Karla's Cottage – Page 240

Homesick before I even leave, but just ask Beth, I’m kind of a whiner about things

parties, Travel, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / June 8, 2009

Since I'm going to be away for over a week, I thought I would "pre-post" a few entries that would come up while I am away.

As much as I love travel and look forward to meeting up with good friends and having adventures, I'm basically a homebody. I'm homesick already just thinking about being away. So I thought I'd show some pictures of my house. Probably more for me than for you, I'll be able to turn on the computer any time and take a peek at my sweet home and not feel as lonely for it.

Here are the front steps, that I mosaic-ed in a vining pattern. I wanted something organic looking, in honor of my Dad, who was an avid gardener. I was working on these steps while we waited for the test results that diagnosed his cancer.

My favorite place in the house, though, is Sugarwing's room. I'll never forget when she was old enough to talk and she told me, "Grammy has pretty things". I told her, "No, baby, this is YOUR room, these are YOUR pretty things". The look on her face was one of the most special things I have ever seen. I will always treasure that moment with her. Its a joy to me to know that she loves her room as much as I do.

My kitchen is extra special to me, because my son, Sugarwing's Daddy, custom built these cabinets for me.

He is a talented carpenter, but no longer does that work. He has to take good care of his hands now, since he is a massage therapist. Which is also a handy skill to have in a son! Especially when my back goes out like it did last week.

I can still get him to do a special project for me here and there, though. He and I ripped out the old stair way and rebuilt it last year.

It will be hard to be away from my little Dorkies for 8 days too.

But those 8 days will fly by fast, and soon, I'll be walking through my front door again to a house full of barking dogs jumping up and trying to sniff out where I've been all week. And honestly, I have a GREAT week planned, with my best friends and so much fun to look forward to, so I have nothing to complain about. But like I said, I'm a homebody and will miss my house and my gardens, and my fairy grand baby, and all the dorkies.

In the meantime, Andrea will be having a "Show me your Crown" party and there is no way I could miss that. I might have a few around…. So, please join in on Wed. the 10th for that, and please link up and show your royal head gear too.

I've been very lax all week in returning comments and emails. Since I hurt my back, my time in a computer chair has been limited. I've read and enjoyed each and every one of them, sorry if I didn't get back to you. Also, with this trip, I will be even further behind. Please keep in contact, I do read them all, and each is entered into the monthly drawing. This month's prize is a vintage wallpaper covered journal that I made.

A Mermaid’s Tale

Moving to DC

By Karla Nathan / June 7, 2009

Tomorrow, I am going to Virginia for 8 days of fun. Three friends are flying out with me to stay at our apartment in Centreville and we plan on exploring downtown DC, going out to dinners, and just plain old having some girl time away from home.

Before getting packed and ready to go, I was able to squeeze in some creative time, and made a couple of wallpaper covered books. This one is a butterfly. Well, that probably is something that you already noticed….

The cover, is a pretty, pink paper (old, but not as old as most of what I collect) that I turned into a butterfly with inks and markers, then glued some millinery flowers to. I added more old flowers to the soft ribbons and lace that bind it, and tied on a tag too. I drew another butterfly onto the tag, and glued an old butterfly shaped brooch to it.

This one is flower shaped (well, durr). It has the best, old faded velvet rose EVER on the top of it. Both are available in my Boutique. But since I'll be out of town for those 8 fun packed days, I can't ship anything until I get back. Sorry, but if you want one, I promise to send it out as soon as I return.

The three friends who are flying out with me, will be going home on Thursday, then Beth will fly out to join me and to celebrate her birthday there!

She and I will be meeting up with a slew of blog friends for a shopping date that Heather has invited us to. Then, Beth flies home on Saturday and I will have a couple of days to hang out with my handsome husband and enjoy his company. We'll probably be lazy, go to a few movies, sit by the pool, go to the gym, maybe snuggle a bit…

While we are away, my brother-in-law, Mr. Handy, will come over and rip this nasty old carpet out of the baby's room and replace it with laminate flooring!!!!!! That is a dream come true, to leave on a trip and come back to a completed home improvement project. Life does not get any better than that!

