Kana Creates

Easter swapping...

2011-04-10T11:38:00.001-07:00

...with Hope. She is such a great partner and very creative, as you can see. She made this hanging sugared Easter egg....it is so very beautiful!!

I really like the cutout with the old paper and small blue egg. The pom

pom frame is pretty as well.

A view from above, with a vintage flower and rhinestone. I will be

leaving this pretty piece out all year to enjoy!

She also made me some pretty paper eggs.

And this great pair of earrings, in my favorite color.

I made this hanging sachet with the cutest bunny on the front.

I really love the effect of gathered velvet across the bottom.

Of course, I added some vintage bling for the finished product!

I also sent this lovely pink egg, made by Jason Parker Counce.

The vintage flowers are soooo pretty. I do hope that she enjoys

her goodies, as much as I will enjoy hers! Just wish I had more

time for swaps. I have been busy with high school baseball games

and college track meets, so that leaves little time for creating.

I will be heading to Kansas soon for a creative weekend with Hope

and others at Karla's cottage!! I will share photos soon. Happy Sunday.

Paper Cowgirl

2011-02-23T08:47:00.000-08:00

I have wanted to attend this event and this year I get
to go! Texas in the summer....will be a fun creative
time.

Yes....I am a Paper Cowgirl! Even got the boots to prove it. Please
note.....I don't have that outfit!!

Happy Heart Day!

2011-02-13T13:00:00.000-08:00

I love the pinks of Valentine's Day. This is the center piece of a
banner I made at Kim's house yesterday. I really like the
gathered seam binding for a pretty ruffled edge.

Cute couple hanging out in the moon.

Flowered love train.....note the heart smoke signals!

This little gal is too cute.

And the last piece...a veiled Valentine.

And finally, my son Kyle (on the right) and 2 of his friends from

last night. His first Sadie Hawkins dance. Ahhhh, they do

grow up fast. Have a great Valentine's day.....filled with

chocolate.

Special Delivery.....

2011-02-09T15:20:00.001-08:00

....arrived today from Danielle. This was such a fun swap.
This is my beautiful heart made by Jill and it is perfect!

Another close up....I love the neutral background and the wedding
couple is precious.

Jill made this flower and I may have to give it a try myself.

That is what I love about swapping.....learning from others.

Her details are wonderful! Notice the petite letter with poseys.

Danielle asked that we send 12 small goody bags filled with

our choice of vintage items. Everything is still wrapped.

Feast your eyes.....ribbons, laces, vintage images, buttons

and wonderful tickets!!

More feasting.....vintage wallpaper, postcards, glass glitter, mica

stamped fabric.....oh my my. I love it all!!

A closer look at 2 of the packages that were extra special. Jennifer

made the red felted bag and Heidi made the ruffled burlap bag.

I am so happy with my new heart and all of my goodies!! Thanks

to everyone and especially Danielle for hosting. Be sure to check

out Danielle's blog soon as she will be showing all of our hearts.

2011-02-06T17:35:00.000-08:00

I am attending this wonderful May Day wkend art event with
Karla. Check it out here! Just imagine....a wonderful art
wkend with creative friends, wonderful teachers and the
most talented Karla Nathan. A dream come true!

Valentine inspiration.....

2011-01-28T11:40:00.000-08:00

I just finished my project for Danielle's swap.
Just a small group of 12 gals and we were
to make a paper Valentine heart.

I used some of my favorites.....flocked wallpaper,
vintage lace and ribbon, music paper and this
beautiful German scrap piece.

I really love vintage flowers....the texture of the
velvet petals is so pretty and really adds to
any creative project.

Danielle asked that we decorate the backside, but
not as ornate. So, I hope my partner likes this. I
used vintage wallpaper, buttons and platinum
stickles around the edge.

We also made 12 little goody bags, no bigger than
postcard size. I sewed wax paper pockets for
all of my vintage lovelies.

Pretty packages. Now I am looking forward to February's mail.

Happy Weekend!!

Snow Days in Tennessee.....

2011-01-14T10:07:00.000-08:00

...and Juju is loving it! We had a few inches early Monday
morning and maybe it will start to melt today. Juju hops
in the snow like a bunny and really has fun. Me...well I
am ready for Spring!

More swapping photos.....

2011-01-05T14:58:00.000-08:00

The glitter is finally settling as I continue to pack up
my holiday decorations. So, I have a little free time
to share some of my Silver Bella swaps. This is
the wonderful altered bottle that I received from
Renee, and it is beautiful! Filled with rose
petals and her "hands" are rose buds.

The details are so lovely. She will stay on my creative
desk, so that I can enjoy her everyday.

This is the bottle that I made and my partner likes
pink. I am not an expert with sautering, but had
fun with the top of the bottle.

I used a rosary chain to hang the pretty pink bling.

My bella bag from Heather. I had requested blue,
off white and lace.....Heather got it just right!

I really like my tulle/lace flower with pearls and rhinestone

button. I love it!

My partner had no special requests, so when I scored

this beautiful barkcloth at the flea market.....I just

had to use it for the bag. I believe this new bag

used to be curtains....I do like to repurpose items.

I also used vintage lace and gathered silk ribbon for

a flower and pinned in on with a pretty rhinestone

brooch. I really enjoyed making and receiving both

swaps!

Happy, Happy 2011!!

2010-12-31T11:23:00.000-08:00

Wishing everyone a wonderful new year, full of health,

happiness and lots of creating!

Swapping Fun

2010-12-29T11:42:00.000-08:00

I participated in Joli Pacquet's stocking swap with Kelly.
This is the stocking that I made her.

She wanted pastels colors, so I tried to go on the softer
side with the image and lace flower.

This is the beautiful stocking that she made me. I wanted

blue and vintage....this is just perfect! I like it so much,

that it will stay in my creative room during winter.

A closer view of the image....a lovely snow couple.

I also participated in Cristina's vintage paper swap. She sent

all of my goodies in this vintage Christmas wrap package.

About 26 of us participated and I love all of my goodies.

I love the vintage images, music paper and wall paper.

A close up of some of the clever packaging!

This is from Cristina and I love her glassine package!

Cute snowman music paper...and in my favorite shade

of blue!

Speaking of blue, I thought I would share a photo of

my blue packages. Mostly blue and silver.....it was

very pretty and my family really liked it! My

daughter loves penguins, so I had to include them

in my wrapping.

I also love to print vintage images onto card stock to

use for gift tags.....a little stickles glitter and the tags

are perfect. Happy Wednesday.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-22T20:24:00.000-08:00

....to all of my blogging friends. Hope everyone has a
wonderful day spent with family and friends!
And maybe we can all enjoy a long winter's nap
after the festivities!!

A Blue Christmas

2010-12-18T07:50:00.000-08:00

We decided to decorate with blue and silver this year.
Veering away from the traditional red and green.

Ohhh and I think I love it. The blues of Christmas are lovely!

I have been adding to my collection of vintage

decorations.

I made this Rebecca Sower inspired Christmas cigar

box vignette. I especially love the Jingle Bells paper.

This is my suggestion when glittering Christmas balls. So

nice of the lace to hold the decorations while they dry.

I have several photos on the tree and this is one of my

favorites. This Santa came to visit us when we lived

in Birmingham. He played with the kids, took their

Christmas list and then posed for photos.

Now for the tree. This was a swap from Silver Bella 09.

Blue snowflakes with silver tinsel trim.

This beautiful snowman looks great on my tree. He

was from Silver Bella swapping in 09.

Cute little snowman trimmed in blue!

Another cute little snowman.

The big guy even got a little blue trimming and tophat.

And yours truly....at my grandmother's house many moons

ago. Don't you just love the hat and hand muff??!!

VintageFest with Jenni Bowlin

2010-12-05T09:45:00.001-08:00

VintageFest was once again a wonderful event! We were in
Lebanon, Tn this time and went antiquing the first day, and
then to Jenni and Jerrod's new home. This is the lovely
old door to her studio.

These pretty glass containers are more beautiful with
vintage Christmas balls inside.

Jenni has just the right touch when it comes to decorating
with vintage items and this little display is awesome!

I love her organization of supplies. Vintage cigar boxes

have such pretty print on them and make great

containers on a shelf. Notice how Jenni uses the

Dennison labels to organize....nice!

This is the make and take project we did in her studio. I

absoutely love it!

Jenni is giving directions for our project. Notice her

pretty inspiration board on the wall. And yes, that

table is such a pretty faded green shade...all things

vintage in her room.

These lovely ladies are the ones who make JBS happen,

behind the scenes, with packaging our orders and other

office details. Melissa is in front, then Renee, Terena and

Doris.

We had a small group for the weekend and that was nice.

Cheryl, Gloria, Jenni, Louise, Davean, me, Tracy, Sylvia,

Melissa and Cathleen.

Our wonderful hostess and host. Their new house is

beautiful and all of the old/vintage accents make it

just about perfect! Jenni's studio will be featured in

an upcoming "Where Woman Create", so everyone

will see more details soon.

Someone wrote this on the board and I agree! Thanks to

JBS for a wonderful artful weekend, full of friends

and making new projects. Check back for the

projects soon.

Christmas in Bell Buckle, TN....

