A spring vintage treasure!

Vera Neumann table cloth
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

I love vintage textiles! I go to many yard sales hoping to score table clothes, scarves, hankies, ect. I scored this beautiful Vera Neumann table cloth for $1! It is in perfect condition too! No stains, holes, or flaws like so many others. I don't think the person selling it realized it was a Vera. I love it and especially love to use it during the spring. So bright and fun! I have a close up pic of the Vera stamp on my flickr if you care to peek. I'm gearing up for yard sale season to start again and I can't wait!

Embroidery ideas!

So I love doing swaps and I love embroidery! I've decided there hasn't been a good embroidery swap for awhile or at least one I've been able to join so I'm going to organize a embroidered pillow case swap over on Craftster. I thought it would be fun to make and receive a nice set of pillow cases. They are always useful and so much fun! Sign ups start the 1st of April and I already have the info ready to go, can you tell I'm excited!? That will be 3 swaps for me while I'm working! I'm glad they all have long craft dates or I wouldn't be able to do it. I like to keep swapping through my busy time because it is such a stress reliever. I'm going to work on a poppet today for the IYP swap and I've joined the friends of Craftster raffle so I have to make a medium item to send out for that. I already have a ton of ideas. More mini art! Off to enjoy my 1 day off!

The little elephant

The little elephant
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

Here is another one of my pendents. Done on a 2x2 inch stretched canvas made by me. The backgroud is layered acrylic paint and the elephant is paper collage. I found a pic of an elephant like it on line, sketched out my own version, and then made each peice a different peice of paper. It was fun and very cute. I think I've almost posted all 10 of my pendents now!

Poppet in progress

Poppet in progress
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

I haven't had a chance to craft much with work and allergy problems, but I wanted to share my newest inspiration for popppet #23. I found the perfect fabric and yarn on a day trip with my friends! I already have a head and the other parts are ready to be sewn together. I also found inspiration pics for the clothing and such! I won't be sharing her here for a while since she is going away for a swap.

Inchie Display

Inchie Display
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

I was in the inchie swap over on Craftster to jump start my papercrafting adventure. After I received all 50 of my inchies I decided to display them in a floating frame. Aaron helped me figure out how to do it. I ended up buying 2 dollar store frames and using the glass from both and just 1 frame. I love how it turned out and am just waiting for my library room to get finished so I can hang it in there!

Make it spring!

Make it spring!
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

Another one of my pendents for the pendent swap over on Craftster. I thought since today is the first day of spring it would be a perfect time to share this one! Made of blanket stitched felt, wool, and a cute flower button. I tried so many different techniques to do these pendents and it was so much fun!

Happy Spring all!

Victorian Chunk

Victorian Chunk
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

Another pendent I made for the pendent swap! I call it Victorian chunk. I used a illustration found online hand tinted with water color pencils mounted in a button, some other random buttons, an old rhinestone earring, a small strand of pearls from vintage jewelry, and some vintage lace. I love how it turned out. So elegant yet funky! All my pendents are on the way to their new owners!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I'm fiercely proud of my Irish heritage and therefore St. Patrick's Day is a huge thing around here! Even the dog wears green! I just wanted to wish everyone a glorious Irish day and laughter and happiness all around! I have on plenty of green and now I have to go to work!

Knit me a sweater.

Knit me a sweater.
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

If I were a knitter I'd love this! Sadly I can only knit a tiny bit and really that gets me no where, but I love this pendent I made all the same! Made using real handspun yarn that I got in a swap and bamboo knitting needles I made. It's so fun and I can't wait for it's intended owner to get it!

Poison

Poison
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

Yet another mini canvas. only 2 inches high and a little over an inch wide. I used a fun patina medium to get the green for the background. It looks cooler each time I look at it! I aged the skull and bones in coffee added them and some black super fine glitter! The glitter didn't photo well, but trust me it sparkles! I added the lace ruffle to give it a bit of a victorian/steampunk look. I love it! I'll be sad to see it go!

Cupcake, you're sweet!

Cupcake
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

Another bit of mini art. This time the canvas is smaller yet! Only about an 1 1/4 square. I used ribbon to finish the edges and a scrap of fabric for the back. The cupcake is all my design. I just started painting and that is what happened! Her frosting has pink gel glitter on it, but it didn't show in the photo.
In other news; I have 3 days off! Wooo hoooo! Today I'm leaving to go to the nearest craft store and a quilt show with some friends! I'm super happy! I need this trip! I already have a list of things I need to get! Back tomorrow with exciting details of my adventure!

