Sweet Goodness Swaps: Pink Lemonade, Parasols, and Polka Dots

I have met a lot of wonderful people via this blog--many coming into my world just when I needed them most. It's amazing how things do happen just when you need them to, for whatever reason. The list is long for those of you have touched my life, hopefully you know who you are, but if you don't, know that your comments and friendship mean the world to me.
Having faith is what it's all about, faith in the Lord above, faith in yourself, and faith in those around you. This week has been a trying week for me. I feel like my world is spinning out of control and I'm going grayer and grayer by the minute! A lot of it is good, some of it stressful--and then just when I needed a little pick me up, here it comes, my wonderful swap gift for the Sweet Goodness Swap: Pink Lemonade, Parasols and Polka Dot swap from my lovely and talented partner, Katie. Katie is fabulously talented, and extremely generous as you are about to see.....but most of all, I really enjoyed getting to know Katie. She was a great partner right out of the gates, sending an email to me sharing a bit about herself, asking me about my life, commenting on my blog and just genuinely showing interest in getting to know me. I hope I reciprocated in a way that makes her glad to have joined this swap. I can truly say, I've had some wonderful partners in all of our swaps!!

And on to all the goodies:

Would you look at all the bountiful goodies!! Katie stuffed this box like a master packer with an artistic and creative flair. I WISH I could wrap and decorate so cutely like Katie did!

She obviously paid attention to our 20 questions list, as she made these sooooo cute hanging name plates in my nickname Lucy, adding 'Juicy' which was lovely coined by the thriftiest of all blog friends I have, Miss Shara.

Awwww....Lucy... :) Sooooo cute, I love it!! (I love the pink and brown polka dots in this background)!

Revealing my real name...lol...I know I have an identity crisis going on. But isn't this just the cutes set of name tags?? So much detail, and so inspiring!

Katie made the most wonderful set of tags I have ever seen! These are a few of my favorites!

Wowza, right?!

A cute little paper doll...all of these lovelies are adorning my 'studio' as we speak.

A vintage handkerchief, a thrifted pocket mirro and some lovely ribbon...the list goes on and on!

Summer drinks and parasols abound. She packed more stickers than you could imagine in this fabulous box!

Candies and summer drinks, including a gift card to my favorite coffee shop! DS and I enjoyed a frozen drink Sunday together, Thank you Katie!

The box was never ending with joyful surprises at every turn. I could hardly contain myself!! I'm going to have sooo much fun playing with all my new toys and simply enjoying my beautiful goodies, all the while thinking of how lucky I am to have met such a kind and generous soul in my new friend, Katie.....Thank you again, from the bottom of my heart! You brightened my day beyond words when I needed it most.

:)

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Next post...exciting news and some awards!!!!!!!!!!! WHOOOOOHOOOOO

20 Questions!

Let's Get to Know Each Other And Play 20 Questions!

Please copy and paste into your blog (if you don't have a blog, please email your partner with your replies).

1. What is your favorite Summer Drink(s)? Non alcoholic, I love Iced Tea Ade--I'm not sure if that's a drink or not, but I like to mix Lemonade AND Iced Tea. YUM. Alcoholic, I like Cosmopolitans but normally just a plain old vodka tonic with lime. :)

2. What is your favorite Summer Activity? BBQing & cooking on the grill, lazy day get togethers, and going to the pool.

3. If you could spend a lazy afternoon reading, what would be in your hands? Probably any magazine I could get my hands on-love all the Stampington magazines, Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Country Living, ME Home just to name a few. I have plenty of books but never seem to have enough time to read a whole book anymore :(

4. What is your favorite type of craft/art medium? Most definitely acrylic painting, but as a mixed media artist, I love to employ a variety of vintage papers, decorative papers, stamps, pearl ex powders, alcohol inks, and more into my pieces

5. What is one art/craft supply you absolutely have been dying to have or try? I have so many things I love and have right now but a few things I don't have that I want are India inks, calligraphy pens, sepia pens, (really any pens that are waterproof are on my list), gold leaf, and beeswax. LOL what a combination. All are on my list of to buys with my sale coupons over the next few months.

6. What are your favorite colors in our 'rainbow sherbet' theme? Pink, lime green, yellow, orange, aqua (or blue) Love all of these colors, but probably Pink, Lime Green, and Aqua are my top favs.

7. What is your favorite sweet treat? Well, I do love chocolate but I live in NC and it's so hot here that you wouldn't want to send me any in my swap package, so my next fav is anything chewy and gummy like licorice, gummy bears, gummy fish, lifesavers, etc.

8. Are there any craft or art supplies you would NOT be interested in receiving? I just really can't knit or crochet, so supply wise that wouldn't be the best for me--but I love receiving already done projects!! LOL

9. What is your favorite song today? Realize by Colby Caliet

10. How do you 'pamper' yourself during the hot summer days? I've just rediscovered the joys of soaking in the tub, reading a magazine and giving myself a wonderful facial mask :)

11. Do you have any kidlets or pets? I have two boys (7 and 13) and one BIG dog :)

12. What is your best potluck dish for summer get togethers? Dessert wise, my Better Than Sex cake is always a hit and thanks to my dear God Child, Elizabeth--her Taco Dip is now my signature appetizer at all of our doing's.

13. If you could take a summer vacation anywhere, where would it be? I'd go someplace where it's moderately warm and near water--perhaps Martha's vineyard or somewhere around there on the coast.

14. Describe your decorating style. Does that say anything about your personality? Yard Sale chic. I wish I had a magazine layout home, but mostly my house has second hand items mixed in with my artwork. Truly Design on a dime. What does it say about my personality? It says I live within my means and I make things work despite the odds. I am a realist with a creative style and positive attitude.