2010-11-28T20:22:00.000-08:00

...back to Phillips General Store for another wonderful
vintage holiday.

The windows were just beautiful!

Several vintage inspired hangings to choose from.

I love this glittered Santa!

Unique ornaments and an old snowman in the left corner.

The red tree is lovely with so many vintage Santas.

Bethany Lowe Christmas blocks....very cute.

I do like this vintage top hat and wish that I had one. I am

hoping to be nice, and not naughty this season.

Maybe if I am nice, Santa will bring me a vintage inspired

BLUE Christmas!

2010-11-23T18:21:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving, full
of blessings!

Caketini welcome and Vendor night

2010-11-21T12:01:00.000-08:00

A couple of Bellas hosted "Caketini", which was Thursday
afternoon before all of the Silver Bella opening festivities.
Several of us attended, big sisters met little sisters and
we all made new friends and visited with old friends.

The little caketinis were wonderful! Small cakes with
chocolate icing....yum!

Lori Oles and me....full of sugar and all smiles!

Now on to dinner Thursday evening, which was a feast!

Many different choices at several different tables. This is

Laura from 52 Flea, she was my roomie Kim's little sister.

Look at her cute swap, I believe a trim swap and the hostess

put the different trims in an egg container.

Besides having dinner with Laura, we also ate with Lulu and

her roomie Shelly. We had a wonderful time together. Lulu

was very good to meet several of us via ours blogs prior to

arriving in Omaha, so it was great to meet her face to face!

On to Vendor night and yes the theme was "Hats on

Parade". I believe Karla had the best hat!! It is a

hat with a bird cage on it and even one of the

birds is wearing a top hat.....too cute!

Me with the wonderful Amy Powers, she is such a sweetie!

I do believe she made her mini tophat, and decorated it

with all things vintage and Christmas. I loved it.

This is Heather and she has on a great top hat and too

bad all of the detail got lost in the background. She hosted

one of my swaps and it was great to meet her and spend time

with her as well. Don't ask us to solder anything for you,

we are a little slow at it... but had a great time!

Here's my lovely Atlanta friend, Suzanne. I always enjoy her

company. Hope to show swaps and projects soon, just a

little sidetracked with Thanksgiving right now!

Fun in Omaha!

2010-11-17T18:54:00.001-08:00

We started the fun at Hannah's Treasures...Wallpaper Heaven!

Yes, I am happy and smiling with all of my treasures!

Such a feast for the eyes....she personally covers different

size boxes.

This flocked collection caught my eye immediately! One roll

of each please!!

Many borders to choose from and how about this

wonderful cabinet.

Ohhhh, how pretty!

My roommate Kim and me. She is an avid collector of

wallpaper and was happy to add to her collection.

Kim and Cheryl showing their favorites.

Here's the small box that I purchased...very lovely. We

were all smiles while in attendance at Hannah's shop. Stayed

tuned for more of Silver Bella soon.

Heading to Silver Bella....

2010-11-09T13:48:00.000-08:00

...on Wednesday. Stayed tuned for details and photos!

Silver Bella peak #2

2010-11-05T10:24:00.000-07:00

This is the Millinery Swap. Trading with 14 others and we
are to make a millinery piece that can be from vintage or
new supplies.

I used vintage lace to make these flowers and sewed vintage

rhinestone buttons for the center. Hope my swap partners

will like them. These 3 are my favorites. Now I am off to

finish my last 2 swaps!! Happy Friday.

Silver Bella peak....and a little Homecoming

2010-11-03T14:27:00.000-07:00

Silver Bella is almost here...I leave in 1 week. Of course, I am
still busy finishing my swaps. Why, oh why don't I start
earlier?

This is the Vintage Trim swap. We are swapping with 14
others and trading three different trims ( 1 yard each) and
two vintage baubles or buttons.

I wrapped my trims around an altered tag. I think this
stamp is perfect for Silver Bella, since the vendor night
theme is "HATS".

We enjoyed Homecoming at my son's high school. I think we
did a great job of matching his tie to her dress.

Notice her corsage, it is a rose bracelet instead of the
traditional flower corsage. It was pretty!

Macy also came home from college for the weekend. It
was so great to have her home! I hope to share more
Silver Bella peaks before leaving.

Flea Market fun...

2010-10-23T16:48:00.000-07:00

Had a great time at the Nashville Flea market with Suzanne.
She found this great "S" for her growing collection of
initials.

We think they were old building illuminated signage. Too bad
for me....no "K"!

Awesome vintage spools...a little worn, but nice.

This vintage form is sporting a great feathered hat.

We saw many vintage Christmas ornaments......so beautiful. I

actually purchase several to add to my collection. It will be

that time before we know it!!

Reunion...

2010-10-17T17:27:00.000-07:00

The Hixson High School class of 1980 enjoyed a wonderful
evening together to celebrate 30 years. I must be getting
old! I love this group of gals, Cindy, Susan and Janet.
We were on the flag corps together.

Leslie and I were college roomies during our freshman year.
We even showed up wearing the same pair of shoes.

A few more friends. I went to church with Landon for many years.

I stayed with my friend Susan, we have stayed in touch all of

these years. So many of us have scattered all over the United

States and it was nice to reconnect.

A few of us gathered for lunch the next morning. It was
great to see everyone!

Loving Fall....

2010-10-10T08:30:00.000-07:00

I am really loving these boots from here and was inspired
by Jeanne. She had a similar pair that she wore to
Silver Bella last year, so I made sure to find them
this year before they all sold out. Even my 14 yr old
noticed that they were new, but said they looked old.
I told him YES!

Window sunbathing is soooo very nice in the fall.
Just ask Juju.

Even better is Fall Break from college, because you get to
see your daughter for a few days!! Macy was relieved to
know that Juju still remembers her.

Fall is for lounging on your big sister's dirty clothes bag.

But best of all is the fall napping!!

Fall decorating...

2010-10-03T09:14:00.001-07:00

This happy fellow is a creation from Jason Parker Counce.
I am trying to add more neutral Halloween decorations
this year.

Jason uses wonderful vintage accents in most of his
creations. I love the little cream flowers.

My tree of life with a small Halloween decoration.

Even Bethany Lowe has a few neutral goodies this year.

This cutie looks great with sugared glitter.

Juju wishes everyone, a Happy Fall Ya'll!

Pretty in Pink...

2010-09-29T10:45:00.000-07:00

I am ever on the hunt for pretty containers for my
supply of vintage buttons and bling. This pretty
jewlery box was found at the Nashville flea market,
earlier this year.

I chose to house watch findings in this smaller box.

A closer look at the detail on this pocket watch. I may
use this one for a christmas ornament.

This must be the big sister to the small round box.
It is really pretty with the dear on top and the key
works, just in case I need to lock up my treasures.

I so love to find the old rhinestone buttons and seem to
never have enough.

A closer look at all of the pretties. Hope
everyone is enjoying the wonderful fall weather.

Petite Inspiration Black and White edition....

2010-09-26T20:36:00.001-07:00

JoAnne made this pretty fabric covered box, layered with tulle and a lovely flower.

This "witchy" tag is a wonderful piece of art!

Such a lot of lovely black and white items can make
it into a small box.

I so love the frozen Charlotte and the old spool wrapped
with lace. Notice the black cat bead!

JoAnne even managed to squeeze in a couple of old
photos and stamped muslin.

Myrna altered this box with vintage music paper,a small crocheted doily and flower...so pretty.

Once again, so many pretties all in one box!

I love the tiny photo of the baby and my mini stamped
clothes pin. Another weakness, bling and a double strand.

A girl can never have too many pendants or vintage buttons!

Here's my version of the black and white box. Seems
that Myrna and I had a similar decorating idea. I sugared
my vintage music paper and then made 2 lace flowers, with
a pretty black rhinestone button.

I really had fun gathering the items for the boxes. Velvet
black and white leaves, flowers, and even a small jar of
black glass glitter. Thanks to Heather for hosting this fun swap.Thanks also to my wonderful and creative partners, JoAnne and Myrna!

We were able to make it for Parent's weekend to see our
sweet Macy....she is very happy at college and we had
a great weekend visit!!

....the Haunted Windows...

2010-09-21T06:02:00.000-07:00

We now return to Phillips General Store open house. Spooky
indeed.....but a lovely type of spooky.

Even spiders look grand with old paper for a back drop.

Black and white decorated books make a wonderful
Halloween decoration.

The "witch" is in and with this beautiful old paper
hat, she will be very popular with us creative types!

Check out the detail on her shoes....I want a pair!

Back inside, here is a cute Halloween teddy from Bethany
Lowe. The store owner, Billy, said that Bethany used
to come to his store to purchase vintage items for
inspiration. She has attended this Halloween open
house several times before.

Cute vintage inspired blocks from Bethany Lowe.

Of course, we must have Halloween candy.
Just a couple of bites. Happy decorating!

Halloween Fun.....

2010-09-18T10:36:00.001-07:00

I had the pleasure of attending Phillips General Store's
Halloween showing last night. This lovely old antique
store is located in Bell Buckle, TN, not far from Nashville.

