Hello Summer!






Today was the first day of summer vacation and we hit the road with some friends for a morning of strawberry picking at Hutchinson Farm.It was an incredible morning for picking berries. The sun was warm and the breeze was lovely (bonus: it kept the bugs away).

Hutchinson's is a smaller family owned farm. Nothing commercial which I love. An old fashioned farm stand greets you where you can buy your baskets and yummy strawberry yogurt pops. They also sell lots of pretty plants and flowers.

There is an amazing crop of strawberries this year. I'm not sure if this is the case at other farms, but where we were you barely had to move from your spot in the hay to fill your basket.

and some of us ate more than we picked!


a sweet summer day with friends...

Have a wonderful long weekend :)

Debra



special delivery...




I'm happy to announce that regular mail service is back (after the Canada Post strike) for all customers of my Etsy shop.

Inspiration can come in the most unusual places...today a trip to my friendly neighborhood post office inspired me to put together this collection of finds from Etsy.

The photo above is of a gift I wrapped today for a birthday party my daughter is attending this weekend. A vintage postal bag. I love these and wish I could find more. I filled the bag with a letter making kit (stamps, ink pad and paper).

a map of Canada pillow cover by Nicole Tarasick

vintage air mail stamps are perfect for mailings,special packaging or making stationery from Moss Pudding

a very beautiful vintage globe from The Vintage Wife

isn't this so simple and lovely?
an air mail garland from Kiss (Me Go)

Personalize your own post card pillow!
So sweet! from Olive Handmade

always useful and beautiful air mail bakers twine from Inspire Lovely

lot of vintage Dennison stickers and labels packaged up so sweetly you will want to put them on display from Regina's Studio

enjoy your happy mail :)

Debra



Oh My Handmade Goodness!




I wanted to share with you a wonderful website that I started contributing to in the last few months called Oh My Handmade Goodness.

Oh My Handmade Goodness is " a community for independent children’s retailers and the hip parents who support them." Jessika Hepburn is the Editor extraordinaire behind Oh My Handmade. She is the heart and soul of this website which brings together independent artisans, designers, and industry experts to share what they love.

I'm so honored to be part of such an exceptional group of creative artisans and industry experts.

You can read my contribution for this month's "Meet the Makers" series where I write about "Budding Makers: Creating inspiring spaces for children to create".

Enjoy!

Debra

ontario berry time..


Ontario berries are in season now..yum!

I'm sorry but these are the best berries, next to the ones we pick in P.E.I. in July. I love that we get to have two seasons of picking. One here, one out east.

This is a photo of our first bowl of berries this season.

I was surprised to see them at the market. The weather here has been unpredictable and it hasn't really felt warm enough to think about berry picking but the time is here!

This is a sweet fabric berry that my daughter bought a few of years ago at The Spring Handmade Market I coordinated in Toronto at The Gladstone. It's hard to believe it has been two years already.

I am always drawn to vintage enamelware and have quite a collection. I spotted this piece on Etsy at Calloohcallay

I love picking with old wooden baskets. Wouldn't these be great to use at an outdoor bbq to hold your fresh pickings? I spotted these at Rolling Hills Vintage

Vintage jelly and jam jars from Luncheonette Vintage can be used for canning (just make sure you sterilize the jars and use new lids and tops!) or to hold small bouquets of fresh flowers.

Label your jars with these vintage labels from Kelley Street Vintage or use them on gift tags or cards.

A sweet little vintage birthday card just because I thought it was charming. From Paper Picker



a bridal tea


stamped muslin bags filled with organic, fair trade tea


Today I was putting the final touches on the favor bags I was creating for a bridal tea. Natural, muslin bags were stamped using a vintage stamp set and filled with organic, fair-trade Peppermint Amour tea from David's Tea.

Inside each bag I tucked a card with brewing tips. The muslin bags were tucked inside simple white cups from Ikea, wrapped in cello and a personalized tag was added for use as both a favor and a place card.

This is the lovely color palette I was working with for the invitations, gift tags, thank you cards and favors.
I had fun sampling the vast variety of teas available at the store. I discovered a few new favorites while I was there that are perfect for brewing as iced tea...yum!

I hope the bride and her guests have a great time at the bridal shower this weekend at the elegant Windsor Arms Hotel in Toronto. I hope they share photos!



A crafternoon to remember...


Yesterday we celebrated Isabella's birthday.
What a "crafternoon" it was!

Pouring rain and thunder rumbling in the sky weren't stopping this party from happening. We just moved everything inside. Although not the "garden" party we had planned we did get to spend some time outside.

Crafts:
The girls created pretty flower hairbands using glittery hairbands, paper flowers and vintage buttons. So simple to make. All you need is a glue gun and your supplies.

Fabric cuff bracelets adorned with beads, buttons and flowers. This craft was a bit more complicated as the girls attempted to sew the beads and buttons onto a strip of plain cotton canvas. For those who didn't want to sew, my glue gun was handy.

Decor:
japanese paper lanterns with silk butterflies
bright orange gerbera daisies in vintage mason jars
jars of vintage thread spools and buttons

Food:
The girls drank pink lemonade out of jam jars wrapped in bakers twine and ate grilled hotdogs wrapped in paper doilies
yummy chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches.
Chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream icing were adorned with paper umbrella toppers.

Fun & Games:
Isabella created her own photo props using bamboo sticks and construction paper...big red lips, mustaches, crazy sunglasses and unibrows to name a few. The girls had fun posing for some photos with these.
Blowing bubbles, playing backyard games, chatting and eating ice cream sandwiches kept them entertained.

Favors:
I love putting together a special gift for guests to take home. Cotton muslin bags stamped with the girls initials held chinese silk lipstick cases, Lipsmackers, a pretty posy ring, a candy stick and a paper lantern.

A rainy day turned into a fun afternoon with lots of giggling, treats and happy birthday wishes for my sweet Isabella.