Hauʻoli Makahiki Hou

Aloha everyone!
This year has come to an end and so quickly!  Though I haven't been blogging, I've been online occasionally, sometimes posting on FB.
For most of us crafters and artists, the last quarter of the year is always a busy time.  So, when you don't hear from me, please know that I'm not ignoring any of you, or that I've ended my blog.  By the end of the night, as best I can do on the Ipad is play bingo!  No thought process needed there.  I am infact writing this blog using my Ipad because my laptop is dying.  My "m" and the left shift keys don't work and after being on for awhile it just freezes.  Do computers go on sale after the new year starts?
I have photos of just a few projects I created, but I'm happy to share them with you.

This is the tree topper I made using Stampin' Up stamp and diecuts.  I learned how to do this from dear Teri Suzuki.  Mahalo Teri!

This year's Christmas card I created using MemoryBox die and crystals.

These earrings were made for a friend's daughter. I used fresh water pearls, 14k gold filled wire and shells I found at the beach.


Well, that's it for now.  I wish each and everyone of you a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!  Now go create!

Aloha,

UFOs

Aloha everyone!

These past few weeks have been busy!  It's  been fun too!  Crafting of course was top on my list of fun things to do.
 How many of you have UFOs?  No, not the ones up in the sky, but the ones in the craft room.  You know, the UnFinishedObjects!  I certainly have my share but I lowered the stack these past few weeks.
I finished a sweater I started a year and a half ago.  I had the instructions,  lost the instructions, found the instructions and now my sweater is complete.  Check it out:

I also knitted some washclothes that was long over due, but I don't think you all want to see those.

I created more earvines, unfortunately those went before I had a chance to photograph them.

The next thing I did was stitch some muslin covers for my new cushions for my Koa furniture.  I needed to cover the raw cushions so that I could put my new outer covers on them.  My husband loves the new covers.

The old covers & old cushions

New cushions, new covers

I fixed my son's Hawaiian quilt (wall hanging size) and started working on a Hawaiian quilt cushion my daughter started who knows when.

 Kukui nut wall hanging

In between working on my UFOs I helped two of my grand-daughters celebrate their birthday.  It was  a quick and simple just family celebration, so dear daughter just asked for some cupcake toppers.  Gotta love these grand kids, they're so easy to please.

cupcake toppers

Malia loves owls

Sorry this turned out to be a long post, but I hope you enjoyed the photos.

Aloha for now,

      

On a Roll Crafting

Aloha everyone,
Hope you  had a great weekend!  Did anyone go to the Women's/Sewing and Crafts Expo this weekend?   I don't know if it's just me, but I'm noticing less and less sewing and craft companies are showing up at these expos every year.  How very disappointing.

So, this past week I was on a roll crafting and sewing.  I finished knitting another waffle patterned dishcloth, finished overcasting a Hawaiian quilt pillow top and made another tablet folder.  SU did these fantastic file folder/tablet holder with matching pen.  Well, I decided to try it with the acetate folio page pockets from Manuhe`ali`i; they carry these with their beautiful Hawaiian prints.  This is what I came up with.

Added a coconut button

   I think it turned out pretty good; what do you think?

Thanks for your visit!  I love hearing from you all, so please feel free to leave a comment; just click the "comments" below and make me happy.
Aloha,

Linky Party

Aloha everyone!
I just wanted to give you all a heads up about a Linky party that Karen from Sew Many Ways offers every Friday.  It's called Find a Friend Friday and here's the link: www.sewmanyways.blogspot.com.  You don't have to join, just visit.

from my garden

Aloha,

Aloha Everyone,
Just got back from Hawai`i Island a few days ago.  My husband and I don't always have a chance to hop on a plane to the other islands, but it seems this month we've visited two islands!  We landed in Kona then drove to Keaau to visit my auntie and cousin.  It was a short but wonderful visit.
We stayed in Hilo for one night so that I could visit Island Scrapbooking; what a fun store, I just had to buy something.  We then continued onto the Hamakua coast, stopped at the Waipio Valley lookout, then headed for Waimea where we stayed for a couple of days.

My dear hubby did all the driving, all 430 plus miles! Yes, this is why Hawai`i Island is called the Big Island.

Pololu Lookout

Waipio Valley

I'll always enjoy visits to our neighbor islands, but it's always wonderful to be home.  Besides I have some crafting lined up, so stay tuned.  Until then, have a great rest of the week!

 Aloha,

Aloha everyone!
I can't believe how fast August is moving!  My BFF arrived at the beginning of the month, we went to Maui for a few days since she hasn't visited that island for quite a few years.  It was amazing fun!  We made sure to take that crazy winding road to Hana; of course we stopped at Ulupalakua Winery on our way and sampled a few drops of wine.  Okay, they weren't a few drops.  This is a shot of the sunset from our patio.

