Have a Happy Easter!

 

 

More Victorian Ornaments

 

A Crafty Holiday Blog

  Frankie ate the cord for my tablet, so my activity is limited. Last night was Christmas at Joanna Furnace, and I had a blast as usual. Funny but while I was using the restroom there were several old women in line complaining. I'll get to that. First, we started off at Stampede BBQ. That's a favorite place that we only frequent once a year. They have homemade cider, and I had chili and hushpuppies. It was truly a night of favorite things. It has been very cold, so I bundled up in two of everything, and know how Bigfoot must feel. I was toasty warm in Mummy's old teddy bear coats. The ladies in the bathroom might've known to dress warmer. I can remember seeing girls shivering in mini skirts back in Pittsburgh; I'm no fool and have no shame. Joanna's never is crowded when it is very cold. The Belsnickel who I once knew and loved must've passed away because he's been replaced by a fellow who is not nearly as scary. The original used to threaten the children and was laden with dead animals like raccoons and minks. Mummy would've loved him; she always got a sadistic thrill threatening us for the holidays. There were several bands of bells who were wonderful, youngsters. The entertainment is different each year. Last year there was a brass band of older gentleman in Edwardian garb. I told them that they were the greatest, but these kids with their bells were delightful. They built a low fence around the yule fire this year which burned. The new dollhouse of the old owner's mansion must've been on loan last year because it was missing. I think the cookies were homemade for once, they are usually Pepperidge Farm. Even though a favorite seller, Mr. Glass, wasn't there, I still came home with some fabulous souvenirs. I got a new favorite crystal, tabular, devic, with phantoms. I think the inner landscape is still growing. There is a woodcarver who I had gotten a gnome in a yellow slicker and a rooster for Ron's stocking from last year whose daughter has been selling for. She was ecstatic that I bought her darling Māori Easter Islander because she had carved it, and it was her first sale. I love being the first patron. It happens more than you'd guess. I have a great eye and fabulous taste. Mummy always said that I had champagne taste and a beer pocketbook. Countess Po' Ass to the rescue! I have several hand knit alpaca finger puppets: a bird, snail, and vulture, and have gifted lots more. I got a crafty looking gray owl who now hides in my Frankie proofed Christmas tree. The dining room table, where I work, is a hot mess. I've been using my vintage Victorian Ornaments book that I got at The Mad Hatter for three dollars. I made a little angel for the top of Norfolk Troll Tree and a caroler to top one of Ron's gifts. I love this book with the original Victorian prints, because it allows you to let loose your inner crafter and use your scraps. I can't find the wreath that Mummy got me for the front door and have leftover wrapping paper, so I'm going to decorate the front door with a big doll, probably a caroler, because I do not think the angel will match as well with the plaid wrapping paper. Next week is the Letitia Penn's Doll Club's Christmas at The William Penn Inn. Thanks for shopping my Ebay sales: Shop Sales. I'm having lots of fun. Happy Holidays! I'll TTYL... 🕯

 

Thank You, Susan!

 

Halloween Himmies

  The boys and I are carving our big pumpkin with a toothy grin. They have both been very naughty lately and don't allow me a moment's peace or rest. Arthur chewed through two harnesses today. His first and special toy, Houdini, might've been his name if he did not already know his name was Arthur. They both came to me at five months old, named and knowing it. Now I have to take him back to Petco again tomorrow to get another harness. That's going to cut into Sunday's doll show funds. I want an itty bitty Punch from the lady I got Franz from last time. I change the names of most of my Himmies and seem to be partial to brownies. I am absolutely partial to gypsies, Indians, and Hexicans, no doubt. Ginger is my big Hawaiian. She has Sam. When I was in Hawaii as a kid, it was mostly Japanese. Anyway, Esmerelda, the Hexican, has my knit scarecrow from Joanna Furnace's Apple Fest that Frankie keeps taking. He takes knits and destroys them. He's not allowed in the doll room unless I'm squeezing him. He is a teddybear. Ron got me Deva's, the Indian, dress in Boo Hexico. It not only looks like it was made for her, but matches her original clothing. I'm already shopping for Victor Nicholas, the Nepalese boy on the way. I like seventies Healthtex. They wear 2-4Ts. Some, like Ginger, are great big: 3-4 feet tall. My Atlantean, Thabi, is my biggest. I don't change her clothes, or haven't. She's just too big. It would be a chore. I get so much enjoyment from these beautiful dolls. TTYL... 🎃

