New Shop Items!

Gifted

My very gifted friend Dawn called for a haircut appointment and before I even gave her a time I said I needed something from her. My kids gave me a cell phone for Christmas and I needed a cover for it. When she came for hair appointment she brought this cute cover she had made.

I love it and the phone fit perfectly!

She's also made me these adorable clothes pin dolls

that I just couldn't put away after Christmas this year.

Thanks, Dawn!

Anxious for Spring!

I've been wanting to check out a Home Goods store for awhile now but it was 30 minutes beyond where we usually shop. That makes it about 2 hours away. I had a Dr appointment on Tues. and decided to go. It was worth the drive just for this.

I just had to bring this adorable cherub home with me!

She's made of cement and covered with a very old rustic patina, just what I love!

She will be perfect in one of my shady garden areas.

Her sweet face has a nice calming effect.

She is about 19 inches tall and even her feet are adorable.

The best part is she was only 30 dollars!

Now I'm even more anxious for spring!

Santa Boxes

The last 2 boxes I made were for a niece and nephew with kids. They are all about Santa.

The book in this one is The Night Before Christmas. I loved the cardboard Santa in the back. He really seems to be watching you. The Santa head on the left is plastic with an opening in the back, I assume for candy.

This is an old wooden box that is quite flat. The sleigh has a couple presents and a tree inside.
That's the end of my 'boxes'. I would love to make more for sale but shipping would be a problem. I have thought of selling them as a kit, with just the items needed to fill one. What do you think of that idea? I would love some feedback.

Snowpeople 'Boxes'

Here are 3 more 'boxes' that I made for Christmas presents. I like to mix the old with the new.

I made this one for my girlfriend. She loves to shop and I thought the girly snowpeople with purses and hats were perfect for her. This is a wooden, possibly jewelry box, with an attached lid. The top of the lid has a vintage floral decal on it. I did have to stabilize the lid to stay up. The snowflake on the right is cloth, the large one plastic. Notice the tiny icicles.
I used batting for snow and threw some sparkles on it. There is a bird on the felt snowman's broom so I added a bird to the left front corner. I also used trees as another filler.

An army green metal box is the base of this one. I again used the tiny icicles and added glittered snow.

I have 2 more to show you tomorrow. Keep in mind that all I bought at the store was the paper filler. Everything else was in my stash or found at household sales.

Special Project

I went to a lot of sales this past summer and fall that I didn't talk about because I was buying items for a special Christmas project. I use boxes and drawers filled with stuff in my decorating and I decided to make them for my family. I picked up any small item I might be able to use. I was also looking for 'boxes'. I found some in basements full of screws and stuff but I would ask to buy just the box. I used batting to cover the filler.

This 'box' is a Kennedy Biscuit tin with a lid. I stood the lid in the back and secured it. I filled this angel one for my daughter and son-in-law. There are a couple special angels in here. In the lower left corner (click the pic to enlarge) is an angel made by my mother. The ceramic one in the front middle is one I had as a child.

The Christmas tree one was for my son and his family. The tree is cardboard and some sort of display piece. I put in a couple toy soldiers because my son almost always picked one as his yearly ornament. The doll bed in the middle is for his girls. There is a key stuck in back that said Smith's on it so I had to add it. This box is quite deep, army green metal with a handle on each side. I have no idea what it was used for. I filled the bottoms with plastic bags topped with shredded paper bag filler. I put a piece of material over it to act as a rug.

These were really fun to make. I also had a lot of fun searching for items to use. I made 7 in all so come back tomorrow for more!

Snow Angels

Scrabble

My daughter, daughter-in-law and I try to do a craft every Christmas and this is what we did this year.

I asked a couple girlfriends that do garage sales to be on the lookout for old Scrabble games. We found them for $2.00 to 25 cents. My son tore apart some pallets that were thrown away at work and my son-in-law cut them into pieces.

We all dug into our stashes, both girls scrapbook, and just had fun!

We used watered down paint for stain and scrap paper or cloth ribbon for the backgrounds.

Jerzie even made some. She made the snow one for Mommy and the star one is in her and her sister's room. She also made them for her teachers and a Bah Humbug one for Daddy.

We had a great time with these because we could really be creative. All together we made over 40! They were a big hit!

I'm planning to make some for my shop. Would you be interested?

The Announcement!

I kept hearing comments that you wanted to go junkin' with me so I decided to take you along!

I've opened an Esty shop, Junkin' Jean's to offer you some of the great items I find.

I'm really looking forward to checking out more sales and discovering hidden treasures.

If there is something you would like me to be on the lookout for just let me know.

This is a new experience for me and I'm very excited! I sold my first item a few hours after I set up shop!

If you have any suggestions or questions send me an e-mail. You can visit my shop by clicking on jaosmith esty under the thumbnails on my sidebar.

News!

Big announcement tomorrow!!

Winter Garden