Vintage Comfort

My Cath Kidston wishlist....

2012-02-06T11:52:00.000-08:00

Here are a few things i saw on the Cath Kidston website that

I'd love to have...

a darling, red vinyl knitting bag

this wall paper called 'Riviera' that goes for $240 per metre/yard...

and is sold out!!

Her 'Antique Rose' towel set for my bathroom...

and a couple of items for the kitchen, like--

this Chelsea Rose oven mit...

and maybe the Pinny flowers potholder below...

ah, love.

On the craft front, i've started these Turkish Bed Socks

in this yarn...

'Asian Trends' sock yarn in Santa Fe colorway.

They're coming along nicely.

~*~*~Hope you're having a peaceful day~*~*~

Master Bath redo ideas from Victoria magazine

2012-01-28T12:11:00.000-08:00

My sis is redoing her master bath. I asked her what colors she'd be using.

She said they were using peel 'n stick

marble tile in a creamy yellow tone that goes with her new bathroom suite

(toilet, sink, tub).

She didn't know what color

to use with it. I had just perused this two-month's copy

of Victoria magazine and remembered they were accenting

grey and taupe that were knock-your-socks-off gorgeous.

Here's the picture i scanned and sent to her:

This picture does not reproduce the colors well

unfortunately, but you get the idea.

They had other rooms in greys, too:

While she was cleaning all the stuff out of her rooms

before she could begin the remodel, she

came across these little dears. They were our

mom's and I had completely forgotten them.

She asked if I wanted them...yes, please!

*~*~*~*

Got some pretty yarns today with my Christmas gift card

for our local yarn store.

Tosh Sock yarn in Seagrass-

gonna make me some socks with this.

And a pretty hand-dyed sock yarn

called "Santa Fe" - also for me!

-:¦:-•:' Happy New Year "":•.-:¦:-

2011-12-31T13:57:00.000-08:00

I made our family some black eyed peas in the form

of Hoppin' John today. We have it every New

Year's Eve as my mom taught us "you're

supposed to have black eyed peas to

ensure a long life".

This is from Nathalie Dupree's cookbook,

Here's the simple recipe:

You can click on the recipe to make it easier

to read, I think. It's so easy and so delicious...

soul food.

I also made a couple loaves of Pumpkin Nut

Bread for munching on.

I used a recipe in my old (vintage 1978) Betty

Crocker cookbook.

-:¦:-•:*'""*:•.-:¦:-

Wishing you and yours a healthy, happy

New Year: 2012

~~Vintage Christmas Tablecloth And Apron~~

2011-12-19T09:53:00.000-08:00

I just love this tablecloth with it's

pine cones and holly, balls and silver

garland, red candles~

I filet-crocheted the little "joy" piece

poinsettias and bells

Oops! It could use a good ironing.

This is the Nativity scene my mom used to

let me put out every year. I have it now.

The bottoms of some of the pieces

have their prices still on them...

79¢, $1.49 (whew, that was expensive

all those years back ;)

~~Thank you for your kindness ~~

2011-12-12T19:28:00.000-08:00

We were so touched by all the loving words and deeds
of our friends and family at the passing of our precious doggy, Kona.

I wanted to share this darling video

a doggy-loving friend of ours sent us.
http://www.dogwork.com/prybrme8/
It sure made me smile :)

We are sad....

2011-12-10T15:12:00.000-08:00

Our precious dog-boy, Kona, passed away this morning.

He was 10 years old and had diabetes.

We are devastated as he was our "only child".

He has left us with precious memories and a

huge void. God bless our lamb.
Postscript: We will be lighting a candle Monday nite,
December 12th at 7 p.m. Pacific time in honor of
our dear Kona. If you'd like to join us in your
own home, these are the US times:
Candle lighting times are...
In USA:
10 PM Eastern
9 PM Central
8 PM Mountain
7 PM Pacific
6 PM Alaska
5 PM Hawaii
This is in conjunction with the kind folks
at Rainbow Bridge Pet Loss Grief
Support Group.

Picture courtesy my friend, Kim's blog.

Vintage Christmas Cards

2011-12-08T15:59:00.001-08:00

I bought a lot of vintage Christmas cards last year and wanted to

show you a few of them this Christmas season.

Simply put....

and

to you.

Wishing you and yours...

I'll post more in the near future along with pictures

of a couple of vintage Christmas tablecloths

and a pretty vintage Christmas apron we

purchased at our favorite local antique store.

p.s. I'm feeling lots better~thanks so much for all your kind get well wishes :)

Linking up with Beverly's Pink Saturday
at her blog, How Sweet the Sound. Go see
all the pretty blogs joining in this week.

~~Chicken Soup, Molasses Cookies and Yarn~~

2011-12-02T16:14:00.000-08:00

I'm sick so DH made me some homemade chicken soup when he got home from work yesterday.

Bless him.

Today he wanted to make chocolate chip cookies but I talked him in to making molasses cookie, yum.

Maybe I should get sick more often....nah.

p.s. I wanted to show you some new yarn I got last

week.....

Malabrigo worsted wool in "Jacinto" which I think

means hyacinth in Spanish. Love this color.

And some really soft Mochi...

