Some sweet journal love.........

I started this journal quite some time ago, wanting to use a small piece of wallpaper I had for something special, along with the vintage velvet flowers, and the crocheted lace. I can't remember where the ledger came from, but it's such a cool one that I wanted to keep it for special things. I'll probably use it for special pieces of ephemera that I like to collect but otherwise don't really know how to display.....
What would you put in a journal like this?

Fresh new items added to my Etsy.........

So our big auction is over, it went really well (Thank the Great Lord above!) and now things can get back to normal......I've been working on my somewhat neglected Etsy shop and adding some new items..love these old baby albums, this one looks brand spanking new!
The beautiful tags I purchased in digi form from www.tatteredvintage.etsy.com so I've done all the work and she has the prettiest tags evah!
And again with the circus theme that I seem to love lately, this one was fun to make also.
I do hope you're all carving a bit of time out to create something lovely :).
Melanie is supposed to be coming down this week, can't wait, miss you best friend and sooo need your laughter!
Cheers for now......

Are you in need of inspiration...(and who isn't?)....

Ok, I will admit to being a bookstore stalker, I'm in there on an almost daily basis. What am I looking for? Well, I'm glad you asked! I'm searching for INSPIRATION!!!!!!

It's a longing that just rarely goes away......and it's actually been somewhat of a "dry" spell for moi in that department, for a myriad of reasons...my studio is a mess, dh and I have signed on as auction chairs for dd's school auction for the second year in a row, my studio is a mess (wait, did I already mention that?), lack of any real focus, being negative about my art because I don't (in my little bubble of a world) sell what I think is "enough" of it to even justify making more. And just how dumb is that?  I should be making art just for the joy of making art!
Today while perusing at a bookstore I came across this gem of a new book. My heart started beating faster because it's been exactly what I've been searching for....the direction I'd love to go with my art.
I just can't wait to really be able to sit down with this book and start creating...right after I clean up my studio (did I mention it's a mess?).
Thank you to author Annie Lockhart for writing this book!!! I need it so badly right now :).

What a sweetie pie she is!!!!

I'm talking about my dd of course....she's home with the sniffles today so we're getting ready for her big Valentine's Day party at school tomorrow. Then she wanted to also make Valentines for the Principal, the office staff, etc....she had some help from Mom but she did such a great job.
Is there anything sweeter on this earth than a child's valentine? I think not....I hope you all have a very sweet day!!

Circus fun........

So I've been wanting to make a "circus-themed" shadowbox for awhile now.....I went to altered artifacts on Etsy and she had these fabulous digital graphics for download......there is another image, I just haven't finished the artwork yet!
There's just something so fun about the vintage circus images. So much color and whimsy!
I'll be listing this either later tonight or tomorrow on my Etsy shop....hope you stay tuned:)

Thrifting, creating, and journaling......

So I went thrifting yesterday on a whim, and I guess if you go often enough you will find some items you covet....for me it was these three Ribbonette rolls of paper string.....they're so soft and just make for a great display...I doubt I'll ever use them. I also decided to create a Valentine just for myself! I highly recommend doing that every so often :).

I've also been working on an art journal, something I can use for my favorite ephemera pieces...the poem on the front of it is one of my very favorites. This journal is one that I found thrifting about a year ago and haven't used...it's filled with old accounting paper so I've been putting some gesso and paint down and then just gluing items down. I also want to be able to journal a bit in here so I'm trying to leave some room for that as well.
I hope you're all having a great week so far, I personally can't wait for Spring...these dark winter months can be hard to take at times....but lately we've had so many birds chirping, and my favorite of all, my daphne bush is blooming! If you don't have one, well I highly recommend them! It's my favorite flower fragrance of them all.....