24:00.002-06:00

Anne is one of the sweetest gals around Blogland. Seems like every time I leave her a comment, she always writes back (wish I were that good). Her photos are amazing. So amazing, in fact, that she's featured in a 6pg spread of the summer issue of Romantic Country Magazine! If you're like me & can't splurge on the magazine but would like to look, enter for a chance to win it AND a copy of the book, Romantic Prairie Style. Winner will be announced April 15th. Click on the button & have fun looking around Anne's house on the WWW.

Darcie's Got Candy

2011-03-30T08:29:00.003-06:00

I first found Darcie's digital clip art (bought a 5-6 CD set for a song) because another blogging buddy was using her art on cards, found her on FB a few months ago, & have followed her around ever since. Super talented AND super sweet lady!

Today on HER BLOG, she's announced that she's giving away 2 sets of rubber stamps! They just happen to be the sets in her current month's club (BTW, great price for everything you get!) are just too cute for words...and the projects made with it...OMGosh...that bird pinwheel is so UNIQUE! Go check it out (click above, where it says HER BLOG) & good luck.

Help!!

2011-03-29T14:41:00.003-06:00

I've fallen into PINTEREST and can't get out!!!! *LOL* OMGosh, have you BEEN there yet?!? It's the coolest place EVAH and for the last two nights I'm sitting with pinterest screen tabs up in my lap & NCIS on the telly...cool pix on my laptop & Mark Harmon/Michael Weatherly on my tv screen...almost as good as getting a Doctor Who/David Tennant fix!!!! Basically, the concept is a social gathering spot for like-minded people. I think it's more like a huge bulletin board to pin your ideas on...without needing the wall space! *LOL* I totally blame, um..I mean..THANK Donna at Funky Junk for getting me hooked on this latest craze. She's even got her own collection started over there. Doesn't matter what your interests are...photography, interior design, clothing, furniture, fine art, jewelry...chances are you'll find things to ooh and ahhh over!

I'm currently sucked into Home + Furniture, the DIY section, all things burlap, ruffles, a place for those that are Mod Podge obsessed, embroidery, an area that made the vintage girly-girl in me sigh with happiness & yes, there are even NCIS Doctor Who and David Tennant sections! Over 90% of the "pinned" pictures credit the actual blog or website they were taken from, giving you even more places on the WWW to check out. How could you NOT love a place like Pinterest?!? Go, explore, drool, beg to be invited so you can start your own collection/addiction...you can ~~blame~~ thank me later!

Let's try this again...

2011-03-27T11:27:00.006-06:00

Not sure what happened...guess at this point it doesn't really matter. Had the post all ready to go, did an update to it last night...and it still didn't post on schedule. Hopefully whatever issue Blogger might have had is over now & this post shows up!

Well, I got quite a few different opinions on what to do with this crazy, long mane of mine. Thanks to those that left me some input, I appreciate the feedback very much. I considered every one of your comments. I took Devin for his haircut Monday, since JROTC started back for him on Wednesday, and while I was there I talked to the girls that weren't cutting anyone about my hair and what they thought about the idea rolling around in my punkin head.

Here's the back on Tuesday morning... I washed in Monday night around 1030 & gave it a blast with the blow dryer before going to bed...by 11am, it was STILL damp...yup, it's THAT THICK!

And here's the front view. Sorry if it puts you off the ole blog...just keepin it real here!

Off to get it cut. An hour later...

TEN INCHES of hair going to Locks of Love!! {goodness, there's lots of RED in there!!}

Here I am just as soon as I got back home, grabbed my camera & ran into the bathroom for a quick pic...

Not bad! It IS as short as it's ever going to go, though. *LOL* In fact, I'm still liking the haircut nearly a week later...

Cathy thought I'd cut out all of that killer perm she gave me last year, but as you can see, with my 1/2" curling iron and 20 minutes on the clock, I was able to make OODLES of ringlets...a quick tousle with my fingers & I'm out the door!

Last night I played with these for part of a Christmas in July swap project that I've been working on the last couple of weeks. It turned out incredibly CUTE!