for some fingerless mitts with a leaf motif.
*Good medicine*

~~~~Homemade Soap~~~~

2011-11-20T16:12:00.000-08:00

I made some homemade soap yesterday and scented it with Pepperberry

fragrance oil. It smells really nice - almost holiday-y.

Now to wait the 3 weeks for it to cure!

I also made sock one of a pair for my grown niece.

It's in the wildly popular 'Monkey' pattern by Cookie A.

It doesn't look like monkeys, unfortunately ;)

Next, I'm gonna make 3 little baby hats called

"Sprout". The picture will explain why ;)

Isn't that darlin'? One of the hats will be for a

new great-niece or great-nephew we have on the way. And

the other two will be for 2 co-workers of my husband

who are expecting. All 3 mamas-to-be

are expecting their bundle to arrive late March.

That'll be one busy stork!

Well, i'd better get busy, too :)

~*~*~*~
Have a great week and a

Happy Thanksgiving~

Reading Mitts and other things~

2011-11-07T11:30:00.000-08:00

I got inspired by my friend, Toni, over at Foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains

to try and knit myself some fingerless gloves. I was surprised at how easy they were.

As we all know, it's all about whether we can understand the pattern or not.

This is a good one that even I had no trouble following :) (You have

to log in to Ravelry to see it.)

and after blocking...

-so much straighter.

I even crocheted a picot edging to the bottom

of them...

These are so warm I find myself wearing them a lot!

I used Malabrigo Silky Merino in Caribeno colorway.

~*~*~*~*~

The weather's turned cold here in Southern California.

We've had some wonderful rains and the leaves are

changing colors.

Here's a little Johnny Jump-Up (Viola) that

popped up outside my bedroom window....

and, lastly, my niece sent me this photo of her

daughter holding their very cool cat....

(No animals were harmed in the taking of the above picture ;)

November's here!

2011-11-02T11:02:00.000-07:00

Yay! I love getting out the homey decorations and the Autumn-colored flourishes.

That reminds me, I've got to get that fake Autumn leaves vine out to

decorate the mantel with.

Last year I made these little pumpkin guys

from June Gilbank's blog, PlanetJune.

And this little guy~

got his pattern from Maggie Weldon on e-Patterns Central.

I couldn't find the exact pattern for you but I

did find a similar one there...

Cute, huh?

*~*~*

I made this placemat a week or

so ago~

The yarns are both Red Heart: one is Sand

and the other is Autumn or Fall.

*~*~*~*

Here's a pic of my Mom and Dad at their
home back in Coffeyville, Kansas.

She's the one who taught me to crochet
when I was a young girl.
She's also the one who passed on to me
the joy of decorating Home for holidays.
Hope you're having fun making your
home cozy.

Doing the dishes~

2011-10-28T07:14:00.000-07:00

just got a little scarier....or maybe a little more fun ;)

My niece made one of these ghost dishcloths,
so I had to make one, too.

We got the pattern free on Ravelry. It's offered free

from Lily Sugar 'n Cream's website, also.

It's a super-quick crochet up. You could

turn the eyes inward to look angry, if you

wanted. Sorta looks like a Pac-Man, too.

Boo!

Sweet Lemons~

2011-10-25T09:46:00.000-07:00

Did you know that oranges were introduced to America in 1513 by Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon? I got to thinking about citrus fruit as I was looking at our little Meyer Lemon tree.

Did you know that citrus plants have fruit, buds and flowers all at the same time? Not all plants do that. As you know, most plants will have a season for flowering and then the flowers turn to fruit months later. Citrus do this all at the same time. You'll see an example of this in my little tree's pictures.

It just amazed me. I hope I am blooming while I grow and producing fruit at the same time. This, of course, has spiritual connotations. If you're a child of God or a Christian, you know what I mean ;)

Good Tuesday Mornin'!

2011-10-18T11:15:00.000-07:00

How's your day so far? Here's how mine started....

I go into the office first to turn on computer and check on Ursula's food and water usually. This morning I spot a piece of cat turd on the rug (hmm, must have missed the box-o.k.) then I spot a precious little field mouse running for it's life. Arghh! Ursula, I thought your mousing days were over :/ I tried to catch it to rescue it but to no avail.

Next, I move on to the kitchen to feed Kona his birthday breakfast and give him his insulin. Ah, two more cat turds on the living room carpet. That's kinda far from the box....

I feed Kona all the while I'm praying for the mouse. Make my coffee and grab a pain pill. Head to the safety and comfort of my bed to make the pain ease up and find Ursula has puked...twice!! In the office and hallway--serves her right. So, I grab some plastic grocery bags and clean the 1st splat up. Then, I go back to the kitchen and grab some paper towels to wipe up the not-so-solid bit. That got me heaving :{

Coffee, anyone?

I Won a Giveaway~

2011-10-17T16:48:00.000-07:00

from Doni at Faith, Grace, and Crafts. She has a very pretty blog plus she breeds precious miniature dachshunds. They are so beautiful I wish I could adopt them all!
Thank you, Doni :D Here's what she gifted me....

You see the pretty tan, lace-trimmed cloth napkin all the goodies

are laying on? She sent me 8 of these! Upper left hand is a

set of note cards from Hallmark. Doni didn't know this, but

the "Bear by Mary" from Hallmark is extra special to me

because it's the first card I received from my DH before

we even started dating ♥
Upper right hand corner is a darling little vintage
recipe card box - it goes so well with my decor
both in the kitchen and in the office here.
The bottom right hand corner has little crocheted
roses in tan, light pink and dark rose. Aren't they
pretty?

There's even more, as you can see in the above
picture. Vintage mushroom recipe cards from Sears
along with their own plastic covers to protect them from
messy cooks ;O) Some neat vintage buttons as
well as some new Flower-Power ones. Two tracing
wheels for sewing (both vintage-one is from England).
Also the clear stamps for scrap-booking or just for fun.
She also included a bag full of eyelet trims and laces-
sweet adornments.
So, I can never again say I've never one a blog giveaway~
a big Texas thank you to you, Doni!

Granny Afghan~

2011-10-06T11:34:00.000-07:00

Here's a cotton Granny Afghan I made a couple of years ago

and just thought i'd like to show it to you.

I used instructions from Lucy at Attic 24 for beginning it.

I used all cotton yarns, both Lily Sugar & Cream and

Pisgah Peaches 'n Creme so it's pretty heavy.

I just got the purple striped vintage sheet under the

afghan there from a

very nice lady on Ebay by the name of Bea. Her Ebay

name is Kept4u. The reason I mention her is that

she included this lovely vintage doily in my package!

I don't think she knew I'm a crocheter and I know

she didn't know how much I love pansies :)
Bless her heart!

Below are a couple more hats I've made to send along

to the Burlington Coat Drive "One Warm Coat/Hat/Scarf"

and our Homeless Vets. Getting quite an assortment ;)

Knitted this one out of Lion Brand Wool-Ease

Thick 'n Quick in Claret colorway. It reminds

me of a beehive.

And this one is knit using Sweater Babe's pattern and

Bernat's Naturals blend of Mohair and acrylic

in Ciel.

We just had a wonderful Pacific wind/rainstorm yesterday

and the air has turned chilly. We are loving it! So glad

Autumn is here.

Blessings~
Linking up to Vintage Thingie Thursday with
Suzanne at Coloradolady :)

Slouchy Beanie~

2011-10-02T12:33:00.000-07:00

I've been on a hat tear of late - going thru my yarn stash and using up as much as inspires me. The yarns that call out "I'd make a good hat for someone!". They've all been for Homeless Vets and

the Burlington "One Warm Coat" drive until I made this one for myself.

