family – Page 34 – Karla's Cottage

Siesta Sands Sister Trip

By Karla Nathan / November 12, 2015

The condo we had on the beach at Siesta Sands had a huge picture window over looking the Gulf, with a craft table in front of it.

Well, we also were able to squeeze in a bit of dining at the table too. But I kind of over took it for my art journal.

Now, I really, really, really love my studio at home.

But I discovered that I feel a ton more creative with this view while I am working!

Siesta Sands is a very old, cement block building right on the prettiest beach you'll ever see. Siesta Key always ranks high on any USA travel advisor, and there is a reason. The sand is white quartz and always cool to the touch, it is pure powdered sugar.

My grandma lived in the area when I was a kid and I grew up visiting here.

I became a beach snob very young. I thought all beaches were covered in sand that you could add some butter to and turn it into icing.

But I do have an appreciation for all beaches, and we always love to go to the rough and rocky Venice beach to search for shark teeth fossils while we are in the area.

It was actually a bit warmer there than 40 minutes north in Sarasota, so I was able to do a little more swimming in Venice. (yes that is 57 year old me in a swimsuit on the internet. Do I have no shame or vanity? Guess not)

Plus Venice has some cute shops. Not many open on Sunday when we went, but still fun.

These are the shirts I gifted my sisters with.

(And this was my view for a lot of the week, I was always a few yards ahead of them every where we went.)

Matching gifts were in abundance!

Sissy gave us rainbow moonstones with a sand dollar in silver.

And these mermaid shirts that we added glitter to.

While out one day, someone asked us if these were from a foundation. I said of course, and asked if they'd like to donate, that we were the founding members!

Bobbie gave us photo mugs in memory of our dad and last year's trip to spread his ashes.

I'd made us some art journals to fill up with our adventures.

And we got pretty rainbow quartz stones from Sis.

Each of us brought things to add to the journals, here is a witchy picture Bobbie doctored up and added us to.

But the best gift?

Having these ladies as sisters and best friends.

I love you, Bobbie and Sissy!

Siesta Sands Mermaid

fairies, family, Travel

By Karla Nathan / November 9, 2015

Last year's "First Annual Sister Trip to Siesta Key" was to spread our father's ashes on his favorite beach. We found the perfect, heart shaped shell, filled it with his ashes, and took it out to the sandbar to float away.

So, when I saw this little butterfly shell on the beach, I thought it was ideal to use to recreate the moment by filling it with glitter and crystals in memory of Daddy.

Instead of a fairy, I made a mermaid, but of course, she did end up with wings. There was a dead dragonfly right by where I made her, so I plucked off it's wings. Gross to do, but I like the look…

Sissy and I knew that our sentimental sister, Bobbie, would want to keep this one, since it was in honor of our Dad. Usually I leave the fairies on the beach the last day of my trip as a farewell and a thank you.

This time, though, I created an environment for her and glued her together into a sea shell home. (Minus the wings, which would just rot. And who knows what the seaweed will do?)

I guess that means I owe Siesta Key a fairy…. durn, I'll just have to go back again, huh?

A magical, Halloween sister trip to Florida, a surprise hotel, and a ghost story

fairies, family, Travel

By Karla Nathan / November 6, 2015

And I thought last year's sister trip was fun. This one was just perfect, even better. Before I went to Utah for the Grand Masquerade, I flitted down to Tampa to meet my sisses at the airport for our new tradition of an annual beach trip.

(Yep, October was a whirlwind for me, three trips and a workshop at my home… now it is time to relax and rest up after all of that. No, wait! I think there is more to come… Christmas is just around the corner and if I want to sell any angel kits or other decor -dyed and glittered trees, anyone??- I need to get into HIGH gear)

My sisters had booked a week or so at a condo on Siesta Key beach, where we stayed last year and I'd liked sooooo much that I took all of my kiddos there this summer and where my husband and I had an impromptu wedding vow renewal.

Bobbie and Sissy were having a nice long trip (I met them for 5 days of it) but the condo wasn't available for their whole stay. So, they decided to each surprise the other with a night not too far from the airport.

