Christmas trees

I just made these new trees. Remember spending hours putting a fake tree together? All those branches are color coded and then you have to put them on the base in a certain order. These trees are made out of antique tin. The tin comes from the roof of an old family barn. The barn was built in 1912 by my Great-Great Grandfather and was struck by lightening in 2008. With almost 100 years of weathering the tin has a beautiful and unique appearance. The trees stand about 27 inches tall with a 10 inch base. They don't need watering and you don't have to put them together. A perfect little tree!! Check them out at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com/

Antique tin from an old family barn

The barn was built around 1912 by my Great Great Grandfather. The lower level had cement walls and then it also had a wooden hay loft. When I was a kid we used to go up in the hay loft and there was a bunch or old harness for several teams of horses. It is located a few miles from my house so in the last 20 years or so it hasn't had a lot of use. Two summers ago we had a horrible storm. Lots of lightening and rain. The old barn was struck by the lightening and burned to the ground.
Left from this was the tin roof. With almost 100 years of weathering (and a little burning) the tin has such beautiful and unique patterns. I love to recycle and up cycle things and it seemed such a waste. That's when I got the idea to make hearts and stars. That has snowballed into snowmen and trees and letters. I'm sure there's a million other projects that can be done with the tin. I'm just glad I could turn a bad situation into something good. Check them all out in my store at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

Last day for FREE upgrade to 2day shipping on cloaks and capes

I had to change my sale just a bit because the 2day shipping sometimes turns into 3 days. Probably because of the rural area I live in. :) So to make sure your cloak makes it to you for Halloween, today will be the last day to purchase. I am upgrading every cloak purchase to 2 day shipping. I still have several fleece, faux suede, crushed panne velvet, and a few other cloaks and capes at http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

FREE UPGRADE TO 2DAY SHIPPING ON CLOAKS AND CAPE

With Halloween just around the corner, I am running a special in my shop http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com ! Free upgrade to 2 day shipping on October 25-27. Get your cloak just in time for Halloween. Just go to my shop and purchase and I will ship it 2 day express mail. So if I ship on Tuesday it should be there on Thursday. I have lots of beautiful handmade cloaks on hand. Something for everyone.

The Winter Harvest

Onto my next project today. I am working on fixing up my greenhouse. I want to try to grow cold hardy vegetable this winter. It might be too late to plant for the winter, but I determined to try. The secret is to have the green house and then over the plants create a cold frame. That way there is two layers of protection. The book I'm reading is called The Winter Harvest and it has all sorts of amazing information. It talks about building green houses and even how to make them movable. Mine is not going to move, but the new windows on the South add so much light. Hopefully I will be eating lettuce come January!

Halloween!!

I'm looking at my calendar this morning and I see that Halloween is just two weeks away. I have not decided what I will be yet. I know that I will wear a cloak :) but the rest of the outfit is a mystery. I stated thinking about childhood costumes. I remember those plastic masks. I'm not sure they make them any more, but I'm sure they are now considered a hazard as I could never see very well out of them. I think I was Wonder Woman that year. I remember the year I was the Wicked Witch of the West. I put this green goop all over my face that was quite disgusting. Of course I had a hat and a cute little broom with a black flowy dress. I think I still have the broom somewhere. Well I guess that is enough time wandering haphazardly down memory lane. Hi Ho, Hi Ho it's off to work I go........wait that was the Seven Dwarfs.... did they wear capes...Hmmmmmmmm......

Don't forget to check out my shop if you still need a cloak for Halloween http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

Free US shipping thru August 31st!!!

I've just gotten some wonderful news and I thought I would pass on this greatness to all my wonderful customers. So I decided to continue my free US shipping on all may handmade items thru August 31st!!! Yes I said free US shipping on all my Halloween cloaks, art, metal work, paintings and more. Everything in my shop now has free shipping! So instead of changing 121 listings, just wait for me to send you an adjusted invoice. I can also just refund your shipping price if you want to pay right away. So head on over to my shop for this great deal. http://www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com.