 

I Made The BIGGEST MONSTER HIGH MANSION

Dreams 10/2

 10/2

  Ron and I were having a holiday near the beach. It was someplace like Mystic. We wandered into a little family owned shop that used to be a restaurant where we had eaten before. The place was run by three siblings, two women and a man. I think their names were Anna, Sarah, and Tom, but can’t be sure. Anna was the oldest, probably in her fifties, and Sarah, the youngest, was a plump red head in her forties with pearly white skin. The shop was old, two floors, and interesting. I hadn’t realized that we had been there, years before, for a while. They sold all sorts of crafts. We were talking to all of them, but Sarah, mostly. She told me a story about a ghost tapping her on the shoulder. She said that she was going out in the boat. Ron and I sat down at a crowded counter space and ordered some food. I had two little glasses, one being a clear dessert cocktail with some sort of Sambuca mix that I sipped at. I think the other was just water, but they were both served in long stemmed dessert glassware. I had gotten up from the counter and continued to look around while we were waiting for our food. Just then somebody rushed in saying that Sarah had drowned. We all went down to the pier which was a stone’s throw away. We could see the dinghy in the shallow water, then Sarah, wearing a black one piece bathing suit, very white, on her side. Her face was hidden beneath her ginger curls. She looked like a seashell caught in lichen. We went back to the shop. I went downstairs and found two pieces that Sarah had made, a tiny seashell or stone mermaid, about an inch long, for curing migraines and a seal tray that I think was carved from Larimer. The seal might’ve been for incense. Both had little tags with Sarah’s name handwritten. Things got really chaotic in the shop after the drowning. Everybody was in shock. I was paging through an old scrapbook with baby pictures of Sarah. I had given Anna my items to ring up, and she asked what I was doing downstairs. She also said that the sinus mermaid worked. Two men had robbed the place, stealing sixty dollars worth of merchandise. I was back at my seat at the counter looking at a Scarlet O’Hara craft doll kit: a little cotton poppet to sew with two frocks sealed in a plastic bag with material and instructions. A man and his wife were sitting next to me, and the fellow said that Sarah was an Aries. I told him that I was Aries. He said that he was thirty-nine. He was chubby with olive skin, looked Portuguese.  I told him that I was twenty-nine, and his wife laughed. I was thinking that I was older, but wasn’t lying, had only forgotten. There was an older woman in a yellow and pink striped colonial costume with a mob cap, powdered wig, and clown makeup. I had followed her to Tom’s room, which was like the room Grandpap slept in, Up Camp, the family summer cottage in the country. I went to take the video camera from her until I noticed that she was taping Tom sleeping. I went back to the counter, and Ron wanted to know where I had been and why I hadn’t drunk my drink. He was bagging up his food, some fish and chips, in a brown bag, and I helped. The food was still hot and looked good. By this time everybody had gathered out front, mourning Sarah. There was supposed to be a ball that night, at the shop, but it had been cancelled. 

Dana's Dreams

Dana's Dreams Two

Dana's Dreams Three Revenge of the Dream Hog

Captivating Tarot

Crafter's Dream Antique Jewelry For Sale

Get it on Ebay

 

Mummy's Treasure #3

While things are selling, including Mummy's vintage costume jewelry, here is another set. I have more and will list it as they sell. 

Get Mummy's Treasure #3 on Ebay

  

 

Sir Beltane, Sir Napsalot, & Mr. Magnolia

  The fairy cakes and Ron's fairy house are gone. Sir Beltane is mine. Sir Napsalot is Ron's since I sleep all day because he won't let me have a puppy. Mr. Magnolia stayed in the tree. Ron said it rained twice while I was sleeping, but these fellows stayed dry beneath the tree while I waited for their Super Glue to dry. Their faces are done with Sharpies, and they have a couple of coats of varnish all around. Ron had drilled holes in the nuts for me, and I wired them with pipecleaners. I am not selling them due to fragility, but they are a fun craft for kids while they are learning about trees. I like trees and puppies way more than people. I am working on my first Jennie Wade doll for the Jennie Wade House in Gettysburg. I am making two sizes: ten inch and dollhouse size. I probably won't get back there in awhile as my next plans are for The 1777 Americana Inn in Ephrata. I want to stay in the Garden Room. TTYL... 🎕

