...BAH HUM BUG!

Just.NOT.right.

BAH! HUMBUG!

~OOPS~

I mean...

 HAPPY VALENTINES DAY EVERYONE!!

~or if YOU prefer~

HAPPY DAYTONA WEEK!

(yes... NASCAR is upon us again...)

Not much thrifting / saling of any sort happening in these parts.  So how are we spending our time?

CREATING with BEADS & WIRE

BAKING

...and our newest 'commisioned' works...

 Still playing around with proportions and tweaking more 'bits'...  Will have LOTS more to show you soon!

 (IF I don't get struck down by lightening!! ha,ha)

Be Well.

Stay Warm.

&

Love the one your With!!

...Fu. Lu. and Shou.

Is it legal to just be finishing up decorating at 2pm on December 25th?

Well, it's done, anyways.  Inclusive of a BOXFUL of 'new' Vintage ornies found in the 'haul' I recently mentioned and TWO (2) GINORMOUS.BEAUTIFUL ornies gifted to me by 'L' (one shown in this picture - with the pine trees!)

Of course, all of this decorating was made possible with the help of TV Christmas specials - including the classic 1988 PeeWee's Playhouse Christmas.  Yeh, so, I'm an 80's girl.  I can't help it!!

The NE has had a little Holiday Gift from Mother Nature this year - in the form of a 'free trip to warmer climates'!!  Christmas Eve in Central NY state was about 70degrees!!!!

So, what's a person to do?

MAJOR Seaglass Trip!!!!!!!!!

Seaglassing in December -

Without a coat-

or gloves-

in New York State!

Merry Christmas to ME!!

but wait...

it gets better!

J found a BLUE MARBLE (the.Holy.Grail. of seaglassing), then shortly later I found MY FIRST EVER MARBLE! and it is GREEN - for CHRISTMAS EVE (of course!).  Then we found another old round worn blue piece of glass....  YIPPEE! YIPPEE!

~ AND ~

on the ride home...

a Beautiful Moon Rise!

I have also been enjoying the Holiday season in the Studio - 'Playing with the Angels'!

(not to worry - bottom left was an attempt at a Holly Leaf with Berries - I didn't mutilate a poor angel THAT badly!!)

I AM going to give you 'snippets' of the contents of 'The Haul' gradually, so as not to completely overwhelm / bore you!!  And, 'Yes', I HAVE gone through ALL of the boxes already!!  I think this is my favorite find - or at least for now it is ;-)...

Three (3), 13" Ceramic / Porcelain / China figures that I found in the bottom of one of the boxes. Not sure of exact age - if anyone has any info I'd love it!!  I have found that they are:

SANXING (deities)

"are the personified ideas of Prosperity (Fu), Status (Lu), and Longevity (Shou) in the Chinese traditional religion."

PROSPERITY.

STATUS.

LONGEVITY.

Three 'Deities' I don't mind having in our home as we head into another year!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

... MORE 'UPSIDES'

In addition to our series of Dessert/Appetizer Pedestals, we have been working on a group of 'TOPPERS' and 'SERVERS"...

 ...and coffee scoops/storage...

The 'UPCYCLE" possibilities are only limited by Time & Imagination!!

What have you been 'recreating' lately??

...WIRED!

Does anyone else get confused as confused as me when converting mm/in to 'GAUGE'??

Here's our answer...

 

...WHOOO !?

GOOD MORNING!

I've begun to 'update' our porch, in a FALL Theme, and I realized that I hadn't shown one of my Fav. Summer garage sale finds - This Great OWL that I picked up for a 'song'!!

NO Saling this past weekend, we put our veggie garden to 'bed' for the season.  Always a sad time - the last harvest.  We had some GREEN TOMATOES left on the vines, soo...

This morning was Gr Tomato bread day at our house!  It sounds GROSS, but it is SOOO YUMMY!! (and smells Great baking too!)

Yesterday I made a quick trip to The SEAGLASS beach to soak up a few of our ever-fading rays of SUN!