It's crocheted with a size J hook out of Paton's Wool-Ease. I love that yarn!

The pattern is a free one from Gleeful Things. It was a super-quick,

easy-to-understand crochet. I love how it looks on and will keep

me good and warm when we move to Northern Arizona next year.

In other news,

DH has put in a little Autumn flower garden for me next to

the artificial grass plot he also put in a few weeks ago.

It includes Blanket Flower, Marigolds, and Rust-colored mums. Love the

view from the kitchen window now :) And, here's the fake grass

with bougainvilleas and St. Francis fountain~

Fall is here! as you can see by the few Liquid Amber leaves that found

their way onto the "grass".

Vintage Swag Lamps~

2011-09-14T19:50:00.000-07:00

I just had to have this lamp when I saw it at Salvation Army
a while back. It was 50% off which made it $19,
if I remember correctly.

It hangs in our bedroom above our tv.
Here's a closer-up view of it....

I love the Japanese motif.
Works like a dream, too. Came with
cord, chain, and light bulb even ;)

Speaking of pretty and vintage, I thought
I'd show you a picture of my sister's
upstairs landing she painted herself
and decorated with an old lamp we
inherited from our Mom when she passed on.

My sis is a natural at interior design and has
lots of inherited vintage pieces.
That's her French-inspired guest bedroom
you see thru the door there. I think she
should have her own blog, don't you? :)
*~*~*~*~*

I am linking up with Suzanne from ColoradoLady
for her Vintage Thingie Thursdays party :) Give her
a visit!

One Warm Scarf for Charity~

2011-09-11T09:33:00.000-07:00

Red Heart yarn has a coat/scarf drive going along with Burlington Coat Factory.

Here's the link for more information.

And here's the link for the crochet scarf pattern.

a close up of the pattern~

It was a very quick crochet....only took a few hours.

I used Caron Simply Soft paints in Oceana and solids

Dark Country Blue I had left over from an afghan

I crocheted awhile back. I hope to make up

a few more to give away.

(Here's the link for the knit pattern.)

Just thought I'd pass along the news in case

anyone was looking for a quick project for

a good cause :) Another good cause is Homeless
Veterans. They certainly deserve any help we can
offer them. Our town has a location you can
drop off any items the vets might need: toiletries,
warm hats, scarves, socks, etc. Your town
probably does to....

Linking up with W-I-P Wednesday at Marie Anne's
Everyday Crochet.

Goodwill find - Syroco

2011-09-07T16:47:00.000-07:00

As I've posted before, I love Syroco* pieces. I can't seem to

resist a piece when I see one at a thrift store. Picked

these up at Goodwill for a $1.99 each. I think

they're Dogwoods.

Dogwood, right?

Been doin' a little cloth knitting lately. This

is the Circle Cloth written by Hakucho. I adore

it as it makes me think of chenille bedspreads.

This one is in two colors: white and Peaches &

Creme Pretty Pastels.

Above is a little covering I knit for a flameless candle.

I love how it looks at night - very cozy.

And here's a second Circle Cloth I knit this time

in one skein/colorway called Sail Away Stripes.

*Syracuse Ornamental Company

I'm linking up with Suzanne at Coloradolady
for Vintage Thingie Thursday ~

Video of Hummingbirds Feeding~

2011-09-05T09:43:00.000-07:00

I took this video this morning, September 4th, 2011.

It's my first attempt at recording a video with our little

Nikon CoolPix. My mouth was wide open

in amazement of these little guys the whole time ;)

It's a wrap~

2011-08-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

a Moebius wrap, that is.

From Carolyn Christmas's book: the portable crafter

It was very easy to crochet. I used almost 2 skeins of

Red Heart Shimmer yarn in Turquoise for this wrap.

It's soft to the touch and I can hardly wait to wear it!

Here's a close-up so you can hopefully see the
sparklies. The top pic is what
the color looks like in real life.

Plarn Market Bag~

2011-08-27T08:00:00.000-07:00

This was a bugger to knit as I'm so spoiled knitting with wool or wool blends that glide willingly on and off the needles. Plastic does not cooperate as such. I had to try making one though ;)

It's fun to have and use, just not my favorite thing to knit.

It holds a LOT! and is very expandable ;)

Look! It can even stand up on its own ;)

I got the pattern from Hakucho on her blog. Her instructions are very easy to understand

and follow. Give her a visit if you'd like to try knitting one for yourself. Of course, you

can also crochet one if you prefer. But, remember, you've been warned ; - p

Oh! I almost forgot to mention that one of the bags i used in there is

one my sister brought back to me from Paris! So, there are Wal-mart, Target,

Vons, JoAnns, Michaels and Lafayette Galleries bags. From the sublime to the ridiculous, eh?

Does that make my bag a Parisian bag???

the Portable Crafter

2011-08-26T14:46:00.000-07:00

Yippee! I got my little book from Amazon today...the portable crafter Crochet by

Carolyn Christmas.

Mostly for this pattern I saw on Ravelry....

Beguiling, no? I'm thinkin' Christmas gifts, yes?

I'll keep ya posted.

Oh, and I finished one of my socks...

Yippy, skippy!

Socks, socks and more socks!

2011-08-25T10:09:00.000-07:00

I confess I've become a sock-knittin' fool ever since i learned I could

knit a sock this Summer. It is like potato chips...you can't

stop at one.

The yarn I'm using here is Colinette Jitterbug in Popsicle colorway

and it is the finest wool I've ever laid hands on. Springy

and tightly spun...really a joy to work with. It's from Wales,

by the by.

This second yarn is good ol' Red Heart with Aloe in
the Toasted Almond colorway.

I'm mesmerized by the pattern it knits up all on

its own. I think it's made in Italy.

Linking up with my friend, Marie, over on

Every Day Crochet.

Hummingbird Feeding Frenzy~

2011-08-23T06:51:00.000-07:00

Here's the clearest picture DH got this evening.

He counted up to 13 at one time but, they move

so quickly that after that, you're just not sure

you're seeing new birds or the same ones flitting

about.

This pic is a little darker but, it lets you see we

have 4 feeders lined up for them. And they all get used.

DH has to fill at least one of them up every day.

We go thru 10 lbs. of sugar in a very short time.

The 3rd feeder is an Oriole feeder but, the Orioles use

the hummingbird feeder on the left - and the hummingbirds

use all the feeders ;D

Before and After~

2011-08-21T11:00:00.000-07:00

I blogged about this garbage bin rescue here.

Well, this weekend, DH coated it with a rust
arrester by Rustoleum and I painted it
with some Rustoleum Antique White
Gloss spray paint. Voila!

I'm so happy with how it turned out.

Plaque Collection~

2011-08-19T11:20:00.000-07:00

No, it's not a dental problem...
It's these old plaster of Paris plaques you see around.

Got the above at Salvation Army.

and this one years ago at a church bookstore.

Got this one at Goodwill...

and this one there as well. They were

all already painted ('cept for the last one which

I gave a try at painting).

They're meaningful to me, up-lifting and

restful to look at.

A View from a Window~

2011-08-16T12:20:00.000-07:00

I was looking thru my kitchen window while I was waiting

for my tea to brew. And i spotted a little favorite of mine...

Do you see it? The little baby lizard there? It's

only about 2 inches long. Sooooo cute!

Here's a little bit closer to him. Wish I could hold it.

DH has been putting pavers alongside the kitchen

walkway. We're trying to decide whether to put

artificial grass in this spot or colored rock.
p.s. We went with artificial grass

Hope your Summer is going well~

Cesar's Top 10 Hot Weather Tips

2011-08-02T08:41:00.000-07:00

for Dog Safety...keeping your doggy cool in these Dog Days of Summer is vital.

Here is a link to Cesar's Top 10 Tips.

