Quick Craft Kit Free Giveaway!

This is a quick giveaway - ends this Friday!  If you are crafty and love new projects, this one is for you...

This is a vintage 1978 kit to make a plaque featuring a Bonnet Girl that comes with:
- wood plaque (5.4 x 7.5 inches)
- one bonnet girl print
- one piece of sandpaper
- instructions for completing the plaque
- sawtooth hanger (I added to kit)


*You will also need some type of adhesive glue to adhere the picture to the plaque.

Rules:

1. Open to U.S. and Canada residents only.

2. Ends Friday, February 4th at midnight PST.


3. Winner will be chosen at random and   
     contacted via information provided in 
     comment entries within 24 hours.


4. Each contest entry requires a separate 
     comment.

To Enter:

- Follow my blog (or tell me you're already 
   following).

- Visit my Etsy shop and tell me what your favorite    item is.

- Post on Twitter or Facebook about this 
   giveaway.

- Follow me on Twitter at @ShabbyNChic.

**Remember to post a separate comment for each entry.**

My Favorite Things...

In honor of Valentine's Day which is just around the corner, my favorite things are my favorite chocolates this time. I recently tried a new bar - Lindt's White Coconut. I love milk chocolate, but I also love coconut so I had to try this when I saw it. I wasn't disappointed. There are actually small pieces of coconut in this bar that not only tastes delicious, but smells wonderful!

Lindt

My simple, fall-back, always hits-the-spot chocolate is Dove's milk chocolate. It is the smoothest chocolate I have ever had (and I've had a lot of chocolate)! If you love milk chocolate that melts in your mouth, this is the one. It is affordable and probably at your nearest store. Sorry to tempt those who don't want to be tempted, but it's good to give in sometimes!

Dove

Behind the Scenes with Glynt Pottery

I recently discovered the beautiful pottery of Graciela from Glynt Pottery. I love seeing the workspaces of creative people and I really love sharing them!  And amazing work comes from this studio, especially when you consider the size of the space: 10 x 10 feet.  

Green & Blue Tumblers

Every available wall surface has shelves to hold everything, from pieces in various stages of drying or waiting to be glazed, to towels, to underglazes and molds. 

The kiln sits at the back of the studio with clearance from the walls as required.

On the wall by the front (under the window), she has a 6 ft carpenter's table with a mini slab roller on top and a sturdy piece of wood to serve as additional table space when the slab roller is not in use.

Graciela says “I love my window because it lets in so much sunlight!” That has to be my favorite thing about this space as well. What a smart spot to put a workspace!

She adds, “I have a deck in front of the studio so that, on nice days I can throw open the doors and increase the size of my work space. Picnic tables on the deck allow me to set work down to dry and do my glazing there. We've run a hose from the house around the back of the building and connected it to an old sink by the side of the studio so I don't have to go into the house when I need water (except in winter when I do get warm water from the house).”

I can imagine it now!

Giveaway Winner Announced!

My most recent giveaway ended at midnight last night (PST) and the winner of the two Paris paintings is:

Ruth of WhimsicalWinston

Congratulations!

More giveaways coming soon...

Art - Shabby Chic Style

This time of year most of us are looking around our homes and wanting to freshen up our decor. One great way to do that is with art. There are so many great options no matter what your taste. I found some great pieces in 3 different categories:

Paintings...

Flapper Hat

Pink Roses







Mixed Media/Assemblage...

Memory Box Assemblage








Shadowbox

Photography...

Pink Flowers

Thread Spools

Blooming Flowers

Valentine book












So many to choose from!  I love them all, but photography may be my favorite. . . today.  What's yours?

My Favorite Things...

A new feature on my blog this year is "My Favorite Things". This is where I will write about items I have and love. I could live without these things, but I wouldn't want to! The two items I have featured here are perfect for the currently cold winter weather.