It truly was a Halloween feast for the eyes. The store
was closed all week to prepare the store and the windows.
Every year they host this event and even have a small
show in the window, sorta like community theatre.

Here I am with Cousin It.....very hairy!

Here's the wonderful host, Billy Phillips, aka Gomez Adams.
Please note his lovely bouquet of dead flowers.

The show was very cute and the actors did a great job.
Here's Mortica Adams with Uncle Fester.

Jason makes a handsome Uncle Fester. He is not really
an actor, but a wonderful vintage inspired designer.

His real name is Jason Parker Counce and he makes all
types of vintage holiday goodies!

Don't you just love his Halloween handiwork? I had to have
a couple of his pieces and will share them with you later.

He makes these small scented sachets. Love all of
these pretties in the violin case!

A sparkling Halloween costume for this dapper fellow.

Love these off white pumpkins.

More of Jason's work, these owls come in different colors and
textures of fabric....very cute for fall decorating. Stay tuned,
I will share photos of the windows soon!

Dorm Room Decor

2010-09-15T20:53:00.000-07:00

She has been away at college for almost 3 weeks. Here's the
before shot of the fully loaded car!

Macy and her roomate Madeline decided on a black and
white color scheme. Macy's accent color is yellow.

She LOVES penguins, so I found this cute one at Joann's.
I broke out the ole sewing machine and made the 2 smaller
pillows. The one on the right is circles of black linen
and it is really cute in person.

Madeline's accent color is pink. She had a cute
headboard and matching pillow made. The room
looks really nice!

This lamp was pink and white before I sanded, painted and
pommed it up. Good as new for the dorm room!

All smiles after a day of hard work. Notice the pretty black
and white damask curtain and a bit of art for the wall.

Macy and Madeline were very pleased with the finished room.

There were no tears shed when we left...just look how happy
she is!! But....we do miss her!

Finally returning to blogging.....

2010-09-12T10:28:00.000-07:00

I have missed blogging, but have kept up with everyone's
blog. I have been short on time the last 3 months and
also had my computer break down and we went without
for about 1 month. I was able to squeeze in some
creative time.

I attended my friend Kim's Christmas in July. It was a
great day filled with creating, eating, visiting with friends
and being spoiled by Kim. Don't you love my cupcake plate...
Kim made it from a candle holder and a vintage plate!
I actually met Kim at Silver Bella last year and so
glad that I did! She hosts monthly creative get togethers
at her beautiful home and she only lives 30 minutes from
me. We plan to room together at Silver Bella this year.

This pretty handmade flower was adorning a box of supplies and goodies.

A beautiful project of Kim's, the flower fairy ball. I will
show mine later. It was fun to make!

Kim is showing us her version of Pam Garrison's Lineage
of Love. We all made our own version.

Now, some highlights of what has kept me busy. We did
manage a family vacation to my parents in Florida.

Macy's graduation was a great day and the ceremony
was lovely! She won Female Athlete of the Year.

Here's the happy graduate with her Grams and Granddaddy,
my parents.

This is the night before at her graduation party. Five other
girls and Macy had the party together. We rented a historical
home and it was really beautiful!

All 6 girls and their moms. This was a huge undertaking, but
well worth it! So many friends, teachers and family members
attended. We even had a Java bar, serving coffee and smoothies.

This photo was earlier in the day at the Baccalaureate service.

I did manage to scrapbook several pages for her senior
album. This is her friend Katerine and they are
attending college together.

A solo page of Macy and yes I did sneak in some vintage
wallpaper and some seam binding!

Other events that kept me busy and away from blogging include,
my son's 8th grade celebration.

I was able to meet up with Suzanne Duda at the Nashville Flea
Market. She and her daughter came up for the day and it was
great to see them!

Of course, track kept us very busy and we all enjoyed Macy's
last high school season. Kyle was in a back brace due to a
fracture and unable to play baseball this year.

The Prom was another busy event.

Macy and her date Connor. They had a wonderful time.
Soooo as you can see, I have been very busy. I am
hoping that things will slow down and I can return
to blogging and more creating.

Happy Summer

2010-06-06T12:17:00.000-07:00

I have been busy with my daughter's track meets and graduation. She graduated on Memorial day and it was a wonderful ceremony. Prior to that, we had a lovely party with 5 of her school friends, as well as her state track meet.

Hopefully, things will be slowing down and I can return to blogging and to visiting everyone's blog. I do miss everyone!

2010-03-11T07:42:00.000-08:00

I am really looking forward to attending this wonderful Jenni Bowlin event!
Jenni and her husband Jared are gracious hosts. So, if you are
interested, registration opens tomorrow and Southwest should have
an afforable flight into Nashville. Our flea market is great
and Jenni's event/store and classes will be too....so come on and join me!!

Life takes over....

2010-03-05T16:09:00.000-08:00

This is my March calendar and this statement is so true for me right
now! Between my family, the children's sports activities and work...
life is so very busy.

Our family enjoyed a wonderful time last Sunday night at church as
we attended the Senior Blessing Banquet. Each senior had a table and
it was decorated with memorabilia. I purchased this 7Gypsies ATC
display and really liked how it turned out.

I included photos of Macy over her lifetime (this is from Kindergarten
graduation). The parents read a book called The Blessing and then we
were asked to write a blessing to our child. After dinner, we went to
a quiet place and read our blessing to Macy. Such a special time with
her, but needless to say, the tears have begun to fall....for her and me!
And, graduation isn't even here yet!

Many special folks were in attendance, including the 12th grade
coaches. Tom has been with Macy's grade since they were 5th
graders. He has been such a special part of Macy's life.

Here's the whole senior group, about 25 in all! After so many years
together, including VBS, church camp,mission trips, etc....I believe
they will miss each other. Happy Weekend!

A Happy Heart Day to all....

2010-02-12T17:33:00.000-08:00

...hopefully full of love and of course a bit of sugar.

Chocolate is always my first choice, but the Red Velvet is also grand.

We also added a little Rocky Road and Peanut Butter LOVE.

All of this wonderful sugar can be found at Gigi's. Such a
wonderful place where they offer a different variety of cupcakes
daily. Most of her stores are in Tn, but she is branching into
other states as well. Isn't the Valentine box cute?

Such a Valentine cutie! I was lucky enough to win her from
Heather. She participated in a Valentine ornament swap and
had a couple to give away. This little princess will be on my inspiration
board soon.

This lovely pink quilted heart was given to me in a swap
at Silver Bella. I don't remember who made it, but it
was one of my favorites!

A little bird of love....hope everyone has a great Valentine's Day!

Vintage Valentine Swap

2010-02-10T18:44:00.000-08:00

I was able to participate in this swap for Valentine's day. We were
to make a Valentine project with a vintage feel, include a vintage card and candy.
Pam was my wonderfully creative and talented partner. She
definately "wowed" me with this creation!

This altered card with my initial may be my favorite part.

But, it is hard to say, because this glittered flower is so lovely.

Check out the details here.

She also included this cute heart shaped vintage Valentine card. I
would show you the candy, but I ate it too quickly for photos. Yummy
caramel and caramel covered marshmallows....just divine!

Here's my project...I altered a book cover with vintage wallpaper,
lace, buttons and hanging from the bottom, an old key and jeweled heart.

I just love velvet leaves and old earrings.

A closer view of the dangling "Key to my Heart".

I also included a vintage Valentine card and this box of bon-bons.
Thanks Pam for all of my wonderful Valentine goodies! My new pink project will probably stay out all year, for it is too pretty to go in the closet!

A Bargain...

2010-02-05T11:39:00.000-08:00

...at just $25, these boots may be the best money I have spent
this year. I originally bought them to wear while taking Juju
out in the rain. Who knew they would be so handy in the snow??!!

A snow loving dog for sure. We practically have to beg
her to come back in the house.

Here she is chasing after the neighbor's dog.

Kyle just hanging out in the snow. It has finally melted, but
flurries are in the forecast for Saturday...I hope not!!

Oh Happy Day!

2010-02-03T12:31:00.000-08:00

Today is National College signing day for high school athletes.
My daughter Macy has been running/jumping/hurdling for about
6 years now. Her "medal" arrived today in the form of a track
scholarship to Samford University.

Three of her fellow classmates signed football schloarships as well!

It was such a nice event to attend and as you can see, we
are all smiles. It was a little scary being in front of
the entire high school.

This group of fine coaches help to make it all possible for Macy.
Coach Hunt, Coach Kinder, Coach Cheeseman, Macy and Coach Davies. All of these folks hold a special place in her heart. Coach Kinder is her
year round coach and she has been training with him since the summer
of 2004.

And my favorite photo of the day, Macy and Kyle. One of the best
sister/brother duos around! They still love each other and I think
this photos shows it all!

Time is Flying...

2010-01-30T09:30:00.000-08:00

Seems like we just welcomed this new year and already
we are saying goodbye to January 2010.

I was able to find time to participate in Natalea's Valentine
Tag swap and so glad that I did. It is always fun to see
the creativity of others and to share mine as well. The Victorian lady
was made by Geralyn, and the cameo is from Tammy.

To my Valentine from Connie, and A Kiss to build a Dream on from Wanda.

These two pretties are from Kathy and Wendy.

