Merry Christmas from our House to Yours!

(Click on Images to View Larger Version)
I know I'm a little late, but wanted to share our Christmas home with you. We were late getting everything done, between hubby having Bronchitis on his week's vacation before Christmas, my straining my back and then coming down with some crud (bad cold or bronchitis too, for which I reluctantly broke down and called my doctor to ask for a prescription today). And it probably won't come down for another 3 weeks. I do hate to let go of Christmas! :)










We DID end up, surprisingly, having a White Christmas in South Carolina. It was only 3 inches of snow, but the beautiful white blanket of snow was so peaceful looking!



I really struggled getting the Christmas cookies baked, but the ever cheerful (even with just getting over his illness) Mr. Sew Dear, helped me finish up the "Thumbprints" and Chocolate Covered Cherry cookies!



For those of my praying blogger friends, please say a prayer for my Dad who is in the hospital again with, we think, pneumonia. He was there last year at Christmas, even with a flu shot. But they have x-rayed his lungs, given him a breathing treatment, and taken his blood, so hopefully they will have narrowed down which virus is giving him such a bad time and can get the right antibiotic in him quickly. At 83 years of age, pneumonia can be so dangerous.

Best wishes for a wonderful New Year for all of us!

Collected Treasures...

(click on images to enlarge)
...from the Country Living Fair at Stone Mountain Park, Atlanta, Georgia, a couple of weeks ago ~ thought you might like a peek!

First, the vintage ticking pillow with gorgeous tatting and silk rose you see above...

vintage child's slate...


...Too cool Steampunk necklace. As you will note, I can be "29" forver!


...a beaded lariat necklace (Actually found this at the St. Catherine's Christmas Craft Show)


...vintage seam binding (the stone looking cache pot was from a stitchery kit my sister bought at the Olive Grace booth, but she didn't want it and gave it to me!)...


...more can't live without "Hooked on Rugs" hand dyed chunky yarn...This stuff comes in handy for SO many things! :)


'Til next time,

Mary

Whatever ya do, don't forget to VOTE!

Country Living Fair 2010 ~ Photos to Share!

What a great time my sisters, sister-in-law, and good friend Tammy had at the Country Living Fair! Hope you enjoy the photos as much as we enjoyed being there. Oh, the thrill of the hunt with these kindred spirits! LOL!

Clicking on the images will open a new window to view the image in a larger size.














































Hope you enjoyed the tour! Til next time,

Mary

Going to the Country Living Fair in Atlanta this weekend!

I couldn't find a vendor's list, but a google search of images found that these folks will be there ~ sounds like it will be a blast, schlepping around there with my sissies!

http://earthangelstoys.blogspot.com/

http://playswithpaper.blogspot.com/

http://olivegracestudios.com/

I understand Olive Grace has teamed up with Amy Barickman, and you should be able to get an autographed copy of her latest book! Cool!


Book preview is here: https://amybarickman.com/

http://small-stories-studio.blogspot.com/

http://jenniferlanneoriginals.blogspot.com/

That's all I could find so far...Not sure if they will allow photos, but I will try to take some! :)

The Witching Hour Approaches...

Don'tcha just love HALLOWEEN! It's such a FUN Holiday! Don't forget to visit the Kindred Sisters for some primitive Halloween shopping (the easy link is in the column to your right ~ just click to visit)!

Picking Crewel Back Up

Looking for a take-a-long project recently, I picked an old crewel project back up ~ a 1980 kit from Erica Wilson called "English Garden". I'm hoping with another couple days worth of stitching, it will be ready for framing. I was showing my progress to my sister over the weekend, and she commented that crewel work has seemed to decline in popularity. I have always loved this design and am looking forward to finally getting it finished!

Click on the image and it will take you to Photobucket to view in a larger or high resolution size to see more detail. You have to roll your cursor over the top of the photo though for the "zoom" menu to show up.

'Til next time,

Mary

Fabric Rosette Tutorial

...Haven't tried this one yet, but if anyone visits "Freckled Laundry" and tries her tutorial, let me know how you like it!

http://www.freckledlaundry.com/2010/07/fabric-rosette-tutorial.html

'Til next time,

Mary

Making Fabric Flowers

(Click on images to enlarge)
A couple of days ago I "googled" tutorials on how to make fabric flowers and found several that I wanted to try. I whipped up a few in about an hour ~ I was wanting to make them for the purses I am going to make from Amy Butler's "Birdie Sling" pattern. I choose 2 different fabric lines to make 2 summer purses ~ "Midwest Modern" from Amy Butler, and the "Blush" line by Basic Grey for Moda. I even got to play with some of my vintage buttons and beads, selecting ones to use for the center of the flowers.

(Midwest Modern
(Blush from Basic Grey)

It was a lot of fun putting my hands to work creating again. It has been soooo long since I've allowed myself to do so, or even spent any time in the craft studio. And this is a quick and easy project for a "creative fix." Spending time in the craft studio this week has motivated me to try and get things more organized, and it is such a challenge. The room is not very large and I have windows on 2 walls, 2 double closets on another, and the quilting design wall taking up a whole wall. I am rethinking that, as well as other storage options with little to no wall OR floor space! Think I might have to look at the ceiling? If you haven't visited any of the "Where Women Create II" blog postings, you can click on the image link in the column to your right...I've been getting some ideas... :)

'Til next time,

Mary