May Day Basket

Happy May Day ... almost! Time to plan May baskets for neighbors or friends! I made a paper cone to hold some roses from my garden. The roses are really filling out and smelling wonderful this week! I chose a palest pink and a budding lilac. [I have NO idea what their real rose plant names are - here at the Winters we go by color!] :-)I created my paper cone with a sheet of card stock. I spray-glued purple tissue paper to both sides, then rolled into shape. Secured the roll with double-sided tape. Trimmed the top edge with scallop-decorative scissors. Punched two holes for the ribbon that I used for my hanging loop -- one purple and one white twisted together. Then I created a tag using my new-to-me-garage-sale-steal giant tag punch. [LOVE IT!] Added "Happy May Day." Inserted the flower stems into those individual water picks, pop inside and I'm all set for gifting!!

Guesting, Giving, Charming

The uber-thoughtful, talented and multi-published writer, Holley Gerth, interviewed me yesterday! She's also hosting a giveaway of my book, Inspirational Home, AND one of my product designs.

To see what the "refreshing" product is, have a chance to win, and read a little bit about me, pop on over to heart to heart with Holley! Holley has a unique gift to connect with women through her writing. I hope you'll spend some time over there and get to know this special lady! :-)

You'll also find a charming idea for some of your spring blossoms. (May Day and Mother's Day are coming up!)Thank you, Holley!

Birthday Favors - Dipping Pretzels

We celebrated a big birthday this week! My daughter turned 4! Wow! My baby is fast on her way to becoming a little lady! We threw a "big" party for her this year and invited about 10 friends over for a pool party. We decided to dip pretzels for favors. I'll tell you about our experience -- maybe you've been wanting to try these for yourself, too!
I bought two bags - about 50 pretzels. I wanted to give at least one per child and mom, plus extra to send home to siblings and dads. :-) First I dipped the pretzels in dark chocolate, then layed on wax paper to firm up. Then I dipped them in white chocolate - working fast so as to not "remelt" the dark chocolate underneath.
Right after the dip in the white chocolate my daughter and I sprinkled them with assorted pink and purple sprinkles on all sides. I also did a few in pink with sprinkles - remember to have the color paste and not liquid color or the white chocolate will seize up.
I found perfectly sized cellophane bags at Michael's that were specifically made for pretzels! So, I guess a lot of people are doing these now! I tied them with pink curly ribbon ...and added a little custom "A" tag in honor of the birthday girl. :-)

Studio Craft Table!

Here's another peek into my art studio. This is one of my favorite things in there: I finally have a high work table to do fun crafts and projects on!!! I didn't want to spend a fortune, but I wanted a craft table that was tall and looked a tad nicer than a door laying on saw horses....because I already have the door on my wall, right?! :-)

Anyhoo, I kept searching and searching ... IKEA, hand-built, drafting tables, display tables, kitchen islands ... and one day came across this normal-height desk on clearance at TJ's. It was a steal and I was determined to make it work. I wasn't big on the nautical theme, but loved the finish and the fact that it has drawers!!
The other neat feature was that it had saw horse legs attached in such a way that my husband could increase the height to 40" for me by building in a hidden shelf!I'm able to tuck my paper cutter and a couple bins of painting supplies out of sight! If you know me, you know I DO NOT sew. I created this no-sew skirt using hem tape and attached it to the underside edge of the table with velcro strips. I now spread my projects out someplace other than the kitchen island or dining table! Yeah!For the scoop on my "Ultimate" Inspiration Board go to this post.