Mornin', Glory!

Morning Glories blooming from seed I planted in July

I've been staying indoors as our Indian Summer winds down. Temperatures were in the low 100's for days, but we got a reprieve this weekend. As usual, we can expect one last heat wave as October arrives but I'm looking forward to cooler weather and putting a blanket on the bed by the middle of the month.

A fire hydrant burst in our neighborhood! I was upstairs in my scrap room working on a layout when I happened to see the hubbub outside. Water was rushing over the curbs and sidewalks until the fire department and utility company arrived.

Here is the scrapbook page I was working on. 

I used puzzle pieces, a train punch, and dripped paint on this layout. 

I also used Making Memories Vintage Findings (school) which included the Report Card envelope and 1960's era book page.

 

Handyman brought in the Fall decor boxes, which are now sitting in the living room. I can't wait to dig through them! 

I try not to rush through the seasons, and have been pretty good at waiting until September is over before bringing out the pumpkins. I'll just enjoy these Morning Glories a while longer~

sharing this post with:
You're Going To Love It

Mosaic Monday
The Chicken Chick
Fresh Cut Fridays

Halloween Greetings

Well, it's hot here- it was 106 degrees yesterday. As a matter of fact, it's hotter now than is has been all summer! Great time to stay inside and work on holiday projects, right? 

Heather at My Artistic Adventures created a darling sheet of vintage Halloween tickets to use on cards and other projects.  She is hosting Challenge #9 - starting today - and has made a digital collage sheet which is available on her etsy page, along with her other digi collage sheets. You've got to take a peek! Everything is so cute. Being on the Design Team, I get first crack at Heather's creations. I printed out this collage sheet and went to work...ok, it isn't really work when you are having so much fun!

Here is my Halloween card, but with so many tickets on the sheet I'll be making treat bags, post cards and include a few on upcoming scrapbook pages.

 Me and My Big Ideas 

and Martha Stewart Halloween pads

Spellbinders Nestabilities 

Tim Holtz clock die

orange tulle

silk maple leaf

This card folds flat for mailing but stands

 up like a pup tent. Here is the left side view.

 I love overlapping elements and combining different shades of orange.

I used orange pearls as stoppers for the front card edge to rest against when standing displayed. You can see that I decorated the inside with punched spider webs. 

Need more Halloween inspiration? Want to see what the other Design Team members made with their collage sheet? Stop by My Artistic Adventures to get your creative juices flowing - we'd love to have you play along and enter the Challenge!

sharing this post with

cottage style party
613 Avenue Create

You're My Cup Of Tea Valentine

 

I started with a plain fry box and a collage sheet from  

My Artistic Adventures

 

  called Shabby Vintage Retro Valentine's Day Cute Tags and created two decorative containers for February 14th!

  

The first one I made is primarily red and has dyed ribbon roses down each side.

That adorable teacup duo makes me smile every time I see it! I mounted the image on checkered foam, added flowers, a button and some bakery string.

 

 There is room in the fry box for a variety of 'happies'. Can you guess what I put inside?

 A doily, some paper shreds and...

Aha! I knew you'd get it. Tea! And how about some Sweetheart motto candies?

Home-made Lavender Sachets would also be nice inside.

Heather at My Artistic Adventures is having a Challenge which begins today, February 2, and runs through February 15. It's an Anything Goes challenge, so come play along!

 My second project using Heather's etsy printable is this blue fry box with a painted wooden teacup under the Retro image. I fussy cut the teacup duo twice and placed foam dots between them for dimension. Next, I added a bit of glitter around the heart and gold metallic paint on the teacup edge.

Heather has made it easy for you to make your own fry boxes with her variety of colored etsy collage sheets. There are so many things you can put in these cute containers:

• bubbles, crayons, cards
• candy, gum, snacks, mints
• gift cards
• hand sanitizer, lotion, nail polish
• beauty products,lip balm, hair accessories
• lottery tickets, event tickets
• jewelry

These french fry boxes could be decorated seasonally, for birthdays, Mother's & Father's Day, and for party favors.

Hope to see you at 

My Artistic Adventures

How would you like to try the collage sheets that Heather created  to make a Valentine banner for FREE? Make sure to see her February 1 blog post!

Sharing this post with
 Cottage Style Party

Pretty Wednesday
You're Going To Love It 
What To Do Weekends 
Craftberry Bush 



entering this Challenge:

Vintage Tea Party at LunaGirl Moonbeams
Craft Hoarders Anonymous 

Greenie Meenie

Happy Pink Saturday!

 Guess who this is? This is one of my childhood toys from the Mattel Little Kiddles collection. This is a Kozmic Kiddle.

I've had Greenie Meenie since 1969. When you roll her spaceship across the floor, Greenie Meenie rotates back and forth inside her saucer.

Check out those lashes. Gotta love her 'do', right? She is dressed in her best blue teatime frock - haha!

"Take me to your tea party!"

