Indulge Your Shelf

I found an incredibly beautiful piece of lace at the thrift store the other day.  It is more than 5 feet long and consists of three different kinds of lace with inserted fine linen.   I think this type of lace is called "filet." It's very old, and I haven't had a chance to clean it yet. Here's what I mean by "inserted linen":    It was only $5.99 -- because of this problem (below.)  Some would call it a cutter. Not me!  I love this so much and wouldn't dream of cutting it up. In other news, I have finally finished that crazy quilt I have been working on !  For the first time ever, I decided against making it a pillow top, and instead crafted it into a mini quilt.  I put in a layer of batting, and backed it with a beautiful vintage double damask white linen napkin like I do with my pillows:   Then, I sewed vintage-but-new deep pink ribbon along the outside as a binding.     It's going to go in my Etsy shop as soon as I can...

This month's lucky Etsy Street Team Blogger of the Month is Theresa of TiLTcreations !  She has another blog, too, TiLTcreations, too .  Her colorful blogs are full of pretty things, including the lovely bags she sews.  Go check out her shops, http://TiLTCreations.etsy.com and http://TiLTtoo.etsy.com , and notice that she's having a BOGO sale now through February 28 (hurry!) Here's something fun from one of her shops : How sweet, huh!

I was so lucky to have won this beautiful bracelet from Linda Lawrence during OWOH!  Linda, a fellow Etsy Blogger, has a beautiful blog called Bella Bead Jewelry , and her tag line is "Fun Jewelry 4 Fun People".  Can't you just see why:   Look how the handmade glass beads make a faux chocolate confection! Doesn't it look good enough to eat? I so admire the talent of the jewelry and bead artists I know, but have never been able to splurge on such a piece as this! Thank you so much, Linda, for your gorgeous gift!  I will wear it with joy! For more fun jewelry, visit Linda's shop: Bella Bead Jewelry

I have had some cheer and whimsy added to my life as the winner of Michaele Sommerville's OWOH giveaway: these bright and cheerful banners!  And they all have my favorite color of green!  And buttons!  I know that the banister is not the ideal place to showcase the banners, but I liked the way you could see all three at once on them. I'll have to take them down right away so they won't become a casualty -- they are irresistible to humans and cats, you know. Kyra says, "Who, me?" Michaele is a mother, the wife of a deployed active duty soldier, a kindergarten teacher, and a blogger.  And as if that isn't enough: she's also a crafter!  Her fun blog is called, Kindergarten's 3 R's: Respect, Resources, and Rants . Thank you so much, Michaele, for generosity and for making it a banner day!

I don't know about you, but I was wrecked last night as I watched Canadian Olympic ice skater Joannie Rochette perform.  In case you missed it, she is the Olympian whose mother passed away suddenly shortly after arriving in Vancouver on Sunday, apparently of a heart attack.  Her mom was only 55 years old.  Joannie made the decision to go ahead and skate, showing up for all of her practices between Sunday and yesterday when her event began.  She skated beautifully -- she's in 3rd place so far -- and when she finished and the applause began she broke down and cried.  I don't think there was a dry eye in the house; even the sports announcers calling the event were choked up. I had a hard time falling asleep last night, thinking about my own mother, who many of you know passed away from a heart attack five years ago. I lost my father, also suddenly, from a blood clot five years before that. I understand the shock you feel at losing someone so suddenly, and the h...

Two of my dearest blogging friends have recently opened Etsy shops, and I am so happy to be among their satisfied customers! Linda Sue is an artist, an incredibly creative and talented woman with a diverse background and history that fascinates. She's well-traveled and she takes us all along on her trips -- even if it's just a walk along the lake with her four-legged companion, Dexter. Her medium of choice these days is felting. Linda is my favorite kind of blogger: a prolific one. She is SO funny! And a heck of a great photographer, as well. Linda Sue recently opened an Etsy shop, Gollygollygolly , and her first wares in the store are beautiful button cards she created from a friend's vintage buttons ! The proceeds from the sale of her cards go towards funding a friend's trip to a family wedding. See: Linda Sue is a creative genius and a wonderfully generous friend, to boot! Here is mine! I love the little deer almost as much as I love the buttons! And s...

I was just noticing that so much of what I've listed recently in my Etsy shop, Indulge Your Shelf , fits a certain, and fitting, theme: green! Click on the photo for more information on each piece!

Friends, I don't spend too much time going through my "spam" folder on email because it typically does a bang out job for me. I rarely find that anything at all has been accidentally sent there. But just this morning I discovered that many, many of the wonderful comments made on this blog during the last couple of weeks went there instead of to my Inbox. With all of the extra activity from One World, One Heart, I didn't notice -- until now. But I was suspicious because a couple of people told me MY email had gone to their spam folder, which is also unusual. So, I just wanted to say, especially to the new followers but also to old friends, I have just now seen some of your friendly messages and will be responding in the next day or two. I really thought I had responded to everyone but now find it's not so! I feel very sheepish! I don't want anyone to think I'm ignoring you. All of your comments are very special to me, sincerely.

I was at the thrift store the other day and found this vintage print that made me laugh: I couldn't bear to leave it behind, so I brought it home and it inspired me to do some St. Patrick's Day crafting: First I scanned it and added it as an element of this little wall hanging . The silly setter also ended up on one side of this tag ! I made a few hanging decorations. Don't you love that little shamrock charm? I used to have one just like it when I was a kid! I made several different hangings, plus three tags which I'm selling all together as a set . They're all available now in my Etsy shop !

With all the hubbub of OWOH, I didn't get to talk about how sweet my hubby was on Valentine's Day! He got me flowers in the colors that I love! I so appreciated them because, among other things, the fuzzy pussy willows reminded me that Spring is really coming...soon... And he splurged on some good CHOCOLATE! I know, I'm spoiled. I got him and my other Valentine, my son, Bluetooth headsets for their phones -- fancy ones that let them listen to downloaded music on their phones, too. And the other big event of last weekend: Vancouver! I wish I was actually taking a trip there, but since I can't right now I'm visiting it via the coverage of the Olympic Games! (It looks like a beautiful place, doesn't it?) I was fortunate enough to attend some of the Olympics back in 1984 when they were in nearby (then) Los Angeles. I actually saw Greg Louganis win his gold medal for Springboard Diving, and witnessed the medal ceremony! It was pretty special. We really enjoy...

How much fun did you have during One World, One Heart? I had the best of times! Would you believe, I set a goal for myself of visiting each of the more than 1000 blogs that participated, and I met that goal just last night! (Just to clarify, I visited them but didn't enter all the giveaways -- only the ones I really would have loved to win!) I really enjoyed all the new blogs I saw, and I bookmarked more than 60 of them that I want to re-visit in the coming weeks! I have already, I hope, made a few new friends along the way -- and that's the point! Many, many thanks to Lisa Swifka , the founder of OWOH and the webmaster extraordinaire who keeps it going for the event! Okay, do you want to hear who won? The winner of the Marie box and Aynsley teacup is... ... Kathy ! Kathy wrote: "What wonderful offerings! Your work is amazing and I am so grateful for the chance to enter. Kathy #339 OWOH" Congratulations, Kathy! AND The winner of the Tag Collection and Ephemera Pa...