One World One Heart 2011: Twigs and Tulle

Welcome to ~*you*~, new and returning blog visitors!



My name is Michaele (pronounced My-kul, like Michael Jordan) and I'm so glad you stopped by to visit!  Whether you've found your way here from Lisa's master list of links, or from my first blog, Kindergarten's 3 R's (there's a giveaway going on there too for teachers/educators/homeschoolers/early childhood advocates!), I hope you'll enjoy your stay.

Twigs and Tulle is my second blog, created after I realized that at forty-one years of age, I compartmentalize my life between home and work: I'm a full time kindergarten teacher who immerses herself in the land of finger painting, math, literacy, and hands-on explorations by day, and a wife, mother, collector and crafter by night and weekend.  Consequently, I have many teacher friends, an ever-growing posse of crafty friends, and quite a few (most of them Alaskans, go figure!) who traipse happily between both worlds. Twigs and Tulle is where the non-kindergarten teacher part of my soul comes to share, create and explore.

I can be a bit rant-y at the ~other~ blog, though I do try to balance it out with colorful bulletin board ideas, silly stories, and helpful resources... darn you NCLB.

Ooh, glitter!  Pretty paper!  Ribbon!

That's me, Michaele-Who-is-Trying-to-Find-Balance.  Crafty interventions seem to help.

If you're a fellow blogger, I am SO looking forward to dropping by for a peek, a read, and hopefully a lengthy meander.  Lisa's... well, I suppose it's her brainchild, though it seems more to me like her heartchild... blogland event has introduced me to so many creative and friendly people, an incredible gift.

My present back to one lucky visitor?



A mini-bunting, made by me, of paper, tulle and ribbon... it's a small token of kissy affection, spanning only one and a half feet across in pennants, though the tying ribbons on either end lengthen it to almost three feet.

Pin it to a corkboard or pinboard display, drape it across a mirror or even tack it up above your own crafty workspace.  It folds away if you'd rather use it for future valentine or anniversary celebrations, but no matter when or where you choose to display it, I hope you'll enjoy, enjoy, ENJOY!

To win, please post a comment ~on this post only~, and make sure I have an email address or blog link (with contact info) for you in case you're the winner.

I'll be drawing the winner on February 17!

Happy reading!

Find-It-Friday: Master Salt Cellars and Spoons

Here's another collection I'm building, based off of a salt cellar that once belonged to my great-grandmother:



I have over twenty small salt cellars (yes Mother, you read that right!), but have only one "master cellar," about three inches across.  I also only have one shovel-design spoon and would love to obtain more.

If you have links to antique stores, vintage/antique glassware sellers or some other magic genie who can help me find footed master salts and shovel spoons, please leave their info in the comments section!

*****

How many "treasure hunters" are out there?  If you're looking for a special item, leave a comment here or post about it at your own blog linking back so fellow readers can blog-hop and help you (and me!) track down the goodies we're looking for!

Starting a New Collection

I've been an Eskimo in Oz for...five years?

These caught my eye at a nearby antique shop (they're salt and pepper shakers made in Japan):

... and these were found on Ebay (also made in Japan):



CUTE Eskimos, not garishly-drawn caricatures, are what I'm on the lookout for to build my newest collection!

Sitting Room

Thanks to the purchase of a new couch for the family/living room, I now have the "old" loveseat and my huge round coffee table situated in the front room:



There's room for my magazines, a basket of yarn, my laptop and a cup of coffee... heaven!



I can see our china hutch, full of pretty dishes, icons, Russian lacquer and tchotchkes...



... with some twigs and lace nearby for good measure.



I can still keep on an eye on the kids as they negotiate for Wii time in the living room (yes, that's a student desk)...



... but here is where my new tea (or coffee) reading/crocheting/blogging rituals are going to take place.

With the deer looking at me.

**grin**

L-O-V-E Mini Bunting

... now available in my Etsy Shop!



The "Queen of Hearts" in me LOVES these!

Black and cream harlequin/diamond paper with red medallions... topped with white glitter "stamps" and raised pink glitter letters.  Six pennants on red grosgrain ribbon with white tulle ties... so cute, and only 3 feet, 6 inches in length TOTAL (that ~includes~ the tying ribbon).

I think I've got valentines on the brain!

Hearts Everywhere

... especially in the crafty nook:



The crocheted hearts are waiting to be strung along a single chain to make a garland...



