Sunday, May 26, 2013

Gooseberry Patch Goodness

Hey, did I tell you this news?


If you love Gooseberry Patch as much as I do, then you are going to want to hurry to their website for a special deal! Today is the last day that you can get "fresh From The Farmstand" for only $1.99 on your e-reader! Here's the link:

http://gooseberrypatch.typepad.com/blog/

Enjoy!

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Papertrey May 2013 Blog Hop!


 Good morning! It's a flower fest this month for PTI's blog hop! Nichole featured some amazing bouquets as inspiration...so amazing, in fact, that I couldn't pick just one!




I did love the hydrangea in the second photo, but I also loved the soft and subtle palette of the first photo. I think my hydrangeas may be a combination of both!


I used PTI's Friendship Jar Summer fillers and dies for this card. I've had this set in my stash for a while, and this may be the first time I've actually made  a card with the jar and hydrangeas featured in this lovely set!


I used wisteria wonder, pool party, and lucky limeade inks (Stampin' Up) to carefully ink those tiny petals and leaves. I pulled the colors from this My Mind's Eye paper stack (Fiddlesticks).
After inking, I cut out the flowers with a steady/non-espresso-caffeinated hand. The canning jar was watercolored with pool party ink. 

And speaking of canning jars, look what I found this week!


I have a case of blue Balls!

Okay, maybe I should rephrase that.

Ball canning company is celebrating their one hundredth anniversary this year by reissuing the original blue-colored jars. I LOVE them! I picked mine up at Target this week for ten bucks. These will look awesome in my new craft room!

And speaking of the new craft room, I should be moving into the new house in one week's time. Yippee! Be patient with me...I may not be crafting a bunch right now, but I will be after I move into my new space.

Thanks for visiting the cafe today!

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

The Next Craft Room


I've been dreaming and planning and plotting out my new craft room this week. If all goes according to schedule, we should be moving out of our current home on the 29th, and moving into our new home on the 30th or 31st. (And trust me, we could not have planned it to work that well on our own...that is all God's perfect timing, according to His plan for us!)

My new craft room will be in the den at the back of the house. It has lovely wood paneling, two windows for plenty of natural light, a closet, and built-ins galore!

But let's face it...sometimes, wood paneling can make a room appear dark. If I want this room to be my happy place, I'm going to have to bring in some vibrant color.


Target's Dollar Spot to the rescue! I could not believe my good luck when I found these items this week. File folders, file holders, note pads, plastic bins, closet organizers, all in these brightly patterned shades of turquoise and lime green.


I brought my treasures home, put them in my office, and looked around. Hmm. I think I see a color scheme here! I can't wait to get my room organized and sorted. Just imagine...a place for everything, and everything in its place! 

Monday, May 13, 2013

My Radio Debut

I was on the radio today! You can read all about it here:

http://keepthisendup.blogspot.com/2013/05/my-radio-debut.html

Happy Monday, cafe friends!

Saturday, May 11, 2013

Where The Week Went

Apologies for the infrequent posts and updates. Life has been happening at a breakneck pace, and I'm trying my best to keep up!

Here's a recap of the past week:


Our oldest son, Luke, graduated from Ball State University last weekend! So proud of this young man!


We celebrated with about fifteen friends and family members at Buca Di Beppo, and enjoyed a full house full of guests for the weekend!


We had our prospective future home inspected this week, and we're hoping to iron out the details of a few minor problems before we set a closing date.


I am anticipating hours of fun in this beautifully landscaped yard!

In the meantime, I'm trying to organize and sort and destash and declutter here at home. I'm also plotting and planning, figuring out how to turn this wood paneled den into my dream craft studio.

Yep, that's a whole lotta wood! But that's also a whole lotta storage! I'm so excited!

There it is...life in a nutshell! And while life is crazy busy and jam-packed, it has also been filled with so many blessings! Time with family...priceless! Oldest son home again...loving it! School year...wrapping up!  Transition from old home to new home...right on schedule!  An email from an old friend...who's home in Pittsburgh is just ten minutes from mine!

Feeling blessed, friends! Hope your week has been filled with blessings, too!


Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Just in Time


I finished this key ring project yesterday while stitching in the sunshine on the front porch. As it turns out, the timing could not have been better. We put an offer on a house in Pittsburgh, and it was accepted! Thank you, Lord!

Now my new house key will look extra special when it's dangling from this vintage-inspired key chain. This kit came with the April issue of Cross Stitcher Magazine (Future Publishing). The instructions said to use four strands of thread to fill the bigger holes of this wood pendant. I love the chunk, substantial look of the finished piece. I think it resembles needlepoint.


Happy Day, Happy May, friends!