There is no such thing as a throw-away scrap around here!

My oval and circle punches are the best craft tools
I've ever purchased!
Save up those 40-50% off coupons or wait for
the sales but everyone who does paper crafts
can use these tools to advantage!
No more throwing away paper scraps around here!
I save everything that looks like it could be punched
into a label or some other craft item.
I even punch up old Christmas cards and
bags from stores that are too pretty to throw away
or recycle.

Below you can see how I folded one of the ovals
in half and used over top of my pin package.
To cover the staple (which looked pretty ugly)
I glued on a scalloped edge circle.
I've also done this with tiny heart shapes punched out.

Everything has a purpose!
You can even center little pictures in your
punches like below so there is some interest
in your punched scraps!

So....all of my pins are packaged and ready to sell!
Now...to make more!
Or...I'm thinking maybe some larger ovals with
beads for Christmas ornaments to give
as gifts to some of my favorite friends!
Instead of pinbacks on them I'll
add a loop and a ribbon so they can hang.

Time to bring out the Christmas quilts....

The top quilt was made using a
pre-printed muslin foundation pattern.
Easy!
This one I quilted myself on my machine
because there wasn't a lot of turning necessary.
I quilted it lengthwise, which is much simpler.

This is definitely a quilt I cuddle under on
cold, winter nights!
It's so soft and snuggly!

Below is one I made from a Thimbleberries pattern.
I did use a paper foundation for the flying geese strips.
I'm not that good at piecing triangles on the machine
but paper piecing them makes all the points
line up exactly.
If you have trouble piecing accurately,
paper piecing (or on muslin) is the way to go!
There are several designers who have excellent
books on this technique, Carol Doak among them.
This one was quilted on a long-arm by a local quilter.

The appliques on the wall quilt were fused and
then I machine blanket-stitched around them.
This isn't a quilt we use -
just for hanging.

The quilt hanging over the bench below
is one I made from scraps. It has a very old fashioned,
Victorian look to it.
My friend, Kim, quilted it for me.
Kim uses a long-arm machine and I love all of the
swirl designs she quilted onto it.

My 1st lessons in quilting were in the 70s and
I learned to do everything by hand, piecing
and quilting.
Switching to machine quilting was a challenge
for me and not "cheating" as some of the
dyed-in-the-wool hand quilters believe.
Many have become "converts" to machine
quilting, however, because it also takes
a learning curve to attain a level of excellence.
Not as simple as it might look!
And don't think it's for sissies either
because it takes a lot of arm strength to
push a quilt through a regular machine!
That's why I have mine done by my friend
on her long-arm now unless it's a
small project.

But....lately....not much time for quilting!
As you can see, if you're a regular reader
of my blog, that I've been creating
a lot of pins and paper crafts lately!
Not to mention my REAL job of painting!

Pins and tags are ready to sell.....just need to package....

Photo above - stamps to match the pin...
maybe something someone would wear on one's travels!

Below....I photocopies leaves from my garden this fall...
and they're the perfect accent colors to match
the two outer pins. In the center is
the Leaning Tower of Pisa stamp and roses...

Below....mauve...love this old fashioned shade of purple...
more photocopied leaves from my garden on the left...
The center holds a reduced image from an antique
book, and to the right lovely clip art...
Just click on any photo to enlarge to see details...

Below...
Knights in Shining Armor! Of course!
And a bird's nest charm...

The next 3 pins had rosy-peachy tones...
so much fun to match up with leaves and prints
and bits of golden corners...

Below...old fashioned clip art on the left...
In the center...travel to exotic places aboard a train!
And on the right....vintage Victorian lace!

Next...more rich rosy colors...
with vintage photos of pretty ladies...

Mauves again...with Marie Antionette!

Earthy teals and ochres and coppers....
The colors one finds in Jerome Arizona near
the copper mines...
I wonder if Marie Antionette knew what copper was?
Or was she all about the bling?
They say she said...
about feeding the poor.... "Let them eat cake" because
she actually didn't know that cake and bread
were both made from flour....
I wonder....!
We'll never know for sure...
the truth...

A bit more teal and ochre and rust...
and true blue...
with ephemera from Michelle
and a stamp and
photocopied leaves....

Busy in the studio...glues & scissors & papers....

Bits and pieces in my sunny studio...
which to choose for a tag to match the pin?
All three scraps?

A pile of pins with matching tags all ready
to be attached with ribbons and
packaged!

Photocopies of leaves from my garden..
pins, glue, stickers and fun!
Notice the little cabinet in the corner?
It's by Martha Smalley from Apple Tree Cottage!

Punches, tools, basket of paper...
busy fingers today!

And lastly....
a cup of my favorite Baker St. blend tea in a
Syracuse China teacup. Syracuse China just
recently closed its doors.
My daughter, Holly, took me to their outlet
store last year and I was fortunate to find this
and a couple of other pieces that will soon
become collectible.
My mother-in-law collected Scammel China
from their outlet store and when they
closed, everything she had became
collectible. When she passed away,
her dinnerware went to my daughters -
something they will always remember her by
because she enjoyed company and we
had many a wonderful dinner on the
serving pieces she had gathered together.
Mom was a huge influence on me and both
girls because now all 3 of us are confirmed
seekers of treasures!

