Wednesday, October 28, 2009

My Workspace

Well...I've been on the road for almost two weeks now and it's been amazing. We've been to more than a handful of different states and just as many gorgeous National Parks. I promise I won't bore you all with too many photos when I get back. ;)

Before I left I snapped this photo of the desk area in my studio (which I've been missing tremendously! Along with Ben and Magic of course). I was super busy getting ready for Silver Bella and my workspace was proof! Well...to be honest, it almost always looks like that.

Tomorrow is the big day (the start of Silver Bella) and I can't wait to meet so many blog and artist friends! I'll be rooming with Heather of Speckled Egg and Heidi of Birds of a Feather and I know we'll have a blast! I'll try to take lots of photos!

Until later...

Great movie and Bad Art

Last weekend I took a break from all the cotton spinning and Ben and I joined some friends to see "Where the Wild Things Are". It was a great movie and a fun night! The Somerville Theater was decked out in cobwebs and other Halloweeny things.


It was a wet, but warm night...my favorite. Perfect for being out and about.


The characters in the movie were wonderful and really looked like real life versions of the book! My favorite part? The giant dog they saw walking in the desert.


After the movie we ventured down to the Bad Art Museum they had in their basement. It was rather entertaining and some of the "bad art" was actually quite good...like this crazy clown! Very well rendered but certainly a little scary.
The frame on this one was really interesting.


Some tedious pointellism. Silly to think that someone did this much work to paint a man in his tighty whities.
A sweet portrait.
This one was certainly poorly rendered and I'm not quite sure what's going on here...any ideas?

This was a fabulous night out in New England...however, I am currently in the great state of Texas and will be travelling with my dad and sister out through the Southwest, looping around back to through Southern Utah, making a stop in Denver to visit a friend before continuing on to Nebraska for Silver Bella. After that we're making a B-line for New York State. I'll leave my dad and sister at home and take a bus back to Boston. Phew! I'll be back in town and back to my normal routine around November 18th. I've drafted several blog posts before I left that I will be posting every few days...so check back in! As for now...I'm hoping to spot a horny toad and catch a tumbleweed (which I actually already did just today!) :)

Monday, October 26, 2009

Halloweeny Snapshots...

The house is all decked out! I snapped a bunch of photos the other day to share with you. This photo above is the living room...I've been collecting vintage plastic jack-o-lanterns and piled them on top of Grandma's cabinet.

Standard hallway garlands.

Ahhh!!! They're getting out!!

Ben's mask from the masquerade party last year now keeps the lampshade shrouded in secrecy. The orchid used to be white but when the blossoms dropped off I replaced them with creepy black blooms.

Crazy gourd man sports a new hat! Or should I say old hat...it's from the 30's and has glittered witches on it! The old honeycomb spider is new too...love him!

I made this guy a while ago after seeing his vintage counterpart on the cover of country living magazine.

Vintage garland a cutie made by Janie adorn one mirror...

...while old festooning and a witch made by Janie adorns another mirror!

I replaced a few of the photos in the bathroom with some more festive ones.

My mom's representation of my little sister in pumpkin form.

More vintage goodness! That devil head was the first piece in my collection...I don't think he's super super old...but he sure is fantastic!

And of course I put up my crepe paper Halloween tree! I have tons of new ornaments to adorn it from Heather's black and white Halloween ornament swap!

I also found these fabulous old black cat pieces at two separate garages in the same day. They really add to the festive feel...but I was told that I couldn't put them in the dishwasher...umpf!

All of these girls did an amazing job!! I just love all of the work and detail that went into each piece!

LOVE this victorian shoe!!

They just make me so giddy!!! I was a kid in a candy store when I was unwrapping each one...which reminds me...the packaging of each piece was almost as good as the ornament itself! Thank you so much girls!!

And lastly Mr. Scary Bear (who stays out all year to great visitors at the front door), says "Happy Halloween!" :-)

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Work Surface...

I have many different work surfaces throughout the house. One of them is on the couch. I spend most evenings watching (or more like listening) to any variety of television programs while spinning cotton. I cuddle up with my chenille blanket under the lamp light...it's a nice way to wind down the day. Especially when Magic offers herself up as a work surface as she often does. So cute...

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

And the winner is....

This good witch is flying off to her new home! Congratulations Maureen from A Rose Without a Thorn! The random number generator chose #1! I guess the early bird got the worm this time! :)

Thank you so much to everyone who entered and left a comment. I loved reading your fabulous Halloween stories! Almost all about trick or treating! I just trick or treating too of course.

My own favorite Halloween memories were actually when I was an older teenager and was too old to trick or treat. My little sister would come home with a nice stash and I would help her sort through it. We would sort the candy by type. Chocolate bars, lollipops, smarties, tootsie rolls, etc. She would pick out her favorites. Then I would pick out my favorites. And we would give the rest to our older brother Dan...usually the peanut butter toffee, the non-lemon flavored dum dums, and those yucky strawberry hard candies...ew. I would covet the fruit flavored tootsie rolls. Even though my sister liked them too...she was generous enough to part with most of them! This year we'll be in Texas for Halloween with no little kids around to help sort their candy. Sigh...

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Getting Ready for Silver Bella!


I've been busy with preparations for Silver Bella....only a few weeks away. I can't wait! :)

Friday, October 16, 2009

Halloween Giveaway!

