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On the 15th, Karen Valentine is again hosting her "Where Bloggers Create" party.  I look forward to looking through all the studios, there are about a zillion people signed up to show their spaces.  I'll be in Utah at a mini family reunion, but will have my Magic Pink Princess Computer (that is what Sugarwings calls my Ipad) with me and hope to do some surfing.

Please forgive me if I don't answer comments, I'll be knee deep in family fun all weekend.

Here is my post from last year's tour.  (its LONG too)

And when I get back, it will be time to start making tag books! The fun never stops!

My post is going to be a ridiculously long one. So, I'll leave it up till I get back, and won't plan on other new postings till Monday or Tuesday.  It might take you that long work your way through it, I went a bit over board with the photos.

Before I go, I want to update you on the Facebook Face Stealer dilemma that I had.  Looks like she has blocked me, so I couldn't check her page, but someone else looked for me and apparently she (or he? uck!) has replaced my pilferred profile picture with one of her own.  Or one of somebody else's. Who knows. I'm just relived that my photo is not up there any more. It was creepy.

When I get back, I'll announce another winner of my online dress form tutorial.  If you have already purchased one of the $15 classes,  (thank you!!), then I'll send you a kit of vintage goodies instead if I draw your name.

Leave a comment if you want to be entered. On any post.

ps- I forgot to tell you that I listed some of the kits in my Boutique, and they are almost gone now. One left! I'll make more as soon as I can.

Today was a very productive, but lonely, craft day.  I'm gearing up for the tag book swap and worked on a few more tags, then almost got all the covers finished.

But I was working all alone, everyone forgot craft day! Holiday weekends can take a lot out of you.  All three friends simply forgot. And the repairman coming to finish replacing our new tub surround forgot to show up too. Then, at the end of the day, my son cancelled our dinner out.

I was feeling very forgotten by then.

Not for long, though.  I scooped up this little fairy and she kept me pretty entertained for the evening.  We ran errands, had a picnic in the park, then walked downtown for ice cream. She noticed these flowers painted on a store front and said that the "ABCs" looked like mine. What she meant was that the name signed at the bottom had a K and an N in it.  Well, it should, its my painting and I signed it!

It was pretty touching to me that she noticed it.

So, my day ended up pretty nice after all.  And I got a LOT accomplished on the tag book covers during my solo craft day.

Each cover has been cut out, and the cage has been embellished with metallic inks or glitter, and I've added floral wallpaper to the backs,the holes are punched, and I've inked the edges. About half have the ruffle glued to the bottom. I'm using some vintage eyelet lace to trim them out.

Its exciting to see them all come together. So far, I haven't opened a single package full of swap tags that has arrived in the mail, I'm saving that up for "dessert" when I get my end of the deal finished.  Something to look forward to.

One of the tags I made today is for Mary's Monthly Collage Challenge. But since my mind is on birds, I killed two of them with one stone and made a bird tag as my entry to the challenge.

This is what we had to work with. 

• I cut out the pretty girl, and colored her in with markers, then glued her down onto a tag covered in a page taken from an old book about birds, sliding the ticket under her head.
• After that, I used an exacto blade to cut out the pink flowers and placed them under her.
• Over that, I added a bird cut from that same book, and colored it with markers too.
•  Then built a nest from moss and glue, and added a speckled egg.
• Its trimmed out in vintage velvet ribbon, some rhinestone studded lace, and tied up with a pink ribbon dyed in coffee.

But my favorite part is the crackle glaze, I love that stuff.  It was only placed over the girl and the background, not the flowers or the bird. When it dried, I used dark brown ink over it here and there, and blended it out with a baby wipe, then inked the edges of the tag.

On my next post, I'll be drawing a name for this giveaway for one of my

Mini Dress Form online workshops.

If you win, and have already purchased the $15 class, I will send you a kit full of vintage goodies to make the dolled up dress form with.

 

I hope you are all having a Happy Fourth of July weekend!  We've been out on the boat most of the time, and got an early start on Friday, turning this into a 4 day weekend.

Before hitting the lake, I filled a  grocery cart with fresh fruits and veggies, and spent a few hours in the kitchen making up picnic dinners. I also made a vat of chicken salad with fat free greek yogurt and low fat sour cream in place of the mayo and some slaw made up in a similar way. 

