Wee Little Spring Basket For Easter -Instructions

Happy Spring everyone! As promised the recipe how to's for my Wee Little Spring Basket.

This isn't a traditional tutorial with all the photos but more of all the instructions and supplies needed to make your own.

Let's get started! Yippee are you skipping with glee?

Here is what you will need:

• Sm. Peet pots from your local nursery or garden shop
• Robin Egg blue crepe paper Opaque Shrink Plastic
• Mocha Brown Chalk Ink
• Layers of Color Vintage Rose and Acanthus Leaves Stamp Set
• Silver German Scrap
• Teal blue Binding tape
• 5 in. your favorite robin egg blue wired ribbon
• Embossed wallpaper
• Robin Egg blue paint
• Brown paint
• Teal blue watercolor pencil or other coloring medium
• Glue
• teal glitter glue
• sm. hole puncher
• Something for the handle-I used bark covered wire- I know way cool stuff!

Step1: You will want to stamp image onto shrink plastic with brown chalk ink. At this step you could also color in the image as you please. I just left it plain-jane. Then shrink according to shrink plastic directions.

Step2: Using your embossed wallpaper cover the peet pot. Do this to your liking. I lined mine up at the top and then wrapped the paper around the pot, glued it. Then I took scissors and cut slits around the bottom and folded tabs towards the middle of bottom and glued down.

Step3: Make a paint wash by using a small amount of paint and double or triple the amount of water. Paint evenly over pot, then with paper towel dab off the excess so that the paint stays in the crevices but not on the raised portions. Let dry. Do the same with a wee bit of brown paint but, water down even more, so it is more like a stain. Repeat process to your liking.

Step4: Make bottom of pot by taking several layers of crepe paper(I used 5) and cut a circle at least 3/4 in. larger than the pot bottom. Staple together then make small cuts all around the outside of your pot. glue to the bottom. Ruffle and poof to your liking.

Step5: Make a rosette from your ribbon by pulling one side of ribbon wire tight, then glue seam to fully encircle. Glue shrink plastic roses to ribbon

Step6: Attach your German scrap trim to the top edge of pot and punch holes for handle.

Step7: Make a fringe fan with crepe paper and glue to the inside of pot where you want your rosette to go. Attach cut out of colored and glittered Acanthus Leaves on the diagonal as a back drop to your Rose vignette.

Step 8: Glue Rose vignette to front of your pot. Next attach handle and tie with binding tape.

Voila a wonderful Wee Little Spring basket to fill with goodies to give to a friend or to celebrate Easter!

Sneak Peak Spring Release-Fleur de Leaves

I admit it .... I was being sneaky.... well, you can hardly blame me since it is sneak peak week at Layer of Color! Here is how I used the Fleur de Leaves set along with the Vintage Roses set on my Wee Little Spring Basket. I think it frames it rather nicely and gives it the bling factor it needed.

Make sure to stop by the galleries and Abby, Kristine, Linda, and Patter's blogs, these gals are all cooking up magnificent inspiration just for you!

Sneak Peak Spring Release-Wee Little Basket

What fun it is to play with new stamps! I don't know about you but my brain just gets going so fast with creativity sometimes I think I might explode! Especially if the images are ones that look like wonderful old faded roses! I am excited to announce that Layers of Color is having another new release on Mar.15th! But to get you excited and whet your appetite here is what the design team: Kristine, Linda, Patter, and Guest Designer Abby and I made with one of the four, new sets called, Vintage Rose.

Mine is made from....hey wait a minute...oh that is right, I am not suppose to burst out just yet*smile*. But as you can see my Wee Little Spring Basket is very cute. I will post the recipe how to's on the official release date Mar. 15th!

I hope you will check back, until then check out the other designers, boards and all their finery! I know you will be inspired. Happy Spring!

Tea Time Celebration Favors

Spring is a time to celebrate Easter, Mother's Day, and Spring Teas! It is a time when we start to linger longer outdoors in the evenings because it is still light out. It is also a time when it rains and winds blow in tumultuous clouds and spring storms. But I have the solution for the rainy, stormy, spring days.


Make some celebration favors. I used Layers of Color Flower Child stamp and dressed up this pre-punched purse from K&D Company. Add some glitter, antique buttons, paper lace and crocheted trim and voila! Cuteness!

Snowing in Spring

Our Cherryblossom Tree

We had a glorious day on Friday! The sky was the best color of blue like cornflower blossoms and the sunshine was good medicine for my tired soul. It was so warm and bright, no wonder the bulbs and seedlings reach out for it pushing through the darkness of the earth. I have felt like that lately, reaching out to the light to be warmed and nourished. It is amazing what an afternoon in the sun will do for a busy mama!


I decided since I wasn't feeling well that we could finish up our schoolwork outside on our new homemade picnic table. The sunshine and fresh air would do us some good! Something about a change of venue and the promise of being outside more often, was a great remedy for our lack of
enthusiasm towards school.


The breeze was balmy and so relaxing. To our delight as it blew through the boughs of our cherry tree it took with it, its billowy, soft-white, petals and then dropped them all around us. My youngest, with awe in his little boy voice said,

" Look Mama! Its snowing..."

It Has Been Awhile...

Hi all.
I have been hibernating, anyone else feel this way?
As I grow older it seems I have become keenly aware of how seasonal I am.

Isn't that a funny thing to say?
But it is true.

Wanting to retreat, rejuvenate, heal and stay sheltered.

However, I am sensing the thaws of spring and I am waking with the sunrise. My tender shoots are pushing towards the surface to be nurtured by light and heat. Ahhhh spring....kids breaking free and running around on newly mowed grass. Baby chicks and cherry blossoms, and all the miracles of spring! New life and resurrection.

I love the glow of the sunrise through my porch windows, it has been so warm and cheery the past couple of days! I have gotten out the garden gloves, seed catalogs, I have started weeding the garden and I am starting to plan my garden plots too. Here in the Pacific Northwest we have had a slow start to spring. I even began to wonder if we might just skip it altogether this year, but my allergies have told me otherwise!

I have felt the urge to update and spring clean too. So in that tradition, my website will get a bit of rejuvenation soon. I hope you will stop by(come visit at the end of April), if you do leave me a note or comment and tell me what you think of the new look. I am still trying to get things into the attic category or should I say out of the attic for the "attic sale" but that seems to be slow going!

It seems I keep getting pulled into the fresh air of my backyard where the chickens peck and chat with one another and the music of my children giggling reminds me that this is actually where I should be living life. So Blog-land, I am slowing down to a lazy spring breeze...I want to be able to hear the Lord's whisper and feel the gentle rhythm of the season, don't you?

Spring Sale

Spring is Bursting into Bloom with some great sales!

I have been a busy bee trying to get all things ready to burst forth alongside of spring and I am really excited to bring to all some New items available at my website The Patchwork Heat Co. I hope you will grab a cup of tea and come on over for a visit. But in case you are short on time here is a sneak peak at what is New for Spring.

Wouldn't it be lovely to give your Mom a special corsage for Mother's Day that would last for years to come? Well, you can! For the month of April in plenty of time for Mother's Day, all my Ribbon Rose Pins are 20% off!


Here is another great sale beautiful reproduction vintage needle cases for the special Mom that sews or quilts! Vintage needle cases will be on sale for the month of April at 10% off. Happy Spring! I hope you will come by for a visit leave a comment! Happy Spring Blessings!