Knitted pink linen hand towel~

2011-07-22T15:00:00.000-07:00

I knitted a linen hand towel with the leftover linen yarn I had from knitting

a Bubble curtain for my bathroom window.

Below is a close-up of the moss grid pattern.

It's from a Mason*Dixon book:

"The Curious Knitter's Guide"

and the pattern was written by Kay Gardiner,

one of the authors.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

This week I'm linking up with Pink Saturday

over at Beverly's How Sweet the Sound blog.

Cabrillo National Park

2011-07-19T12:01:00.000-07:00

on San Diego's Pt. Loma is a beautiful place. Here are some pictures my sister and her DH took while they were out over the 4th of July weekend....

This is the old lighthouse.

and it's interior stairwell with her sweet

little face peeking down...

love it's nautilus-like shape.

and a nice view out to sea.

For more info on the Cabrillo National Monument

click here.

What Color???

2011-07-14T14:15:00.000-07:00

Oh, which of these fun, bright colors do I want to polish my toenails with?!

Decisions, decisions, decisions.....
Pink won!

Crocheted Kindle sleeve and soap cover~

2011-07-05T13:36:00.000-07:00

I crocheted a few things over the Holiday weekend. One was this sleeve for my new Kindle....

the pattern is based on a cover for an iPad.

Another was a soap cover...

I just love the smell of a fresh bar of Dove soap!

Pink Butterfly Dishcloth~

2011-06-30T10:27:00.000-07:00

Here's a fun and easy dishcloth for all you Butterfly lovers to knit.

It's called Knit Butterfly Wash Cloth and it was designed by a lady named Joan Barnett.

I found it on Purple Kitty dot com. Here's the link to her pattern.

I'm getting a Kindle~

2011-06-27T12:00:00.000-07:00

for my birthday. I'm pretty tickled and can't wait to download some ebooks from the Library. I've already checked out the library's website. It's really easy to get books from them. And the downloaded books just expire when their loan period is up so you don't have to worry about returning anything or late fees.

I love this picture of the width of the Kindle vs. a pencil~

It sure would have been nice to have had it when I read the 1000+ page biography of the Queen Mother. That book must have weighed at least 4 lbs.

Yarn Haul~

2011-06-26T11:35:00.000-07:00

I got some pretty sock yarns last weekend at JoAnns

The lavender/purple ombre is for dishcloths and I've

had it for a while. My watch needs a new battery

(that's why it's sitting there on the desk;)

Speaking of dishcloths, I made a few this weekend~

knit this one in soft yellow

crocheted this one in red/white/blue for the up-coming holiday

and this one to go with some new towels I bought

at JoAnns last weekend

These are the towels I bought:

I couldn't resist the colors even though they're

not really my kitchen's colors ;)

Male and Female...

2011-06-22T12:32:00.000-07:00

created He them. (Genesis 1:27) What more beautiful example of His perfect handiwork than these Orioles that come back each Spring to visit us for a few months....

We are so honored to have these gorgeous creatures on our

patio outside our bedroom windows. They take my breath

away every time I see them. And they always come in

pairs to the feeder (we have an Oriole feeder hanging next

to this hummingbird feeder, but they seem to prefer the

hummingbird feeder ;) .

Tea towels~

2011-06-20T12:28:00.000-07:00

drying in the sunshine. One of my all-time favorite things.

Anyone besides me having a hard time finding new

tea towels that actually absorb worth a hoot? I don't know

how many I've bought lately that just spread the water around

but don't dry your hands or dishes. And they're 100%

cotton! So, I'm going back to these flour sack-type

towels.

Happy Father's Day~

2011-06-17T16:32:00.000-07:00

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Made some homemade banana ice cream for this Father's Day weekend. Here's a super simple recipe on You Tube of milk/cream, sugar, and 'nanas. I used about a pint of whatever we had in the fridge (milk and cream and half-n-half mixed together to equal a pint), 3 bananas and 1/2 cup of sugar.

Making homemade ice cream always reminds me of Daddy. He used to make it for us when we were little. First, we had the kind of machine you had to hand crank. We'd all take turns cranking but, Daddy would always end up doing most of it cuz our arms got too tired. Then, we graduated to the electric crank model. That was almost too easy.

I made Salted Butter Caramel ice cream last weekend with this recipe from David Lebovitz. I'd read about Mariko over at Super Eggplant making it with his recipe and since I've been craving this flavor ever since I'd heard about it on a Food Network show, I just had to try it. I did and it reminds me of a real good Mexican flan.

Here's today's banana ice cream cranking away.

And here it is finished.

I put it in a Pyrex dish to freeze hard.

Did I mention homemade ice cream always makes me think of Daddy? ;) So does the airplane I hear flying overhead just now. Daddy's passion was flying and took us up in his little airplane every chance he got. If it had wings, Daddy flew it.

I imagine he's having a pretty good time up in Heaven now :)

Hope you have fond memories of the Dad in your life or are making those good memories now. Blessings~

S-o-c-k-s!

2011-06-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

Hi all~here's what I've been working on for the last couple of weeks....

This pattern is by Kate Atherley and I got it

from Ravelry.com. The yarn is Bernat's sock yarn.

I'll be working on it's mate soon.

I'm worked on another pattern I found on

Ravelry by a lady from the UK. It's called

Incredibly Easy Socks and boy is it ever

a great beginning-sock-knitter's pattern!

Here's the finished sock-

Finished these cuties called

Arizona Flip-Flop Socks by

Catherine Hall

the right one I turned inside-out to see how it looked.

(please pardon the piggies....I didn't know how else to show the separate spaces for the big toe and other toes.)

Linking up to W-I-P Wednesday at
Everyday Crochet.

The grapes of.....

2011-06-02T09:25:00.000-07:00

well, not of wrath. My sis shared this picture with me. She lives in Arizona and already has some grapes on her arbor.

Aren't they beautiful? I imagine sitting out there

under them in the evenings - hoping to

catch a breeze. Well, it is at least by the pool ;)

Pyrex $urpri$e!

2011-05-26T16:38:00.000-07:00

I was glancing thru my May 2011 issue of Country Living Magazine and came across an article on collectibles....namely Pyrex. Well, they had a few different patterns listed and then this spread of the Friendship pattern....

Last summer we went to St. Vinnie's and found the bottom baking pan for $4, I think it was.

According to this article, the pan is worth $70! Score!!

^~^Hootie and the Blow Fish ^~^

2011-05-25T13:00:00.000-07:00

My little owl collection. Uh-oh, looks like the blowfish

has wandered off again ;(

My rescued African violet seems to be saying

"thank you!" with her pretty purple flowers.

That's all. Hope your week is going well~

Michaels mini-haul for today~

2011-05-13T12:02:00.000-07:00

Now that I'm past my fear of knitting socks, I'm having fun getting smaller needles, etc. I bought 2.5 mm dpns (double-pointed needles) today and a set of teeny-weenie bamboo circular needles. I also got one of those needle sizers I've been wanting for quite a while but had put off buying since "it's not a real necessity".

Had no intention of buying yarn but this

super-pretty peach wool for $2.99 just couldn't

be passed up.

So, you know what I'll be doing today :)

Finished: 1 sock

2011-05-08T18:34:00.000-07:00

I'm thrilled to say I've now knit a sock! I've wanted to try for a long time and fortunately I was able to understand the instructions on the yarn label and do just that.

Starting second one tomorrow. No second sock

syndrome here!

