RAIN AND WIDGETS-BADGES AND WHATEVER

I got up real early this morning (5am) and thought I would try some more to worry with the badge/ gadget/widget (what ever they are) problem. Yes if you think you detect a hint LOL of frustration you have only hit the tip of the iceburg. I spent the whole morning reading helps (if you can't ask the right question, you don't get the right answer). I was in tears and finally signed off the computer, fixed my self another cup of coffee and watched the rain.
While my husband (he just shakes his head and from a cautious distance) asks have you got them figured out and fixed yet?? I just growled. I should state at this point that I am a redhead, born and raised, and this problem is really getting me down. It just can't be that hard. Everyone has them on their blogs. What am I doing wrong????

On a brighter note, while Don was on the computer this morning, I cut lace to put in bundles and get ready to post on http://www.MarysFabricNStuff.etsy.com later today. I also have some beautiful fabrics for altered art, crazy quilting, mixed media and scrapbookking I will list later today. Be sure and check them out.

For now I guess I will say bye.
Mary

PROBLEMS, PROBLEMS

Today has been frustrating. I have joined a cottage group and would love to add a badge? to link to the group, but everything I try does not work. This has to be the only time I every really miss working in an office. I could always ask the IT folks how to do anything. Now I have no one to talk to. It can't be too hard since it seems everyone but me has them on their blogs. I tried the gadgets thing here and it kept saying there are errors. I will keep trying sooner or later something will work.

On a brighter note here are some more pretties I have made.

I made my own fringe on the strawberry purse. It is dangling strawberries that are beaded.

The nautical tote has beaded dangles with beads and real shells.

The turquoise ribbon rose brooch has 3 ribbon roses that I made, plus beaded dangles.

I really enjoy making ribbon flowers. It is better than taking a tranquillizer. It just calms my soul to sit with a needle and thread and a piece of ribbon and create something pretty.

Be sure and check out a really cool cottage chic place at http://www.etsycottagestyle.ning.com

Lots of talented ladies showcasing lots and lots of beautiful things.

Peace to all of you. Mary

MARY'S RETURN

It has been almost a year since my last post. Life has been a roller coaster. Financial insecurities have abounded. We have had them and our friends have had them. All I think to do is PRAY AND PRAY HARD. I have a loving husband and we stand together to face everything. This is the first time to have the loving husband and he is truely a blessing. To know that someone is covering your back no matter what happens.

I have joined some groups online. The first is ETSY COTTAGE STYLE. I have never been a part of a group of artists before. This something totally new for me. I have three shops on ETSY and to be honest none have done well. It is totally my fault. I have not given them the time and effort they deserved and hopefully that will change. So much has gone on at home with my adjusting to married life and trying to find a balance there plus having to learn to keep house (a nightmare for me), I have just ignored my crafting life. I don't even keep my sewing machine plugged in all the time. Once upon a time I could truthfully say I never went a DAY without sewing something. That is going to change. I have started going thru my stash (a couple of mountains) of fabric and have been selling and giving away tons of fabric. Anyone involved with making service quilts and such for charities like children's hospitals and for our service men and women, just contact me. I have lots and lots more to go thru and I am willing to contribute good first quality cottons to such groups. Email me at marysrosecottage@yahoo.com and we will talk.

I have a new computer and am still learning how to navigate thru Windows 7. That has been an adventure. I am not a computer nerdette and will never be one except in my dreams. With me it is hit, miss, and PRAY. The more I learn the better I like Windows 7.

Back to the group. Back when Mother and I were doing shows, we had each other and we talked to other crafters at shows and that was fine. Now that she is gone and I have been alone and not doing shows I have felt very isolated from the crafting and fiber artists. I read on line a lot of blogs and comments but have never felt that comfortable joining in.

I am going to give it a try. At my age the is no longer "later" to do things. It is now or never. I have tons of designs in my head and on paper. I am going to try to create all of them. I love the challenge of solving problems, creating fancy from the bare bones. Recently I created a sleeveless "tuxedo jacket" in gold lame fabric for a really large man using a vest pattern. It had tails and everything. I did it in one day. All I had was his measurements. I wish I had a picture of that, but the batteries were dead in my camera and I didn't have time to get any extras. This past February a lady called right out of the blue and asked if I could make a handbag with cats and teal colors in it. I had the perfect fabric, but the cat fabric had denim blue accents instead of teal. So I took teal and gray embroidery floss and mixed them and over stitched the blue parts of a tapestry weave fabric. I do have pics of that. The one of the fabric shows the different blue colors. The lady was happy and that is really all that counts. I think I have rambled on enough for one day . Have blessed day and remember "PRAYER REALLY WORKS!!"

RAIN, RAIN

Wow, has it ever rained so much. Not around here in a long time. Some places close to us (within 20 miles) were getting as much as 4 INCHES AN HOUR. That is coming down HARD. Right this second the sun is shining. Two years ago we were in a severe drought . Like my father used to say: "if you don't like the weather here wait 15 minutes and it will change."

I've been working on some new items for my NEW ETSY SHOP. http://www.southerngothicwhimsy.etsy.com/ , the items there will be a little different from my shabby chic cottage chic shop: http://www.marysrosecottage.etsy.com/ .

