Gingerbread Sunday

 I really should call it Gingerbread Week! I start a few days ahead

 making the four sides of the houses. We started cheating a bit a few years ago and we use graham crackers for the roof. They are lighter weight and the house will set up quicker.

 I have the dining room table covered with plastic to make clean up quicker.

 As my family comes in the candy pile gets larger and larger.....

 So many decisions to be made, which candies to place where....

 It is very serious at times.

 Everyone get involved with ideas to share and sometimes a bit of a competition starts!

It's always a super fun day of eating and creating and enjoying each others company.

p.s.      and they all leave with a sugar high!!!

p.p.s.   please note my clean chandelier!!!

Bell Jars and Curiosity Boxes and How Much I Love to Use Glass!

I have discovered that I do like to put things either under, in or behind glass. I think that doing so gives it

a sense of being curated as something special, something to stop and take your time and really look at.

In the picture above I put one of the snowmen from my collection under a bell jar as part of my Christmas decorations.

 Next it is being used as a nature arrangement along with Valentines Day decorating. This lovely little Queen of Hearts doll has been purchased.

The twig tree, pine cone, rock, feathers and one of my paper clay birdies all work together beautifully in my humble opinion. I made the fabric hearts many years ago out of old quilt squares.

A grouping of found feathers in a recycled jar.

My little curiosity boxes were looked at and admired by many people, but no one committed to owning one until I covered the recycled cigar box with glass.....

.....and that is just what the missing element was all along.

Continuing with the same idea, my small 3x3 art prints create an instant touch of finished art just about anywhere and would not be the same without the glass bevel covering it.

Lastly, this original wearable artwork done on a wee little piece of vintage ledger paper from 1895. Sandwiched between two pieces of glass it becomes a curated link between the past and present.

Thanks for spending time with me today!

Happy Belated New Year!

I have had a super busy autumn and Christmas season...

Four craft fairs between Thanksgiving and Christmas..at this one pictured, the person next to me didn't show so I got lucky and was able to expand into that booth. We tried a new booth design that we will never use again but it was adaptable! I learned that I will only do one this year in that time frame.

Then it was Gingerbread Sunday! I was blessed with more nieces attending this year and my godson! I love this special time to spend with my family.

Decorating got done....not as much as I usually do but it was just enough to be festive. I love this hand carved and painted Santa that my son purchased for me in Moskow. And I just had to show a picture of my rosette ornament on the tree, it shows up so well against the dark green pine needles.

A Happy Belated New Year to all from Rocky and Thomas and me!