These gifts are "junk!"

 

 Hello, friends! Last weekend my girlfriends Kelley, Kim and Jodi did some antique shopping on Saturday. I couldn't make it due to Jack's basketball schedule. But, being the sweet friends that they are....they brought back a few special surprises for me! There is definitely a rooster theme. These sweet cloth napkins are from Kelley. Aren't they so cute? I would really like to turn them into sachets. I might need a bloggy friend to send me a pattern. I have limited sewing skills!

These Easter postcards both have a rooster on them! These came from Kim. I'm sure she had to dig for these. Thank you, Kim.  I love them.  Anyone want a scan? I'd be happy to post or email.

I just love the colors in this old potato sack! Jodi found this. It is huge! I'd love to have some pillows made from it. It will definitely need some backing. We'll see. Hey, could someone let Golden Boy Potatoes know that a Rooster would have been a much better choice for a mascot.  I hope you are having a great week.  I'm headed to Renningers this Saturday for some junk! Can't wait to share. Still trying to decide on something special for my 500 follower giveaway. I'll be looking this weekend.  Linking up to these inspirational parties -

Red Velvet Pancakes - A sweet surprise!

 I picked up this red velvet pancake mix a few weeks ago at World Market. I love this store for unique holiday treats, decor, wine and even furniture. If you don't have one nearby, picture Pier One with food and wine. My family is a huge fan of red velvet anything.  Our wedding cake was even red velvet. It was a fun choice since our anniversary is December 26th.

The mix helped take the pressure off on this busy Monday morning.  The kids loved this sweet surprise! I hope your day is full of sweet surprises! Happy Valentines Day my friends! I've reached 500 followers so look for a special giveaway real soon.  xoxo

Bokeh - Learn an easy manual camera setting

Bokeh is that wonderful haze or blur you can create in the out of focus background of a picture.  It helps you to focus on the object and at the same time makes the background more visually appealing. In the past, I thought it could only be achieved with my photo editing software. But, thanks to Tracy at Tracy's Trinkets and Treasures, I now know that this effect can be achieved right on my camera. Let me show you the difference -

Auto setting

AV mode on my Canon Rebel XS Aperture 4.0 (smallest number, largest aperture)

It takes just seconds and the roll of a knob on my camera to change the aperture. On the standard lens that my camera came with the lowest number (largest aperature, most blurry background) is 4.00. I could upgrade my lens to improve this feature as well as shutter speed. Tracy has some examples on her site with some even larger aperture settings. Take a look here. If you are wondering why I chose to shoot a photo of lichen and moss...everything pretty has died here in Florida after three or four hard freezes in the last month. Crazy weather here too.

I can't wait to play with this new setting more. Thanks for teaching me a bit more about my camera, Tracy. I'm looking forward to joining you at your Bokeh Party on Tuesday, February 15th.

Just a glimpse!

 

 Hello, friends! I played hooky this afternoon and came home to play in my studio. My plan was to work on some rusty horseshoes for St. Patty's Day but instead I was inspired by this print ad above that I found on The Graphics Fairy.  I recently purchased some vintage whisk brooms from Anything Goes Here on Etsy.  I've been wanting to alter an old broom.  This ad with the "Modern Household Fairy" is just perfect!  I have two other brooms that I'm working on too. This is just a glimpse. I'm looking forward to sharing the finished pieces with you this weekend.  They really are fun to work with and will be great conversation pieces for a wall or shelf.   Stop back by this weekend to see!

WOW! I'm almost at 500 followers. I'm planning a giveaway in celebration so stay tuned! You guys are such a blessing to me. Thank you for the time you spend here. It is truly a pleasure getting to know each and ever one of you.  If you ever have a question or something special that I missed on your blog, by all means leave a comment or send me an email. I would love to hear from you. As you know, I respond to nearly every comment (if you have your email in your blogger profile).  I visit as many blogs as I can too.  I hope you have a safe weekend.  HUGS!

Altered Antique Window

 

 Hello friends! These fabulous antique windows belong to my friend Jodi.  I snapped this picture when we were over for the Super Bowl  The large window actually came from family and the smaller one was purchased locally.  I think Jodi did a great job altering the large window with some of her vintage finds.

