Charms Received...Amazing...

I was thinking of doing a swap as I follow quite a few blogs that participate in swaps and it always looks so fun to see what everyone makes and receives.  Well...I did participate in my very first swap that was for charms.  It was hosted and organized and completed by the very talented Roni of http://inkstainswithroni.blogspot.com/ I cannot express enough how thrilled I am with this swap.Thank you to Roni and everyone who participated.  Here is a group photo of the box I received.  I was like a child filled with wonder and excitement on Christmas morning when I opened this box of charms.  Each and every charm is lovingly handmade and so clever and precious.  Thank you to each artist I was lucky enough to get one of your charms.

 This is one of the three sets of charms I made and submitted.  I used black O-rings, copper wire and beads.  I attached a lobster clasp to each one for easy use.

 This charm is larger and I wanted it to represent the beautiful pine trees I live amongst.  I added beads, fancy yarns, some copper wire and a lobster clasp. 

Each set of charms (I made three sets) were five per set.  This set is double sided with truffle pictures and small beads for some bling.  So far I think this charm was very popular because who doesn't like chocolate...even if it is a photo of chocolate!
I will definitely be participating again early next year when Roni hosts this swap once more.  It truly was a delightful experience. 
Now I must get busy and thank each of my charm makers.  We did include our info and I have already received some emails thanking me for my charms. 
I spent my morning at my local Chamber helping visitors.  Our weather is just perfect.  Then Mr. C came along and took me to lunch at my favorite Beach Hut Deli for my California sandwich.  Life is good.
May your week progress with all the wonderful things that make you happy...

Happy Hearts...

Happy Hearts to everyone.

Aren't surprises just the most fun when they bring such creative joy and happiness? I certainly think so. In my mail was this super cute Birdie Valentine card and the little burlap package held closed with an adorable heart pin.

Surprise!

It held a beautiful charm domino necklace made by Sheila of Blessed and Distressed blog. I aplogize that my scan does not do justice to the glitter and beauty of this sweet little girl that Sheila made from a simple domino. Please visit her and see all that she does.

Thank you so very much Sheila. You are one of the wonderful and generous friends I have found here in blogland.

Heart Strings.

This scan definitely does not do justice to this lovely sewn string of hearts and butterflies and love that Miss Cory "Dogwood" handmade and sent to me. I adore it and its fluid movement as it hangs near my desk to inspire me. Thank you very much Dogwood of Pink Dogwood Blossoms blog. Cory and I actually live right near one another and have never met in person. We were matched up in last year's April Letter Writing challenge and have been corresponding ever since. Some day soon we shall meet especially since we both shop at the same Ben Franklin local craft supply store.

Creative Handmade Cards.

These are some Valentine cards I received from family and friends that are ever so cute and special as they are handmade. I must not scan so badly! I do cherish all of my Valentine goodies and the fact that they were created with love.

Chocolate...

Oh no lack of that. Just no photos or scans as I have eaten all of it. I did share a tiny bit with Mr. C since he likes chocolate also.

May you each celebrate this wonderful day and enjoy the love that surrounds us all.

Happy Hearts...

shopping etsy...

I am certain that many of you follow Diane Knott and her daughter Holly. They not only blog but have an etsy shoppe that is quite successful. While reading Diane's blog I noticed that she was listing some things I really liked and thought I should have in my stash of craft supplies. So I ordered and the package arrived poste haste and was wrapped super cleverly and included a bonus of recipe cards which I was not expecting. We all love to get a surprise don't we?!

This is what I actually ordered. Butterfly stamped muslin "ribbon". It was all wrapped neatly around a flat clothespin which has been stamped with musical notes. How fun is that?!!

Here is the "ribbon" and I just love it. Isn't it wonderful when something is even nicer than what you expected? I will definitely be buying more of what Diane and Holly make and sell in their etsy shop. Quality, unique handmade items are such a treasure.
Now what will I use this hand stamped muslin ribbon for? Hmmm...

Happy creating.

Chores today...

