Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Frosting

Frosting is what I woke up to this morning……a light frosting of snow.  The weather outside is frightful…..not really….just cold. Especially cold when you are standing on the front porch, barefooted, in your pj’s taking snow pictures :)

But indoors it’s warm and toasty……especially toasty in the sunroom where all of the tropical plants are being overwintered.

Oh how I wish there was enough room for a comfy chair to sit in and hook and look outside the window to the birdfeeder.

I love this chair!

That would be heaven.

However, just walking in to take pictures I’m poked and prodded by palm leaves, agave spears and cactus needles…..it’s dangerous in there :)

A good day for hooking? I think yes!

 

Saturday, December 26, 2009

Day after Christmas

to me feels like a big sigh

A sigh of relief

A sigh of contentment

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Truths

I’ve found this past week that we all have truths that we need to release, but sometimes we feel we can’t burden others with these truths.

The thing is….it makes others feel closer to us, to realize that no matter how things look on the outside….they are not always that way on the inside.
What is your truth?
Please make all “truths” that you share in the comment section anonymous….some of us have others we can share our truths with….others do not.
It will make you feel so much lighter.

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Sunday, December 20, 2009

I’m dreaming of…..

……a beautiful, modern rug hooking publication.
…..and you thought I was going to say
“A White Christmas”
…gotcha!
How do I even start to write this post? 
I really don’t mean to offend the publishers/editors at “Rug Hooking Magazine”.  I’m thankful that there ARE rug hooking publications around, but I want something
UPDATED
INSPIRING
BEAUTIFUL PHOTOGRAPHY
I want a publication more like the ones that
put out.
With beautiful covers like this…

or this
 
or this

Features on artists….beautiful features….artfully laid out.







Beautiful how to projects:


I guess what I’m saying is ….PHOTOGRAPHY….I want beautiful PHOTOGRAPHY….show us how these rugs and projects can fit into our lives and make our lives more beautiful!
Here is a prodded Christmas wreath from Gail Dufresne…..it’s beautiful…..but think how much more INSPIRED you would be to make it if it were beautifully photographed.
Hang it over a fence post in the middle of a snowy field, put it in the middle of a beautifully set table with a candle in the center….
make me WANT to make it!

Or this “Ring Out Joy” pattern by Linda Fernandes……place it on an old farm table, hang it on a primitive cupboard….
show me the possibilities!
Please!

The articles have been evolving….now the photography needs to catch up.
Here is a great article that they are working on now about ATC’s

If you want to participate click HERE.
Yes, I work full-time, so starting up some sort of NEW magazine is not in the works for me…..let’s urge our publications to challenge themselves to grow!
If you'd like to drop the editor at Rug Hooking Magazine a note here is her e-mail address:


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Friday, December 18, 2009

Friday

Ahhhh, it's Friday.
 Going into the weekend knowing that my Christmas shopping is complete and all I have to do is more wrapping of gifts.
I'm soooo enjoying the wrapping this year because I have time to sit down and enjoy it.



There's just something about making those neat creases in the paper....taping...embellishing.....instant satisfaction!

The past few years I've just crammed things in gift bags  with some tissue paper....I'm not saying that's bad...there are a LOT of cute bags out there, but there is just SOMETHING about getting a gift that's wrapped and UNWRAPPING it.



Do you tear off the paper, or do you try to keep it all together in one piece?
Me?
 If the paper is beautiful I try to open it carefully, but usually I just tear into it!

Here's another idea for simple wrapping....jute and sprigs of cedar....simple and beautiful. You can also add an ornament that you are tired of to spiff it up a bit.  Great way to recycle!

Wouldn't it be great if you had a whole "gift-wrapping" room or station?! These are beautiful and look nothing like what I have going on at home :)
My wrapping paper is strewn about the floor and tape and scissors and ribbons are in a plastic bag....ahhhhh, to have a dream!  What would we do without aspirations of greatness?

Tori Spelling's mom has a gift-wrap ROOM!


The luxury!
Want more gift-wrapping ideas.....go HERE!
This woman is the "gift-wrapping guru of the UK!
Who knew?!

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Tied with a bow

Back here I talked about how much I wanted to try to be more creative with my Christmas gift-wrapping this year and yesterday I actually sat down and did it!

I love how it turned out….very simple and pretty!

Just muslin, torn into strips and then pulled several threads from each side to make them more shaggy.  Run the iron over the muslin and then just stamp away….a bit time consuming if you are in a hurry, but I didn’t have anything else on my plate yesterday….just enjoying making my packages beautiful.

I still have a few packages to wrap that will be arriving in the mail and on those I might try these tissue paper flowers made from vintage sewing patterns.  Aren’t they lovely?

