Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers) – Page 21

Pinkadilly-icious!

antiques/junking, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), Food and Drink, Moving to DC, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / April 2, 2009

What a wonderful trip! Lots of friends, lots of fun, and I've been to visit two of my grand dogs.

Yesterday, I took a trip to Fredericksburg to meet Andrea Singerella for some junking downtown. I would have been happy just spending the entire day in her perfectly pretty studio and watching her cute kids play, but downtown sure wasn't bad.

Did you see the decorated eggs she had in her shop for such a BRIEF time? Those eggs flew out within minutes of her listing them. She mentioned in her blog that they would go on sale at 4pm, and when I went to look at them about 5:30, they were long gone. But when I got to her home yesterday, look what was waiting for me! A little treasure egg of my own.

I'd brought her a wallpaper journal ready for her to fill with pictures and some homemade, organic granola for the boys. Then, I realized that in today's day and age, you don't just hand someone a bag full of nut goodies, there are so many people allergic to nuts anymore. Luckily, she said nuts were fine in her family, so I didn't cause any anaphalactic shock, because that isn't the best way to start a good junking day.

Shopping in Virginia is different than in Kansas. The buildings in downtowns here are so old, that it is fun to simply walk the sidewalks and enjoy the views even if you don't have any thing to buy. Fredericksburg was every bit as quaint and inviting as Leesburg, where I had gone on previous trips out this way.

This sign is above the oldest soda fountain still in service in the US. I fell for it, because the bright red of the Coke sign had faded out to such a nice pink.

And while I am mentioning pink- look at this lady!

She had lavender and green sisters too. Sorry, I don't even remember what store this window display was in, but I love the mannequins and will probably ~~steal~~use this idea! It is similar, but not quite what I had in mind for my new dress form. Miss Ta Ta (yes that name stuck!)is headless, and neutral toned, but I have big plans for an exciting floral display in place of her head. Now, maybe, I'll drape her in tulles too.

Andrea treated me to a tea party luncheon at Pinkadillies. I didn't even care what the food was, I loved the name of the place so much, the meal wouldn't have mattered. But it was really tasty and the place was cute as a bug. We shared a pot of Peaches and Cream tea and had a good meal.

We weren't the only ones having a good time there. These ladies had no idea how near they were sitting to an obsessed millinery collector or they would have been holding onto their hats! Luckily, my hat whispering skills were in fine form and I was able to find a few good deals this trip, so didn't have to resort to mugging little old ladies.

And did I mention grand dogs?! Here is Lola. She goes to the office everyday with Mary, who works with my husband.

Doesn't she have quite the set up? Here she is in her box, with a stack of mail on top of it. I wonder if it is her job to lick the stamps? From all the kisses she gave me, I'd say it would be a good career move for her.

Lola's big sister lives nearby and we saw her last night. She seems like she could get a part time job as a stamp licker too.

This little one is twice the size of her baby sister! She is growing like a weed and is sweet as can be. Both recognized me (I'm positive) and seemed to be as happy to see me as I was to see them.

Today, I've taken a day off to stay in the apartment and work. Mostly paperwork for tax preparing when I get back home, but I also brought along these gloves to paint on. They started out way too vibrantly colored, so I soaked them in bleach for a day, then tea dyed them before I packed them up for the trip. Today, I drew vines on them with a fabric marker, then painted in the leaves. I've got a few pair of them, I thought they'd be a nice accent to the gardening display I am doing for my Miss Frenchie's booth in a couple of weeks.

I'd love to do some pairs with some real embellishment, but seriously, that wouldn't be feasible for using them. Rhinestones and millinery blooms would sure be pretty, but not useful if someone actually wanted to garden in them. At least not the way I garden, I get filthy when I work outside.

Oh- before I go and tackle that horrid paperwork waiting for me- here is the winner of the MARCH GIVEAWAY:

Kana

And remembber, the APRIL GIVEAWAY started yesterday! All comments, all month count toward the drawing. I'll let you know what the prize is, as soon as I come up with something good!

