Sewing~

Today I spent most of the day sitting at my sewing machine. I have had my sewing machine for about 15 years. Today was the first time I ever oiled it :-P Now it doesn't make that funny bang-bang-bang-bang noise when I sew, or do strange things to the threads tension. Hmmm I think I'm onto something....oiling my machine :-P Soooo what did I make? First off, I made a mattress for a wicker dog bed for my daughter's new dog Coco. Then I made a cover for the mattress and of course I had to sew a matching blankie as well. I think it turned out kinda cute~

Believe~

be·lieve /bɪˈliv/ –verb (used without object)
1.to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so: Only if one believes in something can one act purposefully.

My favorite word~

This lil' cherub of mine~

I bought this cherub for .10 cents awhile back and thought I'd glam it up a bit. I added some feathers to its golden wings, a fresh water pearl bracelet with amethyst stones became its necklace. The cherub had a raised look of fabric laying across its body, sooooooo I added gauze to that section letting it trail about. I then added a party hat with some 1900 sheet music, some vintage pipe cleaner (adore that color) and one loan clip on earring that became the bling of the hat. The old key is one I've had in my jewelry box for years & years. I think it turned out kinda cute~
The cherub is pinned to the center of my bulletin board. I think I am going to use this as a backdrop to take photos of things I make. First I think I'm going to have to redo that fabric choice! It worked/looked cute when it was just a bulletin board, but I think its to busy for a backdrop.

Swapping fun~

20 Questions for the latest swap I've joined. My swap partner is Amy from Crafting by Candlelight

1. Favorite Color:
Lately I'm into the color that I like to call pistachio

2. Chocolate Lover? Milk, Dark, White, or none of the above?
I like milk chocolate and white chocolate as well~

3. What is your favorite craft hobby?
Hmmmmm I don't have an all time favorite craft but I like to: sew & crochet

4. What is a craft/art hobby that you would like to start?
Embossing

5. What craft do you NOT have an interest in or just not great in ( so your partner doesn’t send something you wouldn’t use)?
Knitting

6. Do you have any allergies? (we don’t want to send anything with peanuts if it’ll make you blow up like a balloon!)
No allergies, ok, maybe to working but thats under control lol

7.What’s your favorite part of Halloween? Decorating, candy eating, costumes, or something else?
Now that I have a grandson its seeing things through his eyes thats the bestest part.... so its all fun.

8. Do you decorate for Thanksgiving/Fall?
A little bit~

9. December Holidays--what holiday do you celebrate? What type of decorations do you like to put up in your house for that holiday?
I celebrate Christmas eve, Christmas and the day after Christmas lol.... and if there were more to celebrate I'd celebrate them all as well! I do the whole "Christmas thing" tree- lights -Santas etc.

10. Do you have any children, if so what are their ages, boys/girls?
I have one daughter who is 21, one son-in-law who is 24 and one grandson who is 5 months old. (they have been married for 3 years)

11. Do you have any pets, if so what kind?
I have four cats: Mr. Zacky, Baby, Mocha and Charlie, two dogs: Buddy & Benji, 3 turtles: Button, Harry and Tipsy and a 150 gallon fish tank. I also like to feed the birds outside and have befriended a family of 5 bluebirds. I also feed the squirrels that run around the neighborhood.

12. Are you a reader? If so, what type of books do you like?
I do not like to read, I tell people I "can't" read all the time lol... its pretty funny~ I mostly skim the pages, and I never read instructions, I probably SHOULD though :-P

13. Are you celebrating a birthday or anniversary in October, November, or December? If so, what day and what is the occasion?
Nothing in October, November or December~

14. Do you collect anything? If so what type of things do you collect?
I collect just about everything. Buttons, milk glass, old photos, crosses, clocks, painted roses on canvas, vintage items thats just a few of them lol...

