... and more goodies... made by me!

Here are a couple more shots of the goodies I made for my Prairie Treasures booth at the Root Cellar (in the Wildflour).  I love making all these projects and love sharing them with you.  I've also collected a bunch of antique and/or vintage finds that would be good for use in a project of your own.  If you're in the area, I hope you'll go down and check it out.  Pssst... I have some good sales going on right now.

If you missed my other post of my Prairie Treasures goodies, you can click here to see them.  Enjoy!

More important news:
There has been some confusion as to the date and time for my Winter Open House Party.  
It is this Sunday afternoon, February 23, from 2:00-5:00.  RSVP by February 22 and let me know if you're bringing a friend or two.

Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blog world.
Have a great day and come back soon for more design inspiration.

Click here to learn about my Stampin' Tokens program.

Now, go stamp something beautiful. 

Click here to learn more about my upcoming classes and events.

Have a little heart!

I love collecting odds and ends of cookie cutters, molds and biscuit cutters.  No, I don't really use them for baking.  I decorate them!  Here are some of my latest hearts.  I made these for my Prairie Treasures booth.  They have double layers of hearts and each one has a different kind of embellishment.

Speaking of my Prairie Treasures booth, I went down there yesterday and added a bunch of goodies.  Take a look.  Isn't this the coolest little mirror/shelf?  I love it!  If I had a place to hang it in my own home, it would never have made it to my booth.

I am so sick of winter, I went ahead and took an entire display of Spring items down to my booth.  All the bunnies are ready for a good home.  Of course, it's snowing right now here... like crazy!  See what I mean?  I'm sick of winter.  I'm actually sick, too, with a super bad cold that has kicked up my asthma.  I need warmth and sunshine! 

I made all kinds of gift boxes.  I have quite a variety of shapes and sizes, too.

I have an entire collection of printer trays and divided boxes.  You could make the coolest shadow boxes ever with them.

So... even though it's snowing like crazy, it's Spring at my Prairie Treasures booth.  If you live in the area, I hope you'll go take a peek.  It's in the Root Cellar at the Wildflour... in downtown Decatur.

Pssst...  
I have a big sale going on right now..... Valentine's Day items, all cards, wreaths... Go check it out!  Maybe you'll find some treasures.
All cards, calendars and Valentine's Day gifts... 50% off!!!
All wreaths... 35% off!!!

Before you go, check out this fun, new dip-dye technique.

Watch a video about it here.

Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blog world.
Have a great day and come back soon for more design inspiration.

Click here to learn about my Stampin' Tokens program.

Now, go stamp something beautiful. 

Click here to learn more about upcoming classes.

Christmas in July ... at Prairie Treasures

I have to admit it; I really like working on a bit of Christmas in July.  It's quite fun!  Here's a peek at some of the goodies I've been working on lately.  I thought I'd share these with you, to give you some ideas to start working on for Christmas.  These are for my Prairie Treasures booth.  At the Root Cellar, we're having a little celebration --- Christmas in July.  I can't wait to see what all the other booths have for Christmas in July.  Come on down to the Wildflour and check it all out!

The little treat bags clipped to the tiny Christmas tree can hold a treat such as a little candy bar, a container of coffee or hot chocolate, or even a gift card.

The 2 Christmas houses are designed to sit over a votive candle (battery only) and the windows glow with Christmas cheer.  These are so much fun to make that I made 2 more this year!  One is a Victorian style, with lots of details.  The other is a gingerbread house and has tons of cute little details on it --- all hand cut.

If you need to start early on Christmas cards, I have tons available.  I have different styles, different sizes, and varying prices.  Wouldn't it be great to get a head start this year?

The 2 decorative plates that you see are great for cookies for a gift or putting out that late night snack for Santa.

Need more gift ideas?  I have wine bottle gift bags that would be great to take to holiday parties.

My wreaths are designed to be used seasonally or year round.  I have several styles and sizes available.  There are lots of framed decor items that would make great gifts, along with decorative gift boxes.

Come on down and see all the fun for Christmas in July!  I'm off to make even more goodies!!!

