CREATIVE NEW YEAR

HAPPY 2010!!   Be watching for lots more 'creative' and fun ideas ... and announcements of tea party/craft classes, gurlfren road-trips, and much more!   xo,  frannie

another SOMERSET Magazine craft idea!!!

 

EYE CANDY!

same issue of GREEN CRAFT magazine.

wonderful way to wrap 'books' or other small gifts ... OR .. you can simply wrap 'scrap paper' and fill a bowl with them ... i cut up olde catalogues and brochures that would ordinarily become 'trash' ... these are NOT really to be 'opened' .. but the wrapped packages are for 'decoration'.

Article by Collette Copeland (the Somerset Magazines have wonderfully talented artists that submit crafting ideas!)

these are covered with brown craft paper

  

  

tied with jute and embellished with a reproduced 'olde-timey' photo, feather and silk leaf.

  

white butcher paper .. stamps, cord and lace

  

pretty FABRIC wrapping with snippets of ribbons

  

brown paper, olde lace and 'tag'

GOSH .. the 'ideas' are ENDLESS!!!

this is a little bundle of antique shoppes brochures 

that i no longer need.  i just wrapped them in wide

scotch tape in both directions to keep them from

falling apart.   

would be fun to gather and do a bunch of these together too ... AND .. of course, you can make some on your own!!

(if you do .. i wanna' see pictures of them! 

and the next time you are at your local bookstore .. be sure to look for the SOMERSET books and magazines!   

SOMERSET STUDIO MAGAZINES - paper/fabric GARLANDS

well .. ya'll know i've been raving about Somerset Studio Magazines and the great 'projects' they have .. and lots of other great 'art' info too!

i have luna's copy of the summer issue (i promise i'll give it back miz luna!) 

anyhoo .. we're going to have a fun 'Art Play Day' here at Freedom Valley ... soon's a grandbaby is born .. and Christmas is over and i get back from D.C. in early January to visit with my family.   (mayhaps mid-January) ... be watching for dates and more info.

want to share with you the little 'coffee filter garland' that i made after being inspired by pam garrison's article in this issue.

this is pam's beautiful garland .. love the 'turquoise' touches of fabric' -- i think i'll make one with light 'airy' colors next springtime.

this is my little pile of 'paper circles'.  it includes coffee-dyed TISSUE, GROCERY BAG, BOOK PAGES, BROWN PAPER TOWELS, COFFEE FILTERS, BLACK FABRIC, BROWN FABRIC, OLDE BUTTONS AND SNIPPETS OF CROCHET LACE.

fabrics, buttons and lace

... my circles are about four inches in diameter .. threw in a 'few' small SQUARES of fabrics too.

VOILA .. it's finished ... i put about 25 SETS of circles (about 25 papers in EACH circle) .. spaced a few inches apart.

I put interesting pictures, buttons and lace on the 'ends of each set.

OH .. and i 'crinkled' most of the papers by hand ... then 'ironed' some of them.   ended up CRINKLING each 'set' again once they were 'strung ... so that they kinda' resembled 'flowers'.  be sure to cut your string long enough .. i guess you could 'add string' if you had to though.   and KNOT at the beginning and end of each 'flower' as you string them to keep them from 'sliding'.

close up of my little 'flowers'

Made a little 'loop' at the end of each side to hang it from.

you could make these circles much bigger too!

if you want to join us in january to make these ... start gathering your 'paper' and 'fabrics' ... choose a 'color scheme' ... VALENTINE" reds/whites/pinks would be great!

or dyed EASTER egg shades!  i bet a basket filled with these little individual groupings would look dear too!

you can choose to 'coffee stain' them if you wish.  i cut the circles out first ..  made a strong brew of coffee .. soaked the papers (BUT NOT TOO LONG .. cuz' they'll turn into 'paper mache'!!    then i put them on a cookie sheet (it's o.k. to over-lap them if you wish .. cuz' they'll separate when they are dry.   i put them in a VERY low oven (about 100 degrees) ... and WATCH that they do not burn.  does not take very long to totally dry!

more suggestions for 'papers' would be 'olde sheet music .. poetry book (love sonnets would be sweet) .. french books .. school books .. nursery rhymes.  just cut the pages out of a book you no longer want .. and use the pages for your 'circles'.  OH .. save me those  'hard-back' book covers for painting on!!!!

vintage fabrics or colorful repro feed sack material would be cute!  homespuns are nice because they are 'woven' with a design on both sides.

