Scrappy Jessi's Toy Party

Lolly~ My MOST Favorite Childhood "friend."
I don't even remember where I got Lolly~ I just know that I WOULD NOT go to sleep without her in my arms at night. Even to the point that one night my dad drove all the way back to Akron to my grandparents house to get her for me- where I had left her on accident after a sleep-over, just so that I would have her to go to sleep that night. Wow, I must have really thrown a royal fit-LOL. Gosh, I was so lucky to have such loving and caring parents~ and Lolly.
Even while I am typing this she is sitting on the bookshelf beside me :)

Scrappy Jessi is not only a total sweetheart but she is also one of my favorite bloggers!
I just had to join in on her Favorite Childhood Toys Party today!!!
To see ALL of the bloggy crafty girl's photos, click here.

This is me~ at Disney World, I am seven years old. I have on a t-shirt from one of those Florida Alligator Farms- only I remember I was too scared to get out of the car, but somehow my parents managed to still make sure I got a t-shirt.
The real story of this picture though is the Minnie Mouse doll~ I just had to have one from inside the park~ which my mom still claims was $40~ I guess I threw a fit when my thrifty dad attempted to try and tell me I could get one outside of the park at God-forbid one of the 8 Million roadside stands or gift shops around the area that sold the same exact doll for half the price. What can I say? I was a girl who knew what she wanted...and I got it :)
Also~ I LOVE that my mom had me in those lace-trimmed socks~ too cute!!!

This is where my FASCINATION with collecting started~ stuffed animals!!!! This was my whole collection as of 1986(I wrote this on the back of the picture,LOL). Some favorites include "Frank" (back row, middle) my giant teddy bear that I received as a Christmas gift when I was in the 2nd grade and my E.T. doll(far right) that my Grandma Kreakbaum bought for me at May Company~ after seeing the movie at the mall~ I thought I was sooo cool.

Remember Underoos??? Well as in many households with young children in the 80's, underoos were a daily thing at our house when we were kids~this is a photo of me in my bedroom when I was 3 years old~ my favorite things about this photo are- my diaper sticking out of the bottoms, and that my mom made sure that I had on lace-trimmed socks(again) and saddle shoes~ too cute! P.S. My thighs still look exactly the same~ I gotta laugh~ so I don't cry :)

And I couldn't be a girl that grew up in the 80's without showing a group photo of my Cabbage Patch Kids!(from L-R: Thomas Nicholas, Cherry Mary, Dottie Darla and Madeline Ronny) These were BY FAR my most played with dolls! In this photo I was putting on a play~ see the "stage lights" (flash lights) LOL. I have to Thank my mom for sitting through these plays~ I am sure she thought they were pure genius and cute as all get-out. Thanks, Mom.
Also, even though I don't have any pictures I have to add that I was MAJORLY into BARBIE DOLLS! I must have had 50-100 Barbies~ and I played with them ~constantly with my BFF Kelly. My dad made me a Barbie house out of Reiter milk crates! A wash rag would fit perfectly inside as carpet!!! I was recently razzing my mom about how I always wanted the REAL Barbie dream house when I was little and that even though I LOVED the one my dad made me~ let's face it~ it didn't have a pink elevator! We laughed and she told me that she was happy that I didn't always get the "toys" that I wanted because it probably helped make me the creative woman I am today. And I gotta say~ I think she is right.

Thanks Jessi~ this was SOOOO much FUN!!!

My Glitter and Grunge Debut!!!

I was so honored when I received an email from the sweet girls over at Glitter and Grunge asking me to join their site~ because, of course I am a big fan of so many of the artists that are featured there. I am so excited to debut some one-of-a-kind items there on the first of every month, starting today!!! woohoo!!!(please excuse the tooting of my own horn...LOL)
I was so nervous when I was choosing what items to place on the site~ I felt like I wanted to do a really good job. So, TA-DAH....here is what I came up with...

Pink Kewpie Cutesie Ribbon
Exclusively at Glitter and Grunge

Vintage Wall Paper Collage
Exclusively at Glitter and Grunge

Dancing Queen Wand
Exclusively at Glitter and Grunge

Okay, tooting is now over, LOL.

My Beautiful Peaceful Journal

I was so so lucky to get Michele of Life on this Good Day as my partner for the Spring Journal Swap hosted by Speckled Egg! I absolutely ADORE the journal that she sent to me!
I feel so LUCKY! I feel like she really understands what I am all about~ she added so many of my most favorite crafty embellishments!!!
Glass glitter, vintage wallpaper, and so many beautiful old trims~ oh my!

This is the inside of the back cover~ the little pocket is full of the cutest journal tags!!
I can't wait to fill the pages with crafty lists and my stories.

