Ice Ice Baby

Last Thursday night we had the most awful ice storm here in MA. So many people lost power and many don't have it back yet. Tree limbs were falling everywhere and power lines and poles snapped left and right. Driving to Target on Saturday I saw a car parked in a driveway with a huge tree smashed through its roof. :(

I think it's weird that something so pretty can be so insanely destructive.







Hopefully everyone will get their lights and heat back soon!

Twilight and Thanksgiving Plans

Okay, I admit that I saw Twilight. :) Most people love it just because of the books (and I did read the 1st one about 4 years ago), but I LOVED this movie because it was so great. The storyline was awesome, the actors were superb, and the whole thing was just so romantic. It was the 1st movie I have seen in awhile that didn't have to stoop down to sophomoric vulgarity just to amuse the audience. I was pleasantly surprised. The music was beautiful and I plan on buying the soundtrack for once.

Okay, enough ranting about this super hyped up movie. :)

I am leaving to go back to Nebraska (land of Silver Bella) on Wednesday to visit family for Thanksgiving. Should be a fun time at the airport! I expect that this adventure will be interesting because I have not spent a holiday with this side of the family since I was in 2nd grade (12 years ago) and I don't really know what to expect. Oh well, I'm always up for excitement. I promise to take lots of pictures (of what, I don't know, since I will be in the Boonies) to make up for the lack of Silver Bella photos (even though they are not comparable).

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig...

I’m back from Silver Bella in Omaha and it was by far the most amazing time of my life so far. I felt so at home with everyone; especially my roommates, Heidi and Jenny. Spending time with those two was by far the best part of the trip. They both were so sweet and fun.

I dragged my camera all the way there and back but I did not take a single picture of anything so I am snagging 1 of Heidi’s.

My roomies- Jenny Fowler and Heidi Gordon with awesome Karla Nathan

Vendor Night was fabulous! I spent an arm and a leg but it was well worth it since stuff like that is hard to come by out here. As annoying as I may have been I couldn’t pass up Karla Nathan’s booth and Wanda Clark’s booth and had to hit them up multiple times. Thank goodness they were so patient with me!

I took some great classes with top notch teachers. Carolyn Peeler was awesome and her projects were simple to do yet really, really pretty. Jenni Bowlin was a sweetheart and really personable. Kim Kwan was the loudest person ever but so incredibly hilarious and generous. And last but not least, Charlotte Lyons was great as a teacher and entertaining as she regaled us with stories of Mary Engelbreit and herself. (I’ll post pictures of my projects later.)

Thanks to all the great instructors for the wonderful classes. Thanks to Teresa McFayden for organizing this great event (and to all her helpers).

Silver Sister Stash Swap

So I am just going to be lazy and not write too much but these are the Silver Sister Stash Swap packages. These 9 women were so amazing and they put in such hard work to make this a great success. Thank you all!

Heather Ales
Julie Baxley
Natalea Kandefer
Michele Witchell
Marian Ballog
Stephanie G. Hirschberg
Michele Geller
Stephanie Oyler
Jana Perenchio

New Additions

Since my last post I have bought a new computer, which I LOVE! It is so great to just stick my memory card of pictures directly into my comp instead of plugging in cables and such. It is so much faster than my old one.
Also, we got a puppy! Her name is Chloe and she is a 5 month old Pekingese. Yes, those are her teeth (she has an underbite)!

I saw alot of my blogging pals had participated in the Sweet Six Studio thingie and their pictures inspired me to try my hand at lanterns. I like the way it came out! Although my sister says that it looks like a jellyfish. Lol.
Michaels has these paper mache houses on clearance for 99 cents so I snagged a few. It was a great way to use up a good deal of the white buttons I have. Didn't make a dent in them at all though! Oh well!

Stay tuned for pictures of my Silver Sister Stash Swap that I hosted for Silver Bellas. I took pics tonight but still have more to take and I wouldn't want to ruin any surprises for the other Bellas.

Apple and Pumpkin Picking

After I picked my sister up from school today I took her out to Marshall Farms for a little bonding time. She begrudgingly let me bring my camera along. lol. I had to bribe her with Jonas Brothers music and the promise that these pics would not end up on Facebook.

Roomie Swap!

Finished up the two packages for the swap with my Silver Bella roomies.

