Some New Directions

Sometimes I feel like my Etsy shop is getting "stale", so I've been thinking of doing some new things.  I just just love vintage jewelry--and probably always will--and looking for it is such a pleasant quest.  My shop has some really pretty pieces in it, but since many have not "moved", I'm going through it....taking pieces out...and repurposing them more.  Here are some examples of what I've come up with lately:
A brooch made of vintage bits:

A sunny yellow bracelet:

You'll see jewelry disappear from my shop and see them again repurposed into other pretties as I go along.
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I tried my hand at some paper work and have enjoyed doing that.  I made these little Valentine boxes out of match boxes with mini Valentines in them.

They were great fun to make--though time consuming, I'll confess--and I would love to have received one of them myself.  I plan on making other things, though making more of these Valentine's Day ones will have to wait until next year.  I'll try to remember to start making them earlier.
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I'll still be doing felt things simply because my bag of felt and thread and needles can go with me to so many different places--to town, to violin lessons, to piano lessons, to home school group mornings, etc., etc.  I can't stand just sitting around doing nothing, so felt projects keep my hands busy and my sanity intact.  There are so many people out there who are much more talented than I when it comes to designing and making felt things, and it's easy to get discouraged.  However, I really enjoy stitching and will keep on making things.  I'm trying my hand at some magnets lately.

So, that is what I've been up to lately.  There is never a dull moment.  I have other ideas I'd like to try too...just finding the time to do them is always a challenge.

Celebrations

First, I'm so thankful that hubby and I could celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary this past Monday.  No, we didn't do anything extravagant as much as we would have liked to.  It was just a fun, relaxed, and a quiet sort of day...a day we could simply enjoy just spending together.  We had a relaxing breakfast.  We sipped coffee.  We looked at pictures of our wedding...we were SO young.  We laughed and commented on our day and the people who were there.  We looked at memories out my exquisite blue box of our trip to Paris for our 10th anniversary (that was during more carefree days...before kids and a mortgage).  We watched Casablanca.  It was a good day, and I'm so thankful for my husband and our life together.  I am truly blessed to have him...the Lord is so good, and I know that it is because of the Lord that we have such a sweet and happy marriage.

My parents celebrate their 50th anniversary this year...as do my husband's parents...and did I tell you it will be my husband's sister's 25th wedding anniversary this year as well.  Oh, and there are several milestone birthdays this year for our fathers and others in our family.  Whew!  It's a big year for so many people in our family...a year of celebrations.