What A Find

Hello my dear friends,

I just had to make a little post to share my latest find. I was out doing my grocery shopping and decided to just jump into one of the thrift stores I tend to visit and have a peek if there might be anything I could use and just before leaving I saw this bag with something large and white in it hanging off of a hook. I wasn't too sure what it was but figured that if I didn't want it I could always return it. And this is what it was ...

... a large roll of old lace!

Lots and lots of old lace!

Layer upon layer ...

of this beautiful vintage lace !!!

And to think I was thinking of returning it before I even bought it ... 

... and at $3.99 ~ what a find!!

Otherwise I haven't had too much time to create the past week ~ not even for one little Christmas creation! I am hoping once I have finally finished all my other chores, in and outside the house, I will find some spare time for me and making something lovely. Until then ... keeping stopping by and taking a look!

I hope you are well and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day,

Karen B.

These Past Weeks

Hello my dear friends,

it has been a little while since I have had time to work on my blog. I hope life is slowly calming down for me which would be so very nice since I have been feeling the strain lately. The running around with our outdoor project, my Mom very sick in hospital and my younger daughter's fracture and on top of the all the other normal things in life were getting too much for me at one point. I fell sick over Thanksgiving with being so exhausted that I stayed in bed for almost two full days.  I am better now and I am even getting a bit of creating time in between chores lately.

I have restarted a "old" project which I had been working on and then gave up and my friend the sweet Dawn from the Feathered Nest was the driving point there for me to restart it. I am hoping it will not take too much time to create it and that I will be able to finish it they way I see it in my mind. I am not going to tell you what it is just yet. Actually I have had several new ideas that are now waiting patiently in my little companion (my wee idea booklet) for me to start working on some time soon.

I did have a few hours to myself a few weekends ago so I visited a few of this years last church sales and found many treasures that will help keep me busy once the cold weather starts and the beautiful snow is back. I find there is something very special about sitting at my table looking out the window into my back yard and watching the first glistening snowflakes fall to earth. It's like magic!!

But now I would like to share my new treasures with you ...

 a few vintage doilies ...

 an old strainer/egg cooker (well that's what they told me it was!) and a vintage jelly form ...

 a few vintage pieces of jewellery and sparkling buttons ...

 a wee old tin and cardboard "tin" filled with little bits and pieces ...

 a small vintage globe ...

 a little box filled with these lovely small prints of maps ...

and finally a little silver tray, a silver handle or knife stand and a silver and glass candy dish. I am sure they will all come in handy for a project in the future.

Also a short update for you on our outdoor project ...

our pool is now closed for the year. Unfortunately we never got to use it once this summer but I hope that next summer will be a good one. I did manage to get our new lawn done before it got too wet and cold. Unfortunately I hate to say that there were so many problems with some of the companies that we had hired that I will think twice about any larger projects in the future.

And last but not least ...

... I took my 11 year old daughter Caylagh to see Selena Gomez a few days ago here in London and it was just fantastic!! Selena was sick on the night but she still gave a great performance which I am sure my daughter will never forget!

I hope it won't take me weeks to be able to share something new with you all again but please, do stop by once in a while!

I hope you are all well and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day,

Karen B.

My Saturday Doings

Hello my dear friends,

trying not to let things get to me too much I ventured out first thing early this morning to one of this years last church sales and I am so glad I did. To tell you the truth I went twice to the same church ~ first on my own and later with one of my daughters and here are my newest findings ...

some old paper tape and a tatty wooden box, ...

 some white lace, a few thimbles and a really neat old measuring tape from England.

After my first visit I went back home and then headed out to visit my mother. I was very happy to see that she is feeling a bit better today even though she still can't remember the past few days.

After my visit I decided to pick my younger daughter up and head back to the church sale one last time and this time it was really worth it because they wanted to close up for the day empty bags were sold for $5 each and you could fill them with anything that would fit inside.

And this is what I filled my bag with.

Some lovely light brown velvet, muslin and an old small table cloth with a very pretty crocheted edge.

And then there was this!! A cigar box filled this little packet of somethings all wrapped up. And this is what I unwrapped ...

... these!!!

Almost 100 crystals from an old chandelier!! They are so beautiful!! I am not sure what I am going to do with them. I was wondering if they would look good on a Christmas tree? I'll  put them away for now and hopefully think of something another time.

And last but not least ...

... as some of you know I used to create primitives before I found altered art and I have a few leftover unfinished pieces in my craft room and this is one of them:

I made this witch's hat from muslin ~ actually I have two of them exactly the same. They have now been sitting in my craft cupboard for over a year now without anything happening to them ...

... so I have decided to finally do something with them. I have an idea ~ well again actually two ideas in my mind for these small witchy hats ... good and bad!! That's all I am going to say for now. (I do hope my ideas will work out!) Whenever I am done I will share with all you lovely bloggers ~ I am just not sure when that might be yet.

I am hoping to get some reading time this weekend so I can sit down and take a look at all your blogs and see what all of you lovely bloggers have been up to.

I hope you are all well.

Have a peaceful and creative day,

Karen B.

