Today is Thursday March 26, 2020 and I have been in self-quaratine against the Corona-Virus for about 2 weeks now.  Gratefully, no one in my family has gotten sick. I am staying in as precaution because of autoimmune disorders that I have.  

As the youngest child in my family, with the closest sibling being 9 years older, I have always known how to entertain myself very well.  I’m not a fan of TV, so I have resorted to other hobbies to keep my mind and my hands active while I spend this time at home.  I have been doing volunteer sewing at one of our local hospitals for about 10 years and now with our global pandemic, I have decided to “step up my game”. 

The ladies in the auxiliary group that I am involved with for the hospital make a number of items for patients.  I personally make walker pockets, caps for chemotherapy, pillows for abdominal surgery, surgery caps for children and pillows for breast surgery. Occassionaly I try my hand at toys for the children.  We have situations where toys are given to children to calm their fears before surgery and they are given as well to children who made have been in a car accident and may be injured.  Sadly, we have had situations where a sibling or parent was killed in that car accident and these toys that we made become much more to them than just a soft cuddly item.  

While we will probably never meet any of these patients, the work that we do is very rewarding.


With Easter on its way, I decided to make some bunnies for our young patients. Each toy that we make has to be free of buttons or any other itmes that could be potental choking hazards. I found these sweet little bunnies on Pinterest.  Well, they are my interpretation of a few samples that I saw.  Because I am not usng pattern, each little bunny will be different, sporting its own cheery character.

I’m just curious how other folks are staying busy using their creativity. 

Show me what you are doing... 

As we enter into a new year, many people make New Year’s resolutions.  I, instead choose a new word to focus on for the year.  For 2020 I have chosen the word “grace”.  I want to be more receptive of this beautiful gift from God, but I want to be able to extend it freely to those around me. 

I am aware that I also need to apply this same grace to myself, so that I can stop being so hard on msyelf, feeling like I have to do everything and be everything to everyone. 

Often in my desire to “do it all”, I allow my artist indulgement and “down time” to take a back seat.

Using our creative gifts is very important; often it fuels us for all that life brings our way. 

One of my recent altered book pages 

Just in Time for Spring

It seems so fitting to post hydrangeas for my first post in quite some time. They are truly my favorive flower and I am pleased say that spring has finally arrived in our beautiful southern city!

These watercolor treasures were a Christmas gift from my sweet daughter.  I was thrilled to receive them, knowing just how busy she was. You see...

Sometime last fall my daughter, who is an architect by trade, decided to do a few watercolors for friends.  They were delightful renderings of homes, churches and other buildings of interest. The friends were so pleased with her work that she decided, via social media, to see if anyone else would be interested in having her do some paintings.  

Well...

To her surpise, she received over 100 orders!

People from all over wanted a personalized gift to give their family and friends for Christmas.  Needless to say, she was VERY busy. 

Wedding season is upon us and my daughter is taking orders for watercolors of bridal bouquets.  What a wonderful way to capture this beautiful part of your special day. You could also give this an invaluable wedding gift to someone special. Long after the flowers have faded, this beautiful watercolor will become a great piece of artwork for your home.  

If you are interested: 

Go to etsy.com and search NatalieMeagleDesign

Happy Spring Everyone!

Old Glory Takes a New Twist

It’s been almost 2 years! 

This is my first post (with the exception of my daily Thought for the Day entries) in a very long time.   

I will save you a lengthy read and lots of emotional outpourings, but it has been a full 2 years, to say the least.  Right after my last post, we put our house on the market. In less than 12 months we moved, our daughter got married, I lost my mother and our son got married. 

While our lives have been quite busy, I have managed to stay sane, only by the grace of my sweet Lord and my faithful hubby.  I have dabbled with smaller projects along the way; which, for me, is truly necessary for my mental state. 

Given the commonality with my last recent post, I thought I’d show you the door decorations that I just finished.  They will carry us through July 4th.  Our new home has double front doors, so each time I make a new one, it’s always in duplicate.  It’s been a bit of a challenge, but one that I have been enjoying.  In an effort to hold costs down, I try to combine recyled materias with items that I already have on had.  I do not have the steps that I took for most of my door decs. but will try to post pics of some of them as the seasons change.

Our Whimsical Star-Spangled Stars~

I began by drawing out my star pattern on a piece of poster board

With a black crayon, I traced my star onto a sheet of medium weight wavy metal, which I found in the trash.  I found 4 sheets of this metal a few moths ago.  I figured they would come in handy for a project.

The tin snips that I had had short handles, which would have made long cuts a big struggle. I went to the local hardware store and picked up these big boys.  

After I cut out both  stars, I hit them with a coat of white spray paint.  This gave me a good “primer” and provided for my white stars and white stripes, allowing me to avoid having to use additional white paint.

Things start to take “shape”...

I penciled in the stars and stripes and began adding blue and red paint. 

As with every project, detailing is important. It often makes it “pop”.  I took a little white piant and created “stitches” around the outside of the big star.  Then I used a little white paint to create “shadows” around the little stars.

After my painting was complete, I sealed the entire surface with a clear satin polyurethane.

I used a nail to make a two holes, added some wire for my hanger and embellished with a raffia bow.

~Old Glory~

I made this door hanger to give to dear friends of ours on the 4th of July. My husband and I spent the weekend at their lake home in Kentucky and a flag seemed to be the perfect hostess gift for the occasion. 

