Acorn

I found this acorn at an arts & crafts show last winter.  

It's about 2 1/2 inches long, and it's the perfect place for a tiny treasure or two!!

Beautifully handmade...love all the carving on the "cap".

Handmade in America!!  My favorite kind of gift!!

And yes, I picked up some for gifts too!!

Quick Craft

I picked this up after Christmas last year...maybe from Target, I really can't remember.  It's been hanging on a knob every since I brought it home.  I need to keep the inspiration in plain sight!

These would be so simple to create...a small (maybe 5 inches) circle of wire, some sparkly garland, and a bit of ribbon for a pretty bow.  Put it all together and you have the perfect spot to nestle a tiny house ornament....cute gift idea, don't you think!!

A Ruler

I bought this cross necklace at a recent craft show. 

It's made from pieces of an old, vintage ruler, and some costume jewelry. 

It has a tiny message on it...."pray...ask of God".

 

It reminds me that Jesus was a carpenter. 
Carpenters make new creations, and they fix things that are broken. 

I like the image... 

"He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”

Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Revelation 21:5

 

 



A Few of my Favorite Things

These are as few of my favorite little creations for this year's craft shows.

I'm very partial to red & green, Christmas trees, and snowmen!

These photos make me happy!!

 



 

Sure hope you have a wonderful day today!

My plan is to decorate, shop online a bit, and (maybe) venture out into the
madness that is called "Black Friday"!

 

How about you?  Will you be joining in the "madness"?

 



Craft Show #2

I have another craft show coming up this Saturday.  Here's
a peek at some things that I'll be bringing to the show.

A little Christmas scene...made from odds and ends of stuff.

Matchbox scenes - I love making these. I'm just not sure what to do with all the matches!!

These each started out as a little white canvas. I ripped off the canvas and covered them in
sheet music, added a bird scene, and one of my wire nests.

Art board - Don't they look happy!?

These were old furniture casters...now they're...hmmmm.
Paperweights maybe.

 

The things I like most about this show:

1) No stress beforehand. It's all about selling the leftovers from the November show.

2) It's a nice opportunity to sit around and visit with friends.

3) They have a 'cookie patch' at this show. Yum!

There are a lot of craft shows going on in my area the next few weeks. 
The Barn Show is one I'd especially like to visit.
How about in your neck of the woods?  Any shows you'll be going to?
 

 



A Swap For All Seasons

I'm participating in A Swap For All Seasons again this month.  You can read all about this swap HERE. About a week and a half ago I mailed off my November swap goodies. 

This month's theme was birthdays and our swap color was brown.

Here's a look at what I sent to Debbie.  I was so happy to hear that she liked the things I sent!!

 

Happy Birthday Card

Paper tag...I almost kept this! Love how it turned out.

Some brown Scrabble tiles and buttons. 

Here are the wonderful treasures that I received in this swap. 

Thanks so much Darlene....I love them!!

 



Don't these little girls look ready to party!!  Love this card!

BINGO boy!  On a fish no less!

Some pretty brown trims.

This swap is awesome...Linda is a wonderful hostess!

The December swap is full, but there will be a sign up for the January swap on December 1st.

You should check it out.  It's great fun!!

 

 

Show Scenes

 We had some popular items at our recent craft show. 

Some pieces sold out completely! 

That's always fun!

 

My friend Patricia made these wonderful snowman spoons...every one of them sold!

There was only one of these little guys left.  Such a cute Santa!

I put together this set of Angel Wings...my friend Tisha bought them.

Half of these little guys sold.  I made these and, frankly, I don't care if the others don't sell. 
They're so cute...I'll just keep them! 

I sold a few of these bears and  several Snowmen bottles.

I am excited to announce that Mandy sold more than half of her chalkboard art pieces!

It was a good show...especially Friday.  We had twice as much

in sales as we did last year!  Saturday was a little slow...but

after we made our purchases from each other our sales numbers increased rapidly!  : )  The best part about the show was spending time with one another....that's always so special!

 

Shadow Boxes

Two more of my recent creations...the first one was inspired by a recent Pinterest discovery. 

Thank you to Dru Ann of A Fine Farmhouse for the 'pinspiration'!!

