Hollyhocks?

Dreaming of Hollyhocks surrounding my church studio, just as the snow and ice storm is scheduled to arrive.

You've seen this picture before, and it's equally beautiful, but today I'm not in a snow mood, I'm in a Hollyhock mood. Summertime means: the sweet smell of grass, dirt in my fingernails, the sun on my face, frolicking amongst the wild flowers, twirling my new dress from Anthropologie whilst engaging in tomfollery on the open prairie. 

Had you going didn't I? 

For now, I'll just pour a cup of hot chocolate, turn on the fireplace, and snuggle with my favorite blanket. If I feel brave, I'll put on my boots and head over to my snow covered studio. It's always peaceful in there.

Thoughts and prayers for the people of Haiti,

Ele

Blue Birds

 Spring is in my mind and flew gracefully onto my paper.

Shades of robins egg blue, coppery brown and white are put together in a simple style. Some of the tags have millinery flowers, some aren't quite yet in bloom. What do you do with these tags? Use tags in place of a card. Tie a tag on a gift. Hang on an Easter tree. Give several as a gift, or just one tied to a little treat.

Don't forget to write a sweet message on the back.

Spring you are a darling. Please come soon.

Spring blessings to you,

Ele

Fleurs en Bleu

Looking out my farm house kitchen window, this is what I see.

My vintage church studio building surrounded and covered with snow. It is looking pretty lonely as my visits this time of year are few. I am still cleaning, and organizing my house.

It is cold outside, but the sun shines brightly. The air is fresh and crisp. Despite the beauty of winter, it is this time of year that I begin to hold on to the promise of spring blooms. I am well aware of designers who are shouting, "get rid of the silk flowers", but I wonder.....do they live where I live? Do they KNOW that the upper mid west growing season is extremely short? Do they realize that some of us yearn for blooms. Dare I say....even fake? Every year, I promise myself that I will not succumb to traditional FAKE blossomry, but I do. Especially when I came upon this huge bouquet.

My dining room table can seat 12 people, and this bouquet is a grand size. I was also pleased at how well it matched the upholstery on the chairs.

Fleurs en Blue.

Flowers in Blue.

Admiring the blue hydrangea flowers, I realized that I have a blue flower theme in my home.

Blessings, Ele

Valentines, already?

I'm not really trying to push Valentines on you, but as you saw in my last post, I am surrounded by a lot of snow. What does this have to do with Valentines? The snow has reminded me of the glass glitter I used last year when making Valentines (2nd row, 1st pic.). When the sun hits the snow, it glistens just like glass glitter. The snow is really quite beautiful.

1. Valentine Medallion (lrgc), 2. Valentine Key Heart (a), 3. Valentine Girl Tag, 4. Valentine Heart Gold Key (a), 5. Valentine Tussie Mussie Pink Roses, 6. Valentine Glass Glitter Heart, 7. Valentine Tags, 8. Valentine Pink Box, 9. Valentine Heart Gold Key, 10. Valentine Rhinestone Tussie Mussie, 11. Valentine Dress Form Tag, 12. Valentine Key Heart small, 13. Valentine Key Hearts

In many of these creations I have used vintage wallpaper (my favorite kind of paper), and vintage millinery flowers. I have also used various types of keys to go with a "key to my heart" theme. If you haven't used glass glitter before, remember it is REAL glass and will cut, so use it carefully. It is not for little hands.

Happy January,

Ele

Part 2- Merry Christmas From My Home

A little mischief has been happening at my house lately. I caught "her" in action. Remember Mitten? She's our newest addition that was found in the mall parking lot by "Pink Girl". It's Mitten's first Christmas and she has been enjoying the decorations!

Pink and cream colored decorations adorn this tree. A few "holes" where the branches are separated thanks to Mitten. I like to hang a few pieces of altered art on the tree. A little unexpected as they aren't really Christmas decorations. The "nest" birdhouses are new this year and made by Beth.

A Pink Christmas stocking that I made a couple of years ago with lots of trims.

Pink polka dotted Christmas stockings made by Michelle.

Another Christmas stocking made by me. It is made out of recycled (thrift store) wool sweaters. Make sure you use a sweater that is at least 90% wool. Wash it in HOT water and also dry it on HOT. You should end up with a tight piece of wool (felt). Cut it the shape you want and sew together! Notice the second picture below. The top part of the stocking is folded over. Add some embellishments and a ribbon hanger.

The teacup tree is below. Miniature teacups, teapots, sugar spoons, and hydrangea flowers hang on this tree. This tree is actually a half tree and it hangs flat against the the wall.

Next pic is our traditional Christmas tree. This tree is filled with the ornaments we have collected through the years. I also put on red candles as this was my grandmother's tradition. We don't light the candles, but we did when I was a little girl! I found the candle clips at a Stabo store (Scandinavian Imports).

Love this little Santa guy and snow covered crystal tree.

As you may already know, I dislike pictures on my fridge. To solve this problem a few months ago, we added these bulletin boards to our kitchen. Perfect for displaying Christmas cards.

We have been enjoying a beautiful day of sunshine and lots of snow. This is the snow that has piled up outside my kitchen window.

Mr. Pink Heaven is on the roof outside of our bedroom window. He's trying to remove some of the snow that has accumulated on our roof. Yes, I leaned out of the window to take this picture.

If you haven't looked at Part 1 of Merry Christmas From My Home, please visit the post below.

Have a Happy and safe New Year.

Ele