Advents of White

After making several advents like these and

then teaching a couple classes in making them,

this is the only one I have left.

It stays up year round in my bedroom.

The frame is from my Great Aunt Iva.

Day 25 is my father's bible.

Many other items are from family long since passed.

This very large one over 40" was made for a holiday show I did last year.

A friend purchased it in the first 2 seconds after we pulled back the tent flaps.

Seems silly, but I'm glad it went to a good home.

A quick WW today

Please join all the others at Faded Charm

hosted by lovely Kathleen

Rituals

Although organized and tidy, as we have discussed in prior posts,

I do not consider myself a ritualistic type.

No one day is similar to the next except in the fact that

they are usually busy days.

The last few weeks I noticed an inclination toward

a daily pattern in many aspects of my life.

Is this due to age or necessity? Am I becoming a

"set in her ways" kind of gal, and

is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Minutes after my feet hit the floor in the morning I am

found here. This cup, this coffee, this creamer.

I used to buy whatever half-caf coffee I came across

but I have settled on this one it seems. I am NOT

a coffee connoisseur by any means., which you can tell

by my no frills machine. I just want 2 cups

that don't bother my stomach and send me into hyper orbit.

I've noticed I now use a soup spoon instead of a teaspoon.

What the heck is that about?

If I back up even one step I smack into these two.

As I enter the kitchen they are tossed a treat from the

dog treat jar on this cart to

tide them over until I pour the coffee.

Then, the looks of "FEED ME.... NOW" ensue.

My ex - ex mother in law ( you figure it out) had a weekly

routine that I found absurd way back when in my mid 20's.

Monday was wash day. Tuesday she ironed.

Wednesday she shopped with her two sisters.

Thursday was clean house day. Every Friday night they had take out pizza.

Sunday dinner was ALWAYS a beef roast, potatoes and green vegetable.

Her home was orderly, very clean and uneventful.

Now that I am about the same age as she was then,

I see a purpose, a rhythm that I now find appealing.

As we age, do most of us find comfort in the ordinary, the routine?

Does it take years of living to obtain the rhythm, the rituals that comfort us,

as our favorite family foods or a cup of coffee do?

Why do I still frequently wear the same torn, stained, paint spattered

faded red zip front sweatshirt purchased from The Limited over 20 years ago?

I have many others, but always reach for this one, as I did this morning.

Comfort ~ Ritual

good things

DANGER

I am still so stuffed from yesterday, if I pasted feathers to my butt

I would be in danger of being shot for Christmas dinner.

Yesterday I was the guest at a beautiful and delicious dinner hosted by a dear friend and I couldn't resist a second helping of stuffing and the perfect sweet potato casserole. Suzi stuffed me with appetizers for an hour before dinner, six different kinds and then topped off the meal with pie and gingerbread with homemade lemon sauce.

She is one of those dangerous cooks. "C'mon eat - eat."

gobble gobble waddle waddle....

The day was wonderful and we talked politics and crafting and relatives and Christmas plans, it ran the gamut, and was the perfect way to spend the day, and

dilute the sadness of missing my kids.

I am so very thankful for her kindness.

Kudos to an amazing chef!

Suzan

Family

Thompsonville Rd
Mc Murray PA
circa 60~61

Scott & Suzan

Thankful today for all of it.
The good, the great, the downright awful.
It brought me to this place
where I am at peace.
My children are happy, safe and well
and cooking together today;
beginning their own
holiday traditions far from home.
Although my heart longs for them, I
am blessed with their good health, their
happiness, and lives that are enriching them
and contributing to the good in this world.

Blessings to all of you.
I am so grateful for your friendship and that
we continue to share in each others lives.

Happy Thanksgiving

Suzan

It's beginning to look a lot like...

white

everywhere I go

may you and yours have wonderful blessings this holiday

I'm very thankful darling daughter, dearest son

Please visit White Wednesday @ Faded Charm

hosted by Kathleen

lots and lots more holiday white~ scroll down a few

Worker Bee

Purge* Stage* Sell* Buy* Pack* Move* Unpack* Stage* Sell*

This is what the process has been for the past month with a client that I have moved three times before. This is the last and final home she will live in. This is a certainty. It is quite small by her previous standards and she was scared and sad and convinced it would be awful.

The moving van, moved her yesterday from 9-3. Before I left last evening, her kitchen was complete, everything in it's place, her bedroom and bath all cozy and pretty.. I wanted her first night in her home to be comfortable.

In the 11 hours I spent there today, I finished all the other rooms except for the guest room and organized her garage. yep..MY way! Soon I will hang all her paintings and measure for all the new blinds and curtains, but tonight there is not an unpacked box anywhere in her home, or stuff strewn about. The doggies are perched back in their favorite chairs and all the appliances and cable and phone and trash are all set up or installed.....Not bad for less than 2 days. I am a full service worker bee. buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ( note the z's) Did I mention all the items she purged are stacked in my garage waiting for me to sell for her?