A Couple of Manly Projects

Today, let's get manly --- project-wise, that is.  If you've followed my blog for long or know me at all, you know that I love to make framed projects.  Today, I'll share a couple of framed projects that I made for my Prairie Treasures booth at the Root Cellar.  These would be good gifts for a male birthday or for Father's Day.

I actually forgot to get a shot of the small frame before I took it to my booth, so I went back and took a photo of it there.  It would be nice to sit on a guy's desk.

This frame had 2 sections, so I left a little space where a photo could be added.  The watch fits well inside the smashed pop bottle top.  I added a couple of keys, for a 3-D touch to the project.

Here's a close-up.

Have you tried any framed projects yet?  I've shared a lot of ideas with you, so somewhere in there should be an idea to get you going.
At my workshop yesterday, the hostess showed me photos from her phone of her latest framed project.  She made a memory frame of little odds and ends of objects that her grandson had given her over time, along with a photo of him.  It was a wonderful idea and looked so cute.  She even had his painted hand prints.

Give it a try and come back and share with me.  Have a great day and make it a creative one!
SPECIAL NOTE:
Beginning June 1, all of my retiring Stampin' Up! goodies that I can bear to part with at this time will be available.  Here's how I am doing it:  Place an order from the new catalog and, for whatever amount you spend, (before tax and shipping) you will receive that amount in credit to use for the retiring items as well as any other merchandise from my garage sale.

- Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogging world. 

- Click on the tab at the top of the page to see my class schedules and registration policies or click on the left for sneak peeks. 

- Come back soon and come back often for more creative inspiration.

New Projects for my Prairie Treasures Booth

Today, I thought you might like to see some of my new projects that I've made for my Prairie Treasures booth.  I've been busy!  I hope you'll see something that will inspire you to get creating some new projects of your own.

I took a little suitcase and decorated the inside of it with DSP.  Then I added fabric, some doilies and a banner.  The card banner is made with tags from our Pop-Up Posies Designer Kit.  The letters on the banner are made from our alphabet stamp set called Letter It.

I put the gift card holders made from the Boutique Boxes kit in an old milk carrier.  I have several of these carriers, along with my collection of wooden boxes.  I do seem to have a thing about them.

I made lots more cards, home decor items and a few more wine bottle gift bags.  I love to display things in old sewing machine drawers and wooden boxes.  I do this in my studio, too.

...and here's yet another banner, made with the Pop-Up Posies kit.  This wonderful box was a lucky find at a local antique store a long time ago.  It's great for displaying my gift card holders.

So, there's a peek at what I've been doing.  I really have been busy... well, except for a complete couch potato day yesterday.  I seem to have an allergy thing going on that just won't quit.  I see a change of meds in my future.

I had a wonderful time at my workshop Saturday afternoon.  It was so relaxing and we just had a great time creating.  I showed them 2 fun, new techniques which they put to use in their projects.  I'll be sharing what we made in one of my next posts, so be sure to come back soon to check it out.

- Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the blogging world. 

- Click on the tab at the top of the page to see my class schedules and registration policies or click on the left for sneak peeks. 

- Come back soon and come back often for more creative inspiration.

Busy, busy!

I apologize I did not get a post up yesterday.  I had a super busy day.  I worked on more items to add to my 2 Prairie Treasures booths, enjoyed lunch with my daughter at the Wildflour, played with the boys, made the final prep for my class and then enjoyed a delightful time at my class last night.  I let them make extra cards, as a little Christmas bonus, so they went home with a bunch of cards to share with special someones.

I love this time of year.  One of the things I love most is getting up all the Christmas decorations.  The boys, especially Ben (my 8 year old grandson) wanted to 'help' put up the living room tree.  I usually reserve the right to do this totally on my own (which suits my husband just fine) but decided to take a chance and let the boys participate.  Ben turned out to be surprisingly good at helping me.  He could anticipate when we needed to hand off the string of lights so we could get around the tree and did the same with the gold ribbon I wrap around it.  He caught on to mixing up the placement of similar ornaments, so they would look the best and he was so proud of the tree when we finished.  Aaron got to hang all the lighthouse ornaments and then got busy popping all my bubble wrap I use to protect the ornaments.  All in all, it was a delightful experience.

