Fresh Christmas Arrangements

Just a few arrangements I whipped up this afternoon.  They are for a client I have been working with every Christmas for about15 years. We did the outside of their home a few weeks ago, and these will be going on the inside, as well as a beautiful fresh garland for her mantle.

I have a few more customers for next week. As well I'll be starting work at the florist every day until Christmas eve! I'll have sap hands for sure!

A Fresh Mantle for Christmas.

There is no blue on my Christmas mantle this year! First time in many years I think... although that could all change at any moment, but for now it includes:

• Fresh white Alstormaria in a vase. A great long lasting flower!
• An old altered book...each page folded and left open. I may use it to hold some Christmas cards when they start arriving.
• My "R" ....on old marquee sign letter found in an antique shop in Corning NY.
• Birch bark logs, lovely cut up by my husband. There is a well in the top of each log to hold a tea light. Fresh moss and pears to surround them.
• an old glass jar filled with vintage ornaments.
• a rustic wooden angel given to me by a friend
• a silver cone filled with branches from the yard, sprayed silver. I pulled out all my silver vintage balls to hang on the branches, along with mini disco balls from the dollar store. It is looking a little dark in the picture, but when the sun is shining or the candles are lit, there is a beautiful sparkle!

And The Stockings Were Hung...

We have needed new stockings for....YEARS!  So this is the year. There is a brand new one for each of us. All were made from recycled men's shirts. They are nice and big...room for lots of loot from Santa...probably 2 1/2ft long! Originally I intended to fold down the top, but I liked them so much long that I left them and added buttons at the top.

 

 

 

 

Before and After

I have been following Knack http://knackstudios.blogspot.com/ for quite sometime. She is actually celebrating her 2nd year anniversary of blogging....check out her blog for a chance to win some great neat things from her shop!

She has a very unique way of recycling old furniture...usually with paint. I'd love to have just one of her pieces. But this one, I think, is the most beautiful I've seen yet. Here is her before and after:

 

 

 

Nice huh?

Snowflakes

Check out the cool ornaments made from buttons from my vintage button jar. I just used a long piece of wire twisted through the large middle button the thread on a row of buttons. All eight rows are attached to the large middle button.  An extra piece of wire makes a hanger for the top.

If you don't have vintage buttons, this one was made with all red buttons from the dollar store. The heart in the centre is just a decorative "brad".

I thought these would be a great topper for Christmas presents!

 

Here is another one that I just found on another blog. Her technique is totally different (glue instead of wire) and if you'd like to see how she does it, go here: http://shanty2chic.blogspot.com/2009/11/ashleys-snowflake-ornament.html

Some Christmas Yummies...

Isn't this pretty? Simple and outdoorsy...I love it.

I've done several decorating jobs this year with birch. It's so pretty and wintery. It's great for large showy planters since the branches can be so long.

This ones just a lot of fun. I think in my household, the snowballs wouldn't stay nicely stacked there for long...real or not real! The skates look great in the background as well.

No red in this room. All shades of green and white...so fresh and clean. What a pretty mantle!

Really simple and understated...I like! Nice farmers sink too.

Christmas Runner.

I am really liking this table runner! It is made from Christmas/winter fabrics, but not in traditional colours. I like that the tree trunk is done from brown bias tape...makes it simple.

I'm not really a" table runner person", but I think this one done in the right colours and patterns would be fantastic. Another thing to add to the "To Do" pile.

Beautiful Images.

 

This is a great resource for scrapbookers, cardmakers or just crafty people. The Graphics Fairy has an amazing selection of vintage pictures, signs, labels etc. Some of them are just beautiful! And she shares them all with us...her images are free!

http://graphicsfairy.blogspot.com

Cute as a Button!

Aren’t these just the cutest. Makes me wish I knew how to knit! But if you do and you’d like the pattern…go  here:http://members.home.nl/tdpj/Patronen/Bootees/Saartjes%20bootees.pdf

Christmas Card Sneak Peak.

 

I’ve been VERY slowly trying to get my Christmas cards going.  I even enjoyed a wonderful night at a B&B with girlfriends to work on them. But you can only accomplish so much with so many other wonderful distractions (shopping, chatting, hot- tubbing). So I’ve come home with lots of work yet to do!