Pretty in pink cherub by Jeanne and the note the beautiful pale
pink trim on this tag by Kimberly.

How Do I Love Thee by Robin and Valentine Pansies by Marian. The green
"token" opens and says "A Token of Love"

Lady in Red by Alisa and Mr. Cowboy by Linda.

The little girl is by Jane and the little doll is from Grace.

Amour is from Vivian and Heartball and Chain from Natalea.

Cute Valentine spinner from Beth and Be My Cupcake from Rachel.

This cute little LOVE doll is from Diana and last but not least mine.

I won this Valentine cutie from Natalea! Thanks so much, I love her and
thanks for hosting this fun swap.

A bit of Valentine inspiration...

2010-01-10T14:13:00.000-08:00

I am participating in Natalea's Valentine tag swap. I am ready for some pink, cream and red inspiration.

I love this glass glitter....a mixture of 2 different pinks and a silver.

This sweet little gal seems to wonder...."Who Me?"
Or maybe, she is suggesting...."Pick Me!"

I found this lovely book at Borders yesterday. It was
released in late December, from Romantic Homes magazine.

As I go now to be a little restful with my book and cup of
chai tea, I leave you with a couple of pages of February goodness.

First Snow.....

2010-01-07T19:22:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone.....finally a small bit of snow in Tennessee. This lil pup
is experiencing her first snow.

Now before everyone makes fun of our little snow, we get what
we get. Juju seems to like digging in it!

She even approves of the taste.

Hope that everyone is staying nice and warm!

Already missing all that glitter

2010-01-03T15:53:00.000-08:00

I must confess....I love glitter! I love how it shines and the
texture is so pretty. Maybe that is why Christmas is such a pretty
time for me. I have a full glitter overload. So, to help out during
the rest of the year, I try to find other ways to make me glitter happy.

This is one of several calendars I either received or purchased.
One can never have too many calendars and when bathed in glitter,
all the better!

This is my lovely project from Jenni Bowlin's Glitterfest. We all used this basic frame, painted it and sanded it for a distresed look. We then applied a Jenni silver rub on to both ends of the opening. I wanted to use vintage wallpaper and also used a couple of Jenni's bingo cards.

I chose a favorite photo of my children taken at their Great Grandmother's house. It seems like such a long time since they were this small. I finished with a couple of glass glittered stars and some bling....my very favorite. Thanks to Jenni for a wonderful project, now displayed in my creative space. Now....what can I glitter next?

A Very Happy 2010 to All!

2010-01-01T10:02:00.000-08:00

Got Energy?

2009-12-27T12:24:00.000-08:00

Santa Juju has it right...this is just how I feel today! We
had family over yesterday from Kentucky and Tennessee. It was
a wonderful afternoon full of fellowship and lots of food.

"The Cousins". I used to take this photo of the cousins
with my Grandmother. We have now had 2 Christmas holidays
without her. Some traditions are hard to break.

This is Kenson, Kyle and Macy. Kenson is my brother's son.

Aunt Pat and I always enjoy each other's company, whether on
the phone or face to face. I always hope to see more of my
family than I actually get to do. Maybe in 2010, we will all
do better. Happy and restful Sunday to all.

Merry Christmas to All.....

2009-12-25T12:30:00.000-08:00

A small glimpse of my tree with a favorite photo
of my dad and aunt.

This beauty was rescued from an antique store in Omaha and
she looks lovely atop my little white tree.

This happy fella was a $4 purchase from the Nashville Flea Market.

I can never have too many snowmen around at Christmas time.
He looks nice in front of my altered frames from Karla.

I have a small collection of putz houses and churches....this
one is my favorite!

Here's Alpha modeling her pretty Christmas attire. The vintage
apron was given to me from Jenni.
The pocket is adorned with an old earring.

Even Juju gets a Christmas stocking. And least anyone thinks her
not too bright....she went right to this stocking due to the wonderful
smell of bones awaiting her.

A Christmas tradition....sleeping together on Christmas Eve. Of course,
now that they are older, they stay awake later, talking and texting. I
had to tell them to go to sleep around 1:00 am. Santa needed her sleep!

Juju loves her new resting pillow and enjoyed the tasty bacon
flavored bone that Santa left for her. She is ready for a nap with
all of this Christmas fun and fluffing. The Santa suit was easy, but
the bow took about 5 attempts. Wishing everyone a restful Christmas,
spent with family and friends!

JuJu gets a Christmas do.....

2009-12-13T18:00:00.000-08:00

Even a sweet little puppy needs some Christmas fluffing. She
was way overdue for her first haircut. Unfortunately, she was
afraid of the shaver, so she only received a little trim.

Luckily, they were able to cut some hair around her eyes and put
a cute Christmas bow on top and around her neck. Least you think
she keep it in for long.....here's proof of her destroying it!!
Maybe, I can put it back in for Christmas day. Ha

Vintage Fest....

2009-12-07T10:10:00.000-08:00

with the lovely Jenni Bowlin. This beautiful, and I might
add delicious cupcake was waiting for me. Such a sight to
my eyes and every bite of it was an almondy taste to my
tongue. I sure wanted another one.

We started the day off shopping with so many lovelies to
see. This piece had me at hello and I am happy to say, it
now resides in my house....of course, minus all of the goods.
I am quite taken with it and will decorate it for the holidays!

Jenni sure knows how to make glitter look tempting!

All of her displays just ooze with vintage goodness.

I especially like this unique crown display piece.

Jenni and me, now at her booth in a local antique mall. She has
such a way with displaying her vintage items, that all of the
girls walked away with a purchase or two!

Some Christmas temptations.

Love the use of an old scale to hold the candle and Christmas
greenery.

Dont you just love Jenni's boots?? She is too cute. I enjoyed
a wonderful day with about 20 ladies, Jenni and her most delightful
husband Jared. Some folks journeyed from Louisiana, Ohio and Texas.
I will share photos later of the pretties that I made
in the 2 classes. Off now to decorate the house!

Silver Bella...before and after & my family reunion

2009-11-28T20:40:00.000-08:00

My first day was spent with Jessi and a bus load of Bellas.
We left the hotel at 9:00 and spent a full filled day with
our wonderful Omaha hostess. Here's a group shot that I
borrowed from my roomie Sharon,
snapped by the lovely Tiffany.

Our first stop was the Brass Armadillo, a large antique
mall. It was great and we shopped for 3 hours.

Sharon captured a beautiful photo of vintage Christmas
ornaments. The mall was a feast for the eyes. Both
photos courtesy of Sharon.

Jeanne and I stopped by this pretty store front on
main street in Omaha. This was Saturday night after
we had completed all of our classes.

Sharon and me playing in an old red phone booth!

We ate at Upstream and enjoyed a nice post Silver
Bella dinner. My new buddies, Megan, Jeanne, Jana,
me and Sharon.

The Saturday after Thanksgiving always brings my family
reunion. We have been doing this for many, many years and
I really look forward to the special time spent with
extended family! My cousin captured this family photo,
including the cute Juju.

I also took several shots of my children with Juju, in
hopes of getting that just right photo for the Christmas
card.

And saving the best for last....the 2 patriarchs of my dad's
family. My Uncle Jay, who is 88 and my uncle Hall, who is 87.
Both of them are always in attendance and I realize that at
their age, every year may be the last. So, I wanted to remember
them happy and laughing and that is just what I got!

Counting my many Blessings..

2009-11-25T20:40:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone is enjoying a wonderful Thanksgiving Day!
I plan to enjoy a relaxing day with my family and
eat a few of my favorite Thanksgiving treats. Also
planning on counting my many blessings and being
thankful!

Silver Bella...issue 1

2009-11-18T12:03:00.000-08:00

Finally, I am getting around to posting about Silver Bella. I will
plan to do it in a few different "issues". There is so much to share!
First off, I attended the Glitter Lounge, hosted by Karla and Carol from
Raised in Cotton.

The decorations were very pretty and done up in Karla's lovely
"sugared" style! We got to meet Bellas and enjoy some
snacks prior to the opening night dinner.

Here's Karla toasting all of us. It was so nice to finally meet
her face to face. She is truly a wonderful and creative gal!!

Here I am with my most wonderful roomie, Sharon. We emailed back
and forth for several months and finally met up in the Denver airport
and talked nonstop on our flight to Omaha. We had a great weekend
shopping, eating, talking and creating!

Now for a few swap photos for you. This is one of my swaps, all
packaged and ready to trade. Thanks to Sharon for the lovely wrap.
She traced and cut out the envelopes for me!!

Several of the swap hostesses made pretty bags for us to hold
the swaps. I am bag rich now and loving all of them! Heather
made this pretty hanky bag.

Here's a little peak of the holiday fabric fatbook swap, hosted
by Michelle. This book is really pretty and I will share more detailed photos soon.

Check out my loot! The bag on the left was the Silver Bella bag
that was full of lots of goodies from several different sponsers.

This is my favorite photo of the swaps. I love that the swaps are
pouring out of the top of the bag. Isn't this altered bag just
wonderful? Lonnie is the hostess and seamstress for this one!

I leave you with a dreamy photo of my hostess gifts. Instead of making
a gift, I decided to buy boxes of yummy chocolate covered toffee
from Nashville. I hope they enjoyed it! To be continued....