Unknown to them, they had each chosen the SAME hotel. And what a place!! The Loews Pink Palace on St. Pete beach.

I figured that they had both admired it and spoke of longing to stay there sometime.

Nope.

Sis had never heard of it before, Bobbie had never mentioned it. They both chose to splurge (big time) and treat their sister to a night at a spectacular resort.

Since I knew both secrets, I called ahead, upgraded a tiny bit and made sure that we could check in one day and stay both nights in the same room instead of moving from one to another the next day.

We had a balcony room overlooking the ocean, at one of the prettiest hotels I'd ever seen. We walked along the beach, ate seafood, shopped at a boardwalk in Treasure Island, and just relaxed on the balcony.

They shared a king bed and I had a rollaway, otherwise known as my baby bear bed.

We had some crafting time on our vacation, and here is how I drew that sweet, little baby bear bed. Not so sweet?

Well, one night, I had the worst nightmare. I'm not much of a nightmare type, they happen very rarely for me. But this one was a doozy, and felt so real. It was one where I tried to call out for help, but couldn't make myself heard.

But I just KNEW that if I could force the sound out, my sisters could hear me and they would save me from the long arms (with claws) that were grabbing me from under the bed. It hurt!!

Finally, I croaked out what to me felt like a blasting scream, but what was in reality a scratchy, little creaking sound. But, it did the job, I awoke my saviors and they rescued me from the black arms coming from under my baby bear bed.

But, it still hurt.

Seriously, my shoulder and hip were hurting. I figured I had tensed up so much from fear that my muscles were aching.

Till the next morning came…..

AND I HAD TWO, HEART SHAPED, painful, BRUISES ON MY HIP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (We called them ghost bites)

Later on, I read about the ghosts in the hotel, apparently the owner and his true love can be see at times. Which might explain the two hearts? (I didn't take a photo, because they were almost more butt than hip and no one wants to see that.)

As Dewdrop likes to say, "That's Crweepy!"

Well, in all actuality, I probably had bumped my hip the day before and didn't realize it and the pain was what caused the dream.

At least that is what I'm going with.

The hotel was amazing and except for the short, ghostly visit, was perfect. I enjoy older hotels with a lot of history. F. Scott Fitzgerald used to hang out there, and you could feel the Gatsby vibe.

As I like to do on vacations, I created a sea shell fairy as a thank you to the beach. Since we were having a Halloween themed trip, I called her a Sand Witch.

And it seemed fitting, since I was finding so many black shells on this beach. I wanted to make another witch later on for Siesta Key, but the shells were mostly a lighter color there. Each beach has its own look with its shells and the ones I pick up determine who or what I'll make.

But she is always a fairy of gratitude.

After making the shelly witch, we spotted this bench, a perfect photo op and place to play!

I loved the old faded colors of the boats and chair.

Sissy had gifted us all with these matching shirts (from Walmart) and they were ideal for our witchy week theme.

She even brought her cauldron mug for coffee. We aren't big drinkers, so coffee was our vaca brew.

And coffee has never tasted better than it did from this balcony.

She also gave us matching scarves in this sea color.

There were lots of laughs that week, like here where we asked the person at the next table to take our picture just as a bird was pooing on my head. I had to go to the restroom and dunk my noggin in the sink to wash it out, then came back out with a sopping, dripping head just in time to barely catch the last of the dolphins playing off the pier as they swam away. I guess they'd been showing off while I was scrubbing my hair.

Everything about our stay at the Pink Palace was just beautiful. The place was pure luxury through and through.

With never ending salt water taffy at the front desk!

I was not too shy to keep "trick or treating" the concierge. This is part of the haul that made it with us to the condo at Siesta Key later on. We were set for candy for the week.

We didn't make use of the hotel spa, but we did ask for a tour of the rooftop garden area attached to the spa.

And we spent some time at antique and boutique stores around town. I'm showing off the back of my new shirt here. I don't know why we even packed anything, between all the gifts we gave each other and the shopping we did, we didn't need anything from home at all!