Been really busy lately, working my tail off at CVS (6 days in a row this week) and trying to keep up with all my classes. I basically have no social life currently. Oh well...

Silver Sisters Stash Swap!

My packages for the Silver Sister Stash Swap are complete! Yay!

They turned out exactly how I wanted them too. Can't wait for everyone else's to start rolling in so I can get the final packages put together to send back to the gals! Natalea has already sent hers in and it is GORGEOUS!

Here are the tiniest sneak peeks I can offer of my swap packages! Don't want to give too much away!

So the craziest thing happened today...

I was scanning through the classifieds of the paper this morning planning out my yard sale/garage sale route, and I found one that said "crafts." I was hesitant because "crafts" usually mean just crap and I didn't want to drive 15+ mins. to come away empty handed. Well, I pulled up to this cute house and started perusing the goods. I saw the table filled with amazing craft stuff and was so happy that I had decided to come out to this sale. The owner and I were chatting and she mentioned that she sells ribbons, trims, vintage stuff and the like online. As I was picking out more goodies she ran into the house. When she came out she handed me her business card and you should have seen me squeal! It was Heather of Speckled Egg!!!

I had no idea that she lived in MA, much less only 15 minutes from my house. She must have thought I was a total kook. But we got on the topic of Silver Bella and she gave me a great deal on her stuff. I came home (and mounted all my fab ArtChix stamps) and decided that I needed more of her craft supplies. I drove all the way back out to her house (and brought a MooCard this time) to snag what I could. She had nothing but amazing things to say about Silver Bella and now I am even more hyped up for Nov. than I was before. Oh, if only she could come along too! :(
Here are some pics of my great deals at Heather's:


A box of over 50 dress forms!!! These may come in handy for my Silver Bella swap.


Cutest little monkeys on parade atop giraffes!


So pretty!


Hmm... Silver. Makes me excited for Nov. these days just hearing the word silver.

Well, today was so incredible and I hope to be getting together with Heather in the future.

Brimfield Antique Show

By far the craziest antique show I have ever been to. Great deals all over the place. I went on the opening day and on the closing day and spent quite a bit both days.


My mom with a display of beautiful garden statuaries.




Antique vendors as far as the eye can see for over a mile!



Bought this piece made from vintage materials at a cute vendor.

I can't wait to go back next year!!!

Catching Up...

Just bought a memory card reader for my computer because I misplaced my digital camera cables. Now I can finally show off all my great buys and new artwork.

I made this college for my now ex-boyfriend awhile ago. His father died 19 years ago and this college represents my ex and his longing for understanding.

Got these amazing vintage Christmas decorations at a benefit tag sale. Going to be great for pre-Silver Bella swaps and the like.

Bought these old canning jars for a steal at a local flea market. 20 of them for $1.50!

So I am getting up at the crack of dawn to hit up yard sales and a great, inexpensive flea market the next town over in the morning. I am planning on going to the Brimfield Antique fair next Tuesday but maybe I should save the money for Silver Bella stuff instead. We'll see.

I will be staying with two amazing gals at Silver Bella this Nov. -Jenny Fowler and Heidi Gordon have graciously shared their room with me and I cannot thank them enough. I'll be putting together some thank you goodies for the both of them for sure.

Silver Bella!!!

I have decided to attend Silver Bella! It's expensive but worth every cent.


Oooh, and even better, today I won homemade bath salts from my favorite blogger/treasure hunter/artist ever, Karla Nathan! http://karlascottage.typepad.com/karlascottage/
Such a great person and I want to meet her at Silver Bella in Nov. and buy up oodles of her creations!!!

slightly bored

You Are 1: The Reformer

You're a responsible person - with a clear sense of right and wrong. High standards are important to you, and you do everything to meet them. You are your own worst critic, feeling ashamed if you're not perfect. You have uncompromising integrity, and people expect you to be fair. At Your Best: You are hopeful, honest, and inspiring. You bring out the best in humanity. At Your Worst: You are intolerant, judgmental, and picky. Your Fixation: Resentment Your Primary Fear: Being corrupt. Your Primary Desire: To be good. Other Number 1's: Al Gore, Martha Stewart, Gandhi, Celene Dion, and Spock from Star Trek.

What Number Are You?

More ATC's

Some ATC's