More Auction Finds - Kewpie Dolls

I picked up these cute porcelain Kewpie dolls at the auction house this weekend.  Normally I don't bid on dolls since there are too many doll dealers attending. I have some other Kewpie items in my booth, so I needed to add some dolls to help make the display look better. 

This doll was part of the same lot.  The bottom part is horse hair which is gross in the cool way. :) 

More Batik Tjaps

More batik tjaps showed up at the auction house this past weekend.  This lot, had more unusual images then the last time.  No mirror images or pairs either.  The bidding went much higher now that the auction house knows there is someone interested in them.

I may keep this one since it has a fish theme.  Wonder if they make one with a flatfish?

This one is really cool too.  I will post all the photos on my facebook page.

My Dream Farm House

I got tears in my eye when I saw this table and hutch. It was like something was channeling all my dreams of what I would like in a house.  This is the size table I would want if I had a house big enough to put it in. It's one solid piece, custom made on site by a master carpenter who also did all the wood work in the house.  The floors are reclaimed 12" timber from an old factory back east.  The floor looks like it's been there for hundreds of years.   The hutch in the background (the real deal) is about eight feet wide and very old.

Can we say OMG?  I'm also a fan of  big clocks. This coffee table is made from an antique clock face.  Not sure where is came from but it's too cool for words.

You can't have a house like this without having a too die for kitchen.  This is a kitchen you can really cook in.  The photo doesn't really give you a good idea on how big it is.  I took the photo standing in from the bar area as you enter the kitchen.  I didn't have much time to take more photos since I was getting called back for dinner at the caretaker's cottage.

The back splash is hammered metal.  There is a BBQ pit to the right of the stove.

The last shot I took before I left was one of the hand forged door handles.  I was losing my light so this was the best shot I could get.  I will post some of the interesting things I saw outside.

House Envy

I have a thing for houses that have what I call "architectural" interest.  Living in Silicon Valley there are plenty of beautiful homes and some so large you mistake them for hotels.  When I went up to learn to skeet shoot with my son, we went to a friend's private property to shoot.  The minute I saw the house I knew I would love it.  The top photo is the view from the front of the house.

  This is the of the front of the house.  What you can't see is the detail in the old bricks used or the hand forged door handles.

This is a photo looking out to the back yard.  It's over 60 acres so this is only one "backyard" area.  There is a fully stocked barn for nine horses, caretakers cottages and butler's house.  Two large riding rings (I guess that is what you call them) a beautiful raised bed vegetable garden and chicken coop.  In my next post I will show some the photo of the inside of the house. 

Check one more thing off my list - shoot a gun(s)

On my list of 101 things to do in my life was learning how to shoot a gun.  Today I got to check that off.
I learned to skeet shoot, first starting with my right side but finally did better shooting on my left. I'm left handed but right eye dominate so I should have done better on my right side.  After I was able to shoot down several in a row, I went on to learn how to load and shoot an assault rifle. Really this would not have been my first choice of guns but it's one of Chad's babies. Then I went on to two types of hand guns.   I don't know how anyone can shoot anything if your running or moving at all.  I had a hard enough time hitting the can standing still.  Skeet shooting was by far more fun.

Cornflake card

Last night was my monthly meeting with my card making group the Cornflakes.  Thought I would share some of them with you.  This card was made by Charlene who always comes up with something interesting.  She changes up her style so really we never know what's she's going to do.
Prepping for my classes this weekend and then going skeet shooting with my son.  Thought about taking Annie along but it's still a little to warm outside for her.

Squeak's Big Day

Squeak went in to the vet's to get her "big girl" surgery done yesterday. I was able to bring her home today.  She is still moving a little slow. 
She woke up from her nap (after eating a big bowl of kibble) and decided she needed a little TLC so found the closest  warm body to snuggle up with.  My son Chad is home on leave and spoiling all the fur babies.  Squeak now weighs 5 pounds 5 ounces.

Freaky Monday - Halloween

Monday was one of those really bad days.  It started at midnight and last most of the day.  If it could go wrong it did. I finally decided I needed a little retail therapy, so I went to Micheal's to see what was new with Martha Stewart and her Halloween line. Of course I didn't have a coupon with me so that really limits what you can get.  Normally I don't look at the dollar stamps,(I can't use them in the classes) but I thought they were too cute to pass up.  I also picked up  two Cricut cartridges that were on sale. With all the outside projects I've been working on, I haven't spent much time in my studio.  I plan to spend the day designing, cleaning up and getting my next round of class samples done.

Busy Busy Month - Bee Workshop

It's been a whirlwind of the activity for me and I will finally get some down time tomorrow.  Today was the all day workshop with Randy Oliver (noted bee expert and author) for the Santa Clara Valley Bee Guild.  It was great workshop and the guild members attending had a wonderful time. It wasn't a "hot"(aggressive) hive but the girls were not happy with all the people around.  Yes, not only is Randy not wearing a suit or veil but he's also wearing shorts. It's not a macho thing, Randy has just been around bees for a long time and knows how to handle them. 
With this event over, maybe I can vacuum and dust my very messy house. 

