Cottage Dreamer

Pink Saturday – Signs of Spring

Sandra — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 06:10:14 +0000

A huge Thank You to Bev at How Sweet The Sound for hosting our weekly celebration of all things Pink. Make sure to check out all of the other sites she has listed.

Today I have one Home Good find, another angel from QVC, and an intruder who just would not take no and had to be included in my Pink Saturday posting.

First is an adorable bunny teapot. It matches the larger pitcher that I got last year at Home Goods. My guess is the teapot has been sitting in a wharehouse since last year just waiting for me. I’m thinking that the small cookie jar that’s the size of the teapot really needs me to go back today and get it – before it goes home with someone else. lol Any excuse for a trip to Home Goods.

Next is a Jim Shore Easter Angel called “He Is Risen” that I purchased from QVC. I have one like this that’s for Christmas as well. The angel has an rotating diorama in her skirt. It’s also a music box and plays “How Great Thou Art.” There is a very small seed light bulb that shines on the diorama. The three images in the diorama portray Christ praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Crucifixion, and then Mary witnessing the risen Christ.

And lastly, I couldn’t resist him when I saw him on QVC the other day during one of their garden shows. It’s the Travelocity Gnome! He’s designed to be used indoors or outdoors but I won’t be using him on the patio or small terrace outside my condo. It would be one thing if I had a yard, but the area is wide open and I’m concerned that someone might “help him walk away” so to speak. I think he’ll look just adorable in front of the fireplace.

He’s not as big as the one that you see on The Amazing Race (one of my favorite tv shows) but he’s big enough and cute enough to make up for that.

He told me that he just had to appear in my Pink Saturday post. He did point out that he has a rosy pink color to his cheeks and nose. lol

Have a wonderful Pink Saturday!

Sandra

Romantic Country Magazine just got here

Sandra — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 22:54:02 +0000

I finally got tired of running all over town to find copies of Romantic Home so I decided to finally get a subscription. When I went to sign up there was a “deal” to also get four copies of Romantic Country – so I figured I can’t have too many Romantic magazines, so why not?

As I was going through the Summer 2010 issue I turned a page and stopped in awe. It was over a article called The Poetic Potter – Lark Roderigues. It includes photos of her pottery which is just spectacular. Below is a photo of some of her vases that I found online:

They are absolutely gorgeous and I suddenly thought about what I could get rid of so I could afford a couple pieces. I also regretted getting rid of my kiln from my dollmaking days because I would so like to try to make something like it. But, alas the kiln is long gone.

The article mentions her website, which is www.larkpottery.com and has lots more examples of this beautiful handmade pottery. I then googled her name and found a piece of her work on eBay, though it had been sold. And lastly I found her Etsy shop with a few of her items.

There are so many wonderful things in Romantic Country that it’s going to take me some time to get through all of it. But I as soon as I saw Lark’s work I knew I had to blog about it.

Sandra

Pink Saturday – Pretty Pink Roses

Sandra — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 10:05:53 +0000

A huge Thank You to Bev at How Sweet The Sound for hosting our weekly celebration of all things Pink.

This week I’d like to share a page of Pink Roses I put together from vintage images. You can print them out and use them in all sorts of Spring crafts. Hope you enjoy them – and hope that Spring gets here soon!

Just click on the image below and you’ll be taken to a PDF that you can save to your Hard Drive.

I just can’t wait for Spring. This seems like a way too long Winter and I’m ready for flowers, sunshine, and no more snow on the ground. This is the first year in a long time that I can remember the ground being covered with snow almost all Winter long. I want to open the windows and hear the birds singing. I want to sit out on my patio and watch the trees come into bloom. I’m going to really appreciate this Spring!

Sandra

PS After I got this post done I realized I had posted these roses before many months ago. I hope some of you may not have seen them before – or maybe there are others like me who save things and then forget where the heck I put them on my HD.

