WINTER

It has been a little while since my last posting. I am tired of the snow,(like the rest of you) in which more of it is coming in the form of snow showers tomorrow. Really have not been doing that much at all. My creativity is not at its best. I have been playing Wii golf and bowling with our friends. Like the rest of you , I have been waiting for the sun to shine. I did find some more boxes in the basement that I unpacked finding a few more treasures. I stitched this sampler years ago and it found a place on my dining room wall.

I also found this old yellowware bowl in the bottom of a box; that I had forgot about. It found a place on the kitchen shelf.

We are planning a trip down south and when I return my next posting will be my 100th. So I think I know what will be in my GIVEAWAY, perhaps a small antique will be a part of it. Till then , everyone stay warm and safe and Happy.

Sale & New Items in Selling Blog

Two post in one day. I am getting very close to my 100th post. So time for a give away is very near. I haven't decided what it will be yet. Just keep watching.

I finally got to my crafts that I have been wanting to put on my selling blog for quite awhile. Projects, such as the one in my last post, has kept me from getting to my sale items. I have marked down most of my items and will continue to put things on the next few days. Just keep checking back. Check all the pages. If you are interested just email me @ kggrace02@yahoo.com . Above is one of the items for sale.

To all The Masterpiece Theatre Friends. So did you watch "Emma?" What did you think? On my PBS station they recently aired "Sense and Sensibility." Did anyone get to see that? I have seen that before. I would highly recommend that one also. Valentines Day is approaching fast. What better way to put you in the mood.

My Latest Project

My newest project. I showed you in earlier post the wall paper to come down in a spare bedroom. We took it all down, and what was revealed to us???? I call it WAKE UP YUCK! paint color. It was so bright that it would hurt your eyes. I can only imagine the day when it was first put on & the person sleeping in that room & the thoughts they had ; what was I was thinking when I painted this color????? Below are 2 pics what it looked liked. I had already finished the floor so a tarp was put down. A friend of ours came & mud the cracks in the wall for us. The picture above is the result color : an off white. The dresser is my next project. I believe that it will be a linen color. Our daughter Sam started stripping the piece years ago, but never finished. She left the piece behind when she got married. So now it is mom's job to finish it.

Hibernation

It has been a couple of weeks since I have posted. I found myself during the cold weather, hibernating like most of you staying warm & out of the cold & snow. Since the temps are moving back up to digits that begin with a 3 or this week a 4 , I am slightly moving a little more.

I have been enjoying reading about everyone's creativity and seeing their projects. I have started a room that needs wallpaper stripped. Not finished with that yet. The latest events in the world ; Haiti, has caught my attention. I have been spending time with friends and enjoying dinners with them. Playing Wii with family and friends, and exercising some muscles that have also hibernated for the winter . Since turning 50 this past year, I find my body is changing greatly. The mattress on the bed is not as accomodating as it once was. A tempur -pedic is catching my eye & hopefully my back soon. Does anyone out there have one of these mattresses? Really seriously considering buying one or the matress pad, as our bed is not that old.

Just wondering if there are some "Masterpiece Classic Theater" fans out there. Did anyone watched "Return to Cranford"? A movie about a romantic little town and the lives of the people in it. It really started last year with "Cranford", with Dame Judi Dench. Highly recommend it. This Sunday , will be Jane Austins, "Emma." I will be tuned in.

The pictures are just a few vignettes around my house. The cabins, we made several years ago. Below are some of my old collections. They are old and kinda rusty, love them very much.

2010 ; Looking Ahead

Happy New Year to everyone! When I was a kid I thought by 2010 we would be living like the George Jetson family. Traveling around in space vehicles, & using more robots like Rosie the Robot to do our household chores. I am kinda glad that we are not that advance yet, I like the simpler quiter things in life.

I am sure most of you have had snow and the freezing temps. As of this writing it is 16 outside. Thank GOD for the heat and fireplace.