Since the carpet was going, and I had the room emptied out, I thought it was a good time to tackle repairing this small hole in the wall.

And while I was at it, I painted a mermaid for Sugarwings. I gave my fairy grand baby that nickname when she was just a few days old, because she just has always looked like a fairy to me.

But that kid LOVES mermaids. She isn't an air creature, she is a water nymph. Maybe I should have called her Sugartail, but then, that sounds kind of creepy, doesn't it?

Her room has a fairy theme, but I figured a mermaid would fit right in with the magical feel of the room. And I really enjoyed wiping my brush on the soon to be gone carpet!

I seem to be about ready to go. The dogs are bathed and have new haircuts, so they won't get anything caught in their fur while I am not here to help them out. I've pre-written a few blogs that will post while I am away. I have little gifties made and packed for the blogging group day, and a gift for Beth. Boarding passes are printed, the suitcase is full.

I might just go sit on the patio with a glass of wine and a good book and enjoy the last few hours I have at my home before I take off. See you when I get back!

All Business

vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / June 5, 2009

Today I made new business cards. My old ones didn't have the Boutique address on them. Plus, my old set of cards didn't have any vintage wallpaper on them at all. Now, that just didn't seem right to me!

For these, I used another business card as a template, traced it onto card stock and with a ruler, draw out the shapes of enough cards to fill the page. (ugh, yes, I had to measure, sometimes you just have to whether you want to or not. All the cards have to be the same size so they can be cut out).

I drew around each shape with a dark brown marker, so that the edges would look "aged" and if they weren't perfectly lined up (even though I did try to measure them) there wouldn't be strips of white paper showing.

I printed all my info on the computer. I made up extras, so I could play around with cutting out different shapes.

Mostly, I used a block shape for the wording, but on some, I changed it up a bit.

These really went quickly. I made up 10 tiny collages, with the text added onto them, and then did some hand drawing with inks. I didn't bother with using glitter, because I knew it wouldn't copy well. Neither does metallic ink.

A few 3-d type pieces work out ok for copies. Like tiny flowers and ribbons, nothing too thick.

This might be my fave. Beth had given me a teeny wallpaper covered tag, and I used it over a pink flowered wallpaper on this card, then added the text and a flower. It was super simple to do.

Now, I just need to drop the page of cards off at the UPS store, they have the cheapest color copy prices in my town, 39 cents each. It will be a bit more for card stock, not much. I'll have the store cut them all out for me, and I'll bet they'll have them done in an hour or so, that place is quick.

One thing I always do with color copies, is to ask for a proof to color check before okaying the job. Sometimes, the copier will need adjusting a bit to match the original.

Thank you all again, for your concern and well wishes for my aching back. It gets a little better each day. I'll be back into Kung Foo Panda style kicking soon.

pages and pages of fairies plus the June Giveaway prize

fairies, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / June 3, 2009

The sketch I showed you last time is finished, and photocopied to use for a swap I am in with a few of the friends who attended En Le Jardin, the art and garden party hosted by Jenn.

This flower fairy (as Jenn called all of her attendees) is inspired by a cute little sprite, Jessi.

This photo by Tiffany, was so adorable, that I had to use the pose and the fountain for my page in the memory books.

I first, cut out card stock paper to the size of the book pages we were to make. Then, I glued vintage wallpaper over that.

The pocket added to the page is made from another wallpaper, that is old, but sturdy and thick. I started out folding the edges of the pockets over and gluing them down, but soon I switched to sewing them onto the page. Same thing with the lace border. On some pages, it is glued, others, it is sewn.

Then, I cut the fairy picture out, glued it down and drew the vining arch with silver ink and black ink. To dress it up a bit, I used a glitter pen on the fairy's wings and dress. (that doesn't show in this picture, but it is sparkly in real life).

Since I don't measure, all the pockets are different sizes, but I figured that certainly didn't matter. They were all okay to put photos into, so all was fine. And it was quicker to not take time to measure. Measuring is always the worst part!

All of the background wallpaper is the same on the fronts of the pages, but for the backs, I used a variety.

It gets boring if each and every one is just alike! Its hard enough to make 12 of the same thing, I had to be able to vary them as I went along.

