Spring is Here!

Had to share these with you!  My crocuses are finally up--and, no, the gophers did not manage to eat these...yet!  It's been such a long winter it seems, and seeing these in the spring right outside my laundry room window is always a welcome sight. 

Glow In The Dark Thread

A friend told me about glow-in-the-dark thread, so of course I had to find some and play with it.  I found some on E-bay and had fun designing these ornaments for a nursery.

 

I have many ideas to use the thread for, of course, but I thought I'd give these a try first.  These ornaments actually took a lot of work--the little banner taking me awhile--but I was pleased with their outcome. 

When the lights go out in baby's room, the thread on these glow. 

What do you think?  I have other projects that I'm finishing up right now (posts later on on these!) but am eager to work more with this thread.  These ornaments are in my Etsy shop. 

Tangerine Butterfly

A tangerine butterfly landed on a pretty Asian plate!  Couldn't resist sharing. ; )

It's my birthday today.  The kids and hubby are making breakfast.  Thankfully it is spring break, and we have today off.  Hooray!  Mom and I are going to the huge antique mall not too far from here and will be there looking for things.  I have some new projects that I've been working on that are almost ready.  I'll be revealing those later this week.  Also, as a thank you to those who frequent my shop, I'm giving 10% off all orders today in my Etsy shop.  Just put the coupon code BIRTHDAY into the code section to receive the 10% off. 
P.S.  Thank you, GraphicsFairy, for the sweet image.

Antique Car Vase Find

We girls were out doing our antique mall/thrift shop hop last Saturday.  The guys were busy, so off we went.  There weren't too many goodies out there, but I did find this...

It's an antique car vase.  They were placed into hooks onto the outside of cars...whether funeral cars or a Buick or what have you...and bouquets of flowers were put into them.  This pretty vase doesn't have it's hook...BUT it is beautifully intact.  It is cone/sconce shaped and has pressed grape vines and grapes all over it. 

Such pretty detail!  I see that the holders can be purchased on Ebay.  However, this does have a hole in the glass, so that a hook could be secured to a wall. 

This would look lovely as home décor or on a door.  Anyway, I was glad to find it and have listed it in my Etsy shop.  It has a tiny crack in the very tip of the glass (amazing that's all since this probably bumpety-bumped along the road quite a bit) that does not affect the prettiness nor does it leak.  Anyway, I was delighted with the find.  Hopefully someone else will be too!

Adele and Josette at the Dress Form Ball

This little lady had been out shopping (in Paris, of course!) all day but still wanted to go to the Dress Form Ball at The Polka Dot Closet.  Adele is, oh, so tiny at only 3-1/4" tall, but, alas, was the only dress form around who was able to participate! 

She wore her finest vintage creme doily dress...the one with the rhinestone sash and bow.  She was pleased with the fleur-de-lis brooch she purchased while in Paris and put it on right away. 

Though she was already cumbered with her purse and packages, she couldn't resist purchasing a bouquet of roses from a street vendor to bring to our hostess of the second annual ball.

 
Little Josette who goes with her everywhere was wearing her typical rhinestone collar and leash. 

Many thanks to our hostess, Carol. 

Be sure to go to her blog, The Polka Dot Closet, to enjoy the ball and the many lovely guests who are also attending!

The Lamp....Again

I really was content with the lamp I found at the thrift store a few weeks back.  I truly was content.  THEN...we went to a thrift/charity shop yesterday, and I found the **perfect** lamp for a song. 

It is the exact style I was looking for, only I think this is prettier than I imagined.  The glass shade looks like a flower.  The brushed brass goes with our living room rug.  It is the right size--small but with a good, strong light.  I'm thrilled!!

On the way out of the store with lamp in hand, and a few other ladies were commenting on it wishing they had seen it first!  Yes, I'm very pleased and feel like I will be doing my needlework in the evenings in style.

Also, this tin was at the same store.  I have a few of these (in red, blue, and green), only not in this color (brown) nor large size.  It's about 6" tall.  It was only 25 cents.  What a deal!

Despite the Snow...

....Spring is definitely on my mind.  We received several inches of snow this week.  Ugh!  I guess we won't have to worry about getting what is needed for precipitation this spring.  The nice thing about these springtime storms is that the snow doesn't stay around too long.  It melts off the roads much faster than snow that comes in, say, January.  I SO don't like to drive on slippery roads.  The sun has finally come out today and with that a guarantee that we do not have to go out and shovel! 

With spring at the forefront of my mind, I have been making little bird houses out of felt...adding a touch of embroidery greenery...and stitching on some pretty glass beads and flowers. 

I wish I had thought of making these sooner in the year, but I didn't. 

I've made two pairs of earrings and one pendant.  I may finish a blue pair...just because they are already started.  My felt pretties certainly aren't great sellers, but I love making things out of felt.  Of course, working with those pretty glass beads and doing embroidery brings all the fun together in one project.  They are listed in my Etsy shop.  Enjoy!

"New" Lamp

We have one corner of our living room that can be dark--especially at night.  It is in the corner by two windows which during the day is wonderful.  However, at night it just needed more light...especially since I have decided to do some stitching there in the evenings.  Because of where it was, it needed to be somewhat small and discrete yet give off good light.  The *perfect* lamp was spotted at the local antique mall, but I just couldn't summon the courage (nor the money!) to spend $149 for it.  So, thankfully the thrift store came through with a $5 baby.  The lampshade was wonky and stunk.  What to do about a lampshade?  Well, this lampshade that I beaded years ago and never sold, has now been put into use!  True, the beads, though beautiful, are not the right colors for my living room. I had taken a plain lampshade and stitched pretty glass beads randomly all over it.  I love how glass beads look with light coming through--so vibrant and colorful.  I'll change the beads eventually.  However, I was quite pleased with the result, and now I can stitch away in the evenings and actually see what I'm doing. 

Etsy Shop Sale Today Only

I'm having a sale today.  Type in the code GLASS10 at checkout and receive a 10% discount on anything in my shop.  I've added some new things, so be sure to check them out. 

Thrift Shop Finds

Today was a discount day at the thrift shop in town.  I just love discount days...but I so rarely actually make it to them...busy with school and such, you know.  However, I was able to go today and snagged some pretty and useful things for a song.

This is a wreath with beautiful plastic leaves on it.  I'm sure I'll have a purpose for this come fall.  It could use a good cleaning, but each of these leaves are on wire and will be very useful in the future, I'm sure.

Then there are these pretty, old spoons.  I have been looking for more to make some ornaments with, and these have a nice pattern on the ends and a pretty worn patina.

This is two strips of gold trim--one thinner and decorative and one with tassels.  Trim is expensive to buy outright, and I will certainly find uses for these pieces.  I may have enough to do a chair that desperately needs to be recovered and re-trimmed (yes, the chair I am sitting on!). 

This last thing is a dish that I do not need...but I love it.  It is perfect for pickles or sugar cubes or some other little bits. 

The cobalt and roses are so pretty together as well as the gold accents and scalloped shape of the dish.

Valentine Swap--To Sandy from Me

For Sandy's Valentine swap, I read over her blog and business to try to figure what she likes and what colors she may like.  She was into needlework things....her site has the colors of pink and brown...and she likes cats...so, I made her this needlebook.  Oh, and it has the required "heart on it" that the swap rules stipulated. 

Yes, other than tracing a cat head from someone, this is my own design and idea (I'm working on another one to sell in my Etsy shop). 

She sounded like she liked it...hope you do too.