Thrifty Friday Find~ Reed's Rocket Nut Cracker

I can remember, way back when I was a kid ;) , Santa bringing us a fruit basket at Christmas, and there was always mixed nuts sprinkled through out. My Dad would always carry a pliers in his pocket and could crack any kind of nut without dropping a shell or ruining the contents. What was his secret? He was gifted in being able to cup his hand around the pliers without pinching himself in the process, when the nut finally cracked. This was NOT a talent of mine, and let me tell you that pinch that followed the loud (or was it fear that made it sound loud??) crack hurt like the devil. (Did anybody else get a nasty blood blister from trying something so stupid??) Not to mention, it was no thrill to try and sort minuscule nut meats apart from pulverized shells. And just in case you were wondering... stealing Dad's hammer was no better. Over the years, I graduated to a meat tenderizer (to my hubby's horror) for my bludgeoning tool. Ahhhh the memories, but those days are gone... my counter is now safe from being marred. There is a new tool in my arsenal...

This is a Reed's Rocket Nut Cracker, and it was found at a garage sale unused in its original box. My Dad found me this... well, actually he found two... lucky me!! This little gem was manufactured in Arkansas, which is no surprise, since it works brilliantly on pecans. Okay to be honest, the pecans I am cracking were brought back up from Missouri! It is easy to get the pressure just right to produce beautiful pecan halves. I only wish my recipe called for halves! :( LOL This by far is the best nutcracker that I have ever used. Christmas morning is going to find me trying out some hazel nuts in this baby!!

Painted Reindeer Gourd

Here is a little guy to get us into that holiday mood! This North Carolina gourd appeared to be the perfect shape for a reindeer. I love working in the earth tones and used a design that lends itself to the primitive side of Christmas. His antlers are done with twigs, and some rusty jingle bells strung between them to add to the festive feel. He sits so nicely at 13 1/2 inches tall.

How do you like that hat? I love the long hats with tassels, and this gourd was perfect for one of this length! The plaid hat and scarf were chosen to accentuate the earthy, outdoor theme. I did have to add a smidgen of hot glue to keep his hat out of his eyes.

It wouldn't be Christmas without Santa. Isn't this a lovely scene? It has such a simple flair to it, and the browns come across with a very gingerbread feel to them. For being such warm tones, the white pops out and gives a wintry chill to this whimsical scene. This little guy is one of my favorite gourds so far... :)

The Mouse Caught the Gingerbread Man!

So what have I been up to this past week? Decorating for Christmas! We even had 6 inches of snow to add to the merriment. I love to collect decorations for Christmas throughout the year, but my favorite pieces are the ornaments that my son has made me over the years and taking them out each winter always brings a smile to my face. At the end of the season, I carefully pack them away and store them in my upstairs side closet. Each year went along smoothly as the one before with its new handmade ornament added to the group... That was until that fateful year... Oh yes, the dreadful year when a mouse found his way into our house! And where do you think he decided to set up residence? Yep, in our side closet!

It has been some years since the incident, but I remember the time well. It was an early fall. As I began to doze off in bed, I heard a scratching at the wall behind me. No way! My cat raised her head up, and sure enough, the scratching of little paws could be heard again. Then, our little friend raced up and down the length of the closet, having a gay old time for a good part of the night. At the time, I thought he was a little to jazzed up even for a mouse. Little did I know, he was on his own personal sugar high!

It took a couple of days, and the intruder was caught. I did not think much more about our unwanted visitor until a few months later when decorating for Christmas. I was unpacking decorations for our main tree and pulled out my son's handmade gingerbread man. Now in my defense, this gingerbread man had been stored without incident in the closet for three Christmases prior, but unfortunately, that record was about to be broken. The photo you see below is the repaired ornament. At the time, he emerged from the box missing his M&M eyes/nose and chocolate chip smile. (Thankfully, I am a chocoholic and that was quickly mended!) But as you can see, this mouse lacked a fondness for clean fresh peppermint breath, and he left a good portion of them behind. Instead of ruining the little man by pulling off the starmints (this candy hoarder had some of those on hand too!) I chose to leave those 'as is' as a reminder of the adventure this ornament had.

I must add that now this ornament is kept in a drawer in my front room. I laugh every year when I see him. Some people may not like the idea of half eaten peppermints, but maybe it is the Beatrix Potter in me that thinks it is a story waiting to be told every year.

Just an interesting side note... In the same box of Christmas decorations, there was an ornament that my son made out of a dog biscuit. Oddly enough, the mouse left that untouched. I guess, I really don't blame him. My preference has always been for sweets, too!