15. What are your initials? JLO My dear friend SHARA likes to call my "Juicy" as my real name is Jodi, but nickname is Lucy--lol...so she's given me the endearment juicy.....lol..now don't any of you start calling me that...it's lucy on this blog..LOL

16. Why do you like to join swaps? First, I just liked joining to get some surprise treats in the mail that I wouldn't have boughten for myself or found around here for myself--and it was so much fun to find unique things and make things for others in the same vein. NOW, I can truly say I join swaps and have partnered with the Goodness Girls to host these swaps for all the friends I have made along the way. I've had some wonderful partners who have become big parts of my heart and life, as well as I enjoy the creative challenges posed by the swaps we initiate.

17. You have 25 dollars to spend just on you for a little treat. What do you buy? ((you can list more than one thing). I'd buy a little art supply of course, a Starbucks Americano with Hazelnut, a magazine, and something from Bath and Bodyworks.

18. What's one craft supply or art supply you absolutely can not live without? My friend Amy turned me onto Golden Fluid Acrylic paints and I absolutely love them. I also love my pear ex and mica powders.

19. Who's the last person you hugged? My lil man.

20. What's your favorite number and why? I love the number 3. It seems to come back to me in many ways in my life and in my family. There's gotta be something larger to it although I don't really know what that reason is. I've been creating my artwork in threes lately, too. Weird huh?

Thanks for reading this :)

Please stop by and visit my Parasols, Polka Dots, and Pink Lemonade partner, Katie--you fall in love with her style and artwork!!

Hurry--it's Here!! Newest Sweet Goodness Swap

(((Post courtesy of Sweet Goodness Swaps)))


Parasols, Pink Lemonade & Polka Dots Summer Swap

Three wonderful things that make us think of lazy summer days! The idea is simple, put together a package for your partner to help her enjoy the coming summer months incorporating the three theme items. We know this make be a little tricky so here are some ideas to start:

Parasols - drink umbrellas
Pink Lemonade - brings to mind the colors pink and yellow and cool summer drinks
Polka Dots - that one is easy and who doesn't love polka dots?

Throughout the swap we'll be posting ideas, drink recipes and inspiration to help you on your way. Have fun with this one!

THEME: Parasols, Pink Lemonade & Polka Dots

Please send your partner a package full of summery goodness incorporating the theme of parasols, pink lemonade and polka dots. Please include at least one handmade item, one thrifted/second hand/vintage item and one sweet treat. You may include other items as you see fit but please try to stay in the price range of under $20 not including shipping. Get to know your partner and exchange a little summer cheer.

COLORS: No specific colors but "summery" brights and sherbet colors fit the theme (pink, orange, blue, yellow and green)

SIGN UP BY: Friday June 6th - HURRY!

SEND OUT BY: Monday June 30th

TO SIGN UP: Send us an email at parasolswap@hotmail.com

Please remember that if you sign up for the swap you are making a commitment to follow it through to the end. If for some reason you will be late or are unable to finish the swap please send us an email at parasolswap@hotmail.com

Here's to summer!

Cheers,
The Goodness Girls

Rebecca

Heidi

LeighAnne

Lucy

Spring Time in Paris Swap and WIP new Toys!

Spring Time in Paris It Is!!!

Oh my goodness, Oh la la isn't quite enough of a word to express how thrilled I was to receive this WONDERFUL package from dear Jen!! She is the queen of swaps. I can't even begin to list all the wonderful and thoughtful items she sent as I will surely forget something. Her handmade item was this Eiffel Tower felted collage--with the words oh la la written on the frame. TOTALLY cute! Love it! Mixed in the package you can see little bits and bobs of scrapbooking stickers, tags, and many embellishments, and a quote book. In another section she had a treasure box of darling note cards, and a beautiful turquoise plate.

This is what I opened the box and found---all these beautifully wrapped packages! (((I didn't even come close to wrapping my packages as sweetly as she did))!! You can imagine, I was like a little girl at Christmas!!

Here is a collage of all the many wonderful items she managed to pack all in one box. Another favorite is the glicee print she so kindly sent. I love the colors in it. It's inspiring me to paint something in those colors of my work. Jen also included a beautiful black sketch book for me to keep for all my design and art ideas. Right now I don't even have one would you believe. My ideas are spread out in a hundred different places and it's difficult to find them when I am ready to go make something. Love the melamine bowls she sent--they are adorable. Thank you Jen soooo very much. You are the best and I love ya!!

I hope everyone who participated in the Spring Time in Paris Swap had a good experience. Please join us again soon!!!

I thought I'd share with you some of my new toys (sorry for the dark pic-despite the fact I have had an example of the lightbulb size for the dining room light in my car for weeks--I have yet to go to the store and get more bulbs...yep...I'm down to one working bulb). Anywhoo--this new to is called fun foam. You simply heat it with an embossing gun for about 30 seconds then PRESS into anything with texture and it makes your own reusable stamp. You don't like the design??? Heat and PRESS again. Press press press press. I pressed into everything. The stove. The table cloth. metal thingys, embossed wallpaper. Good thing I have 16 of them. Who'd a thunk heating and pressing things would be sooooo fun????

More new toys....and this is only part of all the new boards I have for collages. Quite an investment, huh?? Iwill be painting and collaging away until I'm old and gray with these. I used the down time during the yard sale to sand these puppies down after Jim cut them all up for me. As typical x's do, he so kindly helped me out and picked up this board from Home Depot for me and cut them up on his table saw, ummmm after I butchered the first row (not on purpose so he would do it for me...I just couldn't saw a straight line if it killed me..lol). Seriously,, no most ex's don't do this for their ex's ---but he is a good guy and I really thank him for supporting my artwork and hobbies, and for in general still being a good friend.

