New Creations in My Shop

Hi everyone,

How is your week going?

It seems that spring will arrive early here in Michigan, and that is just fine with me!

Today's temps were much warmer than normal, and tomorrow is supposed to be a balmy 66 degrees!

For us that is a real heat wave!

Today I thought I'd share with you some of my latest creations which I've listed in my Etsy shop.

I just love galvanized anything, don't you? So when I spotted this tall bucket awhile back, I couldn't scoop it up quickly enough! Actually it was in it's natural state finish wise.  I decided to paint it a pretty and soft

dove gray, followed by some dry brushing in a lighter shade for interest.

Then I added one of my all time favorite labels from the Graphics Fairy.

 Love!

I have used this design many times, and never tire of it.

 Next up is this sweet tea pot, fashioned from chicken wire.  I've painted it my signature creamy white, and embellished it with a pretty rose tag,  Petite cream silk flowers and crinkly cream seam binding ribbon add to the shabby cottage chic charm!

 Here is a close up.

Shelves have always been a best seller in my shop.  I think every home could use more shelves!

So I'm always on the hunt for interesting ones that I can paint and transform.

I lucked out and found this beauty at a thrift shop when we were in Florida.  It is in excellent vintage condition.  I freshened it up with some nice bright white paint.

I love wicker!

 Perfect for storing treasures or necessities.

I painted this pretty wood shelf in a lovely light blue chalk paint.

Love the curvy side brackets and the pegs for hanging everything from coats to bags to dog leashes:)

 I couldn't resist this sweet little vintage lamb planter, which I found last month at one of my favorite haunts.

Isn't she just darling?!  It's by Napco, and features a lamb with just the cutest little face, who is pulling a pink and white cart.

 I wouldn't be too sad if she didn't sell!

 I think it would be so cute for Easter, or would be darling in a baby's room.

 Last but not least is this painted and stenciled cloche.

Cloches are another favorite of mine that I am always thrilled to find.

Actually hubby came home with this one for me.  It makes me so happy when he stops to treasure hunt for me!

I've painted it with white chalk paint, then stenciled it just for fun.

 I also added one of my glittered Eiffel Tower tags to the top. Because you know what I always say................

"You can never have too much glitter!"

That's it for today, thanks so much for stopping by!

I do appreciate your visits and comments!!

Have a great week:)

Easter Shadow Box Project

Hi everyone, how is your week going?

Ok, so I do realize that Easter is still more than a month away.

But, for those of us who love to create, well, we often tend to jump ahead of the calendar, right?

I do have a valid excuse, though, as this is my latest project for DecoArt!  

DecoArt was requesting Easter themed projects, so I couldn't resist the chance to make something fun and spring like!

Sometimes inspiration comes just from walking thru the isles the craft store.  Other times it's searching for neat ideas on Pinterest.  And yet others just seem to pop into my head!

So with that, I'll share with you my Easter shadow box project.

 I found this neat wood shadow box with a pretty laser cut frame at Michael's.  I knew right away that it would be the basis for my project!

 Then I had another brainstorm!  I picked up these little wood banner cut outs, also at Michael's

I began by painting the frame and outside of the box in the prettiest light green, called "Pistachio".

One easy way to get more mileage out of your paints 

(and keeps you running to the store to buy yet another color!) is to mix several colors together to create a multitude of shades!  So for a little contrast, I mixed some of the green with a bit of white "Snowball" to make a slightly lighter shade of green, and used it to paint the inner edges of the box.

 I also painted the little wood pennants in both shades of green, as well as a pretty "Baby Pink".

Again, for another shade of pink, I mixed it with a little white to create a paler pink for some of the other pennants.

 I love adding little polka dots to my projects.  So I decided to add them to the edges of each pennants, just for fun.  It was easy peasy!  Just dip the end of a small paint brush, or even the eraser end of a pencil into your paint to create the dots (I used white).

 To each pennant I added adhesive alphabet stickers to spell out "Happy Easter".

You can't tell from my photos, but the letters have just a bit of sparkle 

(because you know just how much I love glitter!)

 I then added the pennants to two lengths of jute twine.

To the inside of my shadow box, I decoupaged a piece of vintage sheet music

(I guess you could say sheet music is one of my signature looks!)

 Then the real fun began!  Assembling my box!

I found this darling little Easter bunny at Hobby Lobby.  Isn't he just the cutest?  He is foil wrapped, giving him the appearance of chocolate (but don't try to eat him, he's decorative only!!)

I also added this sweet spray of pastel colored eggs.

 And the cutest little nest with eggs, also from Hobby Lobby.

 I had so much fun with this project!

 It makes me want to create more for different holidays and seasons!

 I hot glued all of my embellishments in place.  But, if you just placed them inside the box, you could swap them out with the seasons, using the same box again and again for different looks.

