Trying something new---a slide show of lots of my alteredart- most all with vintage goodies!

These goodies are either in http://cigarboxbeads.etsy.com or http://suchandsort/etsy.com or http://suchandsortaltered.etsy.com

....when I should be doing something else...

I've been working on altering some vintage medicine bottles- from a long closed pharmacy---it's fun, but I get carried away--and I do have so many little vintagey things I've collected- I could probably go on forever! ;)

I think one of the bottles is an old time laxative- and one thyroid meds...I've left the labels on---just because I hate to remove them--

Sleep is eluding me.....

so i'm fiddlefartin' around on the computer!

Let me tell you about our Thanksgiving---well--not everything ;>)

We had our feast on Saturday, because Beth and Bruce ( older daughter and hub) and the twinnies went to his family's house for their feast--i don't mind holding off--so we ate on sat.

i started cooking fri. night, continued on through sat---finally sat down to eat around 5ish--and the food was good, if i do say so myself--even stayed hot for everyone.

We sat all over the house to eat- and baby ryan and the twinnies, jillie and jojo, added some drama--ryan running full speed into the coffee table and the girlies, did a little arguing, whining and fighting....

but--isn't that what family dinners are all about? ;>)

here's a picture of me, holding ryan---actually, she's busy trying to get off my lap to run into more mischief! I look 3 sheets to the wind- and ryan has pieces of cookie all over her dress---a regular Madonna and Child! heh heh

But---everyone enjoyed their meal--couldn't get the girls to be still for a picture- maybe their mom got one--we'll see.


Today, i put a bunch of new goodies up in my etsy shops---mostly in http://suchandsort.etsy.com and http://suchandsortaltered.etsy.com i've kind of been ignoring all my shops, trying to help a fellow cccoe-er 'run' the Black Friday Sale for CCCOE ---i hope some got lots of sales--me---nada!

but, as i just mentioned----the meal was good--heh heh heh heh--

till later when i'm roaming the house at 4-5 am..............

marilyn

At the Kid's Table.........

Jillian, Sammy and Joely


Hubby's brother, wife and most of their kids and grandkids were visiting from Sacramento last weekend-- we had the annual 'lobster fest', that my hubby loooooves!
Lots of work for the rest of us, but he does boil the lobsters to get them ready.

We take the food over to our daughter's home, because she has much more room---plus she has our 'old' big table, blah, blah, blah---makes it more work---but we did have fun!

After the adults ate--the 7 year olds ate--the twinnies and their cousin Sammy--we call them The Triplets now! ...and they really got along well---

Here they are, posing!

better pics of 'the pirate house on the corner'! ;>)

Most of the candy is gone...

and I didn't eat it all! But I'm exhausted!

We have a neighbor who goes all out-Pirate for Halloween---and the result is---everyone from probably a 50 mile radius comes to our neighborhood to check it out--and of course---go trick or treating on our street!

I went through 2 huge Costco bags of candy---sat out front ( it's easier) from about 6:30 on---little secret--had 2 glasses of wine---we call it 'mam mam's wa wa' heh heh-got me through the experience~

Of course, the girlies and mommies and daddies were over--here are some pictures and a not very good picture of the Pirate House~

...Happy Halloweenie...

just found myself in a new treasury this weekend---from my etsy vintage team--it's my men and their bells and such...bracelet..

http://www.etsy.com/listing/16709695/men-and-their-bells-keys-and-coffee

http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cccacbc36588eef1e3edaa4/vintage-holiday-gift-guide-for-the-hard

a Halloween Preview...

Here are the girlie bumblebees at the Halloween Parade at their school today!

They are so cute---wonder what baby ryan---who is now 14 mos. old will be--mommy keeps changing---just like when she was a little girl! ;>)

Altering, altering----over-altering! ;>)

I recently opened my 4th etsy store---yeah---why---i'm nutzy- as my friend Sherry Goodloe ( http://gotart4u.blogspot.com/ )says---i must suffer from 'Artzheimers'---( so happy Sherry is doing well!

I moved goodies around from my suchandsort store on etsy--which was just what it said---this and that---and started putting altered creations in my suchandsortaltered shop--this is for the Halloweeny season---I found the old photo in an antique store- it says 'Dennis' on the back- so I made it all about Dennis!

Lordy- where have I been?

I've been a bad old farty lady---;>)

Too much going on in this house/famdamily and I sort of let my poor blog go to la la land!

Tonight I got an etsy convo from a great etsian, asking me why I quit posting---and I'd been thinking about it myself--- so here we go- http://www.etsy.com/shop/ButterflyBayDesign - thanks for giving me the shove I needed! ;>)

Just got home from Bunco---took the babydaddyin-law as a sub and the old ladies love him----asked him to join! ;>)))) and he loves it, too!

