Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. I have a terrible cold but luckily, we're going to my sister Linda's house & I'm just making stuffing. Mike's family is coming on Fri. for the weekend so I hope by then I'm feeling better. If not, there may be a lot of pizza on the menu.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!

Vintage Ornament Wreath!

Is this gorgeous, or what!!!! Jane had purchased a round mirror to glue the ornaments to & as she placed them on the frame, she realized she really loved the colors of these together. It's like once you start placing them, they kind of tell you what to do. She didn't have all the sizes she needed so we headed out to the flea mkts. but nary a one could be found. She had purchased a box with some of these colors when we stopped in Lebanon.
Here's how it started. Quite a contrast! It really makes me want to make one but I'm not sure I'm ready to put glue on my old ornaments. We'll see!!!

This is a fraction of Jane's stash that she brought to the lake. She has an unbelievable collection but like most of us, she's been collecting for many years. Some of mine are from when I was a child. Plus, I never pass one up at a garage sale or auction.

This is the stocking I worked on for baby Maya. Maya is just over 1 yr. old & most of us have never seen her in person. Maya & her sister, Marabelle, & Mom & Dad will be home tomorrow from Colorado (they call that home now). We are all so excited! We'll probably end up with 50 people for Thanksgiving.

Home again, home again, jiggiety-jig!

We're back!!!! We had the best time and actually got something accomplished. Jane's house at Lake of the Ozarks is wonderful. It's bright & white & perfect for doing needlework and it looks right out on the lake. It was so quiet but very cold. We got out & did a few things but mostly we stayed in. I did get to eat at On the Rise & we got to shop at their HyVee mkt. which is the greatest store. Can't believe that Lake of the Ozarks has a store like that & Springfield doesn't. We stopped & got their "cook-at-home" pizzas to bring home.

Anyway, this is the view out her windows.

Why is it the word weenie still makes grown women laugh. We wanted to go in but decided we might have to actually buy a weenie. This little town use to be a big tourist area but kind of got lost in the shuffle. Kind of sad because I can remember buying a little hand-tooled purse there as a little kid. It was boomin' in those days. Just had to show this pic.

I could have stayed about 2 more wks. but life goes on. Hope everyone had a good weekend.

I'll be gone a few days!!!

My friend, Jane, has a house at the Lake of the Ozarks & we're going there for a few days to just set in our pj's & work on our "projects". I'm making a Christmas stocking for a new niece & Jane is putting vintage ornaments all around a framed mirror for her entryway at home. We'll do a little antiquing also. Can't wait to just sit for a few days & not have to worry about anyone but myself. The only time most women really get a vacation is when they go with other women. So I'll be absent for a few days but I'll take lots of pictures to post. It's also getting really close to my 100th blog so I need to consider what I'll do for that. See you in a few days!

Christmas decorations at Fran's house.....

This is my friend Frannie's house all decorated for Christmas --- & it isn't even Thanksgiving! She's fortunate enough to have Ron from The Thicket & his sidekick, Mel, come early & decorate. Ron starts very early in Nov. & decorates continually through the holidays. He also helps with some of the homes that are featured on the Ronald McDonald House holiday home tour which is this weekend.

This is one of Fran's many trees & it's decorated with vintage ornaments. She's in the running for queen of vintage blown glass ornaments although the race is not yet over. It's incredible the amount of vintage ornaments we've sold at Leola's since open house. Fran has them in bowls, glass jars, hanging from mirrors & on trees. They're gorgeous!!!!
These are large jars that are filled with kosher salt & have little scenes in them. Here she uses some of her vintage bottle brush trees along with new ones. They're on her huge round dining room table.

These are darling little handmade dolls all dressed in pink. You'll also notice Ron's Christmas decorating book "My Favorite Things" sitting on the coffee table.

This is the entryway to her house. There's another window just like this one on the other side of a truly spectacular door. Sorry I didn't get the full picture. Her little trees & garland have clear lights in them.

This is the mantle in her great room that is covered with these sugary-looking houses & trees.

This is the end of the tour & I thank Frannie for letting me take pictures. She's having our "Birthday Group" in December & I can't wait to go back. Did I mention she's an excellent cook also but trust me, if I had her kitchen, I'd be a darn fine cook too.

Doreen's Sweet Annie trees.....

Happy Monday morning! I'm off to Leola's for the day. It's a cold, dreary morning & a good one to stay in but haven't been to the shop since Weds. so know there's a lot to do & tons of bookwork. I always love it once I get there.