Sissy even brought us silver ice cream spoons. They used to be our mom's.

And they made sure to use them when they went to the ice cream parlor at the hotel.

But as much as we loved the high life at our palace, the best part was the company.

An evening at a grand masked ball

celebrations, family, parties, We're having a party

By Karla Nathan / November 3, 2015

This was not just a Halloween party.

This was something on a whole different scale.

Like nothing I'd ever been to before. (and honestly, even if I it was possible to get invited to another masquerade, and that seems unlikely since this was such a once in a lifetime experience, I don't think it could come close to matching this wowzer of a party)

Because this one was planned by my sister-in-law, Terry, who is a hostess to beat all. (And who also designed, created, and stitched this fetching,Phoenix gown)

She and her husband are a fun loving, generous couple who understand the art of entertaining.

The party was held at La Caille, a fairy tale, dream come true. You enter through iron gates and drive up a long, winding path lined with twinkle lit trees, to arrive at a French inspired castle in the woods.

Even before you open the door to the grand entry way, you know you're somewhere wonderful.

I channeled my inner Sugarwings and pretended to be a princess as I glided up the stairs. (well, I think I might have kinda clod hopped up in my heels, since they were making some clunking noises as I tried unsuccessfully to walk up the steps semi gracefully in them). If my grand fairy had been there, she could have spent hours just daydreaming and playing make believe on this magnificent stairway.

It was easy to feel like royalty walking into the party. The guests were dressed to the hilt and you could feel the excitement.

Here is our host again, this time with Kate Winslet!!!!!

At least in my mind that is who this was.

I only knew the people there that were relatives, and everyone was masked, so I just guessed at identities of the rest of the guests. Plus, it was such a fancy party, I just assumed that all of those glamorous people that I didn't know were stars or queens or billionaire yachting types.

Yet, I didn't feel like a rube myself at all. Terry and Dale are such a lovable couple, they made everyone feel right at home, welcomed, and ready for fun even in the most luxurious of locations.

Although, somewhere toward the end of the night, I realized that one of my sheer, tulle slips had been wadded up under the top half of my dress all evening.

(What every gal wants when she is all dressed up is an extra layer of poofy padding around the waist, right?)

Sugarwings was excited about me getting to go to this event, and found this pretty, lace mask for me while shopping with her mommy. It was special to me that I had a gift from my girls to carry. I added a stick to it and some embellishments to go along with my black bird dress.

My husband, on the other hand, wore a 59 cent, plastic mask, since he isn't much of a costume type. Neither is his brother. But they both looked handsome toasting their sis for her extraordinary party.

There was a buffet set up with a lot of choices for dinner. Here is my plate of deliciousness.

We had an assortment of mini cheesecakes and other dainty treats for dessert too.

Plus glass pumpkins filled with Halloween candy, Godiva, and Ghirardelli chocolates on each table.

Here is Terry's son, the Mad Hatter showing off some goodies he got from the dessert table.

Throughout the night, there was dancing. My husband even danced to my Halloween favorite, The Monster Mash with me. And slow danced to Micheal Buble singing about what a marvelous night it was for a moon dance.

I agreed with Michael.

Terry was fairy godmother to many of the guests, creating their costumes as well as hers. She designed the pattern for this Tardis gown for her daughter-in-law from a photo found online.

And Holly out evil-queened Regina in this Once Upon a Time inspired gown. Oh my gosh, I wish you could see the deluxe details in this!!!!!!!!!!

Terry covered a luxe purple fabric with black lace to create the look. And the day before the bash, she was figuring out how to make a ruff stand up on the jacket. No looking at youtube videos, using a pattern, she just winged it and came up with an ideal plan.

We were asked to come in formal attire with a mask, costumes welcomed, but nothing gorey. I'm always thrilled to have a reason to be witchy, so when I found the black bird dress on clearance at the Victoria Trading Co. outlet store, I knew it was just what I wanted.

