Card Making ~ Noli Style

If you're anything like me, you keep every sweet handmade card your children or grandchildren have made for you. Your refrigerator is probably full to the brim with cards and drawings!

I was looking through the top drawer in my buffet this morning, hunting for an old metal toothpick holder that belonged to my grandmother (don't ask me why.... it's a long story....) but anyway, while rooting around in that drawer (a drawer that holds all manner of photos, cards, little stuff and nonsense) I came across this card! It was made by Noli with, I'm sure, a bit of help from mommy, and was my valentine a few years ago. 

Unfortunately, it's not dated but from Noli's picture, I'd say she was close to three which would make it February 2009. Her hair is still short and whispy -- just like her mother, her hair didn't grow much or thicken until she was well into her three's and four's.

It was made by gluing an embroidered armchair antimacassar to a used card (if there's anything that my daughter is, it's thrifty and totally into upcycling and recycling!) 

Isn't that butterfly sweet? and the pink and blue crochet edging?

The inside has recycled valentine tissue paper topped with a bird cut from a felted sweater on one side...

and a cute picture of Noli surrounded by flowers on the other! The background is water colored on card stock. Noli looks like a little waif in the picture with her soulful expression! I remember the dress -- a longish prairie style with tiny pink and blue flowers. 

Stephanie always made cards for me when she was small, and has passed that tradition on to Noli. 

Noli loves to make cards for every occasion, for everybody in her life -- some are plain with just writing and some are more elaborate with lots of glued on detail.

This is one that Noli made for my recent birthday (we don't talk about it because it was a BIG one...). I have no idea why she drew a puppy on it since we are all kitty people around here! But it's sweet and shows her writing abilities now at the summer after 1st grade. Don't you love little kid's spelling? Note the two T's in birthday and the backwards D! Cute!

And these are very detailed ones that she made for Stephanie for Mother's Day. I just had to document it in a pic! 

This one is Noli -- her hands are from tracing her own hands, and she crinkled the hair so it would be curly!

And the missing teeth! She has something like seven new ones now!

And this is a lovely purse

which opens to reveal some information about mommy

Note that in "the good old days" mommy liked to play with baby dolls,  not balls as it looks like -- there go those backwards D's again! And note the cute spelling of "especially" -- that's the one that should be in the dictionary! 

Boy, rooting through a drawer on a toothpick holder quest sure brings back the memories!!

sharing at

Thrifty Things Friday

A Favorite Thing

Pink Saturday
Blue Monday

Grandma's Briefs 

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My Mother's Powder Box ~ A Favorite Thing

My mother's powder box.... 

Oh how I remember dancing to its music

round and round

in her bedroom

I had a doll that was just about as big as me and we would twirl and sing all around her room. I can see that doll so clearly -- she had brown hair like me, and a beautiful blue dress that my mother made for her. It had ruffles and little pink flowers around the bottom edge. Puffy sleeves. 

No doubt she made a dress just like it for me.

The music is a bit slow and crackly now, but I still love to hear it. I don't know the tune but I can hear it in my head even without winding up the music box.

It was a powder box and my mother kept her face powder in it. 

There's still a pink blush inside where her powder puff tinted the bottom. 

I don't care that the metal doesn't shine anymore, or that the paint on the feet knobs has cracked, or that the music doesn't sound so lovely now. It stays on my dresser and reminds me of my mother, 

and the little girl who twirled round and round with her doll.

♥♥♥  Linking my powder box to A Favorite Thing Saturday over at
          Mockingbird Hill Cottage
          and to Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound

                                      


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A Crewel Embroidery ~ A Favorite Thing

Last week on A Favorite Thing Saturday, Linda of A La Carte shared a lovely cross-stitch piece that she had made for her parents. It is sweetly simple in design but carries a beautiful sentiment -- you can see it here.

Well, that lovely stitchery brought to mind a crewel embroidery picture that I had made for my mother's birthday in 1972. And, since her birthday was a few days ago (she would be 101), this is a perfect time to share this embroidery.

She hung it between the living room and dining room on a portion of wall that was between the opening to the hall (from the living room) and the swinging door to the kitchen (from the dining room). There was no wall between the two rooms -- just one big open room that spanned the width of the house. Anyway, it fit just right there and looked bright and cheery against her light green walls.

When she died in 1978, my father asked me if I would like it back, and of course, I did. And it has hung on a wall in each of the several houses I have lived in since. Now it is hanging in my sun porch, and I smile when I see it. The flowers are still bright and cheery after all these years! Hey, I just thought of this:  my walls are light green too (even though photo editing doesn't show that)!!

This was in a kit and when I was almost done, I ran out of the crewel yarn for the bricks! Oh no!! I searched high and low and finally found some that was close to the color -- I don't think anyone else ever noticed, but of course, I did!! And that bugged me no end! Can you tell where the substitute color is?

A friend of mine made the frame for me, using a wood molding with a brick design to mimic the brick in the stitchery.

I really like the fuzzy centers of the flowers -- I remember them being somewhat difficult to do and I clipped one or two of them a bit too close, but I like the 3-D effect!

And, of course, what matters is that my mother loved it, 

and that it brought her joy.

♥♥♥   Linking to A Favorite Thing Saturday over at Mockingbird Hill Cottage
           and to Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound

                                

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Fall Tea Set ~ A Favorite Thing

Most of the time, my thrifting hours are spent hunting down vintage goodies for my shop, oftentimes things I can enjoy for myself for a while and then pass on to someone else who will love them just as much. So that was my thought when I found this tea set.

But, you know what? I think I might just keep this one for myself! I have what has turned into a tea set collection (more on those another time!) and this little one will fit in just right. Plus, I use fruit in my dining room decor, and the colors in this tea set are perfect!! I even have two different placemat sets that blend right in! So I'm declaring it a keeper!!

I'm using it in my fall decorations which will stay up through Thanksgiving. I've got a bit of Halloween up for Miss Noli's delight and will add in some Thanksgiving as that holiday nears.

Don't you love that pineapple doily? I found it somewhere long ago -- someone had tea dyed it and I think it looks just perfect with my tea set!

Close-up of the design -- it is hand painted and on the sticker you can just barely make out the word Japan and something else that I'll have to get out a magnifying glass to even pretend to see. I'll have to do a little investigating as to its origins.

Did you notice these goblets? They are another favorite thing! A very, very special favorite thing! They belonged to my grandmother, and I think I will tell you about them another time -- maybe next week!

Oh, and guess what!! 

Peanut Bird was featured this week on A Favorite Thing Saturday!!! He was my entry for that fun party last Saturday (read all about him here....) and sweet Claudia gave him a little feature time! Oh my, Peanut Bird was just beside himself when I told him, and is now insisting that the trail mix jar goes to another shelf so that he gets top billing. Silly Peanut Bird.


♥♥♥  Linking my fall tea set over at Claudia's for A Favorite Thing Saturday,
 and on Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound 'cause we're showing fall stuff there!!


                                   


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