It seems like being outdoors makes everyone twice as hungry, and we all tend to snack the whole time we are out there, so I try to pack things you don't feel guilty about eating a lot of.

So, we gathered up a ton of food and a ton  of kids  and headed for Lake Clinton, about a ten minute drive from our house.

It was the very littlest, most tiny, grand child's first trip out on the lake.

It was so nice there, we stayed out on the water till the sun went down.  We hadn't had much of a chance to be out there yet this summer due to engine troubles, but after weeks of having the pontoon in at the repair shop, we were raring to go and enjoy the sunshine and the refreshing lake water.

Then, of course, the boat died.

But we had Sugarwing's Daddy along and he is handy. He figured out why it wouldn't run, when about 4 or 5 mechanics hadn't been able to.

None of the kids seemed too worried about being stuck on the lake for a while.  I think they'd have been happy to be stranded out there all night.

If this photo sends chills down your spine, you aren't the only one.  That slippery, wet, baby with no life jacket terrified me.  But, she is a cuddly child who doesn't wiggle much, so everyone else seemed okay with it. Personally, I was praying for the park rangers to come by and give us a huge fine and insist that she wear a jacket.

And I didn't hold her in the water myself at all. I was afraid I'd drop her.

But I was told to not fret so much.

Isn't that what Grammies do?? Fret and worry and try to keep the grandies from ever coming to any harm? (I have to admit that I was against using the stacks of tables as a diving board and the anti-sunscreen rule too, but I also have to admit that the kids don't seem to get sunburned and no one slipped away to the bottom of the lake or cracked their head open on the dock) 

This itty bitty thing was pretty happy with the whole trip.

I think she is going to love being a boat kid. 

I know I love being one! (yes, that is my husband out on the tube with no lifejacket on, I have to fret and worry about him as much as I do about the kids)

 

Well, my computer is back.  And it works.  But- many of the things I paid to have backed up before it was wiped clean to get it running again are GONE. This is the only Paper Cowgirl photo I seem  to have (its one that Lisa emailed to me), but am hoping to find most lost photos in the history file of picnik.

I guess if I only have one photo, this one is a fun one to keep. It kind of sums up the great weekend we had, there was plenty of laughing the whole time.

Not that I feel like laughing now…. all of my email files are gone. What a mess. I'm hoping that the Geek Squad has hidden them someplace where I was too dumb to look.  So, back to Best Buy I go, trip #15 in 13 days. Good thing its here in town.  

Wish me luck!

Oh, and if you are waiting to hear back from me on whether or not I have you on the swap list, sorry. This has been so confusing for me. I've tried to keep up with my Ipad, but didn't have my files on it, and now my files are missing any way. So, if you HAVE NOT heard back from me, consider yourself in, but please send me a note letting me know so I can pretend to keep track of who is in it.  I have a printed record of up to #120, but we are closer to 135, so I might be missing a few of you…  But please only contact me if I didn't return your email in the last 2 weeks. If you signed up earlier than that, I have you on my printed list.

Same thing with the dress form classes. I sure hope I didn't miss anyone!! If you  have paid for the classes, and have not heard back from me with the passwords, please contact me.

Thanks for your patience!

And I have not drawn a name for the giveaway yet, do to this malfunction in my life. So, I'll extend the contest.  You will either win a free online class, or, if you're already in it, a kit to make the dress forms.  Heck, I'll do two winners. 

 

 

My poor computer is still ill. After only a few hours of having her at home with me, she started feeling bad again and had to be rushed back to the specialist.
Every day I go visit her at the Geek Squad with high hopes of bringing her home. They always say she is ready to go, but she never is. I don't give up, I keep hoping that someday soon, she'll perk up and be ready to come home to me.
Three times today I was called to pick her up, three times I went to get her. Three times she had relapses and wasnt able to leave with me, but at least I got to hold her and spend a few precious moments with her.
Her memories of me and all of our favorite times together are now gone. The Geeks say that she is strong and healthy and we can build new memories together. For now, they are trying to help her recover as much as they can.
I have lots of Paper Cowgirls photos to show you, but don't know how to do it with this IPad. Hopefully, I'll have a real post soon.

