Thankful

It's the little things that I am most thankful for. Like the sun on my face, the sound of the wind through the trees, a caring husband, a sleeping cat, a snuggle with a bunny, a cup of hot tea, time spent stitching and a long conversation with a dear friend. It doesn't take much to make me smile. I take great pleasure in the simple, the heartfelt and the handmade.

I'm also very thankful for my customers/friends. It makes me smile so very big when someone enjoys making one of my designs. This is my Folk Art Fusion flower brooch which was made by friend, Barbara Brannon.

It was her first try with my method and I think she did a wonderful job. She made it into an ornament to give as a gift to a friend.   

Today I also wanted to share this beautiful animation performance. I hope you can take a moment to sit and enjoy it as much as I did. Art comes in so many wonderful forms.



I am thankful for you my friend.

Light, love and hugs,
Michelle

Postcard Kits and a Gift to myself

Well, I can't believe next week will be Thanksgiving already. Whew! I feel like it was just Labor Day. Are you traveling to see family and friends for the big day of feasting? David and I decided to spend our first Thanksgiving in Wilmington at one of our favorite restaurants, Sweet and Savory. They put together a wonderful spread and even offer vegetable lasagna for us vegetarians! Woo hoo!!!

Many friends/customers have asked me to put together kits for my Postal Fusions. These post cards make wonderful handmade and heartfelt gifts for the special people on your list. Each kit contains the National Nonwovens wool felt, the Valdani 3 strand floss, embroidery needle, Soft Fuse - fusible web and 10 clear envelopes for mailing. There are enough supplies to make several of each. A PDF pattern will be emailed to you after kit purchase.

These postcards are fast and fun to make and

are the perfect take along project when you travel this Thanksgiving.

HOP over to my SHOP to get your KIT.

Today, I am super excited to share a little pressie I gave myself. I do love to give myself pressies! ;) My dear, super talented, wonderfully creative friend, Donna Liljegren of Brynwood Needleworks made me this gorgeous wallet.

I had been stalking eyeballing these on her Facebook page and just had to have one with the Alice in Wonderland fabric.
 

Look at all the pockets!

Donna makes everything incredibly special. Look at this cute little zipper fob she added. Love it!

The inside is every bit as beautiful and well made as the outside. 

I am over the moon excited with the pressie I gave myself. It's the perfect size to take with me when I run errands, grab a coffee with a friend or go to a movie.

Thank you so very much Donna! I love it! Hop on over and visit Donna at her BLOG. She might just have a pressie you want to buy for yourself. :)

Have a good weekend and I'll see you back here next Wednesday with an update on our new house.

Light, love and hugs,
Michelle

Keepsake Tags/Ornament Kits

So are you making lots of goodies for Christmas and the Holidays this year? Any new decorations, quilts or treats? David and I are taking it easy this year as we are still all boxed up in the apartment. We can't even get to our tree so instead, we will drive around, listen to Christmas music and enjoy the lights and sights of this beautiful time of year.

However, I do have some fun parties to go to so I decided to make up a few of my Keepsake Tags/Ornaments to decorate the packages. You may remember them from last year.

Hans Hare

Holly Hare

Paul Penguin and

Polly Penguin

It's nice to write a little note on the back of them and date it so the recipient can hang it on the tree and think of you whenever they see it.

Or, you could do what my friend, Carol Sylvester, did and turn them into gift card holders by leaving the bottom edge open. Cute huh? I love them! Great job Carol! :) :) :)

After receiving a bunch of requests for kits, I decided to put some together for you. Each kit will contain the patterns for each, the embroidery needle and enough wool felt, Valdani 3 strand floss and fusible web to make several of each.

Choose from Hans and Holly

or Paul and Polly

Please note, the kits do not contain the bells, fabric for the note or the beads. Those are things you can find at Walmart, Joannes, Hobby Lobby, or Michaels so I don't carry those items. The kits contain items that are harder to find.

So, if you would like a kit to make some special keepsake tags/ornaments, HOP on over to my SHOP and get one while supplies last.

Light, love and hugs to you,
Michelle 

House Progress

Hi ya! How's your week going so far? It's been raining here for days. I'm beginning to think I moved to Seattle instead of Wilmington! hee,hee,hee.

Today I wanted to share a little progress on my new house. It has been slow going, but we are finally starting to see things take shape. So here we go!

This is the start of the framing. 

 This will be my new office. I've decided Hannah will hang out with me in here. I spend a ton of time doing paperwork and computer work and it will be nice to have her near me.

I'm standing on the back porch in this photo. We have a little pond behind us again. Yay!!

David hanging out in the living room.

The upstairs taking shape.

This is the view of the back of our house from across the pond. It won't look like this for long. They are already starting construction on other houses around us. This whole neighborhood is sold out.

We totally had a fun time watching the trusses go up. 

More trusses.

They had a bit of an issue tying the main roof into the garage roof. The truss engineer sent the wrong trusses for David's third garage. So they had to tear it off and redo it. No worries though as the framing crew finished it all in one day when the new trusses arrived. 

This is the back of the house. The top window is my studio. We have lots of windows on the back of the house, which we love as the sun just pours in.  David and I both love bright, sun filled rooms, which is why this apartment makes us crazy and sleepy. It's dark and gloomy.

Sitting in my studio window. 

This is the view from my new studio window. I can't wait to look out over the water and be inspired. 

Finally, this photo was taken last Friday. It has been raining ever since. As soon as it stops (bunny ears crossed), the roof shingles will go on. It's going to be a cute little cottage for sure. I'll keep you posted as we progress.

Light, love and hugs to you!
Michelle