Ahhh do you remember these wonderful "days of the week" towels from days gone by? As I begin my day in earnest I find that I have some chores to do and I started thinking about these towels. This picture I took off the internet since I do not have any of these cherished old handwork pieces.
I think this photo shows Tuesday as baking day. With the heat as high as it is here I shall not be doing any baking. However I must go grocery shopping. I think fresh vegetables, fruits and salads sound yummy. Cold applesauce was on the menu last evening. The less cooking to do in this summer heat (which I truly love) the better. Maybe popcicles would be a cool treat.
Yesterday I couldn't keep enough iced tea made for us to drink. Maybe today some lemonade would be refreshing.
Gosh if I follow these towels for chore days I missed doing my laundry on Monday. Oh darn! I did think about doing it but decided I was not going to use the dryer as it just adds to the heat. Mr. C has the air conditioning on and set to 80 degrees so I didn't want to intefere with that. Besides laundry can always wait.
So inspite of what day is supposed to be which chore I am off to do some grocery shopping.
May you each enjoy your day doing something you really like to do.
Happy creating...

Check out Sue Bleiweiss...

This is what Sue is offering as her giveaway. She makes the most splendid books and these are little ones she has made from "scraps" in her studio.

I am not certain why I am sharing this generous offer as I would so love to have my name chosen however I feel it only fair if I share.

Also if you are not familiar with her blog she makes amazing quilts too.

Sue is super talented and I have been following her for a very long time.

You can visit her at http://www.suebleiweiss.com/blog

Goodbye April...

April is always a very busy month with the hope of winter ending and Spring arriving, lots of family and friends birthdays and this year the Letter Writing Month challenge I joined.
The photo above shows the wonderful amount of snail mail I have received this month. We each were paired with a "blog pal" and the criteria of sending at least one snail mail item to that person. Well, the list included 32 participants and we could also send to any one or all of the list. You know me...I sent to every person on the list at least once. Some of them more than once. And my blog pal several times. I was so lucky as my blog pal sent me lots of wonderful mail. Each so very clever and handmade which is just what I love.
Thank you each and every one for such a fun month of snail mail.
I also took this month and sent mail to some of my friends and blogland friends. I thought it would be the right time to remember so many people who mean so much to my daily living.
I am awaiting one more piece of mail from my blog pal because she gave me a hint that she made me something and I am so excited to see what it is.
So as this is the last day of April we say goodbye and put this very busy month to rest for another year.
When was the last time you handwrote a letter or handmade a card and mailed it to someone?

More cards...

I would like to acknowledge Fiskars and thank them for great customer service. I began to make some cards and discovered my Seagull corner punch was broken. Somehow the metal parts had broken and fell out in pieces which meant I could not use the corner punch for making my cards. Before I threw it in the trash I took a couple of pictures and thought I would email Fiskars to let them know. I got an email response right away and they said they would send me a new one in a few days. Well today I did get my new punch and it works and I am very happy. Just when I was thinking customer service is a lost art Fiskars comes through with excellent customer service. Thank you very much Fiskars.

As for receiving cards I have done that this week. My Blog Pal Cory sent me this very creative card she made using recycled cards. It is multi layered and has lots of interest to it. She tied on a tea bag for a relaxing cup of tea. On the envelope she hand drew some little flowers to mimic the tree in the picture. Well done Cory. I like it very much thank you.

My other card I received from my Blog Pal is this one with a silk flower on the recycled cards she uses. I truly love the flower and it will be finding a new spot off of this card onto another project very soon. Cory included a package of Cosmos seeds and I shall be so happy to plant these as I love the flowers with their wonderful shades of pinks. On this envelope she drew some little cosmos flowers in the corner to carry out the theme. Very clever.