Can't show you any more than that, until 25July, but it's proof that I am crafting. *ROFL* Now I'm going to work on a Stashbusting Spring project that I CAN share with everyone!

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Vicki's Got Candy!

2011-03-22T18:44:00.003-06:00

And you've got THREE chances to win some of it, so click HERE to go over and sign up!!

By the way...chopped off the hair this morning...pictures tomorrow...see you then!!

Happy St Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T21:53:00.003-06:00

Hey there! Just wanted to say that I hope everyone found a little bit o' the Irish in them today to celebrate St Patrick's Day. If you're indulging in the green beer, please do so responsibly. True Irish don't go for the green beer though...guaranteed they're lifting pints of Guinness Stout or Killian's Red tonight (as a former bartender, you kinda just KNOW these things)! *LOL*

Image courtesy of Karen, the Graphics Fairy

I didn't have any new projects to share with you, but I went through old posts and can't find where I've ever shared these pieces with you...so I thought today would be a good day. The top picture is in Biker Boy's office & the frame is wood sprayed with Krylon's hammered copper paint. I like how it compliments the dark green floss that I used & the natural muslin. The bottom one hangs just outside the bathroom door.

(images were taken from Dover Publishing newsletter freebies, printed & stitched)
Yes then center circle of this one is made ENTIRELY of French Knots!

Still no decision on the haircut, though from comments here & from a few friends e-mailing me or letting me know on other forums, the long hair seems to be a favorite. Just not sure, but I'll figure it out and let you in on what I do. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

It's That Time Again

2011-03-15T13:24:00.004-06:00

We aren't hoarders...we're merely gathering extra supplies because we KNOW that if we find something we like, the store will quit carrying it...then, when we run out, what are we gonna do?!? You've had that thought before. You've run into that situation before. You're a crafter, so I KNOW you have. That's okay, I'm just as guilty of it. Sometimes, though, I do it out of habit more than actual necessity.

Well, last year I joined Robin over at The T-Shirt Diaries for Stashbusting September and made a small but noticeable dent in my crafting goodies. And, I'm proud to say, I haven't replaced anything that I used. I wasn't really sure if I could do it again this year, even though I still have plenty of stash that could be busted...my issue this year is time. I'm committed to getting my oldest child caught up on credits necessary for him to graduate and it's taking every minute of my day, because he is so easily distracted and tends to put things off till they're in jeopardy. I need crafting to maintain my sanity and I have got to get my she-cave de-cluttered and organized some more, so I'm looking at this not as an inconvenience, but an OPPORTUNITY to get off my duff and git 'er done. The more stash I use, the less I have to organize!

What about you? Do you have a closet full of fabric that could be stitched up into something useful (like clothes for the summer)? A shed full of thrift store finds that need to be cleaned, repainted, upcycled and/or repurposed? Boxes of scrapbooking paper that could be turned into greeting cards? Clay, buttons, embroidery thread, wood to paint on...ANYTHING that could be crafted into something, other than taking up space in your house? This challenge is for YOU! Click on the button above to go over to Robin's and sign up. You won't be sorry!

sigh Decisions, Decisions...

2011-03-12T13:20:00.007-07:00

Brush the shoulders with some fringe-y bangs? Maybe if I had Raquel's killer bod to go with it....

Fresh n funky, on-the-go Mormon Mommy cut? Everything fits ('cept the Mormon Mommy part...)
Shorter in the back, with some layers & frame the face a bit?

Too bold? Too short? Shorter? Am I a risk taker any more? *sigh*

Play it safe & stay mid-length?
Or just stay where I'm at, leave it long & layer it up some to take off the weight?

I just can't decide...this is my hair (photo taken this morning). As you can see, it's thick & LONG. One hand width away from my waist. The leather wrap holding it is 8" long. I like the length, but it's getting to a point where it's becoming troublesome...Biker Boy sleeps on it & I can't roll over at night...I sit down in a chair or get into the car & pull my own hair...you get the idea. As much as I like it, something needs to be done. I've poured through magazines, looked all over the WWW & can't make up my mind what I want. I'm asking you for your input.

