Back from Jamaica!

What a great trip! Beautiful beaches and luscious tropical scenery! We had such a relaxing time just sitting on the beach, swimming endlessly, and sipping the national beer,"Red Stripe". Went to see the world famous cliff diving and had a great dinner at "Ricks Cafe" The sunsets were so fantastic! We sat for hours watching the sun slip into the ocean. It was amazing. We went Snorkeling on the reef, I picked up tons of shells and the most beautiful Conch shells. We spent a whole afternoon at the Appleton Rum factory, sampling all the delicious rums. It is an amazing process to see them making it. We ate our way through "Jerk Chicken" drank buckets of " Dragon Stout Beer" and enjoyed the bananas called honey bananas, a much smaller and sweeter version of ours. Vendors walking along the beach always had a great selection of fresh fruit to choose from. Well now I must wash the mountain of laundry piling up! Back to the daily grind!!!!

Bumper Crop of Heirloom Tomatoes !

With the slow start to summer, I thought the tomatoes would never ripen. Finally we got some serious sun and warm temps in July and August. Now the rain has been falling, the temperature has dropped at least 20 degrees, but not to worry! The tomatoes are ripe and so sweet. We have gorged on them every night. I still have quite a few on the vines, but as soon as they get just a bit of color, we bring them into the house and put them in the kitchen window. They ripen like magic!!!! I will miss them when they are gone. Next year I will add more plants. Heirlooms are so easy to grow, and so delicious! I am going to make Tomato Jelly next week with the leftovers.....

Fall Colors, check out this little hat!

I have been having a great time with my creativity! I came across this vintage birdcage netting at a estate sale, and decided it needed to be added to my new shop. After going through ton's of my boxes, I came across the old shredded feather thread, and vintage maple leaves, I decided to pair them up with some of the birdcage lace. What I ended up with is a gorgeous fall statement. It could be used for a bridal headpiece, with more lace added for a short veil, or as a brides maid hat. The options are endless. Hope you like it! It can be worn with the lace on the side, to the front or at the back with the flowers to the front. the possibilities are numerous.

Walk the Walk!

I just have to report that it was a big success on Sunday at the Portland Alzheimer's walk. Our group," Cornerstone Care Option" raised a lot of money. (don't have the final total yet) funds are still coming in. We walked to be the Cornerstone in your life! We had a good group of over 30 walkers in our group. We were Team Yellow!

The purple shirts are the color the foundation chose this year. Our yellow shirts were designed by Ellia and the staff at Cornerstone. We want to be the "Cornerstone" in your life.

LOL, even the cat likes my new shop!!!!!

My cat was pretty fascinated with the Hair items I have been making! He sits for hours watching me make them. I finally decided that he could be my new Model!!!! What do you think? He is a sleek Russian Blue, modeling a single two tone Tulle Rose(white/red). Let's hear it for the cat!!!!!

His name is Zar Nicholas, He is used to wearing a crown, but a hair Fascinator is just as good! Next he will be modeling a bright orange

Poppy. He actually had to check it out in the mirror. Seemed pretty happy with it! Enjoy!

The" Bride's Touch Vintage" shop on Etsy.....

I have been working diligently on my new shop on Etsy. I have created several items and will list them soon. I have been learning the art of making silk, satin, and tulle flowers. it is really cool.

They will be used on some of my Bridal hats, Veils, Fascinators and Hair clips. You use a candle to singe the fabric. I finally got the hang of it after burning several flower petals. The color combinations are only limited to your imagination.

I have several old vintage hats I am restoring and will include in my shop also. It will be a nice blend of old and new. I am hoping to get my first photo's listed this week.

I feel like 10 miles of bad road!!!

What a night and day it has been. My cold is at it's worst, and kept me up all night. I coughed till 3 A.M., and finally said enough. I rummaged around the bathroom till I found my heavy duty cough syrup, and it was off to Na Na land. Slept till about 9:00, then got up long enough to feed my furry little friends, Buddy and Sweetie. They are my two little Kitty's I adopted about a year ago when their Mother dumped them on the back porch. They are my constant companions. Buddy is the white one, and Sweety is a petite little female Siamese. They are adorable most of the time when they are not nibbling my toes. I have slept most of the day on the couch, and I am ready to go back to bed now. I think we should call it a day!

Saturday, and I got the blues!!!

Good morning to all! I have a horrible cold, and I can't figure out where I got it???

I woke up Thursday morning with a sore throat, and now my head is ready to explode. We just had over a week of awesome hot weather, and now it is cold and gray out! I guess it suits my mood for the day. I will need a lot of strong coffee to keep going today. It seems I spent nearly a year before I retired, not writing much, or doing anything memorable. The last 9 months since I left my job have been very full and rewarding. I was able to do some traveling out to Texas and New Mexico, and many wonderful trips to our beach house. We spent the last 6 months getting the beach house completely resided, new windows and a new downstairs bathroom that was a lot of fun to work on( I mosaiced the vanity!) It turned out beautifully. We are almost done, have had the back yard landscaped and the only thing left is a new roof to be completed in the next few months. Then we can relax and enjoy it.

Retirement

Well its September and I've been retired for nine months and no I'm not pregnant, ha ha. During this time I have been focusing on my Etsy shop lisadqueen.etsy.com , trying to enjoy retirement, and taking care of my feisty father and semi sick husband. Life is a blast. I've been to the beach, and New Mexico. I am planning a trip to Jamaica in October. And I've enjoyed a visit from my mother-in-law. I am currently focusing on opening a new Etsy shop that specializes in vintage bridal. I would show pictures of some of my adventures but unfortunately I lost my camera in the airport :(

Now with a new camera and a new shop I am prepared for whatever life throws at me next.

Check out my new shop at BridestouchVintage.etsy.com

I haven't had time to download any pictures yet but they are coming soon.