I have been busy writing and sending my April cards and goodies so it has been very busy on the desk top here in the studio. I must say I even had fun at the post office trying to mail my cards. Two envelopes were 1/8" too short so I had to bring them home and re-package them. Of course they still cost 64 cents each but 1/8"...come on! Some of my cards had "bumps" in them so that was an extra fee on top of the extra fees. I told the clerk I was trying to make them as flat and light weight as possible. A couple of the burly guys standing in line behind me suggested I take the envelopes outside and they could drive over them a few times with their big diesel truck! A good laugh was had by all except the clerk. Every single item I was trying to mail had some issue and excess expense and by now the guys in line are teasing me about maybe I used the wrong color of ink...purple. I was able to mail all except the two shorties that lacked 1/8" each envelope. Of course my wallet is now empty. Fortunately for me I had a mission of mailing some fun cards to some people I have never met and hopefully they will get a good laugh out of them.

Are you sending any snail mail this month of April?

I still have a long list of addresses I will be sending to so I better get very busy.

Catching up on projects...

Oh My! This is what every horizontal surface looks like for me right now. My desk, my counter tops, my studio table, my sewing machine cabinet and even the kitchen counters. This is too much unorganized mess...even for me. So, in keeping with Finish It Fridays I have been busy cleaning up, putting away and organizing. Then I got busy finishing some projects I got behind on. I can't show some of them as they are gifts that haven't been given yet so after I will show pictures and let you see what I have been doing more than just this.

Here is the weekly Creative Cue I have been doing since the new year. Check it out at www.threecreativestudios.com/blog to see how fun and easy it is to participate. I find it to be a good inspiration each week. I try to think of something super simple yet out of the ordinary. So in keeping with the cue "clip" here is my take.

I found myself intrigued with paper clips while I was working. Some unusual ones would come across my desk and I would set them aside (yes, that could be considered pack rat collecting LOL). I also had fun using my lunch time to go to the local stationary stores and see what fun clips they were selling. With the advent of scrapbooking the shapes and types really got more fun and available. Some are plastic, some are metal and some are plastic coated metal. Cue #10 completed.

Cue #11 (as this is a weekly cue) is "tip". I wasn't as creative as I would have liked however I didn't quite have the materials I needed. My grandparents were avid Quarter Horse race followers (before followers on blog and facebook and twitter LOL). Many times I went along and loved the experience of seeing all the action. This was their hobby and they loved it so much. They followed all the tracks in Southern California from Santa Anita, Los Alamitos, Del Mar, and others I can't even think of. And it is true that someone would say Pssst...here's a tip...

Now betters probably text this info. :o) I have such fond memories of my Grandparents and this wonderful hobby they enjoyed so many years. Right down to the special way they would fold a section of the newspaper and fit it in the slats of their seats so the "regulars" knew that Dot and Phil were sitting there.

I hope my family members remember me for my hobby of creating hand made things. (I also got this talent from both my grandparents and parents who were very hands on creative!)

What fun memory of something you did with family do you have?

Tested Breathing...

It is a fine Monday morning and Christmas is quickly approaching.
Yesterday I was able to actually test my last posting about breathing during this busy time of year. I drove myself and a couple of girlfriends "down the hill" in the rain to meet up with my sister and her girlfriend. We meet at a shopping mecca across from the huge Galleria mall. There was lots of traffic. There were gobs of shoppers and very long lines in each store, however lots of registers running so the lines actually moved along quite quickly. We dig through the clearance bins at Michaels craft store and we always love using our 40% off coupon. My sister is the best at bargain finding. I always buy things that I have no thought or purpose for at the time but eventually I am able to utilize them for some project or another. We had a very tedious "glitch" at the checkout register and my patience was really tested. I was overcharged for several items and not very happy but took a deep breath and smiled. I was able to gather my patience and persevere enough to pay for my stash and leave that store with my goodies which turned out to be not so bargain but that I bought anyway.
I enjoyed watching all the people who were trying to buy gifts for others. There was a male high school teacher who was shopping for his class and I found that quite amazing that he would be thinking of his students for the holidays. There was also a young mom who was party shopping for her two kids school parties...first grade and fifth grade...what a job she had to do at this busy time of year.
We girls opted for lunch at PF Changs and we got there early enough to beat the crowd that was lined up when we were leaving. We charmed our waitress and left her an extra large tip because we exchanged our gifts and took extra time at our table. It was the perfect time to relax and breathe during a very hectic day. I am so proud of my sister because she made each of us a wonderful gift that I shall photo and share soon.
On to more shopping in the rain and lots more people and very crowded stores. Each of us were able to get exactly what we wanted or needed and we had coupons for everything. We had a great day and a safe drive "back up the hill".
I saw holiday decorations and noted the ones I really liked...I am an old fashioned green and red traditional theme...but I saw new twists that looked great like plaid ornaments.
I stayed focused on just what I needed so I didn't get frustrated and overloaded with all that is out there.
I enjoyed some beautiful Christmas music that was playing very quietly in the background beyond the crazy crowds.
But most of all I enjoyed time with family and friends and the joy of sharing.

