This Week's Blog Post

Fancy Jasper Lanyards
I have been making fancy jasper eyeglass chains for a few years now and they have always been a good seller. Now I have added lanyards available in gold or silver at Miss Val’s Creations!

This jasper has varying shades of green with a few other colors included. I have noticed over the years that green is a really popular color for accessories. It must be a favorite of many women!

Festival of Trees Part II
Back with some more Festival pictures!

Here is santa putting presents under the tree! I am not sure the meaning of the stick in his butt but is certainly is a bit funny!

This was the winner of the best tree skirt. So the little elves live within the mushroom!

I always love a snowman!

This hedgehog was my favorite tree topper!

Girlie butterflies!

A great reuse of cans and a tribute to Angry Birds!

This is just too cute to not show.

If I could put up a tree (with 2 cats this is not a good idea), this is how it would be decorated!!!

Happy holiday season everyone! Thank you for stopping by and have a fabulous week! ~Val

 

This Week's Blog Post

Agate Eyeglass Chains

I came across these great multi agate beads that would make fun, beautiful eyeglass chains. So I made 1 in gold and 1 in silver! Available at Miss Val’s Creations.

Festival of Trees
The Methuen Festival of Trees is in full swing again! I took these photos in dim lighting with a flash which probably comes out better than taking the photos when they are lit!

I have not seen Frankenweenie yet but love Tim Burton and really want to see it!

More Tim Burton! Remember a Nightmare Before Christmas?

The Festival takes place in the building where I work. It is open to the public on nights and weeks. 200 Christmas trees are lit up when it is open.

Anyone can donate a tree to be raffled off. Each raffle winner takes the tree they won along with any goodies that come with it!

Awards are given for things such as best tree topper, best tree skirt, best theme etc.

 You can tell who is going for which award! The toppers and tree skirts can be really amazing.

Each year in the center of the building is a super creative tree created by a local hairstylist. The use of materials is always really cool. 

Of course the photo does not do it justice. It is really amazing lit up with twinkling lights.

Those of you in the US are probably familiar with New Balance sneakers. Their factory is in a city next to mine.

There is a store at the factory where I purchase my sneakers for a small fraction of retail! Well this is their tree. It shows how creative people get. A tree is not necessarily a tree!!! I did not read what comes with this one but my guess is a serious gift card.

The Festival is organized by the Methuen Historical Society and the proceeds go to maintaining historical buildings like the ones I have been showing. The Festival gets bigger each year so they now donate to local towns as well. There is tons of history in the area where I live so it is wonderful to see such a successful, entertaining fundraiser for these sites!

I will be back next week with more festive fun! Have a great week everyone! ~Val

This Week's Blog Post

Gemstone Lanyards
I have been wanting to make multi gemstone lanyards for a while now. It was just a matter of time available to create fresh, new inventory.

Well I had some extra time between product orders this week and made one with silver plated findings and one with gold plated findings. They really look much more like jewelry than my other ones! Available at Miss Val’s Creations.

Red Tavern
This is my favorite building in town named the Red Tavern. It is haunted (supposedly).

Reading up on this I learned that its original owner, Edward Searles was actually responsible for the walls in the city that I mentioned in my last post.

They were built to create more privacy for his property. I found this cool old photo on a Searles history site showing some of the walled part which really looks out of place today!

The Tavern was built in the early 1900s as a guest house to his castle. The nuns own his castle now so I have not actually seen it. Maybe in the spring I will try checking it out if it is accessible!

It was sold in 1946 and additions were added to the original structure which I think is what makes it so visually appealing to me.

Today it houses business and a function hall. I have been inside and it is quite beautiful with wood paneled walls, high ceilings, fire places….all sorts of stateliness!

 It is not easy finding much information online for all these neat old places and structures but I am slowly finding more photos online of things to check out!

Thank you for stopping by! Have a great fun-filled week! ~Val

This Week's Blog Post

I hope everyone in Hurricane Sandy’s path made out ok. Somehow my neighborhood was spared from losing power and overall Massachusetts was really lucky. I really feel for those in NJ and NY who still do not have electricity and gas in the area has run out. It is horrible!

New Findings

I have added new gold and silver plated findings to the shop including various headpins, beads, beading hoops and crimp covers.

Less people are working with the precious metals these days due to their high cost and not being able to resell fine pieces in a poor economy. Available at Miss Val's Creations.

Pinterest

If you are wondering if Pinterest works as a marketing tool I got confirmation this week that it does! I had posted a purple awareness ribbon lanyard there that since sold.  

I received an e-mail if I would be making more so I did and now the lanyard is on its way to Illinois.
 

Nevins Manor

Nevin Manor is another gorgeous building in my town. This was built in 1906 as a nursing home and now operates as an assisted living home.