She was smiling tonight, and when I said "Didn't I tell you I would make it look cozy and wonderful? She said "Yes you did." I said "You didn't believe me?" She replied "Only half way, because this place was so awful." It isn't now. She is happy again, and safe in her cozy home that she can take care of and afford. As I left, she said she should have known better than to have any misgivings. I mean, we have done this same thing a few times.

I love this kind of job. My knees, my back, my muscles, my arms don't love it so much, but it is worth every single ache to make someone a home...

If I don't get back here before GOBBLE day:

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you and many many blessings.

Suzan

By My Hand

Each week Chania gives us a photo challenge and

various ideas go through our heads until we have our AHA! moment.

Mine came a couple of days ago when I unearthed this

scherenschnitte I had cut about 20 years ago.

When I was first married, money was scarce and we made our

entire holiday decorations out of felt, paper and ribbon.

This was one piece of a series of ornaments and table displays

I made for our home one year.

I have not done much paper cutting in the years since,

though occasionally I would throw one into my Gathering classes.

Most people balk at the time required for such intricate cutting,

but I always found it relaxing. Relaxing?

(Yeah yeah, I enjoy weird stuff like Organizing,

and cutting minute pieces of paper. What can I say? )

Right before doing this post, I surfed the net

and found fabulous artists doing incredible work with

small scissors and Xactos. Maybe you should check it out?

It's affordable, portable and fun!

Don't you just love the squirrel tail?

I am pretty confident that this has sparked a renewed interest in

my paper skills. I just need to get past this one last week

with a client, and then it is clear sailing to the studio and

holiday gifting and crafting.

Please join Chania over at RAZMATAZ for more Hand Made.

Suzan

Storage Made Easy

Here it is:

The secret to my organization:

I started with an 8x8 sheet of plywood and had the

store rip it into fourths.

Using standard lengths of 1x 4's built shelving to exactly fit

those document boxes you get at big box stores.

Measure twice and cut once.

(BTW I have standard 2 car garage )

You can make these taller, shorter and adapt to fit your space.

Use all plastic bins if desired. The key is no wasted space.

Just enough clearance to slide containers easily,

and don't mix up a bunch of items just so you can stuff it into large bins.

Of course this same system will work with sturdy

metal shelving, found at Costcos or Sams. If I remember correctly

21 of these boxes fit on those shelves with the top row stacked two high.

I have done the exact same thing for clients, who wish

to be able to take the system to their next home.

My bins are placed on the floor so that mopping is a breeze.

Yes, I mop my garage, I was taught the "NAVY way".

I write contents on removable labels because storage needs change.

This is the only shelving doubled in depth, others are singles.

You can see here, where I've removed 2 boxes.

Notice the tags on the front of the shelves. Those identify the back row

at a glance. I bought bins and boxes as I could afford them and as I needed them,

so this can fit every budget. Yes, I had to have all the boxes match..so shoot me.

You can see several bins missing. Those are in the house

as I decorate that particular tree.

That is the second part to how great this system is:

I can grab a bin or 2 boxes, whatever is needed to decorate

a room or a particular tree. I go to the garage and grab

just those containers needed and there is no jumbled mess

of boxes in the home or garage.

I store everything this way, not just decor,

and as a result the closets inside my home are not cluttered.

An added bonus; critters do not

like these painted boxes as compared to standard cardboard.

So there you have it.

Budget friendly if you add to it gradually, adaptable to any

size space and if you wish, totally portable.

GREY SHOES

CEREAL IS EXPENSIVE IN NEW YORK

While watching Darling Daughter munch on some

generic brand of cereal while on iChat, I inquired why she

was munching cardboard.

"Mom, cereal is so expensive here."

So I have the brilliant idea to send her some cereal as a hOOt,

and buy her a couple boxes of Quaker Oat Squares her fave.

Running very late yesterday, I cram the cereal into a flat rate

box and grabbing shoes from the shoe basket on the stairs I head out.

I'm sure it has occurred to most of you that paying about

10.00 for 2 boxes of cereal and 10.00 for the flat rate box, this was

not an economical move, but more one of mother love.

I join the line at the post office just before they lock the doors,

out of breath and grasping a box that shakes with the sound of well, cereal.

The line is pretty jammed up, everyone standing uncomfortably

close to each other. You wish you could check your breath

in your palm or sneak a pit sniff, but no room. When trying to act nonchalant,

I tend to stare off into the distance or stare at the floor. I chose down.