This year I’m trying not to buy anything new. I have a great collection of wonderful papers. And I have lots of stamps too. So instead of doing them all the same, I think I’ll have quite a variety. Here are a few I’ve done so far:

 

    

A Quilt For Barbie!

I’ve attempted a mini quilt with all my itty bitty  little pieces for fabric. Most of the scraps were from mens shirts which I made aprons from. I cut them into 2” squares.

 

I cut a 18”x18”piece of interfacing and layed out my squares. I gently ironed them into place.

Next I sewed a 1/4” seam down each row, ironed the seams to one side, then sewed the other directions. What an easy way to sew small pieces together! The interfacing held everything in just the right place. I guess if you wanted to hand quilt though, it might make the fabric a little tough to get your need through.

I cut 4” strips to border, machine quilted, then bound with another fabric.

A very fun little project!

Some Serious Winterland Inspiration!

Don’t you just love the snowshoe sign? I think this would be a great theme for a winter party. Check out the snowmen boards to stand behind and have your picture taken…love it!

I also really love the mix of birch bark containers, moss and snow as an beautifully natural centerpiece.

The snowman at the top of this set is just fabulous. Did you notice it was made from white carnations? So easy. The antique buttons, pipe and little black hat are the perfect finishing touches!

So when I get my party all together, I’ll be sure to send you an invitation! (Don’t forget your snowshoes!)

Scarlet

I've got a really touching blog for you today. Paul Turner is the Worship Pastor at our church. He and his wife Angela have three children. Scarlet, their second child is Autistic.

I love the way Angela writes about her family with honesty and love and I appreciate the insight into the world of Autism that only the mother of Scarlet can.

Check it out here: http://divinelystartled.blogspot.com/2009/10/i-saw-sign.html

Beautiful...

I'm in love with this vertical succulent garden! Look at the beautiful texture...

I really like how they've framed it with natural branches as well. It's a west coast habitat so I guess it wouldn't work so well covered with snow huh?

Found it here.

Patchwork sweater blanket.

What a great idea for a bunch of old sweaters...although I'm pretty sure I don't have this many of one colour!

I really like the idea of them all being neutral though. I may have to start sweater collecting at Goodwill's 1/2 price days.

I bet it would be really cozy on these cool fall days to cozy up under one of these with a good book.

For more info on how she did it, head over here.

Got Books?

After being asked to speak about "Living well On Less" to a Womens Ministry Group this past weekend, my partner in crime, Darlene, started experimenting with book folding. Her results were amazing...I wish I had the book she folded to show you....but you can trust me...it was good! She said it took her about 2 hours (infront of the TV kinda thing!) and I think that was with two folds on each page.

I've found a few more images reflecting the various things you can do with old books. It would be the perfect thing to do with any old books you might have around that are damaged.

One of these pictures shows them hanging...looks amazing in groups. Darlene's looked great just sitting open on a table. And I think they might look kinda cool hanging on the way with a plate hanger!

My other thought was how kid friendly this could be...I think my boys would enjoy it.

So...now you know what I'm up to this week.

An Explosion at Sally Ann!

A few weeks ago I was asked by the Ladies Ministries at church to speak at their upcoming meeting. The theme was to be "Living Well On Less". I was fairly confident, after my many trips to the thrift shops, that I could pull together a half hour talk. And I also knew that if I invited my good friend Darlene to join me, it would be even better! After all, we have been known to inspire eachother...
So we got together and planned our strategy. Between the two of us, there really wasn't a whole lot to prepare...just a trip around each of our homes! The big hits were the the lounge pants made out of old bedsheets, and the aprons made from old mens' shirts. Darlene had lots of great things to show from her latest thing....wool felting. I think everyone had a great time....and I think we really inspired many ladies to think about repurposing items they might already have in their home. One girl came up to me in church this morning and said she had already raided her husbands closet looking for shirts to make into aprons! Sorry husbands out there...
For any friends and family of Darlene and I out there...don't look too close...your Christmas gift might just be tucked into this photo somewhere!

I've been having fun this week preparing for some beautiful fall weddings. Both are full of variety and texture and wonderful colours.

Both weddings will be happening at resorts in Muskoka this weekend. I'd love to see it all set up and ready to go, but unfortunately this time, I'm working in the studio. 30 centrepieces...12 bouquets....head table arrangements....urns....pew flowers...bouttonieres and corsages...I think I get the fun part!

Wish the pictures were better...but you get the idea.