2009-11-10T13:46:00.000-08:00

It's SILVER BELLA time!! I am headed to Omaha tomorrow!
So excited and I will share many photos when I get home!

Frosty banner for Silver Bella and a little friendly advice...

2009-10-27T10:28:00.000-07:00

This little winter cutie was one of six banners I made for
the vintage frosty banner swap for Silver Bella. Everyone
makes six similar banners in winter colors/theme and will
receive six back on swap night.

I took a papermache snowflake and painted it with blue
and white paint. Then attached my little winter girl
and covered her with glossy accents and glitter to
give her a pretty sugared look. Of course, her coat
needed a little wintery blue bling!

I used vintage sheet music and ledger papers to cover the
different banners and was lucky enough to find this old
piece of silver lace with jewels. I am excited to see
what banners pieces I will bring home.

We are having a cold and rainy day in TN today. Juju has the
right idea cuddling away in her dad's sweatshirt. She sure looks
warm and comfy!

Now for the friendly advice. This is my husband Mark. He is shown
recuperating on the couch with Juju as his fast friend. I mentioned
in an earlier post that he had surgery. Tomorrow will be 5 weeks since
he had open heart surgery for double bypass. Even as I type these words,
it still doesn't seem possible that he had to have this procedure done.
He had NONE of the risk factors: he does not smoke, he works out weekly,
he has a good diet, he is thin.....what we didn't realize, was his genetic
predisposition. His father was adopted and we now are assuming that this
is what lead Mark to this diagnosis. Mark came home from the
Y complaining of chest discomfort 2 times in an 8 day period.
I told him that he had to call the doctor and the rest is history.
So, if any loved one, especially the male type, confesses to any chest discomfort....please make them call the doctor. We are very blessed,
as my husband had no heart damage and no heart attack. We are now
on the mend and happy to be on the other side!

Meet JuJu and Silver Bella fabric pages

2009-10-13T18:56:00.000-07:00

Please say hello to JuJu. Yes, she is as cute in real life as she is in
the photo! She climbed into Macy's overnight bag and made herself at home.
She loves to snuggle with anybody who will have her.

As you can see, she is a BIG hit with the kids. After waiting their
whole lives for a dog, she is a welcome addition!! Now for some swapping stuff...

The theme of the fabric swap is holiday. We all made 11 fabric pages, 6 x 6 in size. We were allowed to pick any color theme. I loved this vintage image of Santa with the 2 small girls. So, I built the page and colors around the image. I love
the look of the linen fabric, with the textured fabric, lace and velvet ribbon.

This is the backside of my fabric page. The photo doesn't show how pretty the metallic mesh is over the crocheted doily. I had to have a little vintage bling on the page, so I added the short row of diamonds to the bottom. Our hostess plans to sew the pages together into a fat book. I will share the book in late November. I am off to bed for now.

Cha Cha Cha Changes....

2009-10-06T20:20:00.000-07:00

Sorry to be gone for soooo long! We got the puppy,
I started a new job and my husband had major
(and unexpected) surgery. It has been a wild ride
for 2 weeks now, and hopefully things will be returning
to normal soon. I will post a little longer later.

PS: Hope you like my halloween banner, made by Kris Hurst! I do!!

Newest addition

2009-09-13T12:27:00.000-07:00

We are getting excited about this cute little yorkie poo! She will be
moving in with us on Friday. We just picked her out yesterday
and have yet to name her.

Kyle is already smitten with her, and who can
fault him for that?

I also squeezed in a little time to purchase
a few more Silver Bella colored trims and
fabric for a couple of swaps that need to be
finished. It is back to cleaning up and clearing
off the floors for me....miss cutie will be here
soon!!

Flea Market finds

2009-09-04T11:24:00.000-07:00

I was able to attend the Nashville flea market 2 weekends ago.
It was a beautiful day in the low 70's which made it a
great day for me. I found several wonderful old items,
including a few crystals, earrings, watch shapes and
my favorite....buttons.

I really like these two beauties and

I couldn't resist this little cutie! I plan to keep this
button card intact and it may find a permanent home on my
inspiration board.

My daily temptation....Dr. Pepper. I really love
these old bottle caps and had to have them.

I have been very busy lately and this guy keeps
me at the football field. He plays cornerback and
his team is off to a great start at 3-0.

And this holiday weekend, I plan to be busy as
"nursemaid/mother hen" with my daughter. She had
out-patient surgery today to repair a small hernia.
This photo says it all: She requested her favorite
pillow case that is flannel and has her beloved penguins
on it. She requested her "Puffy" bear to rest with and a
blanket that we borrowed from brother. Even a 17 yr old
needs her mom every now and again!

Happy Labor day weekend! Kana

Pretty ladies...

2009-08-22T15:16:00.000-07:00

I wonder what these pretty ladies are talking about.
Better yet what are they doing?

I suppose they are watching over my lovely box recently
purchased at an antique store.

Let's take a look inside.....you will find several
items that I plan to use for my Silver Bella fabric
page swap. It is Christmas in theme and I chose the
pretty color combinations of pink, aqua and ivory.

I so love gazing upon these antique buttons, pale
pink beads and aqua bugle beads. Maybe, they will
inspire to move over to the sewing machine and get
busy on the project! I sure hope so.

I also found this handerchief apron at the antique
store. The construction is simple and the seamstress
used ribbon for the tie. Clever idea and I may just
have to try my hand at it.

I hope everyone is having a nice weekend! We had a
nice day in the 70's...my kind of day.
P.S. My new school days banner is from Kris Hurst...I love it!

Summer time is winding down..

2009-08-18T10:40:00.000-07:00

...seems like just a month ago that my
two children were playing between his
baseball games.

She wanted to jump on his back and
well, this is the funny photo that I
quickly snapped. It is now one of my
favorites of the two of them!

This morning I wished them good luck as they
headed off to their first day of school. Both of them
at the top of the pole this year, with her being a senior
and him being an 8th grader. We only have 12 more
months before we pack her off to college. So, I plan to
soak it all up....the sibling love, the games, the track
meets....all of it! This time next year will begin a
new chapter for our family, but for now, I will enjoy!

Kana

Fabric and cabinet cards

2009-08-11T06:29:00.000-07:00

I found this pretty linen sample at the fabric store and
brought it home to gaze upon. The colors are pale blue,
ivory, beige and brown....very lovely together. I may
purchase several yards to make a table skirt for my
art nest room.

I have been collecting a few cabinet cards at
the flea market. Although the photos are
wonderful and take me back in time, it is
the beautiful embossed images on the cards
that reel me in.

Take a closer look hear at the embossing....just lovely!

These cards are even more special when you actually know

and love the person....this is my Grandmother Betty. I found

this when we cleaned out her house. A note attached informed

me that this is her high school graduation photo from 1938...priceless!

Finally home..

2009-08-09T15:40:00.000-07:00

...and hoping to have the family back on a schedule soon, since school
will be starting next week. Macy and I have just returned from Des Moines,
Iowa where she competed in the Junior Olympics. Tired, but never too
tired to see a new movie! We viewed Julie and Julia on Friday night.
Please run at your earliest convenience to see this precious movie! Meryl Streep and Amy Adams star in this very delightful movie.
As usual, Meryl Streep gives a wonderful performance and has
you believing she is Julia Child indeed! You need not be a fan
of Julia Child or cooking to enjoy this movie. I can't wait for it to
come out on DVD and even went to the bookstore after the movie
to purchase Julia's cookbook. Not to be seen as the only over eager
Julia fan, two other women raced over to the same bookstore and
the three of us about cleaned them out of Julia Child cookbooks.
I plan to make Boeuf Bourguignon in the near future!

Switching gears back to the Des Moines trip. After the competition,

we headed half way home and stayed in St. Charles, Missouri.

A feast for the eyes with its main street charm. How about a police

officer on horse......very nice.

We didn't eat at this restaurant, but I loved the sign and such a cute name.

The flowers were beautiful to gaze upon and if I had more time,

I would have loved to rest on this bench and take in all of

the scenery on Main Street.

There are many stores in this city, and I found 2 sewing stores side by side.

Yes, I would love to have this pretty in pink Atlas sewing machine, if only

just to gaze upon it everyday.

I also enjoyed this wall of buttons....so many choices!

Here's my sweet daughter marking her spot for the long jump competition.

She is the one in the middle with the blue warm up suit on.

We had a wonderful mother-daughter time together. Although, I could forego

the early wake up call of 5:15 am!! It was a vacation after all. But a mom

must do what she must to support her favorite girl!

Re-purposing

2009-07-19T15:50:00.000-07:00

Here's a close up photograph of my inspiration board from
Jenni's class. I have added two pieces of inspiration,
old photos (even better when they are of family) and
vintage jewelry. Every week we will add more.

I decided to paint my old, gold frame (see last post) with off white paint. I

really like the finished product. I went with textured fabric

for the background.

Since I went with a large frame, I will have quite a bit

of room for several inspiration pieces! Jenni has asked

us to make a "top ten" list of items that we seem to be

most drawn to. I am not sure that I have ten, but

here are a few of mine:

vintage jewelry

vintage buttons

old photographs

vintage wallpaper

old ledger paper

old metal pieces/locks/keys

So, what inspires you??