For the backs, I used copies of logmachy cards from Mary in the initials of the person receiving that page. Its is kind of an inside joke, from a game we played in the limo, involving vintage style flash cards and the alphabet.

Those cards are sooooo lovely! Mary has the copies for sale on a disc if you are interested. I foofed them up a bit with some gel and glitter pens and added the girl's names to each. And since we were flower fairies, I had to add butterfly wings to each picture!

I just can't wait to see these books assembled. We are shipping our pages off to Kim. As soon as I get mine back, I'll be showing you what everyone else did.

Before I go, I wanted to tell you what the gift for June is. And I am actually on the ball and at the beginning of the month with my announcement for once!

As always, all month, all comments count as an entry. Thanks for visiting me, I appreciate hearing from you!

Playing tag

vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / June 1, 2009

Thank you, to all of you who sent well wishes my way for my bad back and for Aunt Caroline's health. There are a lot of caring people in blogworld.

I'm sticking with my recipe for curing the back pain, plus added a trip to the Physical Therapist today. Also, a new addition to my cure, is that Sugarwing's Daddy is a massage therapist. He is a handy person to have around! That guy can stop a migraine before it progresses and has been great for helping out with back aches too.

But I was getting so bored with just watching movies and taking care of the aches and pains. I figured I could do ice and heat just as well from my desk chair in the studio as I could from a recliner in front of the tv. So, I worked off and on yesterday, making these books. I needed breaks to stretch and move around, but was able to get quite a few done.

Yep, quite a few. I think about 15 or so. Some are for a special event that I have planned, and others are for sale.

They were all Beth's idea. I couldn't think of something to make for the "special event" coming up, so she told me to get out my binding machine and make some tag books.

I make little wallpaper books a lot, but these are different. They went much faster for me since only the front and back covers are embellished, the rest of the pages are all plain tags ready for the new owner to add what ever they want, like photos, collages, or rambling notes.

Making these really cheered me up, I always feel better when I play with my vintagey pretties! And it was a great excuse to get out the good stuff. What use is a pile of wonderful things if I don't make it into something? I am a big believer in using all the best items and enjoying them.

I'd love to see one of these finished by its new owner, they have so much possibility and will be cute with all sorts of ribbons and charms tied to the tops of the tags and trailing out. I've listed a few of them in my Boutique for $26 each, if you'd like one. And if you get one, please let me know how you use it!

While recuperating, I also got this sketch started. Its for a swap I am in, and I really am not quite sure how I am going to make it work for the pages, but since I have nothing else to do right now, I have plenty of time to figure it out.

The hardest part of getting my back better is that I can't play with Sugarwings much. If I do, I pick her up, or she dive bombs me and expects to be caught, held, and cuddled. She's a boisterous kid, not one to sit quietly and play, she is a rough and tumble, no holds barred, hard playing, firecracker of a kid. Just going near her is painful while my back is hurt! So, I am taking extra good care of my poor old back, so I can be in shape to play with her. I want to go right back to doing kung foo kicks and leaping in the air, while we watch Kung Foo Panda on TV together. (which is how my back got this way in the first place)

edit- I swear, some times I HATE typepad!!!!!!!!! My screen has locked up 6 times while trying to correct something in this post!!!!!!!

The tag books are $18 not $26, sorry.

Back Pain Relief Recipe

antiques/junking, how to's, show and tell, vintage paper/collage art

By Karla Nathan / May 30, 2009

Before I hurt my back this week while on vacation, I started a few tags. I was thinking about making some tag books, but decided that these wouldn't fit into the binder with all the 3-D stuff on them, I'll need to add doodads after binding the tags, not before.

These colors are a bit different from what I usually pick out. Beth and I have a Wallpaper Pact, when one of us scores some vintage paper, we share with the other. She gave me the border that I used across the bottom, and if went perfectly with a playing card I got in the En Le Jardin swap.

When my back cooperates and I can sit at my desk again, I'll be adding ribbons to these and calling them finished. Then, I'll start over on the tag books. So, this batch isn't exactly a waste of time. I just about always finish what I start and make it work somehow.

