My Daughter's Baby Shoes ..

Hello my dear friends,

it has now been a few weeks now since I have painted our master bedroom but unfortunately it still is missing some of the final touches that I would like it to have but I am working on it. That's why I haven't shared any photo of it yet.

One of the things I always have on my bedside table are my daughter's first baby shoes. Years ago I didn't like the look of them as they were ( they were white made from some sort of man made leather lookalike material) and that's when I changed them the first time.  At that time I was into the vintage look of metal like pewter, so I took to my paints and brushes and gave them a tarnished metal look by dry brushing them and I have loved them for years like that ... until now!

I was on the search for a new look and I found one!

 I love the look of ceramic where the glaze has crackled so I decided to try and give the little shoes that look. I am still not sure if I should apply a coat of stain that will make these little shoes look older and a little more distressed. Even thought they might not be quite done just yet I would like to show you the before and after photos of my daughters baby shoes today.

These are they little shoes before I worked on them a few days ago ...

 

 

  

... and this is what they looked like now!

 

 

Doesn't the new finish really looked like the glaze of ceramic that has crackled?!
 I so love their new look!

Now they can return to their rightful place ... on my bedside table, next to where I sleep so when ever I open my eyes I can see them and think of my babies.

And last but not least ...

... whilst I was writing this post, early in the yesterday morning there were three little feathered critters that caught my eye and also my camera lens.

The first one was a woodpecker, who decided that our house siding and especially the foam under it was a perfect place to start pecking holes into.

I was sitting at my dining room window and heard this somewhat weird noise and headed outside with my camera  (always prepared) and there the little critter was making a racket against the siding.

 

 

This photo might look a bit unclear especially where the critters beak is but that isn't the photo or camera ... it is the pecker pecking away on my wall!  He was so busy, that he didn't even notice me and that's how I got so close to him. ... I was only 5 feet away from him!

The second little feathered creature was a little sparrow that landed in our maple tree and sat there and started schimpfing loudly (complaining) about something that he didn't like at all ~ you should have heard him carry on.

 

By this time I was back inside at my dining room window and he was so busy telling the world he wasn't happy that I again got some lovely photos of him and this is the little guy here ... so neat!

And finally ...

... the third little feathered friend was a bright red cardinal on the search for a little something to eat.

It would be nice if you were to stop by and visit me here at Todolwen soon again and until then ...

I hope you are well and life is treating you kind my dear friends.

Have a peaceful and creative day,


Karen B.
 

I Am Behind With Everything ..

Hello my dear friends,

I can't believe how behind I am with everything these days.

 I tend to start writing a post at times with something that I made, 'found' or saw and then something else comes up and then more and I just get forget about some of these little posts until days, weeks or even months later!

Right now I have 28 started drafts of posts saved and one is even from last year. I just never got to it which is so sad. But it's not only the posts that I forget ...  it's the actual creation I forget to make too! I have an idea and doodle it in my little booklet and start writing the post and then ...... nothing!

I have found started creations from last Christmas that are still not completed. I so wanted to start my first Christmas in July this year but it wasn't meant to be. Almost every other day I see something I would like to change, re-do or create and then it all builds up in my mind and studio.

But it doesn't stop there ... I have many projects that I want to work on that involve our house and it is the same there. I start and then for some reason just don't get to work on it that it can be completed in a good time matter.

I don't know about you but at time I would love to have 8 hands and 36 hours in a day just to be able to do everything that I have on my to do lists.

 I think that I have slowed down a little to much for my liking not only with my creations, with Todolwen but also maybe even a little with my life. I feel that I used to do so much more and get so much more done than I do these days. If I put my mind to it ... it was a done deal and I really need to get back into doing things that way!

So ... here's to me trying to start changing things again ... hopefully I will have the willpower to do so.

 Why am I telling you all this? ... I was wondering if any of you lovely bloggers have the same issue and feel the same ... it seems easier to deal with issues when you are not alone!

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day,


Karen B.
 

My Little Backyard Zoo ..

Hello my dear friends,

I haven't shared any photos of the wild life in our garden lately so I thought it would be nice to do so again.

I just can't get enough of the little zoo that we have this year. It is so nice to see all the critters visiting our garden ... from ducks in Spring to doves and all sorts of other small birds and from rabbits to chip monks, baby skunks and raccoons ~ it's almost like a small 'Noah's' garden here these days.

Here are some photos I would love to share with you ...

 

These two little birds were together but settled on different parts of the wall for a little while ... 

 

... and then flew away again.

 

 

An old pan filled with water helps the little feathered critter to stay cool whilst ...

 

... this little rabbit loves to nibble on the fresh leaves of my flame bush.

 

Such a beautiful little creature!

Many little sparrows gather around the old pan to drink when it is very hot outside in the late afternoon ...

 

... whilst two little rabbits rest in the late shade of the day.

 

 

This year we have many little golden finches in our garden and ...

 

 

... of course the summer in not the same without the little chip monks.

 

 I don't know if I ever told you but almost all my critter photos are taken from inside the house. To be exact ... through my dining room window and at times they don't always work but I think they are still worth sharing.

 

Unfortunately my camera also doesn't take very good pictures when it comes to the darkness of the evening/night, not only that but raccoons and skunks are critters that move fast to stay undetected and safe. I would have to loved to share photos of them too! The baby skunk was just so cute!

 

Simple things like this bring joy to my life and I wish you much joy too!

