Pooch Parade

Our niece Kimberly and her Basset Hound Ethel participated today in the 15^th Annual Nichols Hills Pooch Parade benefitting ARF (Animal Rescue Friends), along with her friend Leah and her tiny pup Henry. Kimberly wanted to go as Sherlock Holmes and Hound, using the Martha Stewart pattern found here, but she was making Halloween costumes for her younger brothers and sisters so she enlisted me to help.  She knew I'd enjoy making the capes.  Amazingly, she found their hats at a local thrift store. 

I've always wanted to go to this event but never had until now. Kimberly and Ethel didn't win, but they should have!  So many people came by to take their picture, and everyone loved their costumes.  I have to say that Ethel behaved perfectly the entire time - over three hours.  

I only got a few photos, but enjoy!

Kimberly and Ethel rocking the detective look



A cute little mail carrier

Best Large Dog - 76 Dog Bones.  The dogs cape was edged with gold Milk Bone "fringe"



Ahoha Henry. His rainbow-hued visor just would not stay on his head.



Best Costume Winner - dressed as Rumble the Bison,
mascot of the local NBA team

Zoey the Airedale

Ethel meeting a bull dog pup.  Isn't it the cutest thing???

Spooky Little Book Swap

Michelle Geller's Little Book swap earlier this year (see here and here) was so much fun I decided to join The Gypsy Magpie's Spooky Little Book Swap for Halloween.  Each and every participant made a book that is so creative and unique, and I'm fascinated by their size and detail.  I've been through them several times already and will be sad to put them away with  my Halloween decor, but it will be a treat to pull out again next year. Here they are in all their glory:

For my cover, I used a page from a 1928 children's songbook and embellished it with a bit of webbing and a pumpkin, a spider, and a flying witch.

I composed a silly little poem to include on my pages. 

Scary night,
full of fright.
Up above,
bats in flight.
Ghostly visions,
apparitions.
This is Halloween.

Page two features a pumpkin-head ballerina, while page three is a collage of orange and black elements.

Page four is another collage with a little bling attached, and page five has flying bats and a bit of ornate fence. 

Page six is ghostly, and page seven is another collage of Halloween elements.

The back cover has a skeleton and a hand, plus a little tag with my info. I made Trick or Treat bags with a few goodies for everyone in the swap.

Love these little books!  Hopefully someone will do another swap for Christmas.  I'm ready to make - and to receive - more little books!

My 100th Post

Yay!  My 100th post!  Toss the confetti and blow the horns!  I've been putting off this post because I felt I should announce a giveaway to celebrate, and I just haven't come up with anything. I do have other things to post about, though, so I'll just thank all of you who read my blog, and ask you to watch for a giveaway a little later in the year.  I so enjoy all your comments and just knowing that you're out there, and will do my best to provide posts that are informative and entertaining. 
Thanks in large part to the amazing and generous Laurie who announced my Etsy store on her popular blog, Indulge Your Shelf, and to all those who've made purchases as a result, my Etsy store is off to a running start.  I've had a busy week packing and shipping orders and getting new items listed.  I've enjoyed every minute of it, and appreciate all of you!

Now I'm off to make Sherlock Holmes-style capes for my niece and her Basset hound for a Halloween parade to benefit animal welfare.  Photos to come!

Vintage Dragonfly Handmade Halloween Swap

For the Vintage Dragonfly's Handmade Halloween Swap, I was partnered with Lorraine from Over The Rainbeau.  She just happens to be friends with Marti of Artful Curiosities, my partner for last spring's May Basket swap. I received the package Lorraine sent and I can tell you, all these California gals that I've swapped with are awesome!  Can you believe all these goodies? 
This was a matchbox swap and the matchbox itself is darling, with a cute little girl and vintage elements.  It was suggested that you spoil your partner and also send things that didn't fit in the matchbox, and Lorraine certainly took that suggestion to heart.  I was blown away by all the wonderful treats!

Here's a close up of the matchbox, sign and tag that she sent.

Here's a tiny boo banner and a closer shot of the tag.

And how about this cute little guy?  It's actually a box and it was filled with velvet leaves and flowers and other little treats.

Thank you so much, Lorraine!  I love it all, and it certainly looks like Halloween at our house.

Here's what I sent Lorraine.  The matchbox was topped with a silver tray with BOO and a black and cream striped satin ruffle.  I made a witch hat and neck ruffle for a little vintage pumpkin ghost I found on vacation, and a paper garland of various shapes and colors sewn together.  I decorated the little Trick or Treat bag and filled it with treats, and included a few beads and skulls and other fun items, along with a copy of the Spooky Little Book I made for another swap (a post on that coming up soon.) 

