Thank You Received...

Back in September I posted about this Saucy Chick. One of my wonderful blog followers Diane commented if she could purchase one of these for her elementary school library so the students could have a prop for their "chicken unit" studies. I replied she could not purchase one however I would be happy to mail her the Saucy Chick for the students which I did.
Several weeks later I get a large envelope in my mailbox. Surprised I opened it to find all of this:

Photos of each of the classes enjoying reading time with Miss Saucy Chick. They all attend Grant Park Elementary School and are Pre K, Kindergarten and 1st Grade. Super cute aren't they!

Each student signed the card and I am in love with all of this effort that was taken to thank me. Miss Siebert even made this card and I was overwhelmed with her talents. The photo above shows the back of the Saucy Chick exactly as she was made with the fabrics. I thought how super cute and special is this. Then I turned the folder over and...

Here is the front of the chick exactly as she was sewn. I cannot believe how clever Miss Siebert made this from construction paper and some tape she even marked with chicken feet scratches all over. Very well done!

Please visit Diane and her "Lace Loving Librarian" blog which is linked with her name above. Her tatting talents are amazing.

Thank you Diane and all the students and Miss Siebert at Grant Park Elementary for such a wonderful and heartwarming thank you card. I shall cherish it forever. Those who know me know how much this card means to me. I used to be an elementary school teacher's aide when my daughter was little and I adore children and their enormous curiousity for learning.

To this day I love doing things for our local elementary school and I have adopted a class each year in a very depressed area of California that I donate supplies to. It is my tiny way of helping little ones have a chance at life with tools they can utilize throughout life and the challenges life brings.

November is upon us and it is always a month of Thanksgiving and gratitude. I have so much to be grateful for and I am very thankful.

Please share something you are grateful for.

Happy creating...

Crocheted Scarf...

Have you ever crocheted with Alpaca yarn? I had not. We have a local alpaca ranch and the owners are very nice people. The woman hand spins and hand dyes the alpaca fur into wonderful yarn. I bought one skein/hank to see if I liked working with it. My title links to their website if you are interested.

The yarn is 90% alpaca and 10% silk. This color is a periwinkle that is very soft and pretty. I crocheted this scarf in single and triple stitches. It is super simple and easy to wear. I had plenty of yarn to complete my project.

Now this scarf is wrapped and awaiting to be unwrapped as a Christmas gift to someone who will really like wearing it. She did see it while I was working on it with no idea I was making it for her. How fun is that?

Do you crochet? What is your favorite thing to crochet?

Years and years ago I crocheted full size ripple afghans with matching pillows for Christmas gifts to family members. I made 6 sets in one year. That was a bit much however I was much younger and wrists, hands and fingers were not acting cramped or painful back then.

It feels so good to accomplish something and be able to check it off the list.

Happy crocheting and creating...

Fun Fall Flowers...

I love making these fun flowers. This time I have used wool felt, lace and ribbons. Usually I stack the three different sizes for one flower. This time I stacked each of three layers in only one size. This is the small size and I added a button to the center of this one. With a pin back I am able to wear it on a lapel.

Same materials in the middle size and this time I used a "wad" of threads gathered from some torn muslin. I stacked three coordinating buttons for the center. This flower is pinned to the center of my Halloween witch hat that I shall be wearing this weekend.

This is the large sized petals and I used ribbons for the center. This fall flower took a ride through the mail service and surprised a blog pal of mine.

Here is the trio of Fall Flowers. I never get tired of making these fun floral pins.

Ideas are in the works for the next generation of my favorite flowers. Stay tuned...

Happy Halloweekend to each of you. May you have lots of treats and no tricks.

Room with a View!...

Now I have a room with a view! Thank you faithful blog followers for staying with me through my blogs with no photos. This beautiful new monitor just arrived last evening and now I can see.

Mr. C had to install it of course as I am good with crafty things but not electronic things. :o)

This new monitor is so much nicer than my old one so that is a plus benefit. It is bright and clear and thin and streamline.