... while the paper ornies haven't decided if they want to be gift tags, cupcake/cake toppers or valentine ornaments...



I still have to decide what kinds of valentines to make for my husband and children... any ideas?

K-I-S-S

K-I-S-S bunting is now available in my Etsy Shop!

New-to-Me Craft: Bottle Brush Trees

Two years ago I bought piles of bottle brush trees on clearance from Target, and promptly left them in their packages, tied up in their shopping bags.

When we moved, the bags were moved, but not opened.

Until three weeks ago, when I not only opened the bags, but the product packaging as well!  Inspired by all sort of Christmas crafts and links upon which I'd stumbled and bookmarked for uh.... two years... I bleached them... and washed them... and dyed them.



Pink, reddish, and gray.  The gray was supposed to be black because I thought it would be fun to make some Halloween decor off-season.  Alas, despite the inky hue of the dye wash, the trees came out more chilled and wintery looking than foreboding.

I decided to work with it.



Buttons, pink beads, pom poms and ribbon...



... don't forget some little flowers...



... and what the heck, why not throw in some poly-fill and a cupcake liner for good measure?



These were so much fun to make!

Tell me:  are you a mono-crafter or a multi-crafter?

Happiness Sunday

Happiness for me this Sunday?

Crafting...

Filling up my crafty nook with valentine goodness...

...then emptying it as I package all of the bunting up to send to Sarah for this year's Heart to Heart Swap:

Of *course* I added hearts to the box~ how else will she know what goodies have arrived on her doorstep?

The Peacock Cafe

... if you can't tell by the photos, is pure ~*bliss*~!

If you're traveling this way, drop in and visit my friend Kelly, and for goodness sake, order her delicious pasta salad!  How good were the sandwiches and salads?  So good that I never got photos of them, because I was too busy noshing it all down.

Oops.  Just means I have to go back.

Soon.

The Peacock Cafe, open Tuesday-Saturday, 10-3.
109 North 5th Street
Leavenworth, Kansas

Humorous Valentines

I've got Valentine's Day on the brain, and thanks to two snow days in a row, have had time to play with vintage images I've found in local antique malls.

I plan on making some ornaments and more bunting, but for now I'm indulging my humorous side:



Dear Husband and Danielle both say that the expressions the photographer captured on these two may have, in fact, been caused by someone...

*~ahem~*

... passing gas.

If ~that~ isn't humorous, what is?

I ❤ the Heart to Heart Swap!

Last year, one of my New Year's goals was to participate in my first ever crafty exchange.  Sarah at Makin' Projiks hosted her Heart to Heart swap, and I was thrilled to be chosen to participate!



I made blue bitty banners, and sent them on their way to Sarah who was collecting goodies from all the swap members, divvying them up, and mailing them back to us all so that we'd have one valentine from each crafter.  Look at what I received last year:




Because the flood destroyed all of our February and October decor, I kept my fingers crossed that Sarah would once again hold the Heart to Heart Swap.

Finger-crossing works!

I've spent this snowy-ish weekend crafting away in the nook, playing with paper, ribbon, adhesive, stickers, buttons, beads and tulle:



Yes, I ❤ the Heart to Heart Swap!

*****

Does anyone out there know of any July 4 or Halloween crafty swaps?  Let me know in the comments section!

Cupcake Holder from Target

A recent visitor to Twigs and Tulle asked what sorts of goodies I had in my white plastic coated wire tiered cupcake stand from Target:



The crafty materials change with each season or holiday, so the cups Dear Husband gave me this Christmas (from Starbucks' holiday tea sets) are now full of red and heart shaped buttons, rick rack, crafty flowers, vintage pricing stickers, white, red, and pink strands of beads, and even lollipop sticks.



Did you notice the Hershey's Kisses AND Halls Cough Drops?  What a combo!

I love the cupcake holder, and the tea cups fit perfectly, though small votives also work well.  Some crafters recycle baby food jars or other similarly sized glass or plasticware to keep their bits and bobs, odds and ends close at hand but contained.

Target also sold the same cupcake stand in black last October, over which I have been
k-i-c-k-i-n-g myself ever since for not having purchased!

How do you store and display your craft materials?

Work in Progress: Mother in Law

I'm LOVING working with vintage images, but need to seriously buckle down and learn all I can about Photoshop Elements.

How to find the time?  Make the time?  Have the time?

Happy New Year

Imagine.



Welcome, 2011!