Easter Swap Eggs-citement!

 Viv's Easter Basket Swap!

 

Beautiful Chicks!

 

Easter is such a lovely time for crafting.  The images are so sweet and filled with meaning...many are symbolic of Christ and the Resurrection.  Colors are softer...like those in our memories.  We have had a very early spring in Utah.  Trees are leafing and blossoming...it seems more like the end of April rather than the last day of March. 

 

I had the pleasure to participate in an Easter swap hosted by Vivian of Viv's Whimsy.  I am so happy that she takes the time to organize holiday swaps...I would be so nervous to even try to do such a thing.  I hope she knows how much she is adored by her followers.  The theme of this swap was simple...a small Easter basket filled with treats and trinkets.  My swap partner was Debbie of My Vintage Daydreams.  I have been lucky to have been paired with new partners for my last few swaps.  It's lovely to get acquainted with new friends from around the country.

 Debbie's Basket...

Easter Basket...Full to Overflowing!

 

 

Darling letters spelling out my name.

 

Treasures packed inside.

 

Little miss reminds me of my childhood.

 

 

Vintage planter filled with fun trinkets.

 

A gentle reminder of the meaning of Easter.

 

My Basket...

Easter Basket made from a berry basket.

Little box holds chocolate eggs.

Simple Easter Garland...sweet graphics and rick-rack.

Just a few of the things I sent.

 

Random Stuff...

Thumper as Easter Bunny.

I had planned to do a whole theme with Bambi and Thumper...like I did with Snow White.

But I got derailed by a very busy month...next year for sure!

 

 

Disney Thumper Easter Wreath.

I've had this for years.

 

Vintage Bunny Doll I found on Ebay.

 

Thanks again to Viv and Debbie for a wonderful Easter Swap experience!

May you all have a very blessed Easter.

 

 

Here are the graphics I used in my simple garland...enjoy!

 

 

Christmas in the Kitchen Swap!

Cutest Swap Announcement Ever!

 

I just participated in a Christmas swap sponsored by Erica of Golden Egg Vintage.  The swap was one-on-one with Erica assigning the partners.  My partner was Marci of Parsley Vintage.  I like meeting new bloggers through a swap...they soon become new friends.  Marci's blog is a lot of fun...she has a wise-cracking sense of humor that I really enjoy.  I have a hard time being serious myself...as some of you have probably noticed. 

 

The point of the swap was to make two Christmas decorations with a vintage Christmas theme, along with a card or tag and a favorite Christmas recipe.  Of course we'd also send a treat and a few crafting or holiday goodies as well.

 

Marci's Fun Creations!

Such Festive Swap Goodies!

 

I am still in awe of this totally unique snowman scene.  I wish I had thought of it...lol!

 

It looks so cute on my kitchen counter.

Tart tins make the cutest decorations.  I have it on my curio shelves near the stove.

 

Marci included some German scrap Santas for my German Christmas décor.

This is one handsome fellow!

 

 

Yummy card from Pinterest!

 

Kitchen Treats for Marci...

This Spice Tin Santa was made with a large cinnamon tin...8 oz. size.

He's a shelf sitter.

Aunt Maurine's Sugar Cookies.

My kids' favorite Christmas cookies.

Toy Pan Snowman...simple but cute!

Some of the swap goodies...the treat box is filled with truffles.

 

 

Looks tasty enough to lick the computer screen...lol!

 

A Little Bit Country Porch

 

Front porch on a 65 degree December day.

This is the second year I have done a rustic/country kind of thing.

 

Baker's rack by the front door.

 

 

I put my little red truck outside this year. 

Every thing is wired to the rack so it won't blow away

I found this wooden sled at a new thrift store in town.

The packages are chunks of wood left over from building the pergola.

Not much else is new.

 

I love this darling Candy House cover.

 

Thank you, Marci and Erica!

May visions of Sugarplums dance in your head!

Love,

 

Dollar Crafts...Dresden-style Christmas Ornaments!

We're Celebrating German-style This Year!

A couple of years ago I decorated my home office with German-style decorations.  I made tree ornaments and an advent wreath to go along with the cute painted wooden trees and houses I arranged along the top of one of my desks.  This year I am decorating my entire family room in a German theme.  And I will be using the same theme for my neighbor gifts.  It's kind of fun to change things up once in awhile.  I will post pictures of the finished room in a day or two, but first I want to share with you some German-style ornaments that I made for  about $1 each with gold glittered ornaments from Wal-Mart.

Dollar Dresden-style Ornaments!

Dresden Foil Embellishments

Dresden trims are embossed, die-cut embellishments which are stamped from metallic foil-backed paper.  They have been produced in Germany since the early 19th century, and were popular with Victorians to create wonderful ornaments using scrap images, tinsel and Dresden trims.  The trims and scrap are still available today from online sources like D. Blumchen and Company.  They can be kind of expensive, but I thought I could replicate the look somewhat using what I could find in my crafting supplies and using some 98 cent glittery ornaments from Wal-Mart.

A fun example of a Dresden ornament I found online.

Another online example.

I could find scrap graphics online to print for my ornaments, but I was lucky to have one of those William-Sonoma Christmas wreaths with the cardboard scrap figures of snowmen, angels, nutcrackers and Santas.  The picture is kind of small and blurry, but this is the wreath.  Each figure was attached separately to the background and really easy to remove.

Victorian Christmas Wreath

Dresden-style Ornaments...



Angels on a golden swirl ornament.

The bells are Dresden trim...my only pieces were a few bells.

Angel mounted on a glitter birdcage.

I liked it as a frame.

I added gold glitter to the scrap pieces.

My Favorite Snowman!

A jeweled snowflake.

I put the boy on the wreath trimmed with tinsel.

Tree mounted on the gold birdcage.

I have a few more finished pieces and some in the works.  This is a fun and inexpensive craft that looks rich and fancy.  I really enjoyed making these.  Wal-Mart has the glitter ornaments in red and silver...as well as the gold.



 Happy Scrapping and Glittering!

Some German-style Scrap...