If you haven't done an on-line swap, you should try it sometime!  You meet wonderful people, have a chance to share your talents, and you receive some amazing things in return.

Creative Button Swap 2011

Tami Hacker at Vintage Connections recently hosted a Creative Button swap. I was partnered with Marsha Cassada, a fellow Oklahoman!  My previous swap partners have all been from other states, so it was nice to swap with and get to know someone nearby. 

Our assignment was to make anything we wanted using at least five buttons and using no-harm methods (no glue, etc.)  Marsha shared photos of some things she had made for other swaps and as gifts for friends, so I knew I would be getting something special.  Plus, before I had even seen the list of partners, I had an e-mail from a friend who also joined the swap letting me know that I was lucky to be paired with Marsha.

She made me the prettiest little lamp with an old Kerr Mason jar, and topped it with ruffled crepe paper and a piece of lace from an old hankie (two more of my favorite things.)  She filled the bottom with some beautiful blue (my favorite color) and mother of pearl buttons, plus a few little buckles - yet another of my favorite things.  A friend contributed a card of Bluebird buttons.  The lamp would have been enough, but she also sent a beautiful pearl bracelet made by her sister and a sweet vintage place card with a little button face. Love it all! I've already warned her that the buttons may be too pretty to leave in the jar.

Marsha prefers tortoise, brown and amber buttons.  I didn't have a lot in these colors, but was able to pick up a few nice ones while traveling.  She also mentioned that she likes the primitive look, and feed sack fabrics.  I had a few quilt pieces made with feedsack fabrics that were given to me by friends, as well as some pieces from my grandmother, and had been wanting to make a fabric book for a while so decided that would be the perfect project for this swap. 

Before I show you the book pages, here is a photo Marsha sent me.  She opened her package from me while she was with her Wednesday Girls group.  Here are some of the members with Marsha (second from left) showing the book, buttons and Trick or Treat bag I sent. Thanks, ladies, for sharing the moment. Wish I lived closer so I could join your group!

The photo was taken in the home of the woman in the center.  Love her quilt, vintage tins, and that darling Halloween tree.  She's holding a little button doll made for their weekly project.

Here are the extra buttons I sent.

Now, the book I made.  I honestly think it was my favorite thing to make ever, and it could be a little bit habit forming! I'm itching to do another one and already have a lot of the fabric and lace laid out.

I know this is a long post, but just one more kind of funny note - in the next to the last photo you'll notice what looks like a pink chair.  That piece of pink fabric was the only piece I had that coordinated with the opposite page, which was made first.  The pink was a scrap from my grandmother and was already that shape.  As I was about to cut it, I looked at it again and decided that if it wanted to be a chair, I'd let it be a chair.  I told Marsha about it in the note I sent with her package, so as they looked through the book they were looking for that chair, and you can see that it's the page she's holding up in the photo above.

A great swap and and wonderful new friend - love this creative community!

Hope You'll Visit Me on Etsy!

Finally, my Etsy shop is on line!  I only have a few things listed right now and am still figuring everything out, but I have lots to add.  Right now I'm working on swaps that are due in the next couple of weeks and I can't disappoint my swap partners by being late, but I'll try to list some new items here and there.  You can click here to see the shop, or use the link on the sidebar.  If you like the shop please spread the word, and as always, thanks so much for visiting my blog!   

We hit a few garage sales today before the OU/Texas game.  I found a tiny pair of shoes for $2 with oodles of rhinestones.  Here's one shoe shown with the rhinestones I had already removed from the other. 

We didn't have much time, but I managed to find a few pieces of jewelry, some fabric that I've already used as a background for Etsy photos, and a plant stand that will make the perfect table for our patio - just big enough for a glass of tea and a magazine or book.

Garage sale finds, OU won, and best of all - it rained this afternoon!!!  It's been a great day so far!

My Favorite Vintage Treasures

Happy 80th Birthday to one of my favorite vintage treasures, my dad!  My mom gets her turn next April. They look great, don't they?  The one thing Daddy asked for?  A globe.  He likes to keep up with politics and world affairs.

  
We celebrated his birthday on Saturday with quite a few family members and friends, but his birthday was actually Sunday, October 2.  My sister-in-law Debbie was also born on October 2, and it was my brother Ray's and sister-in-law Jackie's 40th wedding anniversary.  Big day in our family!