Now I shall be able to post the finished projects I have accomplished while I was "in the dark".

Hmmm...which one shall I post first? Let me organize what I am doing and get back to you.

I just couldn't wait to share my good news.

Happy Wednesday and Happy Creating...

Patience My Dear Self...

The days have become a week and I must remain patient. My new monitor is scheduled to arrive late this evening. Somehow that is when our wonderful UPS truck delivers to our street. Normally I am extremely patient however somehow this computer glitch is taking my calm and turning it askew.
I have plans to accomplish another creative task today. It has been wonderful to get so many things done in the past several days. I will have projects and photos to share with you very soon.
Meanwhile I am wearing more layers to gain warmth as our weather has turned very chilly. Today is a beautiful sunny day and the ground is saturated after the approximate 9 inches of rain we received in two days. Maybe more rain in another two days. All good for nature and I hope fire season will be gone with all this rain.
Happy creating everyone and may you have a wonderful day...

Monday Monday...

Let me see what this week holds in store for me.
I still await the arrival of my new monitor.
I continue to use Mr. C's notebook computer.
Sunday was a wonderfully rainy day with lots of water falling and filling the water table of Mother Earth.
Our pond is full to overflowing.
I made an interesting dinner...We had a friend join us...Life is good!
Progress has been made on a project and I shall share photos soon.
Saturday was a small craft fair and I was able to purchase a couple of gifts for the holidays.
I hope to have a super productive week. It is up to me and I know I can achieve my goals.
What are you working on? Do you make certain you do something just for yourself each day?
May you each have a wonderful week ahead.
Happy creating...

Words of Inspiration...

Still no photos due to computer desktop blindness. My new monitor is still in transit.
So let me list some words of inspiration I really like:

Often used words -

Believe
Breathe
Create
Dream
Hope
Live
Love

Calls to Action -

Be
Dare
Resist
Think
Try

Statements -

Bad
Colorful
Coy
Dangerous
Different
Good
Lucky
Shy
Sweet

Short Phrases -

Be Free
Carpe Diem
Don't Do It
Give
Hello There
Try Again

I hope you gain some inspiration from these words and use them to advance your creativity and happiness in your everyday world.

My super good news is that without my constantly sitting in front of the computer I am getting lots of things accomplished even if it is the simple act of sewing on a button that has fallen off. The sad news is that I have not been able to keep up with all of your blogs and I miss that. So I shall have some catching up to do very soon.
May you have a wonderful October of surprises and treats and fun.

Technical Difficulties...

No photos today.
Nothing creative to share.
Merely having technical difficulties with my desktop computer.
Two days ago my monitor went from bright to black.
Then it teased me for a day and a half.
Less than a few seconds to see what it had to show me or tell me.
I am so much slower than that and therefore couldn't function.
For me it was like being blindfolded and put in a dark room.
I can't see anything if there isn't a lot of light.
So I begged to use Mr. C's notebook computer and he relented.
Where is my email?
Where are my photos?
How can I function?
I am able to voyeur and enjoy others blogs and comment on them.
As for email...no such luck...Oh turn off the dark computer? Good idea.
So now I wait for the delivery truck to bring my new monitor.
Meanwhile this inconvenience should allow me more time to craft. Or not...
Yesterday I cooked dinner that took me five hours to prepare. How did it taste you ask? Horrible to me! Mr. C couldn't put enough salt on it. That was time well spent???
Laundry is washed, dried and folded. Well I do have ironing to do now.
Cleaned out a few drawers and loaded up the trash bin with expired and useless things.
Tons of pruning and yard clean up outside but I don't think I shall tackle that today.
Mr. C is sickly with a really bad cold and cough so that is where I shall focus my energy. Playing nursemaid and fetching fluids and food for him every two hours.
Am I complaining? Not in the least. I am finding this is merely an inconvenience. I am also finding many more things to spend my time doing...kind of like life before computers!
Thank you for "listening".
Please stay tuned for more on the creative front in the near future.
Happy Autumn to everyone...

