Sorceress' Apothecary

Typical Halloween decorations around our home include

pumpkins, scarecrows and good witches.

Inspired by all of the creative blogs I have been reading,

this year's decor includes some some items on the darker side.

A corner of my kitchen has been devoted to an apothecary of items

to be used by only the master sorceress.

You may have seen these labels on other blogs.

Seasonal potion bottles seem to be a popular topic.

Thanks to the creative minds at Love Manor and KarenCookieJar

 you can download their free labels from the links provided

and make your own display.

Here are close-up photos of some of my favorite ingredients.

A scrap of green fabric repeated the color in the Zombie Virus label.

I like the effect of tying a few knots into gold elastic cord.

The black cat button looks like he could be a Zombie kitty!

After my clematis blossoms dropped their petals, the remaining flower centers seemed to resemble something that could be a filling for my Zombie Virus jar.

While exploring the scrapbook section of the craft store, I spied this paper with a scene of tree branches under a full moon.  A few rectangle cuts of the paper covered a powered seasoning mix packet.

Colorful ribbons secure a label to document the contents.

A small box features a wrapper of heavy paper stock.

A coordinating border and some ribbon make these 

earthy contents look like something that is almost good enough to eat.

Empty Pistachio shells appeared to resemble vampire fangs.

A bit pointy and a bit yellowed -- PERFECT!

The empty pepper tin looked a bit plain with only a label.  A couple decorative buttons glued to the top added more interest to this container.

This label was the right size to convert an empty baking cocoa container into a seasonal delicacy.

The Life Renewal bottle started as a maple syrup bottle.

It's small curved handle was perfect for threading a decorative tassel.

Some dried seed pods and a small piece of pleated fabric top

a trio of individual-sized jelly jars that now contain more deadly ingredients.

I didn't purchase any special products for this project.

A glue stick worked fine for adhering the labels to the glass bottles.

I just wrapped a few strong rubber bands around the bottles overnight

to help the labels conform to the curve of the bottle as the glue dried.
My labels were printed on photo paper which gives
them a crisp professional look but they do need to be coaxed
to curve around the shape of the bottles.

A crystal drawer pull and some black and gold cord transform a plain wine bottle

into a more elegant container for pouring Vampire Blood.

The lovely bottle earmarked for this charming spider wine label isn't quite empty yet.

This tassel to pair with the spider wine label
was a great bargain at only 50 cents from the dollar store.

A small cloth-edged journal was transformed into a reference for the sorceress

to document her successful potions, spells, brews and curses.  

Of course, the back cover needs to provide a warning

in the event this guide falls into inexperienced hands.

Hope you enjoyed a sampling of my not-so-scary apothecary.  

You will find my version of Halloween potion jars include

a dash of sweet and a pinch of elegance.

What else could you expect from a witch with sparkles in her hair?

Until next time, live and love well.

Joining Weekly Link Ups:
Be Inspired at Elizabeth & Co.
Cottage Style Linky at Lavender Garden Cottage
Share Your Cup at Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson

This forum reveals random thoughts and reflections on topics of interest and events impacting the life of the founder of Doll in the Looking Glass.  Our boutique specializes in custom designed dolls that look like your child. We also design toddler and baby dolls that look real using vinyl doll components manufactured in Midland, Michigan USA by Apple Valley Doll Works.  The goal of Doll in the Looking Glass is to delight our customers with our creations.  We would love to create a special doll for you!

Hopping Down the Bunny Trail

My Easter decorating certainly has a theme.

It seems everywhere you look,

bunnies have taken up residence in my home. 

A pale blue pitcher features a family of bunnies

 and has a curved carrot for a handle.

A colorful plate fills a corner in the kitchen.

Here's a look at all of the treasures

in my kitchen Easter grouping.

I moved the basket to the table to get a better look

at the pink fuzzy bunny who found a resting place

among a basket of pastel eggs.

A small round basket with a painted cover

adds color to the mantle.

A white plush bunny leaves his hiding place

 behind a ceramic basket with a handle of decorated eggs. 

A fellow named Buttercup rests near a seasonal pillow.

Even this little toddler shows off the bunnies 

scampering across her purple Easter pinafore.

And, the doorman cannot hide his pink ears under his hat!

Thanks for joining me on this tour!

Until next time, live and love well.

Sharing with:

Bunny Hop at Bunny Jean's Decor and More

Spring & Easter Blog Party at A Holiday Haven

This forum reveals random thoughts and reflections on topics of interest and events impacting the life of the founder of Doll in the Looking Glass.  Our boutique specializes in custom designed dolls that look like your child. We also design toddler and baby dolls that look real using vinyl doll components manufactured in Midland, Michigan USA by Apple Valley Doll Works.  The goal of Doll in the Looking Glass is to delight our customers with our creations.  We would love to create a special doll for you!

Color of the Season

Everyone is a wee bit Irish 

for St. Patrick's Day.

Adding a spot of green is a quick way

to bring the spirit of this holiday into my home.

Inspired by all of the faux cookies that several bloggers

created for Valentine's day,

I decided to try my hand at crafting some felt shamrock "treats". 

Three colors of felt were the only supplies

I needed to purchase.

All other embellishments were already in my stash --

 leftover from prior projects.

The cute little leprechaun was hand painted in 1976

 --- by yours truly.

Doing ceramic painting was a popular pass time.

