This doe has apparently settled into our pasture for good. I’m not sure she realizes she can jump the fence, or maybe she’s figured out there is food and water available there at all times and decided to just make it her home. We’ve not seen her inside the barn – yet, she found a low spot she likes to sleep in. It appears that our sheep trust her with the safekeeping of their lambs. Isn’t this adorable?
The Babysitter
05 Feb 2018 1 Comment
A Day At The Circus House Pins
03 Feb 2018 2 Comments
Happy Saturday everyone! I’ve been playing with the super versatile GSL House Jewelry Pieces. I considered using them as a focal point in a larger assemblage but kept coming back to the idea of turning them into actual jewelry and decided on a trio of quirky circus themed pins using tiny train figurines. If you’d like to see how they are made, hop on over to Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Blog.
A Tiny Glitter Village
19 Jan 2018 3 Comments
in Crafts
Here’s a happy little project I did for Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts. We enjoy having a few winter decorations up for a month or two after the holidays. I adore a glitter village but have no place to set one up so I decided to make one in miniature using the GSL Tiny Plant Table
This one is so simple to put together, just 5 pieces!
I decided the stand should be white to enhance the snowy scene so gave each piece a few coats of white acrylic paint on both sides then assembled the piece using tacky glue.
Using an X-Acto knife I cut tiny house shapes from polymer clay and used a square match to indent windows and doors before baking them off.
I also rolled out some cone tree shapes and dug out my stash of nail art supplies, aka polymer cane flower slices, to give the houses a bit of decoration. You can find these in nail supply stores and on Amazon.
After baking, I applied a thin coat of tacky glue on each piece then tossed them into a container of superfine glitter to get them nice and sparkly. When the glue was dry, I added a bit of chunkier crystal glitter onto the rooftops for some sparkly snow.
They were then glued onto the top of my assembled table to form a tiny village.
I wanted to make sure not to get glitter on the sides of the table so I used painter’s tape as a barrier before coating the village floor with a thick coating of tacky glue. Then came the fun part…. dumping a LOT of crystal glitter to make a thick blanket of snow!
To finish the look, I used some of the GSL Snowflake Shape Set Minis as a decoration. I got white acrylic paint into the little crevasses using a soft bristled brush.
When the paint was dry, I applied a thin coat of white glue and tossed them into the same superfine glitter to give them some sparkle.
I glued them onto the front of the winter scene and finished it off with a bit of blue bling.
Once it’s fully dry, tap off the excess glitter and enjoy your winter wonderland!
Gypsy Soul Laser Items Used
Other Items Used
White acrylic paint
Tacky glue
Polymer clay
Polymer clay cane slices
Superfine glitter
Crystal glitter
Rhinestone
Painter’s tape
First Lambs
15 Jan 2018 Leave a comment
We have two little ewes on the farm. I’m thankful they weren’t born when our weather was down into the single digits!
House Shrine Box For A Vacation Treasure
06 Jan 2018 Leave a comment
in Crafts
Well I have some exciting news… I’ve been asked to join a design team! I am going to be posting a project twice a month on the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts blog
For my first project, I was inspired to make a home for a pretty little religious statue I recently picked up on vacation in Valetta using the GSL House Shrine Box. It’s a really great size to show off lots of treasures and this one fits perfectly inside.
The first thing I do when I start a project is lay out all the pieces. This house shrine box is super easy to assemble and straightforward as to where the pieces fit together.
Before I glue anything in place, I cut my scrapbook paper. I use the front and back pieces as a template, which makes it easy to lay out exactly which parts of the paper I want to use.
Here’s everything cut out and ready to glue down.
I start by gluing the interior rear and side wall papers in place using a tacky white glue. I then glue the back, front, floor and side walls together. I use rubber bands to hold everything in place while the glue dries.
The base of my figurine is a little bit too wide to fit inside the shrine so I glue a domino for her to sit on. It’s the perfect height for her base. Around the domino, I glue a grassy green felt scrap into place to serve as the shrine’s flooring.
Shingles and roof come next. I used GSL Chipboard Shingles- Pointed to jazz up the roof. I painted the shingle strips with brown acrylic paint then give them a thin wash of quinacridone azo gold paint. I painted the roof brown before gluing the shingles in place just in case any tiny section of it peeked through after I glued them in place.
Next I cut the shingles into 1 3/4 inch strips, which I then glued in place. This project required four of the shingle strips in all.
Once I glued my scrapbook paper on the outside shrine walls I was ready to get into my crafting flowers and embellish away.
She’s a beauty!
Our Sheep Made A Friend
31 Dec 2017 1 Comment
For the last few weeks we’ve been finding a doe grazing with our sheep in the pasture. She seems very comfortable with them and they are all used to having goats hang around so they pretty much have accepted her.
This photo was taken with my ipad, not a super telephoto lens. She isn’t afraid of us one bit.
Nope. Not afraid. She’s welcome to share our hay this winter. I hope she brings a fawn to visit some day.
French Polynesian Sky
28 Nov 2017 3 Comments
I was reviewing our vacation photos one last time before getting busy with the holidays and I came across these. Nothing is more gorgeous than the skies in the Pacific islands. Since I’m an early riser, my sky photos are mostly from sunrise. At sunset we’re more likely than not in a bar on the top deck having a fabulous cocktail. 🙂
Just Back
21 Nov 2017 6 Comments
The laundry’s done and there’s food in the house again so I can finally sit down and share a few photos. We had the best vacation of our lives, hands down. We cruised on the Seabourn Sojourn to French Polynesia and Hawaii, all places we’ve never been before. We discovered we much preferred the Polynesian islands over Hawaii and would love to go back some day. I’ve only been snorkeling once before in the Caribbean. I’m officially hooked on it now!
We found lots of gorgeous isolated places.
We visited Nuku Hiva, which is where Survivor Marquesas was set.
Fanning Island has no electricity or running water. It was a fascinating stop.
The children of Fanning Island greeted us.
We went scuba diving for our very first time in Moorea which is a much nicer first dive spot than a public pool! Underwater selfie time.
This sea anemone was bright pink and super soft to the touch.
We spent as much time as we could in the water. That’s our ship in the background.
Snorkeling in Bora Bora.
We swam with black tipped sharks.
And got to feed and pet stingrays. I could have spent all day here.
A deeper water snorkeling spot.
We purchased an underwater camera before we went and are so glad we did!
The fish were unbelievably colorful.
These guys were everywhere.
A cluster of sea urchins.
Someone painted this one.
This big guy looked out of place.
We spent a long time with a pod of dolphins. So cool!
We saw the most gorgeous sea turtles.
When you buy banana vanilla juice and ask the ship’s bartender to turn it into a boozy milkshake then drink it on your balcony…
We booked a snorkeling excursion that included lunch on a private island.
Th food was served at picnic tables set into the shoreline.
The food onboard wasn’t too shabby, either. Lobster and pork belly with baby leeks.
Room service. On the Sojourn, it’s all included.
The trip was to celebrate our 30th anniversary.
We’d go back in a heartbeat!
Full Moon
18 Nov 2017 Leave a comment
The November full moon is called the beaver moon and boy was it beautiful! I got these photos on November 4th and am pretty pleased how they came out since I was on a ship in pretty rough seas when they were taken. We just returned from the South Pacific, I’ll share a few photos when I get everything sorted and groceries in the house again.
Tis The Season
12 Oct 2017 Leave a comment
The beauty berry bush we brought with us when we moved here is in it’s full Fall splendor. I can’t grow a pumpkin to save my life but this spray of color outside my kitchen window puts me in the pumpkin season mood every year.
Missing Willow Farm 