Here's a picture of Ryan---the child of my daughter and babydaddyinlaw! She was a year on September 4th and she's walking all over the place!....and in my house- there is SO much stuff to get into---but that's okay---it's only 'stuff'!

( that's ranch dressing all over her face---she loves ranch, just like her mommy and her cousins, jillian and joely! )

Etsy Cottage Style

Happy 5th of July! I cannot believe it's July--where does the time go?

I remember when i was a youngster, I could not wait until 1960-- when I would be 20 yrs old! Now it's 2010, and I'll be 70--where oh where did all that time go? A hint to youngsters--don't wish your life away! ;>)

My shop, http://suchandsort.etsy.com has a lot of shabby, cottagy goodies, and I'm on the Cottage Shabby Team, so today I'm participating in 'Market Mondays' please check out the badge on the right for info--and have a great summery week. ( we're still suffering from June gloom here, and I'm ready for some heat--the gloom gives me sinus headaches and arthur-itis agony--so I'm ready for the summer!)

Old Bottles- but not as old as me!

well- some of these vintage bottles and tubes and tins might almost be as old as me-;>)--remember, a while back, I think I mentioned that i got a bunch of bottles at a garage sale in my neighborhood? Just thought I'd post some of the pictures here- there ARE more, but these are a few that I decided to immortalize here! ;>)

They're from a long closed drug store, in Long Beach, CA, if I remember correctly.

What I did on the weekend!

I took another great class from Sherry Goodloe--http://gotart4u.blogspot.com/ and http://www.etsy.com/shop/gotart

This one was held at a great little shop named Whimzy, in Old Town Tustin---I got there about 5 minutes early, and of course, had to go through the shop--and I needed this--and this---and this.....;>)

But, on to the class--this time was a great charm necklace. Sherry is such a great teacher and had another great kit for her students! I took some other little goodies with me, that I'd been saving ( hoarding!) and used those as well---Sherry had some great hints- that only come from someone who knows what they are doing and has found ways to make fun work- more fun- and easier----which leads to more ideas from the students--

It was a great day, and here is my finished product! ( well, maybe I'll add some other goodies later!)

Checy Sherry's blog for pictures of some other great necklaces!

My 'new' design!

Back to beadin' ---I guess I shouldn't say that- I think it's a trademarked phrase--but, oh well--I am back to beadin'!

A few months ago, I designed and beadwove a collar for an 'etsy-friend' and after finishing, thought about what else I could do with the idea--so I came up with a Choker/Collar combination--a 'Chokollar'! My first is in a netting stitch, black and grey, tied with silk hand dyed ribbons--kind of goth- kind of Victorian...please check it out--see what you think! It's in my etsy shop - http://cigarboxbeads.etsy.com

Back Again!

Busy family stuff here--I did get some delicas together to work on the owl feather bracelet I plan to do, in memory of my sister-in-law- working on a bead embroidered pendant focal- almost finished, and a black and silver netted collar, awaiting black hand dyed silk ribbon!

And.....I've been working on some memory collage boxes. Today, I attended a class taught by Sherry Goodloe, of Got Art - http://gotart4u.blogspot.com/ and http://www.etsy.com/shop/gotart . She's such a great teacher and her 'kits' are just perfect. There were 10 of us in the class, and each and every one of us left with great memory boxes! ( most of us didn't want to leave, but....;>) ) I don't take too many classes, I usually attempt to learn on my own, but Sherry always makes it fun AND relaxing--so, as one of my 'classmates' mentioned--it was just like a day away at a Spa!

Here are some pics of mine, I think I want to add a few more things, but I'm really happy with how it turned out! Thank you, Sherry! ♥

Maybe my pixies took me away! ;>)

yeah- i know, i've been gone---

We had some sad things happening in our family- my sister-in-law, who lived in Moorhead, MN--across the river from Fargo--passed away unexpectedly...so..we went back for the services.

I know people who live in Fargo, probably love Fargo---but I'm so happy we live in CA!

A very moving experience happened to my brother-in-law and sister-in-law about 2 days before her death. There was a young Horned Owl, apparently injured- in the empty lot across the street from their home. They watched it for a day, called Animal Control- but it was the weekend- and they couldn't come out- My bil fashioned a kind of protective cage for the baby, until the AC could come out- They woke up the next morning to find that the owl had died. When AC did come out- my sil asked for some owl feathers -- My sil died 2 days later. She was cremated and my bil added one of the owl feathers into the grave with her cremains.