Paper crafters, scrapbookers, collagers....

Oh my!
If you like paper and creating things
from it...
and if you're looking for embellishments
and more...
this is the place:

Serendipity Scrapbooks!
I haven't even touched the surface
of what they have available.

Today...on THANKSGIVING DAY....

Thank a veteran!
Thank someone currently in the service.

A Thanksgiving Gift for You....

PUMPKIN PUDDING
(low fat)

1 - 15 oz. can of pumpkin
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs lightly beaten
1 cup low fat evaporated milk
3/4 cup low fat milk

Butter the sides and bottom of a 1- 1/2 qt. casserole
Bake 55-65 min at 350 degrees
Pudding is finished when a knife inserted
in the center comes out clean.

Nice substitution for pie if you don't want to
eat crust with all that fat in it!
We just took ours out of the oven and oh...
what a fragrance!
Mmmmmm!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, I've been at it again! Making more pins!

I've been working on ceramic candle accessories today
and the sketches I needed to do went rather quickly.
So this afternoon I had time to make two more pins.

I'm not crazy about the one on top and the photo
doesn't show the true colors.
The green is more of an aqua instead.
But I do like the burnished gold and mauve
in the bottom pin.

This evening I plan to curl up with my novel.
We've decided, no pumpkin pie tomorrow!
We're trying to eat sensibly.
Actually, life is good!
Too much food isn't!
There's always tomorrow or a day when
we aren't filled with other goodies!
I'll bake my pumpkin pie the next time we
plan to visit the kids!
I'd rather be busy than eating !

Food Shopping, Library and Now Home.....

...It's very raw and rainy outside -
not the nicest day to buy groceries for Thanksgiving.
But it's just the two of us this year.
So it was a small order at the store and
then off to the library and then to
get a coffee
and now home to play for the rest of the day!
So...I made another Christmas pin.
I think I'll give the 3 red and green pins I made
to 3 special friends this year.
They don't peek at my blog too often
so I hope it will still be a surprise!

I posted a picture of this box I decoupaged quite
awhile ago but thought I'd post it again
for those of you who are new here.
I color copied real leaves on my copier
then cut them out and glued them on a box
from The Thymes body lotion.
I like the way it closes at the top with
a flap and a hole for tying it together.
I think I'd like to make several of these
with Christmas designs and a red bird!
I glued the bird in this one onto card stock
so it would have some body.
This was fun to make!
I can't wait to get started on my Christmas
projects!

Gathering Holly for Christmas

Just for you to print and enjoy!
This is from a very, very old book I found.
So pretty!
Have a happy day!

I just won something lovely!!!

I just won this beautiful apron on Miss Jen's blog!
Blessed Femina

Oh! Not soon enough to wear while making my
pumpkin pies!
But I told Miss Jen that I will be definitely wearing it
when I make my Christmas apple pies!

Isn't it pretty!
Jen made it herself!
I hope you'll go over and visit with her.
She has a recipe using persimmons!
Many of us have never tasted one!
They aren't available in our stores here
in the east, sadly.

Well, I will certainly be proud to wear this
creation by Miss Jen and am so thankful
to have met this sweet girl through blogland!

Thank you, Miss Jen!!!
Happy Thanksgiving to you!

I'm especially thankful for this sweet surprise
because today was a frustrating day in
a way - time to get the trusty old pencils
out and try AGAIN to read between someone
else's ears to see what vision they have
for a project.
Ah...to be a mind reader!
Hmmm....maybe sometimes that wouldn't be
so good! LOL!
But in this case, it definitely would!
I'm rethinking tackling the project.
It might take the back burner or not
get cooked at all.
All part of the job.
In the meantime....
other things are looking GOOD
and moving along at a good pace.
:-)

Here it is! My sparkly Christmas pin.....

This was fun!
My dream is to find a Christmas green dress
with a full skirt...
and I mean FULL...
like Naomi Judd wears...
in satin...
and to put this pin right at the waist of it...
I've always wanted a green satin holiday dress.

The Kreinik flosses are stitched in gold
backstitch around the center beads.
And a very delicate antique gold Kreinik
is used in a backstitch on top of the
green stripes that radiate out from the center.

Ah...even if I HAD a Christmas green satin dress...
where would I wear it?
I'm basically a simple jeans girl.
A country girl at heart.

So I'll just dream about satin dresses.

Aren't These Delicious!

Beautiful, aren't they!
They're my Kreinik metallic threads.
So sparkly and elegant!
I'm working with a gold antique one now and
a thick plain gold braid.
I'll show you the results later!
But in the meantime,
enjoy the sparkle!

Taking the last few stitches on another pin.....

I've been working for most of the afternoon at
my "real" job, painting.
I've been designing a candle accessory collection.
But...it was time to put work aside and do
something just for fun.
So I added the final stitches to this pin
that I began yesterday afternoon.
I enjoy working in complementary colors
like this purple and gold.

You can see the details more clearly above on
the bead that I made using baking clay
and a rubber stamp which I then painted
and gilded after it was hardened.

I can't get enough of working with COLOR!