So Glad I Went

Hello my dear friends,

this past week has been so very hot outside that it was and still is unpleasant to go outside, so I don't very often. I have been working on my deck but only early in the morning and only for about 2 hours at a time and then back off inside where it is cool.

This morning my girls wanted to head out to one of the antique stores not far from where I live. At first I didn't really feel like it but in the end I gave in and off we went and in the end I am I glad we went!! I found some really neat things there today and they even had a sale on for some of the items I bought!!!

Take a look what I found...

A very pretty old brooch and some lovely vintage earrings.

Some large old brass curtain rings.

( I have something in mind for these already)

A lot of beautiful antique lace and ...

... look at these!!

Two really super neat vintage boxes by Coats!!!

I am over the moon about finding these and I know exactly what I am going to do with them!

At times when we don't feel like doing something, sometimes it ends up making us happy that we did do it in the end - like today for me - I am so glad I went! I hope this makes sense to you.

I hope you are well.

Have a peaceful and creative day,

Karen B.

Shopping Therapy Does Help!!

Hello my dear friends,

I must say it is true when somebody tells you that shopping is a therapy. I felt a bit down a few days ago so I visited a few antique stores with my daughter Ashleigh and I must say, I did feel better afterwards. Maybe it's down to all the neat things and one weird thing I found.

I found this lovely baby dress and the price was just shouting out to me to buy it. It is a bit stiff and has an old dusty smell to it, so I am still deciding if I should wash it or not?? What would you do??

Next in line are some neat old metal buttons. I am thinking of using these as the center of flowers, once I decide on what kind of flower to make.

I also found these three different pieces of cutlery. Not sure what they are really, but that won't stop me making something out of them. Now what that will be ~ no idea yet!!

An old pair of glitzy earrings.

More vintage lace. I really love this lace ~ I used it in my "little pink box".

A bunch of old small brass curtain rings.

 I think they look a little bit like miniature frames, don't you?

And last but not least ...

... the "weird" things!!

These are coffin studs.

Yes, I did say COFFIN! These came from a funeral home that no longer is and they are new and unused! I was taken by their beauty and how delicate they are. They are made from very thin tin. You certainly don't find something like this every day. My daughter was a bit unsure about these because of what they are. I think they are great.

And the best thing of the entire shopping trip was, I didn't spend a lot of money. So it is a win~ win situation for me and that makes me happy. Let me know what you think about my findings!!!

Have a peaceful and creative day,

Karen B.

Ribbon and Lace Tassel Tutorial

Hello my dear friends,

this is what I made with some of the lace I showed you yesterday. It is a decorative tassel which you could use to hang on your door, wall or anywhere you would like. I didn't buy anything for this creation - I found everything in my craft room and it is very easy to make.

 

 

 

The measurements are only a guideline. You can make this tassel any size you would like, it all depends on what you would like to use it for and where you would like to hang it.

 

 

What you will need:

- Ribbon, lace, cotton trimmings, organza in various colors or shades of a color of your choice -   

  I used 16 types of ribbons/lace in different widths.

- 2 old keys

- 2 old buckles - mine were either shoe or watch buckles.

- An old hinge - the one I used had 3 holes on each part.

- A vintage brooch - which I didn't use in the end, but that's up to you.

 

 

How to make the tassel:

Start by cutting your ribbons/lace into the lengths you will use. My longest piece was 42 inches long and my shortest was 36 inches long. I used 15 different ribbons/lace for the tassel and one piece of 26 inch lace for the hanger.

 

 

 Cut the ends off diagonally.

 

 

 The next step is to lie your ribbons/lace down and find the center of them.

 

 

Now using the 26 inch piece of lace, tie the center of the ribbons/lace together.

 

 

 Then place your hinge onto where the knot is and using the ends of the 24 inch lace tie the hinge to the ribbons/lace and make a double knot.

 

 

Make a knot further down the piece of 26 inch lace. This will make the hanger.

 

 

Using thin organza ribbon, (or you can use other ribbon if you like) loop tie it to each of your keys. This ribbon was cut into two different shorter lengths.  

 

 

Thread the ends of the 2 ribbons with the keys through the center hole of the hinge.     

 

Make a knot into the ribbons. This will hold the keys in place.

 

 Tie the ends into a small bow...

 

 

and cut the ends off diagonally.

 

 

 Using a very thick needle make a hole into the ribbon where you would like to place your buckle and thread your ribbon through the buckle.

 

 

 This is what it will look like once the buckle is attached.

 

 

Now you can make some single knots into individual pieces of ribbon/lace closer to the ends.

 

 You are almost done! If you like, you can decorate your hinge with a vintage brooch like in this picture, but you don't have to. I ended up not using the brooch after all.

 

 I prefer the plainer look, so you don't lose sight of the hinge.

 

 A closer look at the keys and how they are placed ...

 

and a closer look at the ends of the tassel.

Your tassel is now finished! This would make a lovely little gift for yourself or a friend.

I hope you have enjoyed this little creation and tutorial, please let me know what you think!

Have a peaceful and creative day,

Karen B.