Day 4

Can you smell it? This giftie, a wonderful homemade soap, comes from Chris Cunningham.
Click here to visit her blog. Thanks Cris! I will put it out when company comes this Holiday!

Day 3

Todays Wooden Angel was my contribution to the 12 Days of Christmas swap.
I have to admit, that I bought these unfinished wooden components about 5 years ago. They were by the dozen and wholesale....so I got a few. I made some up all rustic for my booths to compliment our barnwood stuff. Long story short, I found a couple boxes that were stashed away and decided to shabby glitz a few with distress inks and stickles and they turned out pretty good... so I decided since I need 12 for the swap that these would work perfect! Hope every enjoys them!

Day 2

This wonderful Art Angel ornament is the Day 2 Gift of the "12 Days of Christmas" swap and was created by Barbara Hagerty of Artiphy the Heart. Love it! Thank-you Barbara!

Getting my Jingle on...
I'm guilty of leaving some blogs on my computor, just to enjoy the music...
Farmchick's blog is a daily stop as her music list is just wonderful! Visit her at Fresh From The Farm for great recipes and great music!

Also...
Don't forget about Tim Holtz's "12 days of Christmas" Tag techniques.
CLICK HERE and head over to his blog.

Another note...
Lisa Vollrath of 'ten two studios' is having a Countdown to Christmas. She will post free new downloadable images each day. Be sure to check out the "rules."

Day 1

of "12 Days Of Christmas" swap!


Hosted by Jeri Aaron of An Artful Gathering, who gathered up 11 artful friends to join in the wonderful swap!
Today's gift, Number 1, is from Angie Hall Haviland. Wrapped in a sparkley snowman bag comes a sweet vintage snowgirl domino necklace. I love the light green and festive look...it will be so much fun to wear this holidays! Thank-you Angie!!

You can see more of her beautiful artwork on her blog: Angie's Art & Full Life.

Thankyou to my friend,
Diann Scholl
for passing on the Kreativ Blogger award to me! I'm now to pass it on to 5 of my friends who visit me often, leave great comments and who share awesome Creative Stuff on their blogs.
The rules for receiving the award are:
1. the winner may put the logo on their blog
2. put a link to the person who sent ou the award
3. nominate 5 blogs
4. put links to their blogs
5. leave a message for your nominees

I appreciate this award so very much, Diann!
All these ladies deserve this award for their outstanding art and blogs.

Linda - Just My Little Bit
Barbara - WW Creations
Patti - Altered Attic
Brenda - Memories and Treasures
Mary - Working Projects

Thanks again, Diann!
p.s. Don't forget...tomorrow is Monday...the start of "12 Days of Christmas"!!

12 days of Christmas

Aren't Swaps Fun! I was invited to join a group of wonderful gals for a "12 days of Christmas" gift exchange and the fun little packages have been arriving for the last few weeks. Talented artists, gorgeous handmade gifties...eeew, I can't wait!
This swap is based on the 12 days of Christmas and we open one a day, beginning on December 1st, which is this Monday. The true twelve days of Christmas begins the day after Christmas, but we open our goodies early to have more time to enjoy them. I'm Dec 3rd. I'll be posting all the gifts each day to share with you.
This should be Fun!

Also get ready for Tim Holtz's "12 days of Christmas" on his blog. He just announced that he is doing it again!
Last year it was wonderful to check in with him everyday to see step-by-step techniques using his new products and other Ranger products. This Year will be just as wonderful and I am really looking forward to it. He also blesses a lucky winner each day with goodies used in each days techniques, so you never know, you might get lucky! CLICK HERE and head over to his blog.
Monday is going to be a great day!!!!

I-Beam Collage

I call it an I-Beam because it is shaped like a capital I....hubby says it is a floor joist. When we did our remodel last Spring the carpenter mismeasured and had to cut 1 foot off every joist and was going to toss them...so, I snagged them with the thoughts that they would make great free-standing base for all types of mixed media techniques.
Recycle....and another cool thing, it can be reverseable or viewed from both sides if you choose. And if you don't have any lying around, you can get them at the lumber yard cut to size, if you take a whole beam, at about 2 bucks a foot... much cheaper than canvas.


I also wanted to mention that the barbwire is one of Tim Holtz's Masks and I used the throw-away waste and used it like a stencil.

