Elizabeth Holcombe ~whimsies and words~

Super Simple Candy!

Happy Friday, My Friends!~~~

I may have posted about this super simple candy a while ago, but I think it's worth sharing again! This candy is perfect for bake sales! I made a batch to take to the church today for their Saturday bake sale and fall festival.

Here's the recipe:

one bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

one bag butterscotch chips

1 cup of your favorite lightly salted nuts

Melt choc. and butterscotch chips in a pan over LOW heat, stirring until melted. When melted and blended together, stir in the nuts. Then spoon into small cupcake/candy cups. I set the cups in mini muffin tins. Store in fridge until set. Eat and enjoy!

Have a SWEET weekend!~~~XXOO, Beth

Acorn Symphony and A Nifty Craft Project

Hello, My Friends!~~~

Recently we have been serenaded by the neighbor's oak trees. All day and all night we hear "bonk!", "clunk!". "boink"! Their deck and screened in porch are the perfect drums for the acorn symphony. Here are some of the thousands of players...

Vintage Indie recently posted a craft tutorial of mine. I hope you like this easy use for cool vintage record album covers!

And another view...

So pop on over to Vintage Indie for the easy peasy instructions!~~~XXOO, Beth

Big Flea Saturday

Hello, My Friends!~~~

Suzy and I spent this morning at the Big Flea in Chantilly, VA. It usually is in 2 buildings with 1100 vendors, but the recession has hit our favorite flea market hard this year. The Big Flea was in one building which was packed with about (my best guess) 500 vendors. Here is an overview of the crowd:

The crowd was packed into the food court which meant that Suzy and I had more room to shop. We saw lots of interesting things, but bought little this time. I did find some fun things, but Suzy and I kept commenting on the fact that neither of us needed anything. We really have lots to craft with but the hunt is still fun! And we managed to spend a few dollars on a few special treasures. I thought you might like to have a little tour of the Big Flea. Come along!

Here's Suzy looking at her favorite things. She loves jewelry and has such a great eye for unique pieces!

This dealer had lots of cool kitschy things. I love these lamps!

I adored the many tin toys in this booth. So cool, but a tad too pricey for my wallet.

Our friend Stacey and her adorable sister ran this cute booth. We found a few goodies first thing, but later in the morning things were in full swing as Stacey (in her colorful skirt) sold all sorts of great items. She has a wonderful eye!

Now, if you are hungry and want to take a little break and get a sugar overload, get yourself one of these...

You may very need the quick energy one of these Fudge Puppies provide when you hit the booth where dolor jewelry is sold. Suzy in there in the fray somewhere. This booth was rockin' !

We did find some pretty pieces here, and made it away with our lives!

Here is a cutie pie bunny pair...

I really wanted these, but for some reason which I don't understand the vendor had a $35 price on them. So I took a picture instead.~~~That is our journey through the Big Flea. I didn't take a photo of my purchases, but rest assured you will see them in some of my crafty projects in the near future!~~~XXOO, Beth

Thank YOU, Vintage Sue!

Yay!!! My BFF Suzy came up to visit me and her daughter in college! We started the day going to an over priced and uninspired estate sale, BUT...After a call to our pal Vintage Sue, we headed over to Arlington to an estate sale she thought we might like. The house was adorable!

Suzy and I found lots of cool goodies CHEAP! Here is the nifty dress Suzy found...

And here is my car trunk with our goodies stashed inside (I was inspired to take this photo from one of my favorite blogs: Yardsale Bloodbath)...

The daisy basket is full of treasures. If Sue hadn't told us about this great kitschy sale, we never would have known about it! Thank YOU, Vintage Sue!~~~We're off to the Big Flea on Saturday and hope to see Sue and Stacey there! Yee hah!~~~XXOO, Beth

Late Post for the Sunday Quilt Show

Hello, My Friends!~~~

I know you all have been completely "enthralled" with my Beatle's Rock Band post ;), but it is time for me to move on. But before I leave John, Paul, George, and Ringo to my blg archives, may I leave you with one thought: Get this game! It is so cathartic! Just 20 minutes a day brightens your mood. So fun!

OK, well I did drag myself away from the Beatle's on Sunday and headed out in the direction of Dulles Airport to the Sully Farm Quilt Show and Sale. This year there were a fewer less vendors, but I still managed to find some wonderful goodies!

It was a lovely morning. There were several vendors selling vintage fabrics, feedsacks being a popular choice. This vendor had the best price on feedsacks at the show...

I did buy one. In fact I was so busy shopping (and fighting hot flashes in the sun--grrr!) that I only took these two pictures at the show. However, here is my loot!...

Lots of fabric scraps and...

And more fabric scraps!~~~So that was my Sunday morning, but sorry I waited until Thursday morning to share it with you! Have a great day!~~~XXOO, Beth

What I Did Most of Saturday Evening

The Fed Ex man delivered this to our door today...

I played this...

And this...

But this was my favorite...

