this is what it's all about right now...

making memories. not art.
be back soon!
happy day!

my precious girl...

is going to start KINDERGARTEN in three weeks!!!
this means some serious changes for our family.
now.
those of you who know
me, this will come as no surprise.
by nature, i am an incredibly
disorganized gal. however,
after 15 years of teaching, i've learned
that i really want a life of order and have
totally
forced some changes into our little life...



mr. elliott has used a chalkboard
checklist throughout his school
experience, and it really seems
to help us all out.



i picked the chalkboard up out of the free pile
at a garage sale a while ago. painted some
lines with white paint, stamped the days of
the week across the top, and glued to my heart's
content!



i realize this is most certainly
not an original idea, but it sure
was fun to make,
and beatrice is all smiles!



happy day!

happy day, mutha!

this is a little nickname
my precious mom enjoys.

well...i enjoy it, anyway!

the blessed day of her birth
was actually last week...
but here is a little sampling
of sweet suzie's birthday card.



it's not really a card, it's more like pretty
little decor that will make her smile.

i used an old book cover, postcard, buttons, bits of lace and jewelry, a velvet flower, skeleton key, and some floppy seam binding. i really love the color and the worn and torn look.

sorry about the flash, but look at that fabulous rivet....
kudos to the crop-o-dile people!



the rivets are used to wrap wire through,
creating a hanger.
on the backside, i made a little pocket
using an old flashcard to keep a gift card.



happy day!

XOXOXO

i love to give this handmade do not disturb doorknobbie sign to newlyweds!

it can totally be personalized to match the couple.



add a gift card, it doesn't have to be wrapped,
and it usually stirs up a few giggles!



happy day!

i've been living in the dark ages.

HELLO, CROP-O-DILE!



girls, i had no idea.
let me just say, i am not working for these people,
but if you don't own one, go buy it. now.
40 percent off coupon at hobby lobby! so worth it.



i have long admired rivets. the nickel colored metal
totally adds coolness to happy paper art. but i seriously
stank at adding them to my work.
no longer a problem! see the rivet in this book cover?
like slicing warm butter. love it.



what a happy day!

with much love.

it seems like forever since i've sat down at my art desk to play and create.
so. i was more than a wee bit happy when i was FORCED to work on a little birthday gift for a girlfriend.
poor me.



i have buckets of garage sale pretties, so my friends
and family usually end up with recycled creations.
is that the same as regifting?

anyway, i found these old spelling flashcards at a yard sale,



and have been finding all sorts of fun uses for them.



all boxed up and ready to go!


happy day!

glorious. just glorious.

i am, in fact, talking about my garage sale jaunt today.
LOVE IT!
what is it about the pursuit of junk that is just so...
addicting and then fulfilling?

big find:
a huge honkin stack of vintage fabric and random sewing notions.
from a little 93 year old grammy.


look at these precious patterns...





and four pairs of clippy earrings...
these lovely plastic pink roses will definitely
show up on my silver bella apron for vendor nite.

earlier this week, i found this turquoise trunk
at the local salvation armani.

this will become a happy transporter and then display case for my
art show.
i'm smiling.
happy day.

playing silver bella...

with princess beatrice again! we shopped a bit
this morning, stopping in at our local - and wonderful -
scrapbooking shop. beatrice was immediately drawn to the
GLITTER sheets! she picked out a gorgeous ruby slipper red
and a delicious grape. she decided she needed a banner, so
she designed, i cut.

we think that this would be something our favorite
fancy nancy might call exquisite.

we are having entirely too much fun around here!

how will i ever go back to school??

i have the joy - joy - joy - joy

while reading some silver bella blogs
earlier this summer, i stumbled across a
cute little link titled christian paper artists.
i thought i'd check it out, and found
a yahoo group of artists who are all
believers. it took me about 2 seconds to
decide to join. :)

anyway, linda, a spunky texan with a great blog
(again, i would add a link here if i knew how.)
posted a swap - "joy jingles banner".
so i've created little flags to be sent to ten
other girls around the states who signed up as well.
we were all to use pinks, yellows, and oranges
in our creations, and we must add a jingle
bell - hence, the joy jingles. :) the jingle bell
appears to be hiding in these photos, but rest assured,
it's there.

i will definitely share the completed
banner when my package arrives!
happy day!

i've got issues...

with buttons. particularly old white buttons.
i stumbled across this gold mine at a yard
sale this morning and wanted to share.
the gal who was selling them, dirt cheap, by
the way, said she understands about my issues
and even shares some of the same symptoms!





the week has been a busy one around here.
my sister and her family have lived a mere 6 blocks
from us for the past 4 years, which has been
great. really great. this is my nephew, bennett.




well, life is getting
even better. this weekend they are moving into
a gorgeous forever home, just 2 blocks away!

happy day!

babies.

they used to be tiny little people...of course, everyone tells you, "it goes fast", but you don't really believe it until the years begin flying by.

big sigh.


so.

to help new families celebrate those tiny fingers and tiny toes and make baby's first Christmas a momentous occasion, i've been
working on some precious packages. pretty little keepsake boxes with a matching
cutie patootie baby bootie ornament. i totally love the soft winter pallet of this bootie and the pewter colored trim. and i most definitely love the bling on the toe!





i am a huge fan of tradition, and it warms my heart to think that a precious little someone would hang this handmade ornament on their tree each year.

my most favorite ornament is a gingerbread man my mom made for me in her 1970's ceramic class. :)

do you have any ornaments that you just HAVE to add to the tree each Christmas? i'd love to hear about it!

happy day!

totally back to Christmas fun.

i just can't stop myself.

this little handy dandy
Christmas countdown pretty is very useful
for the tiny people in your life. beginning
on december 1st, remove a magnet and, voila,
there are only 24 more days! the little bottle caps
hold tiny winter images from artchix studio. the
numbers are paper punched from old hymnals.
this is super fun to make, and can be personalized and embellished in so many different ways.

hey everyone,
what is your
favorite
Christmas
carol?
i'd love
to know!

happy day
to you!