Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Angel wings??

tomorrow is the big day

my 1st meme event

I hope I can figure out Mr. Linky???
I can't even figure out how to get my Christmas countdown clock back up here. lol

Are there any Christmas Angels out there that can tell me how to center my new title banner???  Ugh! I'd love to add a picture up there or expand the post card..yikes.

After next week, here is the new poster to pin up on your blog:



Candy Cane Kisses and White Snow Wishes! DeniseMarie

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Advent progress

I'm getting further along on my advent set. 
I still gotta put the numbers on them.

I guess I'll be sad to part with them but excited when it comes time for mine to come in the mail. 
This has been fun to work on when I am sitting with my heating pad and getting over this fever.

Candy Cane Wishes! DeniseMarie

Thursday, August 26, 2010

SnowMan Soup

Well, I'm sounding more and more like a broken record, huh!
I was at the Goodwill in my area last week while my boys were at baseball lessons and I found a few treasures.  I got a few Christmas brooches (had to look that spelling up) for my matchbox advents. 

But, this is what I am showcasing today:
3 adorable Snowman mugs
with removable hats and candy cane finger holds.
I immediately thought of how cute they'll look wrapped in cello bags and filled with snowman soup with a candy cane sticking out of the top of the opening.
Very Cute!!

Candy Cane Kisses and White Snow Wishes! DeniseMarie

Monday, August 23, 2010

Silent Night

I spotted this yard of fabric when I found my mom's Christmas dish pattern fabric.  She will make fabric square centerpieces for her table and dessert table with it.
I'd love to figure out a cool way to use it.
It would be cute to make a draw string sack and have a family gift for or from Jesus to use in the coming new year.  Like a movie or devotional or something to stir up family time together??
Then...the family could get the bible out and have a discussion time about the story of the 1st Christmas.  Anything from Luke Chapter 1 or 2 would be good.
Isn't it sweet!?
Drummer boy and all.

Here is the link to this awesome 50% off Debbie Mumm fabric sale.

I'm also quite the fan of the following patterns:
Home Fires Debbie Mumm NOEL Red
I love the words, stockings, candy canes.  Great overall pattern.
I admit that I over-use my JOY rubber stamp. ;o}

Roasting Marshmallows White Christmas
We love us some Polar Bears and Penguins around here.  Ya'll gotta see our displays we do outside.  This is all Nate's fault..he started this passion.
 
Gingerbread Men Benartex
We've never met a Gingerbread Man that we didn't love around here!lol  
I think I like simple gingerbread patterns most.
Wintery Days Snowman
This is sooooo cute!! 
I love Snowmen! 

Magic Reindeer & Bird
This would be awesome for lil sacks of Reindeer food (bird seed and glittery sugar) for all the neighbors.  What a cheap personal touch that the neighbors would appreciate you thought of them.

I love fabric.  I want a yard or 2 of each of these. 
and I can't even operate my sewing machine or the serger my mom and I bought together.  I see lessons in my near future.  I'm afraid of all the threading! and feet! and bobbins!  I'm intimidated.  I have to beg my momma to help with these lil projects.

Anyone got cute fabric ideas?

Happy Blue Monday at Smiling Sally's

xox, DeniseMarie

Friday, August 20, 2010

Silly, Fun Matchbook project

Trying to think small with big "man hands" is rough.  I don't have the delicate touch needed sometimes.  Me and my old, hot, mean glue gun are getting into squabbles. lol
I love the train and plane with the puffs of smoke coming out.  They are the 3rd and 4th in the 1st row down.  They came from a baby scrapbook kit.  I never thought I'd use these and the lightbulb went off when I was putting the pompoms that are left over up. 
None of them are totally done yet. 
This 1 I love!!
Cookies and Milk for Santa
Even more detail on some of them in this pic of the collection.  These need hanging ribbon, finessing details and the numbers 1 thru 25 doled out between them to become a countdown advent collection for a swap.  I don't get to keep any of them.  They all have a gift in them from jewelry to ornaments.  EDIT: Can you tell these are just plain ol' matchboxes?  Go to your local Dollar Tree and look in the kitchen utencil area for 3 packs of 10 to do this with your kids or grandkids.  Big Hit!