Art Techniques FAT BOOK

Remember back in August, I told you all about the huge Fat Book Swap?? Where 120 artists create 120 4x4 pages of a special technique with instructions on the back??? Well, it ARRIVED!!
Wow! is all I can say. The time and effort, the wealth of knowledge, skill and inventive creative techniques that everyone put into this project is truely amazing and a beautiful Treasure!
When I knew the pages were on their way, I tried to come up with a way to put them together in book form. I made a left/right/doors type of hard covers that I could use my new Zutter Binder machine....

But when they arrived...it was WAY too FAT!


Two stacks of 60 was just NOT going to work. So today I made the same style book with 4 stacks of thirty pages that worked perfectly. All I need to do is figure out a creative closure for the front and I will be all done, then I will have a nifty way to store this wonderful FAT BOOK!!

Elections Over!!

Voting over...short sleeves and shorts one day, full on blizzard the next!! Can't take a picture or it would be a white out, power lines are down in surrounding counties and here I am...with internet service....unbelievable!!

Catfishing

Heading down the hill to the Favorite Fishing Hole...


A secret place...peaceful and quiet.


Up on the rock face at a certain time of day, appears Chief Catfish!!


Enjoying one of the few Indian Summer Days...before extreme cold hits. We caught a stringer full, some to fry up when we got home and some for the freezer.


And a beautiful sunset to end the day.....

Million Dollar Friend Award

Sometimes you cross paths with fellow bloggers that you end up getting to know beyond the posts on their blogs. Maybe from comments or e-mail conversations. Perhaps from forum art groups or ebay/etsy groups or swaps....
These friends are almost always distinguished in some way. They inspire, they listen, they share, they challenge or they just stand out in our blogging community.

I am thrilled to receive this award from sweet Brenda Wampler of Memories and Treasures,
who brightens the day and inspires wherever she goes. Thanks Brenda!!
So now I am supposed to pick four other bloggers that fit this bill, there are many, but I will list 4 that are most recent Million Dollar Friends.

Flora of Bone Head Studios who inspires with wonderful 'Works In Progress' of her art pieces.

Karen of Karen's Altered Dreamz who is a wonderful Soul Journal Sister!

Ruby Claire The youngest blogger I know, only 14, but has an old artistic soul!

Laume at Laume's Studio who always leaves supporting sweet comments....that's what friends do!

Halloween "SOUL" Party

Welcome to my Soul Journal Halloween Blog Party!
My Soul Journal Sisters are having a Halloween party today!
Be sure to visit all of my soul journal sisters and friends by click on the link below that will take you to the host site...Kathryn the Collage Diva. There you will find the LIST of other blogs. Fill free to scroll and stroll down everyone's blogs to see all the wonderful Soul Journal pages shared over the last few months.

Soul Journal Blog Party (CLICK HERE)



Halloween is fun. It's a 'throw away all your cares and be a kid again type of holiday'. People really need that, what with the stock market and scary economy. It's a big make-believe holiday where it is ok to dress up and play along with the kids.
Decorating is enchanting, treats are yummy and who doesn't just love to be someone else for an evening???







Feel free to use any of the pictures above...my TREAT!

Blog Candy Giveaway..... "EYE"let Candy
Okay, this is one giveaway you will DEFINITELY want to enter -visit Kristin Hubick at Reto Cafe'!!

Vanessa's Party was Great Fun and it was sure fun to see where all my visitors arrived from!

Tonight I pick a winner of my Giveaway!!
The Winner is.....
Lynn@ The Vintage Nest
http://lifeatcedarhill.blogspot.com/

There's another Party on Sunday, so please stop in again!!

Blog PARTY Giveaway

Vanessa at A Fanciful Twist (CLICK HERE) is the Hostess of FUN parties and this one is no exception! Looks like over 200 blogs so far have joined in, many with great giveaway Trick or Treats!
Don't miss out...visit her site to get the list and go blog hopping...oops
I mean, Trick or Treating!!

This 7 inch squared glitzy box is BIG and will hold alot of goodies for your lil'door-knockers.

All you have to do to win this, is to leave a comment after this post. I'd love to see where all the visitors are from, so add your town, state or country.
I will draw a winner on the evening of the 22nd leaving plenty of time for you to visit and in plenty of time to send it to you for Halloween!

Trick or Treatin'

Halloween....what a wonderful time of fun, costumes, masks, and scarey things that go bump in the night....oh and of course CANDY. I have always loved Halloween since I can remember. I grew up in Orange County, Calif where it was Very easy to fill a bag in just a few blocks. For my Grandsons, things are a little different. Growing up in the country where there aren't many people means your Great Grandparents had better live in TOWN in a pretty cool neighborhood for Trick or Treatin'.

