Finally Finished!

Quite some time ago, someone asked if I could paint another item like one that had already sold in my Etsy shop. http://www.etsy.com/view_transaction.php?transaction_id=18045631 . I told her I could but I was involved in a refurbishing project in the house we moved out of when we built our new one, and wouldn't be able to get to it for a while. So, lo and behold, these many weeks later, I finally have it done!
It's from a Terrye French design (I love her designs!), done on an upcycled wooden tray. I love visiting thrift shops and yard sales searching for things to paint on. This is one of those finds.

So, I hope she still wants it. If not, it'll be going into my Etsy shop. http://www.toletallypainted.etsy.com/

Don't Mess With This Turkey!!

If I were these cute little Pilgrims, I wouldnt' be messing with this turkey! So-----is it a giant turkey or are they midget Pilgrims? LOL!

These are the cutest vintage candles and even though they obviously aren't intended to be a set, they certainly are in the same theme, so they'll be keeping each other company in my Thanksgiving decor.
If you'd like to add them to YOUR Thanksgiving decor, hurry on over to The Vintage Dresser Etsy shop. If we're quick they can be in your home by Turkey day! http://www.thevintagedresser.etsy.com

On The Hunt for Thanksgiving "Stuff"

I thought I'd see what fun Thanksgiving and fall related things I could find on Etsy---turkeys, pilgrims, etc. There are oodles of fun goodies to be discovered. Here are just a few for your viewing pleasure!

Thanksgiving Mixed Media Collage to put you in the holiday spirit.

From: C'est Magnifique

I have this same Pilgrim set I made years ago!! Only mine are pewter looking. They'd make a lovely table centerpiece. From: Jacque's Treasures

Thanksgiving banner to decorate your mantle, doorway, or anyplace you desire! From: Smart Gal Designs

This vintage enamelware turkey platter is so cool & colorful---and I've got one just like it!!

From: Kris67

No Thanksgiving is complete without one of these! I've still got Tania's collection of Smurfs but she didn't have this little cutie.

From: From The Hip Creations

Cute fall nightlight for these short days when it gets dark so early.

From: Tole-tally Painted

These turkey soaps would add a festive touch to your bathrooms.

From: Daisycake's Soap

And you need to decorate yourself, too! This cute little clay pin is just the thing.

From: Clayin' Around



Well, this is just a few of the fun things I found. I could spend way too much time on this project, so this is where it ends for today! I hope you pay these fun shops a visit and see what else they have to offer.

Musical Leaves Tutorial

When we were in one of our favorite shops in Snohomish a couple of weeks ago, Joyworks, I spotted some leaves they had hanging above their check-out area. They had been cut from music sheets from a song book. For some reason they struck me as a fun project to do, so here we go:

On a trip to town a few days ago, I cruised some streets, looking for trees with pretty leaves. I was in a residential area and felt a LITTLE conspicuous parking in the street, jumping out and ripping leaves off of trees, but sometimes one has to sacrifice dignity in the name of "art"! LOL!

Now, FYI, It would have been easier to use these leaves if I'd come right home and jumped on this project! But no---I waited a couple of days before I got to it, and the leaves were curling and getting kind of crispy! So, I smoothed them out the best I could and used a fine point marker to draw an outline around them. If you're really creative you could just draw your own leaves and leave out the hunt, but I enjoy looking at fall leaves, so it was kind of enjoyable cruising around checking them out.

This one was especially challenging!

This huge one is a Sycamore leaf. That's the kind of tree that has the big green prickly looking balls on it that fall all over the yard in the fall, along with the leaves!

So, I've now got a tracing of all the leaves I collected. I'm not much of a leaf expert, but I do know that I have a Sycamore and an Oak---not that it matters! Now the fun begins---I cut around each of the tracings so I would have a nice flat pattern for tracing onto the music sheets. Then I did just that--traced around the leaves onto the music.

I used my flash in this picture because for some reason, even tho I have every light in the kitchen on, including the under counter lights, the pictures seemed a little dark.

I like the darker pictures better!

Next I got busy with my scissors and did some more paper cutting. Kind of takes you back to grade school, huh? Aren't they pretty?