Here are your choices:

1. Don't cut it ~ I'd KILL for hair like that!

2. Just take off a little bit...maybe 2-3"

3. Chop it off & donate it to Locks of Love - they need at least 10", so it's gonna go short if I go this route.

4. What is it with the pop quizzes on the weekend?!? I can't decide either!!

This photo was taken in September of last year. Those bangs are at my chin now! (Yes, my hair grows pretty fast) My problem is trying not to go too short. Don't want "Moon Pie" face! *LOL*

I wear it down a lot, which is why I did the perm last May (Cathy was amazing - this perm has lasted almost a year & shows no signs of going away). Hair is in fantastic shape - it's not dry from excessive product use and no split ends. I pull it back & either braid it or clip it up to keep it out of my workspace when I can craft.

So, what do you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts & opinions...I'll share what I do later...

Edmond, Oklahoma...

2011-03-07T09:43:00.002-07:00

Fifteen years ago today...after 5 wks in labor, total bed rest, faxing in toco monitor readings every hour, and tending to Oldest Child (had some help...kinda, sorta but not really), the doctor decided to help this tired young mommy and start her labor at 930am. After a LONG day, Middle Child arrived at 548pm, 7March, weighing in at a whopping 6 lbs 12 ounces. Today, he's 6'2" and 170lbs, has his mom's whacked sense of humor & love for music, and his dad's wicked ability to write a person out of his life if he feels that person has been disloyal to him or anyone he cares for. He's sensitive, though he doesn't want the world to know it, loving, smart, and just a fine young man all around. We're very proud of him & can't wait to see what he becomes.

He had a grand weekend. Started out by playing chess for a few hours Friday evening with Oldest Child's best friend...thoroughly enjoyed seeing THIS, as opposed to them crowded around the computer or a game console!

Then on Saturday, he screwed up the courage to tell his Dad what he wanted for his birthday. He knows we've been tight on money for the last couple of years, so he didn't want to stress us out. He NEVER asks for big ticket things, usually it's just a CD or a game or a special meal, so that told us it was VERY important to him. Seems that for the last 8wks, he's been walking past a pawn shop on the way home from school, dreaming about....a BASS GUITAR! His best friend is starting a band, and Middle Child wanted to join in.

So Dad asks him if he can wait for our tax return to come in...just a few more weeks. Middle Child walks by & says "He didn't say NO, so I can wait, Mom." After he was gone from the room, I looked at Biker Boy & said "I do have some money stashed. We could get it for him now & put the money back when the return comes in." He looks at me & says "Ya know. You're right. He never asks us for anything. Let's go hit the ATM." Dad tells Middle Child to put on his shoes so they can go get some CDs at Hastings. He comes out & says he wants me to go too, so Oldest Child volunteers to watch Youngest Child so I can go with them.

We go by the ATM, then I drive us to the pawn shop. Middle Child has NO IDEA that we're there for him. He thinks Dad just wants to see what he's got his eye on & price it all out. Total for all of it was more than I had on me, but we pulled the shop owner off to the side and explained that it was for his birthday & that I had cash. Were they willing to deal? Uh, YEAH, for cash a pawn shop will do just about anything! We walked out with his bass guitar, a mini amp, & strap for the price marked on the guitar. He's still floating on air! *ROFL* He needed a universal plug for the amp & some headphones so he can practice in his room without disturbing anyone, so we dropped Biker Boy at The Clubhouse and headed to FYE. Managed to find exactly what we needed...ON SALE! It was a great day.

Here he is plucking his bass for Youngest Child. {You can almost see those little toes tapping...}
He sat like this for HOURS Saturday night and yesterday....
It looks blue in these pix, but the bass (by Kramer) is really PURPLE. Middle Child is on Cloud 9 & already knows a little bit of "Crazy Train" by Ozzy. He's got plans to hang with his buds, playing music this coming weekend, but when I dropped him off at school this morning, he turns back "Can I have your creamy cheesy chicken enchiladas for my birthday dinner? They're the best!"

