I mentioned not too long ago that I’ve been trying to get more organized, but I want PRETTY organization, not just plastic tubs. Now, I do have the plastic tubs, but I also have been picking up little shelves, baskets, and little wallpaper covered chests of drawers and boxes whenever I see them (and can afford them!). This wall is covered floor to ceiling in STUFF, but at least it’s pretty!
I picked up the pink shelves, and the two wallpaper drawers on top just recently. LOVE them. I was thrilled to find the vintage dress form about a week ago while antiquing with my fabulous fun friend for only $65! WooHoo! My husband said “you PAID for that?!” and my son said “it would look a lot better with a head, mom.” which is hilarious because this girl’s son said almost the same thing to her about her dress form! Boys. The foufy dress she’s wearing is already packed and on it’s way to the new owner. She’ll be naked for a while, but I will clothe her in finery such as tattered ribbons, old worn out faux pearls, and other treasures.
The rest of the stuff you’ve seen before, but I just had to show you the new pretty organization I had found!
Meanwhile, back at the ranch…….
I’ve had a LOT of requests to make up more of the Sweet Shoppe Candy Boxes, and so I’ve decided to take orders on them, but I’m only allowing 12 orders because, as you know, vintage wallpaper is not made anymore! So, I only have enough stuff to make 12. You can order them HERE in the “make & embellish” section of the shop. I’m so glad you love all the goodies in them as much as I do!
Aren’t they pretty? I love the sherbet colors.
In other SWEET news, here are a few peeks from my gal pals for their projects in the Sweet Six Studio Online Art Retreat. Now remember, we aren’t showing you ALL of them, just some, so there will be TONS more wonderfulness waiting for you! If you’d like to join us, come on over and sign up.
This first peek is an ADORABLE flower brooch that Analise is going to show us how to make. IS THIS DARLING or what?! It’s almost as sweet as Analise herself. I love that girl. She is kind, gentle and such a loving mom, and a dear friend. And to top that all off, her brooch rocks!
Next up is Jenn. Oh my gosh. I just don’t even know where to begin with this girl! Her work is always a delight. I squeeled when I saw these! Jenn is another beautiful girl and I am so glad to know her. Her joyfulness and playfulness shine through in everything she does, don’t you think? I love that. Again, she’s such a loving mom and I think that shows in her sentimental art too.
Tomorrow I’ll show you a peek from Heather and one from Cheryl. Wait till you see them!
Hi girls, I have SO much to blog about but have been so crazy busy this week, that I have not even had a chance. I have so much to show you! I promise another post tomorrow, but wanted to pop in real quick and tell you a couple of things.
First of all, I’ve decided that instead of doing a once monthly Flea Market Friday, that for now I will just have a little fleamarket section of the shop. Whenever I find something special, I’ll put it in there right away. I’ll always write a blog post and post on flickr when I have new goodies. And today, I have new goodies! The fabulous vintage prom dress above is one, another is the cute little budior shade below.
You know I always try to make the stuff in the fleamarket special and fun, with good prices, so I hope you’ll like that the prom dress is only $48.50. It’s so cute! OK, I’m off to clean the kitchen. Ugh.
Aren’t these so darling? This is my contribution to the Pre-Bella swap that Karla is hosting. I thought they turned out so pretty that I decided to make a few extras and put them in the shop.
They each include 6 sheets of vintage wallpaper in beautiful sherbet hues in a mini-roll tied up with ribbon. The sheets vary in size from 5 by 7 to 6 x 10 randomly. Also included are 10 scalloped punched ovals of vintage wallpaper, and 3 different samples of millinery. The millinery includes a pink velvet wired mini garland of forget-me-nots as well as other millinery that I don’t even sell, it’s just goodies from my stash including the bunch of pink paper forget-me-nots and two minty green velvet medallion flowers. All these taffy colors will be sure to satisfy your artistic sweet-tooth!
These fun little boxes will be listed in just a little while.
In other SWEET and pretty news, I want to show you the FUN and fabulous project my dear friend Natasha is doing for the Sweet Six Studio Online Art Retreat. By the way, can I just say a word or two about my friend? Natasha is truly one of the most generous, lovely and beautiful souls I’ve ever met. She is the friend that everyone trusts and loves, the one you’re grateful you have and the kind you hope you can be. She’s also a total lunatic and I can’t wait to meet her at Silver Bella. But, I digress… check it out! (and also check out her darling powder room. love that green.)
Isn’t this DARLING? Natasha is going to teach us how to make our own bath crystals! This will be perfect for gifts for Christmas. I think I’m going to do this with my kiddos and give them to teachers and grandparents too! But the really cool part is that Natasha has hand illustrated a “French” bath label for you do download and print to use in embellishing your bath jar. Here’s a closer look:
Isn’t her drawing beautiful? I can’t wait to do these projects with you. It will be so much fun and I am so excited to learn new things.
In other news, if you’ve tried to email me today or yesterday, I didn’t get it! The internet server in our little town went down and just now came back up. Not coincidentally, I also got a lot of laundry done yesterday……hmmm……. wonder why?
