Paper Mache Cross with Roses Shrine

I just finished my paper mache 

cross and roses shrine.

It can stand on it's own, or hang on the wall. 

I think I'd like to buy a little

flameless tea light for it. 

We had a wonderful Christmas filled with blessings.

I hope you did as well. 

Now we're looking forward

to our daughters wedding on New Years Eve!

I'm still trying to think of something

meaningful I can make for her and my soon to be son in law.

I'll be sure to share it when I do. 

Happy New Year!!!

Felt Gnome Ornament

I decided to make one more 

felt ornament before Christmas. 

Why not a Gnome?

It had to be a cute one, not a creepy one. 

First I drew my design out on graph paper,

and then started cutting out the pieces. 

Walmart has the best price I've found for felt squares.

I used a cardboard insert, the same way

I did with my sugar skull ornaments.

I glued, stitched, and embellished

until it was finished. 

I think he turned out pretty cute,

although I like the drawing better.

Maybe it's the eyes. I need to tweak them a bit. 

Merry Christmas!

I hope you have a wonderful and blessed holiday season. 

Wood Plaque Art

 My community has a neighborhood newsletter

that's delivered every morning to my inbox. 

It's filled with trivia about the particular day, or 

something special about our town, 

or it's residents, past and present.

 Neighbors may post things they are selling, giving away, 

services they want to recommend, or are in search of. 

One of my kind neighbors was offering dozens

of bare wood plaques along with some wood boxes.

Although I wasn't the first to respond, 

I was the only one that showed up. 

That's a metaphor for life isn't it?

The people most likely to succeed are the people that show up!

I need to remind myself of this incident and be ready to 

show up when opportunity arises. 

Fortunately for me, she gave me everything 

she had. She said she was going to throw it all in 

the green barrel (plant recycle) but decided 

to see if anyone could use it first.

I was truly grateful and expressed my appreciation to her. 

There were about 50-60 wood plaques like this!

I only spent about an hour on the following

piece. It was an early Christmas present for me. 

I was so excited to make something, . . . anything!

I decided to make the subject one 

of my "life verses". 

I'll probably go back in and do some more 

work on it (after the holidays), but here it is so far. 

Field Trip to Sunflour Market

Our friends opened a cute little shop

in Superior Arizona. 

My husband and I decided to take a 

ride to visit them and check it out. 

It's called Sunflour Market.

It used to be an old west diner that was

designed and used as part of the set in a movie 

with Jennifer Lopez (which I never saw). 

Although my friend who bought the shop

said she invited a group of her church

friends over to her house to watch the movie

after they got the place. She said  

they had to turn it off when it started 

getting a little too hot and heavy. It turned out not 

to be an appropriate movie for a church group. 

I couldn't help but laugh. That's something I'd do.

Our friends ended up completely redesigning the place. Now it's

a bright, sunny, coffee shop, bakery, and boutique/market. 

I thought some of the details were so cute

and wanted to share them with you. 

If you ever get a chance to visit, you'll 

be glad you did. My advice would be

to go on the weekend when most of the towns stores are open, 

and don't miss the nearby Boyce Thompson Arboretum.

Items near the front window.

They have an enclosed outdoor patio area. This is looking up above the front window.

Looking out the front window from the outdoor patio area.
There's a new hotel being built across the street.

Wind chimes and a copper wall. The wind chimes were selling for around $15!

You can see part of a sunflower painting on the patio with some cute planters.

Pail light fixtures. Note the skeleton on the back wall. You'll see it again soon. 

Terra cotta and turquoise, two of my favorite colors.

She has a lot of pretty vignettes set up all over.

Painted oil drums with wood tops and stools are used for patio seating.

Skeleton mural on the back wall of the patio.

I loved this painted window. It was even prettier in person.

This is from the front of the shop looking toward the back.
There were lots of fresh baked goodies on the counter. 

This is looking out the front window onto Main Street. 

This is the hall mural near the restrooms. Poppies and butterflies!

These are baskets made in Africa~ very pretty and colorful. 

