simplesparrow

Happily, something new

this now in my etsy shop...

Just a quick hello...

I hope all of you had a pleasant holiday. Over here at my house a good time was had by all. A day filled with family, friends and laughter...you can't ask for much more then that, and for this I am so thankful!

I don't have any pictures of my current crafting adventures, but soon! ( I always say that..don't I?) I have some Valentines Day projects in the works that I hope will turn out as I envision them in my head (its always a more perfect world in my head..haha) and, and, AND!...I just finished folding all of Hannah's notecards, getting them ready for their big debut! I can't wait to show you, they turned out very cute!

Peaceful Holiday Wishes

I'm not leaving the house today or tomorrow, I'm totally comfortable In my new slippers and my thrifted jammy pants. The slippers are so "house-wifey" but I care not...they feel like heaven. The color is called pink frost but I'm changing it to frosting. The PJ's just happened to be 'Christmas-y' so I look very holiday...

I will spend today wrapping gifts, hanging out with my precious family & friends, eating food I only eat at this time of the year, listening to Christmas music, playing a few carols on my guitar and contemplating once again the awesome event that took place so long ago, when a tiny baby came humbly into the world and changed my life forever. No crowds, no rush, no last minute "to-do's"...like it or not , I'm done. And choosing to be content!

I wish all of you a very peaceful and restful holiday, filled with all things good!

My Christmas Candle Globe

This is one of those projects I've had a mind to do, but never seemed to get on it. Don't we all have a list a mile long in our heads of things "we have a mind to do"?  The project I'm speaking of is a candle globe hanging by our front door. It is always a bit dark there, even with the porch lights. I thought the soft glow of a candle would be lovely. This has a winter theme for Christmas. It will be easy as pie to change it around for the seasons, or just leave it plain and simple..which is very "me".

I don't want to bore you with the "how-to's" (and I want to get off of the computer!!) I think it looks pretty self explanatory. I will say I was so happy to use things I already had. No special purchases, yay! I couldn't decide if I wanted to go with the vintage ornaments or the snowflakes at first, in the end I chose the snowflakes..I really adore snowflakes :)  I was feeling like a regular ol' Martha Stewart...I was so proud of this little creation. I lit it up last night for the first time to light the way for our guests coming to our Christmas party. One little glitch that I did happen to notice...at night with the candle lit, it showed just how dirty that vase was!! I forgot to clean it! That is definitely not very Martha Stewart!!

(does anyone know how to align photos next to each other using typepad? this post would look so much better if I knew how to get the first two pics. next to each other. html code?)

Busy, busy, busy

Like many of you, I have been busy making a few gifts. This tote is for my mom, and it was a snap to make. Had it finished in about an hour. I'll be making more of these I think. I have some old barkcloth that would suit this style wonderfully.

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I had a plan to make chocolate dipped pretzles this Christmas and I'm happy to check this one off my list as actually getting done!! It was fun and so easy. I think they make a very festive gift, yes? I'm getting these boxed up today so I don't eat all of them...

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This one is not a gift, but I was feeling this nagging thought to just get it finished...I started it a while back. This is a wool clutch made from gorgeous hand painted yarn. The name of the yarn is "autumn girls" so I thought it so appropiate that I found this vintage leaf pin to use as the closure. What a perfect set-up! I still need to block it and weave in the loose ends. This will go up in my Etsy shop.

This yarn had thick and thin slubs..which now that it's finished, I don't think I like working with. Some spots where as thin as embroidery floss!! It kinda bugged me. I am happy with the final product though, and those colors were a joy to look at while I worked.

More ornaments

The kids and I spent a good portion of last night making ornaments together. Hot chocolate and Nat King Cole (I still can't find the rest of my Christmas music! We will know the words to this CD backwards and upside down) definitely put us in the holiday spirit. Taking inspiration from Wee Wonderfuls  