Halloween Gift Quickie...

Let's see what we will need...Fabric, Felt, Ribbon, Scissors, Glue (optional), Sewing Machine (or hand sew)...what else...CHOCOLATE bars (non eaten preferably!).

This technique has been done many ways especially with paper. I thought it would be fun to use felt and fabric and ribbon. After the chocolate bar is gone (usually in a matter of seconds with me around) this wrap could be used for drink cups or journals or what ever you think of to wrap.

I stitch everything together with my zig zag stitch on the sewing machine. I only use a dab of glue stick to hold the fabric to the felt for stitching. The ribbon is long enough to wrap completely around the bar and tie in the front. Very easy to make.

After the photo was taken I added a small orange tag with the recipient's name and tied to the ribbon was also an orange, yellow and white pony bead to look like candy corn.

Truthfully I don't think anyone cared about the cute wrap however they all loved the chocolate bar beneath it.

This is an easy and inexpensive way to use scraps and give a little gift to lots of people who love chocolate. Of course I try to personalize the type of chocolate to each of the recipients likes but that is not necessary at all.

I have one made for Mr. C and after he tears off the cute Halloween wrap I know he would just throw it away so it will be mine to re-use in another project. The creating just continues and I love that.

Happy creating...

Name That China Pattern...

Hello my fellow bloggers. I must share my happiness with all of you. I have just been given my Grandmother's old china. It has been in a falling apart cardboard box and not wrapped carefully since 1990. I remember as a young woman hand washing and hand drying this china when we ate at Grandma's place. She never had a fancy home or linens but we always ate a good meal and these were the dishes she used everyday. There are missing pieces but overall a set for 8.

This is the marking on the bottoms of the pieces.

This photo is not very good however it was the best I could capture.

Does anyone know the name of the pattern of this china?

Along with the markings is the word Germany stamped on the bottoms.

I am so sentimental that I am just over the moon happy with being able to now enjoy these beautiful dishes in my home. I shall always think of my Grandma and smile while I am able to serve meals on these. And someday my daughter will enjoy them when I am done using them.

Thank you in advance for any helpful information you may have.

I was so happy once again hand washing and hand drying these when I unpacked them.

Thank you to my one and only aunt for allowing me to have them after all these years.

Happy Autumn to everyone...

Tuesday's Creative Table...

This is my wonderful creative work table today. I feel so blessed to be able to play with my supplies.
I am using a recycled card front, some cotton fabric, pink and white papers and a sheer ribbon. Glue and my sewing machine will hold them all together.

Here is the finished card and bookmark. This photo is a little intense with the color as the actual card is much more subtle.

Super simple and super quick.

Now to package them and get them mailed to someone who can use some pink cheering up.

What are you working on in your creative space?

I also made a birthday card I forgot to photograph and I already have it sealed for mailing.

Do you recycle greeting cards? What is your favorite way to reuse them?

Please share your ideas.

Happy creating to all...

Local Concours...

After spending days cleaning and primping and cleaning some more we headed south to a local Concours show. Leaving very early in the morning and in the rain...yes all over the super clean car!...we arrived at a beautiful location with overcast skies. The rain subsided and more cars arrived and were very carefully parked on their respective greens. Oh I am in heaven...Aston Martins and a Lotus Twin Turbo Esprit!

The British Marque was being honored so they had their very own green for parking. Jaguar was honoring their 75th year so lots of fanfare and very new gorgeous cars for viewing and special ones for test driving.

This black Rolls Royce was a 1959 and very beautiful down to the enth degree of detail.

Of course the new Ferraris were also featured as so many attendees must drool over them.

I love it when there are beautiful restored automobiles that I have never seen before. This one very unique.

This is the most unique automobile ever and it stole my heart! She is a one-of-a-kind 1914 Princess Petite Speciale. I love chatting with the owners of such rare automobiles and learned her entire history. She won an award however I do not know which one as we had to leave during the awards ceremony.

