Hurricane? In Connecticut?

I knew there was a reason I don't normally watch the news. Dan Malloy (our governor) just came on to address the state about the impending weather conditions we will have this weekend and he's got me all freaked out now... Highways might close, we might lose power for days or weeks, and significant tree damage could occur. Oh, by the way, I live in the middle of the woods down a half mile dirt road. So yeah, now I feel like one of those people I usually kind of snicker at that runs to the store to buy tons of water and batteries. It seems pretty legitimate this time. So scary... I hope it just turns out to be a bad thunderstorm or something.

I mentioned that I had started a new doll in my last post, but I haven't done any more work to her, so I'll just post my little Annie as she is at the moment.

She's the first doll I've had enough fabric scraps to stuff with, so she's much heavier and more comfortable than any of the others I've made. I love her. I have plans for something else to put in her apron pocket, but I still want to do a little more... I'm just not sure what.

Anyways, I hope everyone else affected by Irene will be safe and well stocked. Get your pretty prim candles ready and take care of yourself and your family. Take care and stay safe, everyone. See you again soon.

Old Sturbridge Village

I have a dollie in the works, but there's still a few things I want to add to her... I just don't know what. So in the meantime, I will post some pictures I forgot I had of Old Sturbridge Village when I went on my birthday back in May. My camera is very fickle, and most of my pictures came out blurry unless I was outside, so I don't really have many good ones of the homes and shops, etc. :/ It was early Spring and my eyes were full of tears almost the entire time because my allergies were destroying me, but I took a lot of pictures to look at when my eyes could see things again. I took almost 300 pictures... So this will be a "brief" look at what I was oogling. Enjoy. :)

This squirrel stole my heart... and someone else's pizza.

My new acorns!

I had quite a bit of fun seeing these little guys come into shape. I didn't use a pattern, but I got the idea from Paxton Valley Folk Art's acorn pattern. I used burlap instead of muslin, and I didn't stain them. I might make more, I haven't decided yet. It seems like the more there are, the cuter they collectively become. :)

I don't really have much else to type about that I didn't say yesterday. I gave my blog a much needed revamping and did a little cleaning of my following list. The day I made this, I literally started following like 114 different pages, so I had no idea who was who. I think I'm down to about 70 now, which is still a lot, but they all stood out to me for one reason or another. A lot of the ones I cut out were deleted pages or MIA people (like I usually am...) that haven't posted in forever. I do love finding new exciting blogs to follow, though!

Anywho, I should get to bed or at least consider it. I hope you're all doing well!

It's almost that time again...

Soon, we'll be reaching for our favorite sweaters and smelling that beautiful familiar scent in the air as the leaves crunch beneath our shoes... I simply cannot wait. <3

Yes, I do still exist, and I do apologize for being absent pretty much since last fall/winter. I wonder if I'm just a seasonal blogger/crafter, heh. I did finally finish (I think) the turkey that Ma kept asking me about last year, albeit very late (or early?). Anyways, meet Gobbler, the fluffiest turkey you've ever known.

I'm still debating on whether or not to give him eyes. I'm afraid if I do, it'll make him goofy looking. I kind of like the vibe without eyes, but I haven't decided yet.

Just to give an update in case anyone was following me and read about the job I was excited about last winter... I left the job in the beginning of June because I simply couldn't deal with commission pay. At this point in my life, that career choice simply was not realistic. So I have been looking for something else since then. Several rejection letters and a whole lot of discouragement later, I'm still hoping. I was trying for the big insurance companies in Hartford, since it's the insurance capital of the world, but at this point, I just need SOMETHING. I'm slipping into credit card debt just paying my regular bills, and feel terrible for relying on my grandmother again. I'm even selling a bunch of my old clothes on ebay just to get a few bucks to put towards my card. But hey, as my grandmother says, "This too shall pass." She's very good to me. I wish it didn't take me until my adult years to finally appreciate her the way I do. Silly teenage angst.

Anywho, I hope you're all doing well. I see I lost a few of you in my hiatus, including Gina (sadface), but hopefully I will get myself to do a bit of crafting and blogging more often soon. I do check in from time to time, and I was so happy to see autumn prims popping up in your blogs even months ago, haha.

Enjoy these summer days. We'll be missing them when we're shoveling snow.

"What's that going to be?"

I've been inspired lately by all the cute Valentine's Day goodies I've seen you ladies making lately and decided that I wanted to make some hearts, myself. They're not really Valentine's Day related, but I'm quite happy with the way they turned out.