Thrifty Friday Find~ Chenille Bedspread

I love going to resale shops this time of year, when the flea markets and garage sales have finished for the cold months. My favorite stores sell for charitable organizations. This gives me the benefit of finding a few nice items for myself, some interesting pieces to recycle, and make a charitable contribution at the same time. Yay! Here is one of my latest finds... a aqua chenille bedspread. Isn't it lovely? As you can see from the photo, there is a rust stain on a little bit of the spread and fringe, slight fraying to one of the finished (non fringed) corners, and a few fringe that found their tips in mauve paint at some point in their existence. Other than that, this bedspread is in great shape for its age.


I do not see chenille bedspreads as often as I used to at sales. This might be due to the fact that they have become a popular crafting media. Plus, they make a beautiful bed covering in a vintage accented room.

I am not sure what I will do with this find. If my memory serves me correct on visual inspection (I worked in linens and window coverings for 2 1/2 years.), I believe this is a twin bed size which is not a bed size that I own. It may end up being a wealth of material for some projects that I would like to do. I will put it away, for now, in my blanket chest and decide its purpose later.

I have been coming across some very interesting treasures lately. You never know what you will find as new donations keep pouring in to these stores. I am very happy with this piece. Oh and by the way... I thought it was a pretty thrifty buy for $1.00! :)

Painted Large Snowman Gourd

I will be getting to the Santa sled later on in the week ( took a break for the Holiday!). Here is a snowman gourd that I painted for the season. His eyes are a lot different from the one posted earlier. This thick Carolina gourd is 15 inches tall (without his hat) and very large around, so larger eyes were called for. (All the years of putting in various shaped eyes in ceramics is coming in handy!) He is a very popular size gourd, since the body leaves plenty of room for painting.

How do you like that profile? :) He is sporting a nice sized carrot nose that I think he carries off pretty well! And look at how he sits. On some of my bigger gourds, (handmade) boots are needed to keep them sitting upright and solid, but this guy sits tall and proud on his own. I will be doing some gigantic gourds in the near future, and some of those will be sporting boots. The addition of boots can sometimes add another dimension to the piece that works even better with the design.

Renee Mullins is a fantastic tole artist, and this design is no exception. A chilly winter's night scene. The design has characters presented on a large scale which is accentuated by the size of the gourd. The colors were picked to match the scarf and hat. The hat and scarf are not glued to the gourd, so ... the new owner can "re dress" their gourd if he or she ever tires of the pattern!

Thrifty Black Friday Find~ KitchenAid

I hope everyone had fun on Black Friday. Some of my sisters got up before dawn and ran to get deals. This dedication is not shared by this shopper. My hubby and I got up around 6 o'clock and were to the store by 7. We missed the craziness but found some nice left overs to pick through. Hubby got his dream TV for the bedroom. (I personally hate watching TV in bed. Makes me feel like I am sick!) But, the plus to his find is that he went to bed early tonight, and I got control of the large TV downstairs for awhile. Yahoo! We both found some presents for my son and have him near to being finished for Christmas. Yay! But what was the best find of the day? I can scarcely believe it is true... A 5 quart Artisan KitchenAid in metallic chrome. What a beauty! And I am the new proud owner!! I have wanted one of these for years now. As many know, this is no ordinary kitchen gadget-- this is a kitchen appliance. I know many of my readers may already own one, but this little slice of heaven is a new experience for me: 10 speeds, tilt-head design, unique planetary mixing action, durable all-metal construction (translation- it's heavy!), and powers over 12 (yes, 12) optional attachments while sporting a flawless paint job. But the most important feature... I won't have my wrist hurt from kneading bread any more!!

I look at the box imagining the possibilities. The wonderful culinary creations that we will make together. The new attachments that hopefully will find there way to my stocking! (hint, hint Santa!) The lovely afternoons of me filling the bowl and this machine doing all of the labor. (Okay, a little one sided of a friendship, but I promise to keep it cleaned and polished! :0) Can you smell the bread baking? *sigh*

I found this one on clearance at Lowe's. KitchenAid is running a 30 dollar rebate, and I had a 10 dollar coupon for the store. With some money kicked in from my hubby (gets him out of having to shop for me himself for Christmas!), I had enough funds to make up the difference and bring this dream machine home! If I wasn't so darn tired from shopping all morning, I would play with it tonight!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I wish everyone a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!!

This is my little angel Mew. She looks how I felt today after dinner! Lucky for her, I didn't even have the energy to cross stitch!