We had a good dump of snow on Friday last. Still more mild than anything else, so the dogs enjoy themselves fully outside. Odelia is always trying to grab every ball for herself. This time gumdrop dug up a rogue chinchilla tub. She slid it about the yard and barked endlessly for me to throw it.
She especially likes it when you fill it with snow before tossing it.
She likes to eat snow.
She dragged that thing all over the yard.
Her new favourite toy.
These characters are Pelham Puppets from England. Likely dating from the 1960s they represent a fun assortment. I found these all minus their strings but they did still have their wooden control handles.
"Perky" the pig was a yard sale find last summer. Thankfully he was intact and gave me some clues as to how to re-assemble the other puppets. I also did a lot of on-line sleuthing to get it right.
The baby dragon has a much larger and more articulated mother. This little guy is cute and was easy to re-string.
Perky and an un-named horse. He's missing a leg however he still can strut his stuff.
I think these are a hoot! They are fuzzy caterpillars. They are articulated and covered in lambswool. Their little rubber antennae have rotted away but I think the right sized black tubing and some red wooden beads will make fine replacements.
This is an old church ledger from 1850s. It's in German. Isn't the handwriting wonderful?
More than a hundred pages of antique paper inspiration!
This is a page from an old student notebook from the 1860s. Lots of practice writing and perfecting those lovely letters.
I love this! "Do one thing at a time and that thing well." Something worth remembering. Some things never change.
Looks interesting doesn't it? It's not what you would expect.
It's paper lace.
Lacy paper napkins actually. There are forty-eight of these in their original box. Just think of all the lovely things you can do with pretty lacy paper! I got them from this lovely lady.
I know, I am sure everyone out there already has discovered the joys of their own die cutting machine. I'm very late to the party I guess. Better late than never though!
I purchased this from dear Rosa last fall, fully anticipating a visit but that never happened so she mailed it to me and now it's here! I didn't waste any time trying out my very small collection of embossing folders and two dies.
This is just ordinary thin white paper but the results are wonderful.
I also got another SMASH journal and a few SMASH accessories. I really like these journals as the paper is so thick and takes markers so well. I'm using one of them for the "good" work in the Letter Whimsy e-course.
Rosa also tucked in some 7 gypsies tissues paper. Love it! thanks!!!
I finished my little altered tin. Sometimes things come so easily because the minute you see something, the finished idea starts knocking at you from inside your head, demanding to be let out. That's what happened this time. When I saw the tin at Balleycanoe, I knew exactly what it needed to become. For reference, the tin measures 7.5" by 3.5".
I pulled out my little box of bones, after adding the paper labels and ephemera to the back of each little section.
Then I gathered a few more tiny objects to continue the theme. The little glass vial holds some of my baby teeth. Yes, I still had them, in an old match box. 
Aaron and I and the dogs took in a little fresh air and fun. Things were even melting! The snow on the roof of the garage had begun to slide off, and froze again along the way.
It sure didn't seem ready to drop. It certainly looked interesting. An ice awning.
Beautiful view.
It was Balleycanoe's February Thaw Sale! Warm beverages, sweet treats and 20% off all their salvage goodies. Tucked off the beaten track, in a barn filled to the brim with all manner of cool stuff, Balleycanoe is one of those real Eastern Ontario treasures. Mr. Sorenson gave me permission to take pictures and that's as much fun as shopping there.
Old door locks.
A most utilitarian piece. I can see the great chippy paint sealed and used on a porch for flowers or as a funky coffee table in a family room.
Inside there are some wonderful examples of gorgeous hardware. Mercury glass door knobs, decorated hinges, and so much more.
Bath time.
So much to look at.
These zinc architectural decorations are fabulous.
I brought home a few little pieces. This delicate finial.
A great tintype photograph. I think this is a mourning piece.
This cute little tin basket looks like it may have been a shop project.
This is very heavy for its size.
I have immediate plans for this. Stay tuned.
On the way home we stopped in Brockville on the water to have a car picnic and enjoy the ducks and clouds.
Wednesday morning it looked like a dream outside. The sky, the trees, the barn and plants, all shades of gray.
Thursday morning revealed a fiery sunrise and pastel clouds.
Enjoy your day!
I thought it was totally cool how the ice cream containers fit so nicely on the door of my new/old freezer. So when they went on sale I couldn't help myself and picked up a whole variety of flavours.
These are nice as they come in smaller containers and in such a wide variety.
I used a 2 tablespoon coffee measure to scoop out a wee sample of each flavour.
What fun! We got a little taste of each and judged which we liked best. My favourite was the rainbow flavour. The pink lemonade packed quite the punch. Perfect for a hot summer day. Aaron's is tiger tail. What's your favourite?
