I am a Victorian Soul, who lives in a small townhouse that was built in the mid 1970's, not a huge Mega Mansion!! I just recently lost my Hubby Joe, who was a Retired Letter Carrier. I worked night shift as an RN on a Hospital based Rehabilitation( Physical Medicine) Unit for 37 years before I had Knee Replacement Surgery and officially Retired in 2019 after 41 years working in Direct Patient Care ... I am so glad that we retired at 62 years of age and got to spend that time together before he passed....I still do love Retirement!!!!

I DABBLE IN A BIT OF THIS AND THAT!!!!

" IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO BE WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE BEEN"
George Eliot
George Eliot was actually a pen name for a woman named Mary Anne Evans......

BLOGGING FOR FUN AND FRIENDSHIP!!!!!!

Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Gifts of Appreciation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Welcome to Debbie-Dabble Blog!!

 
I am so happy you decided to stop by!!
 
  You can click on each picture if you care to enlarge it...... 
 
I know I had promised to share the rest of the Dining Room decorated for Easter in this next post but it has been quite a week ..
 
Instead, today I want to share 2 stories about unexpected Gifts of Appreciation.....
 
 But first, I want to show my appreciation by Thanking these Hosts for featuring my posts from their linky parties!!!

Thanks to Bev, over at Eclectic Red Barn, for choosing my post, That's a Lot of Green, as one of her features from last week's Happiness is Homemade Linky Party!!!


 Thanks so much, Bev!!

I also want to Thank Marilyn, over at Marilyn's Treats, for choosing my post, Beginning to Look a Lot Like Easter and Spring,  as one of her features from last week's Over the Moon Linky Party!!!!

Thanks again, Marilyn!!!!

  And I also want to Thank, Naush, over at Doodle Buddies, for featuring my post, That's a Lot of Green, as one of her features from last week's Meraki Link Party!!

 

 Thanks so much, Naush!!!! 

Please stop by and link up to these wonderful parties!!!

 
 
You may remember in past posts, I mentioned that Joe would clean off our next door neighbor's car from snow on the one side of us as he had COPD and lung cancer and had recently been in and out of the hospital.....

 
 
Joe also made sure that there was no ice in his parking spaces as he had Home Health Nurses and Visiting Angels who were helping him with basic housekeeping chores coming in daily......

And I had been shoveling his sidewalk in front of his house and into his house for him....
 

Sadly, our neighbor passed away last week...

His son and daughter knew that his days were numbered as he was in heart failure and had come in ( as they are both out of state) to spend his last days with him...

But before they could bring him home, he passed away in an inpatient Hospice Unit.... 

They used those days to clean out his house, renting a U Haul It and donating everything to Salvation Army

They knew that we had been shoveling his sidewalk and that Joe would get the keys to their Dad's car to move it so his spaces could be plowed.....

Simple things done for a good neighbor of 30+ years with nothing expected in return.....

Joe and I were both deeply touched by the hand written heartfelt Thank You card we were given by his children, thanking us for those simple deeds....

And we were even more shocked by a very generous gift card that was enclosed in the card.....

That was neither expected or required but they wanted to show their appreciation as their Dad was a very independent person who would never ask for help so they knew that we just undertook doing these things on our own.........

Proving you never know just how much a simple act of kindness can mean to someone.....

We will miss our good neighbor of 30+ years but trust that his children will find us another good neighbor as they will be selling their parent's home....


You may also remember that when I cleaned out my Craft Room a few weeks ago, I mentioned that I shipped 3 boxes of craft supplies to my Face Book friend, Angela, in Ohio.........


These boxes were filled with ruffled lace, venice lace, bridal appliques and flowers, ribbon roses and flowers, cameos and other supplies that I had used when I made my Victorian crafts to sell on Ebay and at local Craft Fairs.....

Since Victorian styled crafts is not the big trend right now, I knew that if I did not just want to donate these things to Salvation Army, where they would be sold for a fraction of what they were worth, that I would have to find a special person who would appreciate and use these things....

 

And that person was, beyond a doubt my friend , Angela.....

I first took pictures of everything , making sure that Angela actually wanted me to send these things to her, before I packed them up and shipped them to her....

She offered to pay me for them but I was just thrilled that I was passing them on to someone who knew what they were and would use them!!! 

When Angela received the boxes, she was kind enough to write this heartfelt post on face book.....

 

Yesterday I was blessed by one of my dear sweet Facebook friends FedEx delivered these 3 big boxes of BEAUTIFUL craft supplies Beautiful Venice lace, beautiful paper flowers and silk flowers some of the most Exquisite cameos, bolts a fringe that I can use for my lamp shades spools and bolts of lace, beaded ribbon and fringe sooooooo many BEAUTIFUL items. Thank You so very very much Debbie Barna she blessed me with ALL of this she has always been a Beautiful Kind Sweet Soul. From the bottom of my heart thank you Debbie Barna I can never thank you enough ❤️❤️


Angela again offered to pay me for them so I told her that she could make me one of her stunning creations as a Thank You....

Yesterday, a box came from Angela....

Inside were some of the most beautifully wrapped packages which I should have taken pictures of but I was so excited that I forgot.....

Not only were they wrapped beautifully but there were several hand written cards attached too!!

I squealed with awe and amazement as I opened each package and saw the exquisite creations Angela had gifted me ......

I was even reduced to tears!!!

A beautiful Thank You card with a Tea Cup on it!!

Angela is a Mixed Media Artist and this is a card that she colored with copic markers and stamped the cute image of this clown!!

 Look at these darling photo frames.....

  This is how Angela described how she made them.....

 "The flowers on this piece I created from pure silk ribbon

  I sculpted the doll and the little Kewpie doll from polymer clay

 And used vintage lace"

 The detail is nothing short of spectacular!!

 

 

 




Honestly, the pictures do not do these creations justice!!!

 Angela calls this a small configuration box

 

 OMG!!!!

 

 

 

 Look at the tea cup and tea pot in the bottom of the picture above.....


And look at the base of this configuration box!!!!!!


Breathtaking!!!!


 
I gasped when I unwrapped the next 2 items!!!
 
In Angela's words.....

 "The pincushion and stick pins that I created...

 I use Swarovski crystal jewelry findings to make the stick pins"



 Again......
 
OMG!!!!!

Next is this gorgeous wall hanging.....

 "This is a 3D wall hanging that I created.."

 

 "I used jewelry findings, German Dresden gold paper"

"I created the little cakes out of Fimo polymer clay"

"I used a Christmas ornament that I tore apart and repainted and re -glittered and embellished with flowers for the chandelier."

"The drapes are pure silk pleated fabric"

" I fashioned the table from a coaster that I cut in half gold Dresden German paper, jewelry findings and pearls. 

The Beautiful image of the little girl is Renea Bouquets laser cut board images."

No words!!!!

 And now I would love to introduce you to this talented artist!!

 This is my dear friend, Angela!!!


 I first met Angela in a Face Book Decorating Group which is where I noticed that we shared the same love of Victorian Style and that she was also a Crafter....

As we commented back and forth on each other's posts, we became friends and it was not long before we realized that we had a LOT more in common other than our love for Victorian design.....

Not only are we the same age but so are our husbands....

And we are both Mother's of sons, both cancer survivor's, both have cataracts that are "not ripe yet" and both love snow!!!!

Angela used to participate in the Chicago International Miniature Show every year...

As a talented Miniaturist, her worked was featured in a Miniatures Magazine based in Madrid....


And her work was also featured in magazines from the UK and also here in America.....

Angela and I share similar tastes when it comes to decorating and she is a true Victorian Soul.....

She was gracious enough to send me photos of her stunning home so I could share them with you....

This is her Living Room....

 

 

 





 Angela made her beautiful lamp shades and many others.....

 Not only is Angela's home elegant but so is she!!!


Isn't she lovely?????


 

The Family Room.....

These were taken before Angela painted the family room yellow....

 

 

 

 

 

 These pictures were taken after she painted the walls yellow.....





Angela said " I love yellow and burgundy together"

I LOVE it too......I think it looks charming!!!
 

The Kitchen










 
 
 
 
 
 The Sitting Room
 
  
 
 
 
"This is how the window looks in my sitting room now since I hung the Austrian drapes"
 
 
 
 


 
" This is where I write my letters and cards "
 


 
 
 What a beautiful Victorian styled home!!!!
 
 Ironically, Angela has a lot of pink and green used together in her rooms and my craft room is also pink and green along with my upstairs Sitting Room having yellow walls like her family room....

I was so completely blown away by the gifts that Angela send to me in appreciation of what I sent to her.....

BUT

She is not done yet!!

She is working on a Room Box that will be a miniature replica of my Craft Room!!!!!
 
These are pictures of what she had done so far......
 
 
Of course it is green like my walls and also has a scalloped border!!!


 And she even took notice that I painted the ceiling in the craft room green so she did the same thing in the room box.....

She told me yesterday that she is crafting a ton of supplies that she will choose from to put in my room box.....


These are 3 Room Boxes that she has created in the past.....
 
 Miniature Patisserie 
 

A Miniature Dress Shop
 

And a Christmas Room Box....
 
 
I can only imagine what a work of art the room box that she is making for me is going to be.....

And you know I will be sharing it with all of you!!!
 
If you would like to see more of Angela's creations or contact her about making something for you, this is a link to her public face book page ....

Click HERE

I hope you will send Angela some love of what she does by telling her so in the comments....

I know she will greatly appreciate it!!!

It only goes to show you that you never know who will come into your life and the joy that will bring to you!!
 

I think I found a friend that will change my life forever.....
 
and 
 
 
I know in my heart that it was no accident that we met......
 
Love you, Angela!!!
 


Stay safe, healthy and most of all, HAPPY!!

Thanks to those who took the time out of their busy day to spend a little bit of time with me!!

If you do not have a blog, PLEASE  give me some way to reply to your comment, maybe by including your email in your comment.  If I can not find a way to reach you, I will reply on the post where you commented so please check back......


I am linking up to these parties:
 
 

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12 comments:

  1. Denise/My Home of All SeasonsMarch 16, 2021 at 7:12 PM

    Oh Debbie.. I am so sorry about your neighbor! What a blessing you and Joe were to him and his family. So sad that they didn't get to bring him home. Prayers for everyone!
    Now... On to Angela! She is amazing! I have always loved when you've shared pictures of some of her seasonal decorations but I'm so glad you shared her home today. It is absolutely stunning Angela!!! That was so sweet of you Deb to send the boxes and so sweet of you Angela to send back such beautiful gifts! You are truly an amazing artist! It is no surprise to me that the two of you became lifelong friends. While opposites do sometimes attract, I think more often though, it is beautiful minds and kind, joyous hearts that find each other and flourish together! The quote you shared above is very true and the two of you are the perfect example! Thanks so much for sharing! Loved this post!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Miss MerryMarch 16, 2021 at 9:53 PM

    My sympathy on the loss of your neighbor. It was so kind of you to keep an eye on him and do those things to help him. It is nice that his family noticed and appreciated you.

    Wow! Angela! What an artist! I studied every detail of your wonderful gifts. Wow. Just Wow. What talent. My absolute favorite is the tea party wall hanging. The detail is just precious. So pretty. All the items are just so pretty. And we got treated to a house tour. So lovely. Every room was just perfect. And you two are the perfect friends for each other, such like minds!

    I wanted to share that I got my first set of the Michael's photo boxes today. The UPS man knocked and said "They want a signature and I can't have you sign so can you spell your name so I can sign it? I spelled it and said - you know these are boxes with empty plastic boxes inside. He said "You mean they are requiring a signature for empty boxes?" We both laughed like crazy.

    ReplyDelete
  3. JeanieMarch 17, 2021 at 9:50 AM

    Debbie, I am so sorry for the death of your neighbor. You did so many kind things for him, just from your heart and I'm glad his family acknowledged them. That's what neighbors do -- help each other. Thirty years is a long time to live next to someone. It sounds like a very good thing.

    Angela must have felt like she hit the Jackpot! That was kind and smart to do!

    ReplyDelete
  4. ShellMarch 17, 2021 at 10:17 AM

    I am loving by the all the beautiful, romantic, dreamy and amazing creations that Angela does. Her home and miniature artwork is wonderful!! I like to have a home as pretty as Angela's one day.

    ReplyDelete
  5. NinaMarch 18, 2021 at 5:21 PM

    I am so very sorry about the passing of your neighbor...the loss of a good neighbor is so hard...

    Angela...I am stunned...just stunned at the beauty and grace of your home and all your artwork...I cannot even IMAGINE having a talent like yours...WOW!

    Your home is as lovely as you are!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Joanne March 18, 2021 at 5:25 PM

    Aw, I am so sorry to read of the passing of your neighbor but how sweet of his kids to think of you and your husband and to say thanks for all the ways you tried to make their dad's life easier. Those gifts of appreciation from Angela are surely going to be treasured for many years to come.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Lowcarb team memberMarch 18, 2021 at 7:33 PM

    I was sorry to read about your neighbour, and my prayers are with family and friends.

    You have shared such wonderful photographs here, so nice to see them all.
    I am so pleased that you met Angela her gifts to you are lovely.

    Take care, my good wishes.

    All the best Jan

    ReplyDelete
  8. Michele MorinMarch 19, 2021 at 7:42 AM

    We all love to know that we have made a difference!
    Thanks for all you do!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Angela LeighMarch 19, 2021 at 11:09 PM

    My dearest Debbie it was my pleasure to create these items for you, you deserve much much more I can never thank you enough for gifting with the 3 large boxes of some of the most beautiful venice lace, flowers, cameos and fringe so so many Beautiful items thank you so very very much my dear friend. Soon I will be finished with your miniature sewing room and the other item I am working on for you you deserve much much more. Never have I been blessed to know a more kind and giving person than you! From the bottom of my heart thank you Debbie. Love you dearly my dear sweet friend ❤️

    ReplyDelete
  10. My thrift store addictionMarch 21, 2021 at 1:36 PM

    What a thoughtful friend and what lovely gifts! I am sure Angela appreciated the boxes you sent her as well. Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Donna @ Modern on MonticelloMarch 24, 2021 at 11:57 AM

    Debbie you have a heart filled with kindness for others and it shows. So sorry for the loss of your neighbor. Happy Spring and thanks for sharing every week. #HomeMattersParty

    ReplyDelete
  12. Katie MansfieldMarch 30, 2021 at 4:47 PM

    Wow. Her home looks very similar to yours. She is very talented. What a sweet friend. You are so sweet too and I'm so sorry for the loss of your neighbor. I think you and Joe have jewels in your crowns for the way that you cared for him.

    ReplyDelete

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