Wedding Card Basket

Hello friends!  My mind is back on the wedding again.  I found this basket at a Thrift Store for $2.00. It was an ugly navy blue color. I loved the shape of it; so snatched it up. I thought it would make a wonderful card basket. Hilary really likes burlap pennants, so I decided to  add that. What do you guys think?



I love these keys.  I added them to the basket to give it more of the "shabby chic" look.

I had some coffee filter flowers that I made several months ago.  I tied one on each handle with a burlap and lace ribbon.  Hope you like the wedding basket... but most of all -- I hope Hilary and John do!  Thanks for dropping in.

Easter Twig Cross

At our "Pinterest Night" at the library this month, we made a beautiful twig cross.  I love how mine turned out and wanted to share it with you today.   Have a wonderful Easter tomorrow!  I am looking forward to a wonderful church service and time spent with my family! 

Thanks for visiting!  See you again soon.

 

 

 

 

 

Our four- legged babies

Hello friends!  I decided to share our four- legged babies with you today!  We have four pets.  Our oldest is Sugar, a bull-boxer. She is around 9 years old and rules the roost. She will do anything to get her way and loves to be the boss.  Next, we have a boxer named Brodie.  He is about 5 years old and is the biggest baby you have ever seen.  He is very muscular is often mistaken for a pit bull due to his brindle color.  When he gets upset about something, he cries and sounds like a woman wailing.  He is all baby.  Then there is our tuxedo cat, named Ace.  Ace is so precious.  He loves to be rubbed and has the softest fur you have ever felt.  I call him my "perfect pet".  He never jumps on the tables or counters.  If you ever feel bad, or just seem a little depressed -- he will stay by your side and try to comfort you.  He is a lover.  Last, but not least, is Alaska.  Alaska is half chihuaha and half poodle (some call them a Choodle).  She weighs a whopping 2 pounds and is four months old.  She was a gift to my  daughter, Hope.  Hope is the  youngest and her two older sister have flown the coop.  We felt like she needed a friend... so along came Alaska.  Alaska is such an adorable little thing.  She loves Ace but drives him crazy.  She also loves to be held and cuddled.  She enjoys playing fetch and running as fast as she can around the yard when we take her out.   

Ace

Alaska

Alaska

Alaska

Brodie

Brodie,  Sugar and the hubby

Thanks for taking time to let me show my four legged babies off to you.  Come and visit again soon!

Easter Chic Cards

Here are a couple of Easter Cards I made a few years ago.  Just wanted to share them with you today!

 

 

 

 

 

 

"A Good Egg"  Stampin up set is by far one of my favorites.  You can do so much with this little stamp set!  I love the "you crack me up" saying.

This stamp was bought from Hobby Lobby.  I had to smile when I saw the three little chicks because it reminds me of my "three little chicks"!

 

 

 

Thanks for dropping by!  Have a great day!

Cheerful, Springy "Stampin up" Card

My "Stampin Up" life has been neglected lately.  I decided this weekend I was going to make AT LEAST one card.  And -- I found time to put one together Sunday afternoon.  I have been wanting to make some baker's twine suckers since I first saw one on pinterest.  They were a little lot more time consuming than I thought they would be.. but I am happy with the way they turned out.  Here's a picture and a quick tutorial on how I made them.  Hope you enjoy!

You will need  three different colors of baker's twine.  Next, cut out three 2 3/4 inch circles.  (I used my cricut to cut mine).

Apply glue generously to the entire circle.  Start in the center and just start pressing the twine down in a circular motion till you cover entire circle.  I had to keep applying the glue as I went because it dries so fast.   Finally, I  just stamped out a mason jar from the "Stampin' up"  Perfectly Preserved set.  I cut a slit in the top and bottom of the mason jar mouth to slide the "sucker sticks' into.  I was really happy with the way it turned out!  

Thanks for looking and having a great day!

Quilt -- Made from my Mom's clothing

Hello, dear friends.  Hope your weekend is going well.  I wanted to share with you  a very special gift that I received a couple of years ago from my stepmother.  As most of you  know, I lost my mother to cancer in 2010.  And when someone dear to you dies, getting rid of their clothes is one of the hardest things to do. Seeing each outfit brings back a flood of memories that are cherished.      My stepmother, Susan, took some of my mother's clothes and  had me and my two sister's  each a quilt made.  She also had my mother's favorite Bible verse embroidered on the bottom.  They are beautiful and such a special gift that I will always cherish! 

 

The Bible verse is Isaiah 40:31.   The quilts were sewn by a sweet and very talented lady. Here is her blog http://www.leighbirddesigns.blogspot.com.  

 

Thanks for visiting!  Come back soon:)

 

 

 

Unique Easter Basket Ideas

It's Friday!  Have I mentioned how much I LOVE the weekends??? I have my mind on Easter because it's only a week away!  Over the years;  I have always enjoyed the challenge of making a "different" kind of Easter Basket for my girls.   I am just not a fan on the basket with green grass that makes a huge mess.  I have used MANY different containers, but I usually put the same kind of "goodies" in them each year.  The girls always got the usual stuff like stuffed animals, chocolate bunnies, sidewalk chalk, bubbles and such.  As they got older, I started giving them flip flops, a summer t-shirt, gift cards to their favorite fast food place and,  of course, a chocolate bunny and some candy.  I wanted to share a few of the Easter "baskets" that  I have made over the years with you.

 

I made these bags using my cricut machine with the Basic Shapes cartridge.

I went really simple this year with brown dollar store craft bags with a "chic in an egg" paper piecing.