'QUALITY' not 'QUANTITY' !!
I HAVE to relay this conversation I had with one of my 'usual' Postal Clerks (T)...
I went to the P.O. yesterday with just one package to mail out for work.  I set it on the counter, T looked at it and...

• (T) "Is this for REAL?!?"
• (now, T has a GREAT sense of humour, and we often joke about peoples addresses... ie:  "Short Dick Drive"?????!)
• (S) "Why?" (nothing out of the ordinary in the address!)
• (T) "Is this really going to him??"
• (S) (more confused than usual..) "Yeh... why?"
• (T) "Wes!..."  "Wes Craven!" "-Los Angeles!!"
• (S) "umm, yeh?."
• (T) "YOU DON'T KNOW WHO THIS IS??!!"

and such goes my life folks - completely under a rock when it comes to 'Movie Stars' (well, movies in general...), TV icons, etc.  I had to go home and Google the name to get the full impact.  Then J did some 'earth' search thingie of the address, and we got to see the house.  Pretty sure now that the package may have been going to 'HIS ADDRESS'! 

Back to 'my' more familiar -

At the beach I have been picking up pieces of 'Beach Brick' lately - they have SUCH a Wonderful patina and feel...  Now to dream up some projects for them ;-)


Speaking of projects, Here is PHASE II of the 'What to do...?' with my acorns ~

I made up a few of these the other day - hot glued one as the focal point of the bow of a Autumn dried 'weed' arrangement (as J so fondly refers to them!).

Now, the bread is out of the oven

and it is time for me to get busy with some of the days activities!
HOPE EVERYONE HAS A GOOD ONE!



~'PLARN PUMPKINS'~
COMING SOON TO AN ETSY SHOP NEAR YOU!

...somethings are better left 'UN-PINNED'!!

Come on, fess up - I know that I'm not the only guilty one.  Spending Way-Too-Many hours, drooling over Pinterest!  Sure, I 'claim' that it is research.  Keeping on the pulse of the latest trends, what will sell, etc... ((HA!))

Sweet little Mushrooms/Toadstools as first seen on Monkeybox


MANY of them I have 'actually' gotten a "round tuit" and TRIED -
Some with FANTASTIC results!
Some were miserable FAILURES!!
others, just 'eh, not MY style, but I got TOO Far in not to finish'...

First time using a recently inherited iron skillet to make another pin - CLAFOUTI!!

Well, one was a keeper, and one was a 'What was I thinking?!'

Have you figured it out yet???

Yep.
LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. The Berry Clafouti,
~BUT~
Shroomies with Polka dots - as adorable as they may be,
Have NO PLACE in MY GARDEN and they GOTTA GO!!!
Better luck next time PINTEREST!

...'DIRT TRUMPS SALING'

BEFORE:
The deep freeze caused HAVOC on the poor Herb Bed Wine Bottle border...

HAPPINESS! OH HAPPINESS!  Saturday was in the 60's and SUNNY.  Sunday was in the High 70's and SUNNY!

As much as I crave the first sales of the Season - after this LONG WINTER I have a N.E.E.D. to be in the SUN with my hands in the dirt even more!! 

AFTER:
The 'beds' still need some T.L.C., but the Borders are standing
Tall and Proud B-)

 Several gardens were cleaned of their Winter debris, and the HERB Garden wine bottle border was straightened, and pounded back in securely.

OH yes, this was a Good workout on those 'Bingo-Wings'!!

Okay... so maybe, Saturday afternoon,  we did make ourselves 'public presentable' long enough to briefly stop by this Estate Sale before it closed - just long enough to swoop in and pick up this immaculate blue Train Case with insert (are we starting to notice a sickness developing here??) and unscrew this Waxed Paper/Paper Towel/Alum Foil dispenser from the wall (coming soon to ETSY) !!

As daylight hours are getting longer, STUDIO TIME is getting shorting (YEH!!!), but there are still a couple of projects I have rambling around in the back of my head...