A Swap for All Seasons with Linda as the Hostess with the mostest.  She has 70 of us doing this swap.  I can't imagine what others are doing with theirs.  Linda is showing top of the line examples of swap boxes on her blog.  I hope mine will be good enough.  Some of these ladies really know how to alter a matchbox. 
I chose to use what I have on hand and be true to my lil girl heart.  I used craft supplies, scrapbook stickers, punches and previous years Christmas cards and broken ornaments and package tie on stuff.  This Christmas morning puppy is a bit crazy.  She's got a bow and lots of pink bones and pink tennis balls.  Inside is an angel pin with pink rhinestone accent.
I found my dog bone punch and got the idea to do the drawer pull-out with a bone.  I might have to do a better job with it but at least I'll remember what my idea is.

look at this 1.  It is gonna hang from an ornament top that popped off it's original piece and be the pull too.  :0)

Choo~Choo...love this 1!

Reverent too.  I paroosed thru cards that I didn't even remember keeping to find just the right cut outs. 

What do ya think?

I am linking in to I Owe it All to Him for Let's see what ya collect week with my matchbox set. 

Candy Cane Kisses and White Snow Wishes! DeniseMarie

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Anybody got a match??

Hubby is gonna have more matches than he knows what to do with. lol
I am in the swap Christmas Countdown.  There are 70 of us doing it. 

I have looked thru my stash and am working with what I got here.
Scrapbook paper and pom-poms and stuff to adhere on top of that.

small lil buttons and snowflakes and Christmas erasers from past projects.

Look what I found at Michael's yesterday.  I pd full price and got 12 inserts for the 25.
Also, I had my momma make some earrings and I'm finding jewelry pieces that fit.
Fun stuff!!
How are UR matchboxes lookin'?

Candy Cane Kisses and White Snow Wishes! DeniseMarie

Monday, August 16, 2010

Magical gift for Mom

Since I had just made a birthday gift for Jake and had all the supplies out, I wrapped my Mom a gift the same way.  With 75% off paper and ribbon I had gotten at Michael's.

My mom has a set of Christmas dishes from like 1996 so I e-bay'd a few pieces for her to dole out to her over the Fall and Winter season for her to use this Christmas.  I posted about my quest for hostess pieces here.  I used this ornament as her gift tag that I've had forever (since my Teddy Bear lover days).  I sharpie markered her name on it.  I glued it into place with a foam tape square.  I wonder if she remembers giving it to me like 15 years ago? lol
I won the e-bay bid for the 8 salad plates she needed for the price of 4!!  WooHoo!
I gifted it to her for driving us to and from the airport for our trip to the farm.

She was shocked and amazed...totally unexpected.

I had also just given her the yard of fabric in this Debbie Mumm pattern I got for $5.  I gave it to her for watching the boys while we went to the movies. :0)
She is gonna make a few fabric squares for the center of her tables with it.

I made out well with both gifts and she is happy!

Santa Clause winks ;O)~
DeniseMarie

Linky Parties:

3 or more Tuesday at The Gypsy's Corner...her 90th linky party

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm..her 25th 

2nd Time Around Tues at A Pic is Worth 1K Words.



Penguin Preview & Snowman Soup

Hello Christmas Dreamers. 
Are you dreaming of a white Christmas in this Summer heatwave? Look what came in my e-mail..
Looks like they are barely whetting our appetite but there is a hint of the magic to come.

I've been playing around.

I got my Christmas rubber stamps and punches out to see what I had.  A local party supply store purged a bunch of inventory to my local women's charity thrift shoppe.  Among a few other goodies, I got 4 different sets of paper hot/cold cups (64 ttl) and I'm playing with labels and snowman soup tags to have my supplies better ready for Hubby's requests and my giving whims.  I'll be set when he says..."Honey, can you whip up 32 goodie bags for me to give out at lunch today?" 

