life interuption

Due to some unfortunate circumstances I won't be on here very much for the next several weeks.  Won't be doing much that's fun either.  More details later.

happy birthday

I don't usually post on Saturdays but I could not let the day go by without wishing my beautiful mom a happy birthday.  T=She is the picture of doing aging perfectly and with grace.  She is who I'd like to be like when I grow up.  I don't think that will happen.  Love you Mom!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Red

I love unique pieces and the lady that makes this garden art is so creative I can't miss the opportunity to buy one of her pieces anytime I see her at a craft show.  Meet Red the crane, she's a scaled down version of Youcrane that I bought last year.  Hand shaped and welded her body is an enamel sauce pan edged in red.  Right now she's in the kitchen holding an aloe plant.  I smile every time I see her.  Gizzy doesn't know what to think.

Christmas time

Right after Thanksgiving I like to start the Christmas decorating.  We will only be in town about 9 days this month so I decided to go very minimal.  I decorated a 4' tree with unbreakables and put it on a table.  Gizzy hasn't learned not to touch things or tear them up yet.  A center piece for the table, wreaths or swags for the doors, vases full of fresh greens and some potted bulbs, and we will be done.

display by the window 

table center piece hand painted glass balls and some beads

tada!!!

while we were redoing the kitchen last winter we had decided to get a new table and chairs.  I sold the 40's drop leaf that was warped and beginning to loose it's veneer.  We bought a set at the Restore planning to paint it.  AH hated it from the start, yes he was there when we bought it.  We discussed what we both wanted and after much talk decided a long farm house table with turned legs that would sit at least 8 was the best compromise.  I started looking on line and in local stores.  I did find exactly what we wanted until I checked the price tag.  Just under $3000 for the set.  No way was that happening in our house.  Neither one of us are status conscious needing fancy expensive things to make us happy.  We turned to the solution that we reach so often, we would make it ourselves.  I found a guy on E-bay that did turned legs and we bought the rest of the wood at a big box store, total cost for materials $200, that included the stain and finish.  Throughout the summer I kept my eyes open for chairs that would work.  Lucky timing at a half price Goodwill sale yielded 4 chairs, a stop at a grocery store parking lot fund raiser found the last 4.  They were all solid and well made but needed refinished.  That was the only disagreement we had with the whole project. AH is one of the "if it's wood it must stay that way" kind of people.  I think anything but the most valuable antiques are fair game for paint. With a wood floor and some large natural wood antique pieces we did not need any more wood tones in the room.  With a coat of satin spray paint and new seat covers on the padded chairs they look great. Total cost for the chairs including 4 cans of paint $61.  total new dining set cost $261 and about 20 hours of labor.  It was finally finished yesterday and took it's place in our home where it will stay for years to come.  thanks to my wonderful, talented husband for spending the time making just exactly what we wanted.

AH put the top and legs together in the house.  If it needs to go out it will need to be taken apart.

Kerig jig and pocet screws for a strong solid table

We deliberatly made the top preworn to match the rest of the room

give thanks

I'm taking some time off for some much needed rest and recuperation.  A quick trip to the big city where the high point will be seeing my granddaughter.  Thanksgiving with family and friends with all the preparation will follow, starting on Thursday and going until Saturday.  Maybe a  quick movie or ride to see the festival of lights in a nearby town. One place you won't find me is shopping on black Friday, there isn't a deal out there that could get me in the middle of all that greed and crazy!!!! I love the holidays but they sure do get hectic.
Remember as you're stuffing yourself with turkey and pie to give thanks for the food you have.  When your kid or mother gets on your last nerve give thanks that you have family nearby to celebrate with.  When the house is a disaster give thanks that you have a home to live in.  Most of all give thanks for all the blessings in your life and try to become a blessing for someone else.  We live in a scary world that gets uglier everyday.  Sometimes it's hard to find things to be grateful for.  Take a minute, put down your phone, game or Ipad turn off the TV and really look at all you have and how rich you really are (if you think I'm talking money just quit reading now).  In this country even the poorest among us have more than most people in the rest of the world we should never take it for granted.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING

little table

This table was another rummage sale find for $3.  The fabric top was a mess but I just tore that off and added a new top after giving the frame a quick coat of spray paint.

snowman pictures

I have done snowmen pictures similar to this for family and friends but I used windows as frames.  I had these frames given to me so I decided to make more snow people.  What's nice is these frames hold the backing on with turn knobs on the back.  It would be simple to paint something else for year round use then turn the snowmen around to the front for the holidays.  both pictures are original designs, acrylic on wood.