 

Paper Cowgirls was very, very Good! The Bad?  Well, my computer fell ill the day I was trying to pack and leave, and was supposedly ready when I got home.  But not really. 4 trips later to visit the Geek Squad again and again, it is running again, but- the Ugly part is that ALL of my email contacts are gone and my name is now Karla Natjan.   Apparently something odd happened while it was away visiting the Geeks.

But all in all, the Good outweighs the Bad. Mostly, I just liked that title, it seemed very "wild west" and suited for a Texas post.

  After my horrid day, where I spent 6 hours trying to get my computer to function before I could pack and leave for Texas, Beth showed up with a gorgeous art journal that my Bird Song peeps created for me! Talk about a cheer up.

I threw it in my bag and as soon as we got all settled in our hotel room, and got jammied up, I pulled it out to admire and examine. Its a masterpiece, thanks Bird Song chicks!

My roomies were the best.  Both are extremely talented artists and junkers, so there was lots of interesting piles of stuff to look through in the room.  Lisa brought goods from home to sell at vendor night and for a big parking lot sale Friday morning. Beth was vendoring too, and we all got first dibs on all the coolness before the big sale.

There was a huge talent pool at Paper Cowgirls. And each person was as nice as they were talented.  Ann Denise created this life size paper dress to welcome everyone.

 

Lisa Pace gave a helpful talk on our welcome night, but I was having camera issues when I got there, so have very few pics of that night.  I was feeling like the Tech Gods were out to get me. First my four month old computer goes all wonky on me, then, my camera refuses to focus.

But all is well and I was rescued by a helpful cowgal that knew some camera tricks. Everyone was soooo nice, about 6 different ladies tried to help me get it to focus, and that many more were suggesting people that could help.  It was a quick way to get acquainted to quite a few of them at once! 

Welcome night was also swap time, and once again, I was kicking myself for not joining any.  There were some beauts, this was from the name tag exchange.

And I was around when Beth made this apron for Ann Denise, so I felt like I was kind of a part of it.  I was so excited to see her open the package, you'd have thought it was my swap.  I love to watch and see what everyone comes up with, because at Swaptime, no matter what event you are at, all the generosity and skill comes out.

Everyone uses the  Good Stuff. Actually, for swaps, they dig even deeper and use the Best Stuff.

I've got a couple billion pictures that I can show you, but for now, I seriously need to get to work.  I've been without my lifeline computer, for 8 days and am seriously behind. 

If you asked me about joining in on the Bird Song tag book swap and I didn't get back to you, can you please re-email me?

 

 

The treats just keep on rolling in!  Hope sent these for our goodie bags.

Look at how pretty they all look together.  Each delightfully decorated match box is filled with presents too.

Heidi, has sent  these lovelies for us, and they were not only wrapped up beautifully,they came with a hand made card, and a sweet fabric rose for me.

Thanks, Heidi!!

Jeri decorated a small bag for  us, then added trinkets and papers inside each of them.

The generosity in blogland never ceases to amaze me!  I have a full list of sponsors on the side bar of this blog and of Birdsong.

My teensy story for Romantic Homes is done and turned in, I'll let you know when it appears. I'm honored to be in that magazine again.  Here is how I foofed up the treat cabinet for the article. Its not quite how I'll have the goodies displayed for Birdsong, but close. 

It feels good to have so much ready ahead of time, and my family was nice about helping with the set up, and patient with our garage redo, with all the items from it stored (in the way) out in the detached garage.

By getting the house ready so far in advance, I've been able to relax and  teach our little one how to play pool, and have Sugarwings come to stay for Easter weekend.  Its not easy to be a non-procrastinator, but it sure is worth the effort!

Sorry I won't be answering emails or comments, but I will be taking time to read them.  And I'll chose a name from commenters to give a Birdsong memento to later on.

 I'll be busy getting ready for BirdSong this week, please forgive me for not answering comments.  I'll be taking the time to read them, tho!

The two attic guest rooms are all aired, fresh linens are on the beds, and I'm ready for my guests.

During Bird Song, my pal Lisa who is teaching will be staying with me, as well as another good friend, Sherry.  I'm not sure yet, but another friend  might be joining the slumber party too.

I wish I could have invited more friends to stay, I love company. But it would be too hard to treat guests well, while trying to take care of the whole workshop, meals, and everything else that I'll be whirring around doing.

I've warned the ladies staying here that they'll be on their own, I'll be zipping about taking care of students all weekend.  But they are the sort of people that I know will be able to make themselves comfy and at home and I won't have to worry about.

