Altered

I had a good time last night in a class I took at Deep Creek Vintage, a fine old manor house located in Fredericksburg Va..  Full of vintage and handcrafted items.
 Friday after hours class was held in a cottage in back.

   I learned to cast molds with paper clay and relief stenciling to use on various items.


casts set aside for drying

Base coat and then a relief stencil I chose to apply to face of book

This one of mine has been painted with a base coat and now waiting for a top coat to dry.

another stencil I chose and applied with a metallic paint and added castings.

Finished...

I like taking these classes when they are offered because it's fun getting out with others who have the same interest and discussing new ideas or another way of doing things that wasn't thought of before.  I learned first hand, that it's better to spend a little more on a good product than going the cheaper route with inferior products, money is wasted trying to do it that way and it's just not as nice a finished product.

I am linking with
 best of the week end 

Easter Art

So pretty here today.   I am potting some plants I purchased at Lavender Farms yesterday, in the meantime I am sharing some Easter art done by the grand girls last week.

genevieve's rabbit 

made with paper plates.

She wanted two different color eyes

Adalyn

showing opa

Outside on the porch is a good place for glitter, glue and cutting with scissors.

You will notice that the artwork on the brick is done by Genevieve,  she just had to pick up the colored chalk for a quick warm up.  

Adalyn

adalyn

puzzled and among other things

I love puzzles and I have two thats finished.  Not sure where I will put them.  I may laminate one for the table on the porch and the other frame it for the winter scene.

Love Macarons

I have a 12 x 36 inch one I am working on that is a winter scene upstairs on the table.

other things this past week was another trip with grands to science museum

Just inside the door at the science museum which used to be the old train station that I used to come to in school for a day trip with class mates to Washington D.C.  and a few other places.

This is in the little snack shop there in the museum where we sit with coffee and today will be a lunch for Adalyn and Genevieve.

on our porch I let the kids eat breakfast and I check emails and after that I let the kids watch a cartoon the chrome book.   Genevieve thinks she is doing what she calls 'her business' in this picture.   She calls it that because when she walks in on Opa working , he tells her to wait until he finishes his business,  so of course she picked that up from him.

She loves to watch Cailou - her very favorite

beautiful sunset last evening while we were out

stopped in hobbly lobby and the Christmas displays are out of this world - Beautiful!

I like the looks of this natural looking wreath

Red and white is always showy 

I started off this morning with a visit to the dentist

so glad it went well before the knee replacement I will have on October 3rd.

jam and flowers

Been a while since my last post.   Lots going on and mostly all at once it seems.  
I am posting a picture of orange marmalade with pineapple that I canned a few days ago.

I will make a sponge cake and spread it between the layers for coffee or tea in the afternoon.

In the picture above sitting next to marmalade is celery growing in a shallow bowl of water.  

I will transfer it to a pot to grow some more before cutting to use in recipes.   Saw this done in a couple of blogs and it works very well.

some beading done in the evening,  need to wrap the stems with some floral tape

now to make some leaves for the flowers

I'm baaackk

Finally a post after a good while of being away.   Painting my bedroom downstairs along with other family matters has taken priority over the computer lately.
My sister Lynn sent me this photo today of a craft she did for her bathroom with vintage wallpaper that was found under many layers in her home in Maine.    Her home was built in the late 1800's .  
She sprayed polyurethane over the wallpaper so no harmful dyes possibly can be lifted from the paper.  I like the knobs she put on the drawer fronts she found that is covered with the paper to hold maybe hand towels or what ever you like.   I like it just the   way it is.  Very crafty idea.

Like the decorative panels below the towel rack.  I believe it is salvaged from the home also.

 

 

I am sharing with Boogie board cottage masterpiece monday        

the dedicated house make it pretty monday

 

 

                   

scented flower picks

While shopping in Pier one today,  I saw four silk flowers in a diffuser jar,  they sell them I believe it was 4 to a pack.   I decided I would make my own since I always have faux flowers on hand that pick up here and there when they are on sale.

 

 

take the flower from the stem

 

 

Make sure you hold the center of the flower so the flower petals do not separate

 

I used a bamboo skewer to make the opening larger so the reed would go in easier

The rest of the reeds I just inserted in the jar

didn't want a lot of flowers,  just a few for a little color

The scent is wonderful

 

I am sharing with Amaze me Monday

 

Clarkesville Va -- part one

We got away on Moms day and Steve's birthday.    The work thing dictates when we go places.   I missed seeing Mom on Mothers Day, but did see her on Saturday to take a sun hat and flowers.  

Clarkesville Va.  population 1,139 and size 2.9 square miles.
 Virginias only lakeside town  is located in Mecklenburg County and named after it's founder Clarke Royster and incorporated in 1897.  My mom was born in Mecklenburg county in the town of Chase City.  I will have pictures of that later.
Lands located along the Roanoke river were originally home to the Occoneechee Indians.    By the British in 1676 the Indians , led by Nathaniel Bacon were driven away.    Temperate climate and  good tobacco soil made populating fairly quick.    
We both like this small town and it's close proximity to our home which makes us think about a vacation spot.    Maybe someday.   

We stayed at the best western in Clarkesville and the view of the water was beautiful

water views from our room

After settling in we took a walk around the town and there was this neat little gift shop,  loved it.  Could not take pictures on inside as the sign posted on the door reminded me.

In early 1950's - the damming of  the Roanoke river had a large impact on the area making Clarkesville the only town on the 50,000 acre body of water named after an island upstream - Buggs Island lake.   A lake my mom said she used to swim in as a child.

 

 

you can see the water in background

Plaques on building that house shops with date of the bldg.

The driftwood arrangements were very nice and commanded a large price too.  

nice wreaths

I do like much the arrangement in window.  Lights in the evening look so pretty.

yes, I was wondering how I could get down to get this piece.  

I love this old enamel ware with plantings.   I remember mom planting in these because she didn't have a pot or container to put greenery or flowers in ,  now it's fashionable.  Man -  how times have changed.

 

I like the mossy wreath and the driftwood signs

 

back to our room for a sunset

 

sharing with  The Table scaper for  Oh the places I've been
                      Dwellings  for          Amaze me Monday
                     
Part two here