Sure! What kind of cake do you want?

"None. I just want those enchiladas. Love you, Mom!"
So, now I've got chicken in the crock-pot. I'll pull off the broth at lunch, shred the meat & add salsa. Later tonight I'll make him his birthday dinner. How could I say no? *LOL*

Happy Birthday, Sweetie! ♥♥

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

2011-03-06T21:58:00.002-07:00

Thanks to those that are now stalking me & signed up for the $30 giveaway to CSN Stores. Our winner is I'maYaYa! I'll be contacting you on Monday with your code so you can shop.

For those that didn't win this time around...not to worry...I have something special in the works, coming up in just a couple of short weeks, so stay tuned. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!

I have a treat for you!!!

2011-03-01T18:57:00.003-07:00

This giveaway is now closed.

How fun is this?!? I have been asked to give one of you $30 to CSN online stores. This will apply to my American & Canadian friends, because right now, that's their shipping area. Sound like fun? I think so too! CSN Stores have everything from lighting, home decor, kitchen utensils, to outdoor things like swing sets...after spending a couple of days looking through their more than 200 online sites, I've pretty much decided if they don't have it, you don't need it anyway! *LOL* Let's see how many stalkers we can get signed up between now & March 1st. I'd really love it if we can get 100 (or more)...

'K! Here are the rules:

(1) If you're already a follower, living in the US or Canada, leave me some love saying you're a stalker (1 entry)

(2) If you're NOT stalking me...DO IT...jump over to my right sidebar where it says "MY STALKERS...I LOVE Y'ALL" (I do!) & leave me a comment that you're a new follower. (1 entry)

(3) Blog about it! Come back and leave me a direct link to the post you've written (1 entry)

(4) Post it on FaceBook for your friends to see & link them here so they can join in on the fun...come back & leave me a comment with the link to your FB status so I can see (1 entry)

(5) You can Tweet about it, if you'd like, but I don't Twitter yet and may not for quite some time so I have no way to verify this for an entry.

Entries will be verified on March 2nd & 3rd, with the winner announced Friday, March 4th. So, go out & spread the word, and let's see how many stalkers I can get signed up.

I'm gonna go play at the crafting table while my guys are watching things blow up on the telly, so hopefully I'll have something to share with you by Monday. Thanks for stopping by & have a fantastic weekend!

So....

2011-02-28T15:14:00.004-07:00

Like my new header? Clean. Simple. I likey a lot!!! *LOL* Thanks to a great online tutorial by Jill for using Picnik online photo editing software, I was able to do this in less than an hour. I could have done it quicker, but I was having fun playing with all the gizmos that Picnik offers for FREE. I really loved the one that I made using my Print Shop 22 program and vast collection of goodies from Susan's Raspberry Road store, but I was feeling the urge to do some paring down.

{in dramatic magician's voice} And for my next trick: a matching blog button for you to grab & share with the world using THIS tutorial! I'll be sharing that very soon, so stick close, my darling stalkers!

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Edited to add: I did it!!!! Thanks, Heidi, for the great TUT! Here's my blog button ~ feel free to snag & add to your blog. {Copy the code in the box, open your dashboard to DESIGN, click Add a Gadget, select HTML/JavaScript, paste the code, & Save. Easy, right?}

What to wear?

2011-02-26T19:39:00.002-07:00

No not me. I'm always comfy in my t-s and jeans or shorts. It's this pillow I'm making for my sister that needs dressing. Yes, I'm working on 2011 CHRISTMAS gifts already. No throwing things at me....unless it's chocolate...or David Tennant....or David Tennant covered in chocolate! *LOL*

The only thing that she requested of me is making the gifts that I put together in the future portable. She & her hubby have some traveling plans in the works, and they don't want to leave anything behind if they don't have to. So I got to thinking....she ADORED the little Scottie ornies that I sent for her birthday earlier this month...I have some great vintage embroidery patterns....I'll make a double-sided PILLOW!

