Witches Cupboard Swap and Fun Fall Crafts

Thank You Sarah for the above picture, in my excitement to send your swap package
I forgot to take a picture of everything! LOL!

Above: What I sent to Sarah for The Witches Cupboard Swap...

I posted a while back, I was lucky enough to squeeze in to Gypsy
Mermaid's Witches Cupboard Swap and Sarah, The Gypsy Mermaid herself, was my partner!
And I totally lucked out!
I had just about sworn off swapping after getting some real flakes as swap partners.
This might sound pretty cold, but for those of you whom have gotten royally screwed over by a swap partner~ you know my frustration!
The last few swaps I have participated in I haven't even blogged about either because what I received was of such poor quality it wasn't worth it or I didn't get anything at all!!!!
But Sarah is my Swapping Angel and sent me an amazing BOX full of
Halloween Goodness!
My faith in swapping has been restored...and, if you read Sarah's blog, you know that recently her house was completely destroyed during Hurricane Ike!!! And she still was able to swap with me~ I was so shocked when she emailed and said she still planned on swapping with me~ now that is dedication~ none of us have any excuses for not committing to swaps we join and putting our money, thoughtfulness, and creativity into our swap partners gifts when we commit.
Thank You Sarah!!!

So onto the Fabulousness that I received...

Look at all this GREAT stuff!!!!
Isn't that garland the cutest?!?

The "Best Spell" frame is over-the-top creative and AMAZING!!!!
I had to find a SPECIAL place for it...

this hangs right beside "my" spot on the couch~ and I have been admiring it often!!!

This is a little sneak peek of some of my Halloween decorating.
I wanted to go all "Sweet and Sinister" with my Halloween decor this year and this is my favorite vignette so far...
Sarah sent me that AWESOME black cat covered in tons of shimmery black glitter~ so great!

This is another little nook in the corner of our dining room
The little pumpkin and pedestal are from Sarah~ too sweet!
And the little vintage-esque canister is filled with candy eyeballs~ perfect for any witch!
The little green glittery apple reads "Poisonous Apple (only take one bite)"
How precious?? She is so creative! WOW!

And today on my way home from work as the weather was turning from a partly cloudy cool day to a full on AUTUMN day with grey clouds taking over the sky and a few rain drops falling I felt so overwhelmed with crafty urges I just had to stop at Joann Etc. on my way home.
What is it about this time of year that gets our creative juices flowing?
I just want to stay in the house, drink hot cocoa and play with my glue gun :)
I really wanted to craft something for myself-not for my shop- and so I strayed from my normal favorite sections- the paper and stamping sections~ and I wandered over to the beads and buttons section and voila!! My mind popped open with some fun Fall Crafting Ideas!

Fall Fun Crafty Idea #1: make a fun BIRD-themed necklace with these AWESOME kits by "Lost and Found"
I love them and the possibilities are endless...and the whole set is 40% off this week!

and then I spotted these AMAZING buttons~
Fall Fun Crafty idea #2: I am going to add them to a little black cardigan that I just bought~ to add a little special touch.
I think they are just too cute!

Well..here's to Fall and Crafting Fun...and thanks again to Sarah for all
of my Halloween swap surprises!!!

Craft on!

It's a Halloween Party!

This party is on Saturday Oct.18~ and it is an "anything goes" Halloween party! How fun!!!

Ghost stories, decorations, and creativity are being encouraged~ sounds like my kind of party!!!

Check out the blog, A Fanciful Twist to sign up!

This is an Autumn Gathering hosted by Artsy Mama herself.

Head over to her blog to sign up!

I am so in the Fall mood~ it looks like the weather is breaking here this week and I am super excited about it!!!

We decorated our house this weekend for Halloween, I took lots and lots of pics that I will get ready to share here soon!

I hope all of you have a FUN FALL week!!

Country Living Fair Finds and Our House

As promised I took pics of all of my FABULOUS Country Living Fair Finds so that I could share them here :)
First ~ one of my ALL TIME Favorites, This AMAZING collage by Cheryl Kuhn(above).
Her booth in the Earth Angels toys tent was mind-blowing!!! I was having the hardest time making up my mind about which one of her creations I would take home with me.
And then i saw this couple, so sweet and it just clicked with me.
I feel so lucky to have one of her pieces and I even got to meet her!!!
What a fun day!

