HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

" The turkey has been eaten, the ham has been devoured, the pie is sticking to my hips just like a fluffy cloud." Did you like that? I made it up just now. HAHA!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! My last Grateful Days Challenge comes at the late eve on Thanksgiving. My belly is full by the way.....

I'm thankful for all my blog friends, & Etsy friends, my new BFF, & "doll", "princess charming", "duchess", & other new friends I've stumbled upon & met this year. I'm thankful for all who have visited my blog & left comments & for silly emails back-n-forth. I'm thankful for being able to peek into my favorite crafty friends' lives through their blogs & getting inspiration or encouragement & learning more about this crafty world that I LOVE so much!

Ok, the kids are in bed, Mr. WhiMSy love is watching football, & I'm off to do my favorite thing: make stuff!

Oh, & look what just arrived at 'WhiMSy love'. As I was beginning to make more of my "Rockin' Record Bowls', I made a sweet NEW thingie: Rockin' Record TRAYS!!! They are quite cool!

Wednesday Stuff

I can't believe this Grateful Days Challenge is almost over. What a cool thing it has been---thanks Jerusalem! It's funny 'cause I'm thankful for so much---too much to list of course---but, it was kind of a challenge to think of how to put my thankful thoughts into words. It was a great exercise. A great challenge.

So, today I continue with my thankful thought....I'm thankful for my camera. I LOOOOOVE my camera & I would be so bored without it. I've been a picture-taker for a long time now & have gone through SO many cameras. (The picture above is one of MAAAAAANY self-portraits. I'm bare of makeup & so that's why I darkened the picture so much & tweaked the color. HAHA!) Maybe it's not that I love my camera so much as I just love taking pictures. (Or maybe it's that I love MYSELF so much---with the excess of self-portraits & all. Hmm.) I am not a great photographer. I've had my moments, sure. But it's so cool to love doing something, even if you're not that superb at it--simply because it brings you joy.

AND, one of my vintage button rings was in a treasury listed on the front page of Etsy! YAY! It was up at 1am my time, so I didn't see it, but I found out it was on there. (Even the curator of the list didn't realize her list got on the front page.) Here's the treasury that was picked: (Don't know how long this link will work, but here it is:) http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=15992 AND, I sold the ring too! Woot, woot!

I found a really cute & VERY Christmas-y vintage apron last weekend. Here's a peek at the colors. I'm planning on "cupcake-ing" it up & putting it in the shop this weekend. I'll be working on that this evening. And Wednesday nights are one of my "leave mommy alone" crafting nights so I'll be spending some time working on goodies for the shop & watching my beloved Project Runway!!!! A beautiful night ahead, indeed.

If I don't get a chance to say it tomorrow, I'll say it now: HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU ALL!

A Lull

I'm the type of person who thrives on busy-ness. I want it all: Projects to make! Hunting for crafty supplies! Orders to fill! Packages to ship! Trips to the post office! And I want it all the time. But for now, I'm experiencing a lull.

I want those Christmas orders to be rolling in, but they're barely c-r-e-e-p-i-n-g in. I should be thankful for the lull, but I'm not. The reason I SHOULD be thankful is that it gives me a chance to do the handmade Christmas thing for my own family. I've got playthings to sew up for my girls & niece, rings to make for my sis-in-law & bro-in-law's wifey, a Christmas design to sketch for mom's holiday cards, paintings to finish for my nephew, purses to make for grandma & mom, & holiday shopping to do on Etsy! So, I guess I am thankful, in a bitter-sweet kind of way, for the lull.

I was embellishing some kitchen towlels with acorns last night for my girls to give to their preshcool teachers this morning, as a gesture of Thanksgiving. As I sat on the couch last night, sewing & watching TV, a commercial came on for "Day after Thanksgiving" shopping. This particular store is opening its doors at 4AM! What the heck? Who of you crazy fools out there shops at 4 am? Do you know what that means? It means you actually get up at 3-something in the morning to get ready for the 4AM shopping spree! That is just insane. Well, while you're out there shopping BEFORE THE SUN EVEN RISES, I'll be sleeping. But THEN, I'll be cozily sitting in front of my computer wearing cuddly jammies & sipping hot cider while my warm fingertips click away as I window shop, Etsy-style, through lovely stores filled with handmade goodies.