 

I hope you are well and life is treating you kind my dear friends.

 

Have a peaceful and creative day,

 

 

Karen B.

I Am Beyond Touched ...

Hello my dear friends,

several days ago I was up early working in my garden before the garden waste truck would come. I had not gotten everything done this past week so I needed to fill a few more bags with branches, twigs and weeds. After I had finally gotten it done I headed back into the house, to have a coffee in the kitchen where my laptop always waits for me to take a look at all your lovely blogs and creations. But this morning there was something different. The background on my laptop had been changed and instead of a lovely photo with a quote underneath it, there was now a new message for me. And this message read ...

...' Check your e-mails'!

So that is what I did and I found an e-mail from my daughter Ashleigh to me. 

The e-mail had a quote that read ...

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new lands but seeing with new eyes." —Marcel Proust

 ... with the request to click on the following link. So that is what I did and the link took me to another site where I found something so sweet and lovely! 

If you would like to know what I found then just click on the link below ...

 http://mothersniche.com/julys-mighty-mom-award/

... and you will see!

 

Isn't this the sweetest thing my daughter did for me ... she nominated me as a 'mighty mom' ... I am beyond touched by this. You see my older daughter isn't just my daughter ~ with time she has become my best friend ever!

Oh yes, ... something you will see for the first time I think is ... ME!
 I have never been one to share photos of myself really and that's why I have never put photos on Todolwen of myself but my baby girl did and that's OK. To give you a little hint ... I am the 'old one' in the photo next to my two beautiful daughters ~ I am so blessed to have my them!

 

Wishing you all that you are blessed with something special or someone special in your life.

 

Many hugs,

 

 

Karen B.

 

Crochet Pansies ...

Hello my dear friends,

I have had some of you lovely bloggers ask me about the pansies I use in my creations and if I have the pattern to make them.

Firstly thank you for your interest but I so far don't make these pansies. They come from old doilies I find at church sales and in thrift stores. Unfortunately I don't have the time right now to try and figure a pattern out so to help you a little I headed into the 'land of crochet' (I searched the Internet) and I have found two patterns on how to crochet vintage pansies that I think you might like.  

And here are the links ...

http://freevintagecrochet.com/free-doily-patterns/coats258/pansy-doily-luncheon-set-pattern

 

 

 

http://www.jessica-tromp.nl/vintage/new%20pansy%20vintage%20crochet%20patterns%20free%20doily%20doilies%20pattern.htm

 

 I hope that some of you will find this post useful. I might just try them out myself when I have a little free time and if I do, I will let you know how things turned out!

 

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

 

Have a peaceful and creative day,

 

 

Karen B. 

 

My Granny Heart .. And About My Free Tutorials

Hello my dear friends,

I shared a photo of my newest little crocheted pretty with you yesterday but decided to work on the pattern a little more and now it is perfect. And  ~ yes, it is only slightly different than the first one I made.

  

 

My little granny heart.

 

And I have been thinking ...

... I am sure you all recall my very sad decision some weeks ago to not sharing any more free tutorials on Todolwen because of all the issues I have had with them being copied by people.

 Well I haven't changed my mind about posting them on my blog but I have decided that it is not right for all you lovely bloggers out there that have been so kind to me and that enjoy my little sharings, to miss out.

 

So ... I am going to share my new free tutorials now with you via e-mail.
All you have to do if you wish to have the pattern and the 'how to' for my little Granny Heart is e-mail me  (my e-mail address is located in the right side bar) and I will e-mail you the PDF file. When can you request the pattern? ... I will be able to take requests starting from tomorrow. I will check my e-mails a few times a day, so you should have it within a day or so.

I am already working on a few more little crocheted pretties that I will share with you the same way but not just yet. They are meant for the colder months of the year. When ever I have a new free tutorial for you, it will be announced here at Todolwen and I will have a new section in my right side bar called:

'Free Tutorials via E-mail'.

This way they will be able to be seen by new bloggers that visit me here at Todolwen too.

Why e-mail? .. Well, because many bloggers still have the 'no reply blogger' setting when they leave a comment and I am happier with the e-mail option right now.

I hope this makes a few of you Sweeties out there a tiny bit happy!

I hope you are well and life is treating you kind my dear friends.

Have a peaceful and creative day,


Karen B.

My Crochet Pretties ~ All Finished And On Their Way

Hello my dear friends,

it took me a little longer than I thought but I finished the order for my crochet pretties yesterday morning and ...

 

... now they are all wrapped up nice and neat in little white tissue parcels ...

 

 

... and are now on their way to Alyce.

 

She wanted some little hearts so I used a design I found on the net ( that is the one you see in the top photo) but I also made a new design. It is based on a granny square but turned into a little heart.

 

 

And this is it!

 

I still haven't made my mind up what I would like to do next and I almost forgot that I still have to work on my shoes for my daughters wedding! Maybe I will take that project on next to make sure it will be done in time for the wedding. I am not going to share any 'before' photos with you yet ... just in case the 'after' is a disaster! ( I am so hoping it won't be!)

 

Otherwise I am still finishing my daughter's bedroom and also trying to get more work done in our backyard on my river bed project. It seems that I am not as determent as last year with my projects which makes me somewhat sad and annoyed. I need to get into the right mindset fast so I can continue and get things done! (Wish me determination!)

Thank you for stopping by here at Todolwen and visiting me again, it is always so nice when you do.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day,


Karen B.