Pink Saturday – Happy Valentine’s Day

Sandra — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 09:42:42 +0000

Happy Valentine’s Day – with a touch of pink to it of course.

A huge Thank You to Bev at How Sweet The Sound for hosting our weekly celebration of all things Pink.

To celebrate St. Valentine’s Day I’ve gone through some of the images I’ve got and found a few that fit in with our pink theme. Enjoy!

Hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s Day with someone you love. I’ll be spending the day with my son, Dave, and the “greand puppy” Bootsy watching the Nascar race at Daytona, the premiere of The Amazing Race, and of course the Olympics.

Sandra

Pink Saturday – Heavenly Reflections

Sandra — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 08:17:05 +0000

It’s Pink Saturday again! And as always our Hostess Bev has collected a list of great blogs that want to participate in the celebration of all things Pink. You can find more blogs listed at How Sweet The Sound.

One of my favorite things to collect is Roman’s Seraphim Angels. I was very fortunate to be able to get this collection of angels called Heavenly Reflections. It features five angels surrounding a pool. It sits on a small oval table in my living room.

CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE

This week I thought I would feature a site that I think a lot of people would like. It’s called Tip Nut and have some great ideas – everything from links to recipes, embroidery designs, household tips, and more. I get their daily newsletter and look forward to seeing what links will be included. There’s more than just the links in the newsletter. As an example, a current Featured article on the front page is something I’ve been doing for awhile and it really has helped me out. It’s about Household Inbox System. A system like this has saved me hours of hunting through my condo for places I’ve put stacks of mail thinking – I’ll get to it later. Well, now I have my “in box” in one place (the office) and Friday is my day to deal with whatever is in the bos – and then get it filed away.

Have a wonderful Pink Saturday!

Sandra

Pink Saturday – HomeGoods Goodies

Sandra — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 09:01:56 +0000

Friday night I decided I’d had enough of being cooped up in my home and needed to get out – even if it was in the single digits – I needed a shopping fix. lol So, I headed over to HomeGoods. It was so nice walking in and seeing what I hope is just the beginning of the Easter and Spring items they will have.

Here’s my “goodies” that I purchased tonight.

I couldn’t resist this adorable pink bunny with a wreath of flowers around its neck. It goes perfectly with the other bunnies (Fitz and Floyd) that I’ve got in the hutch in my kitchen. I purchased one other bunny from HG last year and guess I’ve started a tradition.

Here’s a close up of my new bunny. Such and adorable expression!

At first I wasn’t sure what these were. I thought they might be candleholders, but they are a bit too big. I think they are egg holders. Will have to see if I can find wooden or paper mache eggs to go in them – or make some out of polymer clay.

Here’s the four egg cups out of the package. A pretty blue, yellow, light pink, and a little bit darker pink.

I also picked up a set of towels to hang on the over door. I’m going to try to keep my son from messing them up when he decides to do the cooking.

So, even though it’s cold as can be outside, by putting out some pink and other pastel items I can at least feel that Spring is on its way.

For this week’s Featured Blog here’s a link to Sweet Finds by Joanna. It’s her post from last week featuring something I think looks fantastic – pretty pink dishes combined with things like vintage silver jewelry, buttons, or other decorative items. Lots of other neat things to explore on her blog.

Have a wonderful Pink Saturday and a great week!

Sandra

Pink Saturday – New Collectable and Giveaway Winner

Sandra — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 14:10:52 +0000

The winner of my giveaway from a few weeks ago is Tina from Beansie Babbles! Congratulations. The package will be in the mail to you soon.

This week I received the Spring part of a collection from Jim Shore that I got from one of his appearances on QVC. I love his work and the way he incorporates quilt patterns into his sculptures. I think that this egg is just adorable. There are two very tiny bulbs in the diorama section – that don’t show up in the photos – that illuminates it. The bunnies are so cute and so is the quilt pattern on the back of the diorama. The other two in the collection that I’ve received are a pumpkin with pilgrims in it and a star with a nativity scene in it. I’ve forgotten what the Summer selection is so in a couple of months when I receive the next installment it will be a surprise.