A Quick Moment of Thanks...

I forgot to post my thankful thoughts for the Grateful Days Challenge yesterday. So, you'll get a 2-fer-1 now...

I'm first thankful for...being thought of. That sounds SO silly & lame. I know. But, it's nice to think that someone, somewhere might be thinking of me....

The second thing I'm grateful for is....sushi. I've never even had sushi. The thought of it makes me gag. But, I know that someday, somewhere, I WILL eat sushi. I'm adventurous like that. But sushi, in this sense, also represents all the things I've yet to try, all the things I've yet to experience... I'm thankful for all that I haven't done or seen or tried yet. I'm thankful for all those little adventures that still await me, including eating sushi.

And the picture shown is a birthday gift I had for a friend who really likes sushi. The card was custom, made by Laura Bray at katydid designs. And the sushi magnets were created by Clayworks by Kim Detmers.

Thankful on a Saturday Night

It's late on Saturday. But, I'm getting my thankful thought in before the night is gone.
Me, Mr. WhiMSy love & the girls just got home from a birthday party. It was at a really cool place where the kids could all dress up & there was a castle inside, & a kitchen, a ship, a bus, a pizzeria, all sorts of "stations" where the kids could play pretend. The kids ran around, screamed, made a mess, had a blast.
Planning, decorating & throwing MY kid's parties is one of my most favorite things to do in the world! BUT, sometimes it is just nice to go to someone else's party & let the kids run around & be loud, make a mess & then I don't have to clean up. Someone else does.
So that's it. I'm off to get crafty now. Vintage button rings coming next week to the shop! YAY! Just in time for Christmas!! I thought I was going to get crafty today for my "Nikki Time", but I had a last minute change of plans when I decided to hang out with my mom for some Christmas shopping. I picked up some handmade gifts! I'm sticking to my pledge to buy handmade.
Goodnight.
Tomorrow's post is going to be super duper long. I've spent a few hours putting together "Themed Christmas Gift Ideas". Hope you enjoy!
Love & Cupcakes,
Nikki

Breaking Traditions

I'm thankful for traditions, but I'm also thankful for the ability to break them. Not everyone can break stuff- especially traditions.

This year for Thanksgiving we're going OUT to eat! The rest of my fam has had a bit of a hard time with this "new" idea (& it wasn't even originally my idea--MOM!), so Scott, me & the girls are going it alone. (There's no family feuding, just so ya know!) Every year there are always nice restaurants or hotels in town advertising their Thanksgiving feasts & this year we thought we'd give it a try. We're going to get all dressed up & fancy & make a great memory!

(And don't you love my 3 year olds "thankful" turkey feathers?)

I've recently declared Fridays as "fun days". The girls don't have preschool on this day & I thought we'd fill it with as many fun things that we can pack in a day! Zoey has requested a walk. So, as cold as it is, I'm going to suffer....for "fun's" sake & all. She drew out a map & everything! (See picture above.)

Then, we're going to see their Mi-mi (my mom) at work & deliver the goodies that she ordered from WhiMSy love---yes, aren't you also thankful for family members that are also your customers? And finally we're coming home to do crafty stuff & have Mexican hot cocoa. (I copied the cutest free Christmas pattern yesterday & I'll take a pic when it's done & show ya!)

This weekend I'll be busy making some more of my Sweet Christmas Cupcake Ornaments AND I'll also be making something Thanksgiving-y to give to the girls FOUR preschool teachers next week. Any great ideas out there? I'll be on a date with "google" later.

