The Poppets are being fitted...

and will be dressed for their debut the evening of November 1st!

Tatted trims, velvet and silk ribbons, dotted gauze, whatever I can find in my treasure boxes...

All of the girls will be wearing split pantalets, hand-sewn of white silk doupioni. One of them is modeling her divided drawers here, though modesty kept her face from being shown.

Their pantalets are embellished with various antique trims that I have found here and there at thrift shops and estate sales.

We do hope you will join us @ Poppets, Portraits, & Playthings of the Past on Saturday night!

Suzanne (Painter of the Past / Pear Tree Primitives) is finishing her 3rd portrait for the show this week. We are looking forward to your visit!

Please check back later in the week for more details... or visit either of our websites to sign up for our email updates.

~*~

Puzzle Ball ~ a not-so-Simple-Joy!

I collect pincushions, the older the better; the more worn and torn, the more I am drawn to them.

Some are a bit puzzling, but with a little patience, you can make one for yourself. There are numerous patterns available for these wonderful whimsies...

These are all antiques that are in my collection.

See how the velvet on some of the pieces has worn off almost completely?

I wonder how many hands these have passed through. Have they held pins while a mother sewed her child's clothing? Or maybe a wife worked tirelessly by lamplight, patching her husband's farm clothes, time after time, taking a pin from the ball now and then to hold a patch of fabric as she stitched...

Such little joys to collect, but not so simple at first glance!

Perhaps they were worn out from use and were set aside, forgotten for many, many years; until one day, a curious soul opened a trunk of memories, letting years and years of bits and pieces of someone's life tumble on to the attic floor...

~*~

Fun & Funky Fall!

I've been making jewelry items for a few years now, mostly soldered charms and beaded pieces. Last week I decided to try something a little different, just for fun, to learn a few new techniques... after all... I have all the time in the world.... right??? LOL! I really should have been working on orders: dolls, valentines, Christmas cards, and a pumpkin... but I just HAVE to take a break now and then in between the "have tos" and do a "want to"... does that makes sense?

I combined beads from a few vintage necklaces, along with a few new items, made all the wire chains myself, and here's what I came up with:

It's a bit fun and funky looking, with loads of autumn hued beads:

There's a necklace and matching bracelet:

This autumn ensemble is on etsy right now if you are interested in it:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16341760

When I was taking pics outside, my batteries died. Snowflake (who is never snow white because she is always digging holes in the dirt), was watching me. I pointed at the birdhouse and jewelry and told her, "don't you dare bother this while I go get fresh batteries". She loves to scavenge lost and misplaced items and hoard them in her doghouse... shoes, gloves, turkey feathers that I have picked up and placed on the swing till I get ready to go inside, small hand gardening tools, a bouquet of flowers that I picked and put in the swing for just a couple of minutes, etc. I ran in the house, grabbed my batteries, and when I came back out, there she sat, guarding the jewelry, lol! She sat there till I took her photo and then she went back to lay down on the warm leaves in the sun. She's a good little girl... sometimes!

Now that I'm hooked on making my own chains and doing all the wire wrapping, I hope to make some unique pieces using many of the trinkets I've collected over the years while junking.

Stay tuned....

Vintage Glass Wares & Simple Joys from Simple Times

Did you see the latest issue of Romantic Country magazine? There's an article about cranberry glass and I happen to have some listed on ebay tonight! Click here to see these sweet vintage pieces. They are scheduled to begin at 8pm central, but sometimes it takes a while for the auctions to show up. Thanks for looking!

~*~

A tisket, a tasket,

a cushion for your basket!

Here's the heartfelt sales pitch for my offerings this month. I truly feel this way and understand the need for keeping to a budget these days:

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could go back to simpler times for a while and just enjoy life, our friends and families, and all that we have been blessed with? This is just a tiny effort on my part, but I’d like to help you by offering some Simple Joys from Simple Times. Many of us are on limited budgets but still want to purchase something special for a friend, something that lets us wax nostalgic about simpler times. I am offering items this month that will fit the lower end of your gift-giving budget, but will still be cherished for it’s nostalgic sentiment.

(the entire SHABBY STRIPES set pictured above is sold ~ thank you!)

