Patina White

when life hands you lemons...make glitter!

hey everyone! you know how the saying goes "when life hands you lemons...". well that can have multiple endings. and why not glitter? so just how does one get glitter from lemons? read on my friend and i will tell ya!

this was a scene from our home a few days back. {below}

a hasty shove of our coffee table & my lovely ornament-adorned stand took a tumble. she humpty'd dumpty'd right on the floor. no king's horses & no king's men came to the rescue. rather i sat there in utter shock @ the mess that lay in front of me. should i shout? cry? throw my body to the ground kicking right there with the wreckage? as tempting as some of those options sounded...I feared frightening my poor dog resting in the corner. and really what good would any of those actions do?

so i walked over to the kitchen...grabbed {2} ziplock baggies...doubled them up & put the pieces i could safely salvage inside. then proceeded to the next steps...

1st STEP - inflict a few good blows to bag on the counter...{never said i wouldn't release some frustration!} i ended up with small to medium sized chunks of ornies in the bag.

2nd STEP - out comes the rolling pin {one used for crafts...save your good one for those cookies}. roll over & over the bag. pulverizing the contents inside. but watch your bag...you are working with sharp bits and pieces here.

3rd STEP. roll it some more. trust me. you want it to continue to break everything down. do you see where i am going here? you're actually making some glass "glitter"! if you haven't priced out german glass glitter...check it out in a google search sometime. you'll too will be banging bags of ornaments on your counter causing the family to really question your motives!

after many passes with the rolling pin...i emptied the contents out into the bowl you'll see {below}. handle with care...remember...it's still glass!

lemons no more! looks pretty good considering where i started. now...what to do with my new found wealth of glitter? no time like the present to get back into the swing of jewelry r&d. so i took some tiny dimensional hearts....glittered them up like nobody's business & encased one w/ some beveled glass thus making a happy ending {below} to a somewhat "messy" beginning! 

and you know what else good came about?? my floor has never looked better! clean & dust {+ glass} free! so take those lemons handed your way. and make your glitter. or lemonade. or learn to juggle. whatever the case may be try to make the best of the situation handed you!

hope you have a "sweet" day!

the labor of love...

i am really excited to show ya all a project that...initially when i started...my first instinct was to table it for another day, which in my world, could mean never. but...i loved the effect & wanted a fun new addition to our table scape so while visiting my dad & stepmom in nebraska i had the much needed time to create. so this labor of love came together after hours of coffee staining & gluing. 

this is the where the first signs of labor began a few weeks ago....{below}

this was the process of being in "labor"...no lamaze necessary!

and finally the result of all my "labor"...by the end of the process & countless hot glue burns...i am not sure if i really could say it was a labor of love...however i love the result of said labor! and it resulted in not one but a happy gathering of triplet trees that now sit proudly on our dining room table {seen below}!

being the proud parent i am of these creations...i'll share {1} more up close photo of the triplets {here below}. adorable, huh? i think so too!

well there you go! the trees of chritmas "future" are now very much a part of our christmas present! i am so glad i stuck with it and saw the project thru. i have always said that i think of my handiworks as my children. admiring them & wanting to show + tell everyone w/ a half interested ear about them! hopefully you have enjoyed seeing them "come to life"! 

may you also enjoy all the fruits of your labor!

tackl'n the TO DO list...

hey everyone! a show of hands how many of ya have the never ending TO DO list. well, patina white's "big event" being just around the corner has definitely seen to it that my "list" is growing! but a weeks worth of gorgeous minnesota weather has provided a few check marks here & there! the project friendly weather would also explain my lack of posting lately! 

so...to check off a high priority of keeping you all inspired...i thought i would share a fun + functional way of staying organized. or at least looking darn good while trying! and it appears that i have some clean clothes and shopping to catch up on from the looks of this example {below}.

these slick little blackboards made a connection with my hoard (umm..collection) of vintage game tiles.

a mixed melody of sayings now bedeckle their tops as you'll note {below}.

and since my event is for the holidays...i have some fun options for family photos {below} and who could forgot santa snapshots? just add some magnets + a little magic with the chalk to personalize your very own!

almost makes you want to find to find things "TO DO" so you can land your hands on one of these nifty creations doesn't it? it's just one of the many original patina white creations you will find exclusively @ my november show! 

(want a bit more info on that?...wait no further and click *HERE* to be whisked to another screen)!

thanks so much for popping on by my show & tell today! now i must return to my list! i hope it gets shorter than longer. but the laundry never goes away! 

happy day to you & best wishes on tackl'n all you have "to do"!

all that glitters...

