Union Jack Canvas Art

 I love finding ways to create free art.  This means while in the car with my hubby, I often ask him circle back around the block so we can go back and trash pick curb shop. 

A while back I found a canvas that had definitely seen better days. 

 It had a rip in it and obviously had been sprayed with paint (OK so maybe this doesn't seem like such a great pick) but the frame was in good shape and I knew I would figure out something to do with it. 

 So

   With some scraps I had left over from other projects

painters drop cloth 

strips of burlap 

strips of painters canvas 

scissors & staple gun

this is what it ended up looking like

Not bad right? 

And the best part about it was that it was absolutely FREE !!

Until next time! 

Linking to:
 Restyled Sundays @ Stylish Once Again
 Sunday Link Party @ Petite Hermine
Sunday Show Off @ Twigg Studios
Sunday Showcase Party @ Under The Table and Dreaming 
Cowgirl Up Party Tuesday @ The Farmhouse Porch
Be Inspired @ Elizabeth & Co.
Whatever Wednesday @ Momma Hens Coop
Primp Your Stuff Wednesday @ {Primp}
 Delightfully Inspired Thursday @ Delightful Order
Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Creek Cottage

Tickled Pink Friday @ 504 Main
Feature Yourself Friday @ Fingerprints On The Fridge

BFF Open House Link Party @ The Answer Is Chocolate

My Studio

I thought today I would show you my studio.  I have been working on it for the last few weeks trying to get everything in order and it's finally cleaned up enough where I am not ashamed to put pictures out here. Unfortunately I jumped the gun and through the process I neglected to take before pics!!  I will search my old pics to see if I can find some of how this room used to look and if I find any I will be sure to post them.                                     

    I have separate areas set up for sewing, crafting and blogging

Our first stop is the sewing area

Sewing is a new venture for me so I don't have many supplies but I am working on changing that

Old crates hang on the wall  and hold spools of ribbon and rolls of burlap

An old colander holds some of my scrap material

An old printer drawer hangs on the wall below the crates and holds thread ~ as you can see I don't have many but give me time and I am going to fill those little compartments up!! 

Below the printer drawer is my sewing table  and as you can see that is my sewing machine

isn't she pretty?

Jars hold vintage buttons and wood spools

I re-purposed a thrift store cup and saucer into a place to put my straight pins 

Next is my vintage dress form ~ I found her on Craigslist

The nice lady I bought her from found her at an outdoor market in France

She is wearing my Great Grandmothers Rosary 

Mr. MVB built the stand for her and she happily sits in front of my window along with a vintage tub and another printer drawer  ~  Above the window is a valance I made from book pages and twine

Next stop is my Craft Area where things get messy!!

The table is actually an old barn door ~ underneath the skirt are two sets of Ikea end tables They were sitting in our basement collecting dust so we affixed the pairs together so that they made two towers and then laid the table across the top of them.  This allows me to store a bunch of junk underneath. I would show you but believe me it's ugly under there!

The table holds jars with supplies that I like to keep within reach 

like my paint brushes and wire cutters 

Jars of string, twine and my numbers I have collected

A small bookshelf sits in the corner of the table and holds some of my other craft supplies 

like stamps

and glitter in vintage salt and pepper shakers

Last but definitely not least is my desk where I blog and feed my Pinterest addiction 

If you look closely at the picture to the right you can see my office assistant Mr. Rudy ~ he likes to make sure the shelves are in order and lets me know when things start to get too crowded for him

An old crate sits on top of my desk and holds jars with supplies in them

The top of the crate hold some of my keepakes

The books were my Grandfathers ~ they are old, fragile and I adore them! 

A teacup my mother in law gave me holds stamped clothespins 

I adore Dragonflies so this cup is a favorite of mine!

My Inspiration Board that holds family pictures and a couple of my late Aunts broaches  ~ the pictures in the frame portion of the board are actually printable pictures found at http://thevintagemoth.blogspot.com/

On top of the book shelf are some vintage finds ~ like

a vintage wire tree, fan, old scale, hat boxes and an old water cooler

and 

my little ballet slippers which really weren't so little 

 if you can't tell from the pic, I had huge feet even as a child! 

Until next time!

Have You Heard?

Well if you all haven't heard by now let me tell ya... Google is making some changes and therefore Google Friend Connect will be extinct.  That's right... Finished... Kaput... Finito.. Done!   We only have until 3/1/12.   If you are a follower of my blog or anyone elses blog for that matter,  it's really important for you to make other "following arrangements".  Blogger's love their followers and we sure don't want to lose ya!  Sorry to say that is what will happen if you don't take action before 3/1.  What should you do you?  Well  Blogger's everywhere are making changes to ensure you can still follow, all you have to do is go out to the blogs you want to continue following and choose another following gadget.  I have listed the ones I use below.

1.  Bloglovin - it's super simple to sign up for and I am noticing this option popping up on blogs all over the place! 
2. Facebook - It's hard to find a blog that doesn't have a Facebook page! just click on the Facebook icon and you can start following through Facebook. Easy Peasy!! 
3. Follow via Reader - there are several readers listed you just choose the one you want to use
4. Networkedblogs - another simple option for following blogs through an app in Facebook
5. Email subscription- Enter your email address in the box and click submit. Super simple way to keep up with blog updates!