This is the statue that I bought from Carol. For now, she is gracing one of the dining room tables in my studio. I might bring her into the living room later on. I already have a couple in there now, and I do think a collection makes more impact when it is grouped together, but on the other hand, I like having my favorite things all around me. So, maybe she'll stay out here in the studio to keep me company while I work.

Last Saturday, at the world's greatest estate sale, I found this punch bowl. I've been wanting one forever, but didn't want to spend much. This one is cracked, so it was cheap, only 5 bucks. I don't mind the crack, since I am using it for something that won't leak, not punch.

There was also a giant box of cushion sized slip covers at the sale, and they were only $7.50! I immediately put some on my porch furniture. The rest got washed up and look even better. The pink background shows up a lot prettier when it isn't dirty. I'm not quite sure what I'll do with the rest of them, its gorgeous fabric, some of the prettiest that I have found. And while it isn't old-old, it is older. Hmm, does that make sense to you? Not antiquey old like bark cloth, but not made all that recently either.

There were a few round pillows in the box too. And I almost didn't buy any of it, I wasn't sure if the size was something I could use, but Beth told me that the fabric was worth a lot more than $7 to have for cutting up. She's right, I'm glad I listened.

Notice these photos are focused only on the chairs? I've not done any planting and my porch looks desolate and lonely without flowers! Of course, with a sore back, I won't be doing much gardening this weekend, so it might be a while before I get plants set out.

Years ago, I fell off a pony and fractured a couple of vertebrae. Now, I wasn't thrown from a horse, I just carelessly slid off the back of a small pony. Like a klutz, nothing dramatic about it.

I had a few surgeries, cortisone epidurals, lots of rest. But, I was in bad shape for a LONG time, till I finally found a Dr. who got me to physical therapy. Since then, I've controlled the back problems by sort of keeping in shape. Not the kind where I look good, but the kind where I stay flexible and can move.

There is also a routine I go through if my back gets sore and it usually works in a day or two, I no longer have months of pain like before. My trouble now, is that my back went out on me while on vacation and I didn't follow my recipe for healing, since, not only was I staying at a hotel, we were sightseeing and hauling around a 2-1/2 year old.

Here is what I usually do, and am doing now. It doesn't work as well if you don't do it right when injured, but it still helps:

Back Pain Relief Recipe

Equal parts of rest, laying and sitting. Do not stay in one position too long.

Equal amounts of ice and heat, taking turns with each.

Walking and stretching in small amounts to start with, then building up to more. DO NOT rest too much, you have to MOVE or you'll cramp up.

And last, anti-inflamatories and muscle relaxers. I use Ibuprofen and Skelaxion, neither make me drowsy.

You will also need a stack of movies to watch. I'm going to go watch Diary of the Dead, it seems fitting, since I have the zombie shuffle walk going on right now.

And for now, I have probably sat too long at the computer, I need to walk and stretch. But before I go, I'll tell you the winner of the Cottage Charm giveaway, my May prize. Thanks, Kim, for hosting this annual event!

And the winner is:

Jenny

By the way,Beth is having a fantastic giveaway full of Victorian scrap! Go enter before its closed!!

Sweet Sioux

family, Sugarwings, Travel

By Karla Nathan / May 28, 2009

We're back from Sioux City, and it was an emotional trip, as well as being filled with all sorts of Sugarwings Fun.

When I was a young, divorced, and penniless, mom with two rambunctious sons, my Mom took us in. She had been transferred to Sioux City, so my sisters packed us up in Indiana, and drove the boys out to her home in Iowa, since I didn't even own a car at the time.

My Mom has been gone a few years now, but I will be grateful all of my life for the help she was to us when I really really needed her. She not only took us in, she helped take care of my wild and crazy boys while I worked and got back on my feet. To do that, she sold her cozy little one bedroom cottage, that was just perfect for her, and bought this beautiful, old brick palace with space for a family.

That house was so stately and special. Going back to see it again was heart wrenching, but was the first thing I had to do when we got to town. The house meant a lot to Mom too, she'd been through some rough times, and not so nice men in her life, so owning a house like this and being able to support us when we were desperate for help, was a boost of confidence for her. She was so proud of how hard she had worked and this house was kind of a symbol of all she had done for herself to get to that point. And was she was even prouder to be able to say that she did it "without a man".