I know every lyric of every Beatle's song. I have loved them since 1965 when I was 5 years old. I knew I had to get Beatle's Rock Band. It is so much FUN! Toss your inhibitions about singing, however badly, to the wind! I can't sing worth a damn, but I kept getting 100% on the vocals. I guess my enthusiasm must have meant something! The endorphin rush from enjoying this game with friends, and just enjoying the music, is FAB! Oh, and if you want to know I was George. I'm ALWAYS George :)~~~~XXOO, Beth (ahem, I mean George)

We Have A WINNER!

Hello, My Friends!~~~

Thanks so much for all of your wonderful comments! The random number generator has spoken and the winner of my 3rd Blog-a-versary pin cushion is: Tamara!

Congrats, Tamara! And thanks to everyone who entered!~~~XXOO, Beth

Third Blog-a-versary Giveaway!

Hello, My Friends!~~~

I have been blogging for three years and it's time for a giveaway! Real simple. Just leave a comment for THIS post and I'll draw a random number on Friday morning (EST).

I made this pin cushion for the occasion, so please enter for a chance to win it!

 

I have also listed a batch of new pin cushions in  my etsy shop. Stop on by and check 'em out!~~~Have a lovely week!~~~XXOO, Beth

On Sunday She Labored (and had some fun too!)

Hello, My Friends!~~~

This year I didn't take Labor Day weekend lightly. And neither did Hubby. Yesterday we spent a good chunk of the day sorting through the stuff in our respective home offices/studios. When we were done, we had six boxes and four bags of books and other sundries to take to the church for their rummage sale. I don't know why I didn't do this a long time ago. But I'm glad we did. Hubby switched out a large bookshelf he no longer needed in his office for a smaller one in the basement. Now our massive DVD collection has a bigger home and Hubby has more wall space.

I added more shelf space to my studio by getting rid of about 70-80% of the books that were taking up space. Here is the before, after I had gotten rid of most of the books:

I still removed many more books from the shelves this morning, but Hubby and I aren't all about work today. We took a mini-vacation in Old Town Alexandria, VA less than a half hour from our house. Old Town is so charming. Here is an example of the 18th century architecture there:

And the narrow cobblestone alleys...

And the clever plantings on bare brick walls...

And the cool glass basement skylights on the sidewalks...

The usual place we have lunch in Old Town wasn't open when we got there, so we decided to finally try brunch at the historic Gadsby's Tavern.

This is why it is so historic...

Now, I don't know if George Washington ate at our table, but we had a lovely view...

And here is my brunch, chicken salad on rye and potatoes...

And Hubby got the Eggs Benedict Chesapeake which comes with crab cakes on top...

After brunch we poked around in the shops a little bit and then headed home. And I spent the rest of the afternoon reorganizing my studio shelves and packing up more books for the rummage sale.
Here is the after shot...

And here is a detail...

I stopped at Paper Source in Old Town and picked up these wonderful paper bags which now hold lots of vintage plastic and other millinery flowers. The bags actually mirror the color of the flowers inside, eg. the Halloween bag stores yellow and orange flowers. I bought the round fabric covered containers for ribbon spools at Tuesday Morning (I love that store!). I had the tin picnic baskets FOREVER and they were buried behind my chair. I unearthed them (they had nothing in them) and now use them for craft goodie storage. The flat rose box at the top is actually one box from Tuesday Morning, but the lid is the same pattern and size as the bottom, so I used both on the narrow spaced shelf for more storage, kind of like paper trays. I have so much more wiggle room in my studio now and it is very liberating to get rid of things that were no longer of use. I do have a nice collection of vintage picture books that I no longer need, and those I will soon list in my Dime Store Chic etsy shop.~~~I hope you all have a lovely rest of your holiday weekend!~~~XXOO, Beth

Saturday Morning Ramblings in My Neighborhood

Hello, My Friends!~~~

Labor Day weekend and we are completely relaxing, wandering here and there, hanging out at home, and getting ready to send out son back to high school on Tuesday. Me and Hubby began with a short journey to the Arlington (VA) Civitan Flea Market which is located in a parking garage that spans I-66.

There are quite a few vendors inside...

And some in the sunny outside...

Most of the prices are pretty good, but there are some that are not...

I don't know about you, but I think $15 is a lot to pay for aprons that are pretty unexciting. OK, maybe I'm being harsh. So, I'll move on. Who is this shopping?

Why it's "Vintage Sue"! And looked what she found for me! The dear one wanted to pay for it but insisted that I should buy Bobby. She found some pretty books that are right up her alley!

After the flea market, Hubby and I went to the cutest hardware/variety store in Arlington.

This is Ayers on Washington Avenue in the Westover section of Arlington. My good pal Kathy told me I HAD to check it out. I did so this past spring, but I wanted Hubby to see it too!

John Ayers was well-respected in the community.

Inside, Ayers is a fabulous back-in-time place. Here is the craft aisle...

And here is the candy aisle, and there is 2 cent candy too!

There are so many more fun areas of Ayers. If you are ever in Arlington, please check it out!

Our last stop for the morning was the Falls Church City Farmer's Market. Color was everywhere, especially orange, red, yellow, and purple!

Tomatoes!

Peppers!

And eggplants!~~~Thanks for coming along with us on our morning neighborhood rambling!~~~XXOO, Beth