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When you are putting away jewels and folding scarves, and a furry fortune teller wants to snag a few for his own costuming needs, well, there is nothing much you can do but say, okay then, here ya go...
Fur and silk and coins, oh my!
Now, he stands on his word that he can predict happenings, and tell the bestest fortunes.
He promises.
In fact, he invites you to send in your fortune requests about this or that, and promises to leave you a reply. An accurate one at that ;)
Got something stirring you need answers to?
Hmmmm.
He's thinking, one sec...
Ah yes!
Shazam!
He knew the answer all along.
So, while you are thinking up your question...
Fortune Teller Furtunato (Fur-tunato) is going to take a bath, relax and get ready for some real work...
Ask away....
A nap, a bath and then let him look into his crystal ball for you!
You will be so pleasantly surprised at his accuracy.
Any questions left for him, will magically appear in comments.
Replied to by Furtunato himself.
Of course.
How much will this cost you, you ask?
Why, it's FREE!
Yes, Free!
And, only at A Fanciful Twist.
For a very limited time.
He's good, I tried him myself.
He was able to tell me exactly where the pretzels were hiding.
That Fur-tunato!
I almost went crazy looking for them.
Why, if it wasn't for him, I would have fallen right off the edge.
Goodness knows what I would have done.
Raided the local Slurp & Gas or something.
(tee hee)
Better take advantage of his skills while he's in town!
Ooooo, let's make something fun for our super awesome momsies, what do ya say?
I drew up some little cupcake toppers - because really, there is nothing more fun than baking cupcakes and then decorating them (looove that part), and then printing and cutting out pre-drawn paper, to then glitter and stick into the cupcake, is there?
I wanted to create a sweet little love note to our moms, which is why I chose -
Dear Mom, I love you...
Then I decided to throw in a couple of stars for good measure.
All you have to do is print out my free printable, which I will link to at the end of this post.
(I printed mine out onto card-stock)
Then cut out your toppers (I used scalloped scissors)...
And, use a little non-toxic iridescent glitter if you have it, to embellish a bit...
(I used everyday white craft glue, and then sprinkled the glitter over that)
Dust off the glitter real good and let it dry completely...
Then, grab some wooden skewers ( I cut mine in half), or some toothpicks...
Tape them to the back of your toppers, stick them in the center of your cupcakes, and voila...
There you have it.
Something so easy, and fun for mom too.
From me to you :)
I also threw in a pink and aqua star, which I then painted with craft glue, and sprinkled with iridescent glitter as well.
They add just the extra little sparkle to make your cupcake display that much lovelier. Stars have a way of doing that, don't they?
A while back in time, and eye sore happened in the garden, right outside of the little gallery building. It was because of an electrical upgrade, that our tiny vintage box with one handle (scary), had to turn into a proper huge large giant electrical box (yay safety). I hadn't been able to see the last one, but boy oh boy could I see this one.
Months and months, and more months went by as I wondered what to do with the metal lemons into lemonade box.
It will come to me, I thought.
I was going to paint a mural on it. But, wasn't so convinced about that.
So, I kept waiting.
Knowing it would come to me someday.
Then, one day last week, it did hit me...
Actually, it hit me when the hollyhocks began to bloom just the other day.
You see, I planted about 500 hollyhock seeds 2 years ago.
Back then, when I planted them, they sprouted and began to grow very slowly (biennials).
Then rabbits came in a mowed them down.
Gobbled up in one night.
Just like that.
But, a few were able to be saved by me.
I covered them with birdcages, and other cages I made with waffle wire.
I protected them, watered them.
I saved them from a huge wave of caterpillars eating all the leaves up, and thousands of their black eggs.
Eeeeieghwee.
And then, it was another year, another spring, and they began to grow tall and bloom in the now.
2 years waiting.
All of a sudden, I knew what to do with the electrical box.
The hollyhocks made me feel like I was in my own floral shop forest...
I cracked opened the can, spray painted, and never looked back.
I loved my decision right away.
Now I have a little place to write in the garden.
I'm smitten!!
The paint lets the chalk write so easily, like butter.
I so recommend it.
(oopsie, missed a "u" in bouquet)
Must thank the hollyhocks for chalk board inspiration for certain.
Thank you fluttery papery beauties!!
;)
Hollyhock love.
I don't know how I will ever be able to live without a hollyhock in the garden.
All it took to save them from the caterpillar invasion was spraying with dish soap water mixed into a spray bottle.
There are seemingly two kinds of flowers on these stalks. Some stalks have single flowers, and others have ruffled flowers. It is all so exciting and inspiring to me in some grander way.
Does that make sense?
Can't wait for them to bloom all the way up the stalk.
Would you believe I still had my Valentine's Day Balloons?
I hung them out there for my very proper and pretend flower shop opening...
Petite Fleur.
