Family picnic today and I'm taking this goodie.

The challenge was to see if I had enough room in our rented townhouse kitchen to do the baking that I love to do. It was tight but I did it. I usually top this sweet bread tea ring with walnuts but since it's going where others will be enjoying I am cautious about nut allergies. Better safe than sorry. So the kitchen has done well with large baking projects. The next test will be to see how it does for canning season. Yes you can take the woman out of the country, but a farmgirl I will always be and what would a hot dog be without home made relish?

Send a message and receive the gift.

This is not my find. My eldest daughter and I enjoy thrifting together and have found many wonderful items for our home and to resell. She has this gift that she will deny, but it is a gift, of sending a message to the universe that she would like an item and within a short time it comes into her life. Thus the Lava lamp. Although this is not a rare item the fact that it is aqua blue and green is amazing to me because these are her favorite colors. She has a golden touch which some of her friends will agree with me on. She has a good eye for nifty items and she is so much fun to treasure hunt with. You can find many of her finds on her etsy store, poetcharms.blogspot.com. and she helps me find items for my etsy store, butterflyplace.etsy.com. Thanks for visiting our stores and blogs and have a wonderful day. I can't wait to see what all of my blogging friends find this week.

Spray Painted Planter

The dark brown owl planter in the front of this photo was purchased at a flea market for fifty cents. I bought it because I follow a blog called Thrift Core.  http://www.thriftcore.com/2012/06/around-world-thrifting-with.htmlthrifters-. She blogged about spray painting planters and I thought it was a fun idea, but didn't know how good or bad I'd be at spray painting. I gave it a try and I'm not so good, but I'll get better with more practice. For a first timer I got lots of paint on my hands but I think it came out okay and I couldn't wait to put a plant in it and set it on the kitchen counter to liven up our plain rental counter. I found a mini Jade plant that fit just fine and since I don't have room for a standard size Jade plant it made me happy to get the small one. Well today I put them both together and this is the result. I like it and may do this again.

All I can say is that if you find something that you really like and it's not in the best condition give spray paint a try. I already have done one other item and it's for sale on my store butterflyplace.etsy.com. It's a mushroom print trivet that I reconditioned orange and it came out better for the second time using a can of paint.

Finished quilts and afghans for charity

Just finished the sixth blanket for the Linus Project. It was the twin size crochet basket weave pattern afghan that needed all the loose yarns worked in and trimmed. It will keep someone nice and warm. It is made of all the leftover balls of yarn that have accumulated over the last year. It feels good to have it done. There are two smaller afghans and three quilts. I have several more that I would like to start working on so that I can have a dozen before I contact them to deliver.

I also spent more time today working on preparing items for my store. butterflyplace.etsy.com. All the pictures are taken and edited and now it's just a matter of finding the time to get them listed. I haven't done much thrifting this past month. Most of the items have come from the boxes moved and just the stash hanging around that needs to be downsized.

This week has been a learning week. My daughter and a great California gal are teaching me more about the Internet and how to make it work for me. The challenge has been a newsletter for my etsy store. They've helped me create a mailing list on excel and create buttons for my page. They make it look so easy, but teaching me has been an experience for them both. I can still learn. How exciting.

Busy, Busy, Busy.

For the last couple of weeks I have been trying to clean out boxes of stuff that were moved and that I had no idea what was in them. Some were marked and some were not. I've found projects started that I have been working on finishing. This week I finished another crib size quilt and a twin size afghan made of all leftover yarns for the Linus Project. Not wanting to throw the leftovers of the leftovers away, I have spent evenings after all chores are done crocheting these two and a half inch flowers and using my knitting knobby to make long knitted tubes. They are only as long as I have time to make them before turning in. I have ideas on how to use these. I don't know if I'll have the time, but at least the yarns are not being wasted or filling a landfill.
Other boxes were marked store inventory and I have been working on listing new items on my store. butterflyplace.etsy.com. It just seems like time is flying by and having time to do everything that I want to do isn't working to well. Time management is becoming top priority and I am learning that having fun blogging and stopping to smell the roses has become an urgent matter. I know the alarm is set for 3:15 am and that work starts early but I think for my own mental stability picking up the crochet hook, knitting knobby and making blankets for charity has done me wonders. I have more unfinished projects to work on and ideas for quilts from the tons of fabric that are filling my space. I hope to post some pictures of them in the next week so stay tuned. Until later I hope everyone has a wonderful week and I will watch for you all on your blogs.