The Craft Shows are Coming!! The Craft Shows are Coming!!

I have been collecting craft supplies for a lot of years.  Probably 25 years.  I use up a lot of supplies when I make things...but honestly, there seems to be no way I can "make" fast enough.

For years I've enjoyed taking old stuff and repurposing it into new stuff.  I was constantly on the look out for vintage sewing & kitchen items, baby shoes, old china pieces and bakeware, buttons, baubles, and bows....well you get the idea.  Plus I've always been quick to make a purchase at those after Christmas clearance sales...actually after anything clearance sales!! 

This year I decided it was time to use up as much of the accumulated stuff as possible.  That means no buying additional supplies unless it's absolutely needed to complete a project.

Like glue sticks or fiberfill for instance.

I'm happy to say that so far I've been successful!!  

I haven't had to buy anything yet...not even glue sticks.  I discovered that I hoard those too!!

Here's a look at some of the things I've made for my two upcoming craft shows!

There's more in the works!

The only negative thing so far....most everything I'm making is small in size.  There doesn't appear to be less of anything as far as supplies go.  But I'll keep at it!

Maker of Stuff

I have been busy creating stuff...the craft show is less than three weeks away!  Time is flying by!  Can't believe it's the last week of November!

These wreaths were a spur of the moment idea.  Remember this wreath.  Well I still had wreath forms, bows, and angels in my stash, so I stopped at Target and picked up three more shiny, green garlands from the Dollar Spot and whipped these up. 

The bright colors and cute faces make me happy!

 

I found the Santa mugs at The Christmas Tree Shop during my last trip to Pennsylvania. (I have since discovered that there's one closer than that!) What a deal at 2 for $3.00!  I picked up some little trees at Michael's, and then decorated them with stuff I had in my stash! (I have a lot of stash!) I love the one with the red bells, still not too sure about the other one though.

 

The next three photos are all things made with "stash on hand"...little bits of this and that.  

Finally finished up the "snowguys" too!

 

The Santas in the following photo were painted by a dear friend of mine. I met her years ago...she was a "maker of stuff" just like me! She passed away last year. She used to have a little shop above her husband's workshop.  Her husband called me this year and said he had gone through her things and had some stuff to give me. BOXES of stuff! So I've been going through it a little bit at a time...trying to decide what to do with it all.  I think she'd be pleased with the things I made with her Santas.

Next on my list of things to make are these star ornaments with Baby Jesus on them. 

Busy, busy, busy....

Photos are a bit blurry/grainy. 

I took them with my phone and cropped them quite a bit.

It's That Time of Year

Yes, "mess" is the word of the month!

It's taking over my craft space.

I'm busy, busy, busy making things to sell, and things to give as gifts.  Hopefully all the mess will turn into great stuff before too long.  Sure wish I didn't need to sleep.......

 

Happy Monday!

Sure hope you had a good weekend!

Mine was nice, quiet, and productive.  Did a lot of cleaning and I managed to get a bunch of things boxed and bagged...my son Kevin delivered it all to Goodwill.  Thank you Kevin!

I also got some Christmas shopping done...I really want to be finished with my shopping by the end of November...that'll be a first!!

Best of all, I got to spend some time making things! 

Here's a peek at the project that took me the most time to  make...and the one that was done in the blink of an eye!!

Love this "snowguy on a spring"!

I found the head at the thrift store...complete with the beads, carrot nose, and snowflake cheeks.  I added the hat, and everything below the chin...do snowguy's have chins?!

I love how he turned out....all 11 inches of him!!

I found the garland and bow in the "dollar spot" at Target, and I thought they were perfect for a wreath in the playroom.  The little elf was sitting by himself in the Christmas section...so he had to come home with me.

Using a foam wreath from my stash...I made a sparkly wreath that my grandbabies will love!  Quickest craft ever...no sewing and no gluing...I put it all together with straight pins!! 

I just wound the garland around the wreath, anchoring it with about ten pins. Then I pinned the bow and elf in place.  I used a paperclip to make the "hanger" and voila!  It was done!  

It took minutes to make!

Love his cute face...he ( and the wreath) will look great on the playroom door!

Speaking of the playroom....look at the great bench I got for it! My friend Peggy had a yard sale this past summer, and she was kind enough to give me first dibs!!  It came with the red and white cushion and pillows too! It was the perfect touch for this space!! Charlotte and Penelope decided that the rails under the bench were great for storing their floor pillows, and Bill added the RELAX pillow that he got for Christmas last year.  LOVE this space!