An inspiration board and my inspiration....

2009-07-12T16:52:00.000-07:00

I am working on an inspiration board for Jenni Bowlin's
class over here. I actually bought this frame months ago
at Jenni's antique booth in Hermitage, Tn.

I love the molding on the top of the frame. It is a bit worn and
I am thinking about painting it first. Here is the before shot
and hopefully, I will have an after shot soon. Jenni says that
if you see something that you love at the flea market or antique
store, but aren't sure what you will do with it, buy it anyway.
The inspiration will come later and that is what happened
with this frame!

I am glad to be home from Florida. We enjoyed 3 nights at
my parents condo, in Ormond Beach, Fl. My parents bought
this condo when I was 14, so it seems like a second home. My
parents moved to Florida about 18 years ago and also have a
house over on the riverside.

Macy and my dad, Jim. We ate pasta most every night leading up
to the track meet in Orlando! Macy competed at Disney's Wide
World of Sports for a national AAU meet.

This is Macy and her track mate and friend Courtney, who will be
running track for Indiana University starting in August!! She is
such a talented young lady.

Macy competed in 3 events and only the top 6 finishers get to move

on to the Junior Olympics in Iowa. She qualified for the 100 hurdles

and the long jump! It was stressful to watch! She worked so hard and

in very hot/muggy weather. She is my inspiration!

Two very happy faces after she qualified! We were thankful

for the overcast skies which allowed for a more tolerable day.

We will be off to Iowa soon and can only hope the weather will

be more pleasant there.

Kana

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-03T06:57:00.000-07:00

I believe this vintage post card says it all....the land of the free
and the home of the brave. We do indeed have a wonderful
homeland.

I hope everyone has a great holiday weekend! I am off
for a few days to visit my parents and to watch my
daughter run track. See you in blogland soon. Kana

Twenty years ago..

2009-07-01T17:41:00.000-07:00

I married this man....Mark. Here we are happily strolling down
the church aisle. Notice the smiles, I think we were very
relieved at this point!

This is one of my favorite photos of my dad and me, just
about to walk down the aisle.

Just in case you are wondering....BIG 80's hair was still in

style in 1989! Mine was tucked into a french braid, but

the bangs were big.

Heading out of the car and into the reception. It rained hard ALL day and

my brother had to carry us from the front of the church around back

to avoid getting wet. Don't you just love the patterned hose??!!

Switching the subject to some beautiful linen fabrics I picked up last

week. They are similar to bark cloth, but with a better price tag.

The button and earrings came from an antique store and are

waiting to be used for some vintage project.

Also picked this up at an antique store. It was a window

panel and the brown and pink linen looks so pretty teamed

up with the pink velvet trim. I believe this may become an

apron. Signing off for now....happy evening!

A senior moment and Bella fat book inspiration

2009-06-25T15:36:00.000-07:00

Well, it is finally here.....my daughter is a senior.

We spent the afternoon at the Gwynn Castle in Arrington, Tennessee.

Most of the photographs were shot outside. For any Taylor Swift fans

out there, this is the location of the castle where she shot her

award winning video, Love Story.

I love the behind the scene shots. The drape doesn't look so lovely in

this view! And look, no arms.

It seems a little weird to see her in the cap and gown. I can

definately wait until next May for it to be real!

The photographer was kind enough to capture a shot with my camera.

A mom needs a few photos for the scrapbook. And yes, sad but true, my

legs are that white! (This is the staircase that Taylor runs down to

meet her Romeo...kinda romantic, huh?)

Switching gears now.....a few more photos of Susan Edmonson's

beautiful fabric artwork. I have signed up for a Silver Bella

swap, called Bella Holiday fat book.

I will be making 11 fabric pages filled with buttons, lace and

other pretty embellishments.

Susan's lovely work provides plenty of inspiration for me!

Luckily, I have about 3 months to get all of this done, and

I will need every bit of it! Kana

Happy Father's Day.....

2009-06-21T16:05:00.000-07:00

...to this wonderful fella, my dad Jim. I stumbled across
a few family photographs from my grandmother's
collection and wanted to share this one.

Wishing everyone a happy first day of summer!
Theses 2 gals look to be enjoying their beachy day.

I prefer this cooler looking gal, decked out in blue

and hopefully a little shade. I am hoping for

cooler days ahead! Kana

Happy Flag day and a new banner!

2009-06-13T21:18:00.000-07:00

June 14th is Flag day and also happens to be my
birthday. I was born circa 1962 and our beautiful
American flag is special to me.

In honor of my day, Flag day, and July 4th, I asked Kris to make

me this vintage, patriotic blog banner. She did a great job!

A little Silver Bella update....we have been active with the

Yahoo group and currently signing up for a few great

swaps. Our vendor night dress theme has been

announced and we will be wearing aprons. I think this

will be great fun to make. Teresa is hosting a contest

for the best vintage, kitschy and glam aprons! Now,

I must get busy sewing.

I hope everyone has a great Flag day tomorrow.

Re-purpose..Re-think..Re-invent

2009-06-04T10:45:00.000-07:00

I just signed up for this online class with Jenni Bowlin!

The class is for someone who wants to incorporate elements of

vintage style into scrapbooking and everyday life.

It starts July 2 and runs for 12 weeks. I can hardly wait!!

Check out the details at BigPicture Scrapbooking. Maybe,

you will join me. (photos from Jenni Bowlin)

Missing in May...

2009-05-28T17:37:00.000-07:00

...yes, it has been awhile. I do believe that May is every bit as busy as December!

I wanted to share a few more photos from Inspired. This pretty

in pink page, by Donna Downey, is actually a canvas.

What a great idea!

This sample is from Christy Tomlinson's mini workshop. The class was
fun and she gave us many supplies for future projects.

Another beautiful sample of Susan Edmonson's sewing canvases!

I wanted to share a few photos of where I have really been

in May. I was so happy to share many hours of track with

my daughter as she competed in Regional and State track

meets. Her team was crowned champs at the region and

2nd place in the state! It was great fun.

Here she is long jumping into the sand pit....looks like fun to

soar through the air!

And, when not at track, I can be found with my son (next

to #24) at the baseball field. His team took top district

honors this year!

Batter up!

As if those activities weren't enough.....I have been costuming

Blithe Spirit at the Pull-Tight community theatre. Madame

Arcati is working on contacting the "other" world.

While Elvira the ghost is up to no good. About all I feel

up to is a good night's rest....maybe soon.

Back from Inspired....

2009-05-13T10:02:00.000-07:00

...and it was so much fun! Here's the wonderful Donna
Downey(on the left), our hostess.

We made this cute ring in a mini-workshop taught by Donna. I like
my vintage bling on the heart!

This was one of my favorite stores in the vendor market. Random

Arts is located in North Carolina and this booth had so many

wonderful art supplies, epherema, etc.

My first class, taught by Paulette Insall. The above painting is by

Paulette and of course mine does not look this pretty. I am about

75% finished with it.

Here I am working diligently on my self portrait.

I loved this class taught by Susan Edmonson, a quilt and fabric artist.

She had so many lovely samples of her great work. I could have

spent the entire weekend learning from her!

A beautiful sample of her work. The picture of the boy and horse is

actually on fabric that she runs through her printer.

Jennifer Stewart was another teacher and she is modeling her pretty

project. She encouraged us to do whatever we desired with different

paints and fabric. I hope to have mine finished soon and will post later.

Jennifer very generously shared from her vintage button collection.

She also set up a "glitter bar" which was so much fun. Who doesn't

love to play and create with glitter?

Paulo was our Inspired photographer and by the way, our

only male (except for Donna'a husband Bill) in attendance

for the weekend. I believe he had a rather good time "working"!

I was in group Z and each group held about 40-45 people. We are in

Cheyl Darrow's class, a metal workshop. I am pictured with Marsi,

from California, Esther and her sister Cheryl from Florida. We had

fun sitting together for all of our classes. We also had classes with

Carol Wingert and learned bookmaking, and a polymer clay class

with Tejae Floyde. It was a great time!!!

INSPIRED!

2009-05-05T17:41:00.000-07:00

It is finally here! I will be flying to Charlotte, NC tomorrow morning.
We have a casual get together planned for Wednesday evening, and
then check in on Thursday morning. I will be taking 3 mini workshops
on Thursday. We take 3 classes on Friday and 3 more on Saturday.
Stay tuned for photos and more details......

Marie arrives...

2009-04-30T17:18:00.000-07:00

This beauty is all mine! My swapping partner, Rochelle, made a wonderful collage!

The papers are beautiful and I love the Maria blue.

She included so many lovely details, especially the glitter and bling.

Another closeup....don't you love the velvet ribbon and jewels?

This is the Marie collage that I made for Rochelle....she decorates with red.

So, I tried to give her collage a bit of red coloring and accents.

Rochelle, it has been a pleasure trading with you and I will

most definately enjoy this collage! Thanks!!

A sneak of Marie and basket swapping...

2009-04-25T17:39:00.000-07:00

Only a small sneak peak for my Marie Antoinette partner...Rochelle.