Last but not least, here's some works in progress--some 6x6's i'm working on as well as some of the boards all primed and ready to go. The brown stuff is tinted modeling paste I'm using for texture on some of the pieces. Lots of fun. That's another new toy of mine!! At the bottom you can see a sneak peek of a sketch that's going on one of the canvases.

Phew. Lots to do.

Good news--the yard sale was great, sold a lot but not everything. I still made about 225 dollars and all together all of us that sold things made about 900 dollars, so not a bad day. Sunday was a dud. Live and learn. I did get my boards sanded so I guess it wasn't a waste. Ohhh and I sold 2 of my prints at the yard sale (at full price). I was soooooooo excited you think I won the Price is Right!! The customers took all of my business cards I had so that felt good. I came back inside after selling my prints and found that I sold another print on Etsy the same day. So--I really made about 240 dollars Saturday. We worked our arses off though--getting up at 4:15 am to get all the crapola out.

Bottom line. There are easier ways to make money..LOL. BUT it feels good to slim down the clutter, there's still more to go but it's one day at a time around here!

Have a good rest of the week!!

Lots of Goodies!

Just a quick post to give a special thank you to darling Mrs. Kwitty for making me a special order business card wallet which I purchased from her Etsy shop. It is simply adorable and I love it. I convo'd her asking if she had any suggestions for me for a business card holder and she replied back quickly that while she didn't have anything, she would be more than happy to create a few things for me to pick from out of her shop. In lightening fast time, she created this wallet as well as several others I could pick from . (((another one like this as well as a few additional styles are now available in her shop))

Run, don't walk to her shop!!

She also packaged the wallet in the most adorable box, lace and topped with one of her little birdie tags that I just adore!! She also sells the tags in her shop!

Thank you Ms K for your hard work, attention to detail, and excellent customer service!

Monday was our send out for the Sweet Goodness Swap: "Springtime in Paris" and this is a sneak peek of my hand crafted item....go figure a sweet little collage for partner Jen. Our color theme was blue, black, and white. You must check out our flickr pool for MORE lovely creations and package. If you joined our swap, please be sure to upload your sent/received packages so we can all drool over your goodies.

I'm off to finish sorting through all my "stuff" as I am having a combined yard sale with some friends on Saturday and I still have LOTS more to go through. Lucky me has 2 days off to get things going so I better stay off the computer and get busy!

Thanks everyone for your words of wisdom and feng shui-energy advice. As I'm cleaning and reorganizing today, you can be sure the rubbing alcohol and incense will be coming out to cleanse the chaos out!! :) luv ya all!

Good Eats and Sweet Treats! ((((special Sweet Repeats Studio Shoppe Coupon Code, too))))

For the love of Creativity--the best I could muster out of myself this week was to make up my own frosting recipe while I made my two little love birds (my big lil men) their Valentine's Day cupcakes. I do have to say so myself, the frosting came out pretty dang well despite the fact it was a little runny. That's how I meant it to be anyway...so there! It tasted fabulous anyway, how can you go wrong with cream cheese, powdered sugar, sour cream, vanilla and butter??

I'm going to be away for a work assignment next week for 10 days so we are celebrating early around here. I bought these plates last year when in Florida when I was thrifting with my Sister. 25 cents. Who could go wrong? Except it's one plate. Also that day, I picked up one heart champagne flute, one heart soup bowl---I guess I knew a head of time, I'd only need one of each this year!

I have been making more hearts as featured in my last post so I guess I have been somewhat creative. In addition, I have been practicing drawing lips in my effort to get back to the basics. Kinda like teaching myself Art 101 with the best resources available one ever could dream of through the internet. Speaking of resources and inspiration, check out one of my favorite online artist's video (part 2) The time Paulette spends on the little details is mesmerizing. I hope one of these days I will achieve a level of expertise as Paulette displays.

Hearts, hearts, hearts everywhere--here we have my lovely "Hanging Heart Swap" gift from Connie. Miss Connie hand sewed and filled with beautiful smelling lavender and spice mix. This is one of Connie's first Sweet Goodness Swaps with us, and I am so happy to have met her and had an opportunity to be her partner. She beat me to the send out--mine went out today so can't wait to hear what she has to say about my creation!

This week was full of Good Treats in the mail! I'm a lucky girl, and don't you all be haters, k??? Miss Paula ((((Paula was my FIRST blog commenters way back when!))) sent me this book and a beautiful handcrafted bookmark as my winnings in a giveaway in honor of her Dear Mother's Birthday. Paula's Mother is no longer with her, so this was her way of sharing her loving memory with her blog friends. Thank you Paula I'm honored to have won this drawing! I will be taking this on my trip with me to enjoy during my down time. I will be working A LOT-but w/o my art supplies and my computer around, I will actually have time to read!!

Another parcel that made it's way to my doorstep came from my awesome Sweet Goodness Holiday Sister, Jane. This sadly was our last swap in the series--I was just getting used to Jane spoiling me each month, too!! Jane is a retired Art teacher, so not only were we kindred spirits in this swap, Jane spent a lot of time giving me pointers and sharing some cool artful goodies with me to enhance my own creativity. Love love love my SGS sister! I'm sure we will keep in touch and perhaps still share the swap love from time to time!

This swap theme was to share some artful recipes and whatever else you wanted to send for the holidays to your swap sister. Jane sent me a huge assortment of crafty embellishments, a gorgeous journal, some book labels and some craft paper--all featured in these first two pictures.

Holy smolly's! Look at all these goodies!! I can't wait to play with all these embellishments!

True to her character, Jane created a fabulous altered recipe book! How cool is that??? I have been wanting to start an altered book but have yet to get passed the painted page stage. I have on started from this summer--but didn't do anything other than background pages. Jane's creativity has sparked my desire to finish that project!