Both of the guest rooms are in attic areas that we "reclaimed".  Finding unused space and claiming it as living space is a cost effective way to make your house bigger, especially if you can do some of the work yourself.

All of it was done on a shoestring budget, but we sure got a lot of bang for the buck.  We have lots of company, so extra rooms are good  to have.

Each room has a rose theme, mostly because I can't resist buying anything rosey at garage sales, and I paint roses on too many things, like this desk and the shutters.

And this chest of drawers.

There is an extra twin bed in Sugarwing's room too.

Notice that the chandelier is missing its shades?  It once had decorated shades, trimmed out in fabric roses.

But one night, while tucking my fairy grand baby in, she said, "Grammy, can I tell you something?"

I said of course, and sat on her little pink bed next to her, and she told me that when I left the room, the light became a monster. 

I said, "A monster? Honey, there are no monsters at Grammy's house. I don't allow that."

But she insisted and pointed at the shades. So I took one down and brought it over to show her.  She said it was pretty and that she liked roses.

 I asked if she was okay and understood that they were just lamp shades, and she said, "Yes, these are pretty.  But when you leave the room, they are monsters."

Well there is no arguing with that.  So down they came.

  

Sorry I won't be answering emails or comments, but I will be taking time to read them.  And I'll chose a name from commenters to give a Birdsong memento to later on.

All is going well with my prep for Birdsong. My studio is spiffed and rearranged to fit all the guests.  I've been doing some Zero Dollar Decorating around the room too. 

Today, Agnes Rosebud and I went out to the fence line and cut down some wild grape vines to wrap around Loucinda, and then I added some flowers and birds to the vines.   My goal is to make things nice without blowing the budget by using what is on hand to decorate with.

Soon, I'll be packing up gift bags and baking goodies.  That is, if I don't wrench my neck by trying to give myself a pat on the back for being so ahead of schedule….

These gifties are from my buddy, Lonnie. She packed up 25 jars of mica flakes for all of the attendees. 

And Miss Mitzi has gifted the girls with yellow yoyos.  Actually, they are not all yellow, I was just on an roll with my alliteration pairs and yellow just fit.

The generous bags are stuffed with all sorts of bright colored old fabrics to work with.

Thanks, Lonnie and Mitzi!

There is a full list of sponsors on the side bar of my blog and on the Birdsong blog.

Saturday, I spent the day with Beth and the Other Karla. We hit estate sales, went to lunch, then worked in Beth's craft room.

My big, to die for purchase of the day was this French Net table cloth.  oooohhh, its pretty.  And only 20 bucks!  I'm going to use it in the treat cabinet for the photos I'm taking for Romantic Homes.  I'm a big believer in using the Good Stuff, in my art and around my house.

It doesn't do you much good to own something then pack it away.

But, I'm not sure that I want to leave this glorious bit of lace in the treat cabinet to be dribbled on by coffee and red wine.  I think I'll fake it for the photos, then find a safer place to use this, its just too nice to let it get ruined.  And a table cloth needs to be washable. I use vintage, pretty ones, but they have to be something that I can wash a dropped brownie off of.

 

I also got some padded hangers in satin and velvet.  While I was in the middle of setting up the studio, I took a break to play, and foofed them up a bit.

Most are listed in the Boutique now.

I used the Good Stuff on these. Aren't they pretty flowers?

When Sugarwings and I go to Michaels or Hobby Lobby, we usually pick up a little kit for her to make. She has plenty of art supplies, but there is something about those little packages of goodies that intrigue us and always make us plop one or two in the cart as we go by them.

This one was a set of plaster Easter eggs and paint to decorate them with. But the eggs were just the starting point.  After all the eggs were colorful and bright, my fairy baby started in on a bag of shells that she had.

From, there, she moved on to the rocks in my flower bed border.  I don't blame her, who could resist turning this one into a Mr. Potato Head?

It didn't take long for her to start imagining that she was Alice and was helping the Queen's playing cards paint the flowers.

"Who dares to taint with vulgar paint, the royal flower beds?"

I think she has what it takes to be an artist, don't you?  She is definately orginal, and while she might start with a kit, the results look far from cookie cutter.  She's made the project her own.

Luckily, this one has quick little legs, or she might have been a rainbow pup.