Applique Designed By Jane

Found these exquisite felt brooches by British designer Jane Smallcombe. Jane loves all crafts and has been able to knit and crochet since she was about five years old.

Birdies

Vintage Bouquet Felt Brooches

Owlie

A Pocketful  of Posies

Over The Rainbow felt brooches

W/W - Happy 50th Birthday To Me

Yes, I turned the big 5-0 last week and I'm freaking out!  The years have spun by too quickly, too soon. Is hitting the half-century mark supposed to be a milestone of some proportion? It scares me that while some of my peers  are already grannies, my eldest son is only 15 years old.  And the thought that I haven't achieved half the things on my bucket list isn't very comforting either.
At 17, I thought I would be at the highest rung on the corporate ladder by the time I was 40. Nope, it didn't happen. And by the time I'm 50 I should have travelled the world - sadly, still not there.

Sorry pallies, I have no life-changing epiphanies or any deep experiences to share, just a few things I've learned  from surviving half a century.

Here are some random thoughts

1. I'm officially over-the-hill. Gulp!
2. Menopause is a bitch.
3. Karma is a bigger bitch
4. Kelly Clarkson is right - What doesn't kill you makes you stronger
5. Don't sweat the small stuff - life is really too short.
6. Happiness is a choice - you either move on or fester in your misery
7  Whatever you do, if your intentions are bad, your plans always backfire. Let your conscience be your guide.
8 It's OKAY to be afraid of growing old - that means you are forced to make changes to your life.
9. Used to be, video calls existed only in Sci-fi movies....... now we Skype.
10. Used to be, filling in the gender blank in forms was either male or female.... now we have several options.
11. I am not a bad person - some people just bring out the worst in me.
12. The lyrics from Joni Mitchell's The Circle Game keep playing in my head -
                    "We're captive on the carousel of time,
                     We can't return, we can only look behind
                      From where we can
                      And go round and round
                      And round in the circle game"

To all the baby boomers out there, Congrats! We have made it to 50! 

So some dreams and goals were lost along the way but there will be new dreams, maybe better dreams and plenty before the last revolving year is through.

Sharing this beautiful quilled card  made by my talented bloggy buddy from Romania - Aurelia Eugenia @ http://aureliaeugenia-ideisicreatii.blogspot.com/

My quilled birthday cake. Isn't it absolutely adorable!!

And oh, one more thing - Hair mascara is man's greatest invention!

Kathy Klein's Danmalas

These stunning flower circles or danmalas (in vedic sanskrit dān: the giver, mālā: garland of flowers) are the creations of Kathy Klein, a devout lover of plants, animals, people and the divine presence within all.She creates the danmalas by first centering herself in a meditative devotional space. Next she gathers flowers and natural objects while her mind is kept in mantra, resting in the immaterial. Then, through an act of grace and giving to all, she allows the materials to fall to the will of creation patterns.

In Situ