Here's our tree:

The mega blocks on the coffee table are from the Santa's workshop that Aaron and I built.

You'll note that Toby Joe loves to nap in front of the fire place.  He didn't wake up until the last shot:)

...and some new additions to my Prairie Treasures booth at the Root Cellar:

I've made mug mats and the cutest little Christmas stocking gift bags --- red ones and green ones.  Each stocking/gift bag is decorated a little differently, so they're all unique.  I've added more cards, gift tags and gift card holders, too, so you can see I've been really busy creating.

Have a great day!

Want to see?

I'm so excited about setting up my new booth at the Root Cellar.  I thought you might like a sneak peek at what I've been doing.

Some of the items pictured here were already sold yesterday and I went down and added several new items, including little stockings to use as small gift bags, mug mats and lots more cards.

This is a dream come true to get to participate as a vendor at the Root Cellar.  It has a wonderful vintage feel, with brick and plaster walls and concrete floors.  I love it.  I don't know why, but I just love all the old vintage things you find in places like this.  This building is the perfect place for an antiques and artisans mall.  Yesterday, when I got home, I started pulling out decorations to put up in my own home and, every time I got a new idea, I added it to my list of what I want to make next for my booth.  It looks like I'll be busy for a long time:)

Have a great weekend!

Prairie Treasures

Have you ever had a dream that you just had to follow?  I've had one --- having a booth at an antique place and/or high end boutique.  Well, over the weekend, everything fell into place and I am now following that dream!

If you follow my blog, you know that I love to go antiquing with my husband.  I love to look for little treasures (I've run out of room for larger ones.) and display them with my art work, make something with them or use them in unique ways.  My husband and I were antiquing at a new place, the Harristown Depot.  I overheard the owner talking to another couple about selecting a booth.  I was interested and then talked to her myself.  When I got all the info, I said I'd like to sign up.

I had her show me around to all the available spots about 3 times.  I wanted the perfect spot.  I think I made a super great choice!  She had 3 sizes of booths available.  I knew I needed table space, to display some of my framed projects, so I went for the middle size.  It's a good thing, because I've totally filled it up!  My booth has 3 walls and even a window, so it's light and has good display space.  Yesterday, my wonderful husband helped me load up all my boxes of things I'd marked the night before and we set out on a new adventure.

I covered 1 wall with white fabric, to lighten it up a lot.  I covered 3 card tables with vintage table cloths and added bits of burlap, for a rustic look.  I have a Fall and non-seasonal table, a Halloween table, and a Christmas table.  I hung up some of my framed projects and a couple of wreaths and attached a card holder to the wall.  My cards are kind of spread out throughout the area.  I needed a bit more table space, so I looked around the store and found a neat old wooden ironing board.  I bought it and added that to my display, covered with another vintage table cloth.  By the end of my setting up, I even used a couple of my boxes, covered with burlap, for extra display space.  I probably won't have as much after the holidays, but wanted to show as much as possible for now.  I ended up marking about 155 items.  See?  I needed to follow this dream!!!  I'm also waiting to see about a second booth in downtown Decatur.  That should come about in October or November.

Thanks for letting me share my new adventure with you.  If you should happen to be in the Harristown, Il area, stop by the depot.  They have lots of antiques.  It's under new ownership.  She's only had the place for a few days and has already rented out all or nearly all of the booths.  I'm glad I acted when I did or I wouldn't have gotten the one I wanted.

Gee, I'll bet you'd like a sneak peek.  OK, here you go!  I've named my booth Prairie Treasures, a name my husband and I came up with together.

See, you can cram a lot into one little booth:)  I'm really excited about my new venture.  The hardest thing for me will be to be around all the other delicious antiques and fun stuff at the antique mall while working on my own booth:)  Let me know what you think!
Enjoy your Labor Day holiday.  I have a busy day, with company coming, working on another display item for my booth, finishing my prep for scrapbook club...