MMM...now how tempting does that recipe sound??:)))

Inside this cool tote, all my goodies were packed. Carefully hugged by this gorgeous quilt Jane made me!! Can you believe that? Her work is fabulous and I absolutely love it!! The time and love Jane put into all my swap gifts made each and everyone of them very special.
Thank you again Jane, from the bottom of my heart!!

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I've kinda been slack at uploading anything new to my Etsy shop, kinda because I knew I'd be away this coming month for a while, but mostly because most of my time has been spent working late at work, or studying at night for my project coming up---dang day jobs!! They take all my fun away!! Anyway--my point is, that for any of my visitors here--if you'd like to purchase something from my shop, here's a Valentine's deal for you. 25% off any item! Please convo me your choice and put Sweet Repeats in the message and I will adjust the listing for you to purchase!! After Valentine's day, I'd like to add new merchandise so help me clear my shelves!!!! I'll enter the coupon code until February 14th! Due to my travels however, anything ordered after February 4th, will not be shipped until February 19th--so check out the shop sooner rather than later!!!!

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Last but not least, just wanted to introduce a local artist friend of mine (she actually lives just around the bend from me a few miles!), Nanette. She is also a new member of the group I joined this month, The North Carolina Mixed Media Guild. Nanette is a Mixed Media Fiber Artist who recently found her calling in life and she just started a blog to shout it out to the world! As we all know, comments are the gas in our blog "car", especially when we first start, so please stop by and hello and see what she has to say on "Nanette Says"!!

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Hope you have a creative week!!

Hurry Don't be Late--1st Sweet Goodness Swap of 2008!

Happy New Year! We're back and ready for a great year of swapping in 2008! Didn't think you'd hear from us so soon, heh? Well Rebecca and I now have TWICE the amount of help and we're off to a bang up start!

Leigh Ann will be joining us again now that she's all set up in her new home in Kansas and please welcome our newest Goodness Girl, Heidi! So look out swappers, you've got a load of crafty women over here ready to get your creative juices flowing! (and let me tell you, the ideas already being discussed for future swaps are amazing!)

And the first swap of 2008 is . . .


"HANGING HEARTS VALENTINE'S DAY SWAP"


Sign up by: Friday January 11th (hurry up!)

Partner names will be sent out by Tuesday January 15th

Send out by: Monday February 4th

Description: You will send your partner one Hanging Heart Valentine! Be creative! You can use any media as long as your Valentine is smaller than 8x10. We want to keep this a quick and easy swap, aim to fit your valentine into a small box or padded envelope.

Your Valentine doesn't even have to be a heart, just something related to the holiday that your partner can display by hanging. Ideas: fabric hearts, paper hearts, dolls, mixed media collages, fabric post cards, you name it! If you can attach a ribbon to it and call it a Valentine it will work. :) (And we know you'll most likely include a heart on it somewhere.) This is your chance to really put your brain to work and come up with something unique!

Colors: You can do the traditional colors of Valentine's Day or be creative and shake it up a bit like pink and aqua or pink and brown. (Rebecca's personal favorite!)

Open to: All swappers! As this will be a fast and fun swap anyone can join. Just PLEASE remember that if you sign up you MUST complete the swap ON TIME. Please please see the sidebar for details.

Please email us at heartswap2008@hotmail.com to sign up! Remember to let us know if you are willing to ship internationally should we have any overseas participants. Postage should be low on this swap!

Swap button and Flickr groups to come!

Cheers ~

The Goodness Girls

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Sweet Goodness Swap News and Etsy Updates

First off--Check out the NEW Sweet Goodness Swap going on over on the Goodness girls swap blog!! We are ripping and ready to go for 2008 with variety of creative swaps planned for this year, one or more for every season (but the details are hush hush, you'll just have to stick around for each swap to find out what we have in store for this New Year)! Rebecca included a few links to subscribe to our blog so you can be among the first to know of our new swaps, so sign up now--hurry this one is going quick but open to new participants!!

Speaking of swaps, my dear swap Sister Jane A. has reported on her Father's accident and the good news is he is on the mend after a horrific scare of a broken neck. Please stop over her blog to wish her well as well as wish her a Belated Happy Birthday!! Jane's birthday was December 28 :) I'll report on my package I am sending to Jane this week as we held off sending because of all the chaos that has happened at her house, and with her daughter home for college keeping her busy-- and then with me getting sick during Christmas we postponed our send off till after the first.

Here's a look at some new items in my Etsy shop--Elegant Distressed Embossed tags that are made to mimic a copper/metal like look. These are very cool and each tag is definitely one of a kind.

They are rather labor intensive so I really should be charging more for the sets but I'm hoping to get some exposure to my shop with some low ball impulse items so to sell some more of my paintings.

Created on blank tags, I tea stained them overnight, dried and then distressed with Tim Holz distressing stamps, let dry again then painted with my own recipe of metallic pearl ex powder and gloss medium, added a background layer of stamps with acrylic paint, and then embossed each tag.

The final step was to find some inspirational words to add on to each of the tags and hang a ribbon or raffia on each.

They really would make great additions to that unique and special gift you may be giving year round. Or, you could use as a book mark, recipe marker or just hang on a set for a dose of your daily inspiration!


Over the next couple of months I'm going to be a artsy fartsy Mama, as Nancy and I are really going to do the Spring Fest. My organized partner has already gotten the application and we are in the midst of creating our partnered tent. I'm energized even thinking about it--but ask me come April 27th how I feel and whether or not we will do it again...LOL.