We moved in this house almost 2 years ago with our son and his wife. They have since moved on and so the renovations continue for us. In 2010, I shall be looking for certain pieces to put in this house. Looking at the center of my kitchen ; I am longing for an old table that I can put wheels on and a butcher block top that will move around with me. During the holidays, I needed to get some baskets off the floors. I was one of those Longaberger collectors, who have more than I need of baskets. My husband & I made the little ladder when we done wholesale, so it took care of some of them. Any ideas would be appreciated for some of the bigger ones I cannot hang.

Since my son and daughter-in -law moved out, I need to get this wallpaper down off a bedroom wall. You can see the yucky yellow paint underneath and the cracks which will have to be patched in the wall. When it is done this will be another room to decorate. Yesterday, I got my fabric softner and vinegar to spray, to start this week. Then I will paint some nuetral color. We have to get a new bed and all the fixins to make the room.

We built this farmhouse table last year and I have found some old windsor chairs here & there. I am on the lookout for 3 more to complete my table. This will probably be an ongoing search throughout the year.We are hoping to have all our kids home 2010 Thanksgiving, so I will need them by then.

May this year keep everyone safe , healthy and full of blessings.

Early Christmas Gifts

Merry Christmas ! I trust that everyone is just about ready for the big day. I got a few early gifts that I wanted to share.

For the longest time, I have wanted homespun curtains for my dining room looking for that right color & pattern. My husband had a business meeting in a distant town that I knew carried homespun curtains. Much to my surprise , that day before leaving that town, he ask me if I wanted him to stop and see what they had. I said," Sure". He pretty much knows my taste and he knew the mustard/black/tan/red color I was looking for. He got there and saw them immediately. He knew he was in trouble , especially when he saw the price tag. He called me and bless his heart, even had the salesman get on the phone to describe them to me. They sounded perfect. The salesman said that we could bring them back if I did not like them. I fell in love with them , when he brought them home. They matched the dining room perfectly and the furniture. I also had the yearly cookie baking event with my family. This year I made 10 1/2 dozen gingerbread cookies. I had the younger ones helping me decorate & a future brother-in-law helping me cut them out. Just to show you a bit of the pile below. It was a lot of fun, even though we had 1 oven & 7 families making things.

Anyone that is close to me knows how much I love log cabins. We have a very talented friend that paints, among his many talents. I walked into their house last Friday & ask him if he painted that picture. He said, "Yeah , you want it?" He didn't have to ask me twice, so now it proudly hangs on a stairway wall.

This is another pic of my curtains. For those who ask in the last post about my Santa's being salt glazed? They are. I have had them for many years. The Santa with the star, is a bell. Thanks for asking.

Hope that all have a very Merry safe & Blessed Christmas!

Welcome Christmas!

I trust that everyone is in the full swing of Christmas by now. Shopping, baking & decorating. My shows are over with for the year. I have an order to do and now comes the baking. The family cookie bake is this Saturday at my sister's house. Everyone brings their receipes , contents & their tins. It is a lot of fun. I think I will make Gingerbread cookies.

We got a Nintendo Wii this past weekend. We already have put it to use. I am finding some muscles that have not been used in a while. It is a good family game. We have had a lot of fun with it already and I know that we will continue to.

I thought I would show you a few of my decorations. Favorite things that I have collected over the years. A lot of things I have made, just as most families do, so come on in my backdoor.......

Snowman in the kitchen window from a recent swap.

One of my handpainted Santa's and the reindeer my dad made me years ago.

An old child's spoon with Rudolph at the top...

These are a couple more of my handpainted Santa's in the kitchen.....

Star garland that is around my kitchen windows.

A few of my collectibles from flea markets

These little angels hang from my garland in the living room stairway...

My angel tree topper collected from flea markets years ago...

The ornaments on our tree were collected over many years. You may recognize some of them from your childhood. Shiny Brites are on there among others. Old mercury glass ornaments. I took some upclose pictures to show you some of my favorite ones. They are like dear old friends that you see once a year.

When I had a gift shop, a friend made many styles of this rabbit. They became local collectibles to my customers. They were known as Bekka Bunnies. This is a little ice skater with a tree.

This is one of my favorite Christmas movies. Got to hear Bing sing "White Christmas ".

This is our tree. It is a live one. I think it is the most beautiful one we have ever had. It is so pretty, even before the bulbs went on it.