Spring is Here!

Spring is finally here at last! This week the weather has been beautiful and there are only traces of snow left in our yard. I went and bought some of these colorful pansies today on the first day the farm store in town opened.
Speaking of our store - these are pictures of Tenney Farm here in Antrim - they were nice enough to again sell my greeting cards this season. Stop in if you're in the area - they're right on Rt. 202.
And I just had to share this picture of my poor cat. His name is Badger and he is the most wonderful, relaxed cat. He was playing with the kids and they did this to him but he didn't even care! I had to snap a photo!

And this is just one new kit for sale in my Etsy shop, Trinkets. I have more to add today and tomorrow - I think they are so cute! Check them out here.

I love color!

I have been super happy this week - despite the fact that both my poor kiddos have been quite sick. They are starting to get better - so that inspires me. Plus - everything outside is gradually starting to green up. Green is my favorite color! The snow is melting away and every day my daughter and I go out and count the tulips popping up through the muddy earth. We are very happy it's spring in New England!
And look at this - my friend and neighbor brought this by and left it in my porch yesterday. It's a small cupboard that she painted a greenish blue color. She's moving currently and is sending things my way - this is the third small cupboard she's given me this week. How did she know that I have a thing for cupboards/cabinets? Thank you, Kristen! I'm sure she's too busy now to read my post, but I want her to know that I love her offerings and I really appreciate it. And look what I put inside - it's a great place to house and display my new Trinkets merchandise! I love all the colors and I enjoy having things displayed there.
I have been having a blast making new colorful things for my Etsy shop and also using them in my own layouts. And spring is great picture-taking time - this weekend is the town Easter Egg Hunt!

Addicted to Etsy

Here's what's new in my Etsy shop this week!


So.. you know how some people are addicted to Facebook? I'm addicted to Etsy. I've figured out how to "heart" shops and now I have nearly ten pages of favorite stores that I need to look at every day. I have to say that seeing little squares filled with beautiful things all stacked up against each other is the start to a wonderful day. I just have this thing for color and creation, and that's why I love Etsy. I don't buy as much as I'd like - but if I see something really good, I am not hesitant to hit that "buy" button! Because what I've found so far is that everyone who sells there is genuinely nice - extremely nice, and it makes shopping there even more of a pleasure. And now, I'm going to stop because I'm sounding a bit like a commercial!
But here's some of my faves. I am always looking for fun, colorful new shops!
Karen Fields Gallery
Sew Fragrant
Calico Daisy
Tinkered Treasures
And my sister's site: GlenShire
And here's one of my favorite Etsy shops - they sell these wooden shapes that you can alter to your liking - this is a set and you can find it here at Say It With Letters.


Do you have some Etsy faves that you could share with me? Leave me a comment with a link so I can check them out!

Messy, messy

So... I've been super busy lately. Helping my son learn his multiplication tables, bandaging his soccer injuries, and trying to keep my little daughter entertained by going bike riding and exploring with her. And then I'm sneaking in some community meetings at the same time - and all the while our house is being dismantled around me while my husband and a friend do some work painting and renovating. It's exhausting but interesting!
At night I come up to my studio to try and relax but I end up only making a bigger mess!

Here's some of what I've been working on though.Some of it is already for sale in my Etsy shop or will be soon!


And here's the cushy chair that I never get to sleep in...

Cards, cards, cards.. and some signs

So here's a couple of recent cards I did for myself and a few for the "Cards" magazine cover contest. Of course I didn't get chosen as a finalist, but I still like the cards I did.


And then this weekend we had our third "Crafternoon" event and there were nine of us there! Oh my. It was pretty cool that all of us came together to craft and we all made different things. I focused on sign painting for spring. (A few of these are available in my Etsy shop.) It's so much fun to get together with other people that like to craft as much as I do.

Thinking Spring

So even though we just got dumped on - again - with snow, I am still thinking spring and couldn't wait any longer to start taking out a few of my favorite decorations. Look at this beautiful bird house that my sister got me - it is so me and I love it. I leave it out year round. And this is one of my favorite bunnies - he's very big and heavy and I love how different he is. I fill his bowl with eggs.

And this is a new decoration that I got this year at T.J. Maxx. Too cute and inexpensive too!

