Color of Winter

"The color of springtime is in

the flowers; the color of winter

is in the imagination."

~ Terri Guillemets ~

These gift card envelopes were made

based on a design first shared in 2012.

This time I went the extra step for you

and made 4 ready-to-print designs.

Plaid background - made by layering

stripes in 2 shades of slate gray:

Gift card envelope - how to make:

After cutting out, fold using the edge of your gift card, credit card, ruler, etc. as a guide. Glue with glue stick - read below for how I do it:

Place a piece of cardboard from a cereal box (about the size of a gift card) inside the envelope before you glue (so you don't glue the inside of the envelope together, and so it's not too tight to get a gift card inside when finished).

Here are the sources & free

graphics used in my artwork:

*Tuck Ephemera*

3 girls with flowers

Frances Brundage created

beautiful artwork, including 3 girls

holding "Christmas Roses" under an

umbrella on a snowy day.

*The Old Design Shop*

Grungy paper

Snowy village

Loved the cozy feeling

of this moonlit village scene.

*F.P.T.F.Y.*

Distressed wood background

*Shadowhouse Creations*

 "Beneath the Surface" texture

This texture overlay

helped soften the plaid.

*Canva*

Free design elements:

round frames

"Merry Christmas"

Thank you for stopping by!

Christmas Memories

"Each Christmas

finds me longing for

Christmases now past.

And I am back in

childhood - as long as

memories last."

 

~ Carice Williams ~

Do you save the ends from

refrigerated cinnamon roll cans? I'd

always thought they'd be good for some sort

of crafting, and last year used them for

stamping. Right now, I'm making them into

ornaments. For this one, I used one of the

smaller round images, a paper doily, clear

glitter, and yarn around the outside:

You can find the complete Victorian

illustration here. I also used an endpaper

texture. The only other images used were

free elements, available on Canva.

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Joys of Christmas

"And, so, Christmas comes

to bless us! Comes to teach us how

to find the joy of giving happiness,

and the joy of being kind."

~ Gertrude Tooley Buckingham ~

 

It took time to gather so many images,

but I love the final collection. There are

snowy homes & a church, 2 "stained glass"

patterns, holly & mistletoe, brown birds,

and a child & angels with Christmas trees.

I'll be using them as gift tags.

They also fit inside a canning jar ring

(regular, not wide mouth) to make

ornaments. Below is an example:

Here are the free graphics

& sources used in my artwork:

*The Old Design Shop*
Snowy candlelit cottage
 
*TuckDB Postcards*

Silver angel & tree 

Angel holding pine tree

Cottage with sheep

Snowy church & water

 Many birds & blue pot

*The Feathered Nest*

Girl & Christmas tree

French ledger ephemera

*rawpixel*

Holly

Myrtle branch

Mistletoe

*Ephemeratopia*
Pair of birds

*NYPL - digital collections*
17th century wall tile

Earthenware panel

Thanks for stopping by!

Blooming Beauty

"Spring is a 

whimsical wanderer,

blooming beauty 

along her path."

 

~ Angie Weiland-Crosby ~

This beautiful image of a young woman &

apple blossoms is on loan from my mom.

It's a yard long, antique framed print! The

frame itself wasn't sturdy, so I was able to

remove the image - very carefully - and

scan in sections. It was then digitally

pieced back together.

For the tags, I decided to focus on the young

woman's face, and then searched my Pinterest

images for apple blossoms. The postcard with a

fence in the background was what led to the

weathered white wood. I saw the endpaper

that reminded me of the lacy details in the

woman's clothing... you can see how

it gradually came together.

Here are the free graphics
& sources used in my artwork:

*The Graphics Fairy*

Back of an old photograph

*The Old Design Shop*
Aged, stained endpaper
 
*TuckDB Ephemera*

Apple blossoms & fence

*The Feathered Nest*

French ledger ephemera

*rawpixel*

White camellia

*F.P.T.F.Y.*
Chippy wood background
 

*Canva*
Free element: 

ripped masking tape

*Lilac & Lavender*

"Antiqued" lined notepaper

*Digital Two for Tuesday*

Endpaper

*Image Event*

"Bellows Falls" envelope

(website no longer active, so

linked to image via Pinterest)

The blossoms & leaves in plenty

from the apple tree fall each day;

The merry breezes approach them,

and with them merrily play.

 

~ Heinrich Heine ~

O Springtime Sweet!

O springtime sweet!

The whole earth smiles

thy coming to greet;

Our hearts to their

inmost depths are stirred

by the first spring flower
& the song of the bird...

~ James Freeman Clarke ~

Here are the free graphics
& sources used in my artwork:

*The Graphics Fairy*

"Presented to" title page

Back of an old photograph

*The Old Design Shop*
Aged, stained endpaper
 
*TuckDB*

Beautiful girl with primroses

*The Feathered Nest*

French ledger ephemera

*rawpixel*

Watercolor leaves

*Starsunflower Studio*

Round apothecary label

*Internet Archive*

Bird eggs illustration

*Flickr*

Sheet music c. 1728

*F.P.T.F.Y.*
Chippy wood background
 

*Canva*
Free element: 

ripped masking tape
 

"Earth stirs herself from a long cold

sleep, to welcome the sun & warm

gentle rain, gladdening the heart as

a promise she keeps, as we open

the door to spring again."

~ Mildred L. Jarrell ~

Thanks for stopping by!

Gift Idea for a Booth Owner

These are my thoughts as I'm sitting here, cutting cardstock into tags for part of my dad's Christmas gift. My dad has a booth at a local antique mall. He enjoys hunting for good finds, the challenge of rebuilding and repurposing. He even enjoys loading up his truck to restock.