I have discovered a style that is a little goth, a little steampunk, a little grunge maybe? It is called ' Southern Gothic'. If you google the term you come up with Faulkner's novels, and traditional gothic (castles, damsels in distress, flowing clothing, capes with hoods, long flowing sleeves, collages of jewelry, mixed and mis matched, all with a southern locale and more than a little bit of 'trailer trash'.

If you check out the sites that sell 'southern gothic' clothing you will find lots of dark colors, mixed with jewel tones of red, burgundy, teal, deep greens, lots of faux jewelry, very gaudy, very burlesque, almost a fantasy gyspy look. I love it. Now at the ripe old age of 61 I can embrace it and have a ball with it. Think Madi Gras on steriods and bride of Frankenstein, then you will have an idea.

Right now I am making wristlets or cuffs, and putting ribbon roses, tattered lace, odd pieces of jewelry. I have a cape pattern and I have a short cape my mother made and I am going to decorate it with ribbons, and lace and see what happens. I think what I like the best is no rules, let your imagination run wild. And above all have fun. Here are three wristlet/cuffs that I am listing on etsy later tonite. I haven't embraced the wildest side of this style, but who knows.

Hi! Long time with nothing from me. Don't know why I stay so tired. LOL I never get to slow down anymore. Been married now for 3 whole months. It is like I am living another life now. Have to share OUR computer. His time and Her time. I promised some wedding pictures and here they are. This one is me going down the aisle. It was just a small country church wedding with friends and family. For me it was the perfect wedding. The other picture is Don (my new and ONLY husband) (Don is in the gray suit) and his best man Skip Hall.

Today is, also the Day to start voting at the blog challenge for September at Mind Wide Open. I entered a cloth covered journal using Gail's image. The web address is http://www.mind-wideopen.blogspot.com/

All of the entries are beautiful, so take your pick and be sure to vote. Here is pic of my entry.

Hope everyone has agreat day. Got to go, and finish supper.

Love Mary

Wow!! has life been exciting lately. Four weeks ago I got married. For the first time. At age 61!! Talk about the "period of adjustment" ! Don has really been patient with me. I have been running around in circles, trying to do "everything". Not only am I now a 'married lady', I have also been trying to get both my website http://www.rosecottagetreasures.com/ and my Etsy shop http://www.marysrosecottage.etsy.com/ updated and new items listed. We also have a garden that is growing like everything. And then try getting your name changed on everything !! It is a nightmare. I can understand the bank and places like that having a lot of hoops to jump thru, but just little things like emails and what I call inconsequential things. But life goes on.



I am going to post some wedding pics real soon. Be sure and check out my entry on the Mind Wide Open blog http://www.mind-wideopen.blogspot.com/ this month. She gave a really pretty pic to work with. Hope you like my contribution to the challenge.



I guess this all for now. Will try to post wedding pics later today.

Mary

APRIL IS JUST ABOUT OVER, THANK GOODNESS

Over all, I don't think I will be sad to see April go this year. We had tornadoes touch down within 10 miles of the house Sunday April 19. Thank goodness no one was seriously injured but lots of scattered damage.
We have finally gotten plants in the ground in our garden last week. So far so good. They are still alive. We plant a few more it seems every day or two. Don is in heaven with his garden. It has been so long since I helped plant one. Like my sister-in-law Mary E. in Alaska always says "If you don't use it , you loose it!!" and she is right. I have forgotten so much of the small details of how my parents planted a garden. I remember scattered details but not the whole sequence.
Don has always wanted a garden but has never been able to have one. He is really 'gung ho' to have one, no matter what. It was hard to keep him out of the plot after all of the rain a week ago. We had just got the new tiller and he wanted to plow up everything. I kept trying to tell him he would do more damage than help if he got in it while it was too wet. He finally saw the muddy clots and understood. I keep telling him that gardening demands a lot of PATIENCE. I can't wait for the squash to put out baby squash so he can finally sit and watch them grow!! That and greenbeans are the two plants that actually grow right in front of your eyes. He checks on the plants every few hours, looking for signs of growth. Heaven help the rabbit or deer that gets in his garden.
I told him we would have to hang some small alumnin pans to scare the birds and such away. We have one robin that has walked every inch of the yard, over and over. I think that bird thinks we plowed up that plot just for him to hunt worms in.
The art show on the 18th in Montevallo was a bust. Not many people, cold and cloudy and scattered sprinkles of rain. Just really dreary. At 1PM Don said we were packing up and going home. I was ready to go, too. I don't leave shows early, only happened maybe twice in the last 35 years of doing shows but this one I was dead tired and cold. I went to bed as soon as we got home and slept 5 hours. I didn't even watch the Alabama A Day game on ESPN. I was just dead tired. I have listed the purses and pincushions and sachets on ETSY and hope I sell them there. Be sure and check out WWW.marysrosecottage.etsy.com for all my pretties. I am listing more stuff every day as I get it photografted.
Plans for the wedding are going along. June 6 will be here before you know it. Don said we should have just gone to a judge and gotten married. Our tiny wedding is growing. I told him I don't plan on ever doing this again and after all it is my ONLY wedding. He is a good sport about it so far. Skip Hall, a friend from church and a former Special Forces member from Vietnam is going to stand up with Don (Don was also in Special Forces in 'Nam). My cousin Sheryl is going to stand up with me. When Sheryl and I were kids we promised each other we would do it. I stood up with her in 1969 and now 40 years later she will stand up with me. Took me a long time to find the right man. Well I guess more later. As grandmother Nelson used to say, "Got places to go and things to do!