Merry Christmas!

We Three Kings...

I have a small collection of "extra" wise men that I have thrifted over the years. My favorite set is this trio of handmade Magi...


I found them in a thrift store about 12 years ago. The heads and hands seem to be clay, and the bodies have a styrofoam base.
Someone put a lot of time and attention into the details...


Take a peek at this piece of vintage jewelry that was used...


I love bringing them out each year and enjoying the creativity of the unknown artist. It has become a part of my own holiday tradition.

Do you have decorations that have become a tradition in your own home?

Paper Snowflakes

I've been meaning to start a collection of hand-cut paper snowflakes for a couple of years. I get busy during the holidays and kept putting it on the bottom of my to-do list...

Not This Year!



Google "cutting paper snowflakes", and you'll get an abundance of guidance if you'd like to create your own wintry snowfall.

My two tips:

1. Use cheap printer paper (the thinner paper folds easier)
2. Use a pair of small SHARP scissors.

Some good links to learn the basic folds are;

http://vintagejunky.com/paper-snowflake-paper-snow-flake-how-to.html
(This link is worth checking out even if you're not going to make any...love the picture!)

http://highhopes.com/snowflakes.html

http://www.wikihow.com/Cut-Elegant-Paper-Snowflakes


After the holidays, you can lay the snowflakes flat between the pages of an old magazine and store them with your decorations until next year.

Have fun!

Happy Holidays!

I had some extra time off work yesterday...
so I decorated the family room for Christmas.





On the mantle...
a herd of deer and a small forest of trees...


I love vintage ornaments...
I have enjoyed collecting these over the years from garage sales and thrift stores...




A trio of vintage snowmen...


A trio of vintage angels...


On the hearth...
some of the nativities I've collected...


A thrifted find...
a vintage nativity set from Italy. It's missing Joseph, but note the bag piper...


I love this old paper scene...
Please excuse the wise man who has lost his head...


A small collection...
I have never been able to leave an orphaned baby Jesus behind...


Enjoy the season!

Nature Walk

A few weeks ago I headed off for a nearby canal on my lunch break.
I enjoyed seeing the turning colors...


a tree full of pods...


a badelynge of ducks...



and snow on the mountains...

Home Again, Home Again...

Time to finish up my Oregon posts! I slowly unpacked all the treasures I both tucked into my luggage, and hand carried on the plane...

Where the Lost Balls Go...




Ice Queen (found discarded in Tory's garage... when I told her how cool it is, she asked if I wanted her...ummm, YES!)...


my finished crow...meeting Tory's crow...


more Goodwill treasures...


a vintage quilt top (Tory found it in an antique trunk at the bins, and passed it on to me)...

and more gifts...




I had such a great trip...I'm so happy that I got to go help Tory with her event!
It had been way too long since I had seen my friends, and she went above and way beyond making sure I had a fun visit.
Thanks Tory!

Oregon: part four

Thursday was the class at Art & Soul. It was a fun day, and the class was a hit...

Tory made a bag for each member of the class with all needed materials inside...

She made me a larger version for helping her with the class...


Afterwards, we headed back to Salem and ate a delicious dinner at the Road House.
Friday we went to the annual art sale put on by Local 14, a group of local women artists. We didn't buy, but had fun looking. We then visited Oregon College of Art for lunch and art-viewing...

and on the way home we made another trip to the bins...

That night Tory's husband took us to dinner at a yummy Chinese restaurant, and then I took on the huge task of fitting the piles of stuff I had either been given, or collected during the week into my luggage. Tory entertained herself by watching...and laughing.

Saturday was vendor night. Debi was going to join us, but was still recovering...(we missed you Debi!) Tory and I left for Portland early so we could set up and still have time to look around before the swarms of shoppers descended.

Tory's display looked awesome...




We were in the big ball room, and were lucky to get a table against the wall. The whole floor was filled with tables, and there were vendors in the hall outside also...



These winged-pendants were best-sellers. This one went home with me...

I've wished I could collect antique cameras for a very long time, so I couldn't pass this cool one up...it was only $10...


I got something else fabulous too, but my luggage was too heavy and I had to leave it with Tory. She's an awesome friend and has already mailed it to me, even though she was coveting it for parts...its an antique travel typewriter so its small and cute...

She also included some gifties in the box. Look at the cool necklace she sent, made by jewelry artist Susan Lenart Kazmer...

It was late when we got packed up at the show, but fortunately Tory's friend Suzanne had offered us lodging for the night. She lives about 10 minutes away from the airport, so it was an easy commute in the morning for Tory to drop me off.
Tory actually came into the airport and waited until I made it through security before she left. I had some very "unusual" carry-ons, and we weren't sure they'd be allowed on the plane. Luckily, the security personnel were distracted with confiscating a protein shake I had forgotten in my backpack, and my bag made it through without having to unpack the carefully wrapped contents...



to be continued...

Oregon: part three

Tory and I played for the next three days.

She taught me how to make her crow sculptures so I could assist her students...

we visited the very unusual house Tory posted about here....



I wandered around Tory's beautiful yard and took photos of her flowers after a rain...






We took her Newfoundland , Winnie, to the dog park next to the Willamette River...

I took pictures of all the berries and flowers along the walking trail...




a murder of crows flocking to this huge tree....

a blue jay nest...

and Winnie enjoying the day...




The area was beautiful, and I loved being able to ask Tory to identify bird songs...a walk with her is like having your own personal ornithologist along!

to be continued...