Other news--next month I was picked to be on a merger training team for my work so I will be heading to Deerfield, Fl for 10 days in February to work with a branch that we are acquiring and help with the our consolidation. I know...poor me. Having to go to Florida for work in February! I'm going to miss my kidlets though...I hope I can make it that long without being with the boys, but I'm excited to do something different for work to break up the monotony. I'm going to try to bring some of my art supplies so I can create while I'm down there but I'm not sure what I can bring on the plane. I'll have to do some research on that one. The bad news is, I will be w/o a computer for the whole time so no bloggidy blogging for me. :( I'm sure I'll live but it will be hard to be w/0 internet access. We can access the internet at work but not blogs, flickr, myspace, or any internet email. I can still get on Etsy though..LOL :)

I hope all 5 days of the New Year are starting out wonderfully for you. From the comments on my Stop, Start, Continue list, it looks like a lot of peeps out there are on a mission to although not "resolve" to do things differently, but to take baby steps towards goals and have an eye to the future for some things to tackle in the new year to make our lives that much better. I hope we all make progress on our goals, one thing for sure, it's one day at a time. I'm going to try not to bite off more than I can chew, but also spend less time making excuses and more time just "doing".

With that said, I need to go do something. :)

lucy

What I Did on My Vacation- JANE-don't peek unless you want to see part of your swap gift :)

Picture heavy post--What I did on my Vacation
By Lucy
First off just to let you all know, I'm back in the holiday mood after my quick moment of self pity and mourning of what "used to be". As Nancy B said and others agreed in the comments from the last post, it's not about the memories we had anymore as a child, because you can't live your life trying to recreate them...it's just not going to happen. It's now about my children and THEIR memories and creating new traditions of our own that they can reflect back on when they grow older--they the circle will begin all over again with their children, as it should be.
Sometimes I forget that I'm 38 years old and an adult. I still feel like a kid who should be waking up at her Mother's house on Christmas morning to the smell of cinnamon rolls and ham cooking in the oven.
I'm the one that's baking the cinnamon rolls and ham now.

Okay, back to today's post. I've had 2 extra days off this week and used them pretty wisely. I say pretty wisely because not everything on my list got crossed off but a good portion completed which relieves some stress from my shoulders. I posted these pictures in the wrong order as to what I did but anyway---my main objectives of this 4 day weekend for me were:

1) Clean the house extra well (finished about everything)
2) Take all my craft stuff that was previously housed on my tiny dining room table, spilling over onto my breakfast bar, all over my little display sidecart, and piled on both of my hutches on either side of my fireplace and put it all in my ACTUAL craft room.(It's in there now--but not too neatly as you will see in an upcoming picture)
3) Decorate some more for Thanksgiving (I'm of the school of thought lately that I need to celebrate one holiday at a time so I have not taken any Christmas decorations out yet).
4) Finish up my November Sister Swap package (finished and shipped!)
5) Clean out all of my drawers in my kitchen and cabinet (check on the silverware drawer, utensil drawer, and 2 junk drawers....not too bad, that was a 4 hour project right there).

6) Get my holiday grocery shopping done (check-3 stores and 200 dollars later YIKES)
7) Take Josh to the movies (we went to see Fred Claus....it was cute, not as funny as you would think but a good movie to take the kids too).
8) Complete 2 more art pieces for listing on Etsy (ummmm, nope didn't happen, they're still WIP at this point).
9) Relax a bit (ummmm as you can see, not a whole lot of relaxing went on, but at least I didn't have to rush all weekend to do everything)
10) Gather up my recipes for Thanksgiving and make 2 of the breads and freeze them (banana bread done...but don't like how it turned out, pumpkin bread done and it's delish....recipes still need to be gathered but I know most of them by heart so it's all good).

Okay on to my fall decorations--on Friday I stopped by Michael's...ahem, not for me but I wanted to get a couple of extra things to pop in my swap package and low and behold what did I see?? 90% off all of their fall foliage. Now mind you, I'm not a floral decorator but at those prices, how could I resist???? I've had several vases sitting here I've picked up at yard sales all empty and lonely so I decided to jazz up the mansion and created these 4 pieces for get this-----$20.00!!! You heard me right, just five dollars a piece and we have some nice decorations for Thanksgiving! WHOOOO HOOOO

My little chunky butt helper, he helped decide where each flower went where and was pretty happy with himself. That milk jug container was purchased for 50 cents at a yard sale this summer.
OHHH and loook it, you can see my itty bitty dining room table again, and it doesn't have paint splatters everywhere (that you can see anyway thanks to the table cloth...LOL

Wow--is that my breakfast counter???? It actually is sans drying paintings and misc craft thingys.
Feature in this pick is a beautiful felted pumpkin Miss Heidi sent me a couple of weeks ago. Isn't it beautiful???
I also have a bunch of pine cones--huge ones at that and I painted them gold for a few more decorations (I can use these for Christmas as well--I'm going to add some glitter to them next week).

You can barely tell I had piles of stuff on the hutches now that my craft stuff is tucked away.
I don't really feature my house a whole lot because it's really not anything special, not fancy, and it's not mine but I've tried to jazz it up with my yard sale purchases as much as possible. Oh-another feature is that rocking chair--I bought that last spring for 10 dollars! It was all weathered and yucky so DS and I sanded and painted her back to life.

Another close up of my florals decorations DS and I created :)

Where did all my craft stuff go?? Ummmm one guess. LOL I should be ashamed of myself. And this is only one side of the room. I spared you from seeing the other 3 sides :)

Here's a peek at my finished "garland" project for my partner Jane--I chose to do an altered hanger with home made cinnamon dough ornaments that I painted and distressed, along with 2 ATC with photo transfers altered as a focal point.