And last but NOT least... I was so AMAZED that she made this cute flower pen as well! It is the perfect pen for such a beautiful journal. I have seen pens like this is Sally Jean Alexander's Pretty Little Things~ and always admired them~ I can't believe that she made this~ and all the glass glitter~ I am so pleased and feel so happy to have received such a special gift.
Thank You Michele!!!!

Spring Journal Swap and New Crafty Stuff

This is the journal that I made for Michele of Life on this Good Day for the Spring Journal Swap hosted by Speckled Egg. I just love the way that it turned out~ I finally let myself dig into some of my vintage wallpaper that I have been hoarding, I mean COLLECTING, LOL.
DO you ever do that? I ALWAYS am doing that- saving my really really favorite crafty finds~ "the good stuff"~ for something special~ it's like I don't want to part with them. But when I do allow myself to use them I always am so pleased with the outcome. I am going to work on that~ I am always afraid I am going to make a mistake with my "good stuff"~ it is so silly- making mistakes is what being crafty is all about~ and most of the time mistakes turn out to prompt my best creative ideas...

This is the inside cover of the journal for Michele. I was debating what to put on the inside cover and this is what I came up with~I am LOVING these vintage images of Beauty Queens ~I also made a tag set for my etsy shop with them. I just think they are darling. Anyhoo~ this little library pocket was one of my favorite little embellishments to the journal and Michele loved it too, I am so glad.

In search of some new "good stuff" I of course went on etsy. I am really in the mood to glitter, so I bought a couple little jars of glitter from Popalicious Too on etsy~ a new Favorite Shop!!! I just ADORE these little vintage-styled jars that she puts the glitter in~ and not only that but she added some AMAZING little gifts too~ a whole other jar of light green glass glitter(salivating) and a cute little bunch of sparkly lavender ribbon(freeking out!) This was so fun to get in the mail~ I can't wait to craft this weekend and make everything sparkle with this beautiful glass glitter! Thank You!!!

Also on my etsy spree I just HAD to HAVE this big bag of vintage wallpapers. I had it marked in my favorites for like a week before I just gave in and bought them~ and I LOVE them!!! I got the set from The Decorated House shop~it is full of pretty things!!! Not only was it super-cute how she packed all of these flowery papers but she also sent a whole other bag of papers as my "free gift"~ Thank You!!! Can I just tell you how much I LOVE a free gift???
So many of the sellers take such care in their packaging~ adding ribbons and little cards and labels~ as if getting AMAZING crafting supplies and crafts in the mail wasn't enough~ it has to also feel like your birthday! So fun!

Etsy Shop Announcement

Like most of you die-hard crafters out there, I have started to look at everything with a crafty eye. Every trip to the thrift store, antique mall, flea market, or garage sale becomes a quest for tiny little vintage things to craft with! I spend so much time searching for craft supplies sometimes that I forget to actually leave myself time to craft with all of them!!! Also, I have noticed while organizing all of my treasures that I have a surplus of some really neat things~ for instance, am I ever going to use an entire sleeve of vintage ice cream cups???? Probably not~ so Voila! Now available on my etsy shop~ vintage ice cream cups, LOL!
I love to buy crafting supplies from some of my favorite sellers on etsy~and I think I have some pretty neat things too~ so I am going to see how it goes. Also, if you see anything that I list that you would like to swap for some pretty neat crafty things that you have~ just leave me a comment! Happy Crafting!

And the Winner is...

CONGRATULATIONS TO...
Karin of Creative Chaos
The Winner of my 100th post giveaway!!!
and Thank You to all of the AMAZING women that entered the contest!!!
There will be more giveaways to come~ I've got the giveaway bug now-LOL!

Last weekend, my mom and I attended a LOVELY Spring craft show in Carrollton, Ohio~ organized by artist and crafter extraordinaire Jackie Ludwig, also a dear friend of ours- how lucky we are to know so many creative women from the local craft show circuit!!!!
I was so lucky to pick up this AMAZING pumpkin- head party doll!!! It was made by Stacey of Tattered n' Torn Prims~ Stacey is so sweet and makes these ORIGINAL CREATIVE dolls that just take your breath away and steal your heart~ I am so DELIGHTED to have 3 of her dolls now; the sister to this lovely lady that I blogged about around Halloween as well as a bunny that I simply cherish~ both are so special to me!!! Thank You Stacey!!!
also in this picture~ notice the

hand-painted folk art box, made by my sweet friend,
Cindie from Olde Garge
Cindie is sooooo SUPER talented~ her designs make my head spin~ from her painting to her "junk" wreaths~ she is so GREAT~ you must check out her shop!!!