~~~Happy Mother's Day ~~~

2011-05-04T11:28:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd move up a sidebar pic of my mother and me in honor of Mother's Day.

This picture was taken about 20 years ago by my dad (the original "shutterbug" ;) .

Mama's been gone 16 years now. Can't believe it's been that long.

She was a remarkable lady, beautiful inside and out. A primary

school teacher for like 35 years, as well as being a preacher's wife

and mother of 4 great kids ;) As there was a 15 year gap

between my closest older sibling and me, she
raised "two families".

She taught me to play the piano and crochet and was the best

life coach anyone could ask for.

I see more and more of her in me with every passing day.

It's amazing the imprint a Mother leaves on your life, isn't it?

~~~~Happy Easter ~~~~

2011-04-23T19:58:00.000-07:00

Where in the world are you?

2011-04-19T13:50:00.001-07:00

I got to thinking about how interesting it is to see different parts of the country or world. So, here are a few pictures from our neck of the woods - Southern California, USA - for you to look at...

The lavender is lavendering....

likewise the geraniums and petunias...

The violas are happy and possibly need re-potting.

and the birds-of-paradise are goin' to town.

Just had to show you my new skirt from Twiggy ;)

This was a week or two ago when we had a wonderful

Pacific storm. Looked pretty ominous, eh?

and here's the cat a bit too close to the bird feeders

for my liking.

119th anniversary of the Ice Cream Sundae~

2011-04-03T14:11:00.000-07:00

According to Google, today is the 119th Anniversary

of the Ice Cream Sundae. Although this date is

disputed, it works for me!! Is there an

ice cream sundae in your future?

Time to get something Easter-y

2011-03-29T13:02:00.000-07:00

up here. And tell you a little bit of what we've been up to....

We celebrated our 21st Wedding anniversary this month (March).

I got DH a beautiful Michael Kors watch and he got me

( I chose it) a replica of Princess Diana/Kate Middleton's

engagement ring.

I loved it when I first saw it on the telly on Diana's hand. When it came back for

Kate, I just had to have it ;)

~*~*~

Sunday was the 16th Anniversary of my mother's passing....just 4 days after our

wedding anniversary. So, it was bittersweet. Mostly sweet, though.

~*~*~

Some flowers DH bought cuz he "just wanted some color". He's a cute 'un.

And, lastly, to share with you some Easter/Spring placemats

I made some years ago....

That's it for now. Hope you're Spring is going well.

Pot O'Gold Colcannon~

2011-03-16T14:11:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I thought I'd share with you a new-to-me recipe.

What You Need To Make Pot O'Gold Colcannon:

   1 lb. cabbage, wedged
   1 lb. white potatoes, peeled and quartered
   2 leeks
   1 C of milk
   1/2 t salt
   1/2 t pepper
   1/2 C butter

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

How to Make It:

1. Place the cabbage in a large saucepan and cover well with water.
2. Place the pan over medium heat and bring the water to a rapid boil.
3. Cook the cabbage in the boiling water for 10 minutes or until fork tender.
4. Drain well, place in a warm bowl and set aside.
5. Place the potatoes in the saucepan and cover with water.
6. Place the pan back over the medium heat and bring the water to a boil.
7. Cook the potatoes 12 minutes or until very tender.
8. Drain the potatoes well then mash them with a potato masher or electric mixer.
9. Chop the leeks using both the white and green parts of the leeks.
10. Place the leeks in a small saucepan.
11. Pour the milk in with the leeks.
12. Place over low heat and simmer the leeks for 5 minutes or until soft.
13. Pour the leeks and milk over the potatoes and stir to combine.
14. Chop the cabbage and add it to the potato mixture.
15. Sprinkle the salt and pepper into the mixture and stir the ingredients together until completely combined.
16. Make a well in the middle of the mixture and add the butter into the well.
17. Fold the ingredients over the butter and stir until the butter has completely melted.

Yardwork~

2011-03-14T10:20:00.000-07:00

Dear Husband was pruning the palm trees this weekend. I couldn't believe he was standing on the top

(blue) rung of the ladder hugging the tree with one hand while he pulled the cluster of dates off with the other. Do NOT try this at home.

Here's what the dates look like before they're dried (like we're used to seeing them in stores)...

And we're fascinated with the seed pods from the trees. They burst open with cream-colored

flowers that (I guess) then grow into dates. Agriculture 101 ;)

Our Hearts Go Out to

2011-03-13T10:59:00.000-07:00

all those suffering in Japan. Praying for the victims, survivors, and rescuers. Unimaginable the terror of what has already happened added to the continual large after-shocks...God help them all.

2011-03-09T15:43:00.001-08:00

Spring Ahead 1 Hour Sunday March 13, 2011

Progress on the Blues Throw~

2011-02-22T12:47:00.000-08:00

I'm almost finished with my Blues Throw. I got the pattern from November's Crochet magazine. Queen Ursula is modeling it for you....

one more view...

I've really enjoyed working on this throw. It is comprised of some of

my most favorite colors. That's probably why.

Anyone else having a hard time believing it's

almost the end of February?!

Linking up with WIP Wednesday

at Every Day Crochet :)

~Lemon Chess Pie~

2011-01-14T15:16:00.000-08:00

I've been craving a piece of warm Lemon Chess pie lately. So, I found my mother's old recipe from the

60's and picked a lemon off our dwarf Meyer lemon tree out back.

If you've never had a Meyer lemon, you have something delightful to look forward to. I've heard they

were originally developed by grafting lemons to oranges. I don't know if that's correct but, it does

give you an idea of the mellowness of the lemon flavor.

I've already had my piece~

as you can see ;) Oink!
It was warm and

wonderful.

W-I-P Wednesday~

2010-12-28T17:00:00.000-08:00

Hi All, it's been a while since I've posted a WIP for W-I-P Wednesday. Doesn't mean I haven't been thinking of all my crocheting buddies over there :) Right now, I'm working on a "Bold Blues Throw" from Crochet Magazine's Nov 2010 issue. Pretty, huh?

Here's a picture of one of the large squares:

It calls for Caron Simply Soft in Blueberry, Oceana,

and Dark Country Blue. Here you see Oceana

and Dk. Cntry Blue. I'm probably about 1/4 of the

way through it. Now that Christmas busyness

is past, I just might get somewhere on it!

Linking up with Marie Anne over at
Work In Progress Wednesday

In Loving Memory~

2010-12-26T09:23:00.000-08:00

That about says it all. My beloved friend, Betty Wilson, went home to be

with the Lord December 5th, 2010. Her memorial service was last Monday,

December 20th. She leaves behind her soulmate and

husband, two sons, as well as other family and friends who will miss

her sorely. This was not a very Merry Christmas for them.

As one friend stated at her memorial service:

"Betty, for

someone with such small feet, you surely leave big shoes to fill.".

Betty loved so many things. She saw beauty in everything. She

was a great collector....rooms and cabinets of collections. Her closest

friends each wore one of her decorated denim shirts to her service.

There is no one like Betty, aka Sugar Booger (nickname given by her

husband years ago). They were married for over 56 years.

I know you're rejoicing over there, Betty.

See you again someday, dear lady....

Christmas Crochet and Homemade Soaps Combined~

2010-12-23T19:07:00.000-08:00

I made some Christmas dishcloths for gifts this year. A couple of

ladies at my DH's work liked the homemade soaps I've made

in the past and sent to work with him to give out.

So, they got little combo gifts -

thought they looked like candies wrapped

in the cloths and tied with yarn. They got

Dragon's Blood and Oatmeal, Milk &

Honey. The bar standing up is Apple Jack

and Peel :)

Our 1st Piece of Le Creuset

2010-12-23T19:03:00.000-08:00

DH and I got each other our first piece of Le Creuset

for Christmas this year. We bought it from Macy's

who included bonus 9 inch and 5 inch square baking

pans - both in white.

DH will be using it to make Julia Child's recipe for

Beef Bourguignon again this year for Christmas.

He made it last year for us and I tell you, that

was the most delicious meal I've ever eaten!

Crocheted Poinsettia~

2010-12-07T13:56:00.000-08:00

Pattern from June Gilbank at Planet June.
And a pretty poinsettia hankie I
inherited from my Mama...

Linking up with Sue at It's A Very Cherry World
for REDnesday.

5 Questions?????

2010-11-29T08:46:00.000-08:00

"Blogging is a funny thing...we tell our most intimate thoughts for all to read and yet most of the time I find myself sitting and wondering, "who is this person!?" I know them...but, yet, I don't know them! I want to know who the person is behind all those words so I thought of a great way for all of us to 'meet' each other!" JAVA from Meet me on Monday

Questions:

1. What is your favorite way to eat chicken?

2. Have you decorated for Christmas yet?

3. What is your favorite article of clothing?

4. Do you pay your bills online or write checks the old way?

5. Do you make Christmas cookies?

Answers:

1. Grilled Teriyaki chicken thighs with sticky