Sacred Heart

Sacred Heart
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

Yet another mini canvas stretched by me. 2x2 inches with a mixed media collage on it. I used everything, but the kitchen sink on this! Acrylic paint, stamp pads, glitter pens, water color pencils, wax, and collage elements! It was a lot of fun! I hope the receiver likes it! I just wanted to show that the mini canvases are also suitable for my own art and not just reproductions of famous paintings! I have several more of these to create and hope to do so on Saturday!

Picasso's "the dream"

Picasso's "the dream"
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

Another piece of mini art. On a 2x2 inch stretched canvas. I reproduced this famous painting in hopes that the person receiving it would love it! Painted in acrylics with a clear sealer to prevent scratching, as these pieces are meant to be worn as necklace pendents! I left the edges of this one bare to show the staples and make it look more like an actual piece of art. I finished off the back with another scrap of canvas to cover the wood. I'm having so much fun making these miniature works of art!

Luck O' The Irish!

Irish Swap Goodies
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

Yesterday my day was brightened by receiving a package in the mail from Woodland_Faerie over on Craftster! We were partner in the Irish swap! She sent me a wonderful package that has me wishing for spring and all this snow to go away! You can see the beautiful art she painted for me. The hearth goddess! I love it! The wall hanging with the tree and trinity knot! Gorgeous applique. The large thing laying underneath everything is the best gathering apron ever! I will get to wear it when I go out to the yard to harvest herbs and pick flowers and such. If you want to see what it looks like on visit my flickr! Thanks a ton Erin! A wonderful swap!

Just a little art.

Starry Night
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

I just had to share this now! I can't say what it is made for or who it is going to go to in a swap, but I just HAD to share. I'm so in love! It is a small part of Starry Night by Van Gogh. The canvas is a 2x2 inch piece I stretched myself. I couldn't get a frame that small so it is a solid block of plywood. Very light. I finished off the edges with some ribbon and the back with a square of fabric. I'm off to make more! After the Hubby cuts me some more blocks! More pics on flickr and a great one for scale!

My first go at Celtic Quilting

irish package 006
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

My Aunt made Aaron and I a wonderful Celtic wedding quilt when we got married. I always envied that technique and wanted to learn it. She gave me the book on how to do it! I decided the best practice would be a wall hanging and I was in the Irish swap so how perfect is that!
This knot is called the wheel around the sun. It is 21 inches square with hanging rings on the back. Sorry this pic makes it look so wrinkled! I had to pull it out of the box I had it rolled up in for sending to get some pictures! Once it is ironed it looks a lot nicer!
It was so much fun I bought fabric to make myself a table runner to match my kitchen colors!

Lucky the Leprechaun

Lucky the Leprechaun
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

I just had to share him! I sent him away to his new home for the Irish swap. I know I'll be making more as my cousin has already ordered one, only with freckles! He's made from the itty bitty oddity pattern by the wonderful Odd Dotty the Doll maker! See her blog to the right. I've made a bunch of the little oddities and love the pattern for it's ease and versitility! So a big Thanks to Dotty!

Picture Tagged!

So I was picture tagged! I had to go to my 6th folder and blog about my 6th picture! It just so happened it was this! Merlin sitting in his window with the red Valentine's lights on. I was just messing around with the camera trying out some new settings. This doesn't happen to be a great pic, but 6th folder, 6th picture! He looks kind of creepy with the red glow! I'll be tagging 6 others!

Mushroom of my dreams!

mushroom
Originally uploaded by AlwaysInspired

So every year when I start working I like to take a little money from my first paycheck of the year and buy myself something totally special just for me. Last year I saw these giant mushrooms in a store down town, but by the time I got there they were all sold out! So this year I went in right away and ordered 1 just for me! I picked it up today! I'm in love! It will be going out in the yard, once we can see the yard again after all the snow is gone! For now it will sit in the living room and remind me that spring is coming soon! If you want to see a pic for scale check out the flickr account.

Pendent Crazy!

So working full time puts a cramp in my crafting and swapping fun, but I still manage to find a few swaps to do! I like to choose easy ones that I can work on in the mornings before work and on weekends. I can't stop swapping totally! I did that during the holidays and man it was depressing! Anyways, I've joined a pendent swap over on Craftster. I have to make 10 pendents and I'll get 10 in return! How fun! I've decided to stalk each person and make them something fit to their tastes. I have a ton of ideas and different styles I'm going with! I don't think I'll post any here until they are received for fear of my partners seeing them. I may post a trial run at one tomorrow, we'll see how it goes.