15. What type of things do you like to cook? Are you an appetizer person, cookie maker, dessert freak or a take out type of person??
Lately I'm into making soup :-P I really like making cookies and desserts, I am more of a baker than a cook~

16. What is your favorite scent? Is there one that you can’t stand?
I love the perfume "Happy" by Clinique

17. What’s your favorite song?
Josh Groban singing AnYtHiNg.... *drooling* here is a video of one of my favs~ http://youtube.com/watch?v=nKDkXOOHG34

18. What’s the last movie you went to see at the movie theater?
Ummmmmm I think it was "Mean Girls" lol

19. What’s your favorite Candy?
cHoCoLaTe anything~

20. Tea or Coffee or other?
I love tea. My latest obsession is a Christmas tea called "Egg-nog" last year I bought 12 boxes of it to last me until this Christmas so I could have it all year long lol. I do not like coffee at all...not even the smell of it!

:-)

Oh-my-gooooooooooooodness! I went to several yard sales today. Yes, on a Sunday, can you believe it? I hit pay dirt, and I hit it big time~ I must admit, I am super duper lucky when it comes to finding stuff and getting things rather cheap. It comes from years & years of practicing my skill. Something I like to call "razzle-dazzle." If you were to see me in action you'd see what I'm talking about and fully understand lol. Anywho...back to my bounty! At one sale, I got all of the above for 3 bucks. A glass stand, some vintage plastic Christmas stuff, small frames, a lot of jewelry, ribbon and a funny little metal stand. Isn't that glass tiered stand so darn cute? I got it so cheap because there is a large nut at the bottom of it that makes the darn thing kinda lop-sided. They had a "free pile" which I went through and pulled out a metal stand... I thought I could certainly use that for something... I realized later that the metal stand was actually the base for the tiered glass piece. Happy-happy-joy-joy!

Next yard sale.... wow. I was poking around in the garage, nothing fabulous when all of a sudden the gal asks me if I sew. Well...YES I do, why? Inside the house laying on the carpet was a massive selection of sewing goods, paints, bindings, ribbons, lace, glue etc/etc/etc. It was just way to much for my little ol' heart! I said..."I'm going to need several boxes lol. Sure enough, I loaded up two boxes and a bag~ all of which I paid $20 bucks for. *gasp* I know! At a yard sale? I never pay more than 10 bucks for anything.... but, I was seeing the prices on the things that I was placing in my boxes, and $20 bucks would have bought me two of the things I had in just one box, so needless to say it was a fabulous purchase. I got... several scissors, several rotary cutters, packs & packs of rotary blades. Boxes of embossing powders (most never opened) sewing machine needles that will last me the rest of my lifetime. A huge box of tassles, ribbons, several containers of oil for my sewing machine, a vintage made burlap bag that holds yard sticks (came with 4 yard sticks, 1 metal-1 extra thick for quilting and 2 regular) a tin full of velcro, a tin full of lace appliques... two containers of metal studs for clothing or paper accents....ummmmmmmmm some markers that are like paint brushes, some vintage gift tags, a white "hand" (I collect hand statues)The photos below are just some of the items I got, I always get so eagar to put stuff away before I remember to take pictures! lol

A box of glass knobs, silk thread, rhinestone do-hickies....
So much fun stuff... now I'm just needing some fabulous containers to display all this fun stuff so I can see it to use it lol

Swappin'

Here is something I made for a one on one Christmas swap with Melissa Lobdell. She is an amazing artist whom I admire a lot. Her work is so cute! Anywho- here is my quick attempt at something thats supposed to look fabulous... but just ended up looking "all glued together with no thought" lol ----this is one of 5 items I sent, I was to lazy to take photos of the rest :-P

Busy work~

I've been trying to get back into my routine of doing art. Its hard when you've been away from it for awhile to jump back in. Soooooo I was just goofing around in my studio trying to get motivated.... Here is something I bought for $3 bucks... I think its to hold eggs. I decided to paint it... I painted it gold then smudged white all over it. I like tiny bits of gold coming through~ It now holds thread, I think its pretty cute. I think I'm going to wrap wire around the top "basket" to make it more of a container at the top, so I can load it up with buttons!