This vintage giant red "C" was just so neat, I had to bring it home. Even though
no one in our family has a name that starts with "C"~ it is so great. And when I was fretting over
buying it, the ladies in the booth were naming "C" words that it could stand for~ we had a good time coming up with them!
Crafty, Cute, Classy, Country Living Fair...and some not-so- G-rated ones as well LOL.
It's been a fun conversation-starter as you can imagine.

This cottage-style shelf was such a FIND at the Broadway antique mall in Lebanon, Ohio. One of our favorite shops of all time! It is huge, 4 ft. x 2 ft.!!! So perfect!! It must have been a cabinet at one time because there are some left over hinges on the bottoms. I love wondering where it has been and all the things it has stored. And don't you just adore the scalloped top??? That is what made my heart sing when I saw it. And what a steal for only $40!!!!

Also in the Earth Angels toys tent was Kitty Babendreier, another one of my ALL-TIME favorite collage artists!!! She was so sweet and I took tons of time looking at all of her ORIGINAL shadow boxes~and these are the 2 that I just had to have.
As soon as I saw them I pictured them hanging in this old frame. I got this old frame forever-ago at a local antique mall and painted it creamy white. I have tried using it several ways but nothing ever stuck. But I knew it was meant to be when I hung it up to add more definition to these tiny little collage boxes.
Also, in my opinion~ one of the neatest things about Kitty's collages are the tags that she hangs from them, they have little phrases on them, and they almost give the collage a "voice."
I think they are just so special.
Check her out at Earth Angels Toys.

Naughty Obsessive Decorator confession #1
After we painted in May, I never hung ANYTHING back up on
our walls..till this past weekend!!!
I just couldn't decide what was going where and I knew I wanted to get some new things and get rid of some older things...yada, yada, yada~ it's been a long summer~ and now it's September and we finally got stuff back on the walls!

So, to share our new DECORATED walls...
Here's some Dining Room Pics...

~Pink shelf was a flea market find~
Featuring: Cody Foster mini-putz houses in sugary colors and the
old photos are "adopted" relatives from different garage sales.
The little bird cage was a CL Fair find from McMaster and Storm.

I know I showed off this vintage carnival-prize chalk ware figurine way-back when I picked her up at the Strasburg antique mall AND I showed off this drawer that I shabby'd up a while back too~ now they are together forever on our dining room wall.
I actually got this drawer on the day I got the figure, knowing that eventually I would make her a house out of the drawer...she's finally at home.

These are 2 AMAZING prints from Dollface Design, a favorite etsy-shop of mine.
They are printed on antique ledger paper, how cool is that???


And now onto our Family Room...

This black shelf hangs above our couch~
I finally gave a home to these 2 sweet Black Apple prints that I got forever-ago.
The N's stand for my maiden name. I pick em' up whenever I see them which isn't often and they aren't a fortune!
I just got the little white one at the CL Fair.

This sits next to our couch~
just a little corner of things I like to look at~
dried hydrangeas, wedding memorabilia, and a cabinet with old family photos.

This pie safe, OH My, this pie safe! Where do I start???
It has been in every corner of our dining room and family room and I
think I finally like it here.
Or is it just that my husband refuses to move it yet AGAIN??
maybe one more time because...
I plan on painting it this Fall~ I was thinking a light pastel color.

Earlier this year I started picking up silhouette pictures here and there~ when they wouldn't break our bank~ speaking of which, has anyone else noticed that since these have been featured in Martha Stewart and Country Living the prices on them have been going up at the antique malls???
Anyhoo~ these were all purchased at garage sales or estate sales for under $5 each!

(I stopped posting to pet my cat, Stanley)

Okay I'm back...This cabinet holds my Halloween collectibles, it sits in our family room.
I also want to paint this one~ I am thinking white.
The window on top was a curb-side-freebie and I lined it with antique ledger paper
I bought on etsy. The old wedding photo is of "adopted" relatives.
I got it at the Shoe Factory antique mall (Lebanon, Ohio) for only $3!!!
I was drawn to the cute young couple and their kinda awkward
best man and maid-of-honor. When I picked it up an old note fell out of the back that said
"my mothers wedding" and it kinda made me sad.
How did it end up in some dusty booth at an antique mall when
someone so lovingly marked it with a handwritten note?
I guess that is the why I love flea-market style and decorating with old things,
it's not just that the objects themselves are neat and beautiful but the stories behind them are yours to make your own too.