Lighten up! (or how to paint a chandelier)

Chandeliers, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), how-to projects, Miss Frenchie's

By Karla Nathan / March 16, 2009

Yesterday was a junking day, and a really good one at that. We all bought stuff we loved and at good prices, you just can't beat that! One of my purchases was this $58 brass chandelier. I needed one to light up my space at the upcoming Miss Frenchie's sale.

Today was definitely a perfect springtime day! 70's and sunny, and not too much of that Kansas wind. So, I took advantage of the sun, and took this chandy outside for a do-over.

Here's how:

1- Wipe off the dust, if it is really dirty, use Windex.

2- Now, this might sound like odd advice, but it really is smart and works. I've painted dozens of chandeliers and have found that this is the easiest way to go- screw burnt out light bulbs into the sockets before painting! That keeps the paint from getting into them, and is much simpler than using tape to cover the sockets. Really.

3- Spray with a BONDING primer. The label MUST say "bonding" or "will adhere to shiny surfaces."

4- Spray into all the nooks and crannies, let dry, turn over and spray that side. You will probably need to turn it around at least 3 or 4 times to get every angle.

5- Double check and see if you missed any spots!

6- Mix a deep brown paint (acrylic craft paint, like Apple Barrell or Delta) with some clear glaze.

7- Dab on the brown with a small, soft brush, doing one area at a time. Make sure you get it deep into all the cracks.

8-Lightly wipe away paint with a wet rag, leaving it in the recesses.

9- Repeat all over and all around the light. Just like when you sprayed the primer, turn it every direction and make sure you didn't miss any spots.

10- Go for an uneven, messy kind of finish, darker in some places than in others. You don't want it to look like it was done perfectly at a factory!

11- When dry, spray with a poly clear coat. And remember about flipping it over and going for every angle!

12- Add crystals, I prefer to use different sizes, not all uniform. If some of the holes are plugged with paint, poke through with a toothpick or small nail to clear it out.

Ta Da! Only 12 steps to a whole new look!

And please note, I didn't use just any spray paint. If you do that, the glaze will wipe off. It has to be a BONDING PRIMER for the water based glaze to stick!!!

Gifts of Affection and the March Giveaway

antiques/junking, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), give away, paintings, the Boutique at Karla's Cottage, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / March 11, 2009

Now, Beth might have just happened to include this sentimental bit of ephemera in with the gift pack she brought me, but in my mind, she added it with true affection! I know I just love her to pieces.

With affectionate thougths of my own, I'm offering this necklace as my prize for the March Giveaway.

This is the one I chose, because it is filled with rosebud and posy charms and seems to be just right for welcoming Springtime!

All you need to do is leave a comment to enter. As always, all comments, all month count.

Beth came over yesterday to finish up our sewing projects started last week, and as much as we both dislike sewing, sometimes you just gotta do it. Unless you have unlimited funds and can have hire a seamstress, of course. Which we don't.

And she showed up with gifts!! Well, she always does. Beth is a hunter/gatherer and is always on the prowl for goods for resale. While she is out, she picks up tid bits she knows I'd like too and since she knows me so well, they are always perfect!

Great stuff, huh?

But we didn't spend the whole day opening gifts and eating scones, we got some work accomplished too. The tablecloths are DONE. whew. And for some silly reason, who knows why (since neither of us enjoy sewing), we both started making bags from some vintage scrappy stuff we had around. Hers is from a quilt and mine is old curtains and doilies.

The bag I made is far from perfect, but looks OK as long as you don't examine any stitches or look too closely. I made up the pattern as I went along, to fit the doily I wanted to use. I think the bag would be better with a bit more embellishing, but I quit. While Beth was here, it was going OK, because we were at that slap happy stage, the one where no matter what you say or do, it makes you have a giggle fit. None of it would be in the least bit funny if I tried to tell you today what we were saying, but in the moment, we were hilarious to each other.

The tablecloth I'm using on my studio table now is a gift from Beth too. She brought it to cut up and I said, NO WAY, its too nice. So she gave it to me! Apart from it being really pretty, I love it because my great grandma made one very similar that I don't like to use, because ~~my family is a bunch of pigs~~ I don't want to ruin it. I call this one my "stunt double" table cloth, I can use it and be reminded of the one I have from my great grandma.

