Magnolia!

I wait for this all year

Love, Linda

Our Foremothers . . .

I've been making bonnets out of vintage handkerchiefs

for many years.

They used to be $5.00 for a box full of doilies and hankies.

Now they are running $5.00 to $14.00 EACH!

Sometimes even more for the special ones.

I was moaning about the prices and having to think about raising

MY prices soon, now I charge $18.00 for a bonnet.

Then I thought about where these pieces came from.

Somebody made them. With a needle and thread.

Somebody cut out each butterfly and painstakingly

 

(and with a very teeny needle) stitched it to another piece, and then embroidered over it. There is also drawn threadwork on this hankie - she carefully cut one thread at a time and pulled each one out to make the design.

And tatting. It's done with a shuttle by tying and flipping tiny knots

 to make picots.

I took a six week tatting class once.

 I almost went insane.

Really! After six weeks of struggle, I had one inch of tatting.

I would like to point out that this tatting is TWO colors, which means two shuttles, or one shuttle and the ball of thread.

Below is a cutwork and embroidered pillowcase. After the embroidery is done, the tiny openings are carefully cut out.

The point is that ALL of these things are precious and should cost more than $5.00 for a box full of them.  The scary part is that there won't be any more
 because the generation who created them is almost gone.

My mom taught me to sew. My daughter is not interested in sewing, but she does make jewelry. If you or your daughters are interested in preserving these arts, I urge you to do so. The way to learn these arts is to sit with a grandmother and learn, because there aren't many classes available. Please give serious consideration to what you are able to pass down to the next generation.
 (Alas, not tatting for me.)

Love, Linda

Ohhhh Duke . . .

Duke relaxing with a magazine . . .

Somethin' in my toof - got dental floss?

Love, Linda

Finally!!

I feel like I have been waiting years for this spring!

What's going on outside:

Snowdrops! The first daffodil!

Anybody know what these are??

And my favorite spring flowers are the Hellebores!

Happy Spring!! Love, Linda

Yet, More Cheap Happiness

This is the third (and last) post about Tammy Strobel's book "You Can Buy Happiness (and it's Cheap)". I wanted to talk about Tiny Houses. Some of you may have heard of Tumbleweed Houses which were created by Jay Schafer. Tammy and her husband live in a house of 128 square feet! Wow! When Tammy talks about her house, I just want to go and live there. Just imagine: no mortgage, very cheap heating and electricity bills, 15 minutes to clean the house, etc. Some people even live in these houses with kids. AND solar power!

I'm not filled with the desire to keep goats and cows, although I would like chickens someday, and goats are awfully cute,

 but a lot of her suggestions hit home.

Create a detailed list of all the activities and what rooms you do them in. What rooms do you spend the most time in? What rooms do you never go into? (Why would you want to clean THREE bathrooms every week, unless you are a family of eight?). She says try closing of some of the rooms and see if you can do without them.

And suggestions for living in a smaller home: When you come home, put stuff away immediately. Make sure each of your belongings has a designated home. Have fewer, more multipurpose items. Why have service for twelve if your family is only one or two. Why indeed, do I have service for twelve - I never use the bottom plates! The most people I can seat is six at my table. Hmmmm. Why do I have two mixers??? One for each hand maybe?

Take advantage of vertical space. Well, I HAVE done that . . . for books. I never get out the stepladder and climb up there though. Maybe in a year or so this will be the Tiny House of Beautiful Dogs.

 Be sure to visit Tammy's Blog, Rowdy Kittens.

Love, Linda

Some new baby things:

Here's what I've been up to lately:

Embellished Onsies!

With tailfeathers!

Now listed in my etsy shop. Love, Linda

More Cheap Happiness

A couple of posts ago, I discussed Tammy Strobel's book entitled "You Can Buy Happiness (and it's Cheap)" She was talking about decluttering.

I have made slight progress. I have sold a bunch of stuff on ebay - good stuff too - but stuff I don't use. I have more listed. The wierd part is that I can't see any difference! The place looks just as full! What's that all about??

I posted about the more than 200 books listed on Amazon (and have sold about 50) and I can see a little space there. The trick is not to BUY more books on Amazon while listing mine! Naturally, I tell myself that I will resell it as soon as I finish reading it. They have SUCH good deals! Every friend I have knows enough to drag me past a bookstore. But, late at night, home, with only the glow of my computer screen . . . temptation takes over. (Cue dark music here.)

Anyway, Tammy has a few things to say about finances, and heaven knows I need THAT advice! (The dog pictures are to give you something to enjoy while I talk about the painful subject of finances.) One of the things they did was get rid of their cars and ride bicycles. Well, that's not going to happen here, But I CAN map out my errands and shopping and make one circular trip a week. And that is what I've done for the past two weeks. One trip for food shopping, going to the pet store, Jo Ann's Fabrics, the Wine Shoppe, and Staples for mailing supplies. Then, no more driving! It worked. I am about a quarter tank ahead!

Another thing she says is to use your credit cards sparingly or cut them up. I used to freeze mine in containers of water in the freezer, which is fine until you need to pay for a tow truck and find yourself sitting on the kitchen floor with an ice pick! I am down to one credit card at present, but am still paying off the cut-up ones! Check out books from the library instead of buying them. Yes. Well. Since I 'Told All' in the previous paragraphs, we know how I can improve on that one. Establish an emergency fund. I am really trying to do this by calling it a "Veterinary Emergency Fund." You know, when Himself, or Herself eats a plastic bag (or a hairbrush in our case) and you have to go to one of those Emergency Vets . . . (Five Hundred Dollars, now please). Even twenty dollars a paycheck adds up, and how can you call a pair of shoes on sale an emergency when those big brown eyes are looking at you??

Finally, she says to examine your attitude about money, and I found some food for thought in this one. What role does money play in your life? What are your guiding principles about money? Does your level of income define you as a success?

Have a great week, Love, Linda