A Post From Home......

A "HOME" banner was the theme of a story in a recent article in Somerset Home, Volume 4. When the feeling of Fall comes in the air, I start thinking in terms of snuggling up, lighting the fire, and putting on my comfies, everything home encompasses.

Since I am actually in another swap, I took the opportunity, and inspiration from this article to make my own rendition of the "HOME" Banner.

Madai from Wren Cottage and I decided to swap, way back in May. We decided to put absolutely no pressure on ourselves, and took the entire summer to collect, create, and find treasures for each other. Well, time is up. We are both mailing early this week. But, just for fun, I thought I would share my creation for her.

Madais' colors are brown, cream, and just a touch of very pale pink, blue and green. Madai has a way of making a person feel "Right at Home". I can just imagine, if we didn't live so far away, having a cup of tea with Madai and spending a few hours, laughing, catching up and telling stories.

Here is how I created my HOME banner for Madai:

I did not have antique cardboard picture frames to use, but I did have a picture album that had the same type of cardboard forms. I cut 4 of them out of the album and aged them with Distressed Ink (in the stamping section) which you can get at any Michaels or Joanne Fabrics.

Age both sides.

Glitter 4 letters. I used Martha Stewart's "Brownstone" colored glitter. Let dry, well.

Find 4 images you want to use and size them appropriately over the opening. I used a copy of a vintage photo, a copy of a vintage post card, and 2 images from old sheet music. Glue in place.

Take coordinating scrapbook paper (or you could use old wallpaper) and cover the backs so they look finished.

Take a stamp you like and stamp the top front of the plate. I used coffee bean colored ink.

Allow everything to dry well. Punch holes with a hole punch and thread vintage seam binding through the holes to connect all 4 album plates. Knot the beginning and ending holes so the seam binding will not slip off.

Hot glue a few ribbons and lace on the "H" plate in the upper left hand corner. Hot glue vintage millinery, in coordinating colors, on the H and E plates.

This is my interpretation of a "HOME" banner for Madai....

I hope you all have a wonderful time creating something warm and wonderful for "Your Home". Talk to you soon,

Blessings,
Kitty

xox

"I Thought Of You" Swap with LiLi M......

The sweet Stephenie Gray of Just A Little Bit Pink hosted this lovely swap called "I Thought Of You". I was paired with LiLi M, much to my delight! I have been following Lili's blog for quite a while now and love her creations, the sharing of her travel and heritage, and love the way she supports the many women and friends in blogland. Thank you, Lili, for being my swap partner. It has been a privilege to be paired with such a wonderful lady!

Well, the day came when my package arrived. Lili and I had mailed them just about the same time. From Pennsylvania in the U.S., it takes about 5-7 days to get from the Netherlands to my little tiny town of Darlington, PA. I grabbed the camera, and was off on my beautiful adventure!

I was careful to take things out neatly, and lay them out so I could take pictures. Lili's wrapping was simply elegant. Don't ya love the little pillow of the two angel girls, all glittered up? Just love it. And the divine scent of lavender grabbed my senses right away! The little bird tin is just a-d-o-r-a-b-l-e! Inside is a tiny bird in a nest.

Below is a gorgeous gray/purple rose covered plate, loaded with all kinds of goodies with just a smidgin of fairy dust....

And below are laces, hankies, ribbons, beautiful jewelry, and of course, a smattering of Paris!

I am showing you all of the treasures together, but Lili actually sent out 3 separate packages. Talk about loving it until the end! Here is a tiny doll head in a tiny tin, a lovely pendant and Lili's sweet note....

A paper covered box with tiny seashells and playing cards. Ribbon, a whole roll, and tiny blue seed beads in the sweetest little bottle.

And of course, my love for Bibles and old hymnals. Lili so generously sent me a hymnal in her language and a New Testament. To me, such treasures!

And let's not forget about the sweet fairies. This is an adorable book. This will be a joy on a rainy afternoon to sit and quietly read with a cup of tea or cider.

And the ephemera, papers, wallpaper and postcards. I can't wait to use some of these lovely papers in my creations. I just love it all.

Lili covered this sweet box with wallpaper and decorated it with a Paris theme. Inside were the papers in the above photo. In the little pink envelope, Lilli wrote, "I Thought Of You". What a beautiful keepsake. It is just perfect for mementos.

And isn't this a sweety?? A half loaf of bread done in redwork. OOOOOHHHHHH! Need I say more?

German scraps, a tiny little prayer book. You know it must have been a little girl's. Pages from a book with Lili's stamping, stamps. Oh, my.

I about fell over when I saw these gorgeous silhouettes. I absolutely adore them! All kinds of thoughts are going on in my head for creations with these.

Beautiful fabrics and wallpaper.

I tried to get a good shot of these buttons. They are just so beautiful. The little hair pin is darling!

Religious charms, stamps, and tags. More fun to come with these!

And yes, a PARIS map! Beautiful book pages. All the possibilities!

Whew! I know! What wonderful treasures. Lili made this one of the best swaps I have ever had. Thank you, dear friend. Just know I treasure it all and can't wait to create. All the while, I'll be thinking of you, with a smile on my face, and wonderful memories....

Blessings

Kitty

xox

I Thought Of You Swap and Catching Up....

The sweet Stephenie Gray from "Just A Little Bit Pink" is hosting the "I Thought Of You Swap". Today is the day parcels are to be shipped. I was so happy to have been paired up with Lili from LiLi M. While Lili lives in the Netherlands, I feel as if we live right next door to each other. You know how you connect with certain people? I have felt that "connecting tug" since the first day I started blogging with Lili. So, I have put a "sneak peek" of some of her goodies. Hope she finds them all delightful! I can't wait to get my box. It is so interesting swapping with an international partner. Something I have not done before. I feel like a child at Christmas, just waiting for Santa to arrive!

And of course, Heather and Stephenie, both, have already blogged about our craft night. But I wanted to show you pictures of my charms. The pictures are a bit dark, so please forgive. But, I am happy with the results. When I first put on the solder, I had lumps and bumps everywhere! Heather helped me smooth them out, but after practicing a while, it slowly came to me. Of course, it will take a bit more practice to feel good about sharing some of these. But, such satisfaction in accomplishing the task at hand!

Here are the backs. What is funny about this process is, the backs are just as important as the fronts. And you like to have something that sort of ties them together. It takes a while to cut your pictures and decide what you will pair up.

And in ending this little post, I wanted to share a picture with you that I thought was just adorable. Please feel free to use this beautiful angel as she is smothered with these gorgeous roses. Hope you all have a beautiful day, and I hope you all end the day with someone "That Thought Of You".....

Blessings,
Kitty

xox