The 1980's

I wasn't big into fashion in the 1980's. Being a young mother with two children under 6, I wasn't big into fashion, period! But I do remember falling in love with the full skirted dresses that were based on 1950's styles.

I would have looked longingly at this dress back then, but since I didn't have anywhere to wear it, it would have stayed on the rack at my favorite department store. Now I can offer it to you as vintage fashion!

A strange thing has happened lately. "80's dress" is the number one search term on my website for the last 2 or 3 months. So, for those of you looking for a bit of 80's style, we've heard you loud and clear!

See these dresses and more at Couture Allure Vintage Fashion .

Busy, busy...busy~

Playin', playin', playin'~Varrrrrooooooooooooommmmmmmm, varrrrrrrrooooooooommmmm, putt-putt-putt.... beeeeeeeep-beeeeeeeeep!

"Get out of my way you darn cat!"

Fair entries~

I did manage to complete my 5 craft projects for our local fair. Eeeeek! not so cute, but hey, not to bad for a rush job. I never did have the full week like I thought I would to complete all 5... the bulk of the items were finished in two days :-P I felt nervous driving to the fairgrounds lol... but once inside I felt better. There was a huge pile of crocheted afghans... I'm talking probably at least 300. Kinda narrows my odds of any ribbon winning lol. In the fairs that I've been to in the past I've always commented saying "I could do better than that".... well, we'll see lol. I am not feeling to confident now! lol

The first photo is of a baby afghan...my all time favorite pattern.

Next on the list is my "padded photo album" okokok..a little creative license here. I do not like traditional photo albums so this is my take on one. More of a photo/memento book :-)Here is my attempt at something under the catagory of "jewelry".... the photos are from the 1900's.
My favorite item... 6 Christmas ornaments. I used photos of my grandson to create little fairies. They are all two sided with glitter & trim& wings. I just love them lol. Lastly, a fabric covered box. Mind you, I have no clue what they are wanting sooooo this is my attempt :-P I used fabric that is in my daughters house so I will give it to her when I get it back from the fair.

While taking these quick photos... my cat Charlie jumped up on the bed and laid down beside the box. There she is trying to act "casual"... she just LoVeS attention~

Another treasure~

Lookie what I just bought. *grinning from ear to ear* I found this on craigslist. It was listed for $60--- and I got it for $40 :-) I WOULD have paid the $60 for it.... its just my nature to ask for things cheaper. Imagine my surprise when it was accepted. lol.... This is the photo that was in the ad, ohhhhhhhh my goooooooooodness it looks soooooooo much better in person. The inside is red tufted velvet. Millions of tufts. At first glance I thought I would rip that red stuff out...but upon seeing it, I am sooooooooo keeping it. It had glass shelves, I say had because I told them to keep or toss them out. I don't want/need glass shelves, I am wanting/needing wood so it can hold up heavy stuff:-) I am going to house my glitters, along with some beautiful stuff that has been tucked in drawers for lack of a place to display them....its going to be fun! I guess it was used as a display. It also came with long velvet "stages" so you can have things displayed at different levels. *neat*

Local Fair~

So I did it. I entered some things in this years Fair. *Gasp* What did I doooooooooooo??? I've only got a week to finish!!! I ordered a book of the catagories a few weeks back, (I just now got to looking through it) and as I was flipping through the pages...I was saying... I could do that one, and that one and that one.... well I signed up to enter 5 things. Which I think is do-able since I have until next Friday to have the items completed and dropped off lol. I entered a crocheted baby afghan (almost finished), a set of 6 Christmas ornaments, a fabric covered box, a padded fabric covered photo album and a piece of jewelry. (I haven't even started any of those!) I have no idea why I work better when there is a deadline looming over my head, but thats how I like it. WeIrD~

If anyone is reading this... you should consider entering things in your own local fair. It is easy-peasy. The entry fee for me was only one dollar per item. The winning dollar amount is seven dollars for first prize.... and yes, I do have a shirt that reads: "If I can't win, I don't want to play" Its not about the money, its about that blue ribbon...lol I want some of those. I know, I know....so 3rd grade!

