Happy Easter !!!!

Happy Easter, Y'all !!!!

Hope you all had a great day.


Ours didn't go as planned so we're considering this a practice run and we'll do the whole family thing next week. Seriously. All I can say, things did seem a lot brighter by the sun of the day!! Sometimes you just need to roll with the punches.

Busy, Busy, Busy !!

Once again, I've missed a few posts. While I miss getting the chance to chat with y'all it's been a good thing. I've been busy working on orders!!!

I was beginning to worry as business had been slower than I had anticipated but suddenly, folks started calling and a few etsy sales started rolling in and, all of a sudden, I'm quite busy!

Most of my repeat clients have wanted customized designs which have involved some real brainstorming and numerous test sketches. This weekend alone, I've had numerous projects in the works. I finally drafted a ride-on plush duck pattern that worked. (The first two drafts just weren't anything to quack about!) It's sewn, stuffed and painted. (That's him above. Just wanted to give y'all a sneak peek!) All that's left to do is attach the functional soft sculpture wheels tomorrow. (Okay, so nothing is easy!)

I switched gears and paint boxes and moved on to a couple of customized and personalized painted wine glasses. They're baking now. (The paint is a heat set type of enamel.) I've finished dying a onesie to the right shade of green and it's currently in the dryer. I'll be painting that in the morning.

I've spent the last hour sanding a wooden stool so I can do the first base coat before going to bed. The wooden pieces take the longest to paint as they need multiple layers of base coat and are shellacked before I even begin the detail work. There's a lot of "drying time" involved between coats.

Within the next few minutes, I'm starting to paint two custom design shirts. Both feature hamsters. These are my first hamsters and they aren't as easy to sketch as one might think. (Go ahead. Draw one. Does his personality shine through? Would a total stranger know it's a hamster and NOT a guinea pig or such?) It's a shame no one has ordered an armadillo, as that's what one of my early sketches looked like! Grandma has provided very specific details as to the proper coloring of each of the hamsters.

I'll have to post some finished pics for you tomorrow. For now, I've got to get busy!!

Sunshine, Rivers and Ducks

This was my friend's last day in town and we really wanted to go out for a nice lunch before she had to leave. She's a mountain girl and just loves to soak up our warm sunshine along the water when she's here.



After a business appointment this morning, we headed out for our special meal. I pushed aside some of the fancier restaurants in town and opted instead for the sandwich shack at our favorite waterfront park.


We got some really tasty lunches and sat at a little umbrella table on the deck overlooking the point at which the Susquehanna River meets the Bush River and the Chesapeake Bay. It was an absolutely beautiful day with temps hovering around 80 and just the slightest of breezes.
The restaurant sits on the parking lot of a small marina and the boats sparkled in the sunshine. A wooden boardwalk-like promenade runs for about a mile and half, starting from the parking lot, going around the point and along the edge of the coastline to one of the original lighthouses from this area. There's an endless stream of walkers ranging from elderly folks with canes to young moms with babies in strollers walking the boards on any given day. The water is shallow along the boardwalk and the ducks, seagulls and a variety of other critters entertain the masses with their water antics and loud squawks and calls.

We stopped to watch the ducks and we found one of my neighbors taking her daily stroll and chatted for a bit. It was truly a beautiful afternoon and I decided to share some of those sights with you tonight.
You've heard of the Ugly Daschund but do you think these ducks will notice that gull encroaching on their territory?




This guy seemed to think he was the dockmaster and sat at his post letting out some super loud shrieks and calls. Some appeared to take all the strength he could muster to shout them out! His whole body would get into the act! We loved watching him.





It was just so peaceful there, we hated to leave!












This is the same park that The Big Guy and I used to go have lunch in after his PT appointments last Fall when he had his knee surgery.


Today's lunch reminded me how much I enjoyed those lunches.


Here's hoping y'all had wonderful weather and got a chance to get out and enjoy it.