Hope you all are having a lovely day. I’m off to ship off all my little boxes!
Every few days, we will be showing you a few of the projects we have planned for the Sweet Six Studio Online Art Retreat that starts on September 2. We won’t show you all of them, of course, gotta have a little mystery! Just a little taste at the things that await you if you come play with us! Here is one of my projects, Embellished Wallpaper Photo Boards. I will show you how to make these heavy, strong boards and made in a way that you can change your photos out at whim. I love them!
This pinkish/beige one I’ve been calling “Apron Strings” because I snipped off the ties of a sweet old apron to use as an embellishment. Very sentimental to me. You know I love anything about motherhood. I’ve been singing that song for days.
I’ll show you how to make the boards, with step by step photos showing me making this actual baord, as well as written directions.
Here’s another I made with the same techniques, but larger to hold two pictures:
here it is without the pictures:
This is something I developed myself because I LOVE the wonderful old paper portraits I’d seen others make, but I wanted to use photos of my family and people I loved. I didn’t want to sew or glue them on because I change my mind about pictures and like to see new ones out now and then. Also, i wanted something sturdier, not just paper. So I developed this technique. Necessity is the mother of invention! I can’t wait to share it with you in our workshops. You’ll love making your own with your own paper and embellishments and photos of your own little cherubs or other loved ones. I’ve also made these in larger squares, 18 x18, they come out very cool. I’ll show those pictures in the workshop too.
Oh, you won’t believe the gorgeous things the girls have planned for you! And give-aways! Sooo many give-aways. We’ve had such a huge response already and I am touched and humbled, girls. Thank you so much for joining up with us and for the sweet comments here and on the Sweet Six blog. Wow. You guys know how to make a girl feel loved. I’m so excited to get to play with you and make cool stuff along side you. It’s something I wish we could all do in person, but since we can’t always do that, this is such a great way to get together. Can’t we all just chip in and buy an island somewhere and all move there? That would rock.
If you haven’t signed up yet, don’t worry we just got started! Head over there now and order your very own subscription to our Month-Long Online Art Retreat! There will be 12 art projects with step by step photos and directions from me and 5 of my favorite girls in the world, and in between there will be many give-aways, blog posts from each of us on decorating and organizing ideas, and more. It will be so much fun! I hope you’ll join us. The private workshop begins Sept. 2!
OK, I hope you like my project. I’m keeping my other one under wraps, but some of the other sweet girls will be sharing a project or two with you soon.
Hello my friends. Are you curious about the teasers you’ve been seeing around blogland the past few days? It’s time to tell you what we’ve been up to! My friends, Natasha Burns, Analise Sledd, Jenn Hayslip, Cheryl Dack, Heather Kowalski and I have been dreaming up a super fun month-long Online Art Retreat! The name is Sweet Six Studio and it’s going to be so much fun! You can go over to the the Sweet Six blog now and take a moment or two to read the beautiful post that Cheryl wrote to introduce you to our new endeavor. The workshops will begin on September 2nd. The cost for the Sweet Six Studio is $22.00 and there will be a total of 12 projects with detailed instructions, shopping lists, and step-by-step photos to take you through the month of September. In between projects, we’ll be posting pretty decorating ideas, and fun give-aways.
Here are a few little peeks at some of the projects we have in store for you:
And here’s a larger peek at one of mine. We’ll all be doing 2 projects, 2 fun inspirational blog posts (in addition to our projects) that will include things such as decorating ideas and tips, and 1 give-away. That means 6 give-aways total.
I haven’t decided what I’ll be giving away yet, maybe some millinery and wallpaper, which could come in quite handy when making my particular project! hint hint ;) The very first give-away is for everyone, the rest are going to be just for the Sweet Girls who join us. Analise is getting the first give-away together now. We want you to join in the fun with us, so please stop by the Sweet Six Blog today! Isn’t the banner that Heather of Pretty Petals Boutique made so lovely? She also made a darling button you can snag and put on your blog if you’re going to play with us.
We’ll have a flickr group so we can all post our finished projects. I can’t wait to make them along with you.
Oh, I hope you’ll join us during our month-o-fun! Isn’t this a lovely way to kick start the end-of-summer-beginning-of-the-holiday season (or for my Australian friends, quite the opposite!)? I think so. I hope to see you there!
Still workin away on my necklaces. I promise to have these and the earrings for sale soon. I’ve had a few emails about these and the bracelets…. I’ll get started on the bracelets after the necklaces. Thought you might like to see another picture of some works in progress. Here is Ballerina, Strawberry Milkshake, and La Mer (French for The Sea).
Do you see it? Can you spy it just over the hills and beyond the treeline? Hmm, not yet, but we’re getting closer. Some dear friends and I have been brewing something special for you and we’re almost ready to show you.
I actually hate being teased like this, but I promise you won’t have to wait long, my sweet friends. I’ll spill the beans soon!