I miss her, but time is mending what it can. I just moved back into the house with my grandmother again on January 31st, and I actually live in Ma's old room now (Ma was my great-grandmother). I've made it my own, so I don't feel as weird about it as I thought I would. I have some flowers on my desk next to a picture and a birthday card she gave me a few years back, and try to take care of the flowers the way she'd want me to. I've never had any, so I usually tell her that I have no idea what I'm doing. "Am I giving it too much water? I don't know why the petals are drying out - what am I doing wrong, Ma?"

I told her that I was going to create something today, because I knew that would make me actually do it. As soon as I started, I swear I could feel her eagerly watching me like she used to in her old chair, asking me what I was doing now. How about now? "What's that going to be?" I feel so silly for typing this. I knew she'd be so happy to see me sewing again that I almost felt it like I was watching myself through her eyes and feeling her happiness. I'm not gonna lie, it made me cry.

Anyways, I live in the middle of the woods now down a half mile dirt road. It's beautiful and all, but as soon as it snows... I'm stuck here. My Corolla doesn't stand a chance on this road if there's any snow or ice, and we don't get plowed often. We've got a bazillion feet of snow here in CT and apparently we're expecting more over the next week. Yaaaaaaaaaaay. -_-

Here's some pictures of my beautiful yard, though. I take the good with the bad, and god is the good breath-taking.

It sounded like the trees were about to shatter when the wind blew...

No camera could have possible done this justice.

It was like a crystal fantasy world.

Happy birds.

Sooooooooo adorable! *squeee!*

I hope you're all staying warm and safe. I know at least in CT, the snow is so high that it's impossible to see where traffic is coming from at many corners. I cannot wait until the day I see greenery again... It feels like it'll never come. Maybe I should get more flowers for my room, haha. "Maaaaaa...!"

You Never Know. (RIP Ma)

Ma, my great-grandmother, had a massive stroke on December 17. After a long week of sleep and morphine, she passed away on Christmas Eve, 2010. She was an amazing woman - the most soft-spoken and generous human being I have ever had the privilage of knowing. She was one of the only family members I had been close to all throughout my life, and I will miss her very much. I've told her everything I wanted to say both while she was well and while I held her hand in the hospital. When she was "unconscious", she stroked my hand with her thumb for several minutes as if to comfort me and tell me she knew I was there, and that I would be okay. I still can't believe she will never be in that chair again, but such is life, and I need to be strong and move forward. I love you always, Ma.

The main reason I'm posting about this in my Blogger after disappearing for so long is because Pooh, the kitty I made for Ma in September, was buried with her yesterday. I wasn't sure how she felt about it when I first gave it to her, but over time, she often told me she said good morning to it every day, and loved that I made it for her. The second day she was in the hospital, I brought Pooh to her room and told her while she was sleeping, "I brought your Pooh kitty, Ma. He's sitting on the window sill watching over you." Out of a deep sleep, she actually opened her eyes and tried to turn her head to see him. My point is, you never know how much your creativity can touch someone, or how it will impact lives. You also never know when you will lose someone you love. I've found that it's important to love deeply, live fully, be creative, and share generously.

RIP Ma

February 7, 1917 - December 24, 2010

Take care of her, Pooh kitty.



Happy Halloween! :D

Just wanted to stop in and wish you all a wonderful Halloween! This is my favorite day of the year, and I can't wait to enjoy the evening. Make it a good one! :D

I GOT THE JOB!

I know I haven't posted in a while, and again, I apologize. Still busy with school, my internship, interviews, etc. And as it turns out, it's all been worthwhile because I got the position that I was so excited about! They had called me for a second interview which was held this past Thursday, and the president just called me this afternoon to tell me that I outshone the competition from both sets of interviews and that he would like me to come back as a part of the firm! So after I graduate college in December, I will start my training to become a Registered Representative from First Investors Corporation! I am so excited! I can't believe that I really am growing up, and my adult life has already begun... Last I checked, I was 15 - What happened? Haha.

Anywho, thanks again for checking in with me. I miss crafting, but lately I have had no time or funds to do so. I feel bad for disappearing so soon after I started getting to know people. Gina, I still smile when I see those curtains every time I step out of my room. :) I have not forgotten you.

Have a wonderful day, all, and I hope you are enjoying the beautiful fall weather. <3

It's in the air...