I always have to look when I drive by because it has such a presence on a hill along with those gables.

I don’t know the technical term for these tower features but I know they were used for military purposes on castles. Why does a nursing home need these? It certainly adds to the character!

 

Election Day is finally here Tuesday! It is driving me nuts so I am looking forward to it being over. I have been avoiding Facebook (with the exception of my business page) after seeing things I disagree with. I do feel politics should be kept to oneself unless you have a relationship with someone you like to have healthy (not heated) discussion with.  Either way the election goes is sure to bring on more drama so I will probably continue to avoid Facebook!

Don’t forget to change your clocks tonight! This is when the reality of shorter days really kicks in! Not fun.

Trick or Treating was postponed to tonight! This on the other hand is fun!

Have a great week. I heard something about a possible nor’easter this coming week (that is a crazy storm with lots of wind and rain or snow). These typically involve power and cable outages as well. We just had a hurricane so hopefully this forecast changes!!!! ~Val

This Week's Blog Post

New Clip On Findings

I recently added clip on earring findings to my shop in the pierced look style.

They immediately started selling well so I have also added clip-ons with a half ball that goes on the ear lobe. I did not realize there was still such a market for non-pierced ears! Available here.

Snack Bags

I was in need for new reusable snack bags which brought me to Preppy Owl Accessories on Etsy.

I purchased 4 sandwich sized bags which will give me a lot of flexibility since they are generous in size. The bottoms are gusseted too so they can stand upright! These are great for bringing my snacks to work without wasting plastic!!!

Garden Update

More irises have bloomed!

My first rosebud bloomed!

When uploading this bud on the computer, I immediately thought of Dr. Suess. I think it reminds me of the Grinch with the extra long greenness sticking out!

My weigela is doing well! I have 4 of these which I purchased through the mail a few years ago. So initially they were so tiny and they have been flourishing!

These are my geraniums which are in urns in front of the house.

New Kitchen Toys

I purchased English muffin rings, a baking mat and a tortilla press!

I have not tried the press yet but Jim helped me with my first batch of gluten free English muffins! They look more like biscuits than muffins but they are tasty.

I can individually wrap them and freeze them.

So whenever I crave bread I can just grab one of these from the freezer and toast it, make a sandwich or make little pizzas! Recipe here.

Thank you for stopping by! Have a wonderful week!!!  ~Val

This Week's Blog Post

Onyx With Gold 

Black onyx eyeglass chains and lanyards have always been a staple in my shop. However I have only made these using silver accents!

So I whipped up a gold eyeglass chain and will be doing the same with a lanyard. Onyx is such an affordable classic for every woman’s wardrobe! Available at Miss Val's Creations.

She’s So Creative

4 of my girlfriends celebrate May birthdays. This year I did my card shopping through She’s SoCreative on Etsy!

This one has salad dressing on the outside and reads “It’s Your Birthday! Just Vegetate.” Inside.

This one reads “Edna’s therapist tries a new approach to curing her fear of sharks.” on the outside and reads “Forget all our worries and have a happy birthday” on the inside.

This one reads “The Origin of Turkey Bacon” on the outside and “And that’s why they don’t have happy hour on farms anymore.” on the inside.

This one reads “The Dog Walk” on the outside and reads “Woof, woof! Happy birthday” on the inside.

Besides birthday cards, this shop has a great selection of other cards for various occasions. She also offers art prints, notepads, napkins, aprons and more! Stop by She’s So Creative for some fun shopping! I love her play on words!!! See her interpretation of pasta bowl or french chicks.  Like her on Facebook.

Brunch Fun

The May birthday girls came over for brunch. One of them and her daughter brought me a beautiful, vibrant bouquet!

A week later, the flowers still look fabulous. I decided to give the big orange one its own vase which Emmett thought was really cool.

I was craving one of my favorite things which I had to make….a corn salsa dip!  Simply combine the following in a bowl:

• 3 tomatoes, chopped
• 2 avocados, chopped
• 1 can black beans, rinsed
• 1 can corn, drained
• 8 green onions, chopped
• 1/4 cup cilantro, if desired
• 1/2 cup Italian dressing (I actually only use 1/4 cup of light)

It is ridiculously delicious as is or with tortilla chips. Luckily this has no effect on my gluten free diet!!!!

Rhododendron

I have a huge rhododendron that has amazing blooms. Here is the evolution of this bloom!

New Hairstyle

Every 6 months or so I feel a need to change my hair style (in the side bar). This is the latest. I actually had a different cut for the last 5 weeks which I did not care for. This is a modification of the last style combined with my former style.

Thank you for stopping by! Have a great weekend and week!!!  ~Val