Cherry Tomatoes

cherry tomatoes



Theresa Sokyrka - Wind and Sea

Lovely Vintage Magazine Page

I found this lovely vintage magazine page ... if only it didn't have folds, it would be frame-able!

A bit of embroidery added to rick-rack and you have an entirely new trim!

Nature is ... well, nature

Just as the title says ... nature is, well, nature. 

And sometimes nature is not as predicable as we'd like.

So this morning we woke up and the duck's nest was open and there were no eggs remaining.

Really kind of sad, but that is the way nature works.

I saw momma duck on the lawn earlier this morning, so hopefully she'll move on and carry on with her life and future nestings.

Meet Fiber Artist Jacob

I was lucky enough to have fiber artist Jacob purchase a vintage button from my Etsy shop VintageAndSuch.

He said it was for flowers he was making.



vintage button - looks great!






for the groom



I was thrilled to see it was for his groom boutoniere!



for the groom



Just look at the details ... the embroidery and obvious skill in fabric choices.

Beautiful work, Jacob!

Duck Update

Our duck is sitting on her nest. 

We think the final total of eggs is 9 but she is on there all the time so we don't disturb her. 

SALE at my Etsy shops!

May 30th is the anniversary of opening my Patterns And Such crafting supplies shop on Etsy.

"Like" my facebook page http://www.facebook.com/ennadoolf to become a fan - and then, facebook fans use coupon code SAVE20 at checkout, in any of these 3 etsy shops to save 20% off your purchase price ~ ~

http://www.etsy.com/shop/PatternsAndSuch

 

http://www.etsy.com/shop/VintageAndSuch

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ennadoolf

Offer ends June 1, 2012.

A Duck Flew Out of My Garden!

On Sunday, a duck flew out of my yard.

I didn't think anything of it.

Then on Monday, hubby mentioned he saw a duck fly out of our garden.  I did think something of it!

We investigated and found this egg!

 And mama duck watching over us from nearby.

Then she came back ... and left behind another egg!

Then we didn't see her the rest of Monday - or Monday night - or Tuesday morning.  We determined she must have deserted the nest.

Then Tuesday night there were three eggs! 
She hadn't deserted it!  (or us)

Wednesday the eggs were all covered up!  It was time for google. 

We discovered "Help...There's a Duck Nest in My Flower Pot!" - and learned all about ducks! and their eggs! and their nesting habits!

Our duck is laying eggs and keeping them at a constant temperature until they are all there (up to 12 or so!) and then she will begin the approximately 28 day incubation where she stays on the nest.  There's lots more cool info at the link - go read it!

And once the ducklings hatch, they pretty much leave us! and head off to water where they can feed off the water-life.

Roses Preserved

Aren't these beautiful?

This lovely vase was given to me with pot pourri inside. I received it a few years ago for Christmas.  I also had some long stemmed roses hanging in my basement drying. Okay, I'll admit it.  They were there for six years.

I had this vision of the dried roses inside this vase.  As you can see, it now does.

Amanda of Floral Occasions (Ontario) brought my vision to life!

She did an amazing job!!
Thanks Amanda!

Sunday Solitude

Guiding Flowers Available Now!

Guiding Flowers Available Now!



Visit the eguiding shop on Etsy!

What a lovely surprise to have Girl Guides of Canada share our guiding flowers on facebook! We've had a few sales - and remember, a portion of all sales will support e-guiding website fees!

Sunday Solitude

Sunday Solitude

Snow on Highway 89 - April 28, 2012.

New (to me!) Knitting and Quilting magazines!

Lucky me!  I found these knitting and quilting magazines today.  I've been drooling over some of the patterns!

I especially like the Botanica Medallion Cardigan on the cover of the Spring/Summer 2009 Vogue Knitting - though I'd be hesitant to actually call it a "cardigan" myself - I love the overall simplicity of the basic design using more intricate knitting stitches to create this!

And I love that Vine and Leaf Beret in pink on the cover of the Fall 2009 Vogue Knitting - there are a couple more hats inside that are perfect too!

The quilting magazines have me thinking that maybe, just maybe, I should give quilting another try!  There is a cool quilt that uses machine embroidery and the maker used tools! as the focus!  hammer, drill, table saw, etc.   I like it!  The maker took a year and a half to finish hers ... I'm not sure I have that patience.

How to Refill Your Swiffer Wet Jet Bottle

How to Refill Your Swiffer Wet Jet Bottle

I found this great tip in an Etsy shop - click here. I hope this works for you!

To refill your Swiffer Wet Jet bottle:

Starting with an EMPTY bottle. Microwave or heat up water in a pot until its very warm, but not quite boiling. Insert the bottle, cap side down and insert in the warm water. No more than a minute or so, then try to twist the cap off. If it does not twist off easily, insert the cap again for another minute or so. After a few minutes the cap should twist off. It MAY be necessary to actually clip the little "prongs" you see inside the cap but I've never had to do that.

Once you have the cap open you can fill the bottle with your choice of cleaning solution!! Vinegar and water makes a good mix, and you can google "homemade floor cleaning recipes" to find TONS of resources. (What you use will vary depending on your floor type.)

Just keep refilling the bottle until its too grungy to use and then buy a new one!!! This cuts down your buying of bottles DRASTICALLY. I can make one bottle last at least a year usually.