Some of you were asking about this bench I have made new pillow shams for. It was a Victorian heard board that I got at a garage sale, in bad shape. Sugarwing's Daddy is an accomplished carpenter and he made the headboard into a bench, and I painted the flowers on it.

Today, while avoiding putting away all the sewing paraphernalia, I cleaned up my Boutique a bit and deleted some SOLD items, added a few new ones.

As tempting as it is to hang out at the computer and list more things, I need to get back to work. That sewing machine and all the mess that accompanies it needs to be stashed away, hopefully I won't be getting it out again for a long, long time!

Hip Hip Hooray!

celebrations, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), give away, holiday decor, Miss Frenchie's

By Karla Nathan / March 4, 2009

"I did it, I did it!! Yippee, Hip- Hip- Hooray!"

I am quoting Sugarwings there, that is what she says when she is proud of something she did. I was telling Beth today while we were working, that its too bad we don't cheer ourselves on more as adults the way a 2 year old does. You can learn a lot from a toddler. They take so much joy in small accomplishments. Sugarwings gives herself a good old, hop-hip-hooray quite a few times a day. I've adopted her habit and have taken on that chant, it really makes the day more exciting.

So, here is a hip-hip-hooray to myself for hitting 500! And a thanks to all of you who take the time out of your day to visit. As a thank you, I drew a name from comments on post #499 to send out a pair of earrings to:

Gail Horowitz

I was looking through a list of things I'd been giving away over the last couple of years, and believe it or not, I've passed out more than 50 prizes. Which averages one every ten posts. Geez, I had no idea I was able to ~~get rid of so much crap and clutter around the studio,~~ I mean, gift things to so many of my friends.

Twinks took time to chase bunnies today, that was a good sign she is getting over her pups leaving. Its good to have hobbies.

Beth and I SEWED today. We decided we wanted our tables for Miss Frenchie's saleon April 17th to look professional, so we made table skirts. I had some ticking that I had dyed to look old and she had a tub of ivory table clothes. As soon as we saw each other's stuff, we traded! I made a "collaged" skirt, as she was calling it, from a hodge podge of whites and creams and lace and pillow cases, and doilies and curtains.

This picture is of the skirt, in progress. A far cry from the ticking stripe I started with, huh?

Yesterday, I spent about 12 hours in the studio all alone with my papers, glitter, and glue.

Do you ever have one of those days where you just slide into your zone? Well, today's sewing project sure wasn't one of them, but yesterday's glue fest was.

My favorite part of the day was sugaring the little lambs and bunnies and chicks. My fingers were all goobered up and stuck together with glitter and glue, but in a fun way. It had been too long since I'd had the glitter out. I'd been missing it, and didn't even realize.

I'm going to have to raise the glitter quotient in my life back up to a respectable level. Some sparkle and that self cheering I learned from my fairy grand baby are a couple of things that can take a blah day and turn it into something a little more special.

Or is it just weird that I sit for a dozen hours in my studio with my fingers all glommed together, yelling out "Hip- Hip- Hooray, I did it, I did it!!"?

PS- Beth is having a good Giveaway , you should check it out.

I feel like I deserve Dorothy’s house to land on me

Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / February 27, 2009

One last puppy post. All the babies are gone, and gone to good homes. Brenda, who was in our Puppy Love swap, and who I met through this blog drove all the way down from Minnesota to pick up Millie yesterday. Her plans are to train the pup to be a Hospice dog and comfort patients. This baby will be well loved, and is going to do a lot of good in her life.

But that didn't seem to make it any easier for us.

We dressed the puppy up in a polka dotted ribbon foofed up with a Kansas Sunflower and planned a going away party for her with home made muffins and tea. Sweet Brenda and her adorable family came bearing gifts, to take Sugarwing's mind off of losing the dog. It worked for a while, the new baby doll and balloon kept her pretty happy till we waved good bye as Millie drove away.

Then, Sugarwings laid her head on my shoulder, with tears rolling down her cheeks and said, "I sad."

