All over the place!

We have been a bit all over the place this past week or two. See this little cutie above? She actually turns 80 years old this week.  Meet my mother in law, Jean.  Words can't describe how much we love her and appreciate her.  We are hosting her birthday party this Saturday so we have been busy this week cleaning, trimming, planning...you  know the drill.  I am working on some picture displays and small projects for the party that I will be sharing this week. That should be fun so stay tuned!  I'll have to ask "Ama Jean" to please not visit my blog this week though!  

We also wrapped up school for the year this past week and celebrated Jack's 12th birthday! We celebrated by playing laser tag at a very, very fun facility nearby.  Too dark for pictures but SO much fun. Finally, Kara and I were lucky enough to see Taylor Swift last night in Orlando! ps - Kara said to tell you she hates this picture of herself. I think because her hair is pulled back funny.  And so it begins...lol

 

We had great seats. I was able to snap these with my point and shoot. Check out the cute vintage dresses and microphone in the last picture here.  It was a great show.   Stay tuned this week for vintage photo display ideas, small paper and fabric projects plus some summer touches around the house. Have a great week! xoxo

On the project table...

Hello, friends! How are you? I have all kinds of little projects on the table today. I've been working on some thank you's for generous friends who have surprised me this year with a little something in my mailbox.  I'm finishing up and packaging up a few little treats and handmade items today.

I love making these little bud vases.  This one is headed to a "primitive" friend along with some homemade cards for her to use throughout the year. So easy to make with vintage bottles OR find some in the $1 section at Michaels.

And here is how my little assemblage angels come together. I start out with a broken china plate and just start adding hardware and found objects.  This one has a long way to go. I usually leave these on the project table and go back to it several times interchanging parts and trying new things.  I do like the vintage black book cover for the background and her sweet face. She will get layers of paper and lace too on her china dress. It is always fun to make these.  I'll keep you posted on the progress.  I have a finished one to share with you too this week. So what's on your project table?  I'd love to hear! xoxo

ps - If you still can't leave me a comment - please notify me by email - RustyRoosterblog@gmail.com  I will keep trying new fixes if necessary. Thanks! 

Nest for a friend

I finished one of my nests on a spool.  I've decided to mail this one as a surprise to a sweet friend.  I kept it simple. I did not want to take away from the beauty and texture of the nest.  I wrapped a bit of paper around the spool then added some waxy flax and a vintage button.  Here's a close up of the nest on this one -

If you missed my post on how to make these, go here.   It is a fun project and you probably already  have the materials to make these.

I embellished a store bought card (love the Michael's $1 section for this) for her too.  I love to add a personal touch to these pre-made cards.  You could also use your own scrap cardstock to make cards.  Pull out your bits of lace and paper, do a little stitching or just use glue, maybe even add a rubber stamp image...add your special touch.  I could spend hours making these. Sometimes I do!  It is great to have a stash on hand. The extra touches on these make them so much more fun to give.

I hope everyone has a safe Memorial Day weekend.  We are staying close to home, and I plan to do a little creating.  What about you? Any big plans?  Linking up to:

White Wednesday Reflection

At the funeral of a friend and mentor many years ago, the pastor said, "When you see the sun rays piercing through the clouds, that is Maggie. She's speaking to you. Reminding you to live each day to the fullest and hold those dearest to you as close as possible."   My kids often point out clouds and sun rays as we are driving. It makes me smile that they remember the story I told them of a young mother and co-worker that died too young and what a pastor told a grieving congregation of her friends and family. Maggie, thank you for the beautiful reminder on Saturday when we were at the beach. It is always bittersweet to see such beauty in the sky.  The kids spotted you before I did.  xoxo   

Housewarming gifts

We visited my brother in law at his new place this weekend.  We brought along a nice bottle of wine and yummy pie. I made a quick house tag and tied it on to the bottle with crinkled seam binding. 

Kara helped bake the Triple Berry Pie. It was delicious!  I'll share the recipe with you below. This is so easy!

Triple Berry Pie
1c strawberries      2/3 c. sugar
2 c raspberries       1/4 c. cornstarch
1 1/2 c blueberries  1 tsp lemon juice
9 inch double crust pie pastry

Clean the berries and let dry on towels. Mix sugar and cornstarch together. Gently toss berries with the mixture until well coated.  Line a 9 inch pie plate with half of pastry.  Transfer berry mixture to this crust lined pie plate.  Top with second crust, and seal and crimp the edges.  I brushed an egg wash (egg whites and bit of water) on top of crust and sprinkled with sugar before baking.  I always "flute" (is that the right word ladies) the crust with a few small slits.  This pie will bake for 45 minutes. To prevent crust from overbrowning, cover edges with foil for first 25 minutes of baking then remove for remaining 20 minutes.  Add cool whip or vanilla ice cream to serve!  Enjoy.  Have a great week my friends.

Blogger lunch at Sweet Peas

Hello! I had the pleasure of getting together for lunch with some Central Florida bloggers this week.  What a treat to spend a few hours with like minded souls.  In this photo starting at the top left - Me, Kathy (blog stalker, thrifter, booth owner) and Carol of The Polka Dot Closet. Now bottom left, Shelley of Sweet Pea Home, Karen Sue of Sue Bee and Butterflies and Susie of From my home to yours.  Behind the camera on this shot (BIG THANK YOU) is Sylvia of My Trinkets.

We got together at Shelley's for lunch and good conversation. These gals are bloggers, junkers, artists, trend setters, collectors and decorators. What is there not to like?  Shelley was kind enough to host us at her home this time.  As I mentioned before, Shelley's gorgeous home has been featured in professional photo shoots. She has a self described style that is French farmhouse with a bit of industrial and shabby. I think we all agreed that you could just spend hours studying her vignettes.  Shelley didn't mind if we did just that.  Thank you for being such a gracious hostess.  You were so kind to let us all wander about your home with our cameras snapping photos!

Have you thought about organizing a lunch or happy hour for your local bloggers? We plan to do this again soon.  I've offered to host the next one.  Everyone can bring their cameras and take pictures of my kids art on the fridge, my folded laundry on the washer and two basset hounds sprawled out on the couch taking up all the seating! lol  I certainly enjoyed seeing Shelley's lovely home but meeting these gals was the best part.  xoxo  I hope you will take a minute and visit each of their links . They really do inspire me, and I truly enjoy reading each of their blogs.  I know you will too.  Hope you are having a great week! Linking this post to-

White Wednesday #100

Salvaged window and wood = Beautiful!

This little beauty is a birthday present for a dear friend. I snapped a few pictures so that I could share it with you. Isn't she gorgeous?  It is made from salvaged parts - window, old wood and legs are part of an old ladder.  I love the peeling wall paper.

Happy Birthday, Kelley!  I'm so glad you like her.  I had a great lunch yesterday with some local blog friends. Can't wait to share a few pictures with you in my next post. I hope everyone is having a great week!  Until then...xoxo.