I collect collections

Does anyone know where i can go to a CA meeting i need help lol
I joined a swapbot swap that you have to show your collections.
Sounds easy hey but how was i to know im such a collector (i know i did know i must
have known but i wasnt going to admit it)
Okay here goes i collect
Old toys
old keys
old kitchenalia
old cupie dolls
is there a theme going here
old china
old books
old men (nah gotchya just jokin)
vintage buttons and sewing items (hate sewing but)
ummm
Dices,and marbles and old cereal toys
vintage party things like noise makers clickers candles party baskets
anything teeny tiny
sons (i have 4)
rolling pins
scottie dogs
miniature cars
miniature playing cards
santas
vintage christmas items
tapestry handbags (i hang these on my wall)
craft stuff
vintage cards
okay are you getting the picture here i am truly in need of guidance
or the name of some more op shops to gather more !
this is all i can think of (she hangs her head in shame)
oh oh tiny birds, bluebirds ,nests, eggs
and did i forget my gingerbread men
oh its an illness i see it now and i love the house tidy
i am my own worst enemy.Be brave and have a peek
oh Indian dolls i forgot tiny indian dolls with sideglancing eyes and golliwogs (sorry shannon)







I have been asked about the little room below it is actually a walk in plate pantry i had built a few years ago when we renovated.I put a french door on it so you could see all the shelves
and there is a light inside.Its very handy you walk in and can choose what you want.
Its the size of a walk in pantry.I got it built accross the corner maximising space.Its also great to hide in and scare the cats lol freaks them right out,

Some scrap pages

Where did January Go !

Well Hi my first post for 2008 and the whole of January just flew by
and now its gone.I have been very busy but when i think doing what
i dont know.Must be life i suppose.Oh i have been creating lots of things,My friend
Cecily is having a baby and so i am giving her a baby shower soon and i have made
little thank you cones etc for that invitations and things .I have also mastered a pull tab
pop up atc card will show you soon.Im very proud i found an old pop up batman card from
years ago (my sons) and it gave me the idea.I am not in the slightest technically minded but
luckily i have my fathers stubborness and i took hours over the simple template.Now i have it
its very simple but effective.Now i want to master a wheel effect so that the pics on the front
of the ATC change.The victorians were famous for these sort of things,I love my atc and matchbox swaps to move or do something.Now i am working on little easter baskets for my family.I just love being creative.Now if washing the floors could only excite me half as much lol
Anyway hi to everyone who has missed me and asked when i was ever going to post.

Who wants to be Normal anyway

This is it the last half of my house all christmassed up and ready
Plus the little snowmen on sticks signs i did in the little toy wagon.
The close up of my big tree where i have vintage ornaments is to show
off another button fairy.The cupies in the bowl always have santa hats
at Christmas.Even my Royal Albert teapots sprouted trees.During
this busy time of making it all Christmas i would like to say i had the
support of a loving family however this simply is not true.Neil simply
shakes his head and says that NORMAL people only have one tree (what is he trying to say here) Of course he lives in constant fear the cats will now inhale tinsel as
well as glitter.And as to Alex well he ran out front to my visitors yesterday
and as they got out of their car he said
"oh thank god you are here she is obsessive compulsive
about decorating that house i cant stand it any more
everything has to be just sooo perfect"
when my son Joel arrived they sat swapping
mums obsessive stories
It was the only thing they agreed upon all afternoon
wouldn't have been half as bad if they weren't true lol
Anyway who wants to be normal ? (well me sometimes when my obsessing wears me out)

Fabulous Image site

If you want a great site then go to Digital Imagery plus
i have bought some of their fabulous collage sheets before
But visit their Website, if you have not already done so, to take advantage of their Free Vintage Image of the Day and their Free Vintage Collage Sheet of the Week.
i have a link at the side for favouites and here it is as well
http://digitalimageryplus.com/store/home.php