rice or Thai Jasmine rice

2. Partly. I've started making Christmas decorations

and DH has put up our lights

3. Probably my UGG boots cuz they're so warm and
cozy.

4. I pay our bills on-line

5. I make fudge and divinity
I used to make Snickerdoodles, Rum Balls and

an array of other Christmas goodies when my

neices and nephews were young. Now,

everybody's moved away and we don't need

all the sweets!

Christmas Already!

2010-11-28T13:17:00.000-08:00

Christmas lights are going up as I type. It is cold and windy.

We finished our front yard rock landscaping just in time for the Season.

DH is doing his thing with his new LED Christmas lights and new light orbs. Can't wait to see how it looks tonight!

I kinda liked the effect of this blurry shot.

Wishing You a Happy Thanksgiving~

2010-11-24T10:37:00.000-08:00

Have a safe, healthy, Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

God bless our troups serving around the world

who will be observing this family-oriented holiday away from loved ones.

The Song of Hiawatha

2010-11-22T10:17:00.000-08:00

I've had this poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow on my mind for the last few weeks. It seems (to me) to go with the Season....

On the shores of Gitche Gumee,

Of the shining Big-Sea-Water,

Stood Nokomis, the old woman,

Pointing with her finger westward,

O'er the water pointing westward,

To the purple clouds of sunset.

Fiercely the red sun descending

Burned his way along the heavens,

Set the sky on fire behind him,

As war-parties, when retreating,

Burn the prairies on their war-trail;

And the moon, the Night-sun, eastward,

Suddenly starting from his ambush,

Followed fast those bloody footprints,

Followed in that fiery war-trail,

With its glare upon his features.

And Nokomis, the old woman,

Pointing with her finger westward,

Spake these words to Hiawatha:

"Yonder dwells the great Pearl-Feather,

Megissogwon, the Magician,

Manito of Wealth and Wampum,

Guarded by his fiery serpents,

Guarded by the black pitch-water.

You can see his fiery serpents,

The Kenabeek, the great serpents,

Coiling, playing in the water;

You can see the black pitch-water

Stretching far away beyond them,

To the purple clouds of sunset!

Here's the rest of it, if you're interested.
I know it's quite long. Wikipedia has some very interesting information helping explain it's meaning and the misinformation surrounding the poem also.

and for dessert....

2010-11-20T18:35:00.000-08:00

on this wondie, rainy Autumn night

mmmmmalted milk brownies. Got the

recipe in the December/Jan issue of

Country Living magazine.

A few homemade goodies~

2010-11-20T18:17:00.000-08:00

Both old and new. I made the placemats prolly 10 years ago for this time of year.

And their flip side...

And this little pipestem cleaner Christmas tree

I made this afternoon while DH was napping.
I left the Burt's Bees lip balm in
the picture so you'd get an idea
of the tree's size.

Finito!

2010-11-10T08:10:00.000-08:00

Had to share my "Moderne Log Cabin" blanket I finished last night...

So glad it's done. I started this past Spring and put it away when the weather got warm. The pattern is from Mason-Dixon's Curious Knitters' Guide. This is the baby blanket size. Now, on to other projects ;)

-:¦:- -:¦:- -:¦:-

I love Fall and the colors associated with it. And, I'm really loving pumpkins and squash especially this year. Their shapes and colors intrigue me. Here's a jolly good-sized pumpkin we got this year gracing our family room....

For the Birds.....

2010-11-07T17:28:00.000-08:00

We have lots of bird wildlife around us here. DH keeps two large bird feeders filled with seed year-round. Here are some of the Turtle Doves congregating on our backyard fence....

My mother always used to say the birds were gathering for choir practice.

I liked that.

We've also been bombarded (and still are) with hummingbirds this Fall. We've been feeding them for years here and next door when we lived there. There were quite a few this Summer but, this Fall has been explosive.

Here's a pic DH took that shows two hummingbirds sitting on one foot rest...

(Please excuse the rain/dirt streaked windows)

They have been keeping us on our toes filling 2

-16 oz. bottles with homemade nectar every day

for weeks now. You read right...2 - 16 oz. bottles

every day! I understand they are migrating South

and must be hungry from their journeys from

elsewhere.

Lastly, here's an Owl cup cozy I knitted for DH this

weekend to keep his fingers from burning while

he holds his hot Starbucks coffee. It saves him

using a cardboard holder (which is supposed to

be easier on the environment).

It has 5 little owls going around it and 10 little eyes I hot-glued on.

It was fun!!

Autumn Squash

2010-10-23T13:25:00.000-07:00

Anybody else in love with all the beautiful

squash in the markets and fields these days?

I want one of each!

The ones below are

Delicata (the longer one) and Carnival. I saw

a gorgeous, odd green Hubbard squash at

the market that I plan on getting next time.

To me they're like flowers for the table -

only they last longer and you can eat them ;)

How Sweet!

2010-10-15T21:15:00.000-07:00

Thank you, Kathy at Just a Happy Housewife, for passing on this award to me. From it I learned that October 16th is Sweetest Day. Here's the info on it (from Kathy's blog): "Herbert Birch Kingston, a Cleveland, Ohio philanthropist and candy company employee started Sweetest Day. He wanted to bring happiness to orphans, shut-ins and under-privileged. His intent was to show these people that they were not forgotten. In 1922, he started this holiday by giving candy and small gifts. He often used movie stars to distribute the gifts."

{source: holidayinsightsdotcom}

So, now I get to pass this award on to all my followers

as you all make my day sweeter just knowing you're out there.

Take it :D It's yours!

I hope I give you a smile or a little inspiration every now

and again. Thank you, Kathy and thank you, followers.

You've made my day!

For the Love of Crochet~

2010-10-10T12:18:00.000-07:00

I found this pattern on The Royal Sisters blog and had to

try and make one for myself. It's a Granny Tissue Box

cover.

It was quick, fun and easy. And I just love it!

Holly Hobbie~

2010-10-10T11:49:00.000-07:00

The newest addition to my HH collection...

a HH lunch pail (rather beat up but loved).

the Calm after the Storm...

2010-10-01T16:00:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful day of rain and thunderstorms yesterday after a few days of above 100 temps. The Lord even sent his rainbow to top it all off....

I wished I'd had one of those panorama view cameras to take in the whole arc. Since I didn't, I took pix of each part.

and a rain-dappled pink plumeria blossom

Linking up with Beverly's Pink Saturday~

How Hot Is It?

2010-09-27T11:20:00.000-07:00

I just took this picture of our patio thermometer about

20 minutes ago (10:55 a.m).

Yes, that's right, 116°....in the shade. I'd knock off

about 5 or 6 degrees for accuracy. But, come on!

It's not even Noon yet :/

It is Autumn, right?

Pink Roses for Pink Saturday~

2010-09-24T17:00:00.000-07:00

Congratulations! You've made it through another week. The weekend is here and it's Pink Saturday time.

This week I thought I'd share some pretty pink roses on melamine/melmac plates with you.

I bought these off of eBay prolly 7 or 8 years ago.

They say 'Park Avenue' on their backs.

You may remember the Rachel Ashwell placemats

underneath the plate. I posted about them here.

The pink flatware is new. I finally found

some on-line...at Beall's in Florida.

I think I should add these pretty napkins,

too, don't you? I posted about them

here. (I found the crocheted

lace trim at the same thrift store on the

same shopping trip.)

The pink acrylic "glasses" are from Target

on-line last Summer, I believe.

And the crocheted tablecloth is from

my mama 15 or 20 years ago.

Hope you enjoyed your visit.

How about visiting Beverly over at

How Sweet the Sound where she hosts

Pink Saturday?
Bye now ஐ

W-I-P Wednesday~Front Yard Xeriscaping

2010-09-22T10:44:00.000-07:00

Our front yard is a true WIP. DH is hardscaping it with white marble rock in beds

and Palm Springs rock for the main portion of the yard.

He built the walls up for the beds and now, weekend by weekend, he adds a "yard" of the PS rock to fill in. We live in a semi-arid climate here in Southern California so we're going with this water-conserving plan for the front yard.

Here you can see the edging blocks DH framed the yard with. And the cobblestone pavers he put down on the right there. Of course, front and center you see our big boy, Kona, going out to inspect the 500 lb. rock DH and our neighbor dropped in for a feature.

They had boulders weighing 1500 lbs at the rock place, too.

We plan on picking up one or two more of these big, bad boys

to place around. He also plans on putting in a palm tree.

Hope to have this project finished in the next month or so. It's

fun getting nice comments from the neighbors. We've lived in

this house for almost 2 years now and we're finally getting it spruced

up in front. We lived next door for 16 years and as long as

I can remember, this front yard has been neglected. I think I

hear it breathing a sigh of appreciative relief.

