Happy Fourth!

Mr. Blue Bird on my Pitcher...

This pretty little pitcher was given to me this weekend.. isn't it lovely? It sits on top of my kitchen cabinets.. I wonder what he sees in there? A little worm perhaps? The plate is a summer plate. Something that is not coming quite fast enough!

Also this large, vintage (or antique) tomato cookie jar! Isn't it so much fun?! Just perfect for my red and white kitchen!

And this lovely birdie I purchased from Kathy. She has one little bird left in her Etsy Shop. Yes, the snow is still here.. you can see a glimpse of it out the kitchen window. We joked yesterday that the only way we could have an outside Easter Egg Hunt was if the eggs were left white and we just threw them into the snowbanks.

I hope everyone of you had a lovely Easter and enjoyed the time with your families!

I roasted boneless leg of lamb with garlic and rosemary. It smelled so fabulous cooking in the oven.. also we had a spiral cut ham, asparagus, homemade bread, carrots, salad, and scalloped potatoes. To finish off, we enjoyed a lemon meringue pie and coconut cream pie. I wanted to take some pictures but I figured my family would think I had lost my rocker!!

Fabric Egg Pattern

I spent days trying to find a pattern that was free to make fabric eggs. I love the look of them, and have had some very unsuccessful attempts at their construction.. you would think it would be a simple pattern to create. For some, who are adept at that sort thing well, more power to ya! For me.. not so much. The only thing I could find was a description of how to make a pattern. You take an egg from your fridge, mark it all up with lines, and from that make a pattern. Uhh? Well, I did it, and it worked!! So.. to prevent you from either having to pay a fortune for a pattern or from having to mark up all your eggs, I made it and put it on paper for you. Just click it, copy it and print. You may need to adjust for print size, (the original page was 8 1/2" x 11") but the pattern size doesn't really matter here. What matters are the proportions. I hope it works for you.. Now I do not profess to be a professional or have any clue as to what I am doing! :) You do need to have basic sewing skills, and as far as making neat points go.. well perhaps Annie, Rosie, or Kathy can help us with those! another thing I found, the sewing doesn't have to be to neat, as when you stuff it FULL (I mean full 'til the seams are tight!) it rounds itself out into a lovely egg shape. Pound it on the counter, squeeze the top and Voila! You just made an egg! For me, I loved playing with different color combos.. the red and white is my favorite thus far! They are quick and easy (relatively..) and it is 'sew' much nicer to make something for your home than buy it!

Enjoy!

 

♥ Don't forget to enter for my Spring Giveaway below! ♥

Spring Blessings..

I decided to add a bit of springtime to my blog for kari & kijsa's Spring Blessings post.. here are a pair of birdies that are resting in the arms of a 'tree' that I purchased at HomeGoods. It just needed 'more', so I added the cabbage roses, some cute little birds and other flowers. Hope this makes you smile! I think it's the sunshine behind them that really makes me smile!

Happy Spring!

Kitch-y pics..and Valentine's..

The sinks in our kitchen are probably one of my most favorite things in the house. I just love the soapstone.. it develops a lovely patina over time. With each year we use them, the sinks just get better. Also, being a short person, it is very easy to get my hand in there to work. When we were working with the craftsman on the design of the kitchen I wanted to make sure the cabinets had 'feet'. I think it gives the appearance of furniture instead of cabinetry.

Below is a snapshot of the island and stove. (uh.. duh.) ;) You can see my loon decoy watching over everything. It's technically not mine, I bought it for my hubby. But what's his is mine and what's mine is mine, right? lol! ;)

I keep a stash of hidden goodies in the crystal bowl on the island.. can you tell what they are? Here's a hint..

Also, for those who are doing a swap with me.. yes, I still want to swap! :) First.. I need snail mail addresses.. (email me..) I thought since things are so crazy on my end, that I would put together some lovely little bundles (very inexpensively) and send them out to each of you. I am hoping to send out your packages this week. Once you receive them, then you can send something back in return if you wish. AND.. Carolyn created this lovely banner for your blog if you would like to grab it and post it! Thank you Carolyn!! It is just so cute, it makes me smile!

A new, fresh beginning..

Well, the hullabaloo is over.. all that is left are bits of paper, tags, ribbons and packaging. I hope everyone had a most delightful Christmas and I hate to say, I am SSOOOO happy it is over! The intent was there to post a spectacular Christmas post full of thoughtful quotes and lovely images, but like all my other Christmas plans, it fell flat and I spent most of the past few days in a great tizzy, with tons of last minute shopping and ALL the wrapping to do. T woke up on Christmas morning with a horrid cold and needless to say, today is going to be a quiet day, full of cleaning and sorting. C has gone back to work and tomorrow, or this weekend the decorations come DOWN. Time for spring. Flowers, birds, green grass, new leaves, oh. wait.. we still have THREE months of snow left. Or four, depending on the temperament of Mother Nature and Global Warming this year. So, I leave you for my cleaning.. I am in some serious need to visit Ellie. (She's in Florida!) :) Or perhaps, to climb aboard the ship that is about to depart below, sit on deck and wave to all the poor souls still on land as we pull out from the harbor. Maybe to a tropical or exotic destination. Africa or South America? Anyone want to join me?