One of my new favorites in blogland is Vermont Harvest (Doreen Frost's blog). She lives in Vermont & creates all kinds of primitive handmade items. I've loved her sweet annie trees & when she said she was unable to ship them, I decided to give them a try. Since I only had enough sweet annie to do one tree, I tried one with rosemary. The finished products are below. Thanks, Doreen, for all your great ideas. Doreen uses a slice of birch tree limb for the bottom but apparently, she has someone who will actually saw a tree limb for her. Mine is still a "work in progress".

My rosemary tree. Thought I might give lavendar a try.

Have a great Monday!

Winter is almost here....

It looks like winter outside today. It's really cold & the wind is blustery. The leaves are ankle deep in the yard & looks like it's going to be too cold to do much work out there this weekend -- so sad! Personally, I kind of like the look of leaves in the yard. We've even had a few snowflakes this morning.

Sage stayed last night & right now he's in drawing a picture of a project for him & me to make today. I swear, the boy is an engineer at heart! He sees something in his mind's eye & has to get it down on paper. Sometimes it's a real challenge for G'ma. Anyway, we'll be spending our day with Sage.

Stella & G'ma made cookies while Phoebe slept yesterday. She wanted me to take a picture of her & her peanut-butter cookie snowman since her camera was kind of on the blink. Darn those Chinese-made cameras!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend & stay warm!!!!

A few of my favorite things -- quilts & wool

I'm so sorry that this quilt doesn't show up better because it's truly wonderful. It's very old but whoever made it did a beautiful job -- & all hand quilted. It has a little paisley fabric in it that almost matches the paisley chair in front of it. One of the women in the shop, Carol, made the slipcover on the chair. I think Carol has made slipcovers for about everyone in a 200 mile radius & a few farther out. We had two of these wingbacks slipcovered & they're now sitting in front of our electric fireplace. We're having a hard time staying away from them -- especially when someone brings treats from Starbucks.

This is a settee that I painted brown & covered feather pillows with a heavy wool throw. I love the idea of mixing wicker with wool & it looks great -- if I do say so myself.

Lunch at Springcreek Antiques & Tearoom

I haven't had time for months to go to Springcreek for lunch or shopping so Judy & our friend Jane & I had lunch there today. The line is usually quite long so we had plenty of time to shop. If you're ever in Ozark MO at lunch time, you have to eat here. We had a wonderful sandwich & salad but there desserts are to die for. We had coconut cream pie & we practically licked the plate. Nobody makes desserts like Brenda at Springcreek.

Here are a few of the things that were in the shop. I loved this little pine chair & handmade doll.
This is Mandy's booth & I've forgotten her blog name but I'll list it later & link to it on my blog. She has the cutest space with wonderful things for a child's room. My friend, Jane, collects sock monkeys & she's found several in this booth. She does want the world to know that she has her limit of sock monkeys now & unless she finds a really special one, she's not adding anymore to her collection. Yeah, sure!!!!

Love this ironstone! The pitchers were grazed & stained. That's my favorite.

Does this not look like a treasure trove! Vintage ornaments are selling like hotcakes right now. Don't you wonder where people keep finding them. Probably at all those garage sales I miss. I had a hard time finding many this year but some of the girls had tons. Guess I need to get up earlier on garage sale days.

Is this not the cutest Mrs. Claus suit!!!! I tell you if I had a body this small, it would have gone home with me. Can't you just see it with a pair of Danskin Leggings? OK, get your minds out of the gutter; I know what you all were thinking. Like that's going to happen -- especially since it's about 10 sizes too small. Oh, well, maybe next year I will have lost 85 lbs -- don't hold your breath!

A good "inside" day!

It turned out to be a good day after all. The car is fixed & wasn't too expensive & I ended up having some company. Was so glad to see them -- they always brighten my day. Allison & Stella having a little one-on-one time. Allison had teacher's conferences today & she was pooped. It's hard being a teacher & a Mom sometimes. Wish I could hire her a maid.
I actually got a little work done on this wool piece. I've worked on it off & on for quite a while so now I think it's finished & can go on the table.

The Riddles have a new Jack Russell terrier puppy. Why anyone with 3 kids would want a Jack Russell terrier is beyond me but don't remember anyone asking me. The dog kind of came to them & they all love it. Their old dog, Jasper, died several months ago & I knew Allison couldn't go very long without a dog.

My big day off!!!