I saw them on EAB Designs blog.  I don’t have ANY sewing patterns….let alone VINTAGE, so I’ll just try this with tissue paper and see how they turn out.  I have LOTS of odds and ends of jewelry and this will be a great way to give those pieces a new life.

Go forth and be creative,

Tammy

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Favorite Christmas tunes

Here are a few of my favorite renditions of Christmas tunes.....some you might not be familiar with.....enjoy!
I'd love to hear what songs you like.










It’s a wrap!

I’m off work today and it seems like a good day to do some Christmas wrapping.

I haven’t been blogging much…I guess not much to say.

I’ve been reveling in watching movies….”Julie & Julia” is great!

Baking fruitcakes.

Walking the dogs.

Driving around looking at Christmas lights.

Hooking.

Reading.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

The decorating continues….

Just a few shots of some of the Christmas decorating….most all of this has been done by my husband, Kenny, AKA “Father Christmas”!

This is our tree in the den…it’s flocked and pre-lit and I actually hang the ornaments on this one.

Kenny gave me this “May Your Day Be Merry and Bright” sign a few years ago for Christmas….I love it!  He had the little (now vintage) Santa as a child.

I bought this Nativity scene several years ago….I still love it!

This year we got a real, cut tree…a Frasier Fir….it smells beautiful and is holding up well under the weight of all the ornaments that go on this tree.  However, we only put about 1/3 of the ornaments that we usually put on this tree.

Here is a close-up of the top of it…..Kenny decorated most all of this tree…I hung a few ornaments and icicles.

I ran outside to take a few pictures of the outside of the house, but it was starting to rain….will try to get better pictures on a better night.

I love this light up white reindeer that is in our front window!

Have a warm and cozy evening,

Tammy

Saturday, December 5, 2009

Letting Go

Sometimes we have to let go of things in order to move forward.  In the past year or two I’ve let go of my eBay store, “Skip To My Ewe” , and turned it over full time to my good friend, Renee,  who is doing a wonderful job with it.

I’ve let go of my Etsy store as well.

During the past month I’ve also let go of my hooking group at Simply Fibers and put my wool business on the back burner for a while.

I love creating, whether it’s starting up a little business, creating rugs, making gifts, decorating, cooking or what have you.  The rug hooking business became more successful than I was able to handle and it was leaving me very little time for me to express myself in the many other ways that I like.

Today I’m going to venture forth and try to create some fruitcakes for the holidays as well as doing a bit more holiday decorating. I’m loving the extra time I have to revel in new adventures…it makes me feel fresh….I was starting to feel stale.

“Letting Go”

( image from Sascalia…see more of her art here)


To “let go” does not mean to stop caring; it
means I can’t do it for someone else.

To “let go” is not to cut myself off; it’s the
realization I can’t control another.


To “let go” is not enable, but to allow
learning from natural consequences.

To “let go” is to admit powerlessness, which 
means the outcome is not in my hands.


To “let go” is not to try to change or blame
another, it’s to make the most of myself.


To “let go” is not to care for, but to care about.


To “let go” is not to fix, but to be supportive.


To “let go” is not to judge, but to allow another
to be a human being.


To “let go” is not to be in the middle, arranging
all the outcomes, but to allow others to affect
their own destinies.


To “let go” is not to be protective, it’s to permit
another to face reality.


To “let go” is not to deny, but to accept.


To “let go” is not to nag, scold, or argue, but
instead to search out my own shortcomings
and correct them.


To “let go” is not to adjust everything to my
desires, but to take each day as it comes and
cherish myself in it.


To “let go” is not the regret the past, but to
grow and live for the future.


To “let go” is to fear less and love more.

-Author Unknown

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Ain’t this sweet?!

I got this award from Vicki over at Hogscald Holler

Here are the rules of this Kreativ Blogger Award.  I must list 7 things about me that you may not know, and then I’m supposed to pass it on to 7 more people.

Feeling lazy today, but here are my 7 things.

1. I can’t stand having a messy kitchen, but mess anywhere else in the house really doesn’t bother me.

2.  I prefer having on socks or shoes to going barefoot.

3.  I dated my husband off and on for 7 years before we got married.

4.  I miss my short hair….not sure why I’m growing it out….to get it back in a pony tail again, so I can cut it off short?

5.  I love living in a place where you can see the changing seasons.

 

6.  I had a fear of public speaking in high school so I signed up to try out for graduation speaker, just for the sake of practicing my public speaking in front of a small group.

I was selected to speak and had to speak in front of thousands of people on graduation day….needless to say, that day was a blur….I don’t remember most of it.

Now public speaking doesn’t bother me at all. I have spoken at graduation for my radiology class and took first place in a scientific paper presentation when I was in nuclear medicine school.

 

7.  I love glam, but I’m really a geeky girl at heart.

Did any of these surprise you?