The first is fleece pajamas. I have two sets and I love them because they are extemely warm and soft! These are the warmest, softest pajamas I have ever owned. My favorite of the two I own has a black and white damask print, but I love this simple pink set too. Thankfully fleece pajamas are quite popular this year, so you can get them just about anywhere in any price range.

fleece pj's

My other favorite item is also featured for its warmth. They are these soft, comfortable boots that match with just about everything. I like this darker brown color as they won't show dirt as easily as the lighter tan color. I also bought the shorter fit because I'm not very tall and they seem less cumbersome to me. Wear them over your skinny jeans or under your bootcut jeans. I wear these boots almost everyday - when I'm not working. (I have not yet found a way to make these look right with dress slacks and a blouse.) They feel like you are wearing slippers. Finally, a pair of shoes you won't want to kick off right when you get home!

boots

Free Giveaway

Let's celebrate the new year with a new giveaway - it's not one, but two pieces of beautiful art for free!  Both of these painting are of Paris.  The larger painting has a sticker on the back that reads "Les Editions Braun, Paris" with a copyright of 1959 - "Utrillo, La Basilique du Sacre-Coeur 1926, Collection dr Roudinesco".  Maruice Utrillo is the artist (on the front along with the original date of the painting.  It is just over 10.25 inches by just over 8 inches.

The second smaller painting has much less information.  It is simply stamped "PARIS" in ink on the back.  It is 6 inches wide by just under 4.5 inches high.  Both are on stretched canvas.  You can frame these or hang them as is.  Either way, there's no better price for art than free!

Rules:


1. Open to U.S. and Canada residents only.

2. Ends Friday, January 14th at midnight PST.

3. Winner will be chosen at random and contacted via information provided in comment entries within 24 hours.

4. Each contest entry requires a separate comment.

To Enter:

- Follow my blog (or tell me you're already following).

- Visit my Etsy shop and tell me what your favorite item is.  Visit ShabbyNChic

- Post on Twitter or Facebook about this giveaway.

- Follow me on Twitter at @ShabbyNChic.

**Remember to post a separate comment for each entry.**

A New Year and A New Look!

With any new year comes change and for my blog, it was the right time! I hope you enjoy the new look. I will not be changing the content, but do hope to post more frequently. I have several giveaways lined up as well as a new regular topic I'm excited about: "My Favorites" which will feature some of my favorite things. Along with the fresh look is more space for ads on the right-hand column. I hope you like the new look as much as I do!

Art on a Budget

My most recent project for my own home was a photograph of a door in Europe taken by a woman I met at an art/craft fair.  She sells her photographs at very low prices currently, so I got this 8x10 for $4.00.  I know - unbelievable!  I had a rustic wood frame that I thought would be just perfect for the photograph.  I found the frame at a rummage sale months earlier for $1.00!  It had a picture of the 3 Stooges in it, but I could look past that to see the frame...that was what I wanted.  Now I just needed matting for it.  I went to a framing store and was surprised to find that they didn't have a cream or beige matting for my 8x10 photo.

So I went home disappointed, then realized that I already had what I needed.  I had matting that would fit in just the right color in a frame that I wanted to refinish anyway.  So that was no additional cost - we love free!  So for a grand total of $5.00 I have this beautiful photograph and frame on my wall and have received so many compliments on it.

Holiday Traditions

We all celebrate holidays differently. Traditions are important to have and pass on to our children.  I wanted to share a few of our family's Christmas traditions. 

One that I always had growing up was a Christmas tree.  It may sound like something typical that most families have, but when I was in high school and my father passed away, we did away with a lot of traditions (just too difficult I suppose).  So my mother sat us down and asked each of us children what holiday tradition we wanted to continue and she would do those every year, no matter what.  I chose having a Christmas tree and I continue that with my children even if we are not going to be home for Christmas.  We each get or make a new ornament every year, so the tree is quite meaningful for us.

Another tradition I grew up with and continue with my children is stockings.  This is another common tradition, but we just love it!  My mother made the stockings when we were very young (and now sells them in her Etsy shop).  I think filling people's stockings, then watching them open them is my favorite part of Christmas.

Finally, we do Christmas crackers which I believe is an English tradition.  I am not sure when it started, but it was one we added to our family's traditions as adults.  I think I bought some once and we all enjoyed it so much that it stuck.  This year, the kids and I made them and they have been so excited to give them to family and friends.  They are typically filled with a paper hat, a toy, candy...  We have also used lottery tickets or money, but this year it's all candy!

Please comment with traditions you and your family share.