She loves red, so this Marie collage is all out red!

Switching gears to the fun May Basket swap, hosted by Kari over at A Year

of Color.

My partner Debra loves robin's egg blue and I was very lucky to find a few

special items in her favorite color.

I took this plain brown bird and painted him in blue and then added

a little glitter for a nice sugared look!

A little tag or bookmark.

Here's the basket....I altered a plain white Target basket and then

added a little trim, flowers and bling.

Now for my turn! I received a pretty pink basket full of goodies.

Notice the pretty vintage purple hat with flowers...very lovely!

Debra made this precious mouse pincushion and I really love it!

Another close up to show all of the epherema, a cabinet card,

altered journal and a pretty floral corsage. Thanks Debra for

such a great swap! I will truly enjoy all of these wonderful gifts!

Vintage hanky holder, a hat, a necklace, a sneak peak & hurdles

2009-04-19T14:21:00.000-07:00

I recently purchased a hankerchief box and a glove box, with
the intention of repurposing them for my stash of vintage jewels
and buttons for future projects. I also picked up a few buttons
and some pretty silver trim.

Finally, I was able to purchase a vintage hat full of lovely flowers for a decent price. I have seen plenty of them at antique stores, but too pricey for me. I can see these flowers on future projects.

I won this beauty from Karla. She has a monthly give away and I must say she picked a great gift for me in March! I love all of the dangling charms.

This is a sneak peak for Debra. We are participating in a May Basket

swap over at A Year of Color. I altered this white basket to robin's

egg blue....Debra's favorite color. More photos of our swap to come.

And finally, I am sharing a photo (Jae S. Lee, The Tennessean) of my sweet daughter. She took top honors at a local track meet on Saturday. She was given the honor of "Outstanding Female Athlete"! What an honor for this hard working gal.....and yes her dad, brother and mom are very proud of her!!

SILVER BELLA.....

2009-04-14T07:46:00.000-07:00

I'm in for Silver Bella 09! This is where I will be in November and so looking forward to the wonderful workshops and meeting the Bellas!
Here's a sneak peak of the workshops being offered. Check out the workshop details here and this is the site to register.

Easter greetings and banner swapping

2009-04-11T17:49:00.000-07:00

I participated in Kari's banner swap with A Year of Color. This is the banner I made for my partner Nicole (no blog). I made it with double sides. She has 2 daughters, so this side has sister images on it.

This is the reserve side....LOVE.

I love this little birdie.

Angel sisters are so sweet.

Here is my pretty banner from Nicole. I love the Happy Spring theme!

This is my favorite with the cute kitten. Happy Easter wishes to all!

Object of my desire and remembering Grandmother

2009-04-09T12:35:00.000-07:00

I admired this pretty piece for several months, always entering the antique store and touring it in the same fashion. The last room, full of beautiful things, held this petite double frame. Of course, I viewed the price and it was too much. So, visit after visit, I just checked to see if it was still there. One day, as I turned the corner to the space, the cabinet with the double frame was not in the back corner. For a moment, I was sad, as I knew my beautiful piece had found a permanent home.
Fortunately, the cabinet had been moved to the front of the space and my piece was still waiting for me! I asked the antique store owner to check on a better price and this beauty became mine. I keep it on my bathroom vanity, so that I may gaze on it every morning. It is so lovely and the little children are precious!

I am remembering my Grandmother today.....she left us 2 years ago at the age of 87. She was a wife to Malcolm, mother to Jim and Pat, grandmother to Kana, Kreg, Kyle and Kristi, and great grandmother to Macy, Kyle, Chase, Chad and Kenson. She so loved life and mostly loved her family, especially those wonderful great grandchildren! This is one of my favorite photographs of her with my two children, in her backyard where she loved to tend to flowers (circa 1998).

Putting on the Glitz!

2009-04-07T13:14:00.000-07:00

Yes, we have already survived the Prom! It was a lovely day and about 70 degrees. This is my favorite photo of the night, my daughter Macy with her brother Kyle. She is in her beautiful dress, while he is modeling his North Carolina blue to bring good luck to his favorite team.

This is the look you get when you are pushing your luck behind the camera!!

Here's a close up of the back of her dress....I like the bling!

Macy with her date, Reid. Notice the matching yellow.

Some of the girls admiring their corsages.

And last, but not least, the family. Kyle, my husband Mark, Macy and me.

Easter egg hunting...

2009-04-05T09:29:00.000-07:00

...hosted by Viv.
I made the blue and purple eggs for my swap partners.

I sure hope they will like and enjoy!

I really like both of my eggs and they are so different. This yellow egg is just beautiful and all decorated with one of my favorites...bling!

This decoupaged egg is also very lovely and I really like the vintage chicks on the front of it! Thanks to both of my partners for making my eggs, they are hanging on my white Easter tree and look so pretty. Thanks again to Viv for hosting. Happy Sunday, Kana.

Window gazing...

2009-04-02T07:09:00.000-07:00

...at Textile Fabrics in Nashville, TN. One could spend
hours in this store enjoying beautiful fabrics, buttons,
ribbons and more! Over the past few months, I have
been in the store often for needed supplies for various
projects. I have become friends with Joan, who hails from
New York. She has quite the eye for fabrics and is a very
accomplished seamstress, who has a wonderful vintage
fashion sense. I have learned much from her. Recently,
I was telling her that aprons are all the rage now and
there is even a magazine called Apronology from Stampington.
I went by the store last week and to my surprise, I see this
lovely window display of aprons!!

Joan now designs the wonderful window displays and this one is great.

Too bad my photography isn't as good. Notice among the aprons is
the A is for Apron book, filled with many ideas. Staff members made these aprons, and my favorite is the child size apron that
Joan made. She included pretty trim that becomes the tie.

A closer look....the cat fabric is fun!

The opposite window is celebrating springtime and Easter. Notice the

beautiful quilted Anna Maria Horner fabric on the right.

So many beautiful choices in fabrics today, they are truly a form of artwork.

Wishing you a happy day! Kana

Fabric, jewels, buttons ...

2009-03-29T14:34:00.000-07:00

Can we ever have enough of them? I purchased these fabrics for Inspired and
plan to use them for Jennifer's project. We are supposed to have eight
different fabrics for the collage, but I like the one on the far left so much,
that I plan to use it twice. Look at the beautiful detail on this Anna Griffin fabric.

I found these vintage diamond pins at the Nashville Flea Market yesterday.

The lady who sold them to me has very reasonable pricing and I plan to visit

her again soon. I will use one of the pins for my collage.The pretty buttons

came from Textile Fabrics store also in Nashville.

These pretty vintage button cards arrived in the mail on Friday. I purchased

them from Beth, as she always has a good selection in her Etsy store.

This journal and vintage buttons are also from Beth. The pages in the journal

are great and will be used in future projects. She also included this vintage post

card with a sweet note on the back dated 1914. It is fun to look back in the past!

Hope everyone had a restful weekend. Kana

Spring swapping..............

2009-03-26T12:19:00.001-07:00

....with Joyce. Feast your eyes on my wonderful spring
package. I love it all! Joyce was clever and noticed my
love of purple.

This is my FAVORITE item.....a vintage
vinegar bottle including pretty pearls
and bird charm. Just perfect!

She included several vintage images, including the cute
apron piece and the button card. I will enjoy using these
on future projects.

A closer view of the pretty spring banner, and note the
wonderful detail on the pillowcases. Joyce, I really
love all of my swapping treasures and want to send a
heartfelt thanks to you! And now, for a few photos of the
items I sent her way.

Joyce likes birds, so when I saw this unfinished
bird pencil holder, I had to have it for her. I
covered it in vintage wall paper and added
a pretty flower, as birds need some decoration
too!

An altered mini journal for note keeping and a vintage wall
paper covered frame for a special photograph/image.

I love this petite bird nest and sparkling birdie. I need
to make one for me.

Here's a look and all of the pretties I gathered
or made for Joyce. I hope she will enjoy them!

Junking for jewels....

2009-03-20T15:59:00.000-07:00

I am attending Donna Downey's
Inspired event in May and need
some vintage jewels for a project
with Jennifer Stewart. I think
that I am off to a good start!
Although, the pretty long piece
in the middle is a pin and I may
just wear it.

I also found this beautiful frame
with Little Boy Blue in it. I like
it just the way I found it with the
chipped gold paint!

Look at the floral detail....very pretty. For now
I plan to keep him in the frame, but will probably
make a collage of my children to replace it sometime
in the future. Have a great weekend.
Kana

Back from Boston.....

2009-03-18T14:37:00.000-07:00

....and happy to be home! I think
Boston would be better in the summer
time. We did enjoy the city and all
of the wonderful history. Macy and
Kyle waiting at the subway
station for the T line train.

Beautiful work on one of the
many churches in Boston.

We toured several burial grounds
while walking the freedom trail.
Many of the grave markers date
back to the 1600's and look at
the detail on this one.

I enjoyed the beautiful old signs
and buildings, but am happy to be
back in Tennesse with 76 degree
weather and of course, there is
no place like home!

Inside/Out...........