The top ATC says--
"The Kindness of Strangers" which is perfect for Jane I think--she has come into my life and in just a few short months has shown me so much kindness, and although we are not really strangers anymore--we both dived into our swap with a leap and a prayer and have found that we are two different but kindred spirits that have become fast friends. I hope many of you have found this same connection during this swap. :)
....The bottom ATC says" Live Your Questions"--again, I think that is a perfect saying for artistically minded people especially. I think every poem, every story, every painting is a way to explore your questions you have about the world, your observations of those musings and a way to share with the rest of us what your viewpoint or your observations are. What a shame it would be if you did not "Live Your Questions".

Here's the tags I made for Jane--I had an idea to make tags for all seasons but I only had time to do 'fall and winter' as it turned out. Maybe I'll include spring and summer in my last swap package. I love how they turned out though!! I used metallic powders and gloss gel medium on coffee stained tags that I dyed to create a kinda faux copper look, then I embossed with gold and silver. Jane sent me a heat gun and some embossing powders as a surprise and generous gift back in August, so I thought it was a perfect opportunity to use her gift by giving something back to her that I made with it in appreciation.

Close up view of the cards again.
Do you think these would sell on Etsy if I made more of them??? There's tons of tag makers out there but I haven't seen any like these--so I thought maybe I might make some more and add them to my shop this week.

In the spirit of Sweet Goodness swaps--though not required for this swap, I had to add this lovely snowflake pyrex dish I found last week while thrifting. It just "magically"matches my color theme :) Now don't be haters ladies, do you know how much I paid for this?? (close your eyes Jane--) 50 cents!! AND, I didn't just get one--I picked up two. So now Jane and I each have one. I sure hope it makes it during shipping and doesn't break!!! I really hate sending breakables after one bad experience selling on EBAY--I've always have been nervous about sending anything that can easily break.

Last but not least--that same yard sale I picked up all these cans of gloss spray, matte spray, fixative, acrylic spray of one sort or another and 1 can of gold---all for 50 cents each! Almost all of the cans are full---WHOOOO HOOOO! It was fate as I was on the last little bit of my only can of varnish---phew. Things happen for a reason, that's evident even when you are out yard saling!

It's back to work tomorrow, but I can truly say, I've had a nice break and look forward to a great week ahead and a wonderful new holiday with my family :)

Cheers!

Sweet Goodness October Swap and MORE!

The mail man has been goooooood to me lately--here is my October Sweet Goodness Swap package from Jane A--My October swap package from Jane A--(noticeably missing is the Lindt Chocolate, and packages of fun candies for the kiddies...ahem...lol...must have been the gremlins (me and Josh) ;)

....I received tons of fun items from Jane who went over and above:

Funky ceramic owls
vintage craft books

AUTOGRAPHED DVD by Traci Bautista!!
Awesome collaged pumpkin
All sorts of textured vintage wallpaper
Vera Scarfs (soo cool)
And more!

I love everything--I've watched the video and it's great AND started a new collage with some of the wallpaper!

I'm now the owner of one of Jane's uber cool collages (girl after my own heart)!
Love--it; and she personally signed and put a note on the back that I heart as well!

Thank you Jane--I couldn't think of a better Swap Sister to be partnered with!

**November swap coming up--Tags and Swags--I've started on both and they are coming along-I have grand ideas for the swag portion-we'll see how the "cookie crumbles"..hint ;)

Here's a peek at what I sent Jane!
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Speaking of going over and above--these pictures were taken with MY NEW CAMERA---whoooooo hooooooo Santa has come to visit me!! Told ya the mail has been good for me this week. Yep--thanks to Mrs. Claus (Mom) and her partner in crime, Mr. Claus (step Dad Craig)--I now have an fab new camera-a Fuji FinePix z10 fd--I'm just starting to play with it and really love and appreciate my early birthday and Christmas present! Thank you----xoxoxoxoxoxox!! (...haha..they also said they were investors in my "business", and believed in what I was doing and wanted to be a part of it in a way that they could.....tears tears...you don't know HOW MUCH I really appreciated it, because Ireally could not afford to buy a new camera myself..sniff sniff.....I really am thankful). :)

***

Have an artfully great week---I really need to catch up on my blogging friends, for the first time in a long long long time, my bloglines are full of updates. I hope to stop by soon to all of my wonderful blog friends!

Goodies Galore--UPDATED

While I haven't been blogging a whole lot lately, there has been some bubbling and bubbling,toiling and troubling spookactular creativity going on in the dining room "studio".....this is a sneak peek of a little pressie that's heading out to a spooky swap partner of mine. I don't want to spoil the surprise so these are just crops of the whole picture.

I'm not a paper crafter (scrapbooker) but I do like to use stamps and paper, and who could resist these cute as can be Martha Stewart cat stamps availiable at Michael's. ((They've been marked down this week if you have a store near you)))

After joining in Raesha's tag swap earliar this year, I have been a tag makin' Mamma lately. I'm going to continue to make my own tags for the gifts I give from now until ever and ever and ever. They are just too fun!
(The witch is another Martha Stewart Stamp)


This pic is part of a special holiday collage I made this week--again going out to a special swap sister--I just love that saying, "The Few That Soar"...whether it's writing, painting, sewing, collage--not everything is going to be perfect. Most of what you do in life is in preparation for the "Few That Soar".
I'm also involved in a challenge to make an ornament from a microscope slide. Hmmmmm I have never made anything from a microscope slid
e----have you??? Especially an ornament. I'm not sure what to do!! There's a little pressure on me because it's for an exchange with other artists at my first meeting (that I'm attending) of the NC mixed media artist guild the second week of November and I don't want to look like a flaming idiot in front of a bunch of extremely talented individuals!!!!! BLAHHHIIIIIEEEEKKKK!
HELP! I did buy some supplies from this place. (They have decent prices and super quick shipping, lots of fun items to explore). I don't have a sodering gun so I'm going to have to make due with foil tape. I'm not going to get into jewelry making right now (don't want the extra expense or to add on to my "addictive habits"), so I don't have any beads either. But---I do have paper, images, the tape, glue up the wazoo, glitter, buttons, yarn, markers, so I'm sure I can figure out something--it's just nerve wracking to me until it's done. Sorta like performance anxiety. I don't know how those on Dancing with the Stars do it---I'd be throwing up all over the place before I went on stage--but I digress :)