Bakerella Cheesecake Bars

I made these cheese cake bars that Bakerella post on her blog a few weeks ago.  This woman can bake!!!  These are soooooo good and easy to make.  I think each bar probably has a million plus calories.  The bottom photo is from Bakerella's blog.  Not sure how she can get such nice clean cuts. The top photo is what it looked like after I poured the frosting over it.
Here's the link to her blog.
bakerella.com  She also has a new book coming out soon that features her cake pops. 

Donor Tree Done!

The donor tree for the new building down at the senior center is finally done. Mike (the artist) is putting the final touches to the  metal tree and we installed it this afternoon.  It was a very long process but it looks great.  The brass leaves we have cut came in today too.  Nice to be able to check this off my to do list.  Will take a photo of it on the wall when I remember to take my camera in.  If you would like to donate to the new Akiyama Wellness Center you can call the Yu Ai Kai at (408) 294 2505. The leaves for the tree start at $500.00. Here's the link to the programs they have planned for the center. Wellness  

Abalone Camping trip

My hubby and daughter went abalone diving this past weekend.  Yes, my daughter is handling live sea urchins along with some abalone.  Sea Urchin is very tasty when it's "fresh fresh".  Even a few hours old it loses a lot of it's favor and gets that nasty fishy taste. It great to see that all those family camping trips when our kids were little are paying off.  Both of them love to camp and dive.

Scrapbook Island Flea Market - recap

  On Saturday, I helped out  all day at the Scrapbook Island flea market.  Even if your'e not a scrapbooker, it's something every crafty person should attend.  Ladies started lining up at 6:30 am and the doors didn't open until 10:00.  This year they handed out numbers to the first 50 people, so you couldn't hold a space in line for 20 of your dearest friends to cut in at the last minute.  That was only the fair way for those who came early to stand in line.  I would guess they had 150 -200 ladies shopping their hearts out.  With that type of crowd, only 50 people  at a time were let in. If you showed up at 10:00, you didn't get into the sale until at 1:00.  Yes, people waited outside for almost 3 hours. There were tons of great deals and things selling for as low as a nickel. 
Something that really surprised me was someone selling off their 16" Genesis paper cutter with a light box, (I think this is the best paper cutter in the world) for only $200.00. It retails for $390.00.  The story gets better.  In the afternoon after the crowds died down, a young gal came in and we started talking about the Genesis.  She said she got one for her mom (I said what a nice daughter) at a Goodwill store in Fremont for only $4.99.  At first I thought she said $499.00 but no, she paid less than $5.00 for a 12" Genesis cutter in excellent condition!  I told her to go out and buy a lottery ticket.
Next crafty flea market is next month at Cranberry Hill.

Framed Batik Tjaps

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At the auction on Saturday I made phone bids on two "lots" of copper batik tjaps.  In one of the lots, there were four that were set into wood and made to hang on the wall.  I know it must have taken a lot of patience to cut the wood but I can't help but think of all the background designs that were destroyed.

More Copper Batiks Tjaps

It was busy Saturday for me.  I helped out at Scrapbook Island's flea market (more on that later) and  there was an auction I wanted to attend. Since I couldn't be in two places at once, I did phone bids into the auction.  Two lots of copper batik tjaps where up for sale again. Interesting collection of smaller tjaps and some where framed, which I will post later.  I was told there were tons of people at the auction which would explain why I had to pay twice as much for these two lots.

Scrapbook Island Flea Market

Today is Scrapbook Island's annual flea market.  It's in the store front behind Island, where they hold their crops. There aren't as many rubber stamps for sale as they have had in the past.  I did pick up 20 magazines (Take Ten and Stamping) for .50 each (great deal) and 25 mini punches for .10 each (another super deal). Tons of scrapbooking paper and storage containers. It worth checking out if you're in the area.
I've been busy all week and Annie is showing her displeasure.  This morning I found the remains of my lemon tree on the backdoor step.  I still walk/run Annie every morning and evening but I'm guessing she is missing her puppy friends so decided to wrestle with a tree.

Custom Donor Tree in the Making

Today was a very long day.  For the last month I've been working on the preview party for the new Wellness Center down at the Yu Ai Kai Senior center in San Jose.  I designed the invitations that went out to the donors who made large $$$ donations to remodeling the very old and run down building around the corner from the senior center.  One of the big ticket items for the center was  buying and installing a donor tree with leaves. It is a fundraiser to help raise the additional money needed to finish the building.  Mike Nakamoto (good friend of mine) donated his time and talent to make the tree which saved the project over $15,000.   Today Mike spent all day cutting out the tree and welding the branches together.   Poor Mike was totally exhausted.  

The next step is to add texture to the metal and then to chemically age it.  After that we have to get it up on the wall before the party on Thursday.  There are lots of other little details we need to take care of but getting the tree done on time is number one on my list.

Naughty Girl Card - Sort Of

This is another card the ladies at the Yu Ai Kai will be makingin my once a month card class.  Don't ask me how I know but I think this image is a "oiran" or high class prostitute. You could tell if she was popular by the number of wooden sticks in her hair, given to her by satisfied customers. Wonder if the ladies at the senior center would notice?  This is part of a rub on set by Dover Design Works. I picked it up at Paper Source a few months ago in their sale bin.   I randomly brushed on Krylon gold and silver on black card stock for the background.  This will be a challenge for the ladies since they like things neat.