This is Mary Kate, named after Mary Kate Danaher in "The Quiet Man." I used straight stitches for the majority of the design, lazy daisies for the flowers & leaves, French knots in the flower center, and the bow is a mixture of split stitches and stem stitching. {You can right click each of the pictures and choose Open in a New Tab for better viewing of the project}

And this is Colin. Again, I stitched them after her little darling Wheaton Scotties. The stitches for this one: straight, lazy daisy, satin, & buttonhole.
These patterns can be found as freebies if you do an online search (I checked), but I was lucky enough to have them already in my private stash. {grin} It just took some VERY careful handling to not destroy the delicate papers. Someday I'll show you my filing cabinet that houses nothing but embroidery patterns here in my she-cave. Now, I get to stare at THIS all evening....

And try to figure out what to use for the borders on these darling pups. I'm trying really hard to keep myself from running to the quilt store for some DARLING 30s & 40s reproduction flour sack prints that I saw while shopping the other day. Believe me when I say that it's not easy, this resisting of purchasing fabric! *LOL* Next project for their Christmas gift package....an MDF monogram!

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Ruffle love!

2011-02-21T15:36:00.011-07:00

I am on a major ruffle kick here lately! This project, made just an hour ago, is a ruffled scarf. I'm giving it to a friend that will be moving to Texas in a couple of weeks. I wanted her to have an "indoor" scarf for her nicer dresses and sweaters that she wears to church, but I didn't want it to be hot and bulky, like my ruffly polar fleece scarf. I wanted soft and delicate, so for this one, I used a dreamy, cream-colored t-shirt knit that I picked up a JoAnns yesterday (1/2 yd $4.50).

It's 45" wide, so I cut two 4" wide pieces, then used a stretch stitch to join the two lengths together, making a 90" length of fabric. I don't have a ruffle foot for my machine, so I went in half an inch and started pinching and sewing...very slowly feeding the material under the presser foot....all the way to the end. Then I flipped it to the other long side....

And repeated the pinching/stitching process until I got this GORGEOUS double ruffle.
It's ruffle-tastic! I sure hope she likes it. I know I do...in fact...I have enough material left over, I may just have to make one for myself! *LOL*
Don't forget ~~ if you haven't joined in on the Stalker Fun for the $30 gift certificate to CSN Stores here on my blog, go do it now! I'm off to work on an embroidery project for the evening that I'll share later this week. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Linking to The Lettered Cottage

The Creative Itch

The Creative Juices

Sugar Bee's

& All Thingz Related

Feeling a Wee Bit....

2011-02-05T17:29:00.002-07:00

Scottish! *LOL* I made these for my sister's birthday. She owns two of the cutest little Wheaton Scottish terriers & I thought she'd like to have these ornies for her tree next year (or if she has a little one to display year-round). I had a set of twelve made, but the red one at the bottom had an issue with its hanger, so I put a back on it and it's now a pin she can wear!

These were very simple to make, thanks to an applique pattern from Bustle & Sew. I used pieces out of my scrap box, some warm n natural batting, cream twine, and didn't even bother to get out my big machine. The little Janome Sew Mini machine I got for Christmas handled the job like a champ!

I was going to share a card with it, but today has just completely gotten away from me & I'm drained. After supper, I'm going sit on the couch for a bit of Gibbs and the Gang (aka NCIS). Maybe I'll have a card to show ya by Monday...and I'm working on a little bit of fun for y'all, so stay tuned.

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Ah! The Joys of Home Schooling

2011-02-04T13:13:00.003-07:00

My current FaceBook status reads: today's headache as The Home Schooling Mom ~ quadratic linear variations. I'm totally rockin the concept...Eldest Child....not so much. In fact, because I'm working the solutions in my head, I apparently suck rocks to the end of time!

{now...my challenge...how do I get him to understand so he can pass his online quizzes???}

Any ideas, my darling stalkers?

