Welcome Fall

After leaving Washington state to live in Arizona for 9 years, our family missed the changing of the seasons. Now that we are back in the Northwest and living in Idaho, we are appreciating each season's offerings.....well, the snow is pretty at first, and then.....

Here are some photos of our yard; front and back. The colors of Fall are everywhere and are truly lovely. Just wish this season lasted a little longer.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The mountain range photo (well, they are actually "hills" ) is outside our front door.
This photo of the top of our tree was taken at night.
Looks like it's glowing!

Happy Fall!

Suzanne~ Pear Tree Primitives

Happy Hallowe'en!


We are all dressed for Hallowe'en here at the Lady's Repository Museum~ are YOU ready? The history of Hallowe'en actually comes from an ancient Celtic festival held on October 31, called 'Samhain'. This was the Celtic New Year's Eve. The Druids believed that the Lord of the Dead ruled the earth and this was the night that he allowed all the ghosts to come back and visit their old homes. They believed that faieries and goblins and witches and devils would cast spells on any human people that they came across while on their journey. People would carry lanterns carved from turnips with a lit piece of turf in them, to keep them safe on the roads. It is thought that our Modern 'Trick or Treating' evolved from them stopping at houses, to ask for more turf for their lanterns.
Goblins on the doorstep,
Phantoms in the air,
Owls on the witches' gateposts
Giving stare for share,
Cats on flying broomsticks,
Bats against the moon
Stirrings round fate~cakes
with a solemn spoon,
Whirling apple parings
Figures draped in sheets
Dodging, disappearing,
up and down the streets,
Jack-o-Lanterns grinning
Shadows on a screen,
Shreiks and starts and laughter-----
This is Hallowe'en!
~Dorothy Brown Thompson


Happy Hallowe'en from Diamond K Folk Art

It's Almost Time.....

Ahhh....October....cool crisp air...colorful leaves....hayrides....pumpkins and cornstalks....tricks and treats....

October in Western PA this year has been a little unusual...it has definitely been a lot warmer. I believe the leaves are finally starting to change. There is nothing more beautiful than a hillside full of reds, oranges, golds and browns. I just love driving around to enjoy all of the Fall Foilage...

Since I have no pictures of Fall Foilage to share, I thought I'd share some pumpkins on my porch.....

Happy October!!

Primitive Blessings to you!!

Lorraine
PieCaKe PRiMiTiVeS

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

In Memory of Kathy McCabe
Beloved Mother, Daughter, Sister, Friend & Warrior

I just received a box in the mail from Warriors in Pink and I am so glad to be able to take part in this fight against Breast Cancer. It is just a small part but imagine if each one of us does a small part...wow...I get chills just thinking about the difference we can make, that we are making!!! Together we can fight this. I hope you will all take a moment and visit http://www.myspace.com/warriorsinpink



Breast Cancer effects each and everyone of us in some way. We all need to do our self exams and to get our annual check ups and some of us mammagrams or sonograms.





I will never forget the day my beloved sister Kathy was diagnosed with Inflammatory Breast Cancer, IBC. I kept saying NO this can not be happening, not to my sister no way. Well it did and she suffered so much with it and was so young too. I mean she just had her third child and to think how could this happen she has little ones that need her?! My poor sister always with grace and class fought every day of her life while trying to be the best mother she could be. We all thought she'd make it because she fought so hard but she didn't. We lost Kathy 4 years ago and she was only 38 years old! So I am here to say to you YES it does happen to those we love it can happen to us. None of us are safe from this so it is our duty for every woman who has fought this disease to take a stand and so NO MORE!! Please take a moment to visit http://ibcsupport.org/ and remember you do not have to have a lump to have breast cancer. Please read up on this very aggressive type of Breast Cancer. Knowledge is Power.

Kim Argenzio
Cabin Creek Farm

Happy Birthday Daddio! October 7th

Hi Everyone!

I couldn't wait for my turn for to blog... because I'd like to introduce you to a VERY special man in my life. He's tall, and handsome and has a dashing smile... he's even been known to flirt a little! And at 76? if that isn't Primitive or Vintage... (i'm going to pay for that comment)

Now this isn't just an everyday, run of the mill man here. He's helpful, and funny, and wise, and intelligent... did I mention good looking?

His name is Don and tomorrow (October 7th) is his 76th Birthday!

Yep, you guessed it... this is my very own Daddio.

I didn't have the money this year to buy him a new fishing boat, or buy a big new truck... but I thought this would be a wonderful little gift in itself... giggles.

Just a thank you Dad for all the times you've been there for me. Thank you for the time you painted my tricycle and let me watch... I'll never forget you putting the vaseline on the metal parts so they wouldn't get paint on them. I remember all the times we went to Grandma's after church, and we stopped and got donuts before getting to her house... Thank you for always letting me pick out some of my own favorites at that old Jolly Pirate Donut shop.