The shoes are from Goodwill and spray painted to be sparkly. Since I have Fred Flintstone feet and shoes are always too narrow, I'm pleased when I find pre-broken in ones to wear at the Goodwill. These low heels were comfy all night long.

I am thinking about cutting the dress off to become a sundress later on, since I don't have a lot of occasions to wear a long gown. Well, maybe I do, with Sugarwings and Dewdrop around, we LOVE excuses to dress up. I might keep it as is, just to play in.

Now, if I could just get my Handsome Husband to slip into that tuxedo more often…. yum

The party was amazing, and the best part? It was also a mini family reunion for us and we got to spend an evening with my mother-in-law, Joan as well as the whole next day hanging out with people we love.

I even got to meet a brand spanking new nephew when Terry's daughter and son-in-law brought their little ones over to the house. There was football to be played, Eric's specialty pizza, and a World Series game too.

And I got to see trick or treaters! I haven't had one at my home in 20 years (except family members) but at Terry's neighborhood, we had so many I felt at one point like I was being overwhelmed by the mob at the front door.

Very cute and a lot of fun to see, though.

It was a beautiful weekend topped off with family fun. My husband was in heaven with a chance to play football with nieces and nephews, I got to catch up on family gossip, eat lots of chocolate, and attend this formal ball.

I can't thank Terry and Dale enough for their hospitality.

I'll leave you with a few more photos from this venue and of the dreamy evening I spent there.

Happy Halloween! And some zombies

family, holiday decor, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / October 31, 2015

My Darling lil Sugarwings has caught the zombie bug. She is still enamoured with princesses, but for this Halloween, she wants to be a Zombie Elsa. And her mom was pretty good with the makeup for the annual Lawrence Zombie Walk.

The kiddo was kind of creepy, she had the act down. She stayed in character and is a good little actress.

As usual, the town turned out for the show, with what seemed like half the population as walkers, the other half watching downtown as the undead paraded by.

It was very much like the herds on the Walking Dead.

ugh

Double ugh

Maybe some day, I'll join in, now that I don't have my trusty side kick to watch it with, she is one of the herd now.

Although, I'm pretty happy with my routine of getting a table at cafe that offers sidewalk dining and watching the event from the comfort of my seat. This time, I sat at the Roost and ate coconut cake with a decaf latte as the goriness tromped by. My husband was out of town, and the rest of the family was occupied (the girl's dad stayed home with Dewdrop, she is a bit sensitive for the scary parts) so I was on my own.

I almost didn't go, but when I found out that Sugarwings and her mommy were shuffling through town, drenched in blood, how could I stay home and miss that?

And it was a nice, fall evening, crisp but not cool. Those days are going to be getting fewer and fewer as winter approaches.

Plus, ZOMBIES!!!!!!!!!!! Why was I even thinking about missing that???

I'm glad I went. And I am already looking forward to next year!

Fare thee well to the renfest for the season

Dew Drop, fairies, family, parties, Sugarwings, Travel

By Karla Nathan / October 28, 2015

When I got off the airplane from my trip to Georgia to see my buddies, I went directly to the Renfest to see my grandfairies. They were there with some family members to see their daddy at work. And Dewdrop had just returned from her time with her Mommy out East, so I was really missing that lil cutey.

I know I've said it before, but I think that the addition of the Mermaid Lagoon to the festival is a giant improvement. We sure love that area.

And this time, there was a merperson plopped into the water fountain near the entrance too.

And of course, there are fairies galore. My girls always recognize Fay Royalty and are quick with a curtsy.

We have our favorite places to visit, we can't go without spending time in the Children's Realm and seeing the wizard.

As a matter of fact, it would be easy to spend the whole time just in this area for the shows, playground, and crafts. (all free)

We like the dancing too. Whether with the sprites around the maypole or with the royal family.

Where else can you sing at the top of your lungs to "What do you do with a drunken sailor" and dance a jig with Cinderella and her prince?

And be surrounded by pretty gypsies?

Or go for a camel ride?

We also met Rapunzel.