Dear Abby and Ann Landers had been raised in this house. (I'm sure I could have used some of their advice at times while I was a single mom) And it had once been a fantastic neighborhood. But the area seems to be going down hill, now. It made me very happy to see "our" house so well cared for and tended to. It looked like a huge, and multi-generational family lived there now, with a grampa in the garden and babies on the porch. That seemed fitting.

While in Sioux City, we visited Palmer Candy. Sugarwings was pretty happy with that part of the trip….

We bought a case of their Cherry Twin Bings, as souvenirs to give to family and friends here at home.

Down along the river, a monument to Lewis and Clark has been built in the years since we lived in that town. The fairy grand baby figured it was part of the playground equipment.

Since we were doing a lot of driving around and sightseeing, we promised to stop at all the parks we passed for Sugarwings to get out and stretch. My husband's mom is a kid at heart too and she was happy to do more than just stretch when we made park stops.

Traveling with a two year old meant lunches at places like Chuck E Cheese instead of quaint roadside diners my husband usually prefers. Usually, we tryto eat local cuisine, like Iowa loose meats, but for this trip, it was a lot of hotel food and kid friendly restaurants.

Honestly, we didn't care what the meal was, just spending all that time with our little one and doing things she loved to do made this trip one of the best of our lives. Finding a hotel with a water park was the best part of the trip for her, we stayed at a Holiday Inn downtown Omaha that seemed to be empty except for us. We had the whole pool area to ourselves.

And right now, Holiday Inn has a special. Stay 3 nights at any hotel they own, and get a 4th free in August. We plan on going back to Omaha in August for Sugarwings birthday to stay at this one again. I threw my back out on this trip, and didn't get to play in the water park. I sure enjoyed the hot tub, though. When we go back in August, I look forward to splashing around on all the slides.

Since I hurt my back, I won't be going to see Aunt Caroline this week. Thank you all for the well wishes and prayers for her health, it sounds like she is doing well. I hope that I can go to Florida to see her for her 101st birthday in June instead.

Visting Carol and maybe Caroline

antiques/junking, the Boutique at Karla's Cottage, Travel

By Karla Nathan / May 25, 2009

Beth and her husband treated my husband and I to dinner out on Friday night! It was such fun, but like many "double dates" after a while the guys talked golf and we started talking junk. Then, we realized that dinner was over and we still had a lot to say, so we made plans to continue the conversation Saturday morning at estate sales.

Beth took me to the world's BEST Estate sale in Kansas City. The BEST. Everything was exactly to my taste and style and the prices were reasonable. Luckily, it was the second day and the good prices were cut in half. Sadly, because it was the 2nd day, most of it was gone. I still seemed to manage to get some things that I just love (sorry, no pics right now of these- you probably wonder why I even am yammering on about it if I am not going to show you stuff, huh? I'm just still excited, it was such a fun day out.)

Not only was the estate sale a blast, (who wouldn't want to wander around in a Shabby Chic, French style, antique filled palace and shop at garage sale prices???) but the whole day was fun. My couple of hours turned into all day, and we went to visit our pal, Carol at Raised in Cotton.

(these pictures are from her shop)

This is a bit embarrassing to admit, it was my first trip to her store. She is a treasured friend, and has been my roomie on a couple of trips. We email chat constantly, but Raised in Cotton is on the other side of Kansas City and I just never get that far.

But, now that I have seen it, I'll be making the trip again. I loved everything about it, and saw lots of things I wanted.

Maybe I get too attached to my purchases?? I'm falling for statues now, and have started a collection. I was thrilled to find one here! Have you ever noticed how hard it is to find one of these girls with a pretty face? Often the faces are flat looking or the girl has feet like a man. Why is that always happening with these 50's and 60's ladies? I see it all the time. But this girl is a dainty one and I just love her.

