Whole Lotta Lounging Goin' On

These in-between days
from Christmas to New Years
have been all about
relaxing, reading
and catching up
on our beauty sleep.

Ahhhh...lookin' better already.

See ya next year!

Pink • Pink • Pink • Christmas

This beautiful, very girly pink wreath
was awaiting me at the Post Office the other day.
Oh Joy!

Handmade by Jerri W., my swap partner,
it is fluffy and elegant, as you can see.

I love the vintage jewelry and ornaments that she included and of course, the satin ribbon is divine! Can you see the tiny silhouette ensconced in a watch case?

This beauty has a place of honor in my Pink Christmas Loft and will stay up all year long, by virtue of it's gorgeous-ity!

Zsa Zsa (or was it Ava?) would be jealous, I know.

Merci Beaucoup, Jerri!

Season's Greetings

Here are a couple more from
the Vault O'Vintage.

These are from the late forties.
(I only know that because the greetings inside are dated.)
I really like the cutsie and soft watercolor styling on these cards.

The little angel with a peppermint stick reminds me to pass on my BEST COOKIE OF THE SEASON award.
may we recommend - Trader Joe's Two Candy Cane Jo-Joe's.
Yum! I initially bought them because the dang box was so bright and great looking, but then the cookies got me hooked.

Seriously good stuff.

As We Dream by the Fire

Actually, I believe I could make a career of lounging by the fire. I am seriously GOOD at it.

The uncharacteristic cold snap we've had this past week has had me planted firmly in front of a cosy, crackling fire every night with a mug of hot cocoa, and a set of felt ornaments to embroider. My art journal is also on hand for recording those great flashes of inspiration that come only in moments of sheer laziness.

Ahhh...Dolce far niente.

This image is from my newly aquired vintage card collection. Makes me just want to shake all those presents.

From carefree days gone by , Pre-911, note the candles on the tree and the lack of fire screen.

Polar Expression

Is it hot in here,
or is it just me?

I was putting these freezy pop packets in lunches one day and realized they were the exact size of an ATC. That was the inspiration for these polar bear ATC cards. I had thought to give them out frozen at the swap, but ended up leaving them thawed.

Spectacular Sparkling Spectacles

I got this sparkly image of the Christmas Tree
goofing around with a pair of prism glasses
and my camera.

Ok.
LOVE these things!

They've got me hovering around every
light source like a moth -
snap,
snap,
snapping pictures
in rainbow, prismatic glory.

You just hold them up to your lense and shoot.
Kinda like TTV, only it's TTPG.

We got a set for the whole family, years ago,
to go see the Festival of Lights. WOW!











Since then, they've taken on a life of their own and been used for everything from low tech video enhancement to bonfire dancing.

They come in all kinds of viewing patterns: stars, ornaments, snowflakes, you name it. I get them at the local teacher's store and have seen them at toy stores, too.

It's a great gift. Now your friends can take their families to check out the neighborhood holiday lights in psychedelic style.

Prism glasses, candy canes and cocoa make for a fun little gift pack. That's some serious Joy Ridin'!

A Box Of Goodies

I spent a fun day poking around an antiques fair with with some friends and we all came up with a nice little collection of vintage holiday plunder.

My happy find of the day was a basket full of 50's and 60's Christmas cards, all at barg-o-rama prices, no less. Three for a buck!

I'll be posting one each day, until I get to the bottom of the stack.

I always keep my eye out for kinetic cards that actually DO something and really love anything to do with paper engineering.

There it was!

A vintage mechanical paper card with a PUPPY on it?

A Puppy sportin' a RED BOW?

GET OUT!

I just about fell over.

This little guy is going to my sis, the dog aficionado - YOU CAN STOP READING RIGHT THERE, MISSY! - with home baked, star shaped doggie treats.

(And yes, I'll be punching some holes in the side, just to ease her PETA-lovin' mind.)

When my dear husband read the card, he had other gift ideas and thought maybe a pooper scooper would better accompany the sentiment.

GUYS!

Feeding Fine Feathered Friends

As the temperature dips down this Winter,
don't forget to stock the bird feeder buffett.

We keep it really simple using "elderly" bagels
spread with one or more of the following:
peanut butter, suet, bacon fat, or jelly.

Topped off with bird seed, black oiled sunflower seeds and raisins, it's a great snack for our fine feathered friends.

The bagels work well because the center hole is perfect to slip a length of twine through for hanging.

Bon Appetit, Birdies!

Santa's Got Your Number

Did you know that
you can get a phone call
from the Elf Himself?

Yep!

Although there are online spots to get
Santa to call your little one for a chat,
I prefer the old fashioned way: family.

It's a simple thing to talk a relative -
say, your baby brother (wink, wink)
into calling up, disguising his voice,
reviewing the naughty/nice list (optional)
and checking in on your kiddo's
fondest Christmas wishes.

Record it for posterity, or not.

It's a little Christmas fun.

Chez Champagne

Although champagne is usually reserved for
New Year's, these bottles snuck out a whole
month early to help celebrate Christmas.

This elegant little wine shop is
somewhere in the South of France.

Ok, not really.

We created this tableau for a local hospital charity. It was fun and of course there was an enormous amount of glitter involved!

I love this Christmas tree in an urn and although ours was a bit tippy, we finally got it to stay put.

One of my favorite touches is the corkscrew wreath holder and naturally, that's a wine list rolled up at the post box.

We distressed and crackled an old door, topped it with a handcrafted awning, trimmed with a real ostrich feather boa. ATCHOO! That is when I discovered that I am allergic to ostriches. Who knew?

The front yard was carted in piece by piece. Those cute little cobblestones each weighed a TON,
let me tell ya! The moss is the real thing, collected in my back woods, spritzed with water and then sprinkled with mica flakes.

Besides a sleighful of ornaments, the tree is covered with little decoupaged tubs,
numbered 1-25 and filled with exquisite chocolates. There are also champagne glasses, baubles and yards and yards of champagne glittered trims tucked all around the tree.

Joyeux Noel!