Hello everyone! Bakery Lady has joined me with the newest 12th scale Easter Basket creations from my workshop. I had a lot of fun making these! But there are only three this time, so they are going up in my Etsy Shop over here. And just look at these darling "chocolate bunnies". They have just been listed here at the Dainty House, along with a lot of other new spring creations for dollhouses, room boxes and dioramas that the girls in the doll house bakery have been working on for many weeks. All these adorable things come but once a... Continue reading

Rather than succumb to cabin fever mid winter, there were a few tiny things that happily occupied my time this month. First, there was a little decorating. A project that involved crafting a half-round window valance for the pink dollhouse bedroom. This canopy sits securely on top of the window trim so I didn't have to glue it. Which was good because I couldn't make up my mind where I liked it best. Over the bed (which I have yet to make) and that will have a curtain falling around both sides of it like a crown canopy. Very princess... Continue reading

Hello Friends, Hope all's well wherever you are and that you have warmth and comfort in the midst of these winter days. The weather here has been frigid and sodden. An icy snow storm arrived in scattered locations up and down the northwest Friday night. By morning the electricity was out for most of the state mostly due to downed trees or their branches snapping and entangling the power lines. Yesterday, without power, I went into pioneer mode with my wax candles and shawl. The gas cooktop my only modern kitchen convenience. And so very grateful for it too! After... Continue reading

If you have been perusing this blog over the years or have my book Embroidery Craft: Stitching through the Seasons (2010), you may remember these little stitched conversation heart sachets. They were featured as a winter project because they make lovely little gift tokens for Valentine's Day. These tiny potpourri heart pillows are fun to make and a simple stitching project for beginners, so with this in mind, I thought it would be nice to offer them again as an iron-on embroidery transfer. My free-with-purchase pattern will be available on both the PatternBee Vintage Embroidery website and the PatternBee Embroidery... Continue reading

We were expecting a few snow flurries this afternoon. Just a little sprinkle. But an inch or two has already fallen and it's still coming down. Hot cocoa time! Continue reading

PatternBee January Bonus Pattern Hello friends! It's the first year of a new decade and we are busy as bees around here. Like many, I've been tidying up the house for a fresh start. This is a challenge for me as I have so many projects underway with bits and pieces in different stages of completion scattered about from room to room waiting for paint and glue to dry. I guess you could say, it's a happy sort of mess! Anyhow, the cute embroidery pattern (above) is FREE with purchase from my PatternBee website and PatternBee Embroidery shop on etsy.... Continue reading

As the fun crafting continues . . . it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! We got our tree up last weekend. Early for a change, and happily so, remembering last year's crazy armoire dilemma. Followed by a wonderful happy ending here. I love that fresh pine smell when entering the room--and the way the twinkle lights cast a warm glow all around. This year, just for fun, we pulled out some really, really old ornaments from my 1980's "folk art" days, consisting of rag balls, cloth dolls, painted wood toys, vintage elves and other homespun treasures. And I'm... Continue reading

Hello Everyone! I hope you're all doing well, keeping busy and staying healthy and strong. Well, here it is Thanksgiving week and we are still dealing with yet another lock-down; now being called a "freeze" which sounds even worse somehow. IF that's even possible. Sigh. But to keep from sinking into despair under these trying times and circumstances I refuse to dwell on that. Instead, comedy (and irony) abounds. It's turkey hunting season in the northwest woods and as happens every year, wild turkeys take refuge in town. I passed a flock of them in a deserted playground yesterday and... Continue reading

I was thrilled to find this vintage Martin Fuch's toy kitchen last summer at a local flea market for $14. Click image to view larger. These cute tin kitchens were made in West Germany from the 1940's thru the early 1970's and came in all sorts of styles and colors and included a variety of cooking accessories. They've become quite collectible. Mine had seen better days for sure, so an up-cycle was in order. The scale of the pots and pans are a bit large for the kitchen which is about 1:6 scale, or Barbie size; presuming I suppose, that... Continue reading

Hello Friends! Well, it's official. The frost is on the pumpkin and fall is definitely here. It was a chilly 32 degrees this morning at six o'clock when I went down to the kitchen. Flocks of robins were gathering on the lawn, likely preparing to leave for a warmer climate. I envy their freedom--having been home-bound all year. But I'm not complaining. It's been a happily busy time with house projects (our fence is almost done!) and of course, lots of fun crafting. I honestly don't know where the time goes. The days just roll by, one after another and... Continue reading

Hello Friends! Summer is going by fast isn't it? Still sticking close to home, working on house projects. This week we say goodbye to the white picket fences around the border of our backyard. Those pickets have been standing there, I believe, since 1991. More for show than security. Our deer visitors have knocked pitiful sections of it down already. In the spring they jumped in and tipped over and cracked my favorite birdbath to get to the bird feeders. I was fairly shocked that they even cared for birdseed. They just lapped it up. Then one night, under the... Continue reading

Hello Friends, just popping in for a quick 'howdy-do'. We are in the middle of summer and for the most part, life is good here at home. There is a sense of peace that the natural world provides and our garden is alive and vibrant and offering up its goodness. Some for the senses and some for the soul. And some for the teapot! Chamomile is a calming companion. Currently, we are pulling up the sweet basil. And that means pesto! Making many batches and freezing in plastic snack bags. These bags are easy to store and handy when I... Continue reading