I also bought the vintage lace shirt. Its a bit snug, but I'll wear it unbuttoned. (I know this is a BAD photo, makeup from the night before, bed head and a red nose. No, I am not a drunk, wasn't hung over. I just left for garage sales at 7am and am not a morning person)

We are doing our Memorial Day weekend a bit backwards. I worked all day Sunday, adding some items to the boutique, and cleaning the studio. Then on Monday, we are taking off on a trip. My handsome husband and I are packing up the fairy grand baby and all her paraphernalia and heading to Sioux City, Iowa to see family.

We hope to stop at the Omaha Zoo on the way home, weather permitting. If all goes well, on this long trip with a toddler, we might go to Florida next weekend. The baby is staying with us for a couple of weeks while her Hippy Chick mom is vacationing, and we are using the time to do as many fun things as we can.

Although, our reason for the trip to Florida is not so fun. My Great Aunt Caroline is in hospice care now. She will turn 101 at the end of June and knowing her will, she will make it and will probably keep on going till 102. But… I can't help but worry.

Last year, blog readers generously made 100 cards for her 100th birthday, and she was so touched!

I'm hoping a little dose of Sugarwings will be good for her, so we are tentatively planning a trip down to Howie in the Hills, Florida to see Caroline. She is the best story teller I have ever met, and I'd love for my little fairy grand baby to hear one of her tales.

But for now, off to pack and get ready for Sioux City!

When I get back, I'll announce the winner of the Cottage Charm Giveaway.

You can enter my drawing by leaving a comment on any post. To enter other giveaways, visit Kim for a list of sites.

Happy Memorial Weekend!

flowers

By Karla Nathan / May 23, 2009

We couldn't ask for better weather for Memorial Day weekend!

My yard is probably at its peak for the season right now, I am just loving all the blooms. I really do hope to fill my planters and pots with annuals, eventually, but for right now, they aren't missed at all. The perennials are the star of the show! This is the first year, that they have really all come together as I have hoped.They are well established and blooming like crazy.

As far back as I can remember, I've wanted rose bushes, but I've never been able to grow them until I discovered Knock Outs.

Yep, I'm loving these! (and my new camera!)

Has this ever happened to you? At the end of the day, I noticed that I'd been out and about with mismatched shoes all afternoon. And I'd been so proud of myself for wearing nice clothes instead of gym pants or work clothes! My trip to En Le Jardin had me re-thinking my wardrobe. I am a slob. So I am trying to make an effort. But his is how it turns out.

I guess you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, huh?

The Blue Bird of Happiness has moved in with us at the Cottage

family, flowers, Food and Drink, Sugarwings

By Karla Nathan / May 21, 2009

Today felt more like Summer than Springtime, and while I was hit with guilt about not having my bedding plants out yet, I was sure enjoying the perennials and so glad that we have such well established beds that can be completely and totally ignored and still look good (well, that is if you look away from the grass growing in the iris)

It was such a pretty day, we took lunch outside to eat.

Doesn't everything taste even better outside? Especially when served off of a princess plate.

The day was too nice to stay sitting at the table, Sugarwings wanted to explore.

And of course, she had to make sure that Grammy was following her. This is a wooden bridge that I found in a dump 15 years ago (don't ask how I drug it out and got it home myself). I always liked the little bridge, but this fairy grand baby just adores crossing it. She always stops to check underneath of it for trolls.

If only iris bloomed all summer…. I just love this time of year, I'll miss these when they are done, they bloom and fade too fast.

Sugarwings is learning the names of the flowers, she calls quite a few of them iris or snowball bushes, though. She thinks that the peonies are snowballs like the viburnums. I have to agree with her, they do look like big white snowballs.

But the peonies smell better.

The best part of summer coming? We can paint outside! (yes, she is still a paint taster, although it looks like she has moved on from blue to black paint now) Last year, there was a photo of her printed in "Where Women Create" all covered in blue paint.

But now, it is MY turn to be a model!

Yep, I am gracing the pages of a trade magazine that showcases New Holland Tractors, along with my niece, Shelli. Hmm, should I add this to my list of publications that I've been in? Probably not…

As if things weren't happy enough around here, most days, at least- look at this! The blue bird of happiness has come to live with us. Its a gift from Cindy and I just love it. Thanks, Cindy!!