Just a few new things.....

I did a little crafting today. I made this little no sew runner for my bar.

It's an Easter one so I'll just have it on for the next week but at least I will have it for every year from now on. 

I did another Easter one for my kitchen table.

And I made the little yellow dish towel to go with a chicken one I keep on my oven door all spring.

Then I made some curtains for my little bathroom window. These were actually oversize dinner napkins. Didn't take long to convert them to curtains.  Those are the colors in the shower curtain so they go really good in my beach bathroom. 

So that's my accomplishments for Saturday.

Friday's Finds

I like to share things with you that I find that I like. Well, today's finds are a little different. I actually reactivated as a consultant with Thirty-One Gifts after taking almost a year off from it. First thing I did was find some things I liked and then placed an order to build my stock up for promoting the products by actually carrying them. 

My favorite tote/purse they ever made was the Retro Metro. I have five of these. Two in brown patterns and three in black patterns. This is the first time I have bought a multi-colored pattern. They are great for so many things, but I use mine for overnight visits with friends. Just the perfect size for a change of clothing and jammies.

Then I ordered the zipper pouch to coordinate with it for all my necessities.

I love the large utility tote and the medium utility tote that they have had for years. Well guess what? They now have the Tiny Utility Tote. This is going to be just the perfect size to take books back to McKay's to exchange them for other books. If life ever gets back to normal and I get to go to McKay's again. 

I needed a smaller cross body bag so I bought this one which is called the Half-Moon cross body I love the block monogram. The color is distressed denim so it has a pale blue tint to the bag. 

Since it is a smaller bag, I needed a smaller wallet. I love the Light Traveler Card Wallet. And I went ahead and got the coordinating wristlet strap which can be used on the wristlet or as a key chain.

I am very happy with my finds. I am taking up an order as part of my launch party to get me back in the groove. You can feel free to go check out my website to see the new spring catalog. If you do place an order, it will ship direct to you for arrival in 10-14 days.

https://www.mythirtyone.com/11116060?pd=11669336

A little touch of Christmas

I know it is too early to start thinking about Christmas. But when I visit Pinterest and see ideas, I need to save them so I can work on them throughout the year. I know by now you have noticed my obsession with Steampunk. Since my new craft room will have a small tree this Christmas, I thought I would post some things I like. 

There are lots of things that can be used on a steampunk tree. I would love to find a little silver or gold tree to decorate instead of green.

I love the colored beads. Those should be easy to find.

These would be super easy to make.

Back when I was little, we folded Reader's Digest to make these little book trees. I have got to do one like this. McKay's Book Store has a bin of donated books out front and some are a little older so the pages look faded. And that divers hat on top is a drawer pull from Hobby Lobby because I have seen it there before. 

This is a cute ornament.

So is this one.

And what is Christmas without a star ornament.

This gives me lots of good ideas to start looking for.

Words for Wednesday

I love quotes. Here are some I found this week that I just love. 

A little crafting fun...

I wanted to share some of my recent crafts. I am not sure if I showed you the Easter egg wreath or not. You simply run floral wire through the holes in the ends of the eggs and snapped them closed. Twist the remaining wire into a 'hanger' at the top. Made a double bow (for the first time thanks to You Tube) and then tied some skinny ribbon between every three eggs. I am very happy with it. 

I had a little chalk board in the kitchen that I rarely used. I wanted one for my craft room to list craft projects on so I don't forget what I'm working on. But I didn't like the way it looked. It was so bland.

So I painted it and steampunked it up a little bit. Added a piece of lace with a gear for a button. And easy peasy I have a cute little chalk board.

Do you remember at Christmas I made button Christmas trees? Well, I got some new wooden buttons with medallion designs on them. And I got a bunch of random buttons from a friend who is in my Gifting Women group on FB. So I decided to make one of the little trees with the new buttons. 

Instead of calling it a Christmas tree, I am calling it a Tree of Hope. I will making some more this upcoming week and will be gifting them to some special ladies in my life. It will serve as an inspiration that when life gets us down and we stress over things we can't change, there is always a hope we can cling to, and faith to hold onto. 

I love to make things with plastic canvas. I had bought this new yarn and decide to try a new pattern I had been thinking about for a box.

The box is the perfect size for playing cards. I am loving the way it turned out.

Would love to hear what you are doing in your free time during quarantine.

Weekend wrap up

On Friday I went to visit a friend and had a nice dinner and watched a movie. We had went to the store and when we got back to his house, the sky was absolutely beautiful.

When I first got there, he had a surprise for me. A friend of ours, Linda, wanted to send me a gift. It was this beautiful antique tea cup that was in their family for many years and she wanted me to have it. I was so humbled to receive a part of her family heritage as a "just because" gift. I will treasure it always. Check out the unique handle.

Since it is very valuable to me, I put it on my tea cart along with the first tea set I ever got. I love the way it loooks sitting there.

Saturday morning I went to Hobby Lobby to get some supplies to do a project with the wooden bowl I bought about a week ago.

I had bought some brown & black paint last week to fix it up for something to use in my Steampunk room. But inspiration hit and I painted it a different color, one that would go with my living room.

Then I bought some of the succulent picks from Hobby Lobby.  

Stopped by Dollar Tree for some moss and foam.

I put the foam in the bottom of the bowl.

Cut the stems down some on all the succulents. And stuck them in the foam.

Then I put moss in and stuffed in down around all the stems to cover the foam and add support to the plants.

Very happy with the final product sitting on top of my fireplace.  

Sunday morning we woke up to an outrageous storm. Lightning, thunder, heavy winds, pouring rain and pounding hail. It was a rough way to wake up. 

But when the storm moved out and the sunshine began, I stepped outside. I did not realize how much my dogwood tree has bloomed the past few days. It is looking beautiful. Hard to believe the first two years I lived here it didn't bloom at all. Then last year the buds popped open and it has done great for the second year in a row. 

We are still not having church services so that felt weird not going to church. But I did get to enjoy the LIVE version on Facebook. Later I went back and watched live church from my son and daughter-in-law's church and one from my old church in WV where my sister still attends. So it was a very blessed day. 

The rest of the day I did a couple more craft projects which I will show you tomorrow. To be continued....

Sunday's Songs

During the daily struggles of the nationwide self-quarantine, we need to look more deeply for the blessings God is giving us. 

Families are struggling, yet at the same time they are bonding together as God meant us to be. They stay home with the kids, they find "family time" to play games, watch TV together, sit around bonfires and have sit down at the table dinners. 

The world has turned a corner and is learning to love each other. People are worrying about there co-workers, their friends, their church family. They are reaching out to say "Hey, are y'all doing okay? Do you need anything?" 

I see a lot of posts with the gloom and the doom and the worry and the what if's. But I see a whole lot more of Mom and Dad and the kids enjoying being home together. Kids having fun keeping up with their school work. Mom filling in as a teacher and learning to appreciate what her child's teacher goes through daily.

In conclusion, people are learning to love each other again like we were taught to. And God is giving us so many blessings among the struggles of the world.