The caption reads star light star bright please don't let me melt tonight.

This says do you see what I see

last show

We had our last show of the season this past weekend.  Even if I hadn't said a word you could tell.  The house looks like a bomb went off. the sun-room and guest bedroom are almost impassable and there are no left overs in the frig because I haven't been cooking much.  While there will be some orders to fill up until Christmas things should calm down around here.  I am physically exhausted and mentally drained.  I love the people we meet during shows and hanging out with the other vendors but I'm always ready for the shows to be over.

At this show we have a tight 8X10 spot with vendors bumped up against us.  At least it's on a corner so we can have customers on each side.

We don't have room for our tall shelves so everything must go on the tables.  It starts to look cramped and messy so we need to straighten up hourly

I don't know how we missed getting the table cloth down to the floor on this side.  One of my pet peeves are tables that aren't covered so you can't see the junk piled under them.

wicker plant stand

This wicker plant stand started out in a a natural color, but is was blah and uninspiring.  I started dry brushing on layers of paint.  When the first layer of white was dry a added soft blue and aqua together.   To dry brush pour a little puddle of paint on a paper plate.  Dip just the tips of your brush into the paint and brush most of it off on paper towels or news paper.  Brush on your surface and let dry.A couple of pieces need glued then this beauty will be off the the consignment store.  Cost $3.00 for the stand the rest was paint I had on hand.  I could see this in a bath room for towels or extra toiletries.  I could also see this couch or chair side to hold magazines or needle work.

table redo

I bought this pair of tables for $15 at a sale earlier this fall.  They are well made and in great shape. I could have left them as is but decided to do white paint and some stripes and a number for a little flair.  One says the number 3 for my 3 sons the other for 5 for my 5 grand kids.  Some times it's fun to send out a little bit of your story with the projects you do. I did the stripes by taping off narrow lines then using a big soft stencil brush to add the paint between the tape.  I used paint a couple shades darker on stencils for the numbers.

show angels

Never try to convince me there are no angels, I've had them by my side this past weekend.  When my partner Kathy told me her husband was being hospitalized I had a few moments of panic and oh CRAP!!!  Our biggest show was last Friday and Saturday and I knew I would never be able to do it on my own.  I emailed several friends and withing minutes I had enough coverage for the entire weekend.   I feel so blessed to call each of these women my friends and I'm so grateful for their help.
You can't see the halos or wings but believe me they are  great angels here on earth.  I didn't get a picture of Andy or Kathy's brother Gary,  a big shout out for all the heavy lifting, set up, packing up and reloading the trucks and van after the show.  We couldn't have done this without you.

Joy helped with making product and packaging all fall and despite a bad back she helped unload, set up and manned the booth all night.

Pat is Kathy's sister in law and our supper sales woman of the show, she was amazing.

Donna is not only my favorite teacher to sub for but now that she is retired she has helped me make product, bag and tag and given up part of her weekend to help us man the booth.

this incredible women has been with VCB from the beginning.  She always shows up at the shows usually with lunch or dinner in hand, she is one of our new product testers, worked the booth all afternoon and helped with take down.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

really big show

This Friday and Saturday is the biggest show that Kathy and I do for VCB.  Held at the Fluid Events Center in Champaign.  Hours are Friday 3-9 and Saturday 9-5.  There are hundreds of booths of hand crafted items perfect for gifts or yourself.  Hope to see you there, we are the crazy ladies in purple, come by and say hi for free samples of some of our fabulous products

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sign of the times

The holidays will be here before you know it, shopping for those days has already begun.  In between prepping for our VCB shows I have been busy getting furniture ready to take to the consignment store and cranking out signs.  Home Again is very careful about protecting their artists work.  I make all the big signs because I was the first to have them, I can't do windows except in a couple of ways because someone else was already doing them.  I like the idea that the shop won't be filled with people doing all the same things.  Here are just a couple of my holiday signs.

