Wednesday, November 30

Red Flannel Nightgown

I found a wonderful website today. Dolly&Me has a beautiful collection of American Doll and mother/daughter matching dresses. I was looking for ideas to make clothes for Grandma and the girls and found lots of pretty dresses and accessories on this site.

My mother made matching dresses for my sister and me. I made matching dresses for myself and my daughter. I don't know if people still do that, but I thought it was fun back then.

I made Grandma a "flannel" nightgown for Christmas after seeing a cute one at the Dolly&Me site.



I used poly/cotton interlock fabric aka "t-shirt" fabric. The nice thing about this fabric is it doesn't fray, stretches a bit and you don't really have to finish the edges. This night gown is an easy one piece pattern. The only sewing is on the side seams.



I'm excited because now Grandma actually has something that actually fits! :D I just need to decide which is the front and which is the back? Grandma refused to pose for a photo. She is still upset about her hair...

I'm also trying to make her some Christmas oven mitts. Hope to have these done before Christmas? The pattern is from the Dollhouse Brazil tutorials link.



Hope you have a good day!

Monday, November 28

Heigh Ho!

I'm going back to work today! For a while anyway...



Thought you might like to sing along? No matter where you are!




Thanks for visiting my little blog! Thanks for your prayers! Thanks for your warm wishes for a speedy recovery too! :D


Hope you have a wonderful day!


Friday, November 25

Eggs for Breakfast








Recipe:

Wash and dry eggshells
Paint with acrylic paint, let dry
Break into tiny pieces

Paint 3/4 inch round woodsies
Draw a simple Christmas shape

Paint "plate" with clear glue
Add colored eggshells to pattern

Fill in background white pearl eggshells
When dry, seal with several coats of gloss ModPodge.


For my first one, I used my dear Dremel to add a rim to the plate. Not sure I like that? This one only has one coat of ModPodge.


I may try just using cardstock circles instead of woodsies?

If I had real porcelain plates I would try those too...

Hope you have a happy day!

Thursday, November 24

Happy Thanksgiving!

Photo from Heartland Writer's Group




Good morning and Happy Thanksgiving!

I just want to say "Thank You" for your kind thoughts and prayers. My surgery went very well. I am at home, feeling great and so very thankful!

My sweet daughter and I baked pumpkin pies last night. YUM!

I'll be going to her house for dinner later today. :D




Not sure how much "dinner" I will be able eat, but I'm going to try!

I have a little "therapy stick" that I'm supposed to use 10 times every hour to help keep my jaw mobile. I'm very proud to say that I can open my mouth all the way to the goal line with some effort!


God is so good! I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day my friends!

Monday, November 21

Open Wide!

For the past few months I have lived on liquids and soft foods. I am so sick of soup I could scream!

I want to be able to open my mouth wide!



I want to bite into an apple again! A nice juicy steak sounds great too. Right now I can hardly get my toothbrush into my mouth!

I have had pain in my jaw off and on for years. I've seen several specialists. Finally, the recent MRI I had revealed the real problem. I have severe osteoarthritis in both of my TMJ joints. I also have torn cartilage and a dislocated disc. To put it simply, my jaw is a mess.

At 4:30 tomorrow morning I will be going to the hospital. I will be having TMJ surgery on both sides of my jaw.



I have complete confidence in my surgeon. He comes highly recommended and is very well respected. People from all over come to Birmingham to have him do their reconstructive surgeries. He is very kind, gentle and caring. Cute, too. ;D

My surgery is called "Arthroplasty TMJ Surgery." Here is a description of the procedure - "More complicated cases of TMJ may require an arthroplasty. These procedures involve making an incision along the ear so the joint space can be examined and adhesions removed, bone spurs shaved and discs sutured or replaced."

Dr. Koslin said the procedure takes about an hour or so. I will be under anesthesia for a nice drug-induced nap. He said I will be able to go home the same day and eat soft foods the next day. More soft foods!


Thankfully, most Thanksgiving Day food is soft and mushy. Like the pumpkin pie I'm going to make tonight! I may not be able to eat the crust, but the pumpkin inside? Maybe.

I'm confident that I will do just fine and be back soon. Please pray for me and for my doctors and nurses. God will take good care of me. He always has.

Hope you have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Making A Box

I'm getting ready to mail Jennifer's gifts. I don't have a box the right size for the Christmas tree so I thought I would try to make one.



I found this video on YouTube that is very helpful. I made a practice box out of a file folder. This box is too small but now that I know how to make one, I can make it larger. If you want to make mini boxes check out this earlier post.




Hope you will try making your own boxes. There are lots of "how to videos" online. I like this one too.



Hope you have fun today!




Sunday, November 20

The Time Has Come! The Time Is NOW!


It is time to announce the WINNER of my Followers Give-A-Way! Thank you to everyone who entered and for all of your very sweet comments! Welcome to my new followers too!