So, when life gives you lemons, buy chalkboard paint.
Is that the lesson here??
:)
Oh and... I must share some new cards I just put into the shop.
These are so scrumptious in person.
I took the drawing I did for the previous Mad Tea Party, and make proper invites.
I am off to paint, and repair my new hot glue gun.
How about you?
See ya super duper sooooon.
Love, V
ps: Oh, guess what? Some have suggested that my meter reader will be smitten. I only wish! Sadly, he shall never spy it, for technology has him using a gadget to read my meter from far far away, digitally. Gasp! ;)
It's true.
pss:
The best part of getting up at 5 a.m. and weeding and thinning the garden is (dark and chilly, but getting used to my summer hours)...
Nibbling crunchy cool baby carrots that had to be thinned.
This is my second round of thinning them.
I love taking the tops, sautéing them with sweet onions, and cooking them into an egg dish.
(I hear mixed reviews about the safety in eating carrot tops, any thoughts?)
So so so delicious!
It takes me 4-5 hours to tend my garden, so I have to get on a schedule, no lollygagging, or I will never get anything done. Hello 5 a.m. :) Eeks.
Captured by a curious tale, swirling amongst rose flavored warm breezes, in a dream...
The tale unfolded........
She was beautiful, long locks of wavy hair touched the back of her knees...
In her soul, in her being, she felt endless...
Magical...
Filled with wonderment.
But in the mirror....
In the mirror she saw tattered lines of years and years of age.
Her mind was bursting with wisdom, stories untold, earth shattering loves lost...
Her fingers could do anything.
They created, they led the way.
But the mirror-----
The mirror tried to shatter the depth of her being - her feelings of youth with arms outstretched in twirls.
In her soul, she felt perfectly young.
Beautiful, free...
Alas, time told a different tale.
She made a decision one day.
She would travel forever more, mending her soul, adding pieces of lost magic...
She saw her best friend, a machine, as shiny and new.
Just like she felt inside...
She made a pact with her own heart.
Sealed it with golden thread on a sunny warm day.
She would go from place to place...
Long lost love letters, keys to all the drawers of secrets in her soul and wonderment aplenty accompanied her on her long never-ending journey...
Bits of lace aged as well.
But still were beautiful.
She decided she was an old piece of tattered lace herself...
And so, the journey began...
For years and years and years she wore the same gown...
Adding...
Repairing...
Washing...
Embellishing.
Year after year after year she added pieces to her gown, which by now trailed behind her down the road, as she pulled her old sewing machine.
Every year the machine seemed heavier.
But, she forged on.
Through forests...
Up steep wooded hills, across streams...
She worked on her gown tirelessly.
Each piece that was sewed on, was like capturing dust particles of magic.
She was holding onto her magic for dear life.
To the burn in her belly which set her on fire for living.
To that inner magic, which kept her young and free and dreaming -
No matter what the mirror tried to say.
She believed.
And, she refused to let go.
Life tried so many times to take away everything that made her sparkly inside and out.
When a piece fell off,
she simply sewed it back on.
Collections of bits and pieces from everywhere adorned her gown.
Tea stained, torn -
Yet beautiful.
She pedaled and pedaled as the machine sewed along...
The sound of stitches going through fabric made her drink in a deep breath of fresh air.
A heavy sigh of thank goodness filled her.
It was always a reminder, that she was still everything she saw herself as in the depths of her mind's eye.
Young forever.
She held tight to that key...
Ribbons of youth poured out of her, and people caught them as she walked by.
For a moment, they felt a jolt.
A memory of being ever so young.
So free.
Of believing anything was possible.
Of seeing life as long and blurred, but filled with excitement and goodness to come.
Endless goodness.
As they felt it -
They remembered...
The years when you couldn't feel your body.
When no ache and pain graced you at all.
When your heart was untainted.
When you felt love for life, instead of frustration and fear.
And they followed her...
Begging for a patch of magic here and there...
Longing to be mended as well.
And so, she mended them too.
But mostly, she mended herself.
Each piece of that long tattered gown, held together by the threads of time.
When even time was young.
And....
When she found herself deeply hurt and falling -
When she faced things that the golden threads could simply not hold together...
That was when would seal her wounds with glitter...
As warm breezes of flower petals enveloped her.
That is when she remembered who she was.
Who she always would be.
Beautiful, free, arms outstretched twirling in the wind forever.
Lines of time, no matter.........
Just a little tale that found its way to me in the early morning breeze...
Love, V
ps: The Sucré album, A Minor Bird, is absolutely lovely (snippet tune above). I can't stop listening (I got my copy on ITunes). Sooo many lovely flutters and depth of sounds in each song - even some really fun unexpected sounds midway in songs like Chemical Reaction. I am loving the entire album. I so recommend it. It's on repeat in my house...