We held each other and cried a bit. She surprised me, it wasn't a typical, 2 year old's dramatic tear fest. This was quiet, and deep felt.

She then, lead me over to the puppy pen, pointed to the bed and said, "Puppy go there now, please". In a toddler's world, "please" is a magic word. Great things happen when they say please. But not today. She sadly and softly said, "Please, please, please, please". But her wicked witch of a Grammy couldn't bring the puppy back at that point. I have never felt like such a horrible person in my whole life. What was I thinking??? She is way too young to understand losing her pets.

I've raised many litters of Yorkies in the last 10 years and while it is not fun to see the pups leave, sometimes it is a bit of a relief after the weeks of constant care they require. Not this time. My sons were in high school when I first found homes for litters of puppies. But a teenager's reactions can't be compared how a toddler feels about losing a fuzzy little baby dog.

It was heart wrenching to see that little girl stand in front of the puppy's bed and ask gently, "Please" to have her puppy back.

These little girls sure stole our hearts. We loved every second of having them here and I am so glad they all went to such loving homes. All the money we got from selling them is going into Sugarwing's college fund, since Twinkle is her dog.

So, lots of good came from the pups. That is just hard to remember today when we are all missing them so much and the house seems so empty without them.

Still Under the Weather

Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), Etsy Goodies, jewelry, the Boutique at Karla's Cottage, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / February 24, 2009

I'm sorry if you have tried to buy from my boutique and haven't been able to complete your purchase. I am working on the glitch and hope that it is fixed. If you do have any problems, please email me and I can sell the item to you directly instead of through the website. Sorry about that!

I'm still not feeling well. Today I made it out to the studio to visit and feed Twinks and her little last pup, but didn't have the energy to play with them. Luckily, my husband is in town and took the girls for a romp and a run in the field. It is a beautiful day and they deserve a break.

Looks like she got plenty of exercise, she seems worn out!

Even though I was feeling pretty bad yesterday, I worked on some more of the ledger books that I bought from Beth.

After doing a few pages, I gave up and went back to bed.

Probably, if I would just STAY in bed, I'd be getting better sooner. But, on the other hand, I'm not exactly doing anything strenuous, and doing this little bit of creativity cheered me up.

But not today. I can't quite seem to muster the energy. So, I have been listing more items in the boutique, I just HAD to do something. There is only so much laying around I can take. Although, now that I am done, I think I will spend the rest of the day with a cup of hot tea, a good book and a pile of Dorkies.

Yesterday I listed a few wallpaper packs. Both of them include some of my "Rachel Paper". The lady I bought it from said she also sold a roll of the same one to Miss Shabby Chic herself. Can you guess which it is?

The blue one with the white rose. I wonder if we'll be seeing this design on bedding?

Today I mostly listed old jewelry. I had previously cleaned and photographed it, or I wouldn't have gotten that far today!

This one will be hard to part with!

Hey, did you hear that Somerset has another magazine coming out??? This one is to be called the "Gift Club" and will feature pretty gifts and packaging ideas. The editor asked me if I was interested in submitting something, and of course I am! This is right up my alley. If you have bought anything from my shop lately, you can probably tell I enjoy wrapping things up uniquely. I might send her one of the ledgers I am making, those sound like something that could make a lovely gift.

Okay, that pile of Dorkies and cup of tea are calling out to me pretty strongly about now. And a shot of Day Quil sounds pretty good too. I'll leave you with some more photos of the new additions to the Boutique, then head to bed.

Bye Bye, Babies!

Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), Etsy Goodies, the Boutique at Karla's Cottage, vintage paper/collage art, yorkies

By Karla Nathan / February 23, 2009

Isn't she gorgeous? And talented too! When Bethany comes over here for craft day with her mom, Shawn, she usually gets a lot more accomplished than the rest of us do. Although, for this craft day, we spent a lot of the time cuddling puppies. (photo by Shawn, and I am jealous of her camera)

We had a new friend join us for craft day, this time. Marycame and brought these pretty things. She said she knew I liked "girly" stuff, and boy, she was right. I love these! I've already used some of it in a journal I worked on that day.