 Time flies and if you are like me you probably have a long list of blog friends you want to keep in touch with so go get to clicking and I hope to see you all out there after March 1st!

** Correction above post **  Google Friend Connect will no longer be available for non blogger blogs, therefore the Google Friend Connect option is still available for following your favorite blogs if the blog is through Blogger.  I have included a link with info from Google about the changes that are coming. http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/11/more-spring-cleaning-out-of-season.html

 

Merry Christmas to all..

It's been a while since my last post. I really need to be more vigilant with my blog but I do have a good excuse.. I promise! I have been spending my time working on the launch of my on line shop Jennifer Lynn & Co. and I am glad to say it's finally published. Whew!!! I can't tell you how glad I am glad that part is over... making my own website has been a challenge for me because I am so indecisive when it comes to how I want it to look. But after building, ripping apart and re-building several times, it is finally done. Sure it may not be as fancy as some of the other on line boutiques I have seen out there but it looks pretty darn good for being free and done by yours truly! Anyway I have been doing this and that to get it going and now that it is out there I can focus on blogging more. So...now that I filled you all in with why I have been absent on here I thought I would share some of my Christmas decorating that I was able to get done. We had a little mishap as some of our Christmas decorations along with our tree topper disappeared sometime between last Christmas and now. I am afraid that some the box got mixed in with other things we got rid of when we were cleaning out the basement. What I miss the most is the Star my husband and I bought for the top of our tree. It was our first Christmas together and the first thing we bought for our tree. I hope it found a wonderful family that will love it as much as we did!

Well all that being said ( I tend to ramble if you haven't noticed) I tried to keep it simple this year. Instead of making a mad dash out to buy new decorations that weren't in our budget, I decided to keep it simple and decorate with more of a nature inspired look. After all they say Mother Nature is the best decorator!

Lets start with the mantle (sorry the pics with full view are not that great)

Our mantle was decorated with some greenery, twigs and an apothecary jar full of silver and white ornaments

Some old books and bottles that I decorated and use for candle holders

A small rocking horse that plays Christmas carols sits in the middle of the mantle on a bed of pine with pine cones and glitter pears nestled in. He's so cute I actually leave him out all year long. He usually graces our bookshelf in the family room.

I had to leave my book page wreath up because I love it and can't bring myself to put something else up

I added a Noel banner that I made from some extra burlap coffee sacks I had stored in my craft room.

Adding a little greenery every day decor was a cheap and easy way to add some Christmas cheer 

Last but not least this is our Christmas tree ~ not a lot of flash this year

but it actually sparkles a lot more than what the pictures show

I decorated it with a burlap garland and some of the clay tags I make and sell ~ good thing I made extras!

Glass ornaments that were fortunate enough to avoid the "incident" and natural accents such as pine cones and our starfish collection

Our tree sits in a galvanized tub with burlap peeking out from the top.. and that's about it.

I hope you enjoyed a peek into what Christmas looks like this year at My Vintage Bliss.

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and Blessed New Year!!

~ Pinterest Addiction ~

OK so I have noticed people talking about Pinterest all over blog land and I really never gave it much thought.  Wow, I did not know what I was missing!!!  I joined a couple weeks ago and I have to say that I absolutely love it.  If you haven't had a chance to check Pinterest out yet make sure you do.  It's a place where you can go for inspiration and check out what other people are into.  If you find something you like you can pin it to your board and you can have as many boards as you like. You can also search and follow other people's boards.

So far I have one for decorating inspirations, organizing, Fall decor, Christmas decor and even a board for clothing that I like and I am sure by the time the night is over I will have thought of something else to have a board for.  Below are some of the great ideas and inspirations I have found on pinterest.. hope you enjoy and if you decide to join look me up, I would love to see what inspires you!!

  ~ Ideas for re-purposing ~

   Love what they did with pallets ~ very smart!

http://www.atypicaltypea.com/

http://ffffound.com

~ Ideas for organizing ~

A picture frame and small curtain rods  = gift wrap station ~ Cute!!

http://www.iheartnaptime.net

Cake pans and wood candle sticks ~ instant organizer!

http://alissafast.typepad.com/a_my_world/

~ Lots of decorating ideas ~

Roman shade made from Coffee Sacks ~ love it!

http://reddoorhome.blogspot.com

Beautiful table setting ~ would last 5 minutes at my house!

http://www.elizabethannedesigns.com/blog/2011/06/10/sparkle-glitter-unique-wedding-inspiration/

Distressed cabinets ~ love them!!

http://home-biba.blogspot.com/2009/08/lavender-and-old-lace.html

Old ladder holding towels ~ hmmm think my husband will notice his ladder is missing??

http://burlapluxe.blogspot.com

P.S.  If you do decide to join they will put you on a waiting list for an invite...but... I know someone who would be glad to send you an invite if you want to email her with your email address. (wink wink)