Last night was the first night this year that I've felt that familiar crisp feeling in the air - that cold that almost starts to hurt your nostrils when you take a deep breath of it. My best friend moved just down the street from me for now, so I'll get to walk in the beautiful autumn breeze more often. I just need to start bringing a thicker jacket. It was freezing last night (finally!). This was my first autumn bonfire! :D It was so good to just hang around with the heat of the fire, have a few beers, and laugh with everyone. It was one of those nights full of "little things". <3

Anyways, I've been suuuuper busy with school, internship, etc. It turns out that I ended up getting called for two interviews from the career fair I went to a little while back, both of which being this upcoming week. I'm sooo nervous. I've never had a "real" interview before. I work at Hot Topic, and when I was interviewed over 6 years ago, it was a group interview and it was a bit more laid back (it's still a "real" job, don't get me wrong). Now it's going to be super formal, dressed to impress, with resume in hand... It's crazy to think how fast we grow up. And scary. Did I mention scary?

I've been feeling kind of inspired to make something recently, I just have no time to do so... :(  It seems everyone is already onto making Christmas stuff, and I'm not willing to rush my absolute favorite day of the year (Halloween) away for that, so I've kind of taken one step back from the blogging thing. I want to thoroughly enjoy my autumn without winter butting it's nose in, haha (kind of like when they put Christmas trees out for sale in August).

I'm glad to see everyone's still crafting and painting away. I still want to make several things (I have a list in my head), so hopefully soon I can get some done sometime soon. I know I'll want to make Gram's witch by Halloween (her birthday) and some cute prairie dolls with little bags of sweet annie. :] Anywho, take care all. Take a deep breath of that autumn air. :D

Sorry I've been MIA.

I haven't forgotten about any of you, and I have still been reading a bunch of blogs. I'm super busy with classes and my internship lately, and I'm dirt broke now that I've gotten my car fixed after over a year of it needing a new engine (yay, cars!), so my crafting has been at a temporary halt. I did however get a rush of excitement when my sweet annie arrived from Raspberry Lane Primitives! It was beautifully wrapped, too. :D

The wrapping paper that the package came in was pretty funny. I'm a very un-Tinkerbell kind of girl, so I loved the unintentional irony, haha.

It all smells so good. This is going to sound weird, but it smells like something I used to feed my beloved pet rat, so after several years, this was a pretty nostalgic scent. :)

I finally stuffed my "Old Witch" stockings (pattern by Tennessee Ridge Primitives) with the sweet annie I've been wanting for so long. I LOVE them now, instead of glaring at them, dreading how empty and unenthusiastic they look. Once again, my camera fails to do justice. (I have since put more in the "witch" stocking after seeing the lack of balance from this photo, haha.)

Oh and Gina, this one's for you, haha (they stick out like a sore thumb, eh?):

Other than school, my internship, and dealing with my car, I am embarassed to admit that I have started up another hobby that I actually started crafting to keep myself from. This is going to sound silly, but I used to be HIGHLY addicted to an online video game called World of Warcraft. I quit a few months back (again) and started sewing prims to keep myself doing something, and I was happy with it. Then my friend from Idaho offered to pay for my monthly account fee so I would come back and play with him again. Needless to say... I'm sucked back in, haha. I haven't told my friends, and I have no intention to. I'm pretty sick of the jokes. Anyways, I have NOT given up on crafting and I still love prims to pieces, I've just been really stressed and unmotivated to sew recently. I do cart my sewing machine and massive bag of fabric, etc. with me to Ma's every Monday, so I at least have that time to sit and craft. There's no internet there, either, haha! I promise you, I am not done crafting, and I will have plenty new goodies to share. But yes, if you haven't heard of World of Warcraft or it's effect on people, it's a little something like this:

Goodies from friends!

Sorry I haven't posted in a little while, I haven't really been around this weekend since my package finally arrived...