I'll have a craft project, with card, to share tomorrow. Till then, thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Edited to Add: Well, he FINALLY understood enough to take 2 quizzes & a mid-unit test. The scores ~ 100% (quiz), 100% (mid unit), & 80% (quiz). That'll do!

Stitching & a tutorial

2011-01-26T08:34:00.014-07:00

Hi! How are ya?

I promised that I'd share an embroidery project with ya. Feeling REALLY good about the fact that I snapped enough pix of the steps that I can actually give you a fairly decent tutorial! *LOL* Ready? Here we go!!!

Step 1: Decide on image you wish to stitch. Inspiration can come from anywhere (just ask my kids)...in this case, Middle Child and Youngest Child both wanted me to stitch one of their favorite cartoon characters, Gir, from Invader Zim. So, after a brief Google search on the WWW, I came up with 2 images - one of Gir in his regular form and one of him in his "disguise." The boys decided they each liked BOTH images, so double-sided pillows were the call. I printed off the images...

Step #2: Get your basic outline for stitching by laying tracing paper over the original design.
Step #3: Using a light source (light table or tape the images & blank fabric to your sunniest window), trace the designs onto your material. You can use a fabric pen, pencil, or an ultra fine point sharpie (test the fabric in an inconspicuous spot to make sure your pen isn't going to bleed).

Step #4: Stitch. I used 3 strands of DMC rayon floss for each image, with warm n natural batting behind the fabric for some quilted dimension (optional). At this point, I'm not worried about the wrinkles in the fabric.

Step #5: Grab your kids box of crayons, or, if you're like me, you've got your own private stash. Stretch the fabric with your hands & color the fabric till you get the look you're going for. On mine, I used the original printed images (step #1) as my color guide.

Step #6: Grab waxed paper, plain news print or printer paper, and your iron. Set your iron to COTTON. Pull off enough waxed paper to cover the image.
Step #7: Lay your news or printer paper OVER the waxed paper...
Step #8: Using a fairly firm pressure, iron over your image. The waxed paper & heat from the iron help to seal the color into the fabric.
Step #9: Repeat steps 6-8 for each image you're setting into fabric. This time around, I had to do it FOUR TIMES.
Step #10: Using your machine, set on straight & normal length stitches, sew 3 sides of your pillow together, leaving one side open for stuffing (I leave the bottom).

Step #11: Stuff pillow to a fullness of your preference.

Step #12: Blind stitch pillow shut or use machine to close seam.

And you have two of the cutest, not-your-normal-kind-of-embroidery-project, pillows EVAH!

The boys really love their little pillows & I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Any questions? Leave me a comment & I'll do my best to get back to ya ASAP. If you make a project using today's lesson, leave me some love & let me know where to find you or send me an e-mail with pix - I'd love to see!

Gotta have a "Gir Moment"

I'm linking this post to ~~

Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Better Late Than Never (long)

2011-01-24T09:32:00.016-07:00

Finally! Life around here has settled down enough that I can share some things with y'all that I crafted around Christmas. I still wasn't at 100%, with all of the "bugs" going around if you recall, so doing the all-out Christmas decorating thing wasn't an appealing option for me, but I did want to do some little SOMETHING to pretty up the house for the holiday.

I had a tree made from distressed book pages that Lori sent me last summer during our annual Christmas In July party that became my jumping off point. So, with a trip to $Tree for some foam cones & other goodies, a quick dig through stash that turned up some paper mache cones, a visit to the DI and the Rescue Mission for candle holders, I ended up with a lovely winter forest.

{remember to right click & open in a new tab to view the pix better}

I'll break this into groups for ya. Group #1 (to the left of the little red bench) - ruffle tree, feather tree, green bottle brush tree, glittered glass, rose petal tree, aqua glass star tealite holder, & "sitting stump" (there's a cute, quick story with that one!). Group #2 (on top & in front of red bench) - pink mercury glass, white bottle brush, glass, Lori's paper tree, pearl tree & antique jar of "faux" snow. Group #3 (right side of bench) - bottle brush tree, ruffled crepe paper tree, twine tree with glitter "Hope" ornament, ruffled eyelet tree.