Like plans for this necklace that I picked up a couple of weeks ago at the Rummage sale...

and working on my soldering, which still needs LOTS of PRACTICE!!

Maybe learn how to combine the two?
I always have GREAT VISIONS that I dream up as I lie awake about 3:30am...

Now, I just have to learn how to get these ideas to fruition in a presentable form!!

Or else, just not let the rest of the world look to close B-) !!


HOPE EVERYONE IS HAVING A WONDERFUL WEEK!
BE WELL.

...WAIT! WE MUST GO BACK IN!

Oh, my POOR 'NEWBIE'...

My POOR, POOR, "DAY TRIPPIN' PARTNER-IN-CRIME"...

I think I may have led her astray this time folks!

HAEGER 2014 #1 ($1.50... after tacky dried flowers were removed!!)

Let me begin again...

COLD, LONG WINTERS begin to call for DESPERATE measures here in the NE!!  When I propositioned a friend and asked her if she would like to join me in my weekly 'STUFF RUN' (okay... yes I did dangle a coffee/chai stop in there too!), she agreed.  I don't think she had ever been to a Thrift before, but what a day we had!! 

 FUN! FUN! FUN!  

I lost count as to how many we went to ~ SIX maybe??  She was SUCH A GOOD SPORT!  I spotted the seductive dripped glazed Haeger vase in the window of a Shop we had JUST LEFT...  I said, " WAIT! We MUST go back in!

     Still not a 'ton-o-good-stuff' to be had at the shops, but I guess that is just as well.  I did find a few goodies though...

Soldering Iron (For Dad's Collection!) $1, Cording for seaglass pendant necklaces $1, Compact (My collection) $1, Vintage enamel pin .80¢, Funky earrings .80¢

AND 

2014
#1
#2
#3
in the sweater Clip Category!!!

Sweater ClipsAS FOR  ATTIC STUDIO HAPPENINGS...

'Commisioned' Pedestal for a Friend is almost complete.

We have FINALLY found the pieces/combination that she likes, now I just have to assemble.

Soldering practice continues ((sigh.))

I dream up ideas, but somehow they still don't come out at I envision.

This was an 'Attempt' at combining wire-wrap and solding. ((Sigh))

'Bejeweled' (with Real SeaGlass) vintage sweater clip.  'N' who was helping me with soldering was really 'interested' in my sweater clip collection.  I have heard that she went to an antique store and was VERY Excited to have found and purchased one for herself since I saw her.  She is also into seaglass.  I'm sending this to her as a 'THANK YOU' for her time. 
(maybe this is Good Karma, and why 3 found their way to me??  Do you think??) 

...Arlington BATH FASHIONS anyone??

It's all a waiting game this time of the year here in the NE 

~ one day it is FRIGID with crystal clear sub-zero temps, the next the temp is up to a balmy 20° but we are getting snow up to our shoulders; then the thaw sets in for a few days with 40° daytime temps that gets the snow down to manageable levels ~ BUT the flooding worries set in

 ((sigh!!))

They say we may reach 50° today?!!

Our Hydrangea thinks so!   She has been pretty sparse all Winter, and is finally getting a fresh coating of leaves!

As for 'stuff'...

The Thrifting is still mighty sparse!  I did have a 'small find' with these GUESS wallets the other day.  Anybody ever try reselling Wallets like this?
With saling being so slow... I have actually resorted to doing some 'de-stashing of the attic hoard' ((Gasp!))...

 and we recently listed this Great New-Old-Stock MidCentury Bath Curtain that I had picked up last Fall at a Church Rummage Sale  ~ Gotta Love it!!!

AS FOR other ATTIC STUDIO HAPPENINGS...

The 'GIRL's DUKE vs SU afternoon Tea' resulted in my introduction to somebody who has been doing stained-glass soldering for years.  She ('N'), was gracious enough to come over for a couple of hours and give me some pointers~tips~tricks.  HOPEFULLY now I'm on my way?!??
Playing~Practing~Thinking~Dreaming
OH, it's all good in my head.