This is neutral enough to be left out for the entire fall season.  It can hang or be propped against a wall.

Luan, stencils, free hand holly and stain make a great holiday sign.  The frame is 1X strips stapled to the board for rigidity.  The small print says wishing you. and it is 2'X2'.

I've sold several of these signs in the last couple of years.  Instead of leaving just the black painted letters I went over the stencils with silver after the black was dry.  I love the little bit of shimmer.  I usually toss a Santa hat on the top corner for a pop of red.

happy birthday

Today is my father, Richard Kings 92nd birthday.  His body is slowing down but his mind is as sharp as ever.  He can tell you stories from long ago or today, is up on current events and loves to solve the worlds problems with AH or my brother.  Love you Dad, I hope you have a great birthday with your favorite dinner and  lots of pie.  See you soon.

new product

I'm always trying to come up with new ideas for products or designs. These butter bombs are my answer to the bath bomb craze.  I used a standard bath bomb recipe then added cocoa butter, shea butter, jojoba oil and vit E to make the bombs very moisturizing.  After molding them and letting them dry I put the in cup cake wrappers, then into clear bags with a sparkly ribbon just for fun.  They sold well at our first show.  What a fun hostess gift or stocking stuffer these would be.

human training

Well Gizzy has been here a little over a month  and he is making good progress in his training.  He dose sit very well most of the time and we are working on come, stay, down, off and quiet,  Like most dogs he is very motivated by food, especially chicken jerky.   He loves to play fetch and beware if you leave any article of clothing or any thing else low enough for him to reach.  I'm not sure how many socks AH is missing.  The biggest part of dog training is teaching the humans what not to do.   He's a little rough when he;s playing.  If he accidentally catches my hand with his teeth or nails I give a loud howling OWWWW!! and play stops immediately.  He always looks at me like I'm nuts but he does stop. Our biggest problem so far is getting the cats adjusted to him.  He likes to jump and bark at them.  They are not fans and will hiss, swat then run and hide from everyone.  I think he just wants to play but they are having none of it.  Time and boredom with each other will probably cure most of that.  I've been looking into obedience school but with shows and travel we are booked 5 out of the next 6 weeks.  Things will slow down after the holidays. He loves long walks which is good for AH and I both, it really helps him slow down a little.  He's a great cuddler when he wants to be.  About 8:00 at night he climbs into the chair or his crate ready for bed.

new old product

When we first started VCB we made a dusting powder that we could barely give away let alone sell.  We pulled it out of the line up and let ts go for a couple of years.  When I found these tubes I thought we should try again.  This time around it's called Body Silk because the addition of arrowroot makes it so silky on your skin.  It is very absorbent and kills odors. I put it in the tubes to make it easy to pop in a gym bag or locker for a quick refresh.  It would also be great in teens stinky tennis shoes, if you have kids you know how bad those can get.  While you're at it you might want to check your own tennies.

the tubes come plain white and look like a toilet paper roll.  I added the fun wall paper with a glue stick to liven it up.

instant table

I picked up this horse trough at a sale earlier this summer for $20.  I thought I'd turn it into a planter or water feature but never got around to it.  What I did need was a larger table for the patio. So I turned it upside down.  Always look at things from different directions.  Just because this was made to hold water doesn't mean it can't be used for something else.  It may become something else in the future but for now it is serving a different purpose.