Fairy Toast

Today I am thankful for fairy toast. Fairy toast, & Hi-Ho Cherri-o, & dollies with cute little changeable outfits & pink frilly dress-up costumes & bed-time stories & hide-n-seek & camping out in the living room & watching cartoons on TV & all the things that give me a chance to be child-like again as I help grow up my girls.

Oh boy! Oh boy! Oh boy!

Oh. My. Gosh. I actually have 2 things I'm grateful for today. I just realized that the Project Runway (Bravo channel) season premiere starts tonight! It's my favoritest show EVERS! YIPPPPEEEEEEEEE! So, guess where I'll be this evening?......Let me give you a visual: Watching the greatest show on earth, all curled up on the couch with a blanket, some hot cider, & a warm & hunky hubby...


That's all.

SHHHHHH!

Today I am thankful for quiet times. Not that there IS a lot of quiet around here, but every day my girls have a "quiet time". They are alone in their room to play, watch a video, nap if they want, read a book, whatever. They just have to stay in their room for an hour. And it is quiet. For me. So I guess it is not really THEIR quiet time, but mommy's quiet time. I love it. It's the break that I need in my day. And then I can play, or watch a video, nap, read a book, whatever.

And how do you spell "shhhhh" anyway? Is it "SSSHHH"? or "SHSHSHSH"? or "SSSSSH"?Anyway. Random thought.

Placemat Purses!

OK, here's the cool crafty project I promised to show you. AND, it is super fast & easy & would make fun Christmas gifts!! The group of ladies at my MOPS (Mothers Of PreSchoolers) group today LOVED this project. It was super fun to see the tables of sewing machines lined up & the cluster of crafty ladies on the floor working on attaching the grommets to their newly sewn bags. (I even got to teach a lady to sew who had NEVER sewn before! YIPPEE!) If you google "placemat purses" you'll find TONS of stuff! Here is the link I had to a tutorial: http://elandmarc.com/amysfavorites/2004_09/home.htm

Here's the samples I brought to the class today...This first one is a simple woven placemat with sorta holiday-ish colors the my friend Julie sewed. It has a long over-the-shoulder ribbon sewn on both sides as the "handle". I'm planning on adding a giant vintage button right in the center to the keep the bag closed.

This is one I splurged on with the wooden handles. I really had no idea what I was doing. I just went for it & it seemed to turn out OK. I LOVE this bag! I attached a floral pin I already had in my stash of "accessories". It's a really heavy placemat & was the most expensive of the bunch--at $1.50, from Big Lots!!

This bag was sewn by my friend Tiffany. I attached the grommets & gold cording for the handles. Grommets are so much fun! Once you learn how to use them, you'll want to grommet everything!

And, I couldn't finish my sample of purses without attacking one with a cupcake! I still have to finish this cupcake with my little stitches all around the edges of the design, but this was all I had time to finish.

You could add so many different embellishments AND there are so many different ways you could create the handles. They'd be fun Christmas gifts filled with "themed" items, such as cooking gadgets for a chef: handprinted recipe cards/a fork easel from WhiMSy love (hee hee!)/a hand-knitted dish cloth/a hand-sewn apron OR... handmade beauty products for your diva sisters OR... hand-knit items (socks, scarf, mittens) for your...cold(?)...friends OR... handmade toys & puzzles to keep in the car for your favorite kidlets...(In fact, that gives me a great idea! This Sunday's "YOWZA! My Favorite Things..." will feature my favorite "themed" gift ideas!)

The possibilities with these purses are endless! (Did you get my "handmade" plug?) And, who knows, a few purses may pop up in the shop for sale, just in time for the holidays!

I was thinking about what I'm thankful for today. While I was organizing & setting up for the craft at my group this morning, I had about 4 or 5 toddlers, ages 3 or 4 surrounding me & "helping" me. And I just had the most FUN time talking to them! I'm serious! Not only do they say funny stuff, but sometimes those little buggers have real insight. So, today I am thankful for conversations with kidlets. Sometimes my own wee ones say things that get me to thinking about OTHER things & then I get inspiration or ideas or a new perspective that I wouldn't have gotten unless I took the time to have a conversation with them.