There’s a warm feeling that engulfs us when we see something and think, “Oh, I remember that! My grandparents had one just like it!” or “I haven’t seen that in years! I used to help my mama do that when I was a child”. Maybe it was the old sofa that your grandparents had for as long as you can remember ~ and then some! Maybe it was the pincushion that your mother or grandmother put in your hands to hold while she pinned a garment or quilt that she was making. Maybe a color or a texture or a scent is all you need to take you back to simpler times.

These pincushions will evoke the same kind of nostalgia. They are made from interesting upholstery fabrics from the early 1900s. Some pieces show wear and age ~ I think I would too if I were from the first part of the 20th century! I salvaged them from an old coverlet that someone had made. The individual pieces were odd shapes and sizes, haphazardly sewn together, some having ½” seams and others having nearly 4” seams; some seams were machine sewn and some were sewn by hand. Perhaps someone who wasn’t skilled in sewing made it out of necessity? Or maybe a young girl was learning to sew and this was her first project? Nevertheless, I couldn’t pass it up; there were so many colors and textures, and many of the fabrics had faded 10 times lighter than the original color!

I have stuffed each pincushion with fiberfill and about ¼ cup of intoxicatingly scented lavender buds. The worn places have been lined with a piece of wool blanket during stuffing. Some original stitching lines are still evident as well as some very old stains even though the fabrics have been laundered. Each one will come with an antique or vintage stickpin (approx. 3” – 4” long) as well as a stack of old buttons on the pin. These may be used as a pincushion, a sachet for your drawer, or a display cushion for your hatpin collection. Different vintage fabrics are used for the backs as well. Please visit the Pincushions page of my website for photos of more than 30 unique pincushions. Prices are $15, $12, $10, and $7 and free shipping to anywhere in the US with a purchase of 5 or more pincushions! While there, be sure to click on the links of the individual online markets that are mentioned ~ there's lots more handmade items by many more artists!

~*~

I also have a rustic / primitive style bird's nest pendant for sale.

update: SOLD ~ thank you!

AuTuMn JoYs

To Autumn

1.SEASON of mists and mellow fruitfulness,

Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;

Conspiring with him how to load and bless

With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;

To bend with apples the moss’d cottage-trees,

And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;

To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells

With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,

And still more, later flowers for the bees,

Until they think warm days will never cease,

For Summer has o’er-brimm’d their clammy cells.

2.Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store?

Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find

Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,

Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;

Or on a half-reap’d furrow sound asleep,

Drows’d with the fume of poppies, while thy hook

Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers:

And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep

Steady thy laden head across a brook;

Or by a cyder-press, with patient look,

Thou watchest the last oozings hours by hours.

3.Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?

Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,—

While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,

And touch the stubble plains with rosy hue;

Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn

Among the river sallows, borne aloft

Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;

And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn;

Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft

The red-breast whistles from a garden-croft;

And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.

( To Autumn / John Keats)

Pumpkin Festival Photos

Well, I promised photos but I didn't get a lot of great shots. The Great Pumpkin Festival, which is held annually in Allardt, was a hit as usual. There were so many people there that cars were parked about 1/2 a mile away any which way you went out of the little town of Allardt. And when I tried to get a spot to watch the parade, I was behind several people, and if you know me personally, you know I'm short, and that doesn't help when trying to take pictures in a crowd, lol! I did get a few shots of the float decorated by our little church. Each year, the kids (and adults!) enjoy decorating it the night before and have a pizza and dessert party afterwards.

Then during the parade, the youth group (and youth at heart!) ride on it, tossing candy to the bystanders.

There were booths with handmade jewelry, lots of handbags, afghans, quilts, really neat crafty stuff that you'd normally find at a fall festival. Just look at this twig furniture! I thought I took more photos, but only had 2.

Besides settees and headboards, there were wonderful dining tables and chairs! Wish I had a pic of those for you to see. The following are more of the parade... 4-H, beauty pageant winners, tractors, JROTC, etc.... and dusty... I used restraint and didn't buy a thing, except for a bottle of cold water!

You can see the crowd that was there!

Rows of people lined up all through the town!

These birdhouses are neat. I bought one a year or so ago, a little more rustic looking.

And food EVERYWHERE!

And lines at all the food booths all the time...

Pork rinds (skins) anyone?

