Holiday decor

here's a really easy project that was fun and inexpensive to do:

supplies needed:

paper mache star wands - i found mine at JoAnne's ($1 each)
vintage text pages
glitter
white paint
modge podge glue
small glass Christmas balls - mine are vintage, but use what you have
glass container- mine is actually plastic from the $1 store, it's shaped like a Sundae glass
ribbon
paintbrush
water cup

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*first i collaged the front of the stars with text, let dry.
*next i painted the back of the stars and wand white.
*on the front sides of the stars, also line in white.
*then i hit the front of the stars with more modge podge (slightly watered down) and glittered.
*stick wands in the glass. i cut a couple of them to vary the height.
*add colorful glass balls
*tie ribbon around base
Viola! you are done and you now have a very pretty decoration!

come back tomorrow and i'll share another great tree decorating tip!

Happy Easter and Saint Francis, Lemoncholy Style

i couldn't decide between my Easter vignette photo or my blooming Magnolia bud, so you are getting them both!
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what do you get when you combine a cute but creepy doll head, a paper mache birdie and a crown?

why you get Saint Francis of course!



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i love to do assemblages and wanted to do something fun and interesting with this bird cage - so this is what i came up with!

Saint Francis of Assisi was the founder of the Franciscan order, but to most people he is best known as the Patron Saint of wild birds and animals as well as ecology. He is appealed to for the good health, well-being, and protection of all animals, and for facilitating dream contact between beloved deceased animals and their grieving owners.

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here is my Saint Francis wearing a cape, which sort of gives him an "infant of Prague" look. i have a collection of these, so i got some inspiration from them. go here to see my collection.

Mother Machree

Well, i have finished my manikin. Her name is Mother Machree (from the piece of sheet music i added to the front of her). so the first picture (below) shows how she started. i'm going to tell you how i did it, in case you want to make your own.

she was a wire form manikin that i found at Home Goods. her arms are something i got at a flea market. it is one piece and looks like it might be a part/piece of some sort of tool. my husband drilled a hole in the center of the wood piece/arms for the rolling pin to sit in. i collaged the rolling pin (her head) and then glued it into the middle of the wood piece. there was an opening on each through the arm arm area and i just slid the piece through. then i wired the rolling pin from the back and under each arm to make sure the pin didn't roll forwarded.

for the body, i tore up strips of newspaper and dipped them in wallpaper paste and the secured all around the form. even though i was going to paper mache her, i did this because there were big gaps in the body where the wire was. this would help give the paper mache more to grab onto. i let that dry and then proceeded to paper mache it. i use the paper mache strips that you cut and dip in water. then i let that dry overnight.

So then last night, i collaged her body with vintage sheet music. after that was completely dry, i started accessorizing. i had the vintage slip/crinoline in my stash of stuff and put it on the body. then i glued crocheted flowers that i harvested off a doily. i wrapped the rolling pin with some tulle and added a little screw at the top to hold her hat.

So she is a multi talented gal. she can hold a hat, wear necklaces around her neck and hang jewelry off her arms.

paper mache bird in cage

i found this birdcage at Michael's and decided it needed a little birdie to live inside of it. the bird is paper mache and she is sitting on a wire nest i wove. the nest is sitting on a kid's wooden block, "B" for bird! her feathers are real feathers found in my very own back yard. i learned how to make the bird while in Hampton, from Jan Harris. my goal is to make them smaller and smaller and eventually have some little ones to use in jewelry.

Day #11, last day, hippity hop swap

Boo hoo, this is the last thing i get to open! spoiled, aren't i? anyway, this precious little paper mache party chick was made by Vivian Neroni at http://vivs-whimsy.blogspot.com/. it's just darling! i keep thinking it is a scrumptious cupcake that needs my immediate attention. i just adore the frilly little green and white checked ribbon that he is wearing around his neck - great touch! the shredded white paper reminds me of coconut shavings. it's just too sweet. thanks, Vivian! and thanks to everyone who participated. it sure was alot of fun! and many thanks to Heather for organizing the whole thing! i think sometime this summer i will be hosting a swap, but need sometime to think about what it will be!

i picked up this adorable paper mache decoration today. it is so cool. i wish i could say that i made it. but it does look like something my buddy, Vivian Neroni, would make! see some of her goodies on her blog, http://vivs-whimsy.blogspot.com/.I love her banner that says "Queen" and the fact that she is holding a little baby. the picture on the bottom is something i received today from another bud, Maija in Phoenix, http://www.maigirlz.typepad.com/. I had admire this little nest on her blog and next thing i knew, we were swapping! i'm sending her goodie out tomorrow. My box from the Hippity Hoppity Easter Swap arrived, so i will start opening one gift a day for 11 days starting tomorrow and then blogging them.