Bev has asked us to feature another Pink Saturday blog each week. This week I’ve selected a blog that is filled with some fantastic crafts. The blog is Glitter and Roses by Ginger – and she’s even having a giveaway this week. Make sure to check out her blog.

Lastly, thank you for the many kind wishes for my son. He’s now back to work and is doing very well. He even went on a job interview yesterday. The contract with the current company is over and now he’s looking for something permanent. My hope is that he gets the job that’s right for him. Fortunately, he’s in IT and has a lot of great experience so he should be able to find something good soon.

Have a wonderful Pink Saturday and thank you so much for all the great comments – they mean a lot.

Sandra

Pink Saturday – Pink Pincushion

Sandra — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 07:37:09 +0000

This week I’m featuring a very pretty pink pincushion that I found on eBay through a site that had been listed for Pink Saturday about a month ago. The blog is Cinnamon Stitch and there is an eBay Listing page. I am looking forward to seeing new items from Cinnamon Stitch.

Update on Giveaway: There’s been a slight delay on the Giveaway I posted about two weeks ago. I’ve been tending to a very sick kid this week. Granted, he’s in his thirties, but no matter what – they are still our babies. He came down with a very, very bug – not the flu. He ended up calling the ambulance when he got sick at work and has been camped out on my sofa for the week. He saw our doc today who said he had been very sick after he looked over the tests that the ER had done. Anyway, to be honest, I didn’t think of much but making sure he was ok. He’s now back at his own condo – tired of my couch. lol He will stopping by tomorrow or Sunday and I will get him to do the drawing of the winning name at that time – and then will post it on Sunday. I’m sorry for the delay.

Lastly, one of the things that Bev has asked us to do is feature another blog we’ve visited through Pink Saturday. Last week I found the Bunny Cottage and fell in love with all of Vicki’s beautiful items. I love hand-painted china and beautiful textiles. She has a very lovely blog. Also, this week she asked us to remember the people in Haiti. If you are looking for a place to make a donation, I created a post a few days ago that you might want to check out.

Have a very beautiful Pink Saturday!

Sandra

Please Help Haiti

Sandra — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 12:43:37 +0000

Haiti is in desperate need of help after the massive earthquake that hit the island. Prayers and contributions are needed. My charity of choice is World Vision. By giving directly to a charity such as World Vision I know that the money will get directly to those who need it most.

Two Great Charity Projects

Sandra — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 20:09:23 +0000

Recently on Sewing With Nancy she featured two very worthwhile charities that provide needed items for two worthwhile purposes.

The first is Little Dresses for Africa which is a group that create dresses from pillowcases and then distribute them orphanages in Central Africa. They are a Christian-based, non-profit group that was started by a small group of women who had gone on a short-term mission trip. After returning home they looked for a way to help those in need. One of their group came up with a simple sewing design she had found on the net. Now with over 30,000 dresses made and delivered they are planting seeds of hope.

I plan to start shopping this month’s linen sales to gather together a dozen or so pillowcases, along with ribbon and trim. I’ll post pictures of the finished dresses before I send them off to the group. Then I’ll go out and shop for some more pillowcases.

The other group that has been featured on Sewing with Nancy was the Project Linus another non-profit group. They have many chapters across the country and provide blankets to various organizations. There are nearly 380 chapters and they have provided over 3,000,000 blankets! Each chapter knows what is needed in their area and makes sure the blankets go to the correct place. They make their way to sick children, those that have been traumitized, etc. The best thing is to go the site, find a chapter close to you, and see what their needs are.

Along with pillowcases I’ll be looking for fleece to embroider – a great project for my embroidery machine and lots of the “cute” designs I have.

With the New Year just beginning it’s a good time to start on projects. Will post updates on how I’m doing with the dresses and blankets.