blanket scarf

I've been loving the look of the blanket scarves showing up on the internet lately but not the prices.  When I saw these soft light wool's at Joann's last week I decided to make a couple for myself and family or friends.  For the scarf shown  I bought 3 yards of fabric and split it into 2 pieces width wise.  That gave me 2 45X54" pieces.  I trimmed off the selvages and fringed all the ends which took about 20 minutes per scarf,  hint use a pin or seam ripper to help get the threads loose.  For this look I folded it into a triangle and placed the point in the front.  I pulled the ends around the neck and pulled them to the front.  I hid the ends in the folds of the scarf.  AH wasn't thrilled to be  my model but there was no one else around and the cats wouldn't sit still long enough for a picture.  I think they will make great Christmas gifts.

granola

I use to make granola for my kids all the time but hadn't made any  since they moved out.    Yes you can buy granola but making it,  you can customize what you put in to your taste, control the sugar and leave out the preservatives.  This recipe is just a guideline feel free to add whatever fruit, nuts and seeds you like.
3C oats not the instant kind
1/4C oil
3T maple syrup
3T brown sugar
1/2tsp cinnamon
1/2tsp salt
1tsp vanilla
Mix this together and place on a parchment lined sheet pan in a thin layer, bake 350 15 min.  Add 2C walnuts and 1C almonds and bake 15-20min longer until the mix is crisp, let cool completely.  Add 2C dried fruit, I used diced apricots and cherries.  You can also add sunflower or pumpkin seeds with the nuts.  Store in an air tight container and freeze if you aren't going to use it up in 2 weeks.
AH pours warm milk over his and eats it for breakfast.  I like mine mixed with yogurt for a meal or snack.  You could also use it as a topping for pudding or ice cream and it's tasty by the handful.

show time

If you are regular reader you may of noticed that I had no posts last week.  They were all written and scheduled but some how I forgot to hit the publish button.  Brain fog goes with show season, way too much on my mind,


VCB had our first show this past weekend.  If you have ever visited a craft, small business or vintage show and thought I could do that, think really hard before you take the leap.  Kathy and I have been making products since early summer.  My spare room looks like a bomb went off in it and is piled high with boxes.  When the car and truck were packed I had 23 boxes of products, 5 crates of props and linens and the truck was filled with shelving and doors.  The show was close by so we did set up last Thursday night, worked the show for nine hours on Friday and five hours on Saturday plus tear  down. Add in 90 minutes per trip for travel plus the set up time and we've put in approximately 42 hours just for the one  show. Today my back is in spasms and I would really like to nap all afternoon.  I'm not winning, well maybe a little but it is hard work with no guarantee of success.  Fortunately for us this is a great show and we love the other vendors.  One of the best parts is shopping when things slow down.  I think Kathy won this round but I was close behind.

table piled high

floor piled high

New product bath fizz cones

 We always get positive feedback for our booth display.  We always dress in purple and black so repeat  customers recognize us.

Product every where.  We like to use lifts so the display doesn't look too flat.

Picket fence display shelves.  We get so many positive comments about them.  The shelves come off and the sides and back fold flat for easy transport and storage.  AH made these for us.

more soap

I think I'm done making soap for the season.  Of course I say that every year and always have to make more for special request or selling out of current favorites.  This week I made honey pumpkin spice and chocolate peppermint which started out as a failure.  
I wanted the chocolate to have curls of white sitting on top.  If the bottom soap is too hot the top layer just melts right in, if it's too cool the curls wouldn't stick.  I didn't have any of those problems.  I poured the white base, let it cool and then tried to use my peeler to make the curls.  For whatever reason the curls just crumbled into tiny pieces.  On to plan B which was pouring the white onto the much cooler chocolate then using a bamboo skewer to make tunnel for the white to go into the brown.  Not the look I'd planed but it still looks pretty cool and it smells fabulous.  Sometimes you just have to go with the flow and try not to stress out.  That's awfully hard for a control freak like me.