 

Beltane Celebration

Dark Violin & Cello Music for Deep Focus

A Tale of Two Forest Rats

Potpourri and Fragrant Crafts

  Ron had gotten me Betsy Williams's Are There Fairies in the Bottom of Your Garden? from the witch at The Green Dragon that he buys me incense and candles from. The fabulous crystal rock hound sells specimens directly across from her. I'd bought a beautiful twin crystal from him, but Ron had gotten me a cherry quartz jaspar wand from him as well as carved animals. I had read the darling little booklet to him on the way to The William Penn Inn, which is a bit of a haul. We were so impressed that our private Beltane celebration will be the best ever this year. I also went looking for more of Betsy's work. She's a real herbalist in a world of fakes. My Grandma had a bookshelf full of Reader's Digest books, they were all the rage back in the day when people were real. I have only just started this book, but I love it already. I am sure that it will bring me joy for years to come, not to mention the gifts from my garden and walks to my favorite Peeps. 

Potpourri and Fragrant Crafts
 

Frankie Says

  Santa brought me a new bed. ✨

  Ron and I had a nice Christmas with Frankie. Frankie enjoyed all his stocking stuffers, home made from Joanna's Furnace, like the alpaca wool caterpillar finger puppet, the catnip Packers fish, (Not true that kittens don't get high off of catnip, Frankie was rubbing it on his head), and other cat toys and wonders to hunt and gut. The bed came from Joanna's too. I got My Mattress Topper and My Robe, (Thanks Mike!), and the box is big as a Frankie house. I also got a fabulous book from Pottsgrove Manor all about Punch. We already started to read that along with The Three Witches Magic Shoppe Adventures in Doll Land . That is a lot of fun. Ron loves Wyrd Trees too. We were laughing at 1947's It Happened on Fifth Avenue. I have to watch the end. I fell asleep as I'd only gotten three hours of sleep. Frankie woke me at four am jumping on my chest like a child. 

 

Christmas at Joanna Furnace 2024

  Joanna Furnace is a charming way to kick start the holidays. We've been coming for seventeen years, but this was the best yet. We began the evening with supper at Stampede Barbeque. They have the best cider on tap. It's my brother's and my place, but Ron enjoyed it tonight too, and said that we can come more often. I think he was impressed as he thought he knew our cashier from wrestling and Amish Mafia. It's the same wonderful staff. I actually discovered this place last year at Apple Fest, they were selling cider. I love the hushpuppies and coleslaw, but Ron was impressed with his brisket salad and peanutbutter pie. Joanna's is usually packed, but not tonight. The dollhouse is new. I think somebody created it to look like the original furnace owner's mansion that was sadly demolished long ago. Best band ever! They usually feature a school choir, but this year was a gentlemens' brass band. I haven't been in the mood for Christmas music this year. Frankie and I have been listening to Shiner's favorite party songs because it's all new to Frankie. This band played all my favorites. They were great. I had gotten some Starry Slumber wine from the Sleepy Cat Urban Winery in Allentown, better than the sweet stuff I got last year. There were no letters in Kris Kringle's box at the general store where I get the little Civil War soldiers like I left in Jeremy's Room at The Farnsworth House in Gettysburg, so I left him a letter thanking him for Frankie. Actually we all had major Christmas scores as I got a dollhouse sized Heidi Lotte doll from the forties from Mr. Glass, the third doll I've gotten from him. He was also selling for the German woodcarver that I'd gotten a gnome from who could not make it tonight, so Ron got something handmade for his stocking that is still very light. It's not even his real stocking, the blue velvet topped with berries that I made him seventeen years ago, as the house is cat proof this Christmas. I didn't get everything out of the attic this year, certainly nothing breakable. Frankie was a very good boy, the tree was still up when we got home. He made out like a fat cat, his stocking is full. His stocking is from my childhood, and Shiner's first stocking. Shiner nibbled it's hand when he was a puppy. It's a cat in a Santa hat popping out of the stocking. Tonight a Packers catnip mouse and an alpaca caterpillar finger puppet were added, plus he got a hand knitted hooded cat bed. He's going to love it. Frankie loves boxes and bags. Shiner graduated to the big Tinkerbelle stocking that Mummy got me that Ron is settling for this year. Actually it's bigger, so I have some work to do. I also got a darling little knit bee and a new hat for Cornwall Furnace tomorrow. 