Here are some sneak peeks at some of the things for sale on flea market friday. I will have some sweet things, and some fun things for Halloween decorating too. I hope you like them and I hope to see you this evening! xo
vintage working ballerina music & jewelry box:
vintage faux pearl baby bracelets:
Sweet Nancy Ann wedding couple dollies:
vintage pink tutu:
vintage chalkware wedding party cake toppers with gothic arch:
And now for the fun fall and Halloween items
vintage black and yellow bumble bee dance costume (I’m humming Blind Melon now!)
amazing very very old black and white dance costume, perfect for hanging on a door at Halloween. Just add a banner across that says “Pumpkin Queen” or “Halloween Princess” or some such festive thing and you’re set!
even comes with the vintage matching headpiece:
a perfectly pumpkin colored hat full of velvet flowers for your Sweet & Sinister projects, perhaps?
It’s the second Friday of the month, so that means it’s Flea Market Friday. I love a good flea market, don’t you? I hope you’ll join me at 7:30 central time, Friday for a few fun goodies. I’ll have lots of sweet goodness, including some fun fall and halloween inspired things. It’s right around the corner, you know! There are beautiful halloween dance costumes and I know you’ll want to display them as soon as fall hits, so I’m offering them in plenty of time. Here are some other pictures of a few things I’ll be listing this evening:
I’m selling my vintage Nancy Ann Wedding/Bride dollies. I know. They’re fabulous. Lot’s of other things too, you’ll have to stop back by to see more pictures this afternoon.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch…… This last week was SUCH a busy and fun time! I was delighted that Heather was visiting all the way from sunny California. She and her little girl stayed with the amazing Donna. We all three met and went to our local flea market together, antiques shopping, and just had a lovely time visiting. I am DISGUSTED with myself that I don’t have pictures. Disgusted. Donna did take some pictures, but she posted the most HIDEOUS picture of me ever taken on her blog. It was taken in my kitchen when we got home from meeting for lunch on a windy, HOT (104) day and my hair is tangled, ratty, stringy and windblown and all my make-up is sweated off. Ha ha…. BUT, here’s the part that chaps my cheeks… Donna had the nerve to post that picture, but CROP HERSELF OUT! I am outraged! I have to figure a way to get her back…. hmmm… I dunno, I think she’s more clever and crafty than I. I may be outmatched. Heather posted that same picture on her blog. It’s a conspiracy, I tell you!
Anyway, we had much fun. You should SEE Donna’s studio. I have never seen so much vintage wallpaper or so many vintage millinery flowers in my life. I thought I had a large collection. Honey, you ain’t seen “collecting” until you’ve seen Donna’s studio! Seriously. Major coveting.
Both Heather and Donna were a joy to meet and I hope that Donna and I can get together more often since we’re only about an hour apart.
I know I’m up late blogging tonight, but my husband told me today he needed 4 dozen cookies for work tomorrow, and since I totally forgot about them until I woke up startled at 1:00 am, here I sit waiting for them to cool so I can put them in the stinkin tupperware and get my self back to bed! They aren’t gettin homeade, it was break and bake, baby. I really could have told him to just stop by walmart and grab some pre-made cookies, but I hate to do that to him. He works so hard and provides for us (and my wallpaper/millinery/vintage rhinestones addiction) so lovingly, so if I have to make cookies in the middle of the night, then I really am happy to do it.
Anyhoo…. I hope to see you back here at 7:30 central for some fun flea finds! Have a lovely Flea Market Friday!
Before I tell you about the pretty things I’ve been working on, I want to tell you how to add me to your Google Reader. Everyone always tells me they can’t get my blog to show up. You have to use this address: http://hollydoodledesigns.com/WordPress/?feed=rss2 . It will show up as “Happy Creativity” which was the original name of my blog, about a year and a half ago, before my smart husband incorporated it into my website. He’s going to update the name, but he hasn’t yet, so for now, look for “Happy Creativity” after you enter the above address. I hope this helps!
Back to the good stuff…..I thought you might like to see a little peek of the works-in-progress jewelry I’ve been making. These and more delightful things will be for sale later this week.
This first necklace is my favorite. Don’t you love these colors? A few of the smaller rhinestones are missing in some of the vintage jewelry pieces, but I don’t mind that. It’s not done, but here is my work in progress.
It’s all vintage, except the wire to wire-wrap it all together of course. Do you LOVE the vintage opaque PINK czech glass beads? Yum. I also made earrings out of these beads. I have a little stash of them that I stumbled onto one day and I think they are so delicious. They look like those little French candies that come in a tin, don’t they?
I really love these. It’s so hard to find cute earrings. I wore these to the flea market this weekend and to a nice (well, I use that term losely, to me, nice means anywhere that does not give you a free piece-of-junk plastic toy with your order. But, I digress….) dinner that night and got compliments at both places. The colors are so soft and gentle, beautiful. And of course the sparkle of the Swarovski crystal adds just the right amount of glamour. They hang on oxidized sterling silver ear wires.
I hope you like them, they’ve been a lot of fun to think about and make. I am enjoying wearing them. I will have these and more for you soon. Thanks for stopping by, and have a lovely week.
