Throw Down

OK, ladies. We all luv Johnny. Of course. But, have you noticed Robert Downey, Jr. lately?

The sober life seems to agree with him. Do tell.

So, fickle heart. Who's it gonna be? Does your heart belong to Johnny?

Or Robert?

Round 'Em Up

Christmas Eve here I am with Peyton & Tristan, my granddaughters, helping me bring in Pony (behind the girls), Promise and Buffalo. Indiana Jones, our border-collie mix, is helping. Then the fun begins.

My daughter-in-law, Kari, is photographing this daily event. Every afternoon I bring all 3 horses back to the barn, all at once. We know the routine and our part in it and off we go. However, my horses are camera shy...or more correctly, flash bulb shy. Chaos ensues.

OK, Promise is on the loose. No problem. I often will just whistle for her to follow me and the 2 boys back to the barn. She is, after all, the smartest of my herd. I would never let Buffalo, my favorite, hear me say that. His smarts are more of the "street smarts" variety. Pony is still alarmed and not back in-line. Just takes me a second to get everyone sorted, and we proceed.

Just as Pony relaxes, back in his stall, POP goes that flashbulb. Poor little guy. His manners are sorely tested. Enough excitement for one day.

Post Holiday "What Now?"

Now that the long "do list" and rushing around is over, I've found myself with a sort of empty feeling: A "What Now?" feeling. I am embracing it, don't get me wrong. I LOVED the craft blitzes and all of the sharing, and it has been nice to just kinda float for 2 days. Still, time to move on. Today I opened the new Summerset Holidays & Celebrations for inspiration. Yes! There it is. ps That is my cat, GreyC, looking for a spot to doze. Think I'll join her.

Christmas Crafts

In recent years Sis and I have crafted our gifts to Mom and to each other. For Mom I made this stack of logs, based on an idea from Martha Stewart. Each log held a single sock, with the mates wrapped separately.

For Sis I had fun with this chinoiserie pagoda I found at Pier One for $5. I used the motto "Leap And The Net Will Appear" as the theme.

Sis crafted "lumps of coal" also based on a Martha idea. She made one for me, Mom and the kids. Inside was a necklace she made, individually suited to each of us. My necklace is a fox. Christmas is past; on to 2010.

Black is the New Green

My 3rd tree was an impulse. That crazy SueAnn showed us her black Christmas tree and I JUST HAD TO HAVE ONE. A couple days later, at Border's Books, there was a 24" black tree at a give-away price. It became MINE. I already had these animal head ornaments to represent wildlife here: black bear, racoon, fox and horse. Throw on a miniature bead garland plus a candle topper and call it done. I want to thank all you gals for sharing your enthusiasm for the holidays, each in your own way. It snapped me out of my mood of drudge and obligation. Opened my eyes to the importance of giving of self, not of stuff. Stuff is nice, though! Even though he wasn't here to help me unload $300 worth of groceries today, I still want to thank my Bob for giving his time to take the 3 kids to see "Avatar". Merry Christmas everyone.

Cookies

A little something for the sweet tooth. This recipe was on the cover of Better Homes & Gardens and I just had to make it. What I really like is that this recipe for shortbread cookies is easy to cut and the shapes hold their, well, shape. I am challenged when it comes to rolling out pastry. Using cookie cutters usually results in mis-shapen cookies and a mess left behind. Not so this time. I used cherry preserves in the dough and the icing rather than strawberry; thus the red bits you can see. Quick to make and tasty, too. If you would like this recipe, let me know. No time to post it now.

I'm Back...

Whew. The more I hurry, the behinder I get! Still, I'm making time for ornies in betwixt laundry, wrapping, cleaning, chores. This grand old ship may be my last ornie for my sea-theme tree (though I have some fish and shell scrap that would fit in nicely). I used 3-d dots to attach the ship to a very old newsprint from something called "Leisure Hour", dated 1870. This was yet another eBay purchase. Kinda hard to cut up this newspaper magazine, but that is why I bought it.

