Getting ready....

Hope you are enjoying your weekend.

Thought I would share some of my

favorite Winter and Christmas themed music

to help get you in the mood....

 

Enjoy....

Ten Thousand Villages fun.....

While I was in Asheville, N.C.

we made a stop at

Ten Thousand Villages

My bestest of friend took her ladies group

from her church there for an outing

since they have been discussing Fair Trade

and what that means for those that it benefits....

Even if you don't have one in your area

you should definitely visit the link above

and find out what they are about

of course there is online shopping

but they have  wonderful  displays in their stores

and the place even SMELLS lovely

and not in one of those perfumy ways...

Love the writing on the wall....

They had a wonderful natural feel to all the Christmas items

and they still managed to mix earthy tones and brights very well...

I am on such a budget...

I thought these cuffs were so awesome!

Pieces of needlework from all kinds of things like the trims from Mexican Wedding

dresses etc....

I took this photo because I thought the display was so neat.

A few minutes later one of our ladies had one and was

ooohing over how cute it was...

It is actually a push toy!

His little legs move so fast on that little bicycle!

They are pieces of Aluminum wire wrapped in many different types of silk ribbon .

Very resourceful and the adorable factor made it worth the mere $8

I did get this one for Baby Keeper for Christmas...

Happy Family in a "Bunny Bag"

Lastly

I love all the nativity themed items they have

because the are so unique

I purchased one years ago for

the same bestest buddy that was inside of a real egg shell that

could be hung on the tree!

I really likes these two

because they also remind me of my honeymoon...

When we were in Mexico we bought a free standing nativity that

was handmade on an island we visited...

I have not put it out for display yet

but will definitely share it when it gets unpacked.

Hope you are all having a good time getting ready for the

holidays.

Remember this time is not about stress and running around

it is about giving and loving.

Happy Friday!

Christmas Button Swap...

I've been away for a few days

because I went on a little road trip to Asheville/ Canton N.C.

this week....

Story for another post!

I wanted to finally share what I created for the

Christmas Button Swap over at

Button Floozies

I exchanged with three other ladies

and after much inhaling of glue

a glitter sneeze incident

and a lot of tweaking with tweezers

this is what I created for them...

I used the spools you get with ribbon for the base

and hand glittered all the buttons

to give them a Christmasy sparkle...

I also decided to sparkle up the reindeer

and chose a color theme for each decoration...

I wanted to make them a bit Kitschy cute.....

I had a lot of fun creating these and hope they made

it to their destinations in one piece...

I found some great colorful tags on Etsy

that I just had to order after I started this

because the colors fit so well with my theme

so then I created these to accompany them.....

I have so enjoyed all the swaps I have done so far

with this group!

Special thanks to Laurie for encouraging

me to start and for being such a wonderful

host!

Black Friday Thrifting....(a week late)

We spent Thanksgiving

with my husbands family

out of state

They live in a pretty small town

and when we go

I like to stop in to their local Goodwill

and a small antique store that

is located in a former Civil War era hospital...

I found some amazing goodies at the antique store

but the best buys were at the GW!

I went on Black Friday while everyone else was fighting over

towels at Wal-Mart!

I love going to thrifties in other cities

because sometimes the types of things you find seem to vary

from state to state...

I found this set of Santa salt and pepper shakers for .49 cents

they aren't perfect but they are tiny and cute!

Will set well on the kitchen shelf for Christmas...

The paper streamers are old Hallmark...probably from the 80's

.49 cents each!

This nice little hand stitched napkin was ?

oops. I don't think I even looked....

I think I paid .25 cents

The green tablecloth was $1.99

kind of 60's-70's but I like the green

will fit in well with vintage but otherwise I think could look pretty tacky out of the right setting..

does that make any sense?

I'm not sure if I'm going to keep it to make into something else

or if I want to sell it ...

We shall see...

This turquoise honey pot was .49 cents

I have a green and a pink one already

The linen dinner napkins and towel were $1.99

they are definitely older and maybe hand stitched...

they are very well made.

My grandmother had one of these Orange juice jugs

I found a heavier one earlier in the year

this one is a lot lighter

no marking

$.99 cents

The sugar and creamer were $2.98 for the set

This glass Christmas tree was $1.99!

They had 10 or 12 in all different sizes!

I put the dish with it because I almost got rid of it a few months ago

but it had not made it to the donation box..

so glad I didn't!

These 70's candle rings were .89 cents for 3

and the armless guy was a freebie!

I'm thinking of using him in an art project!

(I know my sister is laughing at that)

Lastly this paint by numbers was .49 cents

I don't collect these but I know a lot of people do

this is the first one I have seen that was decent

I'll definitely be selling this to someone who collects...

Not bad for a Black Friday haul huh?

NO shoving people or long lines...

and I didn't have to get up before the chickens....

How is that for some Thanksgiving love?

What did you find?

Head on over to

Her Library Adventures

to see what everyone else has found!

Happy Sunday!

Update on Stocking Stuffer donations....

I just wanted to give an update

on the Stocking Stuffer donations.

I was graciously given all the adult and most of the

children's dental supplies this week

by

Dr. J.S. Oglesby, D.D.S.

he is truly an amazing,kind,generous soul

who has been on a life changing journey of his own

not to mention he IS the best dentist ever...

(I'm not just saying that because I used to work for him either)

I almost was not sure if this was going to work well this year

because my funds have been greatly limited due to my job change.

Thank You so much from the bottom of

my heart to Dr.Oglesby.

I have purchased all the candy we need.

All of the children's small items have been purchased

with the exception of the final toothbrushes and toothpaste which I hope to have donated.

 Most of the women's items have been purchased

some more than others.

I have had some nice larger toiletry items donated

like perfume and even a few purses.

Those lucky ladies will get a purse with goodies!

I am very lacking in the mens department.

We have a few toiletry items like nice colognes, etc.
but not much else.
Last year we gave new socks or gloves
playing cards,etc.
Anything we could think of for a young man or adult.
But even if all we get for them this year are the journals and some candy
that will still be good...

During Thanksgiving

instead of going out for the early Black Friday deals

my family worked on Christmas projects..

decorations, etc.

and I started working on the children's journals...

It was so relaxing and a lot of fun.

We listened to music, ate leftover dessert, laughed a lot!

I think we may have found a new tradition.

If you are interested in helping there is definitely still time!

I can use any help you can offer!

Especially with the Journals

that I wrote about

here

Thank You so much.

I will continue to keep you posted....

Happy Friday!



Help spread the wonder of Christmas ....