I'm going to make a 'valentine one at our ART  gathering!   ohhh .. and maybe an easter egg one too!!!

think about mid-january when 'cabin fever' sets in!

OHIO ANTIQUE TREASURES

On our way home from Ohio last weekend .. honey hunk stopped at a coupla' antique towns that i love (ha!  and without any begging on my part!)

we stopped at the big mall in Findley, OHIO .. supposed to be the biggest antiques shoppe in ohio!  also FEATHER YOUR NEST ... one of my FAVE antiques shoppes in OHIO!!!   It's owned by Gloria Bowlin's daughter.  She is so creative .. just like her mom.     Gloria is a wonderful folk-artist.   Used to make patterns (prim) and dolls and bears.  But she is now the QUEEN OF DIAMONDS ... and creates wonderful mixed-media art .. more 'whimsical'  ... her fairies are absolutely delightful!!

anyhoo .. here are a few photos of some of my treasures i got .. some are sitting amongst a few things i already had.

 even though i LOVE primitive .. i still adore some 'girly' pinky stuff!

 

 

all of the above 'dainties' are in my 'guest bathroom

... the only 'prissy room' in the cabins

++++++++++++++++++

o.k.  .. now for the "PRIM"

 

ohhh .. i could not resist this child's twiggy green rocking chair .. my fave purchase of the day!

sits on our front porch!

===

o.k. . this one isn't toooo prim .. but i couldn't pass it up either!

i will put tiny 'hand-did' prim ornaments on it!  

and ohhhh ... ohhhh .. ohhhh

i found these olde buttons and BELT BUCKLES

for only $6. ... just had to have those belt buckles!!

got this wonderful 'bird book' and the brass belt buckles

and KEY HOLDER ... will use the buckles and pictures in

my 'mixed-media' art somehow

---

added the 'key holder' (with yummy leather pouch)

to my big basket filled with olde leather change-purses!

bought all of these over time .. with the thought that i

would make 'dolly-purses' from them .. but they all just looked

so great nestled together in that basket .. that i kept them!

closer look at the key tri-fold and the aged-brass belt buckles

also got some more 'child-size' olde suitcases!!

have a 'collection' of these going too!

 

Fred Bear and his travellin' suitcase

(do you all remember the story of FRED BEAR?)

his official name on his birth certificate is THREAD BEAR ... but upon adopting him at an auction .. i discovered he had no EARS under that cute black hat!   therefore, he has a slight 'hearing problem' and thought his first name was FRED ... not THREAD .. and that is how he introduced himself to me.   Upon looking at his birth certificate .. i realized the mistake but never had the heart to tell him so.

well .. gurlfrenz .. those are the 'treasures' i got on our trip back home.

Can hardly wait to head out of here on Friday/Saturday/Sunday for the 'gurlfrenz' fun trip to OHIO again for a bunch of primitive arts and crafts shows .. and of course any 'antiques shoppes' that like in our path!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

 

Welcome Gurlfrenz ...

to my 'newest' blog-site:  LITTLE CABIN IN THE WOODS!   

Gonna' try to post some of my 'stories' and 'pictures' .. and all manner of fun stuff here ... i'll e-mail you kids to let you know there are some new 'ramblings' for you to take a peek at ..in each e-mail to you ...  i'll also include the 'site' for you to 'point and click' to get here!   Ive disabled the 'comments' block ... can ya'll E-MAIL me instead?   That way, i'm a little more likely to not let it 'slip through the cracks' and respond to you!

I plan on continuing to share my 'adventures' and 'running of the roads ... great places i've visited and nice people i've met.

I hope to share some fun 'arts and crafts ... and this is the place to find out about upcoming fun Gurlfren Gatherings!!!

I'm in the 'halloween spirit' ... cuz' tomorrow morning .. honey hunk and i head for TOLEDO!!!   oh jus' wait t'il you see the 'clown costumes' i conjured up to surprize the grandes with when we "TRICK AND TREAT' them tomorrow evening!  AND .. it is daughter, Wednesday's BIRTHDAY ... yep .. my little pumpkin .. my good little witch ... arrived on Halloween a 'few' moons ago!

Hope you all have a fun Halloween .. and get lots of yummies!

xo,  FRANNIE