Stared at my shoes. Notice anything? Look again.... sigh

I had been running errands for about 4 hours wearing two different shoes.

This awareness starts me to chuckling and nearly talking out loud to myself.

Perhaps I was, because the woman in front of me turned around

with a disapproving look, so I simply pointed down to my feet.

She looked, paused, looked again and then harumphed

and turned back around... which made me snort and hiccup burp as

I considered what she would think if she was aware

I was clutching a box of cereals that I was mailing to New York.

Of course this has nothing to do with White Wednesday

so here is some white : 0

If you missed my last two posts check them out, loads more white!

As my then 15 year old son used to say

"where Christmas goes to throw up..."

Please join Kathleen over at Faded Charm for another WW.

and double check your shoes during the holiday hustle.

Suzan

The Elves Are Busy

The family room is done, as is the porch.

I did not attempt to do the twinkly lights shot,

have not mastered those.

This little table is where we eat our breakfasts and lunches.

The white chest is full of candles, and tea lights purchased

during great sales and clearance so that I may use them daily.

FYI- nearly 95% of all furniture, chests, benches, tables, etc.

in all rooms I painted or is original vintage.

There was no painted furniture when I began doing my

home this way. Briwax and I are very old friends.

More Nicole Sayre

Favorite angel has topped this tree for

many many years. The tree is an old cheap

needle style one I wrapped many moons ago with

warm and natural batting.

What to do on long winter nights. : D

I always do the table displays in big box or bowl arrangements,

so that they can be easily and quickly removed, to make room

for more guests, or change out soiled linens. Notice the one back

on the breakfast table. Swoop! it is removed and now there is

room for four diners instead of two.

This shot has strange perspective.

Everything is not all piled atop everything else as it appears.

I just loved the morning light coming in.

If you notice, nothing is removed, just a few figures added

and lots and lots of greenery pics usually purchased for 90% off

end of season. They are carefully packed away each year in dust free tubs

and make it super simple to decorate the entire home in a flash.

Suzan

Back soon with more; including how this stuff is stored!

So It Continues

So it continues in the family room and kitchen.

I do not remove objects in order to replace with

holiday theme items, I nestle them right in and add lots

of greenery with lots of snow that I often regret come January.

Lights are not in yet, and I may just skip this year.

My kitchen tree, dripping with Nicole Sayre, whose beige and

cream ornaments are perfect for my decor. She has returned

to these colors in her new line but without any ornaments

only the larger figures. I hope to snag a few of those this year.

My new Vietri dishes that I mentioned a few posts back.

A client bartered these for work and I was thrilled.

The French doors lead to the sun porch.

Part of the family room.

This room has pale yellow walls. A mistake, and one

I was going to correct... about 5 years ago! It doesn't bother

me so much anymore, and it does brighten a naturally dark room.

I am very proud of the counter. I helped cut, install and grout that baby.

Hutches everywhere get a little something tucked in.

Onward to the porches and the bedrooms!

How is it coming at your house?

Suzan

Postscript:

Lots of questions coming in about my timing,

amount of work and amount of decorations.

Since I am usually quite busy right after Thanksgiving,

this is the only time I have. The large tree goes up Thanksgiving evening.

I used to do displays for stores during the holidays and often my

pay was store credit, or a large discount (as in wholesale price). That is why

the abundance of Nicole Sayre, otherwise I could never afford.

No one seemed to like these colors then, everyone wanted

traditional red and green. lucky me! When you

combine store credit with 50% post holiday...

Bartering is great.

I organize for a living, so I have developed a system of storage,

that makes it so simple to get what I need and do a tree

lickety split with no mess in the house. I may post about it soon.

The system works for any type of storage.

AS for the rest of the decor, I simply plug in a bunch of

winter greenery, three large bins full... all purchased after the

holidays about 15 years ago, for 75 - 90% off.

So this decor is pennies on the dollar collected over 30 years.

I don't do any other holiday decorating anymore.

This is the big show, so to speak.

Veteran's Day

I dream of giving birth to a child who will ask,

"Mother, what was war?" ~ Eve Merriam

So It Begins

White tree in family room going up.

I will be busy with a client right before and

after Thanksgiving so this is the week to

get some decorating completed.

The trees are usually in the same location each

year, but I switch the ornaments around easily

because they are all the same color wise, with

white or silver as the base colors.

This year the tree also has pale pink and celery colors,

with featured figures from House of Hatten

Nicole Sayre, and Sarah Lugg.

Please visit all the other White Wednesday posts

over at Faded Charm hosted by Kathleen.

post script:

Comments referring to "my tree " as if it is solitary....

This is the second one I've completed of nine.... : D

Holiday insanity reigns, because this is still

me " cutting back"..lol

Suzan