Here we have a Scottish Warrier for my Tartan tree. Along with that fabulous red, white & blue ribbon. I have managed to purchase 4 of these old fraternal ribbons from eBay this month. Besides being in such excellent shabby condition, nobody is making things like this anymore.

Whoosh

It is just over a week until Christmas! The days are spinning by so quickly. I just wanted to drop by to say "Hi". I know everyone is busy.

I managed to make this ornament for my sea-themed tree. I don't have many ornies for this tree, and I want to stick with the theme. I just received an assortment of old Victorian scrap with a couple of ships. I used this one, along with the very last of the silver tinsel from Laura. I have a few more drying...that Stickles glitter glue can't be rushed. Check back tomorrow.

Happy Birthday, Vanessa

The secret can be revealed. Today is Vanessa's birthday, and the celebration can begin, blogland style. So, who is Vanessa? And what does she mean to me?

For me, discovering A Fanciful Twist was a door into a new world. A world that Vanessa created, out of thin air, imagination, and a playful spirit. She is a gypsy at heart, you know. And a very gorgeous one, on the outside and more so on the inside.

Vanessa cherishes the world's little creatures, like birds and puppy dogs. Frogs, butterflies, lizards, too. She shares this love of nature with us in the most charming ways.

When Vanessa invites you to a blog party (a WHAT?, you say), it is an opportunity to play and make-believe once again. Not that I really played with imaginary friends as a child. Well, except when I was the boss mare for the "herd" of horses during recess in elementary school. The first blog party I attended was Vanessa's Mad Hatter Tea Party this spring. What a lark!

When I read A Fanciful Twist I smile and laugh and sometimes get a little teary eyed. Her stories are full of love and her pictures are awesome. Mostly it is her open invitation into her world that lingers. Vanessa is a joyful, generous, lovely young woman. Happy Birthday To You, Vanessa. And many more, cha-cha-cha.

Checking In

Hi. We are having a cold snap here. Dropping into the 20's, even teens, over-night. My friend SueAnn brought me up short by telling me it is -12 in her little corner of New Mexico. Whoa!

I am fascinated by badges since seeing the 1 Donna O'Brien had (NOT FOR SALE) at the Tinsel & Treasure Show. I found these 2 old beauties on eBay for just a little money. Today I hope to get to the studio to make some badges SeaHorse Ranch Style.

In the meantime, I cobbled together this paper ornament for my Tartan theme tree.

And this one using some sparkly trim my Sis gave me. Rock-on, Paper and Scissors.

Warm Up

The day before I had my Felt Compulsion, I was spurred to finally complete 2 scrapbook pages. I came upon photos of my Dad with my nephews Jason and Matt and Jason's 2 children. I knew I had to preserve these in a tribute. My dad passed when he was only 74, in 2000. I miss him every day.

A couple of years ago I decided to make a scrap page to mark each of my birthdays. So far I've only done one for 58 and this one for 61...back in July. Whew, my ideas simmer slowly. What does this have to do with my post title "Warm Up"; well, I do wish it would warm up from the low 30's AND these projects are just warming me up for another craft blitz.

Felt Compulsion

I have been yearning to get back to my "studio", but days go by so quickly and are filled with chores. Yesterday morning my email brought me an inspiration and a resolve to get to the studio. The inspiration craft was Martha's Felt Corsages, pictured above.

I printed out the instruction and template...but was somewhat stuck on how to decorate the bare felt leaves. So I just started pulling out stuff from drawers. A little of the silver tinsel fringe Laura sent me; some old scrap characters from a recent eBay purchase. And the lesson I learned from looking at Donna's work...More is Never Too Much.

Several fun hours later, this is my version of Christmas felt leaves corsages. Then I was ready to go back to real life.

