Christmas in July, Cottage Style!

The Etsy Cottage Style Street Team's summer promo is Christmas in July, and the heat and fires here in California make thoughts of winter holidays especially appealing. My heart goes out to all who have lost their homes, treasured keepsakes, and most tragically, loved ones. The inconveniences and complaints of everyday life are sharply put in their inconsequential places, and I am so grateful for my blessings. One of them is the freedom and means to pursue arts and crafts for business and personal satisfaction.

For some summer cheer, on or after July 25th, use search terms "christmas", "july", and "cssteam" on Etsy to see all of my team's Christmas in July creations! Or just click on the CIJ logo above. Above and below are previews of my own listings, Holly earrings, Early Frost earrings, Holiday Fern embroidered fabric, Batik Reindeer sandblasted tile, and Poinsettia mosaic tray:

Monkey in the Middle Monday!

Monkey in the Middle Monday is a day to post that monkey (on your back, or where ever) that you're working on, a project in progress, a sneak peak...from one of my favorite blogs, Sunshine and Ravioli (love that name!). Here's my monkey, a mosaic semi-circle tabletop that I have been working on FOREVER, and I will be so glad to have my drafting table back when this monkey goes to its new home! I'll post new pics on a future Monday, when it is ready for delivery. Click here to see the rest of this week's Monkey in the Middle posts!

I Must Go Down to the Sea Again

I was feeling reflective and whimsical today while working in my studio. As I was gluing broken china tiles to a tabletop (that's a post for another day), I was thinking about my Navy days and sea duty. I was a career Sailor, now retired after 22+ years of service and three Western Pacific tours aboard ship. I really wanted to make a necklace out of the great key I found while vacationing in Montana (see post Big Sky Treasure!), and reflection and whimsy came together in Key to Atlantis. It's for sale in my Etsy shop, Catnip Studio. The key must be kept safe, perhaps around the neck of someone salty, sea worthy, and on speaking terms with mermaids and Davy Jones. Potential plank walkers need not apply.

Catnap in the Catnip

We're in the middle of a long, hot summer in Siskiyou County, California. Smoke from a wildfire in the nearby mountains obscures the scenic view, and teases the nose with memories of burning piles of oak leaves in autumn. Suddenly, a tap on the window next to my computer station where I am doing Very Important Work! Mr. Catnip is standing outside the kitty courtyard, pointing towards the catnip forest, motioning for a camera shot, and making the sshhhh gesture simultaneously. This is a magnificent attempt at communication on his part, and he didn't even move his lips! Well, except for the sshhhing gesture. Mr. Catnip readily admits that, like most men, he can't do more than one thing at a time. Which reminds me of something I read somewhere - if a disgruntled wife wants to get even with her husband, ask him a question, any question, when he's hammering a nail. Trust me, it works every time. Three times in a row, in fact.

Anywaayyy, I look to where he's pointing, and here is what I see:

Lily, on the left, and Wylie are having a catnap in the catnip, now overgrown and starting to fall over, a bower of kitty crack and summer haze. So there's the proof, catnip DOES cause lethargy, and in high doses can induce catatonic sleep! When they awake from their herbal stupor, they'll both be begging for Goldfish Snack Crackers and Fancy Feast (trade names for commercial kitty crackfood).

Brillante Weblog Award

I am so grateful for my dear readers; it's nice to know that I am not just typing to myself! One of my sweet cottage friends left a comment to let me know there was a surprise waiting for me on her blog, Southern Lady's Vintage, and, Tah-Dah!, it was the Brillante Weblog Award! My thanks to you, SLV :-) . If you don't already know this wonderful lady, please visit her blog and say hello.

Blog awards are for sharing, and this is how the Brillante Award works.....The rules for receiving this award are:

1. Put the logo on your blog.
2. Add a link to the blogger who awarded you.
3. Nominate at least seven other blogs.
4. Add links to those blogs on your own blog.
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

My nominees:

• The Catnap Cottage
• Opheeelia Says
• Halushki most unique, butter and onions
• Christopher and Tia inside the mind of a two-headed kitten
• Georgia Peachez
• Yvestown the blog - playing house
• The Hook Up! On etsy artisan jewelry
• Sunshine & Ravioli

Each one of your blogs inspires and entertains, and I am always looking forward to your latest posts! I know some of you may be too overloaded to take time out for the award rules - just know that your blog is appreciated and loved!

Big Sky Treasure!

Montana in July should have been hotter than a firecracker, but it was uncharacteristically temperate compared to the soaring heatwave back home in California. It was a great vacation, full of tasty barbeque, relaxation, visiting with my husband's family, AND.....treasure hunting! Aside from the typical motley assortment of trays, boxes, and china dinnerware for my mosaics, I found a pirate's bounty of cool vintage jewelry. I can't wait to take these babies apart and make new pretties!

Catnip Studio, Too!

My new Etsy shop, Catnip Studio, Too, is now open! All of my handmade home decor will be listed there, and Catnip Studio will return to its beginnings as a handmade broken china/beaded jewelry shop. I anticipate this will help me focus my creativity and individual shop organization, and keep things neat and tidy, whether virtual or actual. I'll keep my fingers crossed on that one! Photos show some of my new creations, clicking on them will take you to their shop listings.

Happy Fourth of July!