It was a bit surreal to be in Georgia with best friends, enjoying coffee on the wraparound porch of Suzanne's farm house that morning, then a few short hours later being surrounded by mermaids and princesses.

But, what a magical time!

Shopping (and playing) at Scheels in Kansas City

family, friends

By Karla Nathan / October 24, 2015

Do you have a Scheels in your area? Wow, what a store. It is the size of a shopping mall, and in the atrium, there is a ferris wheel.

Beth's husband is a manager there and invited us to the grand opening a while back. They went all out, with great food, entertainment, shopping discounts, and presents. I was so thrilled to be included!

Beth and I handed the camera to a passerby and asked her if she'd get a shot of us with the ferris wheel behind us. It wasn't until later in the evening when big shots started giving speeches that we realized we'd asked the owner's wife to be our photographer. (She was very gracious).

It reminded me of the time that I was in my vendor space at Silver Bella and asked Mary Engelbreit to take a photo of me with a friend. (She was also very gracious)

The next day at lunch, I saw the speaker and realized it was the kind lady who was patient enough to take a few pics of my friend and I in my booth, and wished I'd got a picture of Mary Englebreit shopping in my booth instead.

Sheels has a lot of photo ops for the kids.

For kids of all ages, that is.

It is a sporting goods store, covering any aspect of sport that you can think of, including a whole home decor department with a cabin type feel.

And a lot of wildlife to visit. Our girls enjoyed petting the bear while I picked out a summer clearance priced boogey board for the new boat. (less than half price)

The coolest part of the store? They blow up photos of their coworkers enjoying the sporting activities they love. That is Beth's husband, Jeff, below the photo of him at the top of some colossal mountain that he'd just rode his bike up to the peak of.

He is a very nice guy, if you see him there, say hi. I know for a fact that he keeps a pocketful of tokens to pass out so you can ride that ferris wheel for free.

ps- I will be away from home for a bit, having a sister getaway in Florida. I'll be answering emails from my iPad, but if you order from the Boutique, I'll mail packages on Tuesday the 27th. Same with Etsy, unless you are buying a coloring page, those are a digital download that you will receive right away. I'll have fresh blog stories pre-posted while I'm away, so please still come by to visit!

Books with Beth and poor Dorothy

Books, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), family, friends, yorkies

By Karla Nathan / September 30, 2015

Beth and I had a fun craft day together recently. So much fun that I forgot to get out my camera. We redid her booth at the antique mall, made a run to Costco (where I kept mumbling to myself, "we're gonna need a bigger boat car"), then made a couple of books from some great old albums she'd found at an estate sale.

She gave me a lesson in stitching the signatures into the book. But, I had a hard time with trying to be precise with templates, and poked my own holes with a needle. Her book is going to be lined up much better than mine. I always go with the idea of throwing something together "good enough" then hiding any crookedy spots with plenty of lace.

We spent most of the afternoon cutting paper, and sewing it in. She had to help me so much, she didn't get hers put together that day.

It was also a play date for our dogs. Dorothy Rosebud has been in hell since the kittens were born. She never liked the cats at all, but when Pumpkin became a Protective Mama Cat with a Temper, Dorothy's life fell apart. Then, along comes Honey, the big galoot of a puppy who thinks Dorothy makes the most interesting squeaky noises when squeezed.

I've been keeping Dorothy away from Honey, but honestly, I don't even have to try. She keeps herself tucked into hidey holes and darts furtively from one secret spot to another, always on the lookout for attack by kittens, their mom, or the giant dog who adores playing with her.

I thought I'd get her out of the house for the day, and it wasn't until I saw how happy she was at Beth's that I fully realized how terrible she felt at home. All day at Beth's, she was full of energy, happiness, and wiggles. Typical Yorkie behaviour. I'd forgotten just how happy she used to be, because her mood changes were so gradual, I didn't realize how drastic they were.

Now, I'm determined to do something to make her life better. I've seen how she can thrive and have fun again.

