Pincushions~

Birthday milestones~

I have enjoyed watching friends share fun projects to celebrate

birthday milestones.

50 weeks of paintings!

60 sketchbook entries!

One gal turned 80, she shared different walks/hikes and 

photographs along each journey! (That was fun!)

30 poems...

I enjoyed watching a Facebook friend share beautiful tiny stitches

each day for one whole year and another

share her beach findings from her morning walks after turning 65!

It was a lot of fun to follow along, getting to know each of them

a little bit more through each milestone share!

I thought on it a bit...

50 Favorite Things!

One each week or as they pop up in time.

No. 1 Pincushions & Pinkeeps!

My mom pulled this one out of her 'cigarette drawer' and told me

it was her mothers. There was a narrow cupboard in my parents kitchen

with a tiny draw above it. That is where they kept their cigarettes.

Once they stopped smoking it became the coolest junk drawer. 

I LOVED to looking through the drawers when I was a child.

Our kids LOVED to look through ours when they were little.

Full of things that should have been tossed,

'But we might need it someday!'

Full of things that may have been taken away, too!

This is a yummy-looking cup of tea!

A little hefty as they are filled with emery powder/sand~

This is my 'Fried Green Tomato'

I just LOVE the movie Fried Green Tomatoes and this beauty

is the only green pincushion I have and

it is a little brown around the edges~

Alaina found this one at a thrift shop~

All of those beautiful glass heads, no uniform size & the colors vary.

Yellow and blue glass heads~

This little wool & velvet love is a 50th birthday treasure from a dear friend!

Love her, Miss L.

This beauty is the work of Donna Liljegren, Brynwood Needleworks!

I shared a link~ her shop is filled with treasures~

These two pinkeeps travel with me~

I purchased 'Lincoln' from the Etsy shop Avery Hill (our daughter)

Alaina is a printmaker, Lincoln is a wood carved print.

This image is printed on fabric from her original.

Hope you have a wonderful week, Friends!

Thank you for stopping by~

First batch of soft sculpture!

No pins in these so they're ornaments, cupboard hangers, bowl fillers... little pillows...

Teddy bears love to cuddle with them~

Hope you have an awesome weekend, Friends!

Pen & Ink Pincushions

 

Bees, feathered friends, harvest perches and patriotic themes~

Pinkeeps!

Pincushions!

If you remove the pins they are fun to hang on a cupboard pull~

Teddy bears love to hold hearts in their laps, too!

Chickadee and bee are discussing their sewing project~

This bee stopped by the firework daisy!

How I love bee skeps~

Hives of all shapes & sizes!

I love to draw bees in straight lines, too~

They are flying off to work together!

I bet these little friends sing, "Whistle while you work!"

They each have their yellow-topped pin...

They're off to help in the studio~

Wishing you a wonderful weekend, Friends!

Pinkeeps & Pincushions...

Long and narrow...

Square...

Purse size and desk size...

A new collection of pinkeeps and pincushions are coming along!

I made a collection of these for my Annual Christmas Open House 1994!

Sold in country shops before that~

We celebrated nine Christmas open houses.

I wish I had digital files or short videos to post.

History is a treasure.

The shows came before we (personally) had the ease of digital cameras.

I will scan some of my photographs and share near Christmastime.

We met the most amazing people through art festivals, retreats,

Workshops, shows & art guilds etc. 

Our open house was a weekend for reunions!

I loved to design the invitations & handmade 500+ free gifts.

(Oh how they changed through the years!)

A new giveaway each year & when the gifts ran out I would have hand drawn,

printed, recipe cards to tuck inside their packages.

When I began art licensing, nearly 15 years ago, it was difficult for me to

keep up with all of the deadlines and handmade works for shows~

It was hard to say goodbye to our open house but new opportunities

kept my artwork fresh and new styles & products emerged.

Fabric collections, flags, greeting cards & calendars etc. added to handmade.

I am grateful to have a healthy balance between the two now.

The joy of having my original watercolor paintings and pen & ink works

licensed alongside handmade, one-of-a-kind treasures.

I hope to eventually offer rug hooking patterns to accompany my

punch needle patterns & embroidery designs.

Several new creative projects will be ready to share soon~

We have been researching shows and events from MA to VA!

Our daughter is an amazing artist & designer... she is ready to soar!

Never know where life will bring you~

Stay true to yourself & find your own unique style.

It will tell the story of your life~

Flow blue needle minder

Hello, Friends!

I hope your October is off to a great start!

It is no secret that I love flow blue...

Red Rooster Fabrics designed their Flow Blue Garden collection

from my original watercolor paintings!

I have been experimenting with printing my original watercolors

onto fabric... the image stays set~ I hope to make it brighter.

My needle minder is a bit on the large size... 5" x 7"

All hand stitched as I still do not know my way around

a sewing machine~

Added some vintage china buttons!

Perfectly reminders of treasured flow blue spice jars & plate chips!

Two antique lace treasures with blue & white pins~

It is always fun to add pen & ink illustrations to my projects...

Little character!

Pocket saved from one of the kids bluejeans!

Handmade... always from the heart!

Thank you for visiting here~

Wishing your heart every happiness!

Acorn Pincushions

These little buttons are perfect for the bittersweet themed pinkeep!

Pins with golden yellow & red heads...

Vegetable ivory buttons look like acorns...

This vintage gear button was perfect for my acorn wheel!

So much in life starts small... 

Builds...

Grows...

Hard work and determination~

I had a teacher who taught me to have strong foundations.

Build several sturdy legs to your table.

If one leg weakens~ the others will hold it up.

Then don't neglect the weak spot. Immediately work to restore strength.

I hope your week is off to a great start, Friends!

Stay strong & I hope you find a creative project, too~