The custom of Halloween was brought to America in the 1840's by Irish immigrants fleeing their country's potato famine. At that time, the favorite pranks in New England included tipping over outhouses and unhinging fence gates.
What I didn't know was....
The custom of trick-or-treating is thought to have originated not with the Irish Celts, but with a ninth-century European custom called 'souling'. On November 2, All Souls Day, early Christians would walk from village to village begging for "soul cakes," made out of square pieces of bread with currants. The more soul cakes the beggars would receive, the more prayers they would promise to say on behalf of the dead relatives of the donors. At the time, it was believed that the dead remained in limbo for a time after death, and that prayer, even by strangers, could expedite a soul's passage to heaven. Kinda a twist to the Day of the Dead traditions of our southern countries, don't you think??







Sorry...just had to share.

Potions and Spells

A Potion is any medicinal drink. Witches, as the wise people of the villages, were very knowledgeale about the use of herbs and brewed potions to administer better health....kinda sounds like all the bottled health/sports drinks, don't it?
I found a great tutorial on making real looking Potion Bottles to display around your home at Witches Kitchen by DeadSpider.


A cool picture of Witch Hazel. I never knew what it looked like, so I surprised.

This book cover is eerie,eicky and easy. Wouldn't it make a neat guest book for your Halloween party or a place for all the Trick or Treat pictures?
Here's the link to the easy instructions at...
spell book how-to at Shadow Manor

First Snow...already!

Where did Fall go?? Yikes! I think we are in for long Winter in these parts.
I took some pictures to share for you gals who are still enjoying the warm weather where you live.

6 Facts About Journaling...Tag

TAGGED! This is my first time getting tagged. That means
I need to list 6 random things...personal or otherwise...facts.
Well,let's see...I think I will share 6 facts about Journaling.

1. You can let your ideas and feelings flow freely, and follow them wherever they lead you.
Because there is no editing, revising, or structure to journaling, it is easier to put your inner critic on hold and get to the heart of what you are thinking and feeling.

2. People write what they need to know.
You will gain surprising and valuable insights into yourself as you journal, and again when you revisit past writings.

3. Journaling over time gives you a broader and more accurate perspective on yourself and your journey.
It is easy to be unaware of how long you have been grappling with a particular issue or challenge. Rereading journals from previous months and years will afford you a time perspective and allow you to see recurring themes.

4.Journals can be burned.
If you are uncomfortable committing your innermost thoughts to paper, journal and burn them. Although you will not get the longitudinal benefits of rereading past writings, the journaling process itself is still extremely valuable, and the ritual of burning the pages can be very freeing and releasing. Many pages are painted over for just this reason.

5.You get to decide who you want to be, and you can change your mind at any time.
Until you can grant yourself this personal freedom in real life, use journaling to try on different ways of being and expressing yourself. Write as though you are already the fearless, limitless being you aspire to be. Remember, journaling is risk-free and private. No one but you is affected by what you write. Your journal will not resist change or pressure you to be who it thinks you ought to be!

6.Intentional journaling can be a gift to others.
While most journaling is private, another form of journaling is done for an intended audience. Keep a notebook or tape recorder handy and record the thoughts you want to share with your children or grandchildren -- stories of the funny and touching things they say and do while they are still fresh in your mind, important family stories you want to share, and even those of your personal thoughts and feelings that will be meaningful to them later in their lives.

Now you know six random facts about me/Journaling, but there are many more.

The rules for tagging are as follows:

1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post.
5. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Thank-you Christy -Average American Girl for picking me.

I’ve selected a few Soul Journalers to tag. Here are my tagees:

Adrienne: A Soul Journal

Linda: Blue Eyed Girl

Ruby Claire.X

Jacky: Art4Moi

Altered Art Freak

Carol T's: Taylor's Textile Trials

Lexicons...Soul Journal

Lexicons....n.a special vocabulary.a dictionary.
Personal Lexicons....reaccuring elements or themes that define a persons art that makes it personal and unique to them.
I turned my pages the long way for this one as I wanted to make my 'altered route', my art name, Etsy, Ebay and my blog identity.




I sure enjoyed this journal prompt..thanks Katheryn!

I also decided to join in and have a Halloween Blog Party again this year. There's a logo on the right column to visit Fanciful Twist's site. Our Soul Journal group is also having one and I will be letting you all know the details in the near future.

Adventures in our own back Yard

These nice Fall days call for adventure hikes...had to share this cute pic of the grandboys pretending to hunt...too cute!