There is still time to join the Treasured Time Blog Hop which ends August 7. Click HERE for more info and to see the projects I made. I am giving away one of the cards I created! :)

sharing this post with:

 Pink Saturday
Amaze Me Monday 
You're Going To Love It 
Show Me What You Got 

A Walk Down Country Roads~

Handyman and I had a date day this past week and headed over to the Orange Circle for breakfast and a bit of window shopping. We are frequent visitors to this quaint and historic area. There are lots of shops and restaurants as well as a small central fountain.  Country Roads Antiques and Gardens is one of our favorite shops. It is loaded to the rafters with beautiful things and there is a garden in the back where you can purchase plants and flowers! I love this cedar lined chest. Isn't it pretty?

            Roses and more roses~

   and even more! This is a porcelain teacup by Roses Regency~ I like the broad opening and elongated loop handle. The touches of blue remind me of the sky.

   Such a handsome chair~

 

A sweet wicker table to sit at and write letters while sipping tea~

         Or would you prefer a desk?

                     

 I have a fondness for dish dressers...ooh, ahh!

Let's step outside and see what is for sale in the back garden...you can barely see the vintage truck for all the plants!

Hope you enjoyed this trip to the Country Roads shop!



sharing this post with:

Mosaic Monday
Rose Chintz Cottage 
Artful Affirmations 
Marthas Favorites 
Make It Pretty Monday 
You're Going To Love It Tuesday 
Sunny Simple Life 
Sundays Best

Carriage and Keyboard~

I read an interesting article about a man who collects old typewriters...but not just any old machine, Steve Soboroff buys typewriters that belonged to the famous and infamous. He scours the web looking for vintage machines with a past. He also makes every effort to verify the provenance.

On the creepy side, he has one that was owned by Unabomber T. Kaczynski. His collection also includes old typewriters that belonged to John Updike, Ray Bradbury, Andy Rooney, Orson Welles and others. 

It's funny really, and I have to laugh. I remember when I was in high school in the late 70's our Typing Class teacher bemoaned the fact that kids just didn't want to learn to type and that soon the school would no longer offer classes. She thought typing was a dying skill.  Now every kid, ages 5 and up, knows how to type and text...and they don't take classes to learn how. Did you know there are planned 'type-ins' held in public places where typewriters are available to bang out a poem or some prose? I've noticed an affection for the old machines in jewelry, note cards and decor. 

photo by prettyladysociety.com

At Pretty Lady Society there was the suggestion to have vintage typewriters at the guest sign-in table at weddings! Isn't that a fun idea? I use our old Underwood in the foyer with seasonal sentiments on an inserted sheet of paper~

 If you have not used a typewriter in a while (or ever!), there are informative sites  that explain the mechanics and operation of these wonderful reminders of a bygone era.

Enchanting Creations Magazine

The October issue of Enchanting Creations e-zine is ready to view! It is chock full of creative pieces and inspiration. This online magazine is part of the Flying Unicorn's website. My fellow Bella Creations' design team members, Starr and Helene, have pieces in this issue. Also, one of my 'Z' cards is shown this month. (page 52!)

I made a classic z style card from a blank greeting card by creasing the front section of the card and making three cuts to the right of the crease. All surfaces were covered in cardstock. I double matted a vintage image by Crafty Secrets and centered it in the crease.

When you open the card the image swings through the cut section. I used graphic 45 papers, a Little Yellow Bicycle button, Bazzill solid cardstock, and a Tim Holtz zigzag faux stitching stamp. 

Frozen Charlottes~

I just learned about the background of these charming dolls called Frozen Charlottes at a site called Yesterdays Toys. I've seen these mini treasures recently popping up in shadow boxes and Tim Holtz Configuration boxes.

Frozen Charlottes are a type of unjointed china doll popular during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The name came from Fair Charlotte, a well-known American folk ballad attributed to William Carter. It is believed to have been composed some time between 1833 and 1860. The ballad tells the tale of a beautiful  woman who set out in a sleigh with her lover, Charles, on a bitterly cold night to attend a ball fifteen miles away. Her mother warned her to wrap herself in a blanket to keep warm, but:

"No, no, no," fair Charlotte said
And she laughed like a gypsy queen
"To ride in blankets muffled up,
I never can be seen."

The couple rode off into the cold and, after traveling a mere five miles, Charles remarked:

"Such a night as this I never knew,
The reins I scarce can hold."
Fair Charlotte said in a feeble voice
"I am exceeding cold."
Away they ride through frozen air
In the glittering starry night
Until at length the village inn
and the ballroom were in sight.
They reached the door, Young Charles stepped out
And held his hand to her
"Why sit you there like a monument
that hath no power to stir?"
He called her once, he called her twice
She uttered not a word
He held his hand to her again
And still she never stirred
Then swiftly through the lighted room
Her lifeless form he bore
Fair Charlotte was a stiffened corpse
And word spoke nevermore.

Of course there was a lesson to be learned from this tragic tale, and many young girls who later played with Frozen Charlottes probably were warned:

Now, ladies, when you hear of this
Think of that dreadful sight,
And never venture so thinly clad,
On such a winter's night.

Most Frozen Charlottes ranged in height from one to four inches. The one-inch-sized dolls were commonly known as "penny dolls" because they generally sold for one cent. The popularity of Frozen Charlottes can be attributed, in part, to the fact that their relatively low price allowed children to accumulate a collection of dolls with which to play.
                                 To see Tim Holtz's post on configuration boxes click here.