Sunflower Pillow

I sewed this sunflower pillow to give to my mother on her birthday.  

I have a tutorial for this project here - these petals are a different shape from those in the tutorial, but the pillow is made in the same way.

Don't you hate it when you photograph something and then you notice a wall socket figuring prominently in the finished product?  Ugh.

Wedding Memento Subway Art

I made this canvas to give as a gift for a cousin's upcoming wedding shower. 

I simply painted over a canvas I was tired of looking at, then arranged Dollar Store stick-on letters, using three different fonts.  The bride to be is Italian, hence, the use of that language in some of the words.

I painted another coat of the same colour, and voila, a unique personalized gift that will be treasured long after the honeymoon is over.

Deck Decor

I came extremely close to selling this unused tea cart that was living in my basement.  I never thought to use it on my deck in the summer, but boy am I ever glad I finally realized it's a useful and pretty thing to have outside!

It does double duty on sunny laundry days, and it's going to be handy as heck during barbecue season.  My sister completely surprised me with this galvanized watering can that is forty years old.  I literally jumped up and down when she showed up with it.  She has four of them sitting mostly unused.  I am dying to poke around in her basement because she has a ton of things like this gathering dust.

Dollar store cherubs.  Can you even stand it? I can't!  Dollar store, I just love you to bits.

Decorated Birdseed Mason Jar

I saw this idea on a crafting blog and made one a little different.  I made the bird from cotton muslin and the legs out of bent out paperclips.  I had wee heart shaped wreaths on hand and that became the nest.  Add a bit of greenery, a bow and a flower or two and you're done.

The little flower arrangement was made using a candle holder which I absentmindedly sat in cool water after it had been on low heat on the stove to melt the wax in order to clean it out.  It cracked (ugh!) so it became a flower pot.

Peonies In Milkglass

I'm so thankful for my bountiful garden.

Frame Your Child's Poetry or Artwork

My son won a Canada wide poetry contest when he was 14 years old, competing against youth up to age 18.  His poem was published in Word Weaver magazine, and I was a very proud mom to say the least.  I actually needed  to sit down and cried when I read this poem at parent - teacher night midway through the school year.  The poem is a tribute to Roland Deschain, the main character in Stephen King's Dark Tower series, which we both love.   I framed it yesterday and hung it in a place of honour where the  light allows me to read it day or night.

I splattered the paper with out of the ordinary things like olive oil, balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, sprinkled trace amounts of cocoa powder over spattered  water spots, then carefully rubbed burned blackened  paper bits over some areas with my fingertips.  I sat a coffee mug on one edge to produce a, well, coffee ring stain, then misted the whole page with water, and voila, paper that looks convincingly old.  The frame was brilliant gold, so I toned that down with black paint and glaze.  The poetry was mounted on faux cherry wood which I also toned down by dry brushing it with black paint.

 And there you have it.

Mouse In An Anchovie Tin With Tutorial

I made this mouse for a friend who travels around the world, and brings a similar mouse I made for him for company.  He shoots photos of Ivan the mouse bungee jumping in Australia, touring the Pyramids at Giza climbing Kilimanjaro, and the list goes on.  I think I counted 30 or more places in the world Ivan has been so far with my friend Jyriki.  I thought Ivan could use a friend other than a human, so I sent him Fu.  I'm placing a tutorial after the cut.

Garden Inspirational Art

I put together this decorative canvas to hide a rusted fan cover that's mounted onto the brick wall beside my deck today.

My mother was visiting and told me about a botanical garden she toured and that these words were on a plaque, and I thought they were lovely.
  
Disclaimer: I should have written Buddah instead of God since I'm more of a Buddhist, but I was on auto pilot today and my Catholic upbringing is ingrained in my soul. 


Here it is hung over the fan cover with the recent addition of a butterfly made out of feathers.

I'm placing a very simple tutorial behind the cut.