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Another find from my past

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Once again, I came across one of my creations while shopping in Topeka.  It was a different mall than I’d found the water color in. But both items were sold in KC.  I found them in two different Topeka stores, so I doubt they were sold by the same dealer.

I sold the painting about 20 years ago, but this cabinet was fairly recent, from Good Juju.

These shelves  were quite a bargain and I was tempted to buy them (and resell again for a higher amount!).  It was a cold day, I was tired and in a hurry, so I didn’t, but it’s still on my mind to go back and see if it’s available.

Ruby and I would’ve been crafting buds

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Aren’t these just the sweetest?  Ruby Underwood made these lil cuties and her friend took  care in packing them up to save for decades, til I found them at her estate sale.  Each were wrapped in a pale pink Kleenex (remember when tissues were pastel colors?) along with this note.

There were little bunnies made of Pom Poms too.  These tiny bits of Easter fun remind me of something I would do.

Here is one of my peat pot baskets that Ive brought into Juju for the March sale.  I’d love to think that someone might carefully wrap up my hand made item and tuck it away each year after their holiday is over.

Possibly, many years later it could also find a new audience when another enthusiastic junker comes across it at a sale?

I make a lot of stuff.

For all occasions, and many reasons.  Sometimes just for the joy of creating.

And other times, for holidays.   And just like Ruby, who made the delightful eggs, I throw in a dollop of cuteness.  Ruby and I have so much in common that we even used the exact same chicks in our Easter designs, dozens of years apart.

I have a feeling that Ruby and I could’ve had a great time at a craft day together.

The Jewel corner got some updates

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The jewelry corner of my booth keeps expanding.

It’s important to me to keep it looking fresh and restocked.

One of my biggest sellers has been the rings.

So I’ve tried to overfill those cases before I went in for surgery.

And  I have left bags of back ups in case refills are needed.  Other dealers are keeping an eye on it for me.

I thought maybe having so much of the jewelry out at once would be an easy inventory item for the other dealers to cope with.

So I doubled down on the sparkles and threw tons on the shelves.

This jewelry nook is new, I tried to rearrange my booth for easier access.

There are purses in the new nook too.

And jewelry boxes.

I’m hoping this space will be an easy care area for my friends who are taking care of things for me.  Thank you to all of them for their help!

It feels as if I have a much more open walkway through the space now.  I’m hoping it plays out that way, but I won’t be there to watch traffic patterns.

See the concrete child with the ears on, to the right?  Okay, looking at it, knowing it’s a kid, it is plain to know what it is, right?

But at a glance, and with those ears, it looks kinda like a bunny

See what I mean?

It will be hard to be away while the sale is going on.

But I know my friends have the space covered.

I’ll miss them!  The other dealers, the guests.   And my own pretty little corner of Juju.

Fab food

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Did I mention how good the food was in Maui?

The best was at Mama’s Fish House.

My sister-in-law, Terry, is an expert traveler and planner. She booked our reservations months in advance so we could have this special meal in this extraordinary setting.

We had an ideal mix of cozy family dinners made by Terry, by sunset on the balcony and fresh seafood meals at the beach.  One special treat was an appetizer of a goat cheese flight at Surfing Goat Farm.

Dinner and a show, we got to watch little kids playing.

We never turned down a dessert either.


Everything was fresh and delicious.

Forgetting my worries

Travel, Uncategorized
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Our Maui visit was very laid back.  Every day but one began with a long walk along the shore and typically an excursion, or just some time to chill.

One morning, we explored the other side of the island.  Stopping at more than one roadside banana bread spots to compare the treats.

All were deliciously different in small ways, but overall they were too good to chose a favorite.

Along that drive, we pulled over for a walk in the woods.  The three of us were the only people there and it felt like we were in a timeless, exclusive space no one had ever discovered.
That was  deceptive feeling, because this secluded jungle was right off the highway, and we could see cars parked along the road.

Did I mention it was a scary road? Narrow, twisting, with a sheer cliff on one side and a drop off on the other.  When another vehicle came across us, we needed to back up to make space.