It kills me to think of giving her away. Because she is my baby. She is such a snuggler. But with all of the dogs, chickens, cats, and kids, life is too overwhelming for her here. I have to think of what is best for her, and not be selfish about wanting to keep her myself so she can be my teddy bear at night (she likes to be held under my chin when I sleep).

But I think I'd sleep even better knowing that she wasn't living her life in terror when I wasn't holding her. I don't know that I am ready to give up yet, I started to write an ad to find the perfect home for her, but I couldn't go through with it.

Still, I have to think about her, not me. She was injured as a baby, and has a bad leg. Honey grabs it and has re-injured her. Luckily, my son is a massage therapist and can repair the damage (he is MAGIC). That doesn't mean it isn't going to keep happening, though. Being in fear is bad enough, but getting hurt is even worse. Plus, that makes the terror even greater.

It is breaking my heart to see her fade away to a shadow of herself. Seeing her jump with joy and play at Beth's house with her brother, Button, gave me hope that she can have a good life again.

Yes, I know it is all my own fault. I do LOVE animals and wish I could have dozens of them. But it is irresponsible to take on more than I can properly care for. This is a problem I caused myself by filling my house up too much. Dorothy is suffering from my mistakes.

I've let her down, and I have to fix it.

Honey is going to be a great dog, I can see the intelligence and the calm in her eyes. But for now she is a big oaf of a bouncy pup. It will be a while (years???) before that stage has passed.

But in the meantime, Beth and her sweet husband, have offered to let Dorothy stay with them for the month of October. That will give the giant Golden some time to mature, at least a little. Then, I've made an appointment with a dog trainer for private sessions for the two combatants. I'm also keeping Dorothy on a leash or carrying her around, to keep her near me.

This little dog is not going to be allowed to spend her life hiding away. Things have got to change for the better for her! Spending some time with her foster family and her bro is a start.

Kansas City Renfest 2015

fairies, family, Sugarwings, Travel

By Karla Nathan / September 24, 2015

Last week, we headed to the Renfest to visit our fairy and princess friends.

Sugarwings was sporting her latest gown from TJMax's great selection of royal fashions. Every fall, they have the BEST, highest quality, dresses at the most reasonable prices (about $30). I started to dress up, but since my husband was going along, I tamed my look down for him. A garland for my hair and a semi-witchy ensemble was plenty for him.

As much as I have fun watching the kids explore the festival, I personally love the overall style of the place, all of the attention to detail in the architecture, and the shady, hilly park it is all built in. The best building though?

This castle!

Wow!

My son's friend, Jessie is the stone mason. It is a labor of love for him, each year a few more rocks are added to this hand built palace.

It is a beautiful spot for photos, the artistry of the structure makes all pictures interesting. (not like my cute little models needed that)

Jessie does custom stone work for clients the rest of the year, and uses the in process castle as a storefront to sell his geodes.

There is a big selection of round rocks to chose from and take to the geo-tine (like guillotine but for rocks). Jessie spins a tale while the rock gets cracked in two. That guy can draw a big crowd to gather around just to wait while a rock gets broken. He is a born entertainer.

When the CRACK happens, the crowd cheers and everyone is excited to see what the geode holds as the owner walks through the throng to show off her treasure. No two look just the same and he has a wide variety of different crystals. Mine was smoky quartz with marcasite. Really pretty. This one is Sugarwings' stone and I'm not sure what it is.

She enjoyed working the crank to break hers apart.

She's also always happy to visit the mermaid lagoon.

While waiting in line to visit the merpeople, we found this heart seed pod.

Sugarwings gave the heart to Aurilliea Gyldenscale, one of our local, Kansas City area mermaids. (Being in the midwest, we don't have as many merpeople as you might find on the coast, so ours are very special and rare).

The lagoon area is a welcome addition to the renfest, it was added not that long ago and while simple, is very cute. One year there was a large tank/aquarium that a poor, chilly mermaid floated around in, this seems like a much more humane way to display the fishy girls. And it is more user friendly for the kiddos too, the little girls are thrilled to get hugs from their heroines.

