Sunday, December 23, 2012

Glitter Putz Christmas Houses

These little glitter or putz houses were so much fun to make!!! Find the Harvest House pattern here:http://magazine-directory.com/Victoria.htm Trace the patterns onto poster board, cut out and glue coordinated scrapbook papers to the different pieces. Use an exacto knife to cut out the windows, take your time on this, its pretty tricky. Hot glue the houses together and let them dry thoroughly. Glue door and door knob and glue trim across the front of the home (see pic.) Glue paper on boxes you've gotten for the bases, let dry. Now the fun begins!! Apply glue to all the cracks and crevices of the roof, (I used craft glue for this, hot glue dries too quickly.) Sprinkle clear glue, vintage mica glitter or fake snow into these places. Let dry. Hot glue silver pipe cleaners around base of box top. Glue house to base of box, sprinkle these places with glitter. Let dry. Attach vintage bottle brush trees to either or both sides with hot glue, then add anything else you think looks good. I added silver holly and vintage ornaments. Glue over- sized snowflakes and mini frames to back of house for a more dimensional look. Glue mini glass balls to points of roof and push down trinket pins as well (see Pics) When everything was dry I sprayed it with adhesive and sprinkled mica glitter gently over the roof and sides. I had fun gathering all the different elements. Scrapbook papers, Coordinating brads and blank boxes from the craft store. Vintage bottle brush trees, mica glitter and trinket pins from eBay. Glitter pipe cleaners,found objects,and vintage glass balls from garlands that I already had. This was so relaxing and fussy!! I loved it!!

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Lessons Learned from J.R.R. Tolkein



I hope you are expectant about the coming year, so full of possibilities and potential! J.R.R. Tolkien and I share a January 3rd birthday, and as he was a writer, this encourages me in my writing efforts.
As I sit down and try to practice my resolution to write more, I find there’s a number of Tolkein’s characters that relate to the obstacles/challenges I face as I stare at the blank page. The great dragon Smaug from “The Hobbit” resembles a foe I constantly confront as I begin to write. My dragon is a dark, slimy creature that represents mistakes, failures and shortcomings that rise up before me and argue that I have nothing to say, nothing that will change people or events. I must find this dragon’s vulnerable spot and slay him before I begin, and more often than not, he holds me captive and I am unproductive.
Like Frodo, from “Lord of the Rings” I sometimes feel that I’m carrying something ‘precious’, something that will either destroy me or take me to what I was made for, an unlikely hero for sure.
In trying to discipline myself, I always end up looking into Shelob’s lair (the spider from The Two Towers) for a shortcut. Sitting down and gathering my thoughts, finding time to write in world of distractions, those side eddies to the trite or sentimental often beckon me, but I’m trying to escape the web of the trivial to find the meaningful and helpful in my writing.
One of my favorite characters from the Lord of the Rings series is Legolas. He is an elf with many skills, my kids love to give me a hard time and call him ‘the fairy.’ But Legolas hears and senses things long before anyone else, is able to defeat his enemies, and seems to triumph over every adversity (even walking on top of the snow.) Lofty goals, I know. But to slay the dragon of past failures, believe that God has gifted me, spurn the shortcuts and really believe I can triumph in the midst of adversity would spell success for me, whether my writing is ever acknowledged or not.