I’m terribly afraid of heights and get car sick easily.  But on this edge of a mountain road, I wasn’t on the edge of my seat.  For some odd, once in my lifetime reason, I had zero worries about plunging to our death.  Or even feeling a tiny bit nauseated.  And I have deep problems with the much tamer hills of the Appalachians.  I don’t know what got into me, but this drive around the volcano was nothing but pure pleasure.

An outing that I will always treasure

Friends I met on vacation

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We passed this kitty on our morning walks.

There were cats everywhere I looked along Kaanapali Beach.

Are they feral?  Each seemed content and indifferent to people walking by.  I hope they are as healthy and well fed as they look, none were scrawny.

On the other hand, the chickens that roamed everywhere we went did look scraggly.   We saw them in parking lots, trees, streets, along the beach, yep, all over the place.    I didn’t come across any on the grounds of our hotel, but I was serenaded by their morning crowing.

As I chicken person, missing her flock way back home in Kansas, I both loved seeing them in their wild freedom, and worried about their living standards.  From what I’ve read, the over population of these fowl is a big problem in Maui.

The roosters inspired me to do a few paintings in a colorful, flowery style.  I gifted this one to my sweet brother-in-law we were traveling with.  I might keep one for myself too.  Or take them all into Juju, I haven’t decided yet.

Simple stars and roses

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I mentioned in my last post that I’d been under the weather.  Way under.  Before getting sick, I was planning a dinner party and decorating for Christmas.  I had to cancel the guests but I was left with a sparkling clean home and twinkly lights to cheer me as I recovered.

How nice!

Well, I almost had the house decorated.   I didn’t quite have our large, white tree finished.   It honestly had plenty on  it, unless you compare to previous years.

While hanging the baubles, I’d suddenly got worn out.  So I slid the remaining tub full of shiny brutes into the closet and cleaned up the mess that comes along with decking the halls, and called it good enough.

Now, after feeling better and living with the half done tree for a week, I decided it needed a little more.  But I still wasn’t up to dragging out the tubs and going through the trouble of hanging the delicate, vintage balls.

So, I dyed some coffee filters in coffee, seemed fitting.

Then turned piles of six filters into roses, and painted the petals with glue then drizzled glitter onto them.  They were quick, easy, and were simple to tuck into the branches of the tree.

The roses were ideal to solve the issue of the tree not being quite full enough.  Or they would’ve been if I’d had more coffee filters.

I ran out.

To finish it, I folded sheet music into stars and used the same glitter on them.  It’s a nice change up for me, I’m enjoying the new look.  Don’t get me wrong, I adore vintage shiny brites and my lovingly collected, special pastel ones in various shapes took years to accumulate.

But after being sick, I just was too tired to hang them with the care they require.  So they will stay safely tucked away until next year and for now I’m happy with my hand crafted paper pretties.  Plus, it was good for my soul to have a little craft project to work on.

Holiday paintings on vintage paper

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These mischievous knee hugger elves were a fave of my childhood.

So when I thought about painting some holiday pages, they were my first thought as a subject.

I had a couple old sheet music pages of Jingle Bells and one of God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman and thought both titles were just right for these sprites.

Of course, I needed a doodle of this jolly old elf too.

The my caroling book, where I was finding all the perfect sheet music, had a quaint little village on the cover and it inspired this painting.

Home, Sweet Home, found in another old book, was just what I needed for a ginger bread house.

And how could this title not get a snowy owl?

All of the pictures were created on vacation.  Either while watching the ocean from our balcony, or while on the airplane. When I travel by plane or as a passenger when we go on long drives, I like to flip through vintage books and draw on pages that catch my attention.  Then after arriving, I’ll get the paints out to finish.

Hmm, maybe I need another trip, so I have an excuse to make more.  I tend to only do these while traveling, and absolutely love working on them. It seems like I only have time when I’m on vacation.

A new, no maybe a continuation, of my journey

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To quote Frosty the Snowman when he awakens every time someone pops a magical hat onto his head- “Happy Birthday!”

I feel like this is a brand new start for me after 19 years of this blog, we have a new address and hosting site, a little bit of a new look too.  It hasn’t been a smooth (nor a cheap) transition for me, but I think this unexpected expense and the time to relearn how to post is worth it.

I had lots of help, but am still on a learning curve.   Hopefully I’ll be back in the swing of things with new stories soon.  Thanks for your patience in following along!

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