Flowers From Old Books (Revamped Lamps)

 I found an old, tattered book, and it begged me to give it new life. I took it to my office, and it almost shouted out to a couple of lamps. The lamps were a snooze fest. They were boring and unrelated to one another. I decided to cut out flower shapes from the book pages. An Ellison die cut machine made quick work of my project.

(Not the actual book I used, but this could have been its twin.)

My short, plump lamp.

Yawn.

I used six die-cut pages per flower, and punched a tiny hole in the 

center of each shape.

Scrunch the first page around a brad. Be careful not to tear the hole, 

or the brad will fall out.

Continue to crumple pages onto the brad. I wadded the last two pages in my hand before adding them. This was to get a good shape without pulverizing the bud already formed on the brad.

The finished project. Cute, huh?

The last step was to use one of my favorite tools ever - a glue gun!

I have four glue guns, but I keep thinking I need another.

My tall, waif lamp.

Grandma!

I liked it much better after the lace and trim was removed.

It's even cuter with the flowers. I brushed a bit of pale pink onto the pages for this lamp.

Cuteness

I think these flowers could find a happy home in so many places. They would be super cute on a package or gift bag, or how about a bunch of them on stems for a bouquet? 

How would an old book spark your creativity? I'd love to hear your ideas.

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Sisters in St. Louis

My sister and I are celebrating our birthday month. We decided to get up early last Friday, drive to St. Louis, and go to the Gateway Arch. While Mary has been to St. Louis, I had not. It was the first time to the arch for both of us. The drive is about 5.5 hours each way. 

The first stop was at a mom and pop diner in Corning for breakfast. I have to admit that we were a little excited for a diner breakfast. We were disappointed. Everything was beige, and it tasted just as bland.

 We drove by this abandoned building, and I may or may not have made a u-turn and driven in the wrong direction to get back for this photo.

 Does anyone know what this is? There were two metal boxes on poles near the discarded building. It looks as if there may have been gas pumps between the poles at one time. Maybe the boxes held window cleaner. Any guesses?

Walking up to the arch was pretty exciting for me. The tree lined walk along the Mississippi River was delightful. The temperature was mild, and there was a slight breeze. We couldn't have asked for a better day to spend together.

 The obligatory pictures of the capital and Busch Stadium from the tiny windows at the top of the arch.

Walking away, I had to get another shot with a sunburst. 

We drove through several great neighborhoods. We were surprised to see so many abandoned and burned out buildings. I could envision many of them being renovated into fabulous flats. I could live in this beauty.

 This is a small portion of the Soulard Farmer's Market.

Remember these little boxes from THIS post? We filled more boxes and dropped them in various places on this trip too.

There was a variety of charming shops and homes in the Soulard neighborhood. We deposited a treasure box on the arm of a chair outside this adorable spot.

 The back side of The Porch shop. It's cute on all sides. The flowers on the front and side were lovely.

 The homes had so much charm and character.

We also visited Union Station mall, and the Benton Park neighborhood. Dinner was a stop in Poplar Bluff. It was an enjoyable and silly 23.5 hour trip. (I am NOT posting the video of us dancing in the car on the way home.) Also noteworthy is the fact that neither of us actually died from laughing so hard, but it was touch and go.

Now we are trying to pick a destination for our next outing. We want to stay within a 5-6 hour drive from the Little Rock area.  Any suggestions?


Thanks for stopping by. If you like what you've seen then give my page a "like" creative confetti (website) on Facebook, and subscribe on the right. Feel free to pin and share via the widget to the left. I'd also love to hear from you, so leave a comment or send me an email. 

4th of July Free Printables (UPDATED)

Hello beautiful people. As a thank you for all the encouragement I've received to resume my blog, I thought I'd try my hand at simple, yet cute, Fourth of July printables.

Let's start with an invitation to your shindig. The back is blank, 

so you can add your particulars.

Fun Cupcake Toppers and 5X7 Frameables

Drink Labels

A USA Medallion Centerpiece

Pledge of Allegiance and God Bless America Frameables

Quirky Preamble Placemats

Decorating Tip: Use a curtain valance and ribbons to dress a decorative table. Tie a short piece of ribbon around napkin wrapped flatware for even more charm. 

What a fun looking table, and don't miss the Instant, No Sew Apron from the previous post, made from the matching valance.

And what would the Fourth of July be without homemade apple pie? 

Find the recipe HERE. 

Now onto the free stuff! Just click on the link below the image to to go to a printable PDF.

CUPCAKE TOPPERS

PREAMBLE PLACEMAT

LARGE MEDALLION CENTER

CUPCAKE TOPPERS & DRINK LABELS

5X7 FRAMEABLES

INVITATION AND 5X7 FRAMEABLE

 Printables are for personal use only. They are not for commercial use.