Glitter Tales

Yes its sad for Neil my glitter hating husband
but i am addicted to glitter as you would know.
German glass glitter to be exact.I dream of it i love it
and it makes so much mess its horrendous.But it has magical powers
here are some of my recent swaps for swapbot i did.the button fairies are so much fun,
I came up with the snowman signs myself arent they sweet ?I also like to present things nicely so i made the little button fairy folders to send them in.
the Atc cards were for a tag or letter in a pocket.i did Little boys pockets
hold lots of stuff and even made tiny slingshots,having four sons i cant tell you how
many of them i have confiscated over the years. Also include is alex relaxing on the lounge (a seriously weird child)thats his feet behind his head.
Also i have been making beaded tassels taught me by my old friend Carmen a sweetheart,thanks Carmen.Lastly a Valentines daY TIP IN.
Thats it and i have had hardly an sleep but lots of ideas,too many in fact.
Sometimes i wish i was Normal.

Gifts from people i have never met

Yep i have never met them yet these people are my friends.
First a long overdue thanksyou to my dear friend Kim in the U.S
Kin and i became friends during and after a blog swap for a garland
here is my bluebird garland from Kim and really its nicer than this
i ahve to tie a few back up,Its a long way all the way to Austtralia
and they grew weary in their packaging lol
Thanks Kim ,her son and my son also did their own swap.Alex was thrilled.




next is the Secret Santa swap from my gorgeous partner Linda of Raspberry Roses fame,
this was through the yahoo prettychic group im in been going for a few years we all
chat like old friends.This swap was so lovely and i thankyou from the bottom of my heart
there were vintage xmas baubles that spell out santa in embellishments,pink damask cloth,
pink egg cups and an adorable Robert gordon tea ball and holder in my fav pattern.
Hankies with my initials and a vintage napkin ring engraved with my initials.Tiny sugar hearts
and lavender tea and all things pink and beautiful.You are an angel Linda thanks.

Christmas has Arrived

Okay the tides has come in on the christmas spew (meaning its all clean until the backroom,which is still unfinished) i will post pics of my vintage decs on my roseroom tree tomorrow.so here so far is
this is the little china cabinet top village i adore the little battery operated
lemax moon that glows blue above the village trees.

the tiny snowman tree woth snowmen i made and glass glittered

its on kitchen servery

Bad picture of a cute tree

tiny tree on my bedroom chest

the lidded container i am filling with more pink decs as soon as i find them

in main lounge is my toywagon tree

its just a little tree sits near the front door at the double doors

leading to my rose room

okay here we have my button tree i have lights in it this year no use

trying to show the little buttons but they are there on the ends of the branches
evey year it sits in my hatbox rescued from the local dump years ago.(to the horror of my boys)

next is my christmas village in the daytime

this year only the tiny one and peta your house is in my village

there are people making phone calls polar bears and girls playing hopscotch
stay away my little cats (actually my two cats are angels with my decs)

This is the little cupboard near from my front door

Christmas has spewed it mess all over my house

Yep I have been decorating like a woman possessed,well i am a woman possessed.
My husband and son hate to do any helping as they say im way too fussy.
Well you know if it isnt in the centre or something clashes with something else.
I always say if men had a chance they would be happy in a shack with a mud floor a huge screen Tv and a great stereo system.Unfortunately they have us and therein lies the problem.
Anyway busy busy .
Only the end of November and not only did i make the christmas cards i wrote in addressed and posted them.Drumroll here please,big band and a medal.To get to the title of this post,you bring in the tree and the boxes and bags and you undo all the paper and and and there you have it,Christmas spews all over your house.Well im still mopping it up when i have i will take pics of my Christmas decor.I mean its bad i went out today and i was so disappointed no one broke in and cleaned up.Me i have better stuff to do ,like make fairy doors for a swap im hosting on swapbot.
But tomorrow, tomorrow i want to make my house beautiful and magical (lots of shimmery shred Neil,oh boy he hates shred almost as bad as glitter) what can you do its the magic- that shred is (tinsel strips cant think of their name).

Christmas Mantle

Okay its early i know Its those girls online at prettychic they are such a bad influence.
i am buckling to peer pressure and my friend Cecily is doing hers so what could i do.
I am slowly starting the christmas decor first the mantle,here it is,
Not totally happy with it but its better than last years.That teddy stays out in my back room all year hes my favourite.The basket of fruit was a $3 vinnies bargain the other day so i did the mantle around the basket.Th whole time i was thinking of Cecilys mum Desley my best friend of 20 years who died earlier this year of breast cancer,she bought me the santa on the reindeer and she loved christmas so Desley this Mantle is for you.