We never fail to make a magic wand at the Children's Realm. Afterwards, you can test drive the wand with a real wizard. This was the point when I realized that Sugarwings is lacking in her magical knowledge. When I told her to call her patronus, she had no idea what I was talking about.

Time to start reading Harry Potter to her, right?

She definitely is well phrased in fairy lore and was able to chat with the faye like a pro.

And of course, is a champ at the maypole after years of dancing with the fairies.

Hmm, maybe this is my favorite part of the day there. Look at the smiles on all of those faces!

My not-so-fave part?

Visiting the animal rescue center. Which sounds very nice til you find out that it is a dragon, a hawk, and a billion snakes.

Yep, that is a snake wrapped around our little friend.

And around Sugarwings who got teary eyed about having to give the snake back. She wanted to stay and hold it longer.

ugh-shiver-bleck

Luckily, there was a fairy godmother handy to zap her out of her mood with a sprinkling of magic and fairy dust.

It is hard to stay sad at the festival, with all of that magic and revelry around you.

Behind the scenes at the Kansas City Renfest

fairies, family, Travel

By Karla Nathan / September 13, 2015

My son works at the Kansas City Renfest running a booth for a friend and also selling his own wares. The first weekend of the season, the booth's owner (and his inventory) were away at another festival and my boy had some extra work on his hands to get the space open and to fill the spot up.

Here is one of his displays to foof up the "Druid's Grove".

I came in for an afternoon to help him and did a little druid-ing up myself. Bone decor isn't typically what I do, but I kinda like the result. I told myself that the bones were at least in my color pallet, I've always been a fan of whites.

At least they weren't as heavy to work with as all the stone my boy moved around. Here is the jewelry display in the glass cabinet. Not all of the inventory has been set out yet., and it isn't quite done, but aren't the pillars and slabs of stone very striking?

I've been hand dying silk ribbon to use for his pendants, and he also has black cord to hang the jewelry from. The buyers will get a choice and the silk or cord will be cut to order.

The day before the event began, he was still sanding, oiling and creating wands and spikes. This area is was still in progress, it is the weaponry corner. Yes, those are vampire stakes he has hanging up, and there are some wands and stakes in a pile that still need to be finished.

I offered to make a sign for him. Not everyone knows where to go when they are in dire need a cudgel, and usually if you looking for a cudgel or a vampire stake, then you are probably in a hurry to get it, and a little direction would be appreciated.

Cool, aren't they?

I also helped him embellish the woven willow laurels that he had created.

And Sugarwings helped me out by modelling them so I could see how they fit.

The booth is all about magic, which is why he used the willow limbs to make the crowns. I wrote up these tags for the finished laurels.

Usually, I work with vintage flowers, but you gotta know your crowd. Old millinery would not be as appreciated as the newer blooms. (Although, I did sneak in some vintage lace…)

All of the flowers are wired into place and there are crystal beads woven onto the wires.

I have loved the festival since the first time I attended, way back when my boys were in Jr High school. Over the years, I've become even fonder of it, and I was thrilled to get a behind the scenes peek at the park before it was open for the season. The buildings are so quaint and charming, and with no one there I had a chance to get some pictures without families in blue jeans or pushing strollers and spoiling the atmosphere.

For being the day before opening, I was surprised to see how quiet the venue was. Here and there, were cars pulled up in front of a booth as vendors unloaded, with a few folks were busy unpacking and setting up.

And people were planting some blooming flowers in front of their shops. But for the most part, it was dreamily serene.

The park itself is a pretty place, it was a joy to walk through in the peace, enjoying aspects of it I hadn't noticed before.

Still, I'm looking forward to a visit there while there is a bustling crowd of happy shoppers, watching shows, and munching on giant turkey legs. And the best part? Grand fairies all dressed up as fairies or princesses, eyes lit up, and believing that the magic is real.

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ps- I will be participating in Brenda's Fall Home Tour. It begins on the 15th, and my home will be on the list for the 18th. There will be lots of pretty things to see. I've been checking out some of these blogs from the URLs Brenda sent to me, and she has corralled an inviting selection of homes to peek into.