1930's Original Fashion Illustrations

Recently at auction, we came upon a portfolio of original 1930's fashion illustrations by Dot Levin. Ms. Levin also signed her work Iris, Irissa, and Iris Levin. We were told by the auctioneer that Dot Levin was an artist and illustrator whose work was featured in many magazines and newspapers in the 1930's and 40's.

We have 10 separate lots of these illustrations going up for auction tonight on EBay. Most are worked in pen & ink with a few watercolors and pencil sketches among the lots.

These are great for framing for all you vintage fashion enthusiasts! I've kept a couple for myself and they'll be gracing the wall of my office soon.

See these illustrations and more at Couture Allure Vintage Fashion .

Birth-month~

Today is the second day of my "birth-month." Unlike most people who just celebrate their actual day of birth, I have adopted a different approach to the whole thing. I celebrate my life for the whole entire month of September.... and the actual day of my birth, September the 8th, I call "birthday-cake-day" Soooooo you guessed it, I buy myself stuff all month long :-)

Today I went to an outdoor peddlers flea market. I was very lucky. I was on a mission to purchase some old photographs. I came across a rather large stack of photos.... prices were from 4 dollars and up to 20 bucks. *gasp* so I found a little one...no price and asked all wided eyed and giving it my best "please give me a deal" look..... and the guy said. A buck. I smiled! Then he said..... they are all a buck. I smiled even bigger and said....Mister, I'm going to need a bag~ I bought 35 new family members :-P

Here is a close up of one of my favorites, cute huh~

I was coming across a lot of "dollar tables" I am guessing due to the extreme heat lol. Here is a photo of a box of headbands that were worn in parades, the whole box for a dollar~ I got a huge bag of old zippers, a hand mirror, buttons, tons of thread.... oh and a box of diaries from a school girl from 1915 to 1918, only 5 bucks for 5 of them....from what I've read so far she was in love with a "nice kid" named Dewey. Ahhhhhhhhhh cute.

I also bought this old doll for a dollar. I HAD to buy him because it made me sad to see him laying in the full sun. He is really needing a bath and an adorable outfit, then he will look happier. He is missing some eye lashes and his soft plastic is a little torn where his leg creases by his dimpled butt... but he is much happier, and isn't that whats important?

Lastly I'm posting this horse (it even has little wheels under its feet) I bought for 2 bucks. I know, I buy such junk.... but I was thinking... wouldn't this be so cute reupholstered with chenille fabrics? Yep, now your seeing it... cute~ I also bought two large carved frames .50 cents, a boat in a bottle .10cents, a brand new gromet punch with gromets for .10 cents, a large wooden card display stand with a plexi-glass cover for .50 cents... and tons more but its all put away-- and I can't remember half of it lol.

Dollar days~

I had a fun day shopping at our local thrift stores this morning. It was super hot but that didn't stop me. Here are some photos of some of the things I purchased. I bought the two round flowered centerpieces for a dollar each.

Do you see the large spool of blackness??? Well that is FOUR HUNDRED yards of 1 inch black gro-grain ribbon....which cost me a whopping dollar~ *grins* The wooden shelf was a dollar. I am going to put a beadboard back on it and use it to hold small stuff in my studio. The large bulletin board was 3 dollars. I am just needing to add some fabric to finish it off. Here are two matching vintage wall thingies. These were both a dollar each. I was thinking I would make some "jar faires" and hang the jars from those metal circles on the plaques.

The paper cutter I bought for 6 buckeroos.... the two tassles, clipboard and two hanging his/her hooks were a dollar for the lot. (bought a few weekends ago :-) Finally my "day book" from the 1900's. This I bought (I think) last weekend and I'm finally posting a photo of it. I got this gem for 2 bucks.

The only bad thing is... it is all written in pencil and the pages are so yellowed that the writing is faint. Still visable but faint. Ohhhhhhh and I got 6 brand new rub-off transfers for 4 bucks....fun stuff.