On Sunday we strolled though the lovely tulips in the Skagit Valley on the only sunny day in weeks. Rachel and Eric posed for some pictures amidst the blooms.
Then Rachel taught Greg the secret of the expanded paper cup she learned during her years in the bulb fields. 
The tulips that were open were splendid and there were a few rogues also like this striped beauty.
It’s so nice to have a lovely lake by your home. The quiet lapping of the waves on your home’s foundation is so restful. 
The stockings are hung, 
the tree is decorated
and the pie is baked the manly way.
Just in time for the holidays, the Skagit River decided to pay us a visit. Fortunately it is just in the basement but when you own 50+ bicycles it can be a problem. Here are what the muddy waters of the Skagit look like this year. 
The summer flew by and here we are in October already. Although home improvements were at the top of the to-do list, I did have time to finish a couple projects. The first was created to honor my husband’s father. I made a shadow box and used a photo attached to a copper “suit”. On the suit are the pins he received for his long service with Continental Airlines as a dispatcher. I also included his name from an old passport and a tie clasp he used. 
The other projects were a three panel picture frame and a little Halloween garland. 
Last week I removed the old varnish and stain from the mantle and refinished with a light oak stain and two coats of varathane. I painted the carvings which really makes them stand out now. On the side I stenciled some feathers since it is a display shelf for my carved birds. Now the beautiful wood grain shows through. At Christmas I think it will look lovely with some lights also. 
Just finished this box, it is in anticipation of the arrival of a new member of the family. The quote is from Marcel Proust who said, “Gaze at the stars, but walk on the earth.” Papercutting adapted from a new book called Paper Cuts by Taylor Hagerty. 
The little mouse I got for Christmas now has a new home in an old wooden art case. First I painted the outside using a wood grain tool after cutting out the front to make a window. I 
added a shelf for the second floor and then did the fun part, decorating! Albert the mouse fits perfectly in the old dollhouse furniture but still likes to sleep in the matchbox he came in. He is made by the Maileg company, very cute! 
Mantel
Originally uploaded by craftartjonee.
An old Estey organ found a new home as a mantel over the pellet stove. The workings were broken but I have lots of raw material in the form of organ keys and wood to work with. The organ was in a church in Everett, Washington at one time as we found church leaflets and also candles, ladies hair pins, pencils and crayons wedged inside.
Craft Art Jonee 