I went "all out" this year because one of my friends had a "31" party and I had been wanting to get the girls a bag for a cruise we had planned.  They REALLY loved these:)

I can't believe I even posted this one.  You all KNOW I am NOT an Auburn fan.  (Roll Tide!)  My soon to  be son-in-law spent last Easter with us, so I made this for him.  Now you know, I gotta love him to make this!  I took a dollar store bucket and cut out the vinyl AU and just put it on the bucket.

 

For several years, I used hat boxes to place the girls Easter goodies in.  They loved these and each of them still use the boxes in their rooms to store things in.  Hat boxes come in such great prints and are very reasonably priced.

I also saw these over @ http://www.sweetlittlegals.com.  They are just so adorable!  Click on over and check out her blog.  

Hope you enjoyed my little parade of Easter Baskets.  Come back and see me soon!

 

Very Easy Spring Strip Quilt

Hello Friends!  I don't think I ever shared my first strip quilt that I made with you, did I?  My middle daughter is getting ready to transfer colleges this fall and we are beginning to make plans for her "dorm room" decorations.  She loves this quilt -- so we decided it would be the inspiration for her room. We plan on painting her a headboard, footboard, desk and small shelf to match.  She LOVES summer time and bright colors; so we thought this would really be "cheery" for her.  The quilt was so easy and fun to make.  I used 2  jelly rolls that I found at WalMart (on clearance) and just started sewing all the strips together. I found a tutorial on youtube about how to make strip quilts.  I would share it, but I can't remember which tutuorial I used.  (There are lots of them out there.)   Finally, I used an orange gingham for the border and  a celery colored material for the backing.  I  am pleased with the results:)  Hope you like it too!

 

Thanks for stopping in to pay a visit.  See you again soon, I hope!

Living Room Easter Mantel

Happy Weekend!  I love Saturdays.  I just enjoy going to  bed on Friday night and NOT setting the alarm clock. Weekends are for fun things!!!   I had a little time today  to work on some chalkboard art.  I am pretty pleased with the results.  I placed one on my Easter mantel in the living room and one on the back porch.  I still need a little lots of practice.. but I am getting there!  Here are some pics of my mantel and the sign on the back porch.

 

 

I saw a sign like this @ www.http://dearlillieblog.blogspot.com and I thought it was so beautiful.  She has lots of beautiful art there.  Go check her out for inspiration for your own chalk art.

 

You know I just can't ever remove the portrait of my girls when I decorate my mantel.  I just love it; so I just work around it.   They love being in the middle of things anyhow!

 

 

I love these little birds sitting on a stack of vintage books.

 

 

Can you see the little bird peeking out of his cage?

 

 

And, of course, anytime I can-- I have to stick some of my hen collectibles in the mix!

 

 

Here's the Chalkboard sign for the back porch.  I came up with this design myself. (Not too hard to believe is it?  Lol.  It's nothing fancy!)

 

 

Thanks for popping in to see me!  Enjoy the rest of your weekend! 

 

Thrift Store SPRING sign

It is such a beautiful spring day!  I wish I was outside soaking up the rays instead of stuck behind this desk.  (Don't tell my boss I said that!)  You may have already seen this "SPRING" sign if you looked at my Easter Mantel, but I felt it was worthy of it's own post.  I bought this at our local Thrift and Antique store.  It seems to be hand made.  You can't tell in the photo, but each letter is at least 30 inches tall.  It is painted up so cute and I just love it!  I paid $8.00 for it.  Not "dirt cheap" but certainly cheaper than I could make it myself.  Don't you just love it??  I have already moved it around 3 different times in my house.  I really want it in every room because it's so cheery!    Let's see... my sister is coming to visit next week, so I may have to put it in the guest room for her to enjoy.... or I was thinking it would look lovely on the back porch for everyone to see as they enter the house... or on this bench is a nice spot because I walk by it often... but it would be so cute on the fireplace hearth in the living room.... Oh.. what to do................

 

Thanks for stopping by!  Visit again real soon!

 

My Thrifty Easter Mantel

Hello again, friends!  I wanted to share my "thrifty" dining room decorations and  spring mantel with you.  I purchased almost everything on it from the thrift stores. (not in one shopping trip, though... no one is THAT lucky!)   Hope you enjoy! 

I found this SPRING sign at our thrift store for $8.00.  Each letter is about 30 inches tall so it really is big.  I love the texture and patterns on this.  I placed it on my bench beneath the dining room mantel.

 Sorry my picture of the mantel  is not too great.  You see more of the dining room wall due to this big mirror! By the way.. my next home improvement project is to update my very dated dining room!  

 I found these egg candles 3 for $1.00 at the thrift store.  The brass candles sticks were .50 each.

The little eggs were included in a gift to me from my step-mother.  I just pulled them out of their little nest and "borrowed" them for my mantel. 

 I also got these 2 cute bunnies from the thrift store for 1.50 each.  Aren't they just adorable?

All the candle sticks  on the mantel were thrift store finds that I have painted white.

 The feather wreath was also a great  thrift store find for $2.00.  I just plopped the little soap roses that I purchased 6 to a pack at the Dollar Tree in the center.

I found this "'egg shell" at the thrift store for .49.  It was an ugly dark color  -- But I saw some potential.  And for .49 cents -- I could not resist.  I brought it home and just  painted it pink.  I stuck 2 carrots and a flower sprig in it.  I thought it was cute placed on  a pile of moss just sitting on an up -cycled candle stick.



I already had 2 of these tea light candle birdies that I used on my daughter's graduation table.  

Thanks for stopping by.  Come again soon!