Thanks for stopping by. If you like what you've seen, you can "like" my page creative confetti (website)  on Facebook, and subscribe on the right. Feel free to pin and share via the green widget to the left. I'd also love to hear from you, so leave a comment or send me an email.

Instant, No Sew Apron

I saw a set of cute, simple valances at a thrift store. Since I have no need for a window treatment, I thought of other uses for the embroidered sweetness.

So I threaded a 2" ribbon through the rod pocket, and

voilà 

a cute, ruffled apron.

Of course you could make two or more with each panel, if you don't like the full, ruffled look. That would mean cutting and sewing, but it would still be simple.

Thanks for stopping by. If you like what you've seen, you can "like" my page creative confetti (website)  on Facebook, and subscribe on the right. Feel free to pin and share via the green widget to the left. I'd also love to hear from you, so leave a comment or send me an email.

Southern Salt Food Company (Food Truck) Review

(I totally jacked this picture from their Facebook page!)

Little Rock is hosting Food Truck Fridays at the corner of Capitol and Main. Unfortunately it began in April and only runs a couple of more weeks from 11:00-1:30. June 13th is the last chance to experience this mid-day fun.

There aren't many participating trucks, and they rotate from week to week. Today's offerings were two barbecue trucks (one mainstream, and one of the Asian variety), an Italian Ice cart, and a catfish/poboy truck.

My friends and I were delightfully pleased with Southern Salt Food Company's truck. It's a trailer rather than a truck, and it's quite charming. I didn't actually take a picture of the trailer today because I was too busy eating my lemon Italian ice as I stood in line for my Asian BBQ "cheese steak" sandwich. On site, the owners had taken the time to merchandise and stage the area surrounding their trailer with vintage coolers to hold cold drinks. The folksy props on the ground under the windows added to the ambiance.

The people running the food truck were genial and seemed to be enjoying themselves as well as their customers. That always enhances any experience.

But what about the food, you ask.

It was scrumptious. My Southern Salt "Cheese Steak" was hearty, but not heavy. It had a slight earthy flavor juxtaposition nicely with a savory sweetness. I wasn't sure if I could eat the entire sandwich, but I did. I was satisfied but not overly full. My friend Vicki ate the Loaded Bratwurst, and she was equally satisfied. She enjoyed the un-encased brat surrounded by the BBQ.

I am hoping to make it back to the last two Food Truck Fridays to see what other pickings there are to be had. The only negatives about today would be the deafening roar emitted by the generators of two of the trucks (not SSFC), as well as the fumes. The location is also problematic. While Capital and Main is centrally located, the corner isn't large enough to host many trucks. Then again, that would mean more generator noise and pollution.

Hopefully this trend will catch on. While Little Rock is a small city, I think it can accommodate a hearty food truck business. Even after FTF ends,  I hope to patron Southern Salt Food Company truck again in the future. Click HERE to go to their Facebook page.

Thanks for stopping by. If you like what you've seen then "like" my page creative confetti (website)  on Facebook, and subscribe on the right. Feel free to pin and share via the green widget to the left. I'd also love to hear from you, so leave a comment or send me an email.

Unintentional Blogger

Honestly, I don't know what is wrong with me. I set out to be quite intentional about blogging, even if it was just for me, I had hopes of being more purposeful, but I have cycles of discipline and blah-dom. Maybe this is an upswing. I'm feeling the itch to communicate to the masses, or to the five people I hope are still interested in my musings.

I went back to NY last month. It. was. fabulous. Gosh, I like that city. It was especially fun trip time because I got to spend more time with my friend Jerri. She was so busy in October we didn't get to hang out as much as we liked. This time was different. We had lots of good conversation and a bounty of laughter. Whether staying up to 2 a.m. to recover dining room chairs, or bonding with another table over dinner, I had a wonderful time with Jerri.

And the laughter. In one situation we were on our way home after a night in the city, and we were laughing so hard, we half expected to be expelled from the train.

It was a good trip. Here are a few shots.

The Chrysler Building from the Empire State Building.

The Cloisters on the upper west side.

Outside the public library on 5th Avenue.

Fabulous sculpture in the median on Park Avenue between E 52nd and E 53rd.

If there are any readers left. I'm making a commitment to return later in the week. Maybe I'll have something crafty to share, if my week cooperates.

Thanks for stopping by. If you like what you've seen then "like" my page creative confetti (website)  on Facebook, and subscribe on the right. Feel free to pin and share via the green widget to the left. I'd also love to hear from you, so leave a comment or send me an email.