In this in-between-major-holidays time I have been doing some rearranging of favorite things and bringing loved things out of boxes and putting some of my "usual" stuff away just to spice things up around here. I sort of redecorated my family room shelf for Summer- notice that Summer to me includes Halloween witch dolls and retro themed Santas~ go with it~ I love it :)
ALSO I totally have ants in my pants to re-paint this room and most everything in it-including this black shelf~ I see it as buttermilk biscuit cream or a light pale seashelly pink...I am thinking "vintage map" by Martha Stewart for the wall color~ it's a light pale aquaish color...so pretty!!!
***DREAMING OF PAINTING like EVERY ROOM NOW***
Okay I'm back....
So,
I was so excited to FINALLY go to my 1st tag sale last weekend!! Woohoo! I am always reading fabulous posts about even more- fabulous finds that women are picking up at "tag sales"~ I have been searching my local paper but haven't seen any listed. But last Saturday when my mom and I were out junking and going to craft shows we passed a tag sale sign~ after a bit of driving technique that I learned from The Fast and the Furious I found the house and boy-oh-boy did I score some AWESOME finds!!!
A whole shoe box full of vintage trims and seam binding
A neat old basket (on far right of shelf pic above)
Sweet Needle Point Pillow(on far left of pic above)
2 huge boxes of Shiney-Brite Christmas Bulbs in Hot Pink and Aqua
A pair of Jadeite Green Floral curtains(for my craft room)
and the creme' de la creme...
An OLD Canning Cabinet...
it's all cremey beat up white on the outside..and light "Martha" green on the inside!!!
What a find!!! It is going straight into my craft room!!!!
I will take pictures of my complete craft room makeover and share them with you here soon.
***DREAMING OF FRESHLY PAINTED PINK CRAFT ROOM AND NEW CABINET**

And last but NOT least I wanted to say THANK YOU to Stacey from Tattered n' Torn Prims for awarding me this "Excellent" Blog Award~ it is my very 1st Award and I can't help but be excited and feel touched~ especially now that I am moving past the hallmark of my 100th post~ Thank You for reading my blog and for being so supportive!!!!!

My 100th Post GiveAWay!!!!

Wow!!!!

My 100th post!!!!
I can't believe it! I am so excited..it is weird but it doesn't even seem like it was that long ago that I started my adventure in blogland...but I have
met so many AMAZING friends and crafters...so much talent
and inspiration is found within my favorite blogs!!! I can't believe how important posting here has become to me~ I truly LOVE it!
Thank You to all of you who have read my posts and make such sweet comments! I read each one and I am so appreciative of your kind words~it really makes me smile~ Thank You!

And in HONOR of this momentous occasion I am having my FIRST give-a-way!!!!
Woohoo!
Leave a comment on this post~( make sure to leave your email address so I can get back to you)
and I will pick the winner next Wednesday April 16th!!!!
Spread the Word!!!!

Here is what is up for dibs:

A sweet little blue nut cup, a light aqua ballerina box and a soldered charm collage necklace~ featuring a little girl and her dog~ both wearing party hats~ of course!!!

gOoD LuCk and Have a FaBuLoUs WeEkENd!!!!

Post # 99 1/2

I know, I know I am cheating a bit~ BUT since this is going to be a short post I thought I could count it as HALF-A-POST, LOL!

Yesterday I got up really early and started working~ to heck with the mounds of dirty laundry and dishwasher that needs emptied~ new crafty junk finds were calling my name~ so when duty calls I did what any die-hard crafter would do - asked my husband to throw in a couple loads of laundry and plugged in my glue gun~LOL!

Since we are kind of major- Holiday-less right now I thought I would make some Birthday tag sets for my etsy shop!
www.sleepyhollowcrafts.etsy.com

I got some neat new books at the flea market on Saturday so I got busy scanning!
These "women's work" images came from a 1943 elementary school text book called Look and Learn~ it is FULL of great images I am so excited~ and the weird thing is I was showing my mom some of my finds yesterday and she said she remembers having that book in school as a child~ which made it even more special!

These kitschy vintage ladies came from a 1964 Spinnerin knitting pattern magazine! Such a great find! I love these ladies! The magazine had great names for the sweater patterns like "Young and Important", "Soaring Success"(of course this was for a man's sweater pattern), and "Certain Dignity". What young fashionista wouldn't want to knit herself a hot little sweater from a pattern called "Young and Important"???? This was the Stitch 'n' Bitch of its time!

Coming Soon:
My 100th post give-a-way...so check back this week!