It's giveaway time! Leave a comment (I'd love to hear about your favorite Halloween childhood memory) on this post and you'll be entered to win Mrs. Halloween Fairy Witch. She's the good housekeeping witch of Halloween and only casts spells to help you with cooking, cleaning and making sure the kids behave! She's about 6" tall (one of my larger pieces) and she hangs from a long ribbon and looks like she's flying! And she just might be flying into your home! I'll pick a winner next Tuesday night (Oct. 20th).

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Flourishing Fungi

Well I guess I have a thing for fabulous fungi... I just had to show you these HUGE mushrooms that I spotted growing on the side of a hill at our farm. From a distance I thought they were birds...but as we approached they didn't fly away. They were probably about 10" high and I just couldn't help but share them with you! ;)

Stay tuned...I'll be doing a Halloween giveaway this week!

Monday, October 12, 2009

Love and Weddings Abound!

This is certainly the year for weddings around here! Last Saturday Ben's cousin Russell married the lovely and beautiful Heather and commissioned me to create a cake topper for them! They wanted a likeness of their crazy selves and thought this "go Heather!" configuration fit them perfectly.

Ben's brother Matt officiated the ceremony...but there was a bit of a blunder as the chuppah fell down. This photo captured that fateful moment.

At the same exact time my very own big brother was tying the knot with his sweet and pretty Sara. They had a beautiful traditional wedding and with it went this beautiful cake topper I made them. How were we at two weddings at once you ask? Well, we weren't. :( We were here with my brother in upstate NY, but certainly thought of Ben's family down in NYC.

My brother is a country boy and it was so strange to see him dressed so nicely...I'll post a few photos of the big event when they come in. ;)

What a beautiful wedded weekend this was!

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Townwide Yard Sale Treasures!

This past Sunday Ben and I went yard saling! Why did Ben come with me you ask? Well...I can't tell you just yet...but I can say it's exciting!!

A few weeks ago I missed my big neighborhood wide garage sale...(sniff sniff). We had plans to go apple picking and while eating breakfast I looked out the window and saw the brightly colored signs....I didn't realize what day it was! Sigh... So to make up for it...we decided to traveled out to Southbridge on Sunday...which is near Brimfield. Well...Sunday turned out to be rather rainy...but we went anyway (if no one put out their things, at least we could wander through the many antique shops in Sturbridge). While most people didn't end up coming out...there were a number of churches that put on sales. And they were great! One church was a regular thrift store and was chock full mostly junk...but treasures too!

This is what I found:

Some great orange pleated trim for my Halloween characters and new tulle for my brides (thank goodness...I was running out!) I also picked up a quartet of quirky plastic jack-0-lanterns. These were probably made when I was a kid in the 80's. I collect all different faces and display them at Hallo-...well...right now!

A herd of injured reindeer found their way to "Mount Saint Crystal's Hospital"...I'll fix their broken antlers and legs and they'll be as good as new! Such happy little patients!

I can't get enough of these cheap milkglass goblets. They're great for displaying anything. I have them all over the house too. They hold our toothbrushes and soaps in the bathroom, sponges in the kitchen, plants in the living room, and cast off jewelry in the bedroom. And of course I couldn't pass up ornaments to add to my growing collection!

This large wooden sled I actually bought for it's contents...but after looking at it further, I might spruce it up for a nice centerpiece display. I'll paint it white, put a spun cotton Santa inside and load it with mini presents and toys! Also...in the foreground there is a cluster of fake plastic pinecones...kinda neat...but you'd think there was a shortage of natural pinecones or something. I can't imagine that making plastic pinecones would be easier than collecting them from the ground...

Trinkets to fill Santa's sleigh!

I spied these houses sticking out of a box at one of the churches and made a B-line for them! I almost never find these at garage sales and I'm shocked that no one picked them up earlier!

Someone handcrafted this very large bottle brush tree with old and new baubles. A little tacky though...I'm not a huge green and gold person. I'll spruce it up somehow.

Some shamrocks, vintage plastic fruit, holly, etc.

These skates are from the 1960's! I bought them from a sweet older couple who bought them way back then and hardly ever used them! They belonged to the husband but they fit me pretty good...just enough room for my big feet and a thick pair of socks. They kept them safe for all those years in their original box and they have the softest fabric inside printed with tiny blue snowflakes. I love them and almost can't wait for the ice to freeze in the Boston Commons!

Trinkets...including some little tiny glass dishes that are perfect to store tiny rhinestones and beads in.

For some reason I've been itching to own a cookie jar for the past few months. I've come across so many and they're either quite expensive, rather lame, or both. This fatty bunny was only $2 and looks great on the counter!! Now all I need are cookies and a name for this big guy...any suggestions?

This suitcase was an amazing find too! It was among dozens of used luggage at the church thrift store. A real diamond in the rough I think. It looks vintage...but it's condition is too pristine to be vintage!! I can't figure it out. It's thick, but soft tweed (I think that's what tweed is?) and has a zippered flap on the side...I've never seen one like that! It's amazing and I so look forward to using it!! :) And guess how much it was? $1! Eek!

This just might be my favorite find. I actually found itside a little metal cabinet...hidden away for me to find! It's a very old and clearly well used hand embroidered baby pillow case. With a bunny! It looks more indearing in person than in the photo and I need to craft a pillow to put inside...asap!

Thanks for joining me in this show and tell! Stay tuned and I'll reveal Ben's fabulous surprise!! :)