Thank you for all the times you helped me with my homework also! Do you remember you and I sitting and working on Math for so long? Thank you also for ALL the times you worked on my car. All I had to say was "Dad there's a noise" and bang, you'd be working on it in the garage. You'd always watch over me with oil changes and tire checking for air...

Thanks also for all the kicks in the rear when I needed it...

Thank you for walking me down the isle at my wedding... AND thank you for getting us out of trouble with Mom when you and I were back there gabbing and we weren't paying attention, and she had to walk down the isle to get us and through gritted teeth said "GET down that isle"... oh she wasn't happy was she. LOL

Thank you for being the Most Proud Grandpa in the world when you were told I was having your first Grand Baby! You went and bragged to anyone who'd listen!

Thank you for believing in me, and loving me and always caring about me...

Thank you for being a decent man, who would help anyone. You have been a moralistic man who stood by his beliefs. You supported your family and made a home for us. You loved us all and we all know it.

But mostly, Thank you for being my Daddio.

Happy Birthday Dad!

I love you!

One more thing! Thank you for picking Mom to marry! I love her too!

Jean Witt

Bluejean Primitives

Visitors in the Night

Hi everyone!

I had planned on posting about fall when it came my turn to post again, but we had a "little" excitement last night and I wanted to share it with you.

My family and I live out in the country, so we have all sorts of critters around us. Some stay at a distance and make themselves known with howls and calls and such, and others are a little more adventureous and make themselves at home on our back porch, snacking on the leftover cat food.

Last night, our little fiest, Snowflake, started barking and we assumed it was a deer crossing the yard as they usually do at night. Snowflake's barking was persistent though and we decided maybe it was the huge frog that stays on the porch at night. I've often found him sitting in Snowflake's water dish, maybe because of the long drought we've experienced this summer? Even after we told her it was okay and to go back in her doghouse, she continued to bark, but this bark was as if she had a squirrel treed. My husband went out on the front porch with a flashlight and right on the corner of the porch, in my flower pot, was a baby raccoon! Oh, it thought it was a biggie... growling and snarling at Snowflake each time she stepped closer.

Then hubby heard a noise above his head, and there at the top of the drain pipe was another one!

They were so sweet, but yes, they can be vicious if approached. We looked around the yard and up in trees, but no mama was to be found. Hubby says it's possible that the mama was killed and they are wandering on their own. I hope that's not the case and they just got away from her for a while. We left the babies alone after assuring Snowflake that everything was okay and she went to her doghouse to sleep. I think Snowflake just wanted us to know we had visitors. When I got up at 5:20 this morning, I checked and the little rascals were gone. Hopefully they will be more careful, but I wouldn't mind another night time visit from them.

Thanks for visiting our blog and don't forget to check The Primitive Gathering website for new items on October 1st!

Take Care & God Bless,

Lana of Honeysuckle Lane

My Past Life

A few years ago when my boys were younger and we weren't home schooling, I had a "word-of-mouth" small decorative painting business. One employee, (me) and occasionally I would hire a partner for a really large mural or faux job. My husband was easily train-able :), because he has an artistic eye, so he was usually my hired extra-hand. Here are a few photos, and no, they aren't very "Early American" or very "prim"! And, now that I look at them, I realize I was more interested in the artistic process, rather the artistic preservation....I took terrible photos!

The first photo of the rooster is the entry door to a little country decor and furniture store.


The two photos of the blue door are the back and front of a flat door, the only "real" thing on the door is the handle....the rest is painted to look as if light is coming through a six-paned window with "lace curtains" and cross boards are
painted on the lower half of the door. This was a laundry room and I painted the cement floor with "stones".


In the photo of the potted bromeliad, my husband cut out the arch in MDF board, and then I painted the rest....this way it wasn't painted on the wall and the home owner could take it with them if they moved.



For the fireplace in this client's home, I painted the "tiled" arch and fauxed the granite surround and columns.

She also had me use the same tile/ granite technique for the message center in their home.

This was one half of a very large room with arches over huge wood columns. This room took awhile! Parts of the ceiling height were over 12 ft high and it had a living room, dining room hallway and foyer. She wanted a "rich tuscany" look.

Someone asked if this is what I do in my own home. Well, when I was painting in other people's homes, I practiced on my walls at home. My husband used to tease that I was reducing the square footage of our home because the I would repaint the walls a lot and with every wall treatment the room became smaller! :) ...or so he teased.

In our home now, I prefer a solid warm color on the walls, and I'm saving the square footage of our home this way too!

Suzanne~Pear Tree Primitives