Beth has been selling these old ledgers, and I bought a few to fix up.

Last week, I made one for myself, with postal rates, birthdays, addresses, and passwords in it. For this one, I didn't write in an page titles, but will customize it for free for up to 6 categories for whoever buys it. I am listing this book in my Boutique today.

Its a bit more expensive than my stuff usually is, but this is all GOOD STUFF, great papers and really old. Plus, a lot of time and thought went into the planning of it. I wanted it to be lovely as well as functional.

The old handwriting in the pages is so nice, so I wanted it to show, but had to figure a way to keep it and still have the pages ready to be written on by the new owner. So, I have used a variety of papers, such as this glimmer misted 8" tag, with ribbons tailing out the bottom of the book, and some water color paper. On other pages, I have used old stationery, or wallpaper to cover the words.

This page makes use of the stationery paper, as well as one of the girly cards from Mary.

There are lots of hand drawn embellishments too. I've done them in glittery or metallic inks.

Most of the hand drawn pretties are vines, swirls and butterflies.

Some pages are left plain, some have ephemera glued down, others have the hand drawn elements.

And I have even included a hand painted tea cup filled with roses.

There are a total of 14 pages (28 counting both sides) so I won't show them all.

While I was cutting up vintage wallpaper for the project, I cut up a few extra pieces and listed some packs in the Boutique.

Then, I listed a few more bits of last week's loot on Etsy.

Thanks to all of you who came by to shop and get some of these collage goodies!

I've got more to list in the shop soon, but right now am busy getting caught up on real life. After craft day, all of a sudden, I caught a cold. One minute, I was fine, the next, I was sneezing, blowing my nose and feeling awful. So I spent a day in bed, and slept for most of it. I had to, there was nothing on TV till Oscar time, and my head was throbbing too much to read.

Oscars were a bit anticlimactic. My favorite part was a red carpet interview with Miley Cyrus who talked about her movie, saying she hoped to be nominated next year for it. I laughed out so loud that I scared the dogs.

Nothing can make you feel better than a good laugh. Puppies are usually pretty good for a laugh too. I've been out in the studio with the lone pup that is left today and she has been pretty entertaining.

What am I going to do when they are all gone?? I'd better go get some cuddling in while I still can, only a few days left with my last little one.

(these photos of pups are from Shawn and her magnificent camera too) It dawned on me, that I could have bought my dream camera with the puppy money I got from Twinkle's babies. Man, what was I thinking when I promised it to Sugarwing's college fund??? Oh well, I am sure that is a much better way to spend a chunk of cash. Investing in the baby's future can never be a mistake.

Giveaway reminder- yes, there is a present for February! All you need to do is leave a comment. I don't know what it will be yet, so lets call it a SUPER SURPRISE!

Swappers are still adding posts about their Puppy Love Tag Books. you can see Ele's here.

Chasing Sugarwings

antiques/junking, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), Etsy Goodies, Sugarwings, vintage paper/collage art, yorkies

By Karla Nathan / February 20, 2009

Whats better than hugging a fuzzy puppy on a sun shiny day?

How about a whole armload of them?

Yep, not much is better than snuggly puppies.

These guys are becoming such fun, and I am losing them! We are just getting to the good part, where they come running at the sound of our voices and want to play. Even though Sugarwings tends to be a little rough (she's only 1-1/2), these babies were still following her every move when we took them all outside to play today. They are either really brave, or really stupid, because they keep coming back for one more, too-tight squeeze from her.

Two more girls leave on Sunday, then I will only have one until the 28th when her new family arrives to get her. Trouble is, she is my favorite, and a week alone with just her is going to make it even harder to give her up!!

Well, once all the girls are gone, I will have more time for actual work. Right now, a lot of my studio time is spent playing with pups.

I did sort out more of the loot from yesterday and make a couple of little crowns.

One box had a bunch of these old metal trim pieces, and I can see all sorts of tiaras being formed with these!

Soon, everyone in the studio will be sporting their own crown. Hmm, I still have a couple of days to make puppy crowns, don't I? Or as Sugarwings calls them, "corns".