...is not gold. GREETINGS...thought i would start today with a "revised" shakespeare quote due to the fact that nearly every surface of my home, car & person is covered in a form a glitter these days! my sparkle infatuation continues with a love off all things glitter. i dug out some of my favorites...vintage vessels shown {below} with precious german glass glitter...

vintage glass glitters are getting extremely hard to find. but there are some beautiful modern varieties availble today. the aqua version is from our friend, martha's line. and a search online will yield you a number of sources for this precious granule. i will also share a little secret...unable to throw away a gathering of sadly broken vintage mercury glass ornaments...i put them in a thick plastic bag and gave it a good once over with my ceramic rolling pin.  VOILA! your very own glass glitter! so get out them pins and do some creative recycling!

this star {below} is a glass glitter variety that started out a gleaming silver and since "tarnished" to it's current bronze...a lovely trait of true glass glitter!

i have a plethora of glitters in many forms.  glitter glue...glitter spray...glitter powder...oh my! the spray is a fabulous way to get a quick, subtle sparkle as seen in my handstamped ribbon {below}. it's there..squint hard!

some more vintage varieties {below} little cans of sparkle that i covet. their colorings are spectacular. (oohs here)

(followed by ahhhs here)

i created this little cutie of a charm {below} with the vintage bronze powder as seen {2 below}. i think the girls who join me at our annual "wild wimen" gathering at my home for the holidays will be tickled to see them tied to their glasses as a "marker". now...i better start on them now if i am to dream of finishing intime!

 

not technically a glitter...this box of vintage mica was too darn fun not to share! i love both the outside and inside contents of this "flakey" little number!

boy...how many times can one say "glitter" in a single post! + you'll likely see more mention of this personal fave! especially since the holidays create an impressive spectacle of this grainy treasure! well...i am off! time to run out the door with the hubby to work on winterizing projects. oh! did i mention my door? well...{1} last picture shows a wood letter i painted, then...what else!...glittered to greet everyone with some holiday cheer. ok! that's it. for today anyway! 

hope your day is filled with ***sparkle***!

the makings of a collage

hello all! every year i create a collage to send out as a postcard for patinaWHITE's annual event - exclusively for the wonderful folks on my mailing list. i have been doing so since the early beginnings & even with the advent of email marketing i stick with my ol' fashion snail mail. i have heard such great things from people who comment how they love getting the card in the mail & had one gal tell me she saves them all as little works of art hanging them on her fridge! wow! what an honor...i hope she leaves a little room for family photos! 

a recent late eve found me donning my creative cap & going to work! paper fragments on the floor...glue embedded fingernails and one sleepless hubby = {the makings for a collage}! and on the topic of sleepless hubby...he just doesn't understand why i work feverishly into the night at times. my response? "you can't stifle creativity when it strikes", or in this case a looming print deadline may have had something to do with it!

so, won't you tag along as i take you on a little pictorial journey of the process?  

out come the boxes full of ephemera bounty...this box {below} is honestly bursting at the seams! i have a bit of a paper "hoarder" issue - unable to bear the thought of throwing away one snippet of a beloved vintage letter. i have thought of implementing a system, where, if i can no longer pick up the paper without the aid of tweezers - then let it go...it has served it's purpose well. in the meantime i think i will buy another storage box! 

here is the gathering {below} providing inspiration in the direction the collage will take. oh yes! please take note of the letter from europe addressed to a fellow in "amerika"! how fantastic!

and i can't forget to introduce the little girl {below} who's very face inspired the sassy saying you will soon see! she bears a striking resemblence to your's truly before i have had my morning caffeine!

onward to more boxes. this one {below} once upon a time "neatly" housed vintage cards of rick rack. it still does, but with a few more guests piled ontop (though not so neat anymore)! which reminds me of a favorite quote..."a creative mess is preferable to idle neatness". amen.

here {below} we have pencils selected to provide the accent shadowing. 

and speaking of pencils...i have to show a most treasured possesion. my trusty set of art pencils have been with me since 1993. i'll let you do the math! no diamonds here...but they are really one this girl's best friends!

{below} elements are coming together! scissors don't fail me now!

i will spare you the shots of the glue...the paper trails...the 52 oz bubba keg full of diet coke. all the pieces of the puzzle that came together to create this {below}...ta dah! 

be naughty...save santa the trip, indeed! this "naughty" little girl sits atop a present with a side note she's sure to ignore! and there you have it! the {makings of a collage}! thank you for tagging along with me thru the process! and for those of you on my mailing list...be on the lookout for this gal to make an appearance in a couple weeks! i hope all you naughty AND nice boys & girls have a very happy day!