I did manage to find a parking space in the school parking lot nearby; my car is behind the tree on the left. (below)

The weather was beautiful, but it was hot, and dry...

I didn't even et through the crowd across the road to get pics of the giant pumpkins, but when the local paper comes out tomorrow, I'll get a copy and share the pics with you.

~*~

Tomorrow I'll share some photos of the colorful foliage around home.

Take Care and God Bless!

Lana

~*~

I'm off to see the...

...nope, not wizard.... the Giant Pumpkin! Today is the Great Pumpkin Festival in my home county, and I'll be going there to see all the crafts and watch the parade. I'll try to get some good pics this year. Last year I think I forgot my camera, another year I took lots of photos only to get home and realize my (adult) son had been playing with the settings and all the photos were really wild colors, lol! So, check back tonight or tomorrow evening for mre on the Great Pumpkin Festival.

I've been featured and tagged!

Taylor, an etsy seller, featured ODD on her treasury: http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=12649 and Charlotte, another etsy seller and blogger, featured ODD on her blog post titles Shopping List Saturday: http://fancypicnic.blogspot.com/2008/10/shopping-list-saturdayspooky-stuff.html. Thank you so much ladies!

Suzanne, of Pear Tree Primitives, tagged me in her Tagging the Blues post. I could have sworn that she told me it didn't take much thought or time. No wonder she wrote a letter of apology to me soon as she posted it, lol! That's ok, I wrote her back to let her know I knew where she lived...

Here goes...

I have to answer the following questions with one word answers ~ oneword?

1. Where is your cell phone? Don'thaveone

2. Where is your significant other? Highonamountainhunting,correction,hejustcalledandcamedownfromhuntingandisloadingthehorsesandisgoingbackuponthemountaintoride.

3. Your hair color? darkdarkbrown

4. Your mother? Heaven

5. Your father? Heaven

6. Your favorite thing? Sittingonthebackporchwithmyhusband(&kidsiftheywould)andenjoyingthesightsandsoundsofnature

7. Your dream last night? DrivingdownanarrowwindingroadwithbigdropoffsintheSmokies

8. Your dream/goal? Tocontinuebeingnearmyfamilyanddoingwhatilove

9. The room you're in? workroom/studio

10. Your hobby? Designingandcreating"simplejoysofsimpletimes"

11. Your fear? heights,especiallywindingroadswithBIGdropoffs(see#7)

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? withfamilyonalargefarm

13. Where were you last night? here/home

14. What you're not? publicspeaking

15. One of your wish-list items? storageinmystudio

16. Where you grew up? lessthan15minutesfromwhereilovenow

17. The last thing you did? fedthehorsechickensturkeycatanddogs

18. What are you wearing? caprisandat-shirt

19. Your TV? ifyoucancallitthat,wegetovertheairantennaechannels,usuallysnow

20. Your pet? whichone?smokey,sam,samson,snowflake,pierre,hennypenny,buffy,buffy'sbaby,jodie,billiejo,bettyjo,colette,bigbrowngirl,speckledgirl,andeowyn

21. Your computer? lovemylaptop!

22. Your mood? nostalgic,autumndoesthattome

23. Missing someone? mamaanddaddy

24. Your car? whitefordtaurus2006?ithink

25. Something you're not wearing? Shoesandjewelry

26. Favorite store? junk

27. Your summer? busy!seepastblogpostsaboutthegarden

28. Love someone? mykidsandhusband

29. Your favorite color? iwearbrownalotanddecoratewithit

30. When is the last time you laughed? thismorning

31. Last time you cried? lastnight,see#4,#5,#23

Now, I will tag BJ, Lorraine, & Cookie. I am looking forward to their answers ~ if they have time to participate. Some of my friends are busy getting ready for craft shows, so don't worry if you can't play along.

~*~

Jacquelynne of The Noble Wife tagged me for the Kreativ Blogger Award, and like Suzanne, wrote a letter of apology to me ~ you girls crack me up! I am supposed to choose 5 blogs that I like and I assume that I find "kreativ". Here goes....

1. Restyled Home

2. Sweet Pea

3. Min Lilla Veranda

4. A Heart in Provence

5. Vintage

Enjoy the eye candy at these sites!

Thanks for visiting and come back soon for photos of the Great Pumpkin Festival!

~*~