It's A Start

About the ONLY thing I've done today, beyond chores, is to set out my Christmas display in the foyer. I decided to use several of the vintage embossed die-cuts I've collected. I came upon these old paper products in eBay a few years ago. I was entranced. First because I am very much charmed by old (or old looking) art made from paper. These are from a by-gone era and while not rare, they will never be produced like this again. So I own quite a bit of these pieces for both Winter and Spring displays.

I think my very favorite is the deer and chalet scene. To the left is an adorable image of Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf. This is on the top of a calendar with a thermometer. Many of these old embossed pieces were calendar tops. Also on these 2 shelves are old Christmas corsages, elves and some Wendy Addison originals. Click on this picture to enlarge it and check out the two Wendy logs just in front of the deer scene, and on the right is a hollowed log that the pixie is sitting in. Wendy made 2 of these from some type of paper mache and they are fabulous. I feel so lucky to have them.

Kinda Blue

My little Canon digital can't do much to showcase the lights on my tree. I wanted blue lights for the fresh-cut Noble Fir in the family room. Blue because that is the color of lights Gramma used on her big trees back in the 50's. The Christmas light aisle at Target was very popular today. There were only 2 boxes of the blue mini-lights left (plenty of purple and I seriously considered those for a few minutes). I put the 2 boxes in my cart and moved on down the aisle to the LED lights. There were lots of those in stock. I wasn't sure about them but I knew I needed another box of lights...so I bought 1 box of the blue LED mini-lights. Long story short. The LED lights are VERY BRIGHT. I'm talking blind-you-bright. With the traditional blue mini-lights I did not need my light dimmer. (Yes, I use a dimmer for white mini-lights to soften the glow.) Here is my tip, girls. Be aware of the almost glare of the LED lights and get yourself a plug in dimmer to use with the light strings. It's a good thing. ps I think the mix of the 2 types of lights in the same color is a winner. Give that a try.

Fantasy Fudge

I don't know why it's called fantasy fudge. I would call it dream fudge, because I do dream about it around this time of year. I'm talking about the fudge made with marshmallow fluff, evaporated milk, sugar, butter, walnuts...all the good stuff. The first time I tasted it was when my mother-in-law mailed us a 5 pound box for Christmas 1988. You bet it became a tradition. Bob loved her gumdrop cake (like a fruitcake using gumdrops in place of fruit), but for me...FUDGE. My mom became a fan and now we both start salivating at the mention of it. Today Mom is finally home from a 28 day cruise. However, very sick with asthma. She has chicken soup on the stove but it was the promise of a batch of Fantasy Fudge that perked her up.

Dear Santa

All I want for Christmas is this oh-so-chic vacuum coffee maker. And it's only $675. But, dream on little coffee freak, it's SOLD OUT until next summer. For you eagle-eyes out there, this was featured in the Jack Nicholson movie "The Bucket List"; in copper. Remember it from one of the hospital scenes?

1-2-3

Do you like John Travolta? Especially when he is deliciously evil.

Do you LOVE Denzel? If you say no, you lie. Well, rent "Pelham 1 2 3". Whoo Hoo what a ride!

Cook's Little Helpers

Let the Thanksgiving cooking begin! I have more shortcuts than ever, because I am making more of the dishes than usual. Does your grocery store stock these pre-diced celery & onions? I think it is a great time-saver that I can't always find. Frozen pie shells - check; canned whipped cream - check; foil roasting pan -check. I did draw the line at packaged stuffing mix and canned cranberry sauce. Just can't go there.

Is this too whack for you? Well not for me. Ahhh, the aroma of hashish in the morning :). (I wish!...OK, OK...just kidding) I will turn on my CD player with Diana Krall, Mel Torme, maybe a little Benny Goodman. Appletini, anyone? Good to Go.

