Button Floozie Exchange and another Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood!

I woke up early this morning, I just had trouble sleeping last night. I tossed and turned till I finally got up at 5AM, even before Miss "Lily" Beth our cat got me up. She and Black were still sleeping on the sofa and looked confused when I turned on the coffee pot.  It was still very dark outside and she started in meowing wanting to go outside. I don't like to let her out until it is daylight out but I finally gave in to her at 6AM and out they both went. I told them to stay close where I could hear their bells on their collars.

I usually get on the computer while waking up with coffee and sort of drug myself through reading blogs and playing around on Pinterest. Something that doesn't take a  lot of thought. is about all I can handle.

I really should be listing more merchandise but I need to have it in front of me and with photos ready. I suppose I could be writing descriptions but even that is a little out of my league right now.  I did go outside to look at the stars, it is totally black outside, 50 degrees, and  with no light except our garden lights around the porch, just enough to see to walk on the  front deck.  I walked to the back and it seems I needed to feel my way it is so dark.  But, the sky is beautiful just twinkling with magic in the galaxy.

Another day is on its way, what will I do? Yesterday I packed a moss and forest variety shipment and I love a reason to go into the forest. Of course I collected more than needed in the box, so I added to my moss collection.  I have been making bittersweet wreaths with some grapevine I found last weekend. But, it is too dark to work on them. I lit the tiki torches out by the front bridge just to see the yard a little bit. So that led to lighting many porch candles and I adore the firelight in the early morning before dawn breaks. I sat there with my coffee and just think of the coming day.

 I found a piece of wood  at Lake Chatuge one day that is heart shaped so I think I will wrap some beads around it. I just have to work with it somehow, it is so beautiful with the crevices embedded  in it. I have some notions with beads already on the string or wire I can't remember but they will work beautifully, or I can wind some on some crochet thread. That is what is in my head for it anyway!

This means I have to maneuver upstairs in my crafting room, I think I am finally getting it together. It has taken me so long to get it organized since I spend so much time outside.  But, I remember seeing the beads when I was making my " Button Floozies Exchange Tin". It was to be using an Altered Altoid Tin but I used a gift card tin I had.  I found I have lots of tins collected for future use and when I saw these on sale, I got several a few years ago.  Now, to learn to use them!

My exchange partner wrote to me that her daughters' play soccer so I wanted to incorporate that theme somehow. as that reminded her of Fall and "Fall in Love"  was theme to be used.

I looked for some soccer buttons but it is not a real popular sport in these mountains and I do not live near major shopping areas. I am so used to having a Michael's or Joann's near but I just have to make due unless I order on-line. I wanted to use up some materials I have and make it with my Vintage materials I have been collecting. My idea was to cover it with vintage lace as I love this look and I have lots of lace collected from notions to curtains to de-construct and tablecloths, etc, just anything I see that is Lace is game for me.

When I started I had to cover the snowman on the tin since it was for a gift card so I looked for some soccer images on Pinterest and just a Google search. I found so many!  I pasted over the snowman and then decided to also use some vintage pattern paper I had, it had to do with sewing buttons I figured and so a theme was born.   I tried cutting a paper pattern of the tin with a paper sack but I am not that good I found. I was thinking of all the scrapbook paper I have collected to paste on this tin but the tutorial provided was not working for me. I will try again later but for now I just decided on  using  fabrics which are easier for me to maneuver with.  I had some Vintage blue lace trim I glued to the sides after adding pattern paper to the tin top. I added some soccer images to the inside and sides of the tin holding the buttons. Then I also added them to the back on the tin and thought I would personalize it for Kimberly with beads saying her name. That done, I had a silver glitter "K" in my embellishment stash.

I just took a break to go outside as dawn is breaking.  It is silent outside, very quiet and I lay on my day bed and just be! Lily's bell I hear and she appears on the porch strutting by the my bed where I lay. The black sky and stars are disappearing and I can see the trees  and car outline against the sky. It is now a light blue sky and as I listen I hear a rooster in the distance. The birds and squirrels are not yet up and about rustling the leaves and feeding at the bird feeders.  It is unusually still and it will be another beautiful day in the neighborhood as we say every day.  We don't have much but we are living our dream in the mountains.

I can only see the sky straight up as I look, the forest surrounds us and we live in the "Land of the Noon Day Sun" they say with visibility in the Nantahala Forest surrounded by the colorful trees now. Nothing could be more beautiful right now. The sky will start to turn pink in a while as the sun rises and I will hear the nature noises soon. It is 7:50 AM now. 

Back to the tin, I filled it with my collections of buttons and it gave me a chance to play with my collections, touch and feel them! I adore my buttons! 

Okay, now I have received my tin from my exchange partner "Kimberly" and it is so FaBuLoUs! She is really talented in her scrapbook paper cutting and embellishments. She included many fabric covered buttons and I asked her if she covered them. She did!  They are awesome and so fulfilling to me. Fall colors and materials, a leaf button, she knew I had spoken of a kitty and included one too. I love them!

It is beautiful orange and gold with brown  colors and I will cherish it! It sits on my desk by my computer where I can sit here and play with them, re-arrange them on paper and then put them back and shut the lid to be admired again later. I am thinking of what I will use them on, how I will be embellishing something I make with them. and use the pumpkin pin, ceramic leaves, Big and Tiny buttons!  I am in awe of Kimberly's talent!

Thank you so much for sharing this exchange with me. We are to post photos to a flickr album made by the blog coordinator of the exchange, Laurie!.  

Here is the tin I received from "Kimberly"!

Here is the Altered Tin I sent to her!

What do your find in your Button Stashes? 

I unloaded a jar I had buttons in and found a seam ribber for taking them off vintage clothing! I also found
My tiny plastic spinner I play with, some belt buckles, clothing tags, and a tiny spoon from tasting ice cream.

I arranged by colors, styles, and pearls!

 I have buttons from clothing with a piece of the clothing in a baggie and carded buttons.

Notions box, organza bags I used to sell, zippers, ribbons, a leather luggage tag, seam binding, a pin package, new buttons, Oh, what to do with all of these?

Some of the soccer images leftover I sent to her daughters, I thought they were young children!

When I got out some vintage crochet to tie around the tin, I found these tiny crochet squares inside the thread roll holder. Someone long ago started to make something with this and it is so beautiful! So much talent displayed and hidden inside a bag of vintage threads I  got at the thrift shop!

Whoever donated these threads had no idea what was inside I am sure. What a prize! What a fabulous find!
What will I do with them, who knows? These are not the first surprise finds inside threads. I have some beautiful green lace baby crocheted items somewhere. It is probably in a bin I have stashed somewhere. I found them they same way, inside other threads, just stashed inside the rolls!


I found this bittersweet and have been  playing around with it too!

Well, the day is breaking and I better get busy!
Thanks for visiting my blog, it just gives me a way to share my days and remember what I love.

Smiles,Cyndi