We have since found that there is a Native American - probably Lakota, tradition about this same happening--this is a message I received from an etsy NA friend--


" by whitebuffalodesigns

Marilyn,

Do you know that the Lakota have a belief
that a close personal encounter with Owl
is a harbinger of a death to come?
Usually it is a warning that is personal
or about a close relative.
They look at it as a message to compose
their souls & be ready to move on.
Owl is held in very high regard by the
Lakota and many other tribes. Some
believe Owl is the 'soul carrier' to the
next life.

I wish I could remember where that legend
is written down. Its a very interesting
concept.

I will keep you and your extended family in
my prayers.

aisv nvwadohiyada (walk in peace & healing)
Tsoi Anisoquili-(3horses) "

very moving and meaningful to me.

Marilyn's Museum of the Odd--grand re-re-re opening!

One of my good CCCOE etsy friends visited the other day--I hope she still isn't in shock- my 'museum' is kind of overwhelming! ;>)

I've had a few problems with someone 'messing' with me/my comments/my paypal lately, and so I've been laying low---but, nothing gets accomplished by any of that- so I'm 'coming out' again! ;>) I have 'broad shoulders', but I don't like it when my friends and etsy-friends are drawn into messes because of me. I learned after teaching a few years, that I wasn't always 'liked', but I didn't appreciate it when others were 'damaged' because of me.

So---any problems- please come to me- and please don't 'hurt' my friends.

Seriousness over---some more goodies from my *Museum*! ;>) ((warning- some are not 'politically correct', but remember - they were created many years ago---when common-sense about some things wasn't always apparent!))

Reopening the Museum of the Odd...

The Museum is still open- but Marilyn has been on hiatus! ;>) I took some of my overflow pixies to our booth at the Antique Store today---it was difficult- but someone has to do it! Maybe there will be someone else out there who has a pixie museum and HAS to have these little strange creatures!

I still have a lot- though, scarily enough!

Here is a new batch- these are kind of cute- they're 'Josefs', and are pretty expensive now- but I got them before everyone else was looking for them --sometimes I'm lucky that way---too lucky, the hubby would say!

Marilyn's Museum of the Odd - part 6

Can you believe it? More odd little guys! These kind of look like Snap, Krackle and Pop!

I hope I'm not the promoter of nightmares---but these little guys seem to watch over me---while they're lookin' at me! ;>)

( check out all those vintage bottle caps in the pickle jar behind these guys---no- i don't collect them, i just happened to come by them and 'knew that i could use them someday!'- didn't want to see them thrown away--is that kind of close to hoarding? ;>) )

really odd! # 5

check these guys out---talk about odd! ;>)

Museum Of The Odd #4 ;>)

more strange--but cute--pixie guys!

( see that little wooden playhouse piano on the righthand side? mine when i was very young ---i've mentioned before--i don't throw ANYTHING away!)

Museum of the Odd # 3

more strange pixies in Marilyn's Museum...odd, but cute!

Marilyn's Museum of the Odd-2

Okay- something different in my 'museum of the odd'------

This is an old Midol bottle full of volcanic ash from Mount St. Helen's, way back in the day---yep, it's all I had to collect the ash, and I'm NOT throwing it away! ;>0

heh heh

My New **Feature*** --don't laugh! --well, it's okay

to laugh! ;>)

I think everyone who knows me, knows that I collect--ah---weird sh!t! ;>) My family - our daughters--mock me ( lovingly, of course-) and my husband just shakes his head and tries to ignore my collecting 'proclivities'! heh heh

So ---I've decided to post some of my strange things every so often, and am calling it 'Marilyn's Museum of The Odd'--

Here is the first installment ( I went to dust them today, and figured I needed a before and after picture---actually, the dust is great when we have earthquakes--my goodies stick to the surface they're sitting on and don't fall over! ;>) )

My new learning curve! Tin Can Art!

Last weekend- i attended a great class - my second one from a great teacher - Carolyn Waitt!

This was something really new for me, and i loved learning about it--my first try needs a lot of help- but it was fun- the class was fun, everyone there and the teacher- great and it was at Linda Bucci's home in Costa Mesa--such a great house and backyard!

So - here is my tin can bracelet--it isn't finished yet, i still have to get the right size holes in the tin, and my wire wrapping needs help--but i did cut out the little charms without hurting myself!

(also at the class, was Sherri Goodloe--someone i met at the last class i attended at Linda's--who is such a great multi-media artist and has a great blog---http://gotart4u.blogspot.com/ - please go there and check out her great goodies ---those zentangles are something i'd like to learn too-----but----i digress! ;>) )

ps--my camera is acting up - pictures aren't great - but....

oh, oh, oh---i almost forgot......

I've been lucky enough to be included in 2 Front Page Treasuries on Etsy --in the last week! whoot---;>)

The Zipper Cuff in OAS Treasury-


and the necklace in EfiaFair's Treasury!