But now what?! The ones we saw at the shop were attached to a gnarly tree branch, but, having just moved to a new house with absolutely no landscaping and nothing remotely resembling a tree, I have to come up with some other plan. I'll go on another scavenging trip soon and find a tree branch, but in the meantime--------

I decided they'd look pretty on my kitchen cabinets! Now I just need to do several dozen more!

Old is New Again - Vintage Owls

I don't know if you've noticed but old is new again! Yup... one of those popular "old" items is owls! They are everywhere and we have several in our Etsy shop and our eBay store!

This is so cute, it's a measuring spoon holder for your kitchen!

And a toothpick holder!

This little guy has been "upcycled" with a fresh coat of blue paint... he's a candle holder!

A cookie cutter!

I just love this little guy's BIG eyes, he's a planter!

And a cookie jar!

Anyone out there have an owl collection? Send us a picture of your collection, we'd love to see!

Monroe & Snohomish, Here We Come!

This coming weekend is our bi-annual (May & Oct.) trip to Monroe, Wa. & Snohomish, Wa. http://www.antiquesnohomish.com/antiquesnohomish.htm What started years ago as a trip to the Monroe Swap Meet for my husband, http://www.aarcbellingham.com/ has developed into a swap meet and antiqueing trip. On one of those long ago trips to Monroe, we drove down the road a ways and discovered Snohomish, the antique capital of the Northwest! http://www.myantiquemall.com/starcenter.html Things haven't been the same since ;-) My DH likes to gripe about it but I think he enjoys it. Besides, he gets to stay at the swap meet and my daughter & I go to the shops and a huge craft store that's in Monroe, so he isn't subjected to more "shopping" than he can handle!

My DH and I used to go by ourselves but somewhere along the line Tania discovered where we were sneaking off to! So now it's a family affair. Her DH comes along to peruse the rusty antique auto parts at the swap meet with "Dad" and we make a perfunctory cruise thru the meet to see if there's anything we can't live without. There's one building with "girl stuff" and there's some of it scattered throughout the many booths and stalls of car parts. Then we leave the men to themselves and we head to town.

Sometimes one or two of the kids come along. This time Nick, Tania's stepson, and Sydney, Tania's daughter (my granddaughter!) will be joining us. Hopefully there won't be too much whining about "not ANOTHER antique shop!" from sweet Sydney!

Last trip, in May, we were thrilled to discover there was an outdoor antique show in the center of old downtown Snohomish. I don't thing that will happen this trip, though. However, there's plenty to see and do without that. Almost every building lining both sides of 1st street contains antiques, or fun merchandise. We usually just hit the ones that really "speak" to us, looking for something we can't live without.

So, come Friday morning bright and early, DH and I will be heading over the mountain. Tania and her entourage will be joining us later in the day, to accomodate work and school schedules. I'm definitely looking forward to a getaway---DH and I have been working our heads off getting a rental house ready to rent. It's the one we lived in for 35 years or so, till we built a new house. Since it's such a pain to work on a house while you live in it, we put off a lot on needed repairs. Then we painted the whole inside AND outside, altho we did have help with the outside. So we're definitely looking forward to this weekend!

I'll be taking a few photos and hopefully have something to show on our return.

Interesting Scenery On The Way To Portland

I have a few photos of the scenery we encountered on our trip to Portland, Oregon last weekend, that I thought might be of interest. The terrain can be pretty stark in places but majestic at the same time. And there's no shortage of interesting things to see.

These wind turbines take the place of trees on the hillside near Goldendale, Wa. and the Columbia Gorge (Columbia River). There's quite a bit of controversy among environmentalists regarding these huge wind machines, but there's no denying they are an impressive sight!

Here's a short video with some neat pictures of them that really gives you an idea of how huge they really are.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyIX3SXHyvs

There are quite a few of them on both sides of the Columbia and further east. There aren't many visible further west along the river.

This is Washington's version of Stonehenge, built by a fellow named Sam Hill. He also built the Maryhill Museum, an impressive castle down the road a few miles. It was built as a private home & later became a museum. I didn't get any pictures of it this time, but here's a site with some information. http://gonw.about.com/od/attractionswa/ss/maryhill.htm