Vintage wedding topper

I found and fell in love with this vintage wedding topper still in its Drexel box.  It's in beautiful condition with the perfect amount of patina. I filled the bottom of this terrarium jar with the vintage cotton that lined the topper box. I love the way it yellowed in some areas and stayed crisp white in others. The jar is decorated with a sea horse charm because the bride and groom are getting married in Hawaii. I found the gorgeous cake plate at Home Goods.  I'm in love and hate the thought of parting with it.  

Sigh...

Kelly

Vintage holiday

I love Christmas and one of my favorite activities of the holiday is decorating. I like to decorate with vintage ornaments. Speaking of vintage I mailed out my package this weekend for the vintage secret Santa gift exchange. I participated in an exchange hosted by chronically vintage. 

Below is My tiny little vintage tree with old ornaments from my childhood scattered around the base.

This little guy is one of my favs and always takes center stage when decorating for Christmas.

I love my vintage pieces and prefer the old christmas bulbs and decorations over the new.  I have my favorites from Pinterest pinned to my Christmas Kitsch board.  Like this...

And this...

Here is my version of the snow globe....

I added lights later. 

Well I'm off to the studio to finish the puppet theater I'm making for a special little girl.

Be warm, be safe and enjoy the Holiday!

Hugs... Kelly

The plan

The plan was perfect and well thought out or so I thought.  I was going to fill my shop with the most delicious treasures for holiday gift giving. Although I have a difficult time parting with my unique finds, I get so excited like a little girl on Christmas Day, when I share my salvaged treasures. My plan to fill the studio with as found and artfully altered items didn't turn out quite like I thought it would. The shelves of studio pink are far from full but I did find the most amazing antique mortar and pestle set. I loved it so much I decided to keep it until my hubby reminded me that I already had one and then he asked if I really needed another set. I hate it when he's right. :)

      It's simply amazing how fast time goes by and how little time is left for treasure hunting and carefully curated projects.  I have managed to get started on several Christmas gifts. They aren't completed but I have begun the process. That still counts, doesn't it? Although it gets a little crazy at times I do enjoy the holiday, decorating, shopping and spending time with family. 

   What is your secret for keeping it all together and getting everything completed in time? 

Do share!

Breath and just be...

It finally happened. A moment when I could take a deep breath and just be. As I gaze out the window my stress melts away with the morning frost.  Each and every worry is somehow like the tiny crystals intricately and beautifully packed into every flake. The morning sun glistens through every facet and highlights the uniqueness of each. Every flake mimics my thoughts, so complex and individualized. 

I need this time, this moment to melt down and slowly recompose. The rush of the holiday and the hurried ness of everyday life sometimes takes it's toll. I look forward to a little quiet solitude this morning. There is so much on my To Do list but I am taking this morning and this moment to concentrate on rest and contemplation. 

No worries, no stress, just time to savor a moment to breath in waves of calm and feelings of thankfulness for this day.

Wishing you a blissful day of calm and tranquility.

Just breath....

Secret Santa gift exchange

I've been missing from the blog world while away tending to other business this week. I've been trying all week to find a few moments to share a quick tidbit with you. I am so excited and couldn't wait to tell you about an upcoming event. Jessica over at chronicallyvintage.com is having a Secret Santa Gift Exchange. If you've never been to her world you must pay a visit to her site. She always has something incredible interesting to share. I love secrets and can't wait to find the perfect little something to share. Let the hunt begin!  Thank you Jessica for allowing me to participate in the fun. I can't wait!

Be warm,

Kelly

Love potion

I have been busy cooking up some potions from my garden herbs. I like to garden. I grow flowers and herbs and the occasional tomato or pepper. My favorite part of gardening is collecting the fresh herbs and using them in salads and other dishes. I am a mediocre cook that gets bored with the same old thing and likes to get adventurous in the kitchen. My favorite things to cook up aren't edible at all. I love to make herbal salt scrubs and lip balms but my very favorite recipe is what I call my love potion. 

         It's really just rose water made from dried roses, distiller water and citrus vodka. It's so easy to make ( shhh, don't tell anyone its my secret and now yours) and smells heavenly. I use hand fulls of dried roses from the garden (the heavily scented kind) a jug of distiller water and a few swigs, I mean drops, of citrus orange vodka. I boil the water and pour them over the roses then steep them in a covered glass bowl for about 40 minutes. After the 40 minutes are up and the water is a beautiful rose tint  I strain the water and discard or compost the rose petals. I then add the vodka and pour the mixture in decorative jars or bottles with stoppers. I seal a few bottles that won't be used for a while with melted candle wax. No need to refrigerate because the vodka acts as a preservative. It smells wonderful and it's very soothing to dry skin. I keep a tiny jar of it in my home altar as well but more on that later. 

  If you don't grow roses in your garden you can buy discarded petals from a florist and dry them yourself. You can also use fresh petals but you want to be sure they haven't been laced with pesticides. I have never used fresh roses and the  recipe is a bit different from the one I use for dried petals. 

  So even though the weather is a bit frightful here in Michigan I can still enjoy my garden. We are expecting a few more inches of snow and high winds tonight. Brrrrrr!!

Deep thoughts on a frosty morning

I can't recall when it happened but there was a moment when the thought entered my mind and cemented itself deep within like a pillar of stone refusing to move. I tried to dismiss it, walk around it and even push it aside but there was no denying the obvious. I'm talking about the moment I knew that the level I had worked for and tried to attain for so many years just didn't fit. It wasn't me. It was difficult and even a little bit painful but I had to admit that I was not the super woman I pretended to be. 

       From a very young age we are told that we can do and have it all. We can balance everything in life, the family, the career, the good, the bad and even the ugly with ease. I told myself this and even pleaded with myself to stay a working woman who was finally making her way up the ladder. I was too embarrassed to admit that I didn't want to be making my way up the ladder. The truth was I didn't want to be on that ladder at all. It took some time but eventually I admitted to myself and then to others that I wanted to leave my job. I needed time to spend with my family and reconnect with myself. Admittance came first but the letting go was key. I had to let go of the notion that I had made it and let go of the money that came along with. 

That step is behind me now and I am looking forward to time with the people I love, time to create and time to just breath. As I look out across the frosty lawn in my toasty slippers and worn out sweatshirt not fit for the public eye I take a deep breath and head for the Keurig for another cuppa. There is something about the crisp air and magic of morning light dancing across the floor that puts me in a dreamy state and gives way to a moment of reflection. Ahhhh...... So glad to be here!