This is one of the things that happens when you have lots of time at home . . . you bake! And bake...and bake. Lots of goodies around here lately. Big ones and (incredibly) small ones. The weather is promising and I'm looking forward to spending some time in the garden--just puttering and mentally planning a new layout. I'd really like a small pond or water feature and fruit trees that can be trained on a trellis. In the meantime, I'm heading back into the kitchen to make a nice potato salad to go with our BBQ--just some old fashioned... Continue reading

Hello Friends...I'm still here. Busy as ever, inside and out. Hope all is well in your little haven as we step into summer together. My backyard garden is ever so lovely this morning. The growing season has begun and that's always exciting. I was browsing through some old photos of my backyard and it's interesting to observe how much the landscape transforms itself. Seemingly without much notice. It surprises me to see how tall trees have grown over the years. This was the scene in 2006. The girls and their Dad were building a playhouse. We were still in the... Continue reading

Hello again...happy weekend friends! Well, it's raining a little, so my yard projects are on hold for now. I've been finishing up a few sewing projects instead. Finally got this dish towel done. I had my heart set on this scrumptious strawberry fabric for the border, but didn't have enough to cover the entire length of the towel and had to seam it together right down the middle. Oh well. I do love the vintage minty green rickrack though--I think it's the perfect compliment in a kitschy sort of way. Anyway, since I already have plenty of cute embroidered dish... Continue reading

Hello Friends....Here are my Mother's Day hanging flower baskets I'd been telling you about. I've been so busy I haven't had a chance to show you just how beautiful these are. I don't know the names of any of these petunia varieties, but they are looking lovely and filling out nicely. I always have a hard time trying to choose between all the gorgeous petunia baskets, because there are so many novel varieties and colors and sizes, but I finally made up my mind and chose this burgundy and gold basket. It smells wonderful. I got two for the front... Continue reading

Hello friends! Hope you are all well and keeping busy. I have to show you this gorgeous speckled Iris. What a wonderful surprise it was today. I found it hiding in a corner along side the candy-tuft under the crab apple trees. Just a single stalk. It's been some time since we've spotted any volunteers in the garden quite as striking as this lovely ruffled beauty. Some furry little creature must have carried off a rhizome from another yard and buried it here. A small sweet miracle. It's May and the garden is waking up and putting on her fancy... Continue reading

Out in my backyard, taking a break and just enjoying the blue skies and sunshine--and wildlife. The weather's been glorious here. Not our typical drippy Oregon April, that's for sure. I'm loving it! It looks like guidelines for lifting the "lock-down" are being announced. That's a good sign. Somehow we will manage to get through this weird episode of life on planet earth and start picking up the pieces. I went downtown to mail packages and stopped at the market this morning for the first time in over a month. (I've had helpers doing this for me). It was a... Continue reading

May this season of renewal and resurrection bring you an abundance of Hope, Joy and Love. Continue reading

Country Living Magazine 4-2007 Hello Friends! Hope all's well wherever you are. Everyone is fine here. Easter (and spring birthdays) are coming up and we are celebrating in small ways. It's hard because like most people we have to minimize our family traditions this year. Sigh. I can't help wondering what life is going to be like after all this is over. If it ever is. Sometimes change is unsettling. So much depends on a system of routine and without it life as we know it can go sideways until we find some balance again. As we conclude the fourth... Continue reading

Hello Dear Friends, It's been awhile. Hope you are all well and doing OK during these worrisome times. After I updated my blog banner (for Spring) weeks ago, I'd planned to share some fun news and crafty stuff . . . and then--Kaboom! The world came to a crashing halt. I'm still a bit stunned to say the least, everything changed over night. All of this is so surreal and reminds me of what Charles Dickens wrote in A Tale of Two Cities. That first incredible paragraph has always stuck in my mind and never seemed more relevant: "It was... Continue reading

As each day brings us a little closer to SPRING I've been having a little fun over here . . . behold the latest creations from the workshop. Actually, these miniature "green and yellow spring baskets" are a collaborative of three pairs of hands; mine and my two daughters. I made the baskets, the boxed candy and that shiny gold foil egg; Grace made the chocolate bunnies and Ginger made the tiny colored Easter eggs. There are only six baskets in all, three of each color. If you need one for your dollhouse or room diorama, or your special dolly... Continue reading

Hello Friends! Just popping in for a quick Shop Announcement: My Fabulous Mid-Winter Sewing Sale has begun over here. This is a great time of year to start on those spring and summer sewing projects; so dust off your sewing machine and take a look. I still have a variety of children's costume patterns left as well, cute pinafore aprons and fancy dresses for special occasions. Misses sizes for casual wear. These are mostly "vintage" from my personal collection and I like to think, more classic styles than dated. They will be 25% off until March 15th. For extra savings,... Continue reading

It's time for another update and in keeping with my New Year's resolution to keep making happy little things...I'm right on target. My 6th scale Valentine doll house decorations are complete. So fun to make. It was really cold with snow flurries all weekend and I just got into a groove crafting, watching old movies, nibbling and sipping tea. Before I knew it, I had a wonderful stash of them. These tiny old-fashioned Tussie Mussies (or Nose-Gays) came out especially cute! It seems I may have been listening to my inner child by attempting to create a bit of Tasha... Continue reading