Linking up to W-I-P Wednesday over at Marie Anne's
blog, Every Day Crochet.

Pink Pyrex for Pink Saturday~

2010-09-17T16:07:00.000-07:00

Ready for some Pink?!?!

If you're a Pyrex-aholic like I am, this sight sets you to

drooling :) I'm told the solid pink bowl set is rare.

Here's it's City Cousin:

This is a Pink Gooseberry Cinderella Bowls set. A little

jazzier than it's plain Country Cuz. But, I love them both :)

♥•.*..*.•♥

Join Pink Saturday over at Beverly's blog, How Sweet

the Sound. Give her and the participants a visit :)

Have a Happy!

W-I-P Wednesday

2010-09-14T18:26:00.000-07:00

I'm so happy to have found Work-In-Progress Wednesday! Here's what I have to share with you this week....

It's a Celtic Cross Granny Afghan in pastel blue for moi!

I'm using Lion Brand yarn in "A Pound of Love" .

The pattern is a free original from SmoothFox Designs and I'm
about half-way thru.

You can find the pattern here on Ravelry (if you're a member).

Why not sign up if you're not? It's free and a great

pattern resource. If you'd rather
not go thru Ravelry.com, her blog is called: SmoothFox Lover.
(She loves her Smooth Fox Terrier, get it?)
Thanks for letting me share. Enjoy your project!

New-to-me Pyrex pattern and color~

2010-09-13T08:52:00.000-07:00

While thrifting on Friday, we found a new-to-us pattern

of Pyrex in a blue that we fell in love with. It's called

"Colonial Mist Blue Daisies".

We got this at an antiques store rather than a thrift store.

They did give us a 10% discount though.

I love this pattern!

We will never forget~

2010-09-10T17:00:00.000-07:00

that day nor those lost. We probably all remember exactly where we were and what we were doing when we first heard the terrible news that our Country was under attack and thousands of innocent lives were lost...

May they rest in peace, God's peace.

Bless God, America~

Linking to Beverly's Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound

Woo-whoo!!

2010-09-09T14:00:00.000-07:00

We got a Howard Pierce owl and our first piece of Vaseline glass!

That's our little guy on the left. Love, love.

✿ ~ ✿~ ✿

Now, as you've already read in a previous post,

I collect cat-head glass shoes. Well, the antique

mall we went to on Labor Day had loads of them.

Including the Vaseline glass cat's head you see

pictured below. I took it over to the black light

they had set up and this baby glowed like uranium!

DH's been hard-scaping our front yard. We live in

a semi-arid climate and are rocking our front yard.

Since I've gotten all the new shoes lately (see

previous post), we got DH a new boot.....

I'm too good to him, huh? ;~) ✿

Edited 9/14 to add: one good turn deserves another~

Got me some new shoes~

2010-09-08T17:00:00.000-07:00

H spotted these cat-head glass shoes for me the other day at Sally Harmy. He insisted we get them to add to our collection. I'm a shoe horse, so that's okay by me. Plus, we collect green glass, so the green shoe was a shooo-in. Oh, that was bad.

The other one is kind of a grape-y color which i love.

We got 5 items for a total of $8 - pretty good deal, eh?

I got this darling wicker shelf and linen/hankie rack in that grouping as well. It just needed a good brushing to get the dust off and I hit it with a little white spray paint, of course ;)

At another of our favorite thrift haunts, I found this oval vanity mirror. It was gold-framed, but i couldn't leave it that way. Nooo, no. It had to have a fresh coat of white spray paint, too. I admit I have a weakness for these vanity trays. I may distress it in the future to shabby it up.

Oh, and I also got to add a little cut-crystal base oil lamp to my small oil lamp collection. Isn't she pretty? It says Austria on the bottom. And, you know, these little babies are more than just fun to look at. They serve a purpose should our power go out say in a rolling blackout or earthquake. Always thinkin' (as my dad used to say) ;D

Linking up with Vintage Thingie Thursday~

do yourself a favor and go see all the fun goodies people have to share.

In Loving Memory ✟

2010-09-04T17:00:00.000-07:00

Two years ago, on September 7th, you went to be with the Lord, Daddy. I miss you and am thinking of you. I'm so glad you are free from pain and ageless. You did so much in your 93 years. You were quite a man... a good dad, granddad, great- granddad, father-in-law, son, etc, pilot, pastor, veteran, whatever it took to get the job done. I'm so glad my DH got to know you and love you. You have enriched our lives and so many others. I'll see you again some day. Your loving daughter, Mary

c. 1923

Daddy and Mama

around 1994

Vintage Black Friday~

2010-09-02T17:00:00.000-07:00

For this month's vintage black friday I'm sharing a gift that

was given to me over 25 years ago....

a Japanese tea caddy. A lovely Japanese lady I worked

with gave it to me. She was so special, Dorothy Tanabe.

She grew up in Japan. When she was in school, she and her
best friend would ride the train to school everyday.
Her friend grew up to marry into the Japanese Royal family.

Here's a peek inside the tea caddy...

I'm not sure if it's tin-lined or aluminum-lined.

I store lavender in it~

and here's what it says on it's bottom:

Love you, Dorothy.

at the ~French Cupboard~

Zen on a budget~

2010-08-28T17:53:00.000-07:00

Made myself a little zen garden the other day.

It's fun to play with. I know it's not traditional

to have a matryoshka in your zen garden, but

what the heck? She wandered in there ;)

Here's a link to a cute youtube video on making

a miniature zen garden for yourself.

Pink Soap for Pink Saturday~

2010-08-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

Linking up with Beverly's Pink Saturday blog party

at How Sweet the Sound. Happy Pink Saturday!

Our new PINK laundry soap:

I found out about pretty, pink, sweet-smelling Zote laundry soap one day while reading Heather's Blog-o-Rama. I was intrigued as I already made our laundry soap from Fels-Naptha bar soap. I got my recipe originally from the Duggar Family website. Here's their ingredients list:

1 Fels-Naptha soap bar (or Zote)

1 Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*

½ Cup Borax

"-Grate soap or break into pieces and process in a food processor until powdered. Mix all ingredients. For light load, use 1 Tablespoon. For heavy or heavily soiled load, use 2 Tablespoons. Yields: 3 Cups detergent. (Approx. 40 loads)

*Arm & Hammer "Super Washing Soda" - in some stores or may be purchased online here (at Meijer.com). Baking Soda will not work, nor will Arm & Hammer Detergent - It must be sodium carbonate!!

TIPS FOR LAUNDRY SOAP: We use Fels-Naptha bar soap in the homemade soap recipes, but you can use Ivory, Sunlight, Kirk's Hardwater Castile or Zote bars. Don't use heavily perfumed soaps. We buy Fels-Naptha by the case from our local grocer or online. Washing Soda and Borax can often be found on the laundry or cleaning aisle. Recipe cost approx. $2 per batch."

Just in case you want to try your hand at homemade laundry soap (it's fun!!),

I buy the Zote at Wal-Mart, the Borax at the grocery store

and the Arm & Hammer Washing Soda at Ace Hardware.

{I order the Washing Soda on-line and have it delivered to the nearest-to-me Ace for free.}

3 little ingredients....that's all. (I don't use baking soda in my recipe.)

Try it, you'll like it :)

Good, clean fun ~

Hooded Orioles for Wordless Wednesday~

2010-08-18T10:28:00.000-07:00

Breathtakingly beautiful birds outside our

bedroom windows.

~The Hooded Oriole~
Wordless Wednesday

Flour Sacks for REDnesday~

2010-08-17T16:08:00.000-07:00

Thank you, Marydon - from Blushing Rose blog and boutique,

for selling me these adorable vintage floursacks!

I'm enjoying it as a bedside table topper for now.

Can't bear to cut into it ;)

As you can see, I got two good-sized pieces of fabric.
I may make a new apron out of one. We'll see.
But, I love having this print out where I can
look at it!
Linking up with Sue's REDnesday party over on
her blog, It's A Very Cherry World.

‧:❉:‧A bunch of different things and partys‧:❉:‧

2010-08-15T19:48:00.000-07:00

It was time to make some new dishcloths~

here are 3 I made this weekend. I've finished a

fourth and am gonna start on a pattern my friend,

Tammy, from T's Daily Treasures shared with me.

‧:❉:‧

I went shopping at Goodwill on Sunday and

I found this pretty flower-covered round tablecloth

and 4 brand new napkins for $7.99. They remind me

of Vera table linens.

(click on the picture for flower detail)

6 china napkin rings $1.99

‧:❉:‧

At St. Vinnie's last weekend, we found this

like-new-looking Pyrex refrigerator set for

(I think it was) $7. It's the Homestead pattern
and here's the link to it on Pyrex Love.

Adding to our green glass collection, this

vase was reduced to $3.99 - Also from

Goodwill.

I'm linking up with Sally's Blue Monday,

Suzanne's Vintage Thingie Thursday,

and Debbiedoos Garage Salin' Partay.

Go have some fun looking at all the goodies!

Pink Saturday~Pink Thrift Finds

2010-08-13T16:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Pink Saturday everyone ‧:❉:‧

Pink and white pussywillows adorn this

50's (no name markings) iced tea or

lemonade pitcher. I found this beauty

at Goodwill for $2.99.

I just love these plaster of Paris plaques. I've