Hope that inspires you to create something fun!

Fun Glittered Tag Project

Bonjour Mes Amis!

Hope your week has been a great one so far.

For me, any day that involves glitter, vintage images, and decoupage is a great day!

So with that, I thought I'd share with you a few vintage inspired tags that I just created.

I began with some extra thick and heavy chipboard.  Actually it came from vintage picture frames that I picked up while thrifting. Since I didn't need the backings any more, I put them in my crafting stash.  I never throw stuff like that away, as it's just full of crafting potential!

 Then the really fun part began!  I pulled out my stash of lace trims, tiny buttons both vintage and newer, rhinestones, and bits of this and that.

Throw in some Mod Podge, glitter and copies of gorgeous vintage images, and 

viola!!

 I had so much fun creating these tags.  I like to keep them on hand to give as little gifts.

Wouldn't they be pretty hung from a door knob, or added to a wrapped present as a gift within a gift?

And I think they would be gorgeous hanging on the Christmas tree, too! 

I started by decoupaging vintage looking sheet music to the chipboard, which is actually decoupage paper.

The images of the beautiful women are from the Graphics Fairy. Aren't they beautiful?

For the tag below, I added this adorable glittery cut out of a birdcage, that I had in my stash for quite some time.  Love!

 To the bottom of each tag, I hot glued on pretty lacy trim and buttons.

 I then pulled out my vintage Children's dictionary and cut out various definitions, which I mounted on thinner chipboard.  No worries, the book is not valuable or anything!  I bought it for a buck at our libraries used book sale, just for the purpose of crafting.  I never would tear up a valuable book!

 Oh, the women are mounted on chipboard, too.

 I had these fun little keys in my stash, just waiting for the perfect project!

I added thin wire for hangers, leaving it a bit crinkled just for fun.
Then I tied to the wire gorgeous pale pink hand torn silk ribbon.

 Rhinestones add even more bling!

 I had so much fun with this project, I can't wait to create some more!

 The best thing is that I already had everything on hand.

Hope this inspired you to create something with what you already have sitting around!

Cast Your Vote!

Bonjour Mes Amis!

Awhile back, I shared with you a project that I completed for DecoArt.

It was a "mystery box" challenge, which meant those of us participating received the exact same supplies, but it was totally up to us what to create with them!

If you caught that post, you will remember this, my tray..........................

 That all began with this..................

 Well, what I didn't mention is that DecoArt is having a contest among those of us who participated in their challenge.

 There were 9 of us in total, and one lucky winner will receive a $150 gift card for DecoArt products!

So, if you would care to vote for your favorite 

(not saying that you have to vote for me, but boy, would I ever appreciate it if you did!!!!!)

you can cast your vote Here!

Voting will begin today, and end September 30th.

Stay tuned, I'll be sure to keep you posted who the lucky winner is!

Thank you!!!

Petite Pink Pumpkin Topiary

Hi everyone, Happy Labor Day!

It's hard to believe we are already going into the second week of September, isn't it?

While the calendar may say that fall is just around the corner, it is still very hot and humid in our neck of the woods.

Today I wanted to share with you my latest creation, which I just completed for DecoArt.

They had requested a Halloween themed project, and it was totally up to me what to create.

I just love projects like that, where the sky (and my imagination) is the limit!

So, after a bit of thought, I came up with a  pink pumpkin topiary with a shabby chic twist!

 It all started with faux orange pumpkins from Hobby Lobby. 

Since I am not into the traditional fall colors (no orange here!), I just couldn't resist painting them pink!

It's a bit hard to tell in the photos, but the largest pumpkin is a bit darker shade of pink, and the middle and top pumpkins are lighter shades.

After painting, I then decoupaged the pumpkins with these pretty floral designs, which I found on Pinterest.

I cut them all out by hand, which was a bit tedious.

 I felt that the pumpkins needed a bit more, so I decided to add some fun polka dots in a creamy white.

A pencil eraser, dipped in DecoArt craft paint, makes perfect polka dots!

Once dry, I coated the entire surface of each pumpkin with DecoArt's decoupage medium, then liberally dusted them with clear iridescent glitter.

('cause a girl just needs a little bling every now and then!)

Here is a close up, below.  I stacked them in this cute little metal urn, also from Hobby Lobby.

It has the sweetest scalloped rim.

It started out a dark gray, which didn't really go with the look I was after, so of course I just had to paint it creamy white!

Before nestling the pumpkins inside the urn, I added a bit of Spanish moss, and a few snippets of shredded and curled vintage sheet music, just for fun. 

For my little photo shoot, I created this cute "boo" sign, which I made on

PicMonkey, and stuck in a pretty thrift store frame that I painted.

 Boo!

 So there you have it....................

 My pink, glittery, petite pumpkin topiary!

 Hope this inspires you to create something just for fun!