I hope you found some inspiration, 

and enjoyment from my little getaway!

Fabric Collage

While sorting through my fabric stash,

I was inspired to make a fabric collage.

This is my first and only so far,

but I must say it was a lot of fun.

I kind of wish I would've looked up advice or

techniques before I started so I wouldn't have 

had to make things up as I went along.

Fabric is not the easiest thing to work

with in this manner.

  I knew I wanted the subject to be an eccentric older lady. 

I didn't have a picture or photo for inspiration. 

Her face began to develop as I went along.

You may be able to see that I've got it set up on a 

piece of plexiglass to make it easier for myself to move around. 

I lightly tacked the pieces together

with white glue when I felt confident with their placement. 

I added a pop of blue color for the background and then

sandwiched the whole thing between 2 pieces of plexiglass.

Before doing that, I drilled 2 holes in the
back and added a plastic coated wire
for hanging. 

Then I "framed" it by wrapping the whole thing

with bright red duct tape. 

While duct tape is not the most professional finish,
it kind of fits with the organic composition

of the piece as a whole.

Overall, I'm pleased with the

way it turned out and look forward

to doing another one.

Although I may do something similar

with assorted paper instead of fabric.

Oak Stool Upcycle

I found this oak stool

at the thrift store for seven dollars.

I saw some potential and couldn't pass it up. 

It wasn't wobbly, or in need of repair

which is an extra bonus for me. 

All it needed was some paint and a little TLC. 

Pieces don't have to be cosmetically perfect for 

me to work on. I don't do much

sanding and patching, unless it's really bad. 

A really good full coverage primer

to start will usually takes care of things to my liking. 

After priming, I started with a bright green acrylic base. 

I usually pick out my colors in advance,

but the design is created as I go. 

For no rhyme or reason, I typically choose an odd 

number of colors (usually 3, 5, or 7), and it 

always seems to balance nicely.

Here's where I drew out a rough pattern

on the seat and started filling it in. 

Now I'm starting to get somewhere.

Here's the finished piece after

I gave it a couple coats of polyurethane. 

This is a close up of the seat. 

This project took me about a week to complete. 

Turning trash into treasure

is one of my favorite things.

Recycled Gift Card Wall Hanging

Part of my materials stash consists

of discarded gift cards from a coffee house. 

Every day dozens of these used plastic

 gift cards end up in the garbage.

I saw it firsthand when I worked there, 

and also saw potential where others saw trash.

This is how my collection started, 

and I asked others to

collect them for me too. 

I thought of using them for a mosaic art piece, 

and may do that in the future. 

For now, this is my coffee

star wall hanging. 

I used a strong pair of scissors, some super glue, 

and a hidden loop of fish line in the back for a hanger. 

I do have a few collector

cards that I'm saving for a special

center piece that I can work my design around.

Personalized Key Holder Plaque

I want to show you what I've been working on this morning.

These are some family Christmas gifts I need to

finish and get out in the mail.

The clock is ticking loudly, if

you know what I mean. 

I just want to get them done

and on their way. 

I kept it simple with the two colors

and am fairly pleased with the way they turned out.

I wish I was in a better frame of mind,

and not letting the stress of the holidays

get to me. . . already!

As you can see the "Lenart" plaque

still needs it's cup hooks and 

some finishing touches. 

I may be finished with the "Petersen" plaque,

but who knows. I can never say for sure 

until it's all wrapped up and ready to be mailed.

I may end up doing some sort of embellishment

around the cup hooks themselves. It looks

a little bare in that area. 

I hope they like them. 

Sharpie Art Portrait

This is the beginning of my drawing. 

I've got an idea to start, but

I don't have the whole thing planned out. 

It starts to take on a path of it's own. 

She took about 3 days to finish. 

Pretty crazy I know, but this is the path it took. 

Now, you're not going to believe what I did. 

Why do I do things impulsively, like getting my 

haircut on a whim or cutting up my artwork? 

Yes, I "trimmed" it. 

No, not my hair.