Details on the ruffle tree: Using 2 different shades of burlap, muslin strips, tea-stained 1 inch wide twill tape, sandcastle fabric, a bit of warm n natural batting, & lace, I basted the fabric strips, pulling the top threads to create ruffles, then tied knots to keep the ruffles in place. I started at the bottom of a foam cone layering the ruffles & trimmed the top with a bit of gimp to close the slight gap between the top ruffle & the finial. The finial was picked up from Lowe's & painted in Rustoleum's "Chrome" for the silver finish. Glass candlestick came from the DI.

The feather tree is a small maribou boa glued & wrapped around a paper mache cone. The rose petal tree base is a candle cup from an old sconce that I picked up from the Rescue Mission. The rose petals are from the wedding section of $Tree and hot glued (one.petal.at.a.time) onto a foam cone base. The little glass tree was a12¢ score from the Rescue Mission - I sprayed some adhesive inside and sprinkled poly "fairy dust" for the sparkle. A narrow pompom trim adhered with 1/4 inch double-sided tape to the edge of the plastic "lid" on the bottom of the tree finishes the look. The green bottle brush tree was purchased at the DI for 25¢ and the "sitting stump" was something that Devin brought me after going out for a walk one day. Said he just looked down at the gutter & couldn't figure out what it was. When we got it washed off, it was so stinkin cute that I couldn't not include it in my forest. *LOL*

For the grouping in the middle - with the exception of the paper tree from Lori, those are all store bought. The white bottle brush came from JoAnn's (79¢ in the Christmas clearance section); the pink mercury glass was a tree topper from Michaels ($1.99); and the small glass tree from the DI (15¢) & trimmed with double-sided tape and 1/4 inch pompom trim, like it's bigger brother (I left it clear but may attempt a faux mercury glass technique on it - haven't decided).

On this right end- kinda hard to see, but there's a tree that I glued hand-ruffled crepe paper to a foam core from $Tree, then added "Icicle" Stickles and dew drops for a bit of sparkle; the one with the aqua glittered "Hope" ornament is a foam core with creamy white twine glued and wrapped (bottom to top), then I did one of my little muslin strip rosettes for the top, the ornie came from the DI (10¢); the antique jar is also from the DI (5¢) & I filled it with faux snow that I used for candle jars a couple years ago; the eyelet tree base is a votive holder from the DI (25¢), a foam core from $Tree, 2yds of eyelet trim from the Rescue Mission (75¢) and the finial is from Lowe's, just painted with some white paint that I had on hand.

That darling little snowflake you see hanging from the weather vane was crocheted by my dear friend, Myrna, and traveled to Utah from Oklahoma with no issues (I just LOVE that snowflake!). Thanks, Miss Myrna!

You missed one, Nora. What? You missed a tree. Actually, no, I didn't. You're thinking about that "pearl" tree. Well, I took photos of the steps to make it and thought I'd share them with you. You'll need:
One bag, color of your choice, of Decorative Container Fill. I got the cream color from $Tree. They also carry a really pretty red and a soft, sage-y green. You can get other colors from JoAnn's for a bit more, but for a buck, you really can't go wrong. If you work it right, you'll have enough pearls for future projects.

I grabbed a cheap foil baking tray, a tv table, my Scotch quick drying tacky glue, another $Tree foam core (I'm telling ya for $10, I had PLENTY of these lil babies lying around!), a paper towel, & a bowl to hold my pearls (the bag is too static-y to keep them in while you're working).
Work in sections. I would put a bit of glue onto the foam, spread it kinda thick with my fingers, then place the pearls into the glue. Work down toward the bottom & make sure you don't go past the edge of the foam, especially if you're not going to give your tree a trunk. Allow time to dry between sections - I gave an hour to overnight. Don't worry if the glue shows through just a bit, because it will dry clear.
When it was finished, I took a wooden candle cup that I had in my stash, painted it with a vintage cream acrylic to match the pearls. Added it to the collection, and VOILA! A winter wonderland that can stay out till the first thaw.
I did find an angel, holding a cream bottle brush tree, that I'll add to this menagerie next winter. AND, I still have some paper mache cones, so there may even be more trees! *LOL* Hope you enjoyed looking at my new collection and maybe got a little inspiration for your next year's decorating ideas.