I wrote all of your names on a piece of paper. I cut them apart, mixed them up, closed my eyes and picked the winner!

Congratulations to Jennifer @ Plushpussycat! Jennifer is one of my newer followers! :D

Here is Jennifer's comment: "Congratulations on 450 followers! Please count me in on your giveaway. I think I know what you're making, and I am thrilled! I'll put a link on my blog now!"


I hope you enjoy your little gifts Jennifer! Perhaps they will find their way into Dad's Dollhouse? Please email me with your address so I can send your gifts to you soon.


I really enjoyed making these little things. I wish I could have finished the chandelier, but I need more practice to make it perfect!

Please visit Jennifer's blog to congratulate her. She makes the cutest little hand sewn critters! I think she has three dollhouses too? Go see!

I hope you have a beautiful day and thank you for participating in my give-a-way!




Saturday, November 19

Picks in Progress

There are still some bare spots on the Christmas tree. I'm making some little floral picks to fill in the gaps. Right now I'm waiting for glue to dry.



I thought adding a little lime green would be pretty too?



I'm very sorry to announce that there will be no chandelier included this time. I don't have time to finish it before the drawing tomorrow. I hope you will understand...

You have until midnight tonight to enter the give-a-way! I am so excited to see who will win. I will post photos of the completed gifts in the morning and announce the winner!





Friday, November 18

Time to Trim the Tree

I know it's not even Thanksgiving yet, but I have a little tree to trim. . .



I love making things in my favorite color! Hope you like it too. :D

Wednesday, November 16

This Is Only A Test


I'm working on the chandelier again today. My first attempt was not so successful. When I tested the lights they snapped, crackled and popped. Sparks, smoke... scary!

This one is going to be better. At least the light works!

Tuesday, November 15

Mini Angel

I made a mini angel.


Now there are three gifts ready for my give-a-way!



You still have time to enter! I'm working on two more!


Sunday, November 13

Two For You

I finished two of my gifts for the give-a-way this morning.

There will be more...

Don't forget to sign up if you would like a chance to win!

Saturday, November 12

Wiring 101



I've been talking with Shelly at Evans Designs and another miniaturist, Julia (no blog), about how to make a lighted chandelier.



The wiring has me stumped right now but I'm asking questions and learning! The light will work (I hope) on a battery with a switch so it can be placed anywhere in your dollhouse or roombox.

Hopefully, by next weekend I can show you the finished product? Thanks to everyone who has signed up for my Give-A-Way! You still have time to enter. I will announce the winner on Sunday, November 20th.

Friday, November 11

11.11.11

Remembering those who serve.


God bless America!


Wednesday, November 9

Puppy Love


Dylan and Toby sound asleep. So sweet. . .

I love how Dylan sleeps with his pink tongue sticking out. Toby will probably get a bath when he wakes up. :D

Hope you have a day filled with lots of love!

Tuesday, November 8

My Favorite Minis

I couldn't wait to place some of my favorite minis in the kitchen. :D


The little blue glass blender was one of the first miniatures I purchased. It's fun to finally see it in the kitchen! I love the coffee cup with my name on it too.

IF I can get my printer working again, I'm going to make a decal for the dishwasher door and those mixology books I mentioned earlier. I still need to finish the sink cabinet and add the faucets and counter top. I used "Elmer's Stix All" glue for the tiles on the backsplash.

I'm excited to see how many of you have signed up for my Follower's Give-A-Way! I've ordered a few more supplies and then I can get to work on your gift. I will post a photo of it when I'm finished.

Hope you have a happy day! It's absolutely beautiful here in Birmingham today. Blue sky, warm temperature and the fall leaves are breathtaking!

Monday, November 7

Printer Problems!




I'm not quite to this point.... but I can see it coming!!!!!

Saturday, November 5

450 Followers Give-A-Way - Entries Now Closed

To honor YOU, my 450 followers, I am having a give-a-way! I can't show you what my gift will be just yet, but these are some of the things I will be using to make it.



I've been wanting to do this for a long time! If you would like a chance to win this sight unseen gift, just comment on this post!

Here are the rules. You must be a follower of Beautiful Mini Blessings and you must have a blog of your own. One entry per person please.

I will draw the winning name on Sunday, November 20th. Thank you so much for reading my blog and for all of your wonderful comments! I really appreciate each and every one of you!

I can't wait to see who wins!

Dishwasher

Once the door is installed on the dishwasher you will never see what's inside.


But. If I spend an entire morning working on something, you can bet your bottom dollar I'm going to show it to you! LOL


I hope you have a happy day!

I am VERY happy today! There are now 450 FOLLOWERS reading my little blog! Thank you!

Tomorrow, I will announce a give-a-way. Be sure to come back and sign up!