Not only that, but I trimmed too much,

and unlike my hair it won't grow back. 

Grrrr. 

Another lesson learned the hard way. 

Note to self;

Keep your artwork away from the paper cutter.

Sugar Skull Ornaments

I'd finished with my 

felt sugar skull ornaments,

or so I thought. 

As with every one of my completed projects,

I need to sit and stare at it (whatever "it" is) for a while.

Sometimes a LONG while. 

In a weird way, the piece will let me know 

whether or not I'm finished with it. 

No, not in a "crazy

lady who hears voices coming from
inanimate objects" kind of way. 

There's just an internal satisfaction that

comes with knowing that I'm really finished

with each particular piece, or else
there's an unrest that means the piece needs more work.

Well, after thoughtfully pondering my ornaments for a while,
I knew they needed more oomph, pizazz, something. . .

My husband usually

says he knows I'm done with a piece when 

he starts getting dizzy. 

(Don't misunderstand, he says it

with a sweet smile in the most loving way.)

He appreciates my work and is

a great encourager to me. 

I thought I'd share

ten of the fifteen I've made. 

I'd like to make some with

white or cream felt too. 

What do you think about different

colors of felt for a base besides the black and white? 

I'm happy with 

the way they turned out. 

I'm really finished this time.

My husband is nice and dizzy. 

I hope his co-workers like their gifts!

Now I need to figure out a clever way to wrap them,
using the materials I have on hand.

Hmmm. . .  .

Sugar Skull Clown

I'm calling this ornament my sugar skull clown.

Although I didn't start out to make a clown, he

ended up looking like one. 

I just had to "go with it", which is part of the fun

of creating things. You never know how it'll end up. 

First I drew the design with 

sharpies and pitt pens like my other

sugar skull eggs. 

Next, I threaded a metal concho with a piece of lace

 and glued those two pieces of the "collar" 

to the base of the ornament. 

I further secured the collar with two bead head straight pins, 

which wasn't easy, but I finally got it with a lot of twisting. 

I used a cylindrical polymer 

bead for his fez hat.

It's glued to the top of his head,

along with the hanging ribbon.

Those two are then secured

with a bead head pin as well. 

(Obviously, these ornaments need to be

kept away from small children and curious pets.)

Here's the holiday greeting

on the back. 

Feliz Navidad!

Back to creating! 

I have to finish my black felt sugar skulls.

Shhh. . .

(They're Christmas gifts for my husbands co-workers.)

Portrait Wedding Gift

What do you give for a wedding present

when there's no need for a toaster or a teapot?

Many couples these days are waiting to get married. 

They're established in their homes and careers, 

and have everything they need. 

This was the dilemma I found myself in

when one of my dear relatives got married. 

After bouncing ideas around in my mind,

I decided to draw a portrait of the two of them. 

I know it was a risky gift, but we live on opposite

ends of the country. 

They wouldn't feel obligated to hang 

it if they didn't like it. 

Of course, I really hoped they'd like it. 

Here's the finished piece.

I wish I would've taken a picture

of the handmade card and envelope that

went with it. It made the whole package complete.

I did get a sweet thank you card in the mail recently.

They loved it, and it's hanging in their home. 

Success!

Black Felt Sugar Skull Ornaments

I picked up some felt squares

at JoAnn's last week.

The Black Friday shoppers had already

cleaned out several colors and it was

only Tuesday!

I wanted to pick up some white or cream for a

base as well as the black, but they were out of stock

at my store that day. 

I do like black with the bright colors

and am happy with the way they turned out.

I started by drawing a pattern on grid paper

and then cutting out the design on cardboard. 

I had a piece laying around that happened to be red. 

As you can see I need a new blade for my razor knife. 

(The right tools make all the difference!)

 I cut enough cardboard templates 

for each ornament, because they were glued inside.

I cut the felt about 1/4" larger than my template

so I could finish the skull off with a blanket stitch. 

I used DMC floss, buttons, beads,

and rhinestones for embellishments. 

They're a lot of fun to make.

I'm still working on several more. The options for

designs are endless!