I hope you enjoyed my little house tour.
Have a great weekend!!!
Happy Crafting!

My Thursday Loves

My Thursday Loves
Originally uploaded by SleepyHollowCrafts

Things I am Loving to Look at on Thursday. Prettiness for prettiness sake...and because our electricity is still out (its been out since Sunday evening!!!)and I need to see some pretty things since my pretty little things at home are harder to admire by flashlight.

**Update!!! Electricity finally came on Thursday evening!***

Country Living Fair 2008

We went down to Columbus, Ohio on Friday for the 2008 Country
Living Fair.
It was Phenomenal again this year!!! Bigger and Better!!!!
Even in the POURING down RAIN~ we had a great time!!!!

Here's my AMAZING Matthew chowing on some Grilled corn~ he
deserves a medal for trudging through the rain to many, many booths, carrying all of my
fun finds :)

I thought this was kind of neat~ I loved this booth and the GOLDEN pumpkin is
such a cool idea.

Aren't these so neat???

This year the fair was at The Ohio Historical Society in the Historical Village.
They decorated many of the buildings with the "CL" touch.


And next I wanted to share some pics of my MOST FAVORITE THING THERE!!!
The EARTH ANGELS
Artist SHOWCASE Tent!!!

A Nicol Sayre ORIGINAL (Gulp!)
and I got to meet her at her tent!!! WOW!!!
She's such a sweetheart!!

Don't you just want to take them ALL Home???

So the Fair was Amazing. We got in line at 9A.M. and they opened the gates at 10A.M. ~the line was so long we couldn't even see the end of it~ and we met the nicest lady who let us share her umbrella. I can't believe everyone loves CL so much that they stood out in the rain for the fair~ just goes to show~ if you build it, they will come.
The highlight for me was of course~ The Earth Angels Toys tent, it was so mind-blowing to see so much artistry and creativity all collected in one tent! And many of the artists were there, which made it even better. I spent at least an hour and a half in there just searching for the perfect finds~ and I think we waited in line that long too. LOL
It was a favorite of many of the fair-goers I think.

We ended up staying till 2 P.M. and then we headed down to Lebanon, Ohio for
some serious antiquing.
We discovered Lebanon, OH last year when we attended the CL Fair
when it was in Mason, Ohio.
We hit all of our favorites: The Broadway Antique Mall, The Shoe Factory Antique Mall(which is going to be on the Sci-Fi show Ghost Hunters!!!), and a favorite little shop there called
William and Mary.
Anyhoo~ I am going to have to get busy taking pics of all of my finds!!!
I did tons of re-decorating yesterday~ so fun!!!
I will take pics soon and share :) So stay tuned :)
And last BUT not least,
Speaking of FINDS...I wanted to share some pictures of my NEWEST and TRULY favorite
EBay find...

Isn't she perfect in EVERY WAY??? I have
wanted one of these little ladies for SO SO Long and I am so happy to
be able to admire her day- in- and- day- out on one of my little shelves in our family room.
She's just beautiful!!!

New Kids on the Block+ the mall= is it 1991????

Yesterday we went to the mall for the first time in years and years.
(I'm just not really a "mall" person anymore I guess)
But I was in search of some better-than-offered-online tickets to the upcoming
New Kids on the Block concert for my BFF Kelly and I.
We have seen them 7 times in concert(all between 1989-1992~ and always with our moms, thanks mom!).
Anyhoo, they are coming to Cleveland on Oct.3, 2008 and we certainly aren't going to start missing their shows now!!!!
When I was in middle school, every inch of my walls and ceiling was covered in NKOTB posters and pinups. Kelly and I would watch their videos endlessly. We were totally obsessed and it was so so much fun!
I am so happy they are back together and can't wait for the wave of nostalgia to run over me when I am standing beside Kelly at their show and I am listening to Jordan belt out "I'll be Loving you Forever" it is going to be AMAZING!!! I am psyched!! WooHOO!!!