Black & silver with white polka dots, red gingham, brown with colored dots. Fun stuff!
I paid 50cents for each pack of 8.  I'll have fun figuring out how to label each cup design.  I sure better make inventory of my cello bags.  There is nothing like running out of a simple detail to hose up your Elf duties.  I figure if I work on these fun details now then I'll be able to concentrate when it is time to remember enough candy canes, marshmallows, cocoa pkts and kisses come Nov/Dec.  BTW, I put about 10 mini mallows into a tiny jewelry zip lock baggie for each soup kit.  Once I've bought the bag of marshmallows and am ready to open it I think it is more professional to immediately put the whole bag into baggies to prepare for assembly.
Get your Snowman on.  lol




http://craftskeepmesane.blogspot.com/


Candy Cane Kisses and White Snow wishes!
Denise Marie



Tuesday, August 3, 2010

My 1st ever Meme event

I'm excited!!  My 1st Meme will occur after school is back in session and we are all getting into our Fall schedule.  I hope you'll be able to share pictures of a Christmas collection or 2 or 3 with us.  I'm crazy for Fall too girls but gotta get some stuff done ahead of the Christmas rush or it won't happen here.  I hope all your precious collections are well stored and marked and you can find them easily because I want to see them and hear your stories.


I absolutely adore this image. 
I figured out how to go to PhotoBucket.com and edit any photo.  A blogging buddy told me how to do it but I can't remember if it was Sue Loves Cherries or who helped me.  Someone took the time to help me and I appreciate her!  I know this doesn't even look Christmas-y Does it??  But, I can't resist it's Joyeux Noel.  I definitely owe BannerHaus credit for helping me figure out how to go to olden images on the computer...I'm hooked on them.  There is something about them.

Please join me and let's show off our collections that come out to play at Christmas.   What is a Christmas Collection...you ask?  Believe me...you know if you are a Christmas Collector's Alley kinda gal! ;}

Nutcrackers  ..

Precious Moments Ornaments - my mom has been giving them to me for 20 yrs.

Snowmen - Huge collection

Old World Santas - mom has huge collection

Special Trees full of sentimental ornaments - Mother-in-love gifted me this tree
She has given me some of the ornaments but I've also thrifted some and I'll show ya.
I really want a table top sized 1.


Snowglobes - Nate loves them

Nativity Scenes - Love them
I'll show my Willow Tree set that hubby has been adding to for 2 years.

Polar Bears, Penguins, North Pole Mayhem - Nate's fault again

Tree Toppers

Village scene collection - those sure don't happen overnight

Angels

Books that you love to read to the kids

Dishes, dishes, dishes that you've collected! 

Please add my button to your bloggie if you think others will join us!  Let's do it Once a Month until December and then I'll go weekly in December.  I'll edit the button after each event or create a new one.

Candy Cane kisses and Christmas JOY Wishes!!

xox, DeniseMarie


 Show n Tell Friday at My Romantic Home
Finding Beauty at Dipity Road

Monday, August 2, 2010

Can a plate inspire a blog?

I'm in Awwww that I could be inspired by this less than $1 plate  from Goodwill to start this whole Christmas blog and do  posts on my regular blog about Christmas. 
Doesn't Mr. Snowman look like he's Praising the Lord for the snowflakes & stars?  <}
I love Snowmen and my mom loves olden Santas.

I gotta think of a great Meme or 2 for the fall/early winter so I'll be ready for Christmas this year.  I may surprise ya and do a meme after Christmas too to encourage us to get it all put up and organized properly.  I'm not an OCD, clean and neat freak so I need lots of encouragment to tidy stuff up.  lol 

I could do a UR crafting now day or project day or wrapping special ideas day??  It'll come to me when I least expect it.  I need to find out how everyone does their pretty buttons for parties and memes.  And, how to work Mr. Linky.
I'd love to make a button from this olden image I found off of the inter-net.

Or, I could do a Collector's Show n Tell each month as we count down to December.
this is some of Nate's Nutcrackers from 2009


We could show each other in a meme what is inspiring us for a special gathering...
or what are ya makin' for the 27 office staff that might enjoy a treat.
This is Snowman Soup that I'm famous for and it is cocoa all blinged out.  I love to put it in cups for the guys in hubby's office.
 

Just thinkin' outloud girls...xox, DeniseMarie

Come see what Sally won from my 1 yr blogaversary give-away!