Giveaway Winner

Thank you to those who entered my Hot Tea Month Giveaway.  I used random.org, and #3 was the winning comment--that's Sherry at Edie Marie's Attic.  Congratulations, Sherry.  I'll be writing you soon for your address. 

Giveaway Reminder and New Ornament

Just a reminder that there are only a few days left to sign up for my Hot Tea Month Giveaway.  I only have a few entries, so chances are good.  Why not join in for a chance to win a pretty teacup and saucer and some push pins for your home? 

Also, I wanted to share a new ornament that I finished last night.  It wasn't going together...I prayed (yes, I DO pray that my things go together and look nice)...and with the right touches of flowers I was finally satisfied.  Listed it today in my Etsy shop.  Enjoy!

Well, my calculator finger is stiff, but the business taxes are finally done...now it's time to start creating again.  (Thanks GraphicsFairy for the sweet image!)

Hot Tea Month Giveaway

As promised, I'm having a giveaway in honor of January--Hot Tea Month.  It certainly has been cold here lately in Wisconsin, and today we are expecting more snow.  This is definitely a day for a hot cup of tea (or two...or three).  I'm giving away a pretty teacup and saucer found on one of my hunts for vintage treasures.   It has pretty scattered bunches of flowers and roses on a white background. 

The package of hot tea is new, of course, and is a yummy red tea that I recently discovered (I take mine with a dollop of honey).   Finally I've made four thumbtacks.  Three are reproduction tea labels and the fourth is a 3-D vintage brass teacup charm with a brown glass cabochon in it to look like it is full of tea. 

Here are the details:  Due to rising postage prices, I'm so sorry to my out-of-country friends, the giveaway this time is for US addresses only.  I will choose a name randomly on Monday, January 30.  Please make sure I can contact you to get your address for shipment; otherwise, I will choose a different name.  You may enter once or up to three times total by doing the following:  1)  Leave a comment below to enter.  2)  Blog about this and leave a separate comment with a link to your blog post below telling me you did so.  3)  Go to my shop--HERE--and tell me something you especially like from there in a separate comment below.  Thanks for entering!

Creating from the Heart: ♥ My Birthday Giveaway! ♥

Check out Melissa's birthday giveaway....

Creating from the Heart: ♥ My Birthday Giveaway! ♥

Tag Book and Box Swap

Jean at Lilac Lane Livery hostessed a tag book swap.  We had to make a pretty box and place inside a tag book.  My partner was the very talented ValeryAnn of It's an Alien Life.  ValeryAnn cracked her wrist during a fall, and I was amazed and pleased that she still held up her end of the deal and came through with creating a book and box despite this.  Many thanks and kudos to you, dear swap partner! She did a wonderful job creating a box and book in pinks and roses and with plenty of tea prints.  I just love it.

Didn't she do a fabulous job?  She included everything I like and enjoy.  Thank you SO much, ValeryAnn!  Below are pictures of what I sent to her.  Jean was very sweet to help me out in showing me what a tag book was.  I sort of guessed on putting it together.  I had bits and pieces of vintage things that I included to give the box and tags interest and texture including buttons, labels, feathers, stamps, lace, etc.  Enjoy!

Thank you also, Jean, for hostessing this fun swap!



Hot Tea Month

Yes, January is Hot Tea Month.  I made this Etsy treasury this morning to celebrate that.  To further celebrate, I'll be announcing a giveaway shortly....not sure exactly when...just shortly.  Can you guess it will be tea related?  Until then, relax with a hot cup of tea and please enjoy the treasury and the pretty things these Etsy sellers have to offer (feel free to click on the pictures to see up close anything that you take a particular fancy to). 

Hearts and Roses

You know I can't resist hearts and roses--especially guilloche pieces and pink!  I added these to my shop recently....one is a rather large guilloche piece.  It was designed as a pendant and could certainly be used as one, but I put it on some ribbon so that it may be seen to be used as an ornament as well.

Then I played some with my new rose beads and made this pretty pin last weekend. I really do like these beads and thought they worked well into this setting.  I love the detail and the rich pink coloring.

Hope you like them too.  Enjoy!

A New Year to Come

So thankful for God's blessings in the past year and looking forward to the year ahead.  I hope to please and serve Him better. 

There are new projects in the works, and I'm excited to work on them...if only I had more time!  I ordered these beads recently from a man in China.  They were expensive, and I was a little anxious about spending the money...not certain they would come...not able to track them in any way.  However, thankfully they DID come...in good time too.  They are just beautiful.  I'm pleased and can't wait to create with them. 
Thank you for following me and taking the time to read what I say and for your sweet comments.  They are appreciated more than you know.  I'm thinking of a giveaway soon, so keep an eye out for a future post. Happy, blessed 2012 to you all. 

Can't Resist...

...hearts and vintage bits.  So, these have been the result of my work lately.  I found these sweet brass heart lockets from a seller on Etsy as well as some of the bits and pieces I've put onto the hearts.  Especially pretty are the guilloche pieces and those chippy flowers.

They have been fun to work on.  Ironically, I found a seller on Etsy who sells the little vintage enamel flowers, requested a custom listing of them...they agreed...and despite several emails over the past several weeks haven't heard a word back.  I'm so disappointed!  I know it's a busy time of year (but it has been many weeks)...I know things come up (but I've noticed they've listed many things)...but just can't understand poor customer service--at least communicate with me please!  I'd rather have someone tell me they can't get back to me until a month has passed than just not respond.  Oh, well...a lesson learned to remind me to have good customer service when a customer writes...and I'll keep on looking for my flowers.  Anyway, hope you like these.

By Special Request

You go through life and meet people who you wish you really had never met.  Then you meet people who, when you look back, you are just so glad that you got to know them.   One such person was a delightful lady who purchased a perfume bottle from me last spring.  She was so kind.  Then she wrote back saying that she had some of her mother's jewelry that she would never wear...and could I put some of the pieces on perfume bottles for her and some of her relatives?  I admit to being nervous breaking apart these precious memories of her mother, but then again, she and I were working together trying to repurpose these pieces into a new way for her and her family members to remember her mother.  Much time (and prayer!) went into these bottles.  I included this lady in every decision with plenty of pictures and emails back and forth.  The bottles were finished and last week arrived at their destination.  I shall miss our emailing back and forth but am truly glad for the chance I had to get to know her.  Such fun it all was!  It is a great honor to help carry on these precious memories in the lives of this lady and her family.  I don't know if you will ever read this, but thank you so much, Mary.  You are a kind and generous person, and I'm sure your family members will appreciate your creativity and thoughtfulness.  I'm so glad to have gotten to know you. 

Blue and Purple-Pink

I have a corner sink in our kitchen.  While doing dishes yesterday afternoon I was enjoying the pretty purple-pink blooms of my cactus and the light shining through Gram's blue jar.  She loved blue glass, and I'm thankful to have this that was hers.  I thought the colors together were just grand and decided to share the scene with you.  Enjoy and happy weekend to you all!