And the mall was actually kind of fun.
I really like Macy's a lot!
Their Martha Stewart line is so great!!!!

Halloween Ribbon Tree Topper Ornament

Today I crafted a wee bit. I have been thinking of making a GIANT Halloween
ribbon to use as a tree topper and I think it came out kinda neat!
I made one for my etsy shop too.

Halloween Wand

I also made a couple Halloween wands~ these always come out so cute
and as I find great Halloween pics, I am always
thinking~ "oh that would look cute on a wand" LOL.
This picture is fabulous!!
I bet these 2 had a swingin' time at the party!!!

Halloween Wand

This little girl is so adorable~ with Her cute striped witches hat!! and even
her doll has one too :)

I am really really looking forward to going to the CL Fair this week!!!!
We are going down on Friday and I just can't wait to see
all the neat booths, especially the Earth Angels Toys booth!
I will take lots of pics and hopefully have pics of a few
treasures I get to bring home with me :)

Have a great week!!!

Gettin' My Craft ON and Mid-week Etsy Shop Update

Queen of Halloween DELUXE Witch Hat Tree Topper

I have been a busy bee today!!! I took the day off from work~ I guess going back
yesterday after the long weekend was just too much of a shock to my system, LOL.
I just wanted to stay home and get my Craft ON! And that is exactly what I did :)
It's nice to take a day all alone and hide away and make FUN things.

Sweet and Sinister Halloween Ornament

I must admit that I have a problem...I am in LOVE with these German China Doll heads!
I FINALLY found an affordable one on ebay~ and I won it!!! Which I don't know when the last time any of you actually wanted to win something on ebay was~ but it is seriously almost impossible unless you have some wicked high-speed computer or something~ those last minute bidders kill me! Anyhoo, I saw this fab little doll head and I just kept bidding~ against five other people(they are hot little items I tell ya!) and I was successful~ how fun is that???
Of course I will share pics of her here when I get her...I can't wait!!!

Halloween Pixie Ornament

I was glancing over at my craft room shelf the other night while holding something I was gluing in place for like ten minutes~ and I spotted this box of nests that I keep around~ I guess you just never know when you are going to make some fairy, bird, or God only knows what~ a "home." So I keep a lot of these nests handy. Eureka!
I got an idea to make Halloween-style nests for these little Halloween pixies!
I think they came out cute!
My pic isn't that great~ but trust me~ there is a lot of glitter going on here :)

Halloween China Doll Head Ornament

See, I told you...obsessed :)

Queen of Halloween
Witch hat Collage
Trick or Treat

I hope everyone has a FABULOUS last couple days to this week...it's almost Friday!!!!

Sweet and Sinister Etsy Update and Swap Sneak Peak

Queen of Halloween Witch Hat Collage

I know it is Labor Day weekend but around our house you'd never know it!
Because everything is popping up in oranges, black and cream!
I spent TONS of time crafting this weekend and have loaded my
Etsy shop with Halloween Delights!

Halloween Ornament

I decided to decorate our house this year in a "Sweet and Sinister" theme for Halloween
and it has influenced my crafting too. I just can't get enough
of these sweet little doll head images~ but I like kinda making them
look romantic and dark too.
Sweet and Sinister!

Queen of Halloween Collage

These are probably some of my FAVORITE new creations!
These Queen of Halloween collages are just so neat!
I was asked to make a Halloween version of the Queen of the Nest Collages I made
last winter and this was what I came up with. I gotta say, I love em~
and they are all different!

Halloween Wand
"Forget the Ghosts, Beware of me"

That just cracks me up. Some mornings I really feel that way. LOL.
Maybe I should carry this wand~ put it on my desk at work :)

I was just having too much fun taking these pics and I added in a few
extras to make like a little vignette~ that cabinet card is of
my Great Grandma Weaver~ I just LOVE it!

Gypsy Mermaid's Witches' Cupboard Swap Sneak Peak for Sarah

This is a little sneak peak of one of the handmade items I am sending to Sarah for
her swap~ your package is on it's way this week!!!!

I hope that you had a WONDERFUL LONG RELAXING weekend...
Happy Crafting!