My New Tool Box

Trusco is the manufacturer and you can look for similar models on Toyo, both made in Japan. My first ‘new’ tool box. And yes, that is one of my quilts underneath it. I used to teach a class about how to make this quilt. Now, I am going to hang it in our house!

Manufacturers name and model number

It has a slim style and 2 nice handles

The side view…and the excitement mounts to see what it opens to!

So much beauty, room for everything and is visually stunning! So happy!

I have several vintage tool boxes that need to be refurbished. This was my dad’s old tackle box. It will become my garden/seed tool box soon

It has good storage too and the inside is almost pristine. A few fishing items in the bottom

And this one that I picked up in a local antique store. It doesn’t need much work

Love this cool tray. This will make a wonderful art box when I want to paint somewhere else. Stay turned for the transformations of these two vintage boxes. Working on the rust first! 

Handmade Cards to a New Level

In my spare time, I love to paint all kinds of shapes with watercolor paint on white cardstock. It’s sort of meditative and relaxing to paint dots, stripes, flowers, plaids, some with more than one color and some with black and red. I have an entire box full, like a treasure chest

Then I randomly cut them into strips. No ruler needed. Some are wonky. I glue them down on a piece of paper to secure them into place.

I love how they look with all those colors and shapes!

Then I get it ready to glue to a watercolor card.

I glue it and the flaps and secure it under a heavy book so it stays flat.

Here are two samples before the next step.

Using a fine point and ultra fine pint Sharpie in black, I add some details. I love how it looks. It’s rather meditative to sit and draw with a black pen. Just do it! 

Here’s the flower one

Let’s throw caution to the wind and use markers to make the colors pop! I love this look too!

And Now for Something Completely Different

I read this book for so many reasons, but one in particular…focus. I saw myself in many of the pages of this book. The author wrote in a style that really resonated with me. It was like sitting down with a good friend and talking about ADHD. I’ve never been diagnosed, but I do have many traits and it was good to finally understand myself just a little bit more 

It was suggested to use one of these time clocks. Set it to how much time is reasonable. And then do a task, or sew, or reorganize something. You can reset it if you want more time. It really helps with focus.

Every 15 minutes to work on this project 13 square-ish, until I didn’t need the clock

Detail. A collage of wool felt, hand embroidery, buttons, felt flowers and balls. I used to teach this class

Another view

This was going to be a BiG project, but setting the clock at 30 minutes made it do-able. These are getting ready to hang on a wall. The story of family and their first dishes and a few of my own

Reorganizing my pre-fused fabrics. Another big job and used the timer clock to just focus and get it done 



These sweet umbrellas hold my neck scarves. Since we had a few rooms repainted recently, these needed to be repainted

They turned out really bright, fun and colorful. 

And then I gave it up!

We had the inside of our houses painted. Not all of the rooms, because that would make me crazy, but both bathrooms, our bedroom and the living room. It was a lot of prep work to clear out these rooms. Pretty shades of blue.

New work lamp from Etsy

Planted many seeds to start here and then to plant in the garden

Two Irises are blooming!

And then I gave up the 100 Day Project. Just too much everyday. 

I decided to repaint these that hang in our bedroom to store neck scarves

Fresh, fun and new!

Last 6 books I have read. I’ve been enjoying the books by Lisa Unger. ADHD for Smart Ass Women is a tremendous book and I could see myself on many pages of this book. 

This is a work in progress. Wool felt, wool flowers and balls, Sizzix die cuts, buttons and embroidery with Perle Cotton 8. Just keep going. Go forth and conquer. Find your own way. Do what you love!

The 100 Day Project 2024

This is a huge commitment to do a piece of art for 100 Days. Working Small 4x4 is do-able. Maybe not 100 days in a row, but I can pave my own way. Working in a variety of mediums that interest me

1/100 uses watercolor dots on paper, scrap color copies that I have collected for years. The houses are from a quilt

A watercolor painting of me reading and drinking coffee. I am an avid reader

The first nine. Leaves on bottom left are block printed onto paper, painted with watercolors and outlined in black ink





Color copies of a silk quilt. A matchbook from the Four Seasons in Seattle circa 1990’s

This one is made with Post-It-Notes on the upper portion. Lettering has been painted with watercolors and then put through a Sizzix die cutter using an alphabet set. Lower portion is a drawing and painted with watercolors on rolling paper. Yep, the kind people to use to roll their own. It’s very thin and delicate

Leaf is block printed, painted and outlined. Watercolored flowers and scrap paper. So fun to create! Onward and upward!

Garden Re-Work before the rain

Garden clean up - mostly ferns that were so overgrown and taking over every spot in the garden

Empty pots I found buried in the garden

A super heavy pot that I literally rolled to the other end of the yard. It holds my oldest Plumeria

A completely overgrown area with Nasturtiums 

Got that big pot over here in its new location

New pots with bulbs and seeds and I sprinkled some seeds on the ground as well with potting soil

The new look for the curated garden

Found this beautiful Aloe Vera plant underneath the Nasturtiums 

This African Daisy was smooshed and moved to an area it can thrive

The calm before the storm. Such a gorgeous sky!