It had been about two weeks since Gina from Cat Nap Inn Primitives sent me a box of autumn goodies just because she's awesome. She didn't even know me that well, and she still set up an amazing goodie box for me and shipped it out across the country... People like her renew my faith in people. :) Anyways, so it had been a long time and I still didn't receive her gift in the mail. We started to worry and I was afraid it got shipped to the wrong person or got lost somewhere in parcel-space. Then Friday, I checked my mail and saw that I had a note from the mailman on a piece of spam that otherwise would have been chucked immediately, telling me I had a parcel at my front door. So I ran upstairs, through my apartment to the other door and snatched my goodies, haha. It really was like Christmas as I sat in my room pulling out each item gasping, oohing and ahhing in disbelief of the things she sent me. :)

 Everything on that table is from Gina. :) I am sooo in love with that little lamp and the potpourri smells amazing in it. That's probably why I haven't found a real spot for it yet just to keep it at my computer desk and nightstand so I can stare at it and smell it. ^_^

I've started to put a few things in places, but I'm still not happy with some of the decisions, so they might change from now.

I had this tiny corner shelf set up months ago and NOTHING small enough to fit on it, hahaha. I love the pumpkin and crow combo on the top, but the little white one might get moved somewhere else. I'm indecisive. :)

I still love this unit so much. I snuck in one of Gina's white pumpkins on here as well. I was originally going to try to keep them all together, but I like the subtle complement when they're placed one at a time in random places.

Mini side story time. So the little girl toilet paper cover below was made and given to my great grandmother (Ma) from her mother-in-law ages ago. It sat in the main bathroom of my great grandmother's house for years until my grandmother (Gram) decided to redo and redecorate the bathroom with some boring all-white deal. Needless to say, this piece did not fit and it got moved apparently to Ma's room after that, which was probably why I forgot about it. So years later to the present day, in the evening after I gave Ma her Pooh kitty, she came out of her room with this in hand. I originally was going to say she could keep it because it's not really my style, but considering that I don't have many things from Ma and I don't know how much longer she'll be around, I carried this little gal home and put her in my bathroom. I think of Ma whenever I see her, and I've grown quite fond of her, probably for that reason.

Anywho, I'm not sure I'm going to leave the little pumpkins from Gina there because that basket isn't really catching my fancy and I have no cute little dough bowls, but they're almost the same mustard color as Ma's doll's dress. So for now, they shall keep her company. :)

So as I've posted about before, I have this whole bright orange thing going on in my bathroom, and decided that the bigger pumpkin would fit in on one of the shelves. And it does! The problem is, I don't know what else to put with it... I love that little candle she sent me, and the candle placemat is adorable, so I feel it should be done more justice, so I'll probably move this around too at some point. I'm pretty much the most indecisive decorator ever, haha.

I snuck in another of the white pumpkins on that adorable little shelf above the toilet. I would glare at that empty space next to the rusty star plant thing, wishing I knew what to put there, and for now, the pumkin shall fill the void, haha.

So aside from the rusty tin lamp with deliciously scented autumn potpourri, which is kept near me in my messy area (hence no photograph, haha), this next bit has got to be one of my favorites. I've been wanting curtains for my kitchen window for soooo long (I love curtains, apparently), but there's no way to fit a tiny rod above it. So I actually ended up tacking the top of these above the window, haha. But hey! I love it! *squeee*

There are still things I don't have a home for yet, but here are my photos for now. :)

Also, remember how I've been saying that I've been wanting some sweet annie but didn't know where to get it/couldn't grow it, etc? I WON SOME! Ahahaha, I so happyyy, haha. I was one of the winners of the sweet annie givaway over at Raspberry Lane Primitives! I never win anything, haha. Somehow, things always seem to work like this for me... What I mean is, I've been having a really hard time lately freaking out about money considering that I had a dying car, needed to be able to get to campus and work, plus I might not be able to get my textbooks this semester... Needless to say, I've been stressed beyond belief and financially strung out. So after a really bad day, I came home to Gina's box-o-love, then a few days later got a message on Facebook saying I won some sweet annie... Really, both of these things made my day. It's all about the little things in life. Now my car is in the shop getting a whole new engine (and by new, I mean one with 125k miles on it from a junkyard), and my internship has been going smoothely. I actually caught a $45,000 mistake on my third day. :) Bring it, world!

I still need to learn how to take everything one day at a time with a fresh mind instead of carrying over all the stress from the previous days. I really hate cars for the fact that they make it nearly impossible to do this when they prove time and time again to be unreliable pieces of money-sucking crap. Hopefully, some day I'll be a big bad rich accountant, then I can buy a NEW car and be able to pay for whatever might happen along the way.

Anywho, thanks again for stopping by. I'll be sure to post pictures of updated decor from Gina, and definitely of things stuffed with sweet annie! I can't wait to put some in those stockings I made from a Tennessee Ridge Primitives pattern. :)