Valentine's Day Decor and A Free Printable

E.E. Cummings has long been one of my favorite artists. He was a prolific writer, painter and poet. His body of work encompasses approximately 2,900 poems, two autobiographical novels, four plays, several essays and numerous paintings and drawings. But today, I wanted to share one of his poems....

                                                                                                                            ....you may recognize it.

Valentines Day Heart Paintings and One of Life's Lessons

Did you grow up with the Beatles? I did....well, sort of...

You see, I don't actually remember the Beatles, although I'm guessing that I probably saw them on television.

Snow(white) in the Dining Room - Christmas Tablescape

Have you ever wondered what it looks like when Snow White and the guys sit down for holiday dinner at the castle?

Do you think that she has her staff turn the dining room into a wonderland that reminds her of her days back at the cottage in the woods?

I'll bet that she does. She always was kind of crafty...even when she had nothing to work with but a white table cloth, a burlap runner, a few bowls and some things that she gathered in the woods...including a six foot long birch log!

Visions of Sugar Plums - Holiday Decorating

As I've been hauling out the 35 boxes and bins of Christmas decorations that I've somehow managed to amass, I've been thinking about the story, The Night Before Christmas. You heard it as a child, didn't you? The one by Clement Moore? It's a favorite of mine...

mainly because I'd like to know how they managed it...
                                                                       
                                                                               pretty much  all of it.

Holiday Decorating and Friends: A Look Back

Did you ever watch "Friends"?  Please tell me that you did...

and that you had a secret crush on Chandler.

Tell me that you used to wish that you were Rachel...just a little bit.

Hand Painted Canvas Pillows for the Barn Sale

Completed  pillows for the Barn Sale this weekend.  Natural cotton canvas with block printed letters and hand painted images.

Painted with acrylic paint which is mixed 2 parts paint to 1 part fabric medium (purchased at Michaels) which renders the paint permanent and machine washable when heat set.

In the studio today: Table Runners and more reclaimed wood signs. 

xo,

S

Linking to:

DIY By Design
Embracing Change
Freckled Laundry
French Country Cottage
I Gotta Create
I Gotta Try That!
Itsy Bitsy Paper
It's so very Cheri
It All Started with Paint - Pillowpalooza
Savvy Southern Style
The Brassy Apple
The Crafty Blog Stalker
Under the Table and Dreaming
You are talking too much

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The Flag Party Pick Wreath - When Willpower Overcomes Common Sense

Ever have one of those days where you start one project and end up doing something completely different? I had one of those last week.  I went to the pantry to find tea lights for the Patio Lantern Project.  When I tried to open the drawer, it got caught on boxes of flag picks which have been left over from several years of 4th of July parties at our house. Then, I remembered pinning  this to my Wreath Board on Pinterest.
                                                      
So, rather than getting the tea lights, I immediately went to my studio and grabbed a wreath form. After all, I had 600 flags, that should be enough, right?  See the wreath on the table below? Apparently not.

 I went to JoAnn  fabric. They had no flags. I went to Michaels. They didn't have a single one either. Then, earlier this week, I was at Hobby Lobby and I found them! I bought an additional 600 flags and brought them home. I was so excited to finish this project and get it off of the kitchen counter! Right after I finished printing the napkins that I was making.  After all, that's why I went to HobLob in the first place! Last night,  I finally poured the flags out onto the counter and guess what?

 They weren't the same! So, I did what any "artist with a sensitive aesthetic eye" would have done, I took it apart and started again.

 See how much better they look with the three sizes "artfully mixed together"?! Um...yeah....me either.

I painted some stars. I hung the wreath on the door. I stood back.

Notice the "white rows" where you can see the form? Yep, me too.

So, I did what any logical person determined that this project would succeed would do. I took it apart for a second time and started over.

 This time, I put the flags in from "side to side" instead of working my way around the outside of the circle in a row.

 

Whew! That's better.

 I've made my peace with the bits of the white form that still show through here and there. Although, in the spirit of "full disclosure", I'll admit that I DID, for ONE SECOND, consider taking it apart and wrapping the form with ribbon.

Moving on now.

xo,

S

Linking to:
Nellie Bellie
The Crafty Blog Stalker
House of Hepworth