2009-03-11T17:35:00.000-07:00

Inside the house, I am enjoying some pretty
Easter finds. I received this putz house from
the boutique on Karla's blog. I LOVE it! The
bunnies and lamb are glittered and the details
on this piece are wonderful.

This precious bunny was found at
a local shop and has a real vintage
look to it.

Outside, in my front yard, I am enjoying the
blooms on this beautiful Bradford pear tree.
Yesterday, it was 80 degress in the Nashville
area and today 44 degrees. Will Spring be here
soon? I sure hope so!

Easter tag swap...........

2009-03-08T18:38:00.000-07:00

I am participating in Andrea's Easter tag swap.

We made 21 tags with a vintage Easter theme and

at a small size of 4" x 2". I enjoyed making them

and am looking forward to receiving mine as well.

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. How

great is that extra daylight? Loving that!

Pretty pink bread box...........

2009-03-04T16:08:00.000-08:00

Actually, only the top is pink, but it is pretty.
I purchased this from a local antique store and
the tag said "1940 bread box". This is a far cry
from the ugly plastic packaging we now see
bread in! I am planning to RE-USE this in my
creative space, maybe for stamps. My blogging
friend Beth says we should think re-use and I
like her way of thinking! We are such a wasteful
and disposable society.

The back of the bread box has a vent, which
is interesting to me. We close bread up in a
plastic bag to keep the air out.

Speaking of re-using items, check out this photo
holder. I purchased this from a different antique
store and love it! I am not sure about all of the
pieces, but the button and ornate metal piece
on the bottom make this special.

I use it to display a special photo or
vintage holiday card. Have a great
evening. Kana

March calendar

2009-03-03T06:51:00.000-08:00

I am loving the soft colors of this picture of my daughter.
It seems the perfect choice for my March refrigerator
calendar (see Jan 8 post). While the weather outside
continues to be cold and windy, inside I can enjoy pretty
spring colors and flowers in my kitchen.

The Bunnies are back!

2009-03-01T15:06:00.000-08:00

Welcome March, although the weather isn't
exactly spring like. We ushered in March
with rain and snow today, but a girl can
dream of spring days. I made these bunnies
in a ceramics class about 10 years ago and love
to bring them out. They currently reside on
my kitchen island and live there from March
until September.

They look pretty with their spring bows!

Maybe soon, we will see real

bunnies hopping outside!

My First Estate Sale and a little egg............

2009-02-28T14:38:00.000-08:00

I have wanted to go to an estate sale and after
inspiration from Beth, I went today. Armed with
my newspaper and directions, I marched on. Since
I was short on time, I decided to go to two sales
that were about 1/2 mile apart. I did not have any
luck at the first sale, but I did at the second house.
My prize purchase today was this beautiful, old Singer
sewing machine. I started sewing about 22 years ago
and have desired an old machine to have out for display.
I have passed on several that I have seen at the antique
stores as the price tag was too high. So, today was my
day and the price tag was $5. The gentleman who sold
it to me said that it was his mom's machine and she was
born in 1920. I will cherish it!

I also mailed out my Easter Egghunt swap to Vivian.
We each made 2 eggs,Vivian will swap them out
and in April, we will post photos of the eggs we
received and the eggs we made and the hunt begins
to find the identity of the creators. I made this
pink egg for Vivian as a small thank you for hosting.

Have a lovely last day of February! Kana

A glittered mess

2009-02-25T17:38:00.001-08:00

I'm working on a few Easter swap projects and

just can't help but break out the glitter. I love

the pretty colors of spring......pink, green, yellow,

blue, lilac and ahhhhh the beautiful teal!

This apron has me thinking of............

2009-02-22T17:53:00.000-08:00

SPRING! This is my oh so cute apron from the Amy Butler apron swap I participated in with Mommy Holly. My secret partner Suzie made this adorable halter style apron and the green and yellow Amy Butler fabric is so perfect for spring. The pink flower adds a nice accent and is removable.

Now only if the weather would just warm up to give us some green grass and yellow buttercups!

Weekend Road Trip......

2009-02-20T12:19:00.000-08:00

I'm off for a quick adventure in Missouri to watch
my daughter dazzle at an indoor track meet.

She flies through the air pole vaulting and jumps

hurdles like a gazelle. No crafting for me this time,

but my eyes will be amazed with a different kind

of beauty! Have a great weekend. Kana

One World One Heart.....I won this

2009-02-17T17:03:00.000-08:00

beautiful bracelet from Maija, as part of the
One World One Heart giveaway. It arrived
in this pretty tin.

She made it in a class with Kristen Robinson and
it is even more pretty in person. My favorite
part is the felted "joy" heart. I rarely win anything,
so this is a treat. THANKS Maija!! I love it!
Kana

Happy Valentines Day!

2009-02-14T10:21:00.000-08:00

I just love the pinks and reds of Valentine's
Day. All of this Valentine goodness is from
Sherry, in NY. She crocheted the hearts for this
pretty hanger. The altered candy box is just
how I like it, covered in glitter! She filled it with
laces and ribbons. The collage is beautiful and
reads "The Game of Love". Thank you Sherry
for everything!

This is the decorated candy box I made for
Sherry and filled it with Valentine goodies,
including a pretty rosy hankie.

I included a calendar, Valentine paper pad, altered
small journal, altered red heart, flowers, chipboard
and a chocolate bar.

I hope everyone is enjoying Valentine's Day. My husband
and I actually enjoyed Valentine's dinner last night at our
favorite Italian restuarant, Caesars. It was a lovely dinner
and we even got to hear the Dean Martin song "Thats Amore".
Just perfect!

Have a great day,
Kana

d

Puppy Love arrives.......

2009-02-12T14:50:00.000-08:00

Here's my puppy love tag book from Karla. She has done a fine job of hostessing! My book is just precious and notice the little pewter heart and yellow doggie on the ribbon. A big thanks to Christina Norvell, Stephanie Oyler, Brenda Romine, Tiffany, and Kathy Lowe. (the tag with the boy kissing the girl is mine). I love all of my tags and will treasure this for many Valentines to come! Thanks again to Karla.

a little shopping...

2009-02-10T13:36:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I have been to the antique district in Franklin, Tn.

I have been trying to be "good" in this "bad" economy, so I only picked up

a few small items. Vintage valentine cards are always so pretty and I wanted

to share the message in one of them. I also found a vintage metal shoe with a

pincushion in it. I may have to change out the pincushion, but the shoe is great.

I finally purchased a roll of vintage wallpaper trim to create with and a small

book to alter. Now that the fun is over, I am off to start dinner. Kana

Purple....my favorite color

2009-02-07T17:35:00.000-08:00

I have been enjoying Kari's, A Year of Color. However, I don't think this is the proper use of the color purple and it is not too inspiring. My son caught a fingernail to his eyelid while playing basketball. Luckily, he was not seriously injured, just a little "beat up" looking. Here's hoping to a safe ending to his season.

Kana

Amy Butler apron

2009-02-05T18:00:00.000-08:00

I just finished this apron for the Amy Butler
apron swap hosted by Holly. This apron is
headed to my secret partner in California.
She likes pink and green, so I hope she
will like this mixture of pretty Amy Butler fabrics.
I will share my apron when it arrives.

Now that I have finished all of my swaps and mailed them...it is time to clean up a great big mess!!!
Kana

Puppy Love Tags

2009-02-03T12:12:00.000-08:00

I am really getting in the Valentine mood with all of these
wonderful swaps. This one is Puppy Love hosted by Karla.
Her dog recently gave birth to 6 cute puppies.... so shall we
say that she was inspired by all of that puppy cuteness!
We were to design 6 tags which could have a puppy love
theme or any Valentine design. Karla will swap them out,
make a tag book with them and she has designed the cover
tag (she had ~ 60 participants). I can hardly wait to see mine!
Decorating the back of the tags was optional, but I was having so much fun that I decided to decorate both sides. Stay tuned here, as I plan to share my lovely tag book with all of you when it arrives.

Kana

Swapping with Irene

2009-02-02T18:07:00.001-08:00

This is my box of goodies that Irene sent, all the way
from Australia. Each gift is indivually wrapped and with
a small note and ribbon on each one!

Look at all of my Valentine goodies.....pink vintage
linens, vintage molds, a vintage inspired magnet,
ribbon, cookie cutter, notebook, chocolate, flowers,
and my favorite: the heart garland. Irene made
this garland and I love the fabric and mother of
pearl buttons on each heart. Just beautiful!

Please note this cheap box of candy and read
the box!! "The Key to Enduring Love: Keep
your mouth shut and bring home chocolate".
Not very exciting, huh? So, I took this box and
transformed it into........

.....this! Irene's favorite color is yellow, so I tried
to transform this box into a Valentine keepsake
that she will enjoy. Irene likes vintage goodies,
especially crocheted items. I sent her some
vintage buttons/trim, and also made her a
refrigerator magnet. I altered an old button pat
dish with paper and bling (inspired by Jenni
Bowlin) and it turned out really cute.

I enjoyed altering the bingo card as well. Swapping
really is fun....from the gathering and hunting stage,
to the creating and mailing. It is all fun, but the
best part is making a new friend! Thanks for
everything Irene.

Signing off and good night. Kana