Saturday Afternoon Delight

Check out the hot pink camel!!! The retro lady disc is actually a little mirror!
I also love the little cupcake decorations! so fun!

We headed to a bunch of our favorite antique stores and flea markets today...and found some major bargains and good stuff galore! I picked up a ton of crafty things including several sandwich bags full of "stuff"~ I love to buy those bags at flea markets filled with just "stuff" and they are marked for a dollar or two~ you spot a couple neat things..but the real treasures are only revealed after you get them home and spill them out. We love to just sit and go through bags like this and talk about the neat things we find~ this is just a few of the cool little treasures I found today. I also picked up 2 HUGE bags of old jewelry for 50 cents each!!! I am so excited! I spilled it all out into a box lid I had hanging around~ so many sparkly fun pieces!!!

I found a box of these GREAT old note cards at a thrift store today~ I ADORE these!!! Don't you just love her little hat...and that bicycle!!!

This had to be my FAVORITE find of the whole day! I am in love with these little CHarlotte dolls lately and I had such luck finding this one today!!! I am freeking out~ I LOVE her so much!


Also this week one of my bestest friends passed on some SUPER-GREAT things to me that had been her mothers. I treasure these!!!! Look at the graphics on these cards..and those rhinestone buttons~ drool!!!

And as if that wasn't enough...she gave to me a ton of these BEAUTIFUL handkerchiefs that were her moms'. So many pretty ones!!! They were all neatly tucked inside of the most feminine vintage peach satin box~ I feel so lucky to have a sweet friend who thinks of me!!!
Thank You Lisette!

This weekend is going by so fast~ I planned to do so much but instead we decided to go junking...sometimes you need that! Oh Well...I'm off to craft for a couple hours before bed...
By the way I just noticed that this is my 99th post~ Geesh! I am going to have to whip something up for an AMAZING 100th...hmmm...my mind is already going a million miles per minute...this is gonna be fun...check back soon!!!! Craft On!

Hello Dolly!

On Wednesday I was feeling kind of headachey and bad so I took the long way home from work to unwind...at least the sun was FINALLY out~ so I drove through a kind of unexplored area for me and low and behold~ I found a new place to shop~ I love that! This little antique store I found is so cute~ and as I rounded the first booth this little beauty caught my eye! I was so taken with her, she just had to be mine! So for a bargain price and 20% off for being a brand new customer- I was on my way home ~smiling all the way.

I just had to post this pic~ as she(I haven't named her yet...help me think of a good one!!!) was having her first photo shoot~our cat Chester took an interest and just had to get in the action!

Also~ LAST but NOT least!!!! I was soooo excited to get my Nicol Sayre Moonlight Witch finally!!! I asked my husband for her months and months ago~ you know~ like before Halloween~ but by the time he tried ordering her for me~ she was on back order. I was so disappointed at the time~ but low and behold one of the shops emailed him that they had gotten new ones in recently~ soooo..better late than never~she has arrived!!! I have put her on my favorite cabinet amongst my Easter bunnies and Spring chicks~ I like being poly-festive!!!! Isn't she just absolutely perfect in every way...sigh...I adore her!

Nicol Sayre is AMAZing!Totally a favorite!

Have a Wonderful Weekend!

Oh, Swap it!

My swap gifts for The Easter Bunny's Chicks Swap

"Happy Spring" Tussie Mussie

A little Easter basket full of goodies!

My swap gift received from Inger-Helen~ I love the handmade place mats and toaster cozy! So cottage-y and cute! The way she wrapped everything was just darling...

I was so lucky to get two AMAZING swap partners for The Easter Bunny's Chicks Swap;Melissa of Garden of Pink Shadows and Inger-Helen of Karnashus. Inger lives in Norway~ so needless to say our swap packages took a minute to get to one another~ and yesterday I got hers! So I can finally post pics of what I sent as well...I posted the pics of the AMAZING gifts Melissa sent to me here.

To Blythe or not to Blythe...that is the question.

Blythe Crazy!
Originally uploaded by SleepyHollowCrafts

Lately I have been obsessing about these little beauties! I am so fond of the flickr groups devoted to these wide-eyed gals...their lucky owners are so creative! I really really want one!!!!I sound like I am sitting in the front of my mom's shopping cart at Gold Circle~Geesh! It would be a whole new way to spend money that I don't have! A brand new hobby~ I want one so bad but feel so much guilt about being thirty years old and wanting a doll~ on the other hand it isn't just a doll~ it could be another outlet for my creativity..hmmm...maybe I could justify that ~ at any rate this is a tough decision. Till I make it~ I am going to keep living vicariously through all of the artsy ladies' Blythe photos on flickr. Enjoy!