bandanna pumpkin

I'm always on the lookout for cute things to add color to our VCB displays.  I saw this little guy and thought it would be perfect for our next couple of shows.  Here's what you need:
1 bandanna
2 rubber bands
a handful of fiberfill you could use pantyhose or plastic bags as well
jute

lay the bandanna out flat wrong side up, grab in the center and secure with a rubber band about 1" down.  Turn over and add stuffing.  Gather the ends of the bandanna together, tucking them in until you have a nice stem, secure with second rubber band. It's helpful to have second pair of hands for this step.  Tie jute tightly at the base of the stem leaving a 6" tail.  Wrap the jute up then back down the stem and tie at the bottom, clip ends.  Remove rubber band and you're done.  You could add flowers, a bow or decorations with hot glue if you'd like.  you can buy bandannas in many colors so they could be a cute favor for a party, put candy in them as a trick or treat or use them on your holiday party.  Have fun.

white chicken chilli

We have just had our first cool snap of the season.  When the cold air hits it's soup time around here.  This chili is full of flavor and a nice alternative to regular chili without the high acid of a tomato based dish.

1# cooked chicken use a rotisserie chicken from the store or left overs
1 onion diced
1 garlic clove chopped
1 jalapeno or poblano diced
2 cans white beans
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can chicken broth
Salt and pepper to taste
Saute the onion, garlic and pepper in 2T oil until soft.  Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer until heated through 20-30min.  Serve with tortilla chips, additional chopped pepper and cheese if desired.  we ate it plain and loved it.

fall center piece

It's fall, at least that's what the calendar says, so it's pumpkin time.  I drug out all my dried gourds, hung wreaths on the doors and made a new decoration for the table.  I started with

 $store orange foam pumpkins.  They look tacky and cheap as is so I gave them a couple of coats of acrylic paint in whites and soft creams.  I used an old wood letter sorter I've had for years as a base.  I put a chunk of floral foam in the center of the carrier and added $store purple mums all around.  I stuck the pumpkins on pieces of wooden skewers and poked them into the foam.  A few more flowers, a raffia bow and leaves and it was finished.  Cost $12.  Looks great right now although Gizzy has already stolen a leaf and destroyed it.

he's back

You might remember this little guy, Gizzy from a post a few weeks ago.  We got him for my Mom.  Unfortunately it just didn't work out.  He is still too much puppy for my parents quiet home and older dog.  We brought him home and now the real job of training the humans begins.  It's been close to 30 years since we've had a puppy.  At least he's potty trained and a year old so we don't have to go through all the messy stuff.  Time to pick up and put away things he can hurt himself with or destroy, keep doors closed and learn training methods.  He's head strong and hyper but so sweet.  It will take some time and plenty of patience while we all learn.  Diva is teaching him who's boss and the kitties haven't adjusted yet, but  will get there.
Once you've taken on the responsibility for an animal you are their life line so don't do it quickly.  Make sure you are ready for the responsibility for the next 15-20 years.  If it can't work out make every effort to find the pet a new home, they are depending on you.

pumpkin bread time

The calendar says it's fall even if the temperatures are still in the 80's.  It's time to think about cool weather foods. We love warm quick breads as a snack or desert when it gets cool.  I could make breads from scratch, sometimes I do.  Many times I use a mix and jazz it up.  To this pumpkin bread I added walnuts, dried cherries and chocolate chips, then baked it according to the package directions.  It was ready in less than an hour, just in time for a mid movie snack. YUM!

how to put together a gift basket

We do a lot of gift baskets for VCB.  The container and contents will vary but the main construction stays the same.

You will need a container to hold your gifts, shredded paper to fill the basket.  I usually crumple tissue to fill the bottom and top with the shreds.  You will also need a plastic bag to put the basket in as well as a bow and a tag.  All of these products came from the dollar store.

Basket stuffed and ready for gifts.

Tissue on top for a pop of color.  The basket and tissue were almost the same color, I don't know why they look so different

Filled with goodies.  You want the package to look full and lush not skimpy.  Prop the items up instead of laying them flat.  The buyer for this basket was coming right over so I threw it in the bag, added a bow and tag.  In the process I forgot to take the last picture.