Wish we could have stayed longer

Not only did we go to the beach on Maui,  we continued going to the beach when we got back to O`ahu.  This time for shells, driftwood and beach glass for our crafting.  We crafted, beached and shopped, what more could we ask for!  Oh, yeah, we ate!  We ate foods that Cyn would not normally eat back in Texas or we'd eat places she remembered when she lived here.  Yum!
Well Cyn is now home, back in Texas and I'm trying to keep the crafting adrenalin flowing.  I made this pair of earrings of which I actually combined 2 pairs of earrings that I created some time ago.
I used to make a lot of ear-vines that are worn going up along the ears.  I just combined it with my simple dangle freshwater pearl earrings.

freshwater pearls, crystals & 14k GF

Photo below is a necklace I made a while back.

mother of pearl and onyx

I wore both the earrings and the necklace to my class reunion this past Saturday.
Have a great new week!
Aloha,
           

Aloha Everyone;
Hope you all had a great weekend, I know I did!  BenFranklin Crafts Mapunapuna had a crafting carnival.  There was free make and take stations and some for a small fee make and takes.  I did both.  Here are some of the projects that I did.

I had to make the Hello Kitty bag for my grand daughters.  It's made with an acetate sheet, HK duct tape and this new felt (new to me) called Felties.  It's a little stiffer than regular felt and it has some glitter throughout.
Here's a closeup of the other projects.

inside of pop-up card

Cheryl Miyashiro taught us how to make the above card.  She is always fun to learn from.

stand alone pop-up card

Joy from Joy of Crafting shared this card with us, taught us to make the flower.  It was good sticky fun; we usd a giant glue dot and ribbon.

Tin covered in pink

Well, that's what I did this weekend.
I understand that the Pearl City BFC will be having their Craft Carnival this coming weekend.  Hmmm...
Oh, I forgot to tell you that there were door prizes throughout the day; I won an embossing folder!
Until next time,
Aloha,

I Have Returned

Aloha everyone,
I know I've been missing in action for at least 6 months and I'm truly sorry for that.  It seems I was obsessed with getting my body back to healthy, to the point of being OCD.  My eating habits are very different, I was checking my BP every day, sometimes twice a day.  I checked my blood sugar everyday to make sure I was below a hundred.  I even bought another meter to check my cholesterol!  Planning out my meals, making sure there were no starch, wheat gluten and sugar in my food.  It took most of my time, I didn't want to do anything else but that and play games on my computer.   Though I still watch what I eat and try to get in exercise, I don't obsess over the stats anymore.  Not that I don't check, I still check maybe twice a week.
Somewhere along the way of all this, I seemed to have lost my mojo for crafting and creating.
 But then I remembered that Karen Valentine of My Desert Cottage always has a blog party called "Where Bloggers Create" about this time of year.  Sure enough, Karen is hosting her 4th annual blog party.  Though I'm not participating this year, I'm still checking out everyone that is participating.  Visiting fellow bloggers always help to get me in the mood of creating something.  I do have Karen's button for the 2012 party on the side, so check it out, you'll have fun and maybe find some great ideas to organize your work space.  You can either click on the blog party button on the side or click here.
In the meantime, here's a  recycled and reused container.  My daughter wanted to make use of all the formula containers that she's collected; her kids like to put little toys in them, but she wanted to decorate them so that each child (she has 5) could easily identify their own container. I used decorative scrapbook paper and the Xyron sticker machine.  Very quick, very easy.  She'll use her Cricut to cut out the letters for each child's name, then she'll let them glue it on.  They too love to craft.

Easy peasy

Aloha for now,

Home and Recouped!

Aloha Everone!
 It's wonderful to be back home!  I didn't get back until Super-bowl Sunday; that was unexpected.  I'll tell you what happened.  But first, I want to let you know that this post doesn't have any craft subject, so if you want to visit me at a later time, I'll be sure to post about crafting then.

Ok, back to what happened.  I won't give you a blow by blow; I don't want to bore you.  While on my trip to visit my BFF in Texas,  I had what is called a TIA or mini stroke.  But I didn't know this until after we returned from our side trip to New Orleans, when I went to see a doctor who after examining me, sent me to the emergency room for a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).  Of course once the tests, (there were many), were done and it was determined what medication I needed, I thought I would be able to leave and continue with my vacation.  HAH!  I was stuck there for a few days, taking more tests.  Plus, the doctor said I wouldn't be able to fly home for at least 2 weeks.  What?!

High cholesterol and hypertension plays a big part in strokes and heart attacks, we all know that right?  But add a 7 1/2 hour plane ride without getting out of your seat to the equation.  Oh WOW!  Well according to Dr. Oz, if you don't get out of your seat and walk about during a long plane ride, you may develop a blood clot.

It was explained to me that when a mini stroke happens the clot will most times dissolve itself and the damages incurred may also disappear.  Which explains why I was able to start walking  straighter while in New Orleans.  However, this type of stroke is a message stroke, a heads up, a warning that a bigger, stronger stroke which may cause permanent damage, is on its way.  So I was very glad I didn't wait until I returned to Hawaii to see a doctor.

