Thinking Ahead

via Pinterest

One of my goals for the new year is to knit something.  Found this little video inspiring Click here ://vimeo.com/33256289


                          I found this list for 33 ways to Stay Creative.


                                      Click on it to make it more readable.
                          

Can you tell I'm knee deep in looking for inspiration and motivation?  The first thing I really need to do is number 4 on the above list!!

Cathy G

WHAT A DOLL!!!

My post today is a tale of two dolls!  The first is a fabulous real life living doll who is well known to my blogger friends.  Lori Rippey  ( HomespunPrims Blog)!   You'll recall that a few days ago I won a fantastic give-away she was having on her blog!  The package arrived today and I'll tell you what.... I was brought to my knees by the contents!   

A little prim punch needle piece and a quilt that will give you spine tingling , bell ringing , knock your crazy socks right off your feet feeling!  I had to sit down and admire the tiny tiny stitching and the tiny tiny piecing in her work.  Meticulous and fabrics to die for!!  Lori Lori..... no wonder her pieces are highly sought after!  And if the pieces themselves were not enough she had it all wrapped in a scrumptious green plaid HUGE piece of wool!!  I am still pinching myself this afternoon and will be for some time to come that I could be so blessed!  Merry Christmas Lori and Thank-you for being the living doll that you are and drawing my name!!~~XOXOXO~~Another special doll is gracing my home this Christmas.This one's  a boy doll.He measures a mere 5 1/2 inches.Porcelain head and arms and......  

..... oops..... yes, my little man is missing a leg.  There's a story ( you know me and my stories) about what happened to his leg.



This very special little doll belonged to my Dad!It was given to him by his Aunt Muriel when he was very young.  Possibly for Christmas or his birthday which is Dec. 20th.  My Dad is gone now.  He passed in 1991 at age 66.  My Grandma gave the doll to my Mom years ago. It has always been stored in this box with a note in my Grandmother's hand which reads: Bob's doll- given to him by Muriel ( my Grandmother's sister) He hung it out car window and lost the one leg. I cannot help but smile each time I read it for that is what a little boy must do!  It's probably a miracle the whole doll wasn't lost in the event. So today we are lucky enough to have this little treasure and put him out at Christmas.  Mom isn't ready to part with him yet so after Christmas I shall return him in his little box to her and she can squirrel him away in her safe storage place.







So there you have it.  The dolls of Christmas past and present!  Hmmmm....  sounds like the title for a good book!   
Cathy G 

Family Photo Day at Orange Sink

Today was family photo day at the Orange Sink homestead.  It started out by chasing down the fur children to get their faces washed and trimmed and ears fluffed and puffed and red ribbons tied around furry necks.  
Mrs. Orange sink was groomer while Mr. Orange Sink, official photographer, set up his tripod and readied his camera equipment. The friend who offered to help us out with the photo shoot had Christmas shopping to do and canceled out at the last minute.
So the scenario went something like this.  Mr. OS setting the camera on the tripod to take 10 automatic shots in a row. Mrs. OS holding dogs while sitting on the hearth.  Mr. OS rushing to take his seat next to us and grabbing a dog and trying to look posed. The flash going off and the dogs looking every direction but at the camera.     After repeating this about 50 times the dogs were having none of it and Mrs. OS was getting hot and hungry. The photographer was getting ornery.The above photo in the header is the best we could muster up.
They say people sometimes look like their pets or vice versa. 
 

It all  ended  with a  little pouting session afterwards.. can't really blame them.....I hate having my picture taken too! 

Cathy G

Sugar and Spice and All That's Nice!

Yesterday was my  little Christmas party for my friends who gather to hook each month in my studio.  I've been stitching and stuffing these little snowmen to give to each fabulous lady!  But as luck would have it Saundra the "Snowbird" took off a few days ago for Florida.  Icy and wet roads forced Lorena to not want to venture out.  So Eva and Jeannie and I were left to devour all the Christmas baking (compliments of my Mom!)

I gave up doing any Christmas baking  this year due to the weight loss program I've been following.

Fortunately my Mom is still the best baker and cookie maker in the county!

Wrapping the snowmen proved to be quite challenging.  But the wrapped packages doubled quite nicely as table decorations!  I bought the paper plates and napkins at Walmart and discovered later that I had the tissue paper that matched!









My tummy hasn't felt the best today.  Do you suppose it's because of all the sugar and spice ?!
How are your Holiday preparations coming along?
Any suggestions on what to get a husband who told me today that he doesn't need anything..... he has all he needs ( me and Smokey and Max!)  
Cathy G

Sleigh Bells Ring!

Are you listenin' ?

The other day  Mom and I were out on the weekly jaunt to buy groceries and make other necessary stops in town.  I was driving along trying to stay in the moment and enjoy some of the sights of the season.  Snow filled streets and decorations, people hurrying along, Christmas tunes on the radio....... and all of a sudden my Mom says "Did you get your property tax bill in the mail yet?"

My mind came crashing down  and the music seemed to fizzle out like an old time vinyl record when the needle scratched across the surface.

Mom!....  Now why'd you have to go and bring up the property taxes.....  shouldn't we just try and relax a little and enjoy the simple things of the season before they vanish and yet another year is hastily ripped from the calendar!

Window in the studio filled with greens and a Birch tree with lights.
Bulbs a glistenin'

Snowmen waiting  to be built.


The dogs make cute tracks in the snow.

My old junk is put to use holding craft supplies.....  Remember that old ribbon candy?  Ahhhh the old tins sure beat the plastic containers everything comes in now......


Cards from friends displayed with old sewing notions and wool of course!

My old dress form in the studio wears a vintage wool coat and one of my  wool scarves...... that is when I'm not wearing them......   

One of the biggest treasures of the season arrived via Fed Ex Yesterday!!  Yes.... my blog giveaway winnings from Joanne over at  Snippets and Scraps of my Mind Blog

A wool feather tree kit with all the ingredients to make a tree!  Last year I got directions via email from Joanne for making one of those trees.   I  sort of glazed over a little and didn't try and make one.  It sounds harder than it probably is. But now that I have this kit in my claws I think I can figure out how it goes!  My Gosh..... she even put a bottle of glue,  a sharpie and the nicest well written instructions you could ask for!  Not to mention a darling reusable bag in my favorite color! THANK-YOU JOANNE!  I have no excuses now!  A feather tree is going to materialize as soon as I get a couple of Christmas presents done!!

I think I hear sleigh bells ringing........ Are you listening?

Cathy G

Wool on the Hoof

I made this burlap bag filled with faux greens and wool candycanes to hang on the front door. It's mounted on an old piece of barn board.

It's been difficult as of late to find time to post.  This past week has been crazy to say the least.  Dave's Mom who is 89 years old fell down in her apartment.  That's the third time in the last few months. She knocked out her front tooth but didn't break any bones.  She's had a very rough week. Her sister who was 93 years old passed away this week.

While making the thirty mile trip to Dave's Mom's apartment this week there were a flock of sheep along the roadside.  I asked him to pull over and get me a photo for my blog.  He obliged and these are the photos.

Don't they look cute in their wool outfits?!  I'm thinking how cute they would look hooked into a rug of many colors!  That wool looks like it would take a dye beautifully! 
I've been busy making more bird pin cushions and a new little snowman which you can see in the new blog header. 
We have a dusting of snow on the ground now and  expecting a couple more inches this weekend.  I hope to get back to rug hooking soon!   It's time to start turning the wool on the hooves to a little wool on the frame!
Hope you're having a gentle and productive weekend!Blessings!Cathy G