If I see you in the Garden...

 ... I will abandon my post at the birdbath...

 ...smile...

...and run up to you for attention.

Happy Easter!

Wishing you all a wonderful Easter! 

This large fellow is Daruis.

For the Birds

Our bird embroidery makes an appearance on a poster for birds.  Remember this pattern from Geninne?

Festive Faire in Red and Blue

We love seeing things that have been made with supplies we stock and were delighted to receive a photo of these festive party hats.  We're big fans of red and blue together and love the mix of flowers used.  You can see more festive faire HERE in the Prop Shop Boutique.

New to the Shop: Candy Cones & Metallic Tinsel Sticks

 If you love gifting sweet treats then be sure to check out our new selection of pretty metallic candy cones from Germany.  Available in a range of seven colors, each has a crepe paper cuff that can be tied with a pretty ribbon to secure the contents -- you can see below how the orange cone has its cuff sticking up.

 These are perfect for small foil wrapped chocolates or hard candies and just waiting to be embellished with Dresden trims, paper scraps, etc.  The cones don't have handles, but these metallic tinsel sticks below would be delightful and could easily be tacked onto the cones' exteriors and secured with small Dresden medallions.

Absolutely Succulent

photo credit: Bel Fiore Designs

I'm on a succulent kick right now so this bouquet totally caught my eye.  Love the hot oranges of the poppies and those blackberries look good enough to eat! Believe it or not, this completely life-like creation is made entirely with faux flowers by the talented Brittany Deininger of Bel Fiore Design.

Sneak Peek: New Millinery Flowers for Spring

Here's a sneak peek of some pretty new millinery items we're busy working with this week.  Lots of photographing, editing, listing and stopping to exclaim to each other, "Wow! Look at these ones!"

On My Desktop This Weekend

Fresh off the boat is a plethora of egg containers from Germany.  From vintage to floral, bunnies to roosters, new styles to old favorites, there are a LOT of eggs! Above, a screen shot of my desktop as I wrapped up editing photos and adding them to our website.

Just Arrived From Germany ~ New Scraps for 2012!

At the beginning of year a select number of new scraps designs are released and added to the already-voluminous range of beautiful vintage images.  This year's designs feature a beautiful set of Jesus and Mary, flowers, veggies, Christmas themes like Santa and snow angels, guardian angels and more.  Offered in traditional sheet form as well as the popular large, thick single scraps, these scraps are 100% made in Germany. Please click HERE to see all styles. 

I Love This Pin Cushion!

This is quite possibly the most adorable pin cushion ever.  

He was carefully needle felted by Judy Johnson of Bay Colony Designs.

New to the Shop: Czech Glass Buttons

We've added a whole host of Czech glass buttons to our Etsy shop this week.  From clear glass with silver accents to colored milk glass with a hobnail design to pretty multi-colored florals to dramatic blues and blacks, if they caught our eye, we couldn't resist.  Here are a few of my favorites:

We have twenty-four styles all together, all of which you can see HERE.  Not just for clothing and costumes, these buttons are stunning when worked into jewelry design, mixed media projects and more.  We thought you'd get a kick out of seeing how they're made, too:

A Blown Glass Heart Valentine

This year delight your Valentine with a beautiful handmade heart ornament.  Made with a blown glass heart from Germany, Dresden foils, paper scraps, and pretty fabric trims.

 

Here are links to the very supplies we used:
Gold Dresden Border, Silver Dresden Border, Blue Shell Border
Dresden Halos
Floral Scraps, Angel Scraps
Blown Glass Heart
Rosebud Trims, Metallic Trims

Step 1: Start by gently removing the cap from your heart ornament.

Step 2: Next wrap a Dresden border around the side of the heart.

Step 3: Gently glue a fabric trim on top of the Dresden border.  You may have to hold the trim in place while the glue sets up so it conforms to the contours of the heart.

Step 4: When all has dried, gently replace the cap.

 Step 5: Next pair your angel scrap with a floral scrap and a halo.  We used the pairings below.

Step 6: Glue the angel scrap to the halo.  You may wish to reinforce behind the angel's head with a light cardstock so the halo's embossing isn't visible.

Step 7: Glue the angel and halo to the ornament and, once dry, glue the flower scrap in place, layering it slightly over the bottom of the angel's wings.

Step 8: Allow to dry.

A few things to keep in mind:
We like a clear-drying liquid craft glue for applying scraps and trims.

The angel design can be repeated on the back of the heart as well.  Or you can apply a petty Dresden foil heart.

Layering is what takes these from ordinary to extraordinary -- metallic trims, Dresden foil trims, fabric trims and scraps -- the art is in the overlay!

Myrtle Studio's Sweet Nutcracker Suite

We're absolutely taken with the work of Leslie of Myrtle's Studio! Her use of trims, textures, colors and whimsy never ceases to amaze and delight us.  When she shared photos of a custom nutcracker order she'd just created, we asked her if we could share them here with you all as well.

If you've got a special occasion and need something extra special to make the day all the more memorable, consider engaging the artistic talents of Leslie.  From ribbon cornucopias to luxe gift tags to rich ribbon wreaths, Myrtle's Studio has something to delight everyone.

Specialty Christmas Cards for Sending and Decorating

Things We Love: kitschavan

It's always a delight to see what people make with the craft supplies we sell.  In this case, kitschavan, in England, has taken simple bottle brush trees and turned them into individual works of art that are a feast for the eyes and sure to delight Christmas lovers everywhere.  She's been bold but discerning in her color choices and layered the trees with tinsel cording and glass balls and then anchored them in great figural ceramic bases that lend themselves perfectly to her trees.  Even Santa and Mrs.Claus would approve!

Do stop by her shop and take a look at her artful creations here: kitschavan