My New Old Christmas Treasures

I'm really loving this Grateful Days Challenge SO much!

And today, it might be a selfish thing I'm thankful for: my "Nikki Time"! Yep, every Saturday I get a few hours of time to myself. The hubby watches the wee ones & I escape to whatever world I desire to create for myself in that span of time. Sometimes it's garage sales, or thrifting, or shopping, or coffee with my sis, or hanging with ma, or roaming around the library, or crafting in a closed room. I guess I should be thankful for Mr. WhiMSy love that supports the fact that mommy needs a break now & then! I always look forward to my Saturdays & sometimes it even gets me through the week--during those occasional rough weeks, ya know? And today, being Saturday, I get my Nikki Time! YAY! I think I'll get crafty today.

I had a really nice time on Thursday after I dropped the girls at preschool. I headed over to my mom's house & we were able to look through all of my grandpa's Christmas ornaments that my parents just recently rescued in Seattle after my grandpa Bill passed away a few months ago. The holiday goodies were shared with my parents, myself & my brother & sister. It's so fun to have some of his old decorations. I took some pictures of a few of my new treasures...

This is a large vintage green burlap "Santa Sack" decorated with felt images. I can't wait to load it with goodies underneath the Christmas tree!

This circular piece of netting decorated with red felt bells, silver rickrack, bows & "jewels" is very damaged with a lot of stains, so I plan on repurposing the red bell embellishments & using them on another project.

This cluster of Chinese lantern lights was in with the Christmas decorations, so my grandpa & grandma must have used them during the holidays. I think I'll keep them here in my art studio. They are really fun!

These are my favorites! (Especially the pink one!) They scream "vintage" to me! I need to perform surgery on a couple of their ears. The girls are playing "reindeer & Barbies" with these right now.

Tiny Hands

My thoughts on thankfulness today...... Whether I'm making a pizza, sweeping, raking the yard, doing crafts, cooking...there's always tiny hands that want to help. And, although including their help may not be the most time efficient or mess-free way, I remind myself that those hands will not be tiny for very long & someday I may not even be asked, "Can I help mommy?" I am thankful for tiny hands that help me. I love those tiny hands....

The Squirrel Whisperer

Today I'm thankful for "the squirrel whisperer". That's what I call him. He's a semi-crazy man that lives next door with white-ish poofy hair & he talks to squirrels. I'm serious. I saw him outside one day talking & talking & moving his hands in the air & going on & on about something. The next thing I know, he was finished talking & he walked back to his house. I was trying to see who he was talking to, but a tree was in the way. Then, I saw a squirrel walk the opposite way. The squirrel & the man were having a conversation! Maybe the squirrel is the crazy one. Who knows? I'm not making this up because the man actually told Scott & I- on 2 different occasions- that he talks to the squirrels. He feeds them, finds them, chats with them. He told us to not be alarmed if we see him in our yard because that's what he is doing--talking to the squirrels. I have been staking him out for the past 3 weeks, trying to get a good photo of him in action. But, the lighting is never good, there are cars or other large objects in the way, or I run to get my camera but then I'm too late. So, this picture is the best I could do. He actually walked across the street to talk to this squirrel & there IS a squirrel standing right in front of him, but it is a very blurry photo & you can't see it real well.
When I think of "the squirrel whisperer", I realize I am also thankful for ALL the crazy & silly happenings that go on in my neighborhood. And why am I thankful? Because, simply, it keeps me entertained.

**Click HERE to become a part of the Grateful Days Challenge.

I also almost forgot to mention that I was super stoked & excited yesterday because my "Sweet Cupcake Decoration Ornaments" made it to the front page of Etsy, along with 11 other fab artists in a treasury created by Etsy admin. marymary! I couldn't figure out how to get a picture of the actual front page bit to post on my blog, so that made me bummed. But I saw them! They were there! And they looked so cute--like they belonged....