A Big Step

For some time I've been uncomfortable with the methods used by the food industry. Especially the meat producers. I stopped eating beef (again) several months ago, but I do love pork and chicken and seafood have been a constant for many years. Still, that voice in my head kept nagging at me about the ethics of eating intelligent animals. Yep, this bothers me. So why not DO something about it? Like vote with my wallet? Then on Martha's show this week...and I wasn't even going to tape this show but for some reason I ended up watching it...she featured the director of the movie "Food, Inc." Martha and the guy took it easy on the audience and didn't show any fearsome film clips from the movie, but, hey, I don't have to see it to imagine it. And Martha was on it as far as encouraging everyone to be more thoughtful about what they eat. So, I'm not going to hide my head in the sand anymore. I am going to eat locally and organically. Today I went to a special holiday Farmer's Market in my 'hood. I gotta say that the growing season in Western WA is short. I pretty much bought everything that was offered: rainbow chard, flat leafed parsley, sage, a gorgeous pumpkin, honey, goat milk soap, and a big bag of sunchokes. The pumpkin will grace my front porch for a while; the soap and honey will be Christmas gifts.

My guys ARE NOT vegetable lovers. Well, adjustments are going to have to be made! Tonight I roasted teryaki chicken legs (from the freezer) plus the sunchokes; steamed the chard, and used chevre I made this week on the bread. Those fresh vegetables and cheese are DELICIOUS. I WILL find an organic turkey for Thanksgiving. I know it will cost a lot more, and really won't taste any better. As for eating pork in the future...I gotta say I've never seen organic pork (aka humanely treated) in my grocery store.

Just Go

Last night Bob and I went to see "This Is It". I was riveted with the sounds of his music, the effort of the dancers, the deference paid to MJ by all...and the sense that Michael was so very alone, even in the midst of adoring staff that had been with him for a long time. The movie is well done, giving those who seek some closure a last glimpse. The man was frail; driven by near impossible standards. And in the end, he just wanted rest. To sleep. Perchance to dream.

Beginning Calligraphy

Sister loaned me a "how to" book on calligraphy. I have only one question: How do I get this ink off my hands?! Ah, the joys of learning.

Opinion Poll

Gals, I'm asking for your input. Just for fun. For Thanksgiving I want to use this idea: each guest will have a place card with a question. Like "What do you think is the greatest invention of all time? " Not very original, but should make for some good conversation to follow the 10 minutes of eating. That's right. The eating of the Thanksgiving meal that took HOURS to prepare, lasts about 10 minutes. Don't start. So, from these 3 examples, which design would you prefer? You may need to click on the picture to enlarge it. Take pity on me and leave your comments by 11/21 so I have some time to make the place cards. ps These are a little rough as I did them in the last 15 minutes so I can get out the door and into town. Whew.

Cabinet of Curiosities

This post is especially for my new friend Karen, A Mermaids Purse. First I want to say how much my blog friends mean to me. I have always embraced digital communication; from the early days of the Internet back in the mid-80's. Still I'm rather new to blogging. It has been very rewarding as a place for me to journal, and !SURPRISE!, to meet such a varied and supportive clan. OK, back to Karen. She has a cabinet almost exactly like mine. I thought I'd share.

My cabinet is in the master bedroom; filled with my most special treasures. I enjoy holiday displays in my foyer, or wherever I can glimpse things that make me smile, and I'm still all about the vintage look. I take these goodies out at the appropriate season and place them with the rest of my seasonal collections. Above are old treasures from long ago, most bought on eBay. The little nut cup in front is a Wendy Addison original.

Next is my collection of Steiff animals. I could never afford this brand, though I did buy my nephew Jason a Steiff hedgehog. Hmmm, wonder where that is now? Around 2001 I decided I would have Steiff in my life. Again, via eBay, I've acquired a few previously-loved darlings.

Here are some vintage Christmas corsages and whatnot. So very sweet.

Here are some old porcelain mermaids that I put on my dining table in the summer. Also two Wendy Addison eggs for Easter. Displayed not very well at all are my old beaded handbags. None of these are pristine, so not valuable, but exquisite, nevertheless. They really deserve a shadowbox frame...another day. I also store my oldest Halloween things here, but you saw those in my "The Haunting" post. So, I hope you enjoyed a tour through my cabinet.