 

 

Wouldn't these look great in a laundry room or a sewing room! The background paper is part of an old letter (dated 1902), and the little bits of ruler in the lower left corner are the leftovers from my Christmas tree stems.   I wish I could site the source for the cute graphics...but they've been in a folder on my laptop for ages.

I just don't remember where I found them, but I sure do appreciate having them!

Quick Crafts

I described myself as a 'maker of stuff' over on our Arts & Crafts Show blog. 

I think it's good description of me when it comes to my creative side. 

I like to make stuff...I like to make stuff quickly...and I like to make stuff from other stuff!

 

It's so satisfying to take items that might otherwise have no real use,

and turn them into pieces that I really love. 

Here's a few samples of what I'm talking about.

 

Tart tins and old wooden candlesticks quickly become two
fun little 'bowls'.  A little cream colored paint and a bit of sanding
transforms the candlesticks, and some glue holds the two
pieces together.  So quick, so easy, and functional too!

These are for the show....hopefully.  I really love them, and
I'm oh so tempted to keep them!

Here we have one old baby bootie.  I soaked it in a bit
of tea, and added a glittery star and an angel image.
Then I fashioned some sparkly canes and tucked them
inside the bootie. Now it's a sweet tree ornament!

A scrap of an old Army blanket, some fluff to stuff it, a few quick
stitches, and an empty wooden spool equals a prim little tree.
I added a fabric scrap bow and a shiny button star. 
Another quick and easy tree ornament!

 

It makes me happy to make things that are quick, easy, and fun. 

Giving new life to old stuff just makes it that much better!

 

Linking up with Knick of Time Tuesdays.

Vintage Party Inspiration

 

 

 



Trash to Treasures

I did a bit more creating this weekend. 

You can see my inspiration HERE and HERE.

 

Here's what I started with...a couple rusty hinges,
a couple clothespins, and an old ruler.

The hinges and clothespins became a photo holder...
or maybe a business card holder. 

I wish I would have used buttons like the inspiration piece!
Maybe I'll add some words to the clothespins??

 

The old ruler became stems for six trees.
Here's a peek at three of them.

Here's the other three...the inspiration pieces were made with burlap. 
I used corrugated cardboard. 
These are some of my favorite creations so far!! 

Less than two weeks to our craft show!

I brought things to create with to work today.

There's a lot of work that can be done in a

30 minute lunch break!!

 

 



I've Been Making Stuff!

The Arts & Crafts Show is getting closer and closer, and I'm feeling more and more unprepared! 

But yesterday I did manage to put together a bunch of things!!

I am determined to create with things already in my home.  It was fun to pick things up and think "hmmm...now what should I do with this?"  Here's a look at four of the things I came up with.

 

A tiny silver mirror that I spruced up.

This old wooden bird needed a new look.

My favorite "make" of the day.  The regulator is glued into the little muffin pan.
It can hold a candle or some flowers.  This one will be hard to part with!

I have plenty of empty plastic (and glass) ornaments, little trees, and baker's twine lying about.
Those items were easily transformed into these!

I told Bill not to expect to see much of me for the next few weeks. I'll be hanging out in my craft room!  The other crafters, artists, and makers in the show will certainly being doing the same in their homes.  I've been posting about the craft show and the women involved in it over on another blog called "Oakdale Circle Studio presents".  I hope you get a chance to visit it.

 

 



A Little Creating

Our yard sale is a week from Saturday. We've sorted through everything

and now I just need to stick some price tags on all of it. 

I plan on doing that this coming weekend. 

In between sorting I managed to fit in a little bit of creating.

 

 

I finally finished the pincushions I started weeks ago. 

I made five of the little goblet style and I also made one using a very

cute little aluminum pot.  I think it's my favorite!

 

 

These rocks from my yard are now fun photo holders.

I was inspired by one I saw in Pennsylvania ~ I've also seen them on Pinterest. 
Here's one incorporating a clothespin.
 

 

These Scripture Stones were fun to make...I'm hoping to

make a lot more of these!

Guess what?  There are only 90 days until Christmas ~ and way less

than that many to my first arts & crafts show!

Once our yard sale is history ~ I need to get busy making things!! 

How about you?

What are you busy with these days?