got a couple of them now. I especially love this verse

and the soft pastel blue with pink roses or dogwood

blossoms. Makes me happy when I look at it.
I found these vintage napkins a few weeks ago
at a thrift store. They were 80¢ each...I bought
the 3 they had.

I'm linking up with Pink Saturday over at Beverly's blog,

How Sweet the Sound.

Vintage Finds Makeover~

2010-08-11T15:30:00.000-07:00

While thrifting on Friday (our usual thrifting day), we found these plaques by Homco....

2 last year that had roses on them and painted them white.

Well, these aren't gonna be white~no, they're glossy black now.

I left the candle sconce in the picture so you could see I have

black accents in this room.

Here they are in all their vintage goodness :)

I forget where I got this idea (probably on a blog somewhere). But, I found this

old, wobbly CD rack on Friday also. I forgot to take it's before pic, but it was oak.

Light oak. Here it is after 1 primer coat of Zinsser white.

Here it is painted white and holding some of my

vintage hankie collection~

UPDATE:

Well, the hankie shelf is lavender now. I'm just waiting for it to dry real good before I put the handkerchiefs back on it :)

And this sweet little glass just had my name on it~
(literally ;)

I'm linking up with Suzanne at the Coloradolady for Vintage Thingie Thursday.

And with Debbie at Debbiedoos Garage Salin'.

And, last, but certainly not

least, with Cindy over at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Fridays.

Have fun checking out all the other great vintage finds, great deals, and

great makeovers at these fun, fine blogs :)

Crochet for Blue Monday~

2010-08-08T16:12:00.000-07:00

Just a few blue pieces I've crocheted lately

to share for Blue Monday, hosted by Sally

over at Smiling Sally blog. Go see who all

else is playing this week :)

Blue paisley motif~

‧:❉:‧

a crocheted round pillow

potholders I'll never use for that purpose cuz

I love them too much ;)

and a blue and white potholder i just might use ;)

I do love to crochet - it keeps me out of trouble.

Hope your Monday's a good one

‧:❉:‧

August's Silver Sunday~

2010-08-07T18:00:00.000-07:00

Stovetop Espresso "machine"

Espresso anyone? These come in

so many different sizes. Mine is a 2 oz.

capacity. They make them in up to 6-cup

sizes. I Googled it to learn more about it

and it's called a "moka pot" in some cultures.

Cool, huh? I get such a kick out of watching

the espresso come frothing out of the top

when it brews.

I guess they're more common on stovetops

in Italy than espresso machines. At least

that was so for years and years.

~*~*~*~*~

Here's a silver jewelry box i got from Adrienne

Arpel a few years ago. I keep my mother's

vintage jewelry sets in it, so it's very special to me.

And here's some of her jewelry inside:

Mama was a school teacher for many, many years,

plus she lived during the glamorous 40's and 50's,

so she always wore pretty jewelry.

I'm linking up for Silver Sunday at Gypsy Fish Journal.

•.¸♥Pink Thrifting♥¸.•

2010-08-06T16:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Pink Saturday and welcome!

What will a few dollars buy you at your local thrift shop?

A pretty pink roses oil or acrylic painting by someone named Fay.

Whatzit? I dunno, but i like it.

My favorite era/style of picture frame. I put some favorite
vintage hankies in it and voila! A tray for my office corner table.

Visit our hostess, Beverly, at How Sweet the Sound, to see
what she's got cookin' and all the other Pink Saturday
participants - you'll be glad ya did.

Vintage Black Friday~

2010-08-06T00:00:00.000-07:00

Miniature tole trays~

DH and I picked them up at our favorite antiques store a few years ago. There are 4 of them and they measure 4"x6".

Here you can see that they're not full-size trays.

And here are some of my favorite pieces of cast iron and

a charcoal piece of Pyrex. Oh yeah, a couple of little vintage books

on junking from England in the Pyrex dish.

The first Friday of the month is Vintage Black Friday.
So click on over to see all the other black pretties.

Thriftstore Finds~

2010-08-04T17:00:00.000-07:00

I've been looking for some faux fruit to fill a footed bowl my sister gave me years ago.

I hit the jackpot at our favorite thrift store this Friday!

I got this whole bowlful of fruit for $3.85!

I also found a gigantaur cheese dome and base

the week before that at Sally Army....

actually, both were found at SA, just at different

times.

Found this old picture of Venice at SA~

I fell in love with it at first sight. DH took some

convincing but he likes it a lot now, too.

I'm linking up (for the first time) with Vintage Thingie

Thursdays and Debbiedoos Garage Salin' Party. So,
go check out all the other great ~~steals~~ deals
others have found.

An Unexpected Surprise~

2010-08-03T17:31:00.000-07:00

came in the mail today...just in time for Rednesday!
A pressie from my nephew's wife :)

Don't ya think unexpected gifts are the best??

need a close-up? Okay...

They're matryoshka measuring cups!! If ya

click on the picture, you'll see that the top part

is one size, the bottom another, and so on. How

clever is that?!

Here they are

all opened up...

Cute, huh? She knows I collect matryoshkas

and said she thought of me when she saw these.
I think my nephew did a good job choosing his

wife. 'Course, I think he had a little help from

above ;)

Linking up with REDnesday. Go see Sue at It's

a Very Cherry World and have fun seeing all the cool

(often vintage) goodies people post about there on REDnesday.

Keepin' outta mischief...and Pink Saturday!

2010-07-30T16:00:00.000-07:00

This past week (or two) was a true introduction into peri-menopause. I'm so glad I have things I like to do that keep me occupied so I don't get into melancholy or mischief.

This week I finished off a Mystery Dishcloth Knit-Along put on by Rachel over at Rachel's Knitting Blog.

You can click on the picture to see the pattern better.

It was designed by a lady named Nettie for the KAL.

As you can see, I used a mauvey-rose color with

warm brown. I kinda love how it turned out. The

bottom row isn't supposed to be wavey like that - but,

that's due to my misinterpreting the instructions

for a few rows ;)

I also went to TJ Maxx last weekend and found

this lovely bunch of ~~coconuts~~ cake stands in pink glass.

'Twas only $14.99! As this is (active) earthquake

country, I don't keep them stacked this way ;)

I like using my cheese dome/cloche on the top

tier with a cluster of acrylic grapes under it.

My mom used to make those wonderful full-sized

(actually larger than real-life) grape clusters out of

some awful smelling concoction and attach them

to pieces of driftwood back in the 60's.

They were gorgeous and I so wish I had a set now.

I did not appreciate them as a kid, naturally ;(

I am linking up to Beverly and her blog, How

Sweet the Sound for Pink Saturday. Enjoy

visiting her and the over 150 participants. Please

leave as many people comments as you can, so they'll

know you stopped by and enjoyed your visit. I know

I love getting your nice comments.

Vintage Comfort

My Cath Kidston wishlist....

Master Bath redo ideas from Victoria magazine

-:¦:-•:*' Happy New Year ""*:•.-:¦:-

~*~Vintage Christmas Tablecloth And Apron~*~

~*~Thank you for your kindness ~*~

We are sad....

Vintage Christmas Cards

*~*~*Chicken Soup, Molasses Cookies and Yarn*~*~*

~*~*~*~Homemade Soap~*~*~*~

Reading Mitts and other things~

November's here!

Doing the dishes~

Sweet Lemons~

Good Tuesday Mornin'!

I Won a Giveaway~

Granny Afghan~

Slouchy Beanie~

Vintage Swag Lamps~

One Warm Scarf for Charity~

Goodwill find - Syroco

Video of Hummingbirds Feeding~

It's a wrap~

Plarn Market Bag~

the Portable Crafter

Socks, socks and more socks!

Hummingbird Feeding Frenzy~

Before and After~

Plaque Collection~

A View from a Window~

Cesar's Top 10 Hot Weather Tips

Knitted pink linen hand towel~

Cabrillo National Park

What Color???

Crocheted Kindle sleeve and soap cover~

Pink Butterfly Dishcloth~

I'm getting a Kindle~

Yarn Haul~

Male and Female...

Tea towels~

Happy Father's Day~

S-o-c-k-s!

The grapes of.....

Pyrex $urpri$e!

^~^Hootie and the Blow Fish ^~^

Michaels mini-haul for today~

Finished: 1 sock

*~*~*~*Happy Mother's Day* ~*~*~*

*~*~*~*~*Happy Easter *~*~*~*~*

Where in the world are you?

119th anniversary of the Ice Cream Sundae~

Time to get something Easter-y

Pot O'Gold Colcannon~

Yardwork~

Our Hearts Go Out to

Progress on the Blues Throw~

*~Lemon Chess Pie~*

W-I-P Wednesday~

In Loving Memory~

Christmas Crochet and Homemade Soaps Combined~

Our 1st Piece of Le Creuset

Crocheted Poinsettia~

5 Questions?????

Christmas Already!

Wishing You a Happy Thanksgiving~

The Song of Hiawatha

and for dessert....

A few homemade goodies~

Finito!

For the Birds.....

Autumn Squash

How Sweet!

For the Love of Crochet~

Holly Hobbie~

the Calm after the Storm...

How Hot Is It?

Pink Roses for Pink Saturday~

W-I-P Wednesday~Front Yard Xeriscaping

Pink Pyrex for Pink Saturday~

W-I-P Wednesday

-:¦:-•:' Happy New Year "":•.-:¦:-

~~Vintage Christmas Tablecloth And Apron~~

~~Thank you for your kindness ~~

~~Chicken Soup, Molasses Cookies and Yarn~~

~~~~Homemade Soap~~~~

~~~Happy Mother's Day ~~~

~~~~Happy Easter ~~~~

~Lemon Chess Pie~

•.¸♥Pink Thrifting♥¸.•