Gingerbread men take over

They are not just breeding folks they are moving- i kid you not.
One moment they were happy in their vintage mixing bowl
(neil wasnt as usually our fruit lives there lol)
the next they demanded vintage box accomodation
I ask you where will it end ?Will i wake up to find a gingerbread man
in my bed ,and worse if i did would i like him and get rid of Neil.
The plot thickens (like gingerbread mix) i will keep you updated !

I think God is watching

How could you look at this sky
and not think God is watching..
Its been a stormy afternoon
nice stormy not scary stormy
and then the clouds parted and Neil took this picture
of Heavens window
and just for a moment I felt so calm.

Me and patience are not good friends

WeLL not normally anyhow
my friend Carmen used to teach quilting and beaded tassel making
Now anyone who knows me will say i am creative and imaginative BUT
when the sewing gene was given out it must have been to those who grew taller than 4 feet 10 cause i can cut and glue and even nail BUT
I CANNOT SEW to save my life,my boys no joke were the only scouts in their troop with
their badges glued on.So when Carmen offered to teach me to make a beaded tassel
and i found out that a needle and a thread were involved i was freaking out,
But guess what i love it-oh okay i almost threw it last night when i had to undo a line
and then it got tangled,today i got the hang and really its quite peacefull
here it is in progress,not perfect but im proud.

Tussie Mussie just for me

Shannon made me this perfect tussie all blue and icy for my guest room. I just love them and dont tell her but im making her a Christmas one. Sshhh its a secret



Also i am just in love with my balls (pardon the pun)
I love them all different sizes all china and i put them in a white heart shaped bowl.
I am still loving this room all crisp and white.The perfect home for shannons Tussie.

Happy Halloween

Well happy Halloween
We pumpkinified our house
us Aussies dont as a rule embrace Halloween
but its starting to creep in and last year we were totally unprepared and lollyless when some trick or treaters came.
This year we decorated we bought skeleton bags and filled them all ready,and Alex and i waited and waited and waited
he ate a bag,i ate a bag the cats just werent interested.
Not a single Halloweenie ahh well maybe next year !
Happy Halloween to all my blogging friends.

Its beginning to look a lot like christmas

Well at least to Neils undiminshing horror its snowing glitter in our office.
Well he likes to call if office but we all KNOW its a craft room. Here are my latest things im working on I do have at least a zillion projects on the boil.

And look at all that glass glitter

the frog prince and the pumpkin coach are

for Fairytale inspired swap im hosting on swapbot

they are hang tags the gingerbread man is for a swap too

the snowmen heads are drying
The huge musical ball Is from Vinnies (the goodwill) and was a huge satiny mess
it plays lovely real musicbox music not todays battery crap.
the lady looked at me like i must be desperate and it cost me $1
here is the before and after

i ended up decoupaging then sealing it then rolling in glass glitter

oooh the mess but now its all done i like it and it will live here forever (which is a very very long time) in my christmas collection,

Lanterns for my Christmas table

Every year i have a theme for christmas. One year it may be stars another brown paper to wrap presents. One year about 20 years ago i had seen in American country living tiny walnut shells painted gold- hinged and with tiny charms inside at each place setting, so that year i did the same and they were so sweet.Another year I did mini chocolate boxes at each place.
Well here is this years theme lanterns

I bought them very brightly coloured ,lime green pink and blue

although i loved the bright colours for me i wanted a posher atmosphere.(you may not know but am a very posh person)

so I am using these as my basis for my christmas settings ,
I saw some in a magazine once (and we wonder why husbands must hate those mags) one at each place setting with its tealight burning and

a tag attatched to the handle indicated place names and i instantly loved them.Ever since i havent seen any small enough or cheap enough (okay im posh and cheap) to buy at least 8 and in the end i bought 10 as they were $2 each and i thought now they are cream ,They could be used anytime i want.