All in all we enjoyed a wonderful day and met so many interesting and nice people.

Next...Bonneville Salt Flats for Finals Week.

Happy week ahead to all who love to live, laugh, love and create art...

Sew much accomplished...

Well over one year ago I thought I would like to see if I can still sew for myself and make a wearable. I used to sew all my clothes and my daughter's clothes and even shirts for a previous husband. Then I merely sewed home dec things and then only crafty things. I thought I had lost my seamstress knowledge. So I bought a new pattern and after I fainted at the price I began to review it. What on earth are they talking about? It was like a foreign language to me. Some sort of "Project Runway" pattern with way too many combinations to consider. So I put everything away in a drawer. On top of all this I had spent the same amount of money on the pattern and fabric that I could have merely paid for a new jacket and been done with it. LOL

So last week I was determined to tackle my jacket pattern and accomplish what I knew I could still do. I actually took the time to make a muslin. Very glad I did this as the pattern sizes have shrunk terribly and I needed a much different number than I would have ever guessed. Hmmm...

I loosely layed out the pattern to see if I had enough of my fabric. Yay!

I am using a quilted fabric that is reversible and the photo does not show the beauty of this paisley and floral stripe with a hint of gold.

Yes, this is the completed inside of the jacket. I wanted to do a funky finishing treatment so this is the ribbon "lining" I hand stitched for the neck, yokes and hem. The rest I merely serged as it won't ever show while I am wearing it.

A wonderful wood button that mimics the swirls in the fabric. Now you can see a hint of the gold. Under the button is a large snap to hold the jacket closed.

My completed and ready to wear 3/4 length sleeve jacket with a fun flirty loose swing to it. I love how I used the paisley side for the yokes and sleeves and then the floral stripe on the front and back sections.

For me this is such a huge accomplishment as now I know I can still make something beautiful and wearable. Now days the costs of materials is so high that it doesn't pay to sew the ordinary everyday wearable however it is the knowledge that I made it myself and it is just how I want it to be.

I feel "sew" very much accomplished. :o)

What do you like to sew? Have you purchased a pattern recently? I think my Grandma and mother would faint to see the prices as they are today.

Happy week to all...

Surprise Package...

As I set out today to run some routine errands I thought I might check my post office box at the local branch. To my surprise I had this package to pick up. A package I was not expecting is always wonderful to receive. This one came all the way from England in the UK. Wow now that is a far piece from here. Please be certain to check out Sherry (yes it is spelled exactly like mine!) and her super blog. She had said a short time ago that I was selected to win soap and a magnet she bought on her recent trip to Greece. Wonderful...but then I forgot to think of a package arriving.

Inside the box was the fun fabric wrapped bundle. I unwound the fabric and could not believe it is almost 5 yards of one continuous strip. I already have ideas for this cheerful fabric. Olive Oil soap that smells divine. A magnet of what looks to be a treasure of Greek icons. A mica butterfly charm and a handmade tag that Sherry made was attached to the bundle with some polka dot ribbon I love.

Now isn't this the best surprise for a Saturday filled with chores and errands? I am so very blessed. Thank you sincerely Sherry.

Don't you love to get surprise packages in the mail? In fact I just sent a couple of packages out this past week to unsuspecting recipients just to brighten their day when they get them.

I have never done a formal giveaway just because I like the element of surprise instead. I just don't think I could stand to pick one of many that take the time to enter for a giveaway. LOL

My followers are adding up and I am so amazed at how blogging has increased my world. I just might one day email and ask for your mailing address and send a surprise your way. Thank you everyone for spending time with me and my blog. I read every comment and find them to be not only interesting but many times thought provoking for me. I hope to continue my life journey and always be a better person through learning and listening and experiencing.

Happy Haunting October. Please think pink for all women and men as breast cancer awareness is also this month.

Happy Creating...