Shed some light on a few things

Sometimes the sun shines in my windows and shows me something in my own home that I've never "seen" before. It whispers and then shouts (if I don't pay attention right away) and sheds light or in fact, essentially spotlights something, allowing me to really "see" it!

With the passage of time, some once very specific memories seem to get softer and lighter the further away they get. Passing one into the other mixing, mashing and mingling together into new ones. So when I am nudged and gently reminded of an

event or occasion I had nearly forgotten it makes me very happy. I created the tiara you see here for the book Crowns & Tiaras by Kerri Judd & Danyel Montecinos Sterling/Lark. The dainty faceted garnets were a gift from my beautiful

Aunt Carmen several years ago. She is a huge rock hound and attends the Tucson Rock and Gem show every year. She sent me a parcel with a whole bunch of loose stones, I was thrilled! I used them to make the six stand bracelet and used the left

overs on the tiara and pearl bracelet. The petite pearls belonged to my grandmother, they were her "everyday" pearls, she left them to me and I re-worked them into the bracelet above.

And so on we go to a kitten update... ah, Alexandria, she has the cutest little toes,

and belly,

and nose!

Every part of her is precious and we all just adore her around here! She is a little sprite, our Tasmanian angel! She's a brute and a lover too, sweet as pie one moment and then on a rampage pulling one of my husbands giant sneakers around by the shoe string the next!

She has a tall cat tree with a cubby hole on one of the levels, so far I have found all kinds of things that she has dragged up there,

besides all of her toys, kitchen towels, a few 'gone missing' socks and unmentionables, one of Julliettes sweaters and my hair brush!

She is growing right before our very eyes!

And she doesn't miss a thing, from the smallest speck on the wall to just exactly how you have to turn the knob to get the pantry door open.

She doesn't like to be left alone in a room and spends a lot of time getting to know her big sister, Julliette.

They are quite the pair, but when Julliette has tired of Alexandria's nonsense she doesn't hesitate to tell her to cool her jets!

It's actually very cute because right after a tiff they will lay down together for a snooze!

Moving right along... I will be adding some new dry goods to my Etsy shop,

some tall Fancy Stovepipe paper hats,

made out of card stock and copies of antique sheet music and fashion plates.

They are embellished with French ribbons and vintage millinery flowers.

And these pieces will fit your porcelain doll busts as well, I have only made a dozen but hope to make some more next month so keep an eye out.

Another new item I will be introducing are my Miniature Parian Milliner's Models!

I also only have a few of these, they are bisque porcelain antique replica doll heads on wooden stands and are dressed in antique lace and linen. Some of them have pierced ears so you can put different earrings on them.

They will arrive to you stuffed with excelsior

and have pretty paper portrait medallions on the bottoms.

The smaller ones will fit right into the 18th Century paper masks too!

There are also a few more antique gems, like this petite frame I hand painted to resemble English Barbola,

and a Victorian cast metal trinket box with the most beautiful gray patina. Pop in and visit my shop when you have a moment!

Oh! I almost forgot.... we have a Winner! It is Bryanna Lenan of The Canary's Cupcake!
Thats all for now girls, see you again soon!

Powdered Wigs & a New Year Giveaway too!

I like to decorate my home with unusual items, things that might not generally be considered decorative. I figure I live here, I'll put up stuff that suits me, things that please my eye, after all I am the one looking at it right?

And while some things may look expensive, most are certainly not. There are a few treasured items I've inherited and everything thing else is made out of "illusions and imaginations". Things I have built and created myself out of beautiful old

bits, salvaged parts and odd pieces. Stuff I've collected over the years at junk shops, obscure thrifts and flea markets. Like this fancy linen milliner's head, it was torn when I discovered it down at the bottom of an old barrel. I purchased it for a song then

repaired the holes and mounted it onto what I can only assume was an old weathered lamp base, again a bargain at only two dollars! It turned out to be just perfect for displaying a stuffy old powered wig don't you think?

The extravagant looking black pearl necklace that adorns this piece was made from fairly inexpensive freshwater pearls instead of the enormously expensive, exotic South Sea pearls. I also used parts from an old 1950s tiered necklace I bought at a tag

sale for just one dollar. It took a few man hours but I sure had fun making it and I am really pleased with the overall look of my little mise-en-scene.

Moving right along to the giveaway I have been promising! I want to start the Creative New Year off with a Bang!

And what better way than to giveaway a beautiful young 18th century lady print?! I thought I would share with all of you just

what the image I began working with looks like, it is a very old engraving from a period fashion "magazine". It is one of my

absolute favorite images ever! She is just so sweet and coy and the dress is simply Wow, can you really imagine wearing that?!

The image I began with was black and white, very quiet.

But I like color so I wanted to make it a littler bit louder...

and add some more...

delicious frills,

decadent hot pink curls,

some bright red shoes, I mean every girl should own a pair of red shoes right, even little Dorothy knew that!

and just a few more romantic details like a yellow polka dotted dress! So there she is in all her loveliness, the print is titled "A Creative Woman" and is a 9" x 12" canvas ready for framing. Leave a comment for your chance to win her! I do have these prints for sale in my Etsy shop if you just can't wait till the contest is over which will be in 2 weeks (I'm working feverishly to meet some deadlines) so I'll announce the winner on Monday, February 1st.

Here are a few glimpses of some new items in my Esty shop...

some exotic paper masks, just perfect for antique dolls to wear or maybe playfully place one on a staunch marble bust to liven it up, or use them as a unique decoration, or even use them as a special "thank you" or "greeting card"!

These little paper masks were featured in a recent issue of

Where Women Create in my Studio Chic column.

They are oh so irreverent, shameless and saucy!

And here's another decorating idea, purchase one of my porcelain doll busts to create your own mise-en-scene, the masks fit them perfectly!

Pop into my Etsy shop...

to read all of the juicy details used to create them!

Last but not least, I will be offering a few precious antique items that I'm ready to part with so peek in if you like! See you in a few weeks and don't forget to leave a comment to win the "Creative Woman" print! Adieu!

Introducing Alexandria the mighty Bengal Cub!

We are in a brand spanking new year and isn't it just totally and completely exciting?!

Yes, new day, new week, new year, New Creative Possibilities await each of us!

Oh the inescapable, joy and romance of it all! But wait... Shhhh! I think there is a leopard on the loose!

This new year has brought with it an adorable new life into our home... and our little Julliette is S L O W L Y adjusting as you can plainly see.

I have spent the last few days chasing around a tiny 2 lb "toy" leopard named Alexandria and she is something else! Mostly the image above is what we have seen around here... just a spotted blurr!

She is having a wonderful time exploring her new jungle as I follow behind her saying "no, no, no Alex!"

It has been a very long time since we have had a kitten, I guess about 13 years or so. My darling love Romeo passed away several months ago and it has taken me quite some time to begin to recover. He had a very good life, he was feral when we found him. He was very much adored and loved and I will forever miss him.

But when one chapter ends a new one begins.

Alexandria is so delightful! Delicious! Delovely!

She has a very sweet disposition with a good bit of rowdy too and I am going to take a photo of her every single day for a year to document her growth and life with us her new adopted family!

I think even Julliette is beginning to come around!

Also, this image is my new "Follow Me" widget! Isn't it fun?! If you would like to add it to your blog, please feel free to do so! Just copy and paste the code you see under my profile photo above on my side bar. Oh, and one last thing, I am going to have a Giveaway to start the new year off with a bang so come back next week to see what it is and enter to win! Hmmm, I'm thinking something swooshy, a tad bit dramatic and wearing sexy red shoes! Come back to see what it will be!