At one time there were a couple of shops in our area

dedicated solely to greenware molds, paints and firing ceramics.  Today, I wouldn't know where to go for these types of supplies.

It is interesting to look back

 at how people spend their leisure time

and the changes over time.

For St. Patrick's Day,

a green-eyed redhead has a seat of honor in my foyer.

Plaques bearing Irish Blessings

are displayed at the foot of the stairway.

Lacy paper shamrocks

and wooden Celtic crosses

bring the color of the season to the mantle.

I'm so pleased you stopped by to visit.  Come again soon!

Until next time, live and love well.

Joining:

St. Patrick's Day Party at A Holiday Haven

Luck O'The Irish Link Party

at happy hour projects and Mrs. Fox's Sweets


The Bunny Hop at Bunny Jean's Decor and More


Potpourri Friday at 2805

This forum reveals random thoughts and reflections on topics of interest and events impacting the life of the founder of Doll in the Looking Glass.  Our boutique specializes in custom designed dolls that look like your child. We also design toddler and baby dolls that look real using vinyl doll components manufactured in Midland, Michigan USA by Apple Valley Doll Works.  The goal of Doll in the Looking Glass is to delight our customers with our creations.  We would love to create a special doll for you!

Heart of the Home

Valentine's Day is the perfect excuse to add a bit of pink to my home's decor.

Some Spring floral garland, white net ribbon, paper doily hearts

and scrapbook embellishments add some seasonal inspiration

to a collection of candle sticks on the mantle.

From another angle, you can see both the fireplace mantle and the wall hanging

I told you about in my post titled "A Hug and A Kiss".

A vintage postcard published by John Winsch in 1910

 has been framed and exhibits the romance of the Victorian era.

A nosegay of pink roses sits on a table
 next to an angel who carries a Valentine token.

Two pillows featuring love birds are displayed on a favorite chair.

And of course, my seasonal doll is dressed in a delicate white dress

with pink trim as she welcomes Valentine's Day.

Thank you for visiting.  Until next time, live and love well.

Sharing with:

Bunny Hop at Bunny Jean's Decor and More

This forum reveals random thoughts and reflections on topics of interest and events impacting the life of the founder of Doll in the Looking Glass.  Our boutique specializes in custom designed dolls that look like your child. We also design toddler and baby dolls that look real using vinyl doll components manufactured in Midland, Michigan USA by Apple Valley Doll Works.  The goal of Doll in the Looking Glass is to delight our customers with our creations.

A Hug and A Kiss

As I started taking out my Valentine's Day decorations, it occurred to me that I had never written a post about my quilting projects.  I've been quilting since 2001 but I still consider myself a beginner.  I have made one large quilt and the rest have been lap size or wall hangings.  There are still so many techniques and patterns I want to attempt to master!

This wall hanging was made in 2010.  It is a two block applique quilt that I named "A Hug and A Kiss".  The  buttonhole stitch around the applique was done by hand.  The quilting on this wall hanging was done by machine.

The top block features a circle surrounded by hearts (the hug).

Crossed bars with a heart at each end (the kiss) are the basis of the bottom block. 

This wall hanging was was inspired by a quilt I admired in the July/August 2006 issue of Fons & Porter Love of Quilting magazine.  The quilt was designed by Mimi Dietrich in a Baltimore Album style.  Since the inspiration quilt was made of four blocks, the original name was "Hugs & Kisses" (plural).

My "A Hug and a Kiss" quilt was a low cost project.  The only newly purchased items for this project were the pink flower shaped buttons used to embellish the blocks. The log cabin blocks used as the background for the applique were left over from another quilt I made in 2006.  The appliqued pink hearts and green leaves were cut from scraps of fabric found in my stash.

My earlier 2006 project was made entirely from log cabin blocks and the layout forms a heart in the center.  Most of the log cabin blocks were made entirely of cream colored fabrics.  Two blocks are entirely made of varied pink fabrics.  Eight blocks were made the traditional way using half light and half dark fabrics.    I originally intended to use some of the half light/half dark blocks to add some pink in the corners.  But when I was working on the block layout, I thought the heart center needed to be the feature of the quilt and the additional color detracted.  That's why I ended up with extra blocks for the wall hanging.

Since the fabric used for the borders and backing featured the word Love in varied fonts, this log cabin Valentine quilt is named "Surrounded by Love".   I like to make my quilt labels using a miniature block that repeats a block from the quilt itself.

"Surrounded by Love" was hand quilted.  The outer cream portions were quilted in a grid pattern.  The pink fabric center is quilted with repeating heart wreaths.  You can see some of the hearts clearly in the darkest fabric.

Until next time, live and love well.

Joining these lovely parties this week:

Bunny Hop at Bunny Jean's Decor and More

Creative Bloggers' Party at Homemaker on a Dime
Fabric Tuesday at Quilt Story

Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home
Little Quilt Monday at pieceful life
The Valentine's Party at Holiday Haven
Your Cozy Home Party at Cozy Home Scenes

This forum reveals random thoughts and reflections on topics of interest and events impacting the life of the founder of Doll in the Looking Glass.  Our boutique specializes in custom designed dolls that look like your child. We also design toddler and baby dolls that look real using vinyl doll components manufactured in Midland, Michigan USA by Apple Valley Doll Works.  The goal of Doll in the Looking Glass is to delight our customers with our creations.