A Peek Inside Prims and a Giveaway....

One of my favorite styles to create is Primitive Country.

I have been making my own style of primitive country for years. 

I sell a lot of that style locally at festivals and shows.

So I am over the moon to share that I am within the pages of the current issue of Prims from Stampington and Company.

It is a great issue for fall and winter.

Let's peek at a few inspiring projects within this issue.

There are so many cute characters.

I am going to make some of these great pumpkins and turkeys from Renee Tousignant.

I love the simplicity of her designs.

This fabulous ghost would look haunting on anyone's front door.

Angela Clark Prater is brilliant.

This little primitive pumpkin gal is just the right amount of sweet from Trudy Honeycutt...

There are pieces from Chuck McClenning that look like authentic vintage Halloween pieces.

 Once I refine my skills, I may attempt something as fabulous as this cat from Carly Smith.

If you are already thinking winter, have no fear...

There are plenty of those too.

Like these little guys from Char Hosea.

Or this little guy that utilizes a recycled can from Heather Ledyard Hodges.

I am definitely going to work on some pieces that this project will inspire.

And nestled in the gallery pages are these little guys and gals...

Made from socks.

Really....

How do I know?

I made them....

And here they are...

I am over the moon proud.

I made this little block snowman too.

So, is primitive country a style that calls out to you?

If it is and you would like a chance to win a copy of Prims for yourself, leave a comment below about your favorite project shown and you will be entered for a chance to win.

A winner will be chosen next Tuesday and announced Wednesday here on the blog.

Stampington will send it right to you.

Thanks for stopping by....

Every Collection Starts With One... Aprons

My husband's grandmother was the sweetest woman.

Before she died, she gave me one of her aprons.

I never wore it, but it hung in my kitchen at our first house and does the same in our home now.

Soon, it had friends...

And like all sweet souls, they attracted more friends...

And more friends...

And more friends...

And so on...

Each one has a sweet little personality of its own.

I loved the sweet rosebud fabric in this one.

This one was well-loved and I got a kick out of the ruffle along the bottom.

More pretty pink rosebuds...and a pocket.

This one seems like a cocktail party apron.

The sheerness seems impractical, but I loved those birds.

How sweet are they?

This one is extra long to go the whole way around the wearer.

See?

It has the button hole to pass the tie through.

I love the colors, fabric and tiny pockets on this one.

Fun diagonal detailing...

This one reminds me of those old fabric wall calendars.

Fun fabric and rick rack made this one impossible to pass up.

I like polka dots.

And this one has been well-used.

I can imagine what heavy items started to pull the stitching.

Maybe the wearer tucked her hands in there often and that pulled away at the seams.

This one just epitomizes aprons to me...

Great colors and fun strawberries.

It has a few stains that have not come out after repeated washings.

Each stain has a story, a secret I will never know.

The crisp white of this one is lovely.

See those darling blue birds on the pocket?

Almost all my aprons except for the first one and this next one were picked up at flea markets for $1 each.

This red gingham one I bought at a church craft show.

 The lady selling them had not sold any.

I knew it was a gingham friend for Grandma's first orange gingham apron.

I also loved that the woman made aprons...

It seemed so nostalgic.

Most of my collection tie around the waist.

  I have just a couple that have a chest covering.

This one is a child's apron.

The only one in my collection.

I thought this one was a sweetheart...

Sorry...

I could not resist.

And this last one is so practical.

Like any collection, it begins with one.

I have them all hanging on a little hook rack on the side of my fridge.

In the summer I take them all down and wash and hang them on the line.  

I hope you enjoy seeing them today.

What special things do you collect?

Thanks for stopping by....

Linking up with these great blogs.

New Chicken Coop

We have had chickens for about 4 years this time around.

We started with 6 chicks.

After a series of unfortunate mishaps, we ended up with 3- 2 hens and a rooster.

Twice we have allowed them to hatch out sets of eggs in the last 4 years.  

Each time, all 10 eggs hatched.  

Each time we kept 2-3 hens and found homes for all the rest.

Our little flock had 7 banty hens and a rooster.

This year we added 2 Araucana chicks.

To accommodate the bigger flock, we added an additional chicken coop. 

We started with an 8 x 10 shed.

Half was dedicated to the birds.

Half was dedicated to storage.

This shelf started as a greenhouse years ago and has been used for chicken supplies for the last several years.

I cut the sides off a burlap sisal sack and used it to drape over the shelves and hide supplies.

The bottom shelf has a tub of straw.

The next shelf up has buckets, dustpans and such.

An old wagon holds galvanized trash cans with chicken food.

Every chicken coop needs a stool to sit on while watching the birds...

If you have your own flock, you know some feeders are better received than others.

This red feeder is a spare because it is not their favorite.

The top shelf is mostly decorative items.

The green basket and galvanized pail hold feathers from the chickens. 

 When find a good one, it gets saved here.

  I use them for projects later.

The blue enamelware pan holds eggs while I refill feeders and such.

There are 2 nesting boxes.

The plastic bins make it very easy to take them out to clean them.

We have added another board for them to fly up on before getting into the boxes since I took the picture.

I love my chicken coop...

We were hoping for two hens...

We think one is a rooster.

Uh-oh.

Here they are at about 2 months old.

Thanks for stopping by...

Linking up with these great blogs.

Yarn Wrapped Candy Cane Ornament

Time for another quick ornament. 

Have you been keeping up?

This one starts with a piece of heavy wire.

I use rebar wire from the fencing section of home improvement stores.

You can also use an old wire hanger.

Cut the wire and bend it into a candy cane shape.

Then I used hot glue to glue the end of some heavy red and white yarn I had.

Then I wrapped it continually around the wire, gluing every so often.

When I got the whole thing covered, I  glued the end to the candy cane.  

Once the glue was dry, I trim the end with scissors.

I make a mixture of hot water, coffee and ground cinnamon.

 I soak the ornaments in it for about 30 minutes.

  I remove them and hang them over a drying rack in my garage until they are dry.

Now they are ready for the tree or a package.

Thanks for stopping by...

Grubby Snowman Ornaments

Are you keeping up with the ornament ideas I am sharing each month?

Not to worry...

I will do a great round up post before Christmas in case you have missed any.

Today is a sweet Grubby  Country Snowman.

Believe it or not, this little guy starts with a couple white pom poms.

Use a glue gun to glue three together in a snowman shape.

Paint a toothpick orange.

Snip off the end and glue it in the top pom pom for a nose.

Add two black beads for eyes with the glue gun as well.

Mix some white school glue, water, strong coffee and ground cinnamon.

Put on a pair of latex or vinyl gloves to protect your hands.

Roll the snowman around in the glue mixture and sqeeze it into the pom poms.

Squeeze to remove excess glue.  

Lay on a plastic tray to dry.  

I usually wait overnight and then turn them and let the last side dry completely.

Tie a little strip on for a scarf and glue a button on as well.

For the string hanger, I use crochet thread and a needle to pass the string through the snowman's head.

I cut the string and tie a knot.

I also make a variation with one large pom pom.

It makes a cute snowman head ornament.

The nose is made from orange Sculpey clay this time and the eyes are bigger half round eyes.

I add a little garland around some for a halo.

I use the same method to add the string to hang it.

I usually make a whole pack of pom poms at a time.

I just change the details for each one.

Thanks for stopping by...