And these two projects I did a while before but I like them because they are house designs. I have a thing for houses - real and not so real. My house is filled with doll houses, bird houses and houses like this. This one is from Say It With Letters and the other one is sheer from an album. I turned it into a little wall hanging with my two cute kids.
And I don't have any new cards to show you this week - I've been busy finishing up other mini albums I started. It's not as fun as doing new work, but I feel good when I finish those few remaining pages. I love looking at them later with the kids because I forget so much of what happened. Thank God for scrapbooking since I don't have a very accurate memory!

Good things come in small packages

I'm a bit late in posting both these items, but hey - better late than never, right? Look at these adorable "Petite Inspiration Boxes" I received last week from my swap with Speckled Egg. Heather does the best swaps and these were so much fun to receive from Lonnie, Jen and Tammy. Each one was so beautiful in different ways and crammed with stuff! I have already begun using some of the vintage flowers, tickets and other items in my work. Thank you so much girls! I loved them.

And here's something that really made my week - finally getting my copy of this in the mail - my first publication! I had done these "NeSt" letters for Say It With Letters a while back, and really loved doing them. How exciting for me to see them here in the new "Simply Handmade"!

Now my goal is to be published in "Cards" and my life will be complete! Ha ha! :) Thank you for all your kind comments, girls, you are all so sweet! Have a great week everyone!

Card Creating and Doorbell Ditching

So, I've got the card-bug again and can't stop making them. Every time I get new supplies I just can't seem to stop. I went into Michael's again last week with my daughter and of course had to get a few cute things.

They have new K & Company lines there that I've never even heard of! Those designers are busy, busy!


And then, my daughter and I made these cones and filled them with candy. We put them on neighbor's doorknobs, ring the doorbell and run! What fun - and we don't leave our name - we're trying to stir up a little Valentine's mystery. I wanted to do it for Halloween and never had the time, - so Valentine's Day is just as fun. Anyone else ever go doorbell ditching?

A Passion for Polka Dots

So, one of my papercrafting idols is hosting a challenge on her blog - the challenge was to create a card using polka dots, and funny thing was, I just did! I bought this paper at a new scrap store called NH Scrapbook Cabin in Amherst, - with my bestest friend and my daughter - we had a fun time shopping! I love this Imaginisce paper - it just screams "storybook" or "Hansel and Gretel" to me. So cute. My daughter loves it so much we're going to buy the whole line, including the stamps. Too cute. And here's a few other polka dot inspired cards I did for the challenge. Hope I win! :) Check it out at: Lilybeans Paperie.



Here's a picture of the newest scrap store in New Hampshire: NH Scrapbook Cabin. You should check out their web site - they have wonderful personnel and even serve coffee! Now that's what I call shopping! :)

Gettin' Crafty!

This week has been so busy! I have reconnected with many friends and it makes me feel happy and alive! Where would we be without good girlfriends?? Here are some cards I made today inspired by my friends.

Also - had my first "Crafternoon" this weekend and it was so much fun. There were just four of us, but we had a lot to talk about, a lot to share, and some interesting projects were made. One of the girls was sewing bags for Morsbags. Go check out the site and make one of your own like I did! Here's mine made out of old dinner napkins. Reuse, renew, recycle!

Another girl was making draft dodgers for the local church windows, and another was knitting on a loom. It really was a lot of fun and great therapy! I have some more projects to show you but they'll have to wait until another time. My little one needs me now. Have a great week! :)

Resolutions

So.... it's been a while since I've updated my blog - I have just felt so unproductive lately. By the time it's time to craft - I'm all worn out and have no energy and just want to go to bed. Could it be all this snow I've been shoveling lately??? Perhaps. Here's some non-traditional Valentine cards I made lately using the new K & Company "Cut and Paste" line which I just adore! There's also some Basic Grey here - two of my most recent faves.

And oh! On an exciting note, a friend of mine here is attempting to start up a group of local crafters to get together once a month. She was inspired by a book called: " Crafternoon " - has anyone ever heard of it? I haven't read it but I am dying to read it and do more crafting. One of my New Year's resolutions was to create more and have more fun. Sounds good, doesn't it??? :)