The Train

Light Maze

 

Brit Box

   Free Brit Box TV this week. If you know me you know I love "free" 🙄 TV, England, crafty stuff, and mysteries. Well, let me tell you, Frankie and I started off with Make it at Market with a lady who weaves faeries and unicorns from willow and a carpenter. We were impressed. Then, we tried the British equivalent to cold cases. Hey, if you want to get away with pedophilia, (for the record the term does not automatically come up with The Google Monster because pedos rule the world), rape, and murder move to England. The episodes leave you feeling sick and very happy to have a gun. The last British crime series I watched had a nervous bobby killing a criminal with a filing cabinet. Spare me! This is why Limeys call me a mean NAZI. Tough 💩. Letting a dirty bugger get away with raping and murdering thirty little boys makes even me look good. ☮

Shannen O'Lantern

  Shannen O'Lantern is one of two big white pumpkins that grew outside the front door as their mama, last year's pumpkin, was too heavy for me to move. Shannen smells good. The witch, Tillie, came to me from Gettysburg College. I will be roasting her seeds, but Shannen is very meaty, so I might make some muffins too. Have a Happy Halloween! 

Vintage Halloween Music

🎃

 

Joanna Furnace Apple Festival

I was happily writing along about Joanna Furnace's Apple Festival until I mentioned some old geezer with a homemade Cabala Embarrass shirt, cap, and button. That's when my entire post vanished. Now I'm pissy. Yeah, I wanted to jump on her stupid commie head and beat her illiterate ass, but I did not. So, now, let me get back to my post that was rudely eaten by the fucking GOOGLE Monster. 😡 I had a ball. I had cider and apple fritters. We brought homemade pot pie and bean soup home. I also brought home some mead seltzer. I do not like mead, but the seltzer is tasty, and I got a mixed batch. Somehow I lost my box of Thanksgiving decorations. I don't have a lot, but Mummy's stuff from the bicentennial in Massachusetts is in there. Sure I'll find it while decorating for Christmas but until then I got this beautiful hand knitted scarecrow. I also got a handcarved Saint Francis, he's not Italian, so he might just be Pennsylvania made. I have a wooden Mary and Saint Patrick, but Francis is our long time saint of choice. I also scored a church doll from Mr. Glass who I'd gotten a lovely rag doll from a couple of Christmases ago. She always graces the foyer, too sweet to put away. Think we'll be seeing J.D. Vance at the airport later. Good times. 

Dreams 9/7

  I dreamed an old colleague of mine, Mr. Hilton, lived down the street with Annie and Jay. It was his birthday and I had made him a portrait doll of himself only something had gone wrong. The doll was broken, so I fixed him a footlong turkey sub with mustard. I was wrapping it up in plastic and putting it in a brown bag when I thought I might fix the doll situation. Apparently I had made a doll for Annie that I never gave her. It had short dark human hair and was dressed in a glitzy mauve and gold suit. When I cut the suit off and the doll was down to little sparkly mauve boots I realized the Hilton doll suit was not going to fit and also that the doll was soft and supple. I remembered I had not fully baked the doll in order for it to be flexible. I put it in the oven wearing its wig and boots. When I came back it was a melted puddle of goo. At this point I became frustrated with the dream as I've been known to do. I did not really wake myself, rather became lucid. I zapped the original broken Mr. Hilton doll with a wicked rush of doll magic. Now, the doll was shrunken down to the size of Annie's doll and dressed in the same Bowie suit that I'd cut off earlier. The jacket was a bolero type, and the pants were tight and flared. I put him in a little glittery cardboard box that fit tight like a coffin and slid him in next to the hoagie feeling a bit guilty about the doll magic.