What is your favorite part of this season? What type of gifts do you like to receive?

Happy Holiday Shopping...

Happy Holiday Shopping can be a wonderful thing or it can be very frightening to many. Let's keep it very simple this year. I myself am not out doing the "Black Friday" crazy shopping frenzy at the stores which opened at pre-dawn hours.

Usually I am gathering gifts all year long as I see them for friends and family. It is what I have always done and it works well for me. Then of course I also buy last minute gifts that strike my fancy for someone.

This year our family is being extra cautious and careful as the urge to overspend is all too dangerous and none of us can well afford to do so. As a result many of our gifts are from the heart and are handmade. For those that do not sew or bead or craft they make something related to food or creativity in the kitchen. We luckily have lots of talent in our family and it comes from many generations back. Thank you Grandma and Mom for being so creative.

So for today I wanted to share with you a wonderful etsy shop that has unique items that are very affordable and fun to give. I have purchased from this very talented lady and I was extremely pleased with my items and with her customer service. Then my daughter bought from her also and she was very pleased. Therefore it is my pleasure to introduce you to
http://www.etsy.com/shop/mouserkinsmagic for possibly your simplest shopping solutions. The photo above is one of Jennifer Nillson's wonderful drawings. Please visit her shop to see if there is something there for your gift list. You might use them as tags, special inserts to cards and letters mailing to out-of-area friends and family, or merely as stocking stuffers.

May your holiday shopping be serene this season.

Please let me know if you visit this link and if this post has been helpful for you.

Studio time beading...

Today I spent time in my studio and it felt great. I have been promising myself to complete an old task before starting a new one. Doesn't that sound familiar? Well today I did just that. I restrung a necklace that was very old and fraying.

About fifteen years ago my daughter hand beaded these lovely earrings for me. So I beaded a very simple necklace to go with them. Long ago when I would bead it was popular to use dental floss to string with as it was affordable and very strong. In fact it did last for at least a dozen years before becoming frayed.

I got out the supplies: needle, nymo beading thread, pliers, spare beads (for the ones I drop and can't find on the floor lol), scissors and bead threader/cutter. I can't imagine why I kept putting this task off as it was very simple and didn't take long to complete at all.

Now I have kept my promise to myself and completed an old task that was just always hanging over me. I feel so much better for having finished this. I am ready to wear these earrings and necklace and due to the beautiful pastel colors they will be very nice during the hot weather we will still have this summer.

Thank you daughter for continuing our family legacy of being creative and making beautiful things with your hands and heart.

More Comfort Dolls...

These little ladies of flora are the latest baker's dozen comfort dolls to be made and sent to http://comfortdolls.blogspot.com for shipment to various battered women's shelters across the United States and some other countries. This is a project that really spoke to my heart and I already have ideas for the next baker's dozen that I will make to donate. Pat Winter is the founder and does all the logistics for gathering and coordinating the dozens and then shipping them out to their new companions.

I feel great joy by contributing these little ladies to bring a smile and some comfort to those on their journey of life. They really are much cuter in person. I am so not a photographer but I did want to snapshot them for sharing.

They are a little burst of Spring and happiness to come to the recipients of them.