This is some more of the loot that I am keeping for projects myself. I'm not sure what I'll make, these bits and pieces are all great materials, though!

And thanks to all of you who filled up shopping carts at Etsy!

This is another collage/assembly kit that I added to Etsy today.

Details, of the kit.

I hope to add more of the vintage loot packs to Etsy, but right now, I hear Sugarwings getting up from her nap.

She's worn me to a frazzle today, too bad the nap wasn't a little bit longer, I've enjoyed my little break in front of the computer. That is one BUSY kid!!

Salvaged goods

antiques/junking, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), Etsy Goodies, the Boutique at Karla's Cottage, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / February 19, 2009

Like Mother, like daughter?

These pups are everywhere, following every move that Twinkle and I make! Remember the movie, Gremlins? Now, that these remaining babies are so rambunctious, I feel like I have a house full of Mogwai that are taking over. I'd better not feed them after midnight…

Today,Beth and I went to a great sale. A Friend, who is a magnificent assemblage artist was clearing out before a move.

We loaded up on her fun bits and pieces.

When I got home, I started playing with them all right away. I made a crown from some salvage metal trim (photos later, its not quite done yet), then I organized my purchases. And realized I bought more than I can use…

See what I mean? Cool stuff. But this is only a fraction of the boxes and boxes I snapped up.

So, I started listing small lots for Etsy. Then, I got bored with listing and packaging and describing it all, knowing that Thursday is the most glorious TV night of the week, and I had SHOWS to go watch soon! So I lumped a bunch of vintage delights into one big listing to finish up.

I still have a couple more things to add, but tonight is good TV and tomorrow is a Sugarwings Day, so it won't be till this weekend that I get more up. I have some goodie packs with ephemera included too.

A lot of you have asked about the knobs I showed photos of yesterday. Thanks so much for asking. I will probably list some and take the rest to Miss Frenchies. I'll keep you posted.

And now, it is time for Survivor, I have to run. I'll leave you with more shameless huckstering. Here are photos of the latest goodies listed in my Boutique.

Nesting (how to paint a bird’s nest)

Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), how-to projects, paintings, swaps, yorkies

By Karla Nathan / February 18, 2009

The babies are starting to leave me. Today, little Glitter went to her new home, she is living now with a reader of this blog who happens to be in Kansas City. Glitter was the pensive pup, who was always happy to watch a while before joining in the rough housing with the other girls. Micah, the tiny little firecracker who had the most energy of all, is with her new family too. Tinker Bella has gone to live with Teddy's family.

There are still 3 little furry bundles of joy to keep me company while I work in the studio, but not for much longer. Its going to be quiet around here after they go…

Today, I've been busy at work in the studio painting drawer pulls. I had a boxful, some from Beth,some that I harvested from dressers when I fixed them up and changed out the handles to glass knobs. The first step in the redo was to prime them with a can of Zinzer spray primer. Then, I painted them white with acrylic craft paint.

Are you up for a how-to? I thought I show you the steps in painting a nest. First, start with a nest shape blob in dark brown.

Next, add two vaguely egg shaped blue blobs.

Add white highlights to the eggs.

Switch to a thin, liner brush and outline the eggs in the same dark brown used for the back ground of the nest.

Now, switch back to a small, round brush and load it with yellow and tan.

Add some of the yellow tan color, in lines that follow the shape of the nest.

Repeat with a layer of olive green.

This is all about the layers. Let each previous layer peek through the next. Don't go at this with a heavy hand, let your layers of color build up, just as a bird would have built it with layers of sticks.

Now is time to switch back to the thin, liner brush. Using the dark brown, follow the shape of the nest again with your strokes. This time, be a little messy, with "twigs" sticking out all around.

Repeat the last step with white or ivory.

Fine tune the nest by outlining some strokes with the dark brown on a liner brush, here and there as needed

To finish, brush on a water based clear coat, or spray with a can of poly. I prefer the brushed on method myself. It might look like this was a lot of steps, but really, it goes fast and unsure, shaky lines make even better twigs than perfect lines! So give it a try, a nest is a simple thing to paint.