GIANT ornament

This idea sparked when I dismantled an old cedar arbor top.  My greenhouse job has provided me with many odds & ends through the years.  It's always fun to make something out of nothing!



What would you have come up with?  It's like psycology..."what do you see?"

                                An ORNAMENT!

That's when the real work began.  Sewing, ironing, snipping wire, sawing, pounding & stapling. The miracle was my sewing was straight!  I took the plunge & bought a fabric marker.  What a difference that made!  The right side got stretched a little to hard, but it's nearly perfect.  I'm not into perfection anyhow.  The floor tiles & two lines in the chicken wire gave me good lines to match up also.

White burlap?  I'm in love.

The best part was decorating it with a bow & greens.  I'm pricing this puppy high at the craft show, because I want to keep it & it was a lot of work!  It's a whopping 45" wide!  I think I'd be best in a covered porch or in an entry way.

 Linking up to:

Knick Of Time



My Uncommon Slice Of Suburbia


The Thrifty Home

DECK THE HALLS

I thought that a garage sale barn picture was so cool.  When I got home & opened it up, the "photo" turned out to be a cheap calendar page!  So I guess the .25 was spent on the frame and sage green matting.  That's still a good deal.  Check out what I made. . .

I painted the negative space in a vinyl cut out on my Cricut.  The cartridge is called Winter Frolic. 

 It needed some dimension, so I put on two buttons. I also added strips of scrapbooking paper around the matting.  This lovely paper is cream gingham from Authentique.  The distressing is pretty neat!

Linking up to:

Ivy & Elephants

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Bye Bye Pumpkins

Some people that I know already have their Christmas tree up!  Maybe you do too.  Personally, we wait and buy a real one later on.  Holidays & seasons are changing.

The pumpkins on the deck froze hard as a brick.  It was pretty sad seeing them heaped on my ever growing compost pile.  *sigh*

He didn't even make it through Thanksgiving, so I gave him a sad face.  I just couldn't resist!

But the good news is that Christmas is THEE most delightful holiday to decorate for!!!  Okay, I'm pretty sure I say this about every holiday.  Oh well, at least there is enthusiasm!

In honor of the CURRENT holiday, here is a lovely vintage postcard.  I sifted through HUNDREDS at the local antique store to come up with one that I liked.  It's so fancy, all embossed and a metallic wishbone.

Do *YOU* have a thing for postcards?  They seem to be one item that maintains it's value.  I think the beauty of vintage cards is how unique they are and they always have a nice handled appearance.  It's sweet really, one person sending thoughtful images to each other, the old fashioned way.

 

Linking up to :          Very Merry Vintage Style

Savvy Southern Style

Winter Is Here

I wasn't ready for winter.  It came and dumped 4 inches of the white stuff on my wheel barrow full of balsam & winter berry.

Logically this would go *IN* my garden shed, but there is just one problem.  The shed is so full.

I'd clean it out, but you never know when you'll need.....

Elk antlers . . . .



Three vintage doors . . . . .



Rickety stools . . .



Twigs and a window . . .



Hi, my name is Jane.  I have a problem.

Did YOU see anything good in there???  ahhhh huh! I thought so.

Honestly, taking these pictures gave me the giggles.  My poor husband has every right to be irritated with my hoarding.  However, a true "junker" sees treasure in everything.  Am I right?

Stay warm & enjoy the beauty of winter.

Rag Lights

You may have seen this idea floating around blog land or Pintrest.  When my mother-in-law gave me all her quilting scraps, I just had to try the rag lights.

I cut strips about 1 1/2 x 7 1/2", but irregularity is the name of the game.  That's why this was the perfect craft for me.  No straight lines, fussy measurements, or sewing!

The lights were dirt cheap.  The 11 foot strand of LED C6 with 35 bulbs were on sale for $4.99 with an instant $2 rebate from our electric company.  Needless to say I bought the rebate max of 5 boxes. 

I just tied them on randomly with no method or order.  I think it turned out great, but it did take time.  You can do this and watch TV at the same time.  So, it's a no-brainer.

A few tips: Don't use too many fabrics with white backs.  I had two out of six that DID.  But they blended in okay because my lights are white.  Also, I used 109 strips. This will vary if you use a longer strand or if you prefer a thicker or sparse look.

Linking up to:

Dittle Dattle

Between Naps On The Porch

Festive Entry

I've transitioned from Halloween to Thanksgiving outside.  It won't be long & snow will force me store most of it away.  Until the pumpkins get soft, I'm going to enjoy them as long as I can!

Wax Turkey

It seems hard to find vintage Thanksgiving theme decor.  Other than oodles of pumpkins & leaves, it's tough.  I'd like more turkey items!  Postcards, platters, and school items would be ideal.  This summer, at a local flea market, I scored an old wax turkey candle for one dollar!

It looks kind of ugly alone, but it's WAY cuter if you put it in a display.  The perfect spot for it was on an old cast iron corn fritter mold!  I had to fork out $15 for the iron. But after cruising a swap meet all day, that was the best deal.  You know how it is, when you get your heart set on something.

I snatched the lovely pottery last week at a thrift shop.  It was marked $7.50 in three places.  I'm pretty sure they were firm on the price!  The bottom is labeled USA 2003.  I'm hoping that's not the year...but a model number.  It just caught my eye & I loved the rich color.