SUNNY SUNDAY MORNING!

It is a beautiful, sunny day here in the country. The heat has broken a bit and it was nice and cool last night.
We went to Toronto yesterday to spend the day with our lovely little granddaughter.We took her to High Park which is a mini Central Park, and sat under a shady tree while she napped. It was interesting watching all of the people mulling around. I would say the average single person and couples to people with babies was 4 to one and people with one or more dogs was 6 to one. Interesting. We sat there watching the people enjoying the park and commented on how we have this at home everyday just to ourselves. I still do not know why anyone with a choice would choose to live in the city and go to a park because it was the only place with any outdoor space. Oh well, to each his own.

A BUSY FEW DAYS.

I have not posted for a few days. It has been really hot here , as it has everywhere, and when we had a little break I started my Halloween pieces for my shop, Wicked Faerie Queen, on etsy. I have been making and painting some cute little wooden bowls. I will post them tomorrow. It may seem early but anyone who has a shop knows that you have to get the Halloween stuff done and out by August for enough delivery time.

Hope you are all keeping cool. I have been visiting a lot of blogs this week and everyone is getting this heat all over the world.

I am only 23 New Followers away from my Giveaway. If I don't get enough I will be drawing the end of August any way.

Keep Cool!

ANOTHER GIVEAWAY!

Visit Red Hen Home Blog for a really great giveaway. Just go to the blog button under my Giveaways.

WEDDING BELLS!

We are at the height of wedding season and I just wanted to share some of the things I have in my etsy shop Wicked Faerie Queen.

HAND CUT AND STITCHED RING BEARER PILLOWS

HANDMADE TABLE NUMBERS

KEEPSAKE BOX

AN AUGUST GIVEAWAY!

Stop by the Rusty Thimble Blog and have a chance to win 5 prizes for August. Just go to the button on my right sidebar under Giveaways.

I FEEL LIKE A CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF!

I mean that literally. At 9 o'clock this morning it was already blazing here. This is Canada we like warm weather but we are not use to this. We almost broke a record on Wednesday. I am sure this is nothing compared to our friends in the southern States. I do not know how you do it. I have air conditioning in the mudroom for our dogs and in the bedroom for at night. I don't like to use that much energy so we use overhead fans and only on when we are in the room. This is why I love our four seasons. We have this heat but I know the lovely, crisp fall mornings are just around the corner.

On another note, I am just 25 new followers away from my giveaway. I really did not think it would take this long. If I have not reached it by Labour Day I am just drawing anyway.

Wherever you are try to keep cool, hydrate, and don't forget your pets get hotter than you and a lot thirstier.

CHERISHED MEMORIES

Recently my friend Mina at Green Witch With Sprinkles posted about a memory of her grandmother's apron. I also posted back to her about my memories of my great-grandmother's apron. It is funny how something can send you back in a time machine when you look at it. It can be a photo, an apron, some family china or jewellery.

When I was little my grandmother had this lovely bird box she kept her best and favourite jewellery in. It meant a lot to her because most of it was from my grandfather. They met just before he went to Europe for the Second World War and he courted her long distance. He would send her little pieces of jewellery from wherever he was stationed. They married shortly after he returned home.

My grandmother always loved antique jewellery . Being in the antique business, she had the opportunity to collect some really beautiful pieces. Her favourites were Italian Melefori Beads and Amber Beads. When she left us I was lucky enough to become the keeper of her cherished pieces. One day I will give them to my granddaughter. I still have the bird box but I like to display the jewellery in a glass case so I can see it everyday. I also wear it but mostly I love to just take it out and hold it and remember her.

A SURPRISE IN THE MAILBOX!

I went to the mailbox today and got a nice surprise. My Giveaway from Marilyn at Busy Martha came. It was a large package just stuffed with goodies. I especially love the cutout reindeer, birds, and birdcages. Can't wait to use them. Thanks Marilyn, you have great taste.

A SUMMER STROLL

I went for a walk in my garden to see what I could see.

Some flower pots,

A dog that's hot,

And a little gnome looking at me.

Some wooden ducks, a croquet set,

A faerie and some lovely trees.

A bench for sitting, a lamp to be lit,

And a garden table waiting just for me!

A DELICIOUS MISTAKE!

Yesterday morning I was making some crepes for breakfast. I like them with fresh fruit. I had some blueberries in the fridge but I do find them a little bitter on their own so I decided to warm some in a pan with a little orange juice and sugar. The idea was to have a sauce for the crepes. As I heated them they began to thicken. After about 10 minutes I no longer had a sauce I had the most delicious fresh blueberry jam. I decide to have scones instead of crepes and boy were they yummy! The next time you want to impress someone with your cooking skills make this quick jam and serve it fresh, they will be impressed. Just use about a cup of blueberries with a little butter in a non stick pan. As they heat add a little orange juice, just a couple of tablespoons, and a couple of tablespoons or sugar ( I use demerra or raw sugar) gently heat on a rolling boil for around 10 minutes and gently stir. Take off of the heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Enjoy!

By the way I am only 27 followers away from my 100 Follower Giveaway so if you are not already a follower sign up and don't forget to leave a comment on the 100 Follower Giveaway Post. Just click the button to the right.

WHERE BLOGGERS CREATE PARTY...WELCOME TO MY STUDIO!

I want to welcome you all to my studio. I want to thank Karen of My Desert Cottage, our hostess, for putting this wonderful party together. I am new to the blogging world and this is a wonderful way to introduce myself. Let's get started shall we.

My husband and I use to have a Reproduction Furniture Business called 13 Mockingbirds. He built his workshop first because we could not work in the basement anymore ( our farmhouse is 235 years old with a low basement). A few years later we built my studio.

I am usually working on more than one thing, I paint quite large primitive paintings, so I need a lot of space to spread out. We decided due to expensive shipping to scale down and we no longer make large furniture. I started my etsy shops "Wicked Faerie Queen" for my love of sewing and painting. I work with felt and make different pillows. I also paint little pieces of art on my boxes. I started "Lucys Garden" so we could still work with pine. We make smaller primitive pieces such as trays, candlesticks and berry boxes.

And of course, Buddha Kitty!

This is where I work most of the time. I really like the old drafting table because I can adjust the height and tilt it when I work on my paintings.

This is my little supply room. I saved these doors from a salvage yard. It looks neat but like the Great Oz, everything is behind the curtain. I love this monkey fabric, I also reupholstered the two chairs in the studio with it.

This little samplers stove was my grandmothers when she was a little girl. I also have my great grandmothers chair from when she was little. Having these pieces of the women in my family around me inspires me.

My husband built this beautiful stretcher table. I do a lot of sewing here. All of the furniture in the studio is reclaimed except for the one big blue armchair. I saved most of it from my grandmother's farm. It was stored in her barn for her shop but when the farm sold it was destined to be burned. All of the tables and chairs we redid. The big front doors were at Habitant for Humanity Restore. One was in the bin and one I bought. I stripped them down and they turned out beautiful.

The Queen and White Rabbit were from our son's Alice In Wonderland Wedding Party last summer. My husband cut them from plywood and I painted them. I love them so much I hung them in my studio for inspiration. I also have Alice and 2 Cheshire Cats in the garden.

The tour would not be complete without a quick peek at my husband's workshop. Just through this door.

My husband carved this dedication into his bench for our sweet German Shepherd Sara. She was by his side the whole summer he built his shop but we lost her that fall.

I hope you have enjoyed the tour of where I create. I am looking forward to visiting where my fellow bloggers create too!