In The Zone

What do you do to create a stress free zone in your world?

Today I did my best to block out life's little annoyances by spending some time with my spinning wheel.

 The gentle whirring sound of the wheel and the rhythm of the treadle seem calming as I concentrate on drafting the fiber.

 It puts me in "The Zone".  

"The Zone" is a quiet, peaceful place, a ZEN kind of place, where the dog doesn't have fleas, where people are kind, where the washing machine isn't leaking, where there is no pain and everything is lovely. You know what I mean. Just a little piece of time where you can block out the world and just be.

karen

Crocheted Mushrooms

I'm so sorry I can't offer instructions for these little mushrooms.

I rarely use a pattern when I crochet and tend to make things up as I go along.

 I'm pretty sure you could find a tutorial for something similar on one of the crochet pattern sites.

 No pattern for these either...SORRY.  Just some beads I made while watching TV.

 Some old architectural pieces with a bit of fresh paint.

I guess I'm in a bit of a funk today.

Sorry all.

karen

Rosemary Candles

This is a super simple way to dress up some dollar store candles for the Holidays.

 I wrapped mine in burlap and then tied little sprigs of rosemary onto them.

 You could wrap them in fabric, paper or just about anything you have on hand and embellish them any way you like. I'm into the "simple is best" mode at the moment. All that fuss and glitter from last weekends projects just didn't feel right.

I spent just $1.00 each for the candles.

The rosemary is from my garden and smells just wonderful.

karen

Making Christmas Bells

Last week while Mother was here visiting we gathered some supplies from the craft room and made a glittery mess in the kitchen.

 To make these Christmas Bells we started by painting a couple of seed starter pots.

The paper mache type.

After the paint was dry we added some glitter.

 We wired jewelry parts for hanging inside the bells, hung them from a pretty bow and embellished them with ribbon and vintage millinery flowers.

 I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out, but the glitter was everywhere.

We laughed and talked and Mother loved the glittery mess. It brought back memories of her childhood Christmas crafting.

Maybe we'll do paper chains and ornaments for our next crafty project together.

No glitter involved.

karen

Holiday Craft Project With Fiber

Simple Holiday Project

To make this I wrapped yarn around heavy craft wire securing with a little hot glue as I went along.

I twisted the yarn covered wire around a large knitting needle to make the spirals.

I crocheted and stuffed a few simple balls to hang from the spirals.

It is snowing outside as I am typing this.

The very first flakes of the season.

karen

Autumn

karen

Simple Shabby Weekend

Mom is here visiting for a few days.

We did a little thrifting.

 And I was lucky enough to find this comfy cotton robe in perfect condition.

 We recycled some egg cartons into some fun mobiles.

 Used up some beads and ribbon scraps left over from another project.

Some salvaged old jewelry parts.

 A little paint as well.

Simple inexpensive fun and good memories.

karen 

Stones In The Dough Bowl

My creative crafty spark has been gone for quite some time now.

I've tried to force it out of hiding, but it just didn't feel right.

I've looked through countless art books and spent hours and days reading blogs and visiting Pinterest. I've been to galleries and yarn shops, antique malls and thrift stores all in the hopes of finding my spark.

I really need to find it.

Winter is right around the corner with snow in the forecast for next week.

I think it might be here.

Right here in my home among the piles of wool and boxes of craft supplies.

Maybe in the sewing room or next to my chair in the basket of yarn.

Until I find it I'll keep taking photos and changing my decor.

After all, those are creative things too.

These are last years felted stones.

Hmm...maybe some felting?

I'll keep you posted.

karen

New Life For An Old Chair

What better place to show off my updated pressed back chair than against the old rescued hutch in my dining room. This old rough chippy chair had been on my porch for years and had seen better days. I brought it inside and freshened it up with a quick almost dry brushed coat of turquoise paint.

 Last Fall I had such a nice harvest of pumpkins and gourds from my garden, but this year's garden was a failure.

 I opted not to spend money buying real ones and instead used some of my faux decor.

 I grabbed up the pretty blue blanket from my daughter's donate pile as she was moving things into her new house last month.

 This small stick wreath was packed away with the faux pumpkins and seemed like the perfect thing to hang on the hutch door.

I'm loving that old chair all over again.

karen

A Stroll Outdoors

Today was a bit chilly and rainy.

Not the kind of day I would normally choose for a stroll through the fallen leaves, but when I saw how sad Jack looked, staring out the window, I stepped into my boots, grabbed my camera and Jack's leash, and set out for a hike around the property.

 

I needed this time outdoors with nature as much as Jack did.

We both felt better after our walk.

karen

Last Weeks Found Treasures

A vintage hat made completely of flowers.

Lots of posies to craft with.

A sweet old hat box for storage.

 Found this pretty ceramic container on sale at Michael's.

Perfect for holding pens on my desk.

 Pink and white vintage stockings to hang for Christmas.

Today I gathered some things to donate as I'm sticking to my rule of discarding something when I bring  something in.

karen

From My Childhood Days

Does anyone remember these?

When I was a kid it seemed like everyone had dishes like these.

 I only found these two cups, but I remember my grandmother having an entire set of these plastic dishes in pastel colors.

These ones are Byrd's TRANQUIL Ware and were made in Erie, PA.

Not far from here.

I'm happy to have found these.

They bring back lots of good memories.

karen

One Thing Leads To Another

I found this amazing hot pink, corduroy, wing back chair over the weekend.

Love the huge wings, the color and the fabric.

It adds a pop of color and some unexpected interest to my otherwise drab living room.

 The chair needed a space of its own, so the antique dress form had to go.

 She got a quick update from her top hat and rosary beads to a pretty vintage prom gown and was relocated to the loft.

 I came across these little vintage cards in a box of stuff that I was saving for some craft projects.

 

 These colorful clips were the perfect thing 

 for attaching the cards to my chippy old mirror.

I like the idea of using them as tiny art prints and the mirror makes a sweet bulletin board.

karen