Jeanette Janson-Mixed Media Artist

Christmas decorating

Have you noticed how some people will let weeks or even months go by without posting anything on their blogs?  I've always been perplexed about this....especially by the ones that are charging advertisers for a little button in the sidebar. 

 Well, I'm a little more understanding now.  What happens is...the longer you go without posting, the harder it is to go back to it.  So much happens during the time in between that it becomes this monumental task to figure out what to write about; how to possibly fit it all in.  

Honestly though, I haven't been lazy or neglectful of my blog.  This is my story in a nutshell...I decorated the house for Christmas, pre-baked for Thanksgiving, got a little sick, had company here, got really sick after they left and spent the next 5 days in bed.  I'm better now, so I'll share a few pictures of my decorating before I came down with the flu.   

 I made a wreath out of old sheet music a few weeks ago and wanted to carry that theme to my tree.  I folded and stapled a bunch of sheets to make a cone shape...fast and easy.

I made a bunch of them and filled in all the empty spaces in my tree.

I decided I wanted to go all neutral cream colors this year, so I dug out a fabric ball to string around like garland.  Then I went through every ornament I owned and set aside all the colored ones to use somewhere else.

I got an old vintage frame and my hymnal wreath to hang on the sheers on each side of the tree.

I even wrapped some garland and lights around the baby buggy.  
Inside is a pair of victorian boots and black ice skates.

My vintage Santa collection ended up in the den this year.  They're cute all grouped together.  I love collecting these year round at yard sales and flea markets.  Some of them have strange-sort of creepy faces.

I filled up a black birdcage with my colored Christmas balls.

It's different and looks festive with the lights around it.

I still have some decorating that I want to do, but I think I have the bulk of it over with, for that I am grateful.

Hope you all have a great week!

 

Christmas Bulb Ornaments

I was at an estate sale this past summer and spotted a box of Christmas ornaments.  You can never tell what might be in a box like this, so I bid on it and won.  I made my way through a bunch of cheap newer ornaments and found a bag full of vintage bulbs on the bottom of the box.  I thought, these are cool, I could do something with them when it gets closer to Christmas. 

I knew I could embellish them, but how to hang them was the big question.  After experimenting a little, I held them with a clamp and used my drill press to put a hole through the metal part.  Ta-da!  Now I can put a wire or chain through them for hanging.

I think they would also look cute worn as a pendant.  I've seen the smaller ones similar to these worn as earrings, but these are too big for that.

I think they are really different and if you love that vintage look, this may be just the thing for you!  They are available here.

Have a good weekend!

Do you dare?

If someone wanted to look in your frig at this very moment, would you let them?  Don't throw anything out, don't make any excuses.  It's almost like opening up your soul and showing it to the world.  Well, the reason I ask is because I found this site the other day and I think it's fun to look through....kind of like bad reality tv.  It's called fridgewatcher.com. 

OK, I'm up for the challenge.  I promise you no rearranging or organizing was done before taking these pictures.

You probably think we are total alcoholics, but we really don't drink that much.  The blue bottle of wine is in there because we had company the other night and I was too embarrassed to offer them box wine...but then no one ended up drinking it.  The Seagrams wine cooler is gross in my opinion, (too sweet and artificial tasting) but my hubby likes to drink it if we get in the hot tub.  That box of wine will last us forever.

The salad crisper is always in here because we eat a lot of salads.  I buy the lactose free milk because most other milk tastes sour to me and I end up dumping it out right after I buy it. 

I always have yogurt in the fridge...the only flavor I eat is vanilla....my hubby eats those other flavors you see.  Sour cream is left over from our dinner party (steak and baked potatoes) and the crisper is usually filled with fresh veggies.

I hate all this stuff that accumulates in the door.  Sauces, salad dressings, condiments...but I think I do use most of what's here. 

That leftover grilled chicken will be put on a sandwich tomorrow, but I think I'll be making a trip to the grocery store.  I can just imagine what this refrigerator is going to look like a week from now with Thanksgiving right around the corner!

 

House wrapup

Well, it's been about a week now since we got my mom moved in next door.  She's been working so hard to get everything unpacked, it looks like she's already been there for a month.  We are breathing a huge sigh of relief and can't really believe that we are done with the renovation.  I look back on this video and I am astounded at the condition of the place when we got it.  We really had no idea of all the hurdles that were ahead of us.

  

But that was then and this is now...and it was so worth all the hard work.

She has the eating area off the kitchen fixed up so cute now.

Hard to believe it's the same place.

I love how she displayed her sweetgrass baskets above the canopy.

Little Peppy made the move with her and is all settled into her new home.  She loves spying on all the neighborhood kitties from the garden windows.

Thanksgiving dinner...here I come.  Yay!  I won't have to do all the cooking anymore!

I love how her southwestern style blends with the wall colors and the hardwoods.

Thank you for sharing this journey with me over the past 6 months.  There have been days when I felt like pulling my hair out, but somehow I made it through and feel a huge sense of accomplishment with the way it all turned out.  Many times, your words of encouragement helped me make it through the day~

 

A few weeks ago, when I was in Georgia, I picked up some fun new items to decorate the house with.  I was taking pictures of things to list online today, so I snapped some photos of a few favorite new pieces to share with you.

I really love this shelf with the yellow chipped paint.  I wish it hung, but it's a corner shelf of sorts, so I have it sitting on a table in my studio.

I bought this lampshade with nothing much left of it but the wire.  I ended up turning it upside down and setting a bowl of fruit in the center.  That works!

This crown isn't old, but I thought it was cool anyway.  It's a little big for this doll, but I think it makes her look very regal. 

I love, love, love this doll.  She has an antique porcelain head and a mohair body.  I spotted it in the Earth Angels tent the first day I was there and went back to get it the next day.  She was a splurge for me, but I am so glad that I got it...she's just precious.

Globes are really the thing lately, have you noticed?  I like this one because of the colors...and it goes perfectly next to my robots.  Every time I look at it now, I think about how I lugged it around and finally broke down and made the trek out to the car to drop if off.

I finally have some new items listed at Vintage Supply Co.  We've been working hard for the past week getting my mom moved into her new place and there hasn't been time up until now to do much else.  She is getting settled though, and things are returning to normal here.  I'm going to get some pictures to post soon.  For those of you that don't know, we have been renovating her place for the past 6 months and are breathing a huge sigh of relief that it is done.  It is so satisfying to see it being transformed into a home.

You all take care~

 

Hymnal Sheet Wreath Part 2

Ok, I finally got all of my flowers made, wasn't so bad after I got a rhythm going.  Now I need a base for the wreath.  I want something flat, sturdy and lightweight.  After digging through stuff I had around here, I found this plastic pan. 

 I think I used it to put a plant in at one time. 

I cut the edges off and had a nice flat surface.

I cut out the center, now I have the wreath shape.

I don't want the ugly black plastic to show, so I start covering the surface with hymnal sheets.  It's fast and easy with the glue gun. 

All done, now I can start positioning flowers on it.

I'm going to start with my largest ones, putting an odd number of them on.

Then I filled in with the smaller ones and hung the wreath from some pretty silk and velvet ribbon.

I've got the perfect place for this; right above a dried flower arrangement in my living room.

I could even put a big red bow on it at Christmas time!