Lots of Goodness in the mail this week--first here's a wonderful assortment of goodies Rebecca collected for me over the last couple of months. She made me a neck warmer to match some pink and brown mittens she made for me last winter. I don't want to toot my own horn but it does look smashing on me ;) Thanks Rebecca, you did a wonderful job. She also sent me a beautiful framed collage which I wasnt' able to capture all the sparkly details of but it's lovely, trust me--and sitting on my craft desk as we speak. Another fun item is the artist smock which was wrapped up so pretty and adorned with a beautiful purple brooch. Purple is one of my favorite favorite colors. Sooooo much goodness all in one box, I love it all. Ohhh and a cool magazine from my favorite recipe site and a great scrapbooking/collage book which is loaded with great ideas for me to us in my art work.
Thank you Rebecca--your the best!!






Another pic of the neck warmer..




More mail goodies came my way from sweet Laura of Little Orange Kitchen. I won a giveaway on her blog and it couldn't have been more fitting for me----Loads and loads of stamps from all over the world.Great epherema to use in my collage as well. In addition, Laura sent a bunch of the prettiest papers and other scrapbooking goodies as an extra surprise. If you haven't checked out her blog--please do so, she writes the funniest stories and always has such great adventures to share!~
Thank you Laura!!!

Not yet pictured is a total surprise pack from another sweet blog friend of mine--Miss Shara of Monkeybox--she is the queen of junkin, an amazing Mom who is always donating her time and talents to her DS's school, and she writes such funny observations of her adventures in thrifting and family life. Shara sent me ooodles of great pictures and wording that she took the time to cut out for me as a blogoversary gift :) I am always touched by the generousity I've felt by so many of you that I haven't ever met--not just gifts you send, but your kind words and comments you leave, the comforting emails I recieve, and the friends I've made really make this all sooooo worthwile to me. I wouldn't give blogging up for anythying.
Thank you
Shara--I will get a picture of your fashionista goodies you sent asap. :)

Okay--gotta run for now--I will edit later with links to everyone!

Open Air Window Shopping

It was the Cameron Antique Show time again last Saturday, and it actually barely rained. Amazing. Last two shows (or more, that's as long as my memory can recall) it's rained like clock work.

We looked and looked and looked and bought....

Kettle Corn.

That's it.

Sigh..... I must be on thrift overload. No--it's a combination of things.I'm trying to be (forced to be) on a tight budget, but in addition, I'm trying to limit my purchases to keep the house under control. When you are by yourself and responsible for not only the financial upkeep of everything but the physical cleaning and organizational part of your nest---too much of a good thing isn't a good thing. It's overwhelming. That's how I've felt lately--overwhelmed to say the least. Ahhhhhh but window shopping, that does fit into the budget, so that's what we did at the antique show and then later in the day at the Southern Pines Fall arts and crafts festival.

Collage of the day.

Over priced pyrex EVERYWHERE...now come on people, its' dishes sheeesh...get over it already! ((((she says in her own meek effort to drive down the prices so she can accumulate some more before all the collectors eat the pieces up))))













So much to do, so much to see--vendors everywhere they be.

Love the Victorian homes in Cameron. Wouldn't you like to prop a chair up on the balcony with a comfy blankie, a good book and a nice cupppa whatever it is that floats your boat?

Not just antiques but country collectibles, flowers, harvest decorations and all sorts of eye candy to be found.


















The warmth and comfort of autumn, I can smell the scent of pumpkin and apple, cinnamon and spices, savory squash and sweet and sinful pies right now.....





Later in the day we trekked closer to home in Southern Pines, NC---this is a view from the historic train station that divides Broad Street (where I work) into two one way roads . Lil Man strikes a pose. I love the depth this picture captures of the train tracks heading anywhere--the possibilities are endless for your adventures and journeys....

I mistakingly thought the craft show was up and down the streets of Broad--but it wasn't. That I guess is only in the spring. I met up with my friend and coworker, "Mizfixit" for a partially fun, partially "work" adventure. She and I are contemplating participating in the Spring craft festival so we were "investigating" the vendors displays, prices, and assortment of items. We may split a booth even though our "specialties" are on different ends of the spectrums. Check out Nancy's thrifted lotus bowl from our last trip to the Cameron Antique show in the Spring.....she turned it into a wonderful floral arrangement.

Anywhoo---we both were a little disappointed in the festival. Not a lot of people buying (including us)....and not a whole lot that really struck our fancy...too much of the same. We did see a few booths of jewelry that were cool....and even more (soooooo many jewelry booths) that it was just a little overwhelming. I guess my biggest question, is it worth it?? A craft show has got to be a lot of work, what if I don't sell anything?

But.....

after speaking with my new friend Jean today, we discussed the same topic for a few minutes---while the craft shows are alot of work, you just never know when those custom orders may come from customers that take your card, whole sale accounts, sometimes it's not about the initial sale, it's about building the foundation for the future. And that's a good thing.

Hmmmm

Things to think about :)

***

Just a reminder, all you Sweet Goodness Sisters out there----October 2oth is the send out date for your October Sweet Halloween Treat Swap--I will have a flickr page up tomorrow so we can start sharing our Spooky Stuff!! Speaking of which, today I'm making something Spooktacular for my Sister Jane--hope it doesn't scare her when she receives it ;)

***

Have a great weekend!