Double click to see a larger photo.  She hung the old rusty horseshoe from ribbon and added a flower.  The adorable pic of her daughter with their two dogs is on a vintage hanger.  The distressed paper frame is from a dictionary.  There is a large burlap bow with flower also in the center panes.  My favorites are on the bottom. There is a large piece of lace with a mini muffin tin filled with vintage earrings and an altered skeleton key.  I'm so glad I snapped a quick picture of this lovely piece she created. We are headed to Renningers Antique Extravaganza next weekend together to hunt for more vintage finds with some of our other girlfriends. I can't wait.  I hope you are having a great week! Hugs.  Linking this post to White Wednesday and Wow us Wednesday. Follow the buttons below -

Minute to Win It Party!

Kara had an awesome 10th birthday.  Thank you all for your bday wishes. She loved reading them. Kara had a vision for this party and together we made it happen.  She loves the show "Minute to Win It."  So, we knew that would be the theme and that games from the show would be fun to play.  She also wanted to create a candy buffet (remember we watch way too many wedding shows on TLC!).  She was very proud of the finished product.

 We simply used containers we had around the house - apothecary jars, trifle bowl, glass cake stand, mason jars and a box filled with floral foam for the large lollipops. We poked a small hole in the top of the box and stuck the pops through. Kara surrounded the sticks with sour gummy worms.  Layering the glass pieces gave us different heights on the table.  We had clear goodie bags for the girls to fill up and take home.

Kara and her BFF Sydney made these loot bags for the girls to put their candy bags, prizes and little gifts inside to take home. We bought the plain bags at Michael's and these creative girls punched a white textured cardstock scallop and broke out some old scrapbook stickers I had to personalize them.

The girls also made the blue sugar rimmed glasses to serve our sherbet punch.  We dipped the plastic glasses in light corn syrup then in blue sugar (use plain sugar with food coloring if you can't find in baking section). Then let them dry on parchment paper for about an hour. If you don't, they will run.

Since we knew the kids would load up at the candy buffet, we decided on cupcakes instead of cake and ice cream.  She picked very bright colors for the party. Cupcakes were neon green with blue glass glitter sprinkles.

Here she is still setting up the table for her guests.  I'm not sure I have ever seen her so excited for a party. I think this one was special because she planned the details, right down to the colors.  She also picked the games. Here's what we played! Junk in Your Trunk - Get shoe box, glue lid on, attach a belt (I cut two holes and wove through), cut 4x4 inch square and drop 3 ping pong balls inside. Contestant wears the belted box around their waist and shakes their booty to try and get all three balls out before time is up.

We played Noodling Around - Contestant uses uncooked spaghetti to pick up three pieces of uncooked ziti.

We played Tic Tac Toe with ping pong balls and glasses. Contestant must get three in a row by bouncing the balls into glasses.

We played Hook It with a handmade fishing pole and Mom's skeleton keys!  This is harder than it looks!

And finally, my favorite game (full of belly laughs) the Eat the Oreo game. Kids put the Oreo on their forehead to start and have to move it down their face to their mouths with NO hands! These were hilarious photos. I wish I could show you all the girls!

We had so much fun.  If you are thinking of doing a Minute to Win It Party, you can get a great invitation to customize in your photo software here.  Just email Paper Perfection and she will send you a plain jpg file that you can upload to Picnik and add your words.  Here's a sample:

I've also made a spreadsheet with the logo that has spots for contestants names and party names. We used it to track our times for each contestant. Let me know if you'd like a copy!  I carried around a clipboard and stopwatch.  So much fun! I hope you enjoyed it.  Kara would love to hear your comments so don't be shy. If you have any questions, email me. I would be so happy to help you plan your party!  Have a blessed Sunday my friends!Linking this post to -

Inspiring Vintage Find

 

Hello, friends.  I found a pair of these ornate drawer pulls (?) at my local antique store recently. What do you think? Drawer pulls? I'd love to hear your thoughts. I was told they were on sale because the actual pulls are missing.  The dealer only had these lovely plates to sell. They are perfect for altered art.  Aren't they gorgeous?  The "A" shape immediately reminded me of a roof top.

I see a "house" assemblage in my creative future.  What do you have on the project table right now? Feel free to leave a link in your comment so we can all go see.

Kara turns 10 on Saturday. We have some party planning at the top of the "To do" list.  She's having a "Minute to Win It" party with a handful of girls from her school Saturday night.  We have a candy buffet planned along with some fun games inspired by the show. I'll share a few pictures of this mother and daughter collaboration later this weekend.  I'm looking forward to it.  Linking this post to:

Vintage Inspiration Friday

Feathered Nest Friday