Enjoy the chaos that follows and be sure to show me your fabulous Sale finds from all your after Christmas shopping!!

My Brother 'ships' out today.. please keep all the men and women who are overseas and away from their families this holiday season in your thoughts and prayers.

Come for a drive with me...

Our last drive was in October and since we have just gotten a fresh 10-12" of snow I thought we should go out again.. sshhh... The girls are sleeping quietly in their car seats..

The stone doorway above leads to the cellar hole of a very old farmhouse.

Welcome to... hmmm.. New Hamp-shaa...

The pic above is of a fabulous little gem shop down the road abit. Isn't it so cozy, nestled into the trees like that?

The entire drive and journey was so worth this single photo I took of the basketball hoop. I love this image. In fact, I'm damn proud of it. It even has a hint of Christmas in the faded red, white and green. Every now and again something just smacks you as right and makes you feel good. This one really makes me feel good.

I hope you enjoyed our drive into the snowy parts of New Hampshire. We have been completely buried in snow this year, which is quite surprising. This time last year, the grass was still green.

Whose woods these are..

Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening
by Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.

His house is in the village though;

He will not see me stopping here

To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer

To stop without a farmhouse near

Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake

To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound's the sweep

Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

When I was child, my father used to read Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost to me at Christmas. I adored it. The pictures, drawn by Susan Jeffers, are spectacular, and it holds many dear memories for me. Needless to say, I have the poem memorized, and as I was out stomping around our home yesterday in the snow, I remembered the poem and thought I'd share both my home and the poetry with you. The squirrel was dashing in and around the base of our bird feeder during the storm. He has a network of tunnels dug and was popping out occasionally to dine on sunflower seeds. The moose weathervane was a gift from my husband a few Christmas's ago.

Gifts, Giveways and Icicles!

Button icicles. Now you know what I was referring to! :) Long dangly 'icicles' made from vintage buttons, balanced with a bead at the bottom and a bow at the top. Perfect for the tree, but also so much fun to dangle around the house. Because some of the buttons are antique shell and glass, the icicles make a lovely twinkling sound when moved. I think they would be wonderful in front of an open window, blowing in the breeze. We can't do that up here in New England right now, but Ellie in Florida could! The icicle on the left uses approx. 20 white buttons that vary in size. Just dee-lish for a shabby chic decor or for a bit of whimsy. I

will be giving away two icicles to one of my lovely blogger friends. Just leave a comment.. but keep reading.. there's more! If you would like to make some for yourself, or as gifts they are super simple and a fun!

Once you secure a bead on string, (I used vintage pink embroidery floss.. but fishing line would work great too!) then you just sew on the buttons, using two holes. As they slide down the string, alternate the direction the buttons face and slide them together. They stack right up. Using a graduated size, gives an icicle look to them, but you could create garland by using random sizes or colors. They would be pretty swagged on a chandelier or hanging from a door knob. You can change the colors of the ribbon or buttons to match you home or the holidays. For buttons you can check out Kathy's Etsy shop, Button Constructions.

For those of you who would rather some crafty goodness to play with yourself I am also giving away a vintage style paper tissue basket filled with delights! Buttons, pink rick rack, Robbin's egg blue vintage seam binding ribbon, a antique skeleton key, paper flowers, etc..

Just leave a comment on this post and I'll enter you for the drawing. Let me know which item you would prefer, I will giving away a pair of icicles and the tissue basket of goodies, wrapped to perfection and given with love! I will draw numbers on Friday! Good luck!

♥ Abbie

*Below is a pic out my kitchen window. We got almost a foot of snow yesterday! This was taken about midday.. why am I making icicles for inside?? You'd think we have enough outside! I hope everyone is warm and I'd love to see WARM and COLORFUL pics on everyone's blogs!! It's cold and white here!

Christmas gifts for you and yours...

Good morning! Sorry that I disappeared for the weekend.. I spent my time with my kiddos, crafting, and without power. Yep, our electricity went out for almost four hours on Saturday and it was just the thing I needed. OK, it got chilly in here, but the baby slept, and T and I played with buttons on the floor in front of the fireplace. She is only two and half, but she plays very nicely with mamma's buttons. They keep her quite happy for hours. Just like me! I made some delightful button icicles. I have been wanting to make them/buy them since I saw them in a charming little shop on Etsy months ago, but when I went to buy them, alas, I couldn't find them. So, I decided to make my own and am very pleased with the result. I will be posting pics tomorrow along with some other goodies I'll be giving away for my blogger friends!

We are buried in snow this morning.. We have probably 8" so far and it's still coming down. Z is home from school, and by the looks of the news this morning, the entire state is stuck home. It's the perfect day, as my son would say. I fiddled with some gift ideas this morning and I have a very inexpensive one that is filled with love to share with you.

Take a vintage canning jar, (or new for that matter), wrap the neck with antique lace (or new..) and drape it with a vintage (or new..) costume jewelry necklace. Add a tag and voila! Cinnamon Sugar never looked so good! Not only does the lucky recipient get to enjoy the cinnamon sugar (or cookie mix or whatever you put inside), the canning jar, but also a lovely bit of lace and a vintage piece of costume jewelry! The total for the entire project shouldn't exceed $10-$15. So much vintage fun I just can't stand it!

Enjoy!

♥ Abbie