ETA: I'm linking this to ~~

Tomorrow's share - an embroidery project. Thanks for stopping by & have a great rest of your day!!

Sigh

2011-01-09T22:47:00.004-07:00

I've missed y'all!! Can I just start out by saying that November and December of 2010 SUCKED ROCKS?!? Almost 4 full weeks of being sick from Thanksgiving till just a day or so before Christmas has completely drained me of wanting to do anything except blog surf the last week or so. More than that, and I'm just exhausted. Special thanks to the hubby for sharing a flu bug (24hrs for him, 4 DAYS for me) and for the youngest child for bringing home whatever that was from school ~~ holy guacamole, it was the WORST! Felt like I had a flippin elephant sitting in the middle of my chest for 3 of those weeks I was down. YUCK! The only thing that got me through was resting (whenever I was allowed & that wasn't much), ginger tea, odorless garlic capsules, and cranberry capsules.

I did manage a bit of thrifting and to create a few things in December...a small winter forest (was too "bleh" to decorate for Christmas & the forest was the best I could do)...MIGHT have a few pics that I can share over the next week or so.

I'm also in the middle of a two pillow embroidery project that is not my normal style that you might be interested in - when they're complete (hopefully by Wednesday or Thursday), I'll share those, too.

Till then, stay warm (for those in the Northern Hemisphere) & I'll see you soon. Thanks for stopping by!!

Wishing You All A Very.....

2010-12-31T17:09:00.004-07:00

Oh, and do me a favor...don't make resolutions this year. Resolutions are simply goals and goals are so easy to let lapse or fail on. If there's something you REALLY want in your life, make a commitment to yourself and quit doing it just on the first night of the year. *LOL*

I hope that 2011 brings all of you nothing but good health, truckloads of happiness, and lasting prosperity!

12 Days of Christmas Goodies

2010-12-17T11:55:00.001-07:00

HURRY! There's still time to enter today on ALL TWELVE days. Good luck!

Christmas Candy Treat

2010-12-09T17:16:00.001-07:00

Christmas candy going on right now over at Funky Junk Sisters. I don't have any pix to share, but believe me when I say you will NOT be disappointed! Head on over & leave 'em some love! Good luck!!

Good grief!

2010-12-06T08:07:00.003-07:00

Never thought I was going to make it back here. Just wanted to pop in for a sec to say (1) if you have a blog, I've been trying to keep up with you & (2) if you're waiting for something fantastically creative from me, it'll be just a little bit longer, so please be patient. The end of November was very difficult with my littlest one being sick, Thanksgiving, then ME losing my voice & having a sinus infection for the last 10 days. *sigh* Gotta love the "sneezin' season!"

I'll see you again soon!

Blog Candy

2010-11-23T19:24:00.004-07:00

Who doesn't like candy? This offering is the fabric kind - 3 styles, 1 meter of each of the prettiest blue, khaki, cream color combo that I've ever seen. Has a GREAT vintage feel to it.

Head over to French Larkspur to find out more about it. Winner will be drawn 25Nov & announced 29Nov - good luck!

While Supplies Last!

2010-11-22T16:34:00.003-07:00

Bargains like these don't normally happen all at once, so take advantage of as many as you can & save yourself some big $$ while building your crafting stash!

*E-mail me for the code list if interested. We carry 36 colors in the Palette Inks (normal cost of refill -$3.95) & 41 colors in the VersaMagic ink line (refills are normally $5.50). This is a FANTASTIC cost savings to you & you won't need to worry about running out of your favorite colors in the middle of a project!!

Offers currently available only inside the US. Shipping fees & your local tax rates are not included in these prices, please contact me for details.

Handmade & Heavenly by Nora

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*bleh!*

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Help!!

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bleh!

sigh Decisions, Decisions...

Sigh