It is made from burlap, but it has the appearance of canvas.  The burlap that I used was dark brown in color, so I had to use LOTS of paint to get full coverage. 

My friend had a metal front door with stained glass, so nailing in a nail to hang the flag was not an option.  Luckily, I had taken a suction hook with me.  It worked out perfectly.  I just love it when a plan comes together!

You're a grand old flag,
You're a high flying flag
And forever in peace may you wave.
~George M. Cohan

~a curb-side attraction~

One of the organizations that I belong to, recently held a large fundraiser.    Members were given an opportunity to participate in a trash-to-treasure contest, where the “transformed” articles would be donated and placed in a silent auction.  The monies raised would go to the organization, but there were prizes to be given for the item bringing the highest bid and also for the item which fetched the most bids.

When I received the announcement about the contest, I got very excited. Being the thrifty crafter that I am, I knew I had to enter.  For weeks I pondered on what project I could tackle that might create a bit of interest.  I truly was at a loss.  Sometimes I work well under pressure, but other times, not.  My competitive nature was causing me to have a serious case of “artist cramp”.

One day while making our way to the zoo for a Saturday outing, my DH spotted a curb full of tossed “treasures”.  It’s still funny to me that he saw the loot before I did. (it was actually a couple of streets off the road that we were traveling on).  He made a u-turn so that he could get me to my “watering hole” where I could do a little “shopping”.  Amid the true trash, I found a bentwood chair, a most tacky shell-encrusted mirror and a pitiful little red wobbly shelf.  DH helped me load my stash and off we went.  At the time that I got the goodies, I had no plans for them.  I never usually do.  I mainly like the feel of getting something for free and knowing that I saved it from adding to the volume at our local city dump.

My newly rescued items sat untouched in our garage for several weeks.  I considered using the mirror for my trash-to-treasure entry, but dismissed the idea because I didn’t feel that I could to anything to it to create a “WOW” factor.

Then one day, while backing out of the garage to go to work, my eyes fell upon my humble red shelf with new interest.  I caught a “vision” for it, which gave me hope that I would be able to have an entry in the contest after all.

My first step was to try and “stabilize” my piece.  The elements had obviously gotten the best of my little wooden shelf.  Most folks would have left this pitiful thing in the garbage, but I was determined to give it new life.

I invested in a tub of wood filler and began pressing large amounts of the tan paste into the deep divots with a putty knife.  By the time I finished filling all the crevices, I think it ended up sporting more wood filler than original wood.  

In some areas the wood began to swell, so I got out my handy grips and braced it.

Next came the electric sander.  I tired to get as smooth of a surface as possible, which was difficult considering all the filler that I had to add.

I just so happened to have four wooden balls in my craft closet.  They had a flat edge to them, which made them perfect candidates for feet for my project.  I used wood glue to attach them.  One “foot" required the addition of a dowel for security, as the surface that I was trying to glue it to was solely wood filler.  It worked perfectly!  Thank goodness for all the “training” that I got in my dad’s workshop as a youngster.

One day, while driving home from work, I spotted some long pieces of wood lying in the middle of the road.  They appeared to be just what I needed for my soon-to-be bunk bed.  I made a quick u-turn, pulled along side the median, turned on my flashers, hopped out of the car and snagged the timbers.  

It’s times like this that I get so excited.  The project was beginning to come together very nicely.  

After a little sawing and sanding, I nailed my side rails to the top loft of my doll bed.

~then~

A few coats of paint later...

With the structural work behind me, it was time to tackle the textile part of my project.

I already had, in my stash of material, the perfect mix of colors and patterns for the bedding.

With a little stitching and stuffing, I made some mattresses

Then came the sheets

Some pillows

A comforter and a coverlet

My finished baby doll bunk bed.  I just love how it turned out. It was ready to be turned in for the silent auction.  I will admit, I was a little nervous about it.  What if no one bid on it?

My daughter and I went the evening of the fundraiser.  I told her to go take a peek at my entry.  I was tickled when she told me that it had already gathered a few bids.  I was satisfied knowing that someone wanted it; maybe for their daughter or for their granddaughter. My efforts were not in vain, thank goodness.

I received a phone call a few days after the fundraiser notifying me that my entry had come in first place!  

My humble little doll bed brought in the most bids. 

WOW, was I excited!!!

I was awarded a gift certificate to a local spa (actually the very place that I get my hair cut-so that was cool) 
AND
a gift certificate to a fine dining establishment

I’m ready for my next project.  Bring her on...

My Newest Critter Creation

I didn’t have a pattern to follow for this owl 
that I made for a special little boy or girl at the hospital.  

My inspiration for him 

actually came from one of my cat’s toys.  

The shape looked simple enough, so I  thought I’d give it a try. Simple is good when it comes to toy making.  Some of the patterns that the ladies in my auxiliary use are so detailed that they end up being very time-consuming.  I have enjoyed the last few “critters” that I have made because I get to use a little extra creativity in my planning.

Here is the fella that inspired my colorful cuddly owl:

When I took my newest toy to my meeting, several ladies asked for the pattern.  I had to tell them that there was not one. They asked me if I could make a pattern for them. I had to tell them that I was sorry, 
that my brain just doesn’t work like that.  

I’m on to another “one and done”.  The next I think will be a bunny.  I thought this would be appropriate during the 

Easter season.