My husband flew up to Dallas so that he could accompany me home.  I was afraid of flying home alone fearing that something else might happen to me.
 
Of course, now that I'm home, I've made some lifestyle changes, I'm keeping my cholesterol and blood pressure in check, I'm exercising again, I've even lost 4 pounds.   Yeah!

So, going on a long trip?  Wear compression socks and don't forget to get up every now and again to walk a little.

Though the stroke put a little dent into my trip, I was still able to do some of the things I wanted to do.  Remember, I planned on meeting Cindy Adkins of Cindy Adkins' Whimsical Musings.  I did and it was a great meeting!  She's an amazing person, talented and so sweet.  We just didn't have enough time together.
Cyn (my BFF) and I had a great time shopping, though we only made it to one or two stores a day.  I guess I move slower and I get tired too quickly.  And we were able to sneak in some crafting time in the evening too.

Well, I'll be back soon with a craft project.  'Till then, take care of yourself.
Aloha,

Flower Swap and Trip

Aloha everyone,
I just want to share with you the flowers I made for a flower swap I joined, started by my friend Linda.  My photography is not great, but can you see the very dainty swirly flourish? I picked up about three of these wonderful dies by Memory Box from A Place In Time.  They're so dainty, I love using them.  Just run them through your Bigshot.   I used crepe paper from Melissa Frances to make the flower and leaves and added glitter and rhinestones.  I used a pearlized cardstock I bought some time ago from Creations Unlimited, to cut out the flourish.  These aren't due until the last week of the month, but I'm going on a trip and have to make sure they get to Linda before I leave.

almost packed and ready to ship

I'm looking forward to visiting my BFF in Texas! I leave this Wednesday (ooh, that's tomorrow), and won't be back until the thirty-first.  Posting will be far and few between when I'm gone.  While visiting in Texas, we're going on a side trip to New Orleans.  So when we're there, I'll be visiting Cindy Adkins of Whimsical Musings.  I can't wait!
Aloha,

And the Winner is.....

Aloha everyone,
In the US continent it's already noon. So, I thought perhaps I'd better announce the winner of my giveaway.  Drumrolllllllllllll:
The first winner is Julie Campbell from A Vintage Chic!  Yeah!  So dear Julie, please email me so we can get the detes squared away, don't forget to send me your address.  And yes, because your name was picked first, you get to choose which prize you want.

Ok, drumrolllllll:  The second winner is:  Lynn Stevens of Trash To Treasure.
Congratulations to both of you! Hope to hear from you soon.

I understand that some of you couldn't get through to leave a comment.  I'm so sorry, don't know what happened, but I understand that Blogger has been acting up.  And I've had that happen to me on other blogs under Blogger when I tried to leave a comment.  But there's another chance to enter another one of my giveaways I'm planning when I reach 100 followers.  We'll talk about that when the time comes.
I'd like to thank Sweet Land Paper Treats for being my newest follower.  Big mahalo to you Sweets!
That's it for now, have a great week!
Aloha,

Only One More Day Left!

Aloha everyone,
This month is going by so quickly! I'm writing this at 10:30 pm, so it must be midnight in most parts of the US continent.  Which means dear family and friends, there's only one more day for everyone to sign up for the giveaway!  Just scroll down below to the giveaway post and leave a comment there and your name will be added to the hat.
Here's another card I made using the Martha Stewart punch, and one of the  Sisters' stamp.

 That's it for now.
Aloha,

Happy New Year and Giveaway Time!

Aloha everyone!
I'm glad to be back and ready to start crafting. Let me bring you up to speed.  The last time I posted was just before Christmas day, my dog Hoku was improving immensely from her illness of which a cause still remains a mystery, she was put on prednisone which actually did the trick to bringing her back to her usual self.  It was truly a Christmas gift for me when she wanted to eat again and play.  Well, my schedule was definitely thrown off the track, so in order for me to get Christmas things done, I had to stay off the computer and totally concentrate on the tasks at hand. 
Now that the holiday season is over, I run smack into my birthday.  So...to celebrate my birthday, I want to have a giveaway.  I have a book and a punch to give to a couple of winners.  The book is titled "A Charming Exchange"  and the punch is a Martha Stewart punch all over the page punch.

Two prizes=Two winners!

  You don't have to do much, just leave a comment on this post to say you'd like to enter this contest.  You don't have to be a follower, nor do you have to follow my blog.  I don't want to bribe anyone to follow me though I am striving to hit 100 followers; I want people to be followers because they enjoy my blog.
I also have a list of people who receive my blog via email.  Well my dear sweets, you'll have to click onto my blog which is below every email you receive, click "kind hearted comments" just under this blog post to leave a comment in order to  enter the contest.
The deadline to enter is January 12, 2012 and the winner will be announced on January 15th. The first winner picked will be able to choose a prize first. 
See...easy peasy!   Good luck everyone!
Here is just one of the things you can do with the Martha Stewart punch.

Martha Stewart punch for the corners

Well, that's it for now. 
Aloha,