Birthdays, Swaps, and 20 Facts about me!

First things first, here's a belated birthday collage from my oldest son's birthday on September 14th....Happy 13th Birthday Zack!!

We had a fun filled weekend full of games, good food, party with friends and family, and GO KART racing at the Nascar Speedpark (which by the way, I pretty much smoked everyone there....I'm a fabulous go kart racer!! LOL) and some putt putt! Myrtle Beach has the best miniature golf anywhere! Unfortunately, I'm not sooooo good at that! We won't even get into my scores! Zack made out like a bandit, lots of $$, tons of 3D puzzles (the child loves those)! and of course some video games and other doo dads.

****

Next on my list: My random number picker (aka as Josh) picked a prize winner--- Ta-da---and the winner of my Blog birthday giveaway is Miss JANE, from My Many Colored Crayonbox!! I met Jane through our swaps and have enjoyed reading about her teaching and her crafts, she is just the most dedicated teacher you would ever want to meet. She pours her heart and soul into her "children", as well as into everything she does. Please give her some blog love and say hello if you haven't visited her yet!

Jane, your prize pack will be out this week to you!

Next on my list of to do's for Monday is my 20 question answers from our Sweet Goodness Sister Holiday Swap that's just getting started. This post is so that your partner "gets to know" you a bit. My partner is Jane A, who is a retired art teacher, a creative collage artist, a fabulous quilter and wonderful Mother, and cherished new friend. Jane and I met through the Summer Sweet Goodness swap when she volunteered (ahem..I volunteered her inadvertently) to be a swap angel! We've been collaborating on collage work and sharing emails ever since. I know we are going to be a great "Sister" match for this swap. So without further ado---here are my Q's & A's:

1. Favorite Color: For clothes, black (makes ya look skinnier) but for everyday things, I like blues, greens, (reminds me of serenity and water), as well as pinks of all sort

.
2. Chocolate Lover? Milk, Dark, White, or none of the above? I am definitely a chocolate lover, but I don't care for white nor do I like raspberry flavored or cherry cordials or anything with fruity/creme fillings. Although, a good Orange chocolate is my all time favorite flavor.

3. What is your favorite craft hobby? Most definitely painting and collage!! I don't really sew much anymore because my machine is broken, but I have a whole closet full of fabric thanks to a major thrift haul last year. I also like to do rubbertamping and paper cards, but I'm not into scrapbooking although I LOVE paper of all sorts and get into embelishments if I can use them in my collages or cards.

4. What is a craft/art hobby that you would like to start?

I just started embossing, but I would like to try using some alcohol inks for metals and other non porous surfaces in my collage making.

5. What craft do you NOT have an interest in or just not great in ( so your partner doesn’t send something you wouldn’t use)?

Well, I don't mind trying anything but right now, I'm putting knitting on hold because I really don't do it well and most of my time is caught up in my collage work. ALTHOUGH, i do like funky fibers that can be used in journalling and other mixed media arts.

6. Do you have any allergies? (we don’t want to send anything with peanuts if it’ll make you blow up like a balloon!)

The only allergies I have are seasonal (pollen) and I'm allergic to pinestraw so don't be sending me any of that or I will get little water blisters all over my hands and arms! LOL

7.What’s your favorite part of Halloween? Decorating, candy eating, costumes, or something else?

I used to love as a child dressing up or making my own costume, now, I just love the silly comical decorations of Halloween, carving pumpkins, and making fall or Halloween cookies.

8. Do you decorate for Thanksgiving/Fall? Yes, I like to put up some fall foliage arrangements, pumpkins and gourds, and bring out my fall placemats, fabrics for table covers etc. I think Thanksgiving gets gipped as a holiday so I do try to give it some attention in the decorating arena!

9. December Holidays--what holiday do you celebrate? What type of decorations do you like to put up in your house for that holiday?

We celebrate Christmas, and I like to put up snowmen. I had to buy on the fly a bunch of decorations last year to replace the one's I lost so really I don't have a lot and haven't really decided on a new theme although what I did buy were the colors of "grinch green" lol, red and white. I also bought some woodland ornaments off of ebay that I'm going to use this year.

10. Do you have any children, if so what are their ages, boys/girls? I have 2 boys, Josh is 7; and Zack is 13. Both are going on 21!
11. Do you have any pets, if so what kind?

We have a 13 year old dog named Bailey that we inheirted from my X Ken. She's a mixed lab/golden retriever...and what else I don't know!

12. Are you a reader? If so, what type of books do you like?

Yes, I do love to read, but mostly right now I read magazines....that's all I have time for. I love the Stampington Co magazines, Country Living, and Cloth, Paper, Scissors. I also have several collage/mixed media books I've boughten and more on my wish list. As for fiction, I enjoy James Patterson, Anita Shreve, John Grisham.

13. Are you celebrating a birthday or anniversary in October, November, or December? If so, what day and what is the occasion? Yes, both of my sister's birthdays are in November (5th, 14th); and my birthday is December 13th. I'm not sure if I'm celebrating that occasion or not....I'll be 39 WAHHHHH!

14. Do you collect anything? If so what type of things do you collect? Not anymore....don't have a collection of anything really other than craft supplies..LOL I do like unique serving plates, tea cups, and sugar and creamers.

15. What type of things do you like to cook? Are you an appetizer person, cookie maker, dessert freak or a take out type of person?? In the fall/winter, I love to cook just about anything. I really get into making soups; love to make appetizers for all the holiday get togethers and I enjoy candy making (ummm anything chocolate that is)!
16. What is your favorite scent? Is there one that you can’t stand? If we are talk