So much for having a carefree day off. My car is making strange noises & vibrating so I ended up having to take it to the shop. We had a flat tire on Sun. morning so I'm hoping I can count this as # 2 (noises) & #3 (vibrating) since things always seem to happen in 3's. When I went into the lobby to wait, I picked up a Nov. Country Home magazine & started reading a story about a woman who had taken off & moved to the country & she was explaining how if you live with fear, you end up missing out on a lot that life has to offer. It just seemed like I was suppose to read that today because much of my life is lived being afraid. Besides that, I found a "heads-up" penny. Wish me luck!!!!

Christmas Open House at Leola's - Sun. edition!

Well, it's all over but the shouting!!!! We had an exceptional open house despite the economy & hope it's a good sign for the holiday season ahead. We received wonderful compliments about the store & about all the hard work that went into it. It made it soooo worthwhile even if we're all totally pooped -- & I have to work today while Judy sits all day in her pj's & eats bon-bons (she told us that was her plan). Guess I'll have to wait until Tues.

This is a picture of my sister, Judy, me & our very good friend, Brenda (we lived in the same tiny town in our youth). We worked, along with Kelli, on Sunday but sorry, Kelli had already left the shop. Brenda just came into the shop with us & makes the most wonderful wreaths & florals along with her cabin-look antiques. She lives in an amazing log cabin in the country & is one of the best decorators I know. We're all so happy to have her.
Jim & Dulcy bought these awesome vintage candles for their front porch. You will probably be able to find them soon on Dulcy's blog "Dulcy's doorstep" (you can link to it from "my favorites"). She makes hooked rugs & various other related items. She made her needlepoint handbag & it was gorgeous. Dulcy's mom, Anne, made tiny dolls for us years ago when we all had a shop in Galloway, MO called Eli McGee Mercantile. Jim, who is a professional photographer, has taken pictures of many of our kid's weddings, including Allison's. Not to brag, but he doesn't normally do weddings but because he's been such a longtime friend (& is such a good guy) he agreed to do ours. I know I use the word "amazing" a lot but Jim truly is.

This handsome family is Judy's son Shane's family -- & Judy's g'children -- John Lake, Jordyn, & Eli.

Guess I'd better get ready for work. It's very cold here this Mon. morning but bright & sunny. Have a great weak! PEACE!

Christmas Open House at Leola's - Fri. edition!

It was another great day at Leola's. The weather turned quite cold overnight so it felt like Christmas was upon us. We had steady customers all day long & Judy, Kelli & I worked all day. I don't know what we would do without the other women in the shop. They all stop in during the day & help out for awhile & bless Debra's heart, she even runs the vacuum. I'm so pooped tonight that I'm fixing me a hot spiced chai tea & settling in to watch NOW on PBS.

I had to show these adorable pictures of Brooke, Grace & Gabby. They all bought Christmas aprons & are thinking they might have their Christmas picture made in them. We couldn't find one for Dad. When those girls wear their aprons to school, we will be slammed with other little girls wanting them. They're just too cute!

Leola's Christmas Open House

Yea!!!! We had a great 1st night of our open house. It was like a big family reunion -- I think everyone new each other. It was wonderful to have all our hard work appreciated. Just wanted to show a few pictures before I went back to work.

Kelli made these beautiful bookmarks. What a wonderful gift!

This is Ron Johnson from the thicket. He came & autographed his new book "My Favorite Things". It is one of the prettiest Christmas decorating books that I've seen. If you want one, just contact us. He's just a most-talented guy!

Decorating for Christmas at Leola's

The leaves are falling like crazy here & I wanted to show one of the trees in our front yard. The trees are absolutely gorgeous but poor Mike is going to have quite a job cleaning the leaves up this weekend. Sorry, I can't help -- I have to work at Leola's.

We've worked so hard this week but it's really shaping up. We received a big order of candles today in the yummiest fragrances & Jean got in a big order of popcorn. We've totally redone the store & we have one new vendor -- Brenda Beck. She is incredibly talented & loves the lodge look. It's really amazing how everyone in the shop adds a little different dimension to Leola's. This is Kelli's corner cabinet that's loaded with vintage red Christmas.

This is a vintage tall bottlebrush tree in my area.

Sandy's tree is completely covered with "stuff". Most of it isn't what you would normally think of putting on a Christmas tree but is sooooo cute.

Pam brought in all new shirts & jackets. She does such an excellent job in displaying her things.

These are the dress forms that Kelli made wings for. They'll go all across the front of the shop. Jeff hung old wooden slat awnings across the front of the shop & it completely changed the look of the shop.

Debra was still decorating her space so I'll take more of hers tomorrow.

This is Judy's area & her dress form. She always comes up with some amazing things.