Least favorite part... pricing. Mom tells me they're always buying pre-made tags for $1, and are low on other materials like twine and string. So, I know dad loves his booth. He loves thrifting, and being thrifty. Just doesn't like making tags. Perfect, cause I can do that!

Ok, making a bunch of tags. What else?

After looking around in my own resale stash, I found a wooden carrier (well, a small shelf turned on it's side). Filled it with small metal buckets, and a tall metal box w/lid. They all fit!

Realistically, I know my practical, yet creative dad will sell or repurpose what I give him instead of keeping it to use for organization. It's great knowing he finds joy in painting or rebuilding, etc. so I just see this as part of the gift.

I'm also a booth owner. This is a short list of my commonly needed items, as well as a few things I'll add to personalize. His favorite color is green, so that may also become part of the theme:

~ bundles of similar sized tags (sm, med, lg, etc.)

~ twine, crochet thread

~ fine black markers/pens
~ double-sided tape
~ paint brushes
~ scissors
~ safety pins
~ favorite snacks

~ cash for thrifting

There are so many ways to give! I hope you make or find just the right things for everyone on your heart this Christmas season!

A Flourishing Garden

"The gardens that make us

happiest flourish because

we have taken the time

to make sure they feed our souls and fill a special place 

in our lives."

"Sometimes you have

to really think about

what you want in your

garden... once the beds

are laid out and the 

rose bushes planted."

~ Lindley Karstens ~


I combined 3 elements to

create these garden-themed,

printable tags. Two feature an

old-fashioned, white rose.

I kept the others simple with

portions of an ornament.
The ornament reminded me 

of both stylized branches

and metalwork from

something like a garden

gate. The background is

a receipt from Berry Seed

 Company.


Thank you for stopping by!

Messages of Christmas Cheer

Carol singing,

church bells ringing,
Once more Christmastime

is here. Children laughing,

grownups beaming.

Hearts are warm

with Christmas cheer.

~ Ruby Lee Mitchell ~

Hope you're enjoying

this Christmas season!

These handwritten messages

were tucked into our tree.

Chalkboard texture was

added for another option.

I love their simplicity,
and hope you do to.

Merry Christmas!
Thank you for

stopping by!

Those Who Bring Sunshine...

"Those who bring sunshine
into the lives of others cannot
keep it from themselves."

~ James M. Barrie ~

I made these tags to price late summer & fall items
in my booth. It's nice to have a few different sizes...
Enjoy!

Here are the free graphics
& sources used in my artwork:

*Internet Archive*
Silver-leaved sunflower

*TuckDB*
Scalloped border

*Lilac & Lavender*
Fabric texture


Thanks for stopping by!

Pitcher & Simple Country Bouquet

I love enamelware pitchers.

Add a simple country bouquet,

and you have a real thing of beauty.

I'm patiently waiting for the perfect pitcher,

so I can have a bouquet like this on my kitchen

table. Until then, milk glass vases and mason jars will do just fine.

Here are the free graphics
& sources used in my artwork:

*Antique Images*
Enamelware pitcher

*Flickr: perpetualplum*
Umbel illustration, 1917

*Shadowhouse Creations*
Softly aged sepia texture

*Lilac & Lavender*
Berry Seed Co. ephemera

Thanks for stopping by!

Queen Anne's Lace

"The great lesson is
that the sacred is in the

ordinary, that it is to be

found in one's daily life..."

~ Abraham Maslow ~

Printable sets of large and small tags, featuring
my favorite wildflower. Click here to read
a little more about the Berry Seed Company.

Printable Queen Anne's lace stationery (8.5 x 11").

I love Queen Anne's lace. At first glance,

it looks simple... but when you really look,

you notice all the beautiful, intricate patterns. I 

wonder how anyone could call it a weed. It's

welcome in all my flower beds, and makes itself

at home right next to irises, daylilies, and roses.

I don't think I'll ever tire of seeing it bobbing in 

the breeze... whether it's along a country road,

or outside my kitchen window.

Here are the free graphics
& sources used in my artwork:

*Antique Images*
Queen Anne's lace

*Old Design Shop*
Aged paper texture

*Vintage Feedsacks*
Label ~ "lace" pattern

*TuckDB*
Scalloped border

*The Sum of All Crafts*
Delicate rectangular label

*Lilac & Lavender*
Berry Seed Co. ephemera
 

"The whole world is a series

of miracles, but we're so used to

them we call them ordinary things."

~ Hans Christian Anderson ~


Thank you for stopping by!

Gifts of Spring

"The arms of May are

flower filled with blossoms

April showers spilled.

Bright, rainbow-colored

gifts of spring arrived

at her awakening."

~ Nora M. Bozeman ~

Here are the free graphics
& sources used in my artwork:

*The Graphics Fairy*
French lace label
Vintage French roses
French chocolate advert
Back of an old photograph

*TuckDB*
Pink roses
Light pink phlox
Basket of daffodils

*The Old Design Shop*
French receipt
White & yellow daisies

*Vintage Holiday Crafts*
White cosmos

*Little Birdie Blessings*
Forget-me-nots

*Free Vintage Digital Stamps*
Polka dot scrapbook paper

*Digital Two for Tuesday*
Endpaper pattern

*Boston Public Library*
Chocolate trade card

The daffodils and crabapple trees are
blooming... it's good to see vivid greens
and bright blossoms again.
Love this time of year!

Thanks for stopping by!