Christmas Projects - 2013

This Christmas, I made a whole mess of aprons for gifts.

Here's the kid's collection:

I made four girl's aprons but they were all pink and purple just like those, and then the three boys "Monster Smocks."

The girls patterns came right out of my little head.  Maybe I'll have to write it up some day to share.  The boys "Monster Smock" pattern I found at JoAnn's a while ago.  The mouth is a pocket!!

So Cute, huh!! 

Next up is the men's collection - for three brother's in law.

(What a handsome model! work it, Work it!)  ;)

And the women's collection:

For three sister's in law... and one for me, of course.  

I loved them all but I kept the orange and blue one for me.  ;)

Yes, I made up that pattern too.  

It's actually a simple variation of the men's pattern that I bought years ago.

Here's some more of those adorable pot holders.

These two sets I made for my Mom and sister as part of their 12 gifts of Christmas set.

This is their 12 Gifts of Christmas!

-slippers

-magnetic note pads

-note cards

-ornaments

-hot pads

-Lindt chocolates

-glass magnets

-eos chapstick

-Hersheys candycane white chocolate bars

-gloves

-framed picture

-silicone basting brushes

-tic tacs

I know that's 13 items but two of them I wrapped together.

I did 12 little packages all inside one big box.

It was a lot of fun!  I think I might do it again next year with some other fun goodies.

It was a Merry Christmas!

Ornament exchange 2011

I survived the holidays!

We had a wonderful, magical holiday season and it's nice to be back to normal life.

A few friends and I got together before Christmas for a small ornament exchange and I wanted to show off the pretty things that we shared.

These are the quilled snowflakes that I made to share.

I love doing these. They are so pretty and elegant looking.

 ...A pretty ball made with string and ribbon...

 ...a flower made from antique book pages...

 ...a cinnamon stick tree and a hot pad filled with cinnamon sticks that smelled wonderful!...

 ...a drum filled with chocolate (they didn't last long)...

 ...and a glass bird.

All nice additions to our Christmas tree decor.

Ornament Exchange

So my search for ornaments in my last post was really for the Ornament Exchange Party that I was lucky enough to be invited to.  12 ladies were to each make 12 ornaments and then we trade them.  We all go home with 12 different, handmade, absolutely beautiful Christmas ornaments. 

I chose to make the quilled snowflakes.  Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of them all but they were so beautiful.  Elegant and lacy. 

What Fun!  I was so excited!

So, here are the treasures I came home with....

 A penguin made of a flattened glass ball.

 The popcorn ball.  

I can't figure out how she got the popcorn inside that glass ball 

but it's awesome and smells delicious.

 Two different santa bellies from two different ladies.

Very cute, huh.

 Yo-Yo Christmas tree.

Love this one!

 A very delicate glitter ball with a snowflake on it.

 The Nativity made with polymer clay.

  A hand stitched Nativity.

 A stitched star.

 My own quilled paper snowflake. 

(I really am in love with it.)

 Wooden Believe.

 A rustic bell.

 A very cute Santa with a floppy hat.

Aren't they all just delightful!

I can't wait to put them all on my tree.

I had such a fun time with this - the making and the trading - I think I my just have to do my own party next year.

Christmas Ornaments

Lately, I have been searching for some ornament ideas to make for our Christmas tree.  I came upon this one for a felt ball at Zakka Life.  I'm a believer in using my sewing machine if at all possible (modern conveniences - you know) so instead of sewing it by hand... I used my machine and they were so quick.  I also added a dot of glue and some glitter to each of the joints.  I really like how they turned out.

The next one I found was this quilled snowflake.  Isn't it so elegant!  I fell in love with it right away. You can see the inspiration for this one HERE.  And, obviously, I made some changes.  My husband knows better than to expect anything I do to be done exactly like the recipe says.  I'm always adding my own interpretation whether it be food or crafting.
They are actually super easy.  That's one thing I love about this one - it looks so much more complicated than it really is.  Makes me look good!  :)

I didn't want to go and buy a quilling tool in case I didn't like it so I made a jimmy-rigged one.  I took a needle with an eye about 1/4 in. and cut the end off with wire cutters.  Then I wrapped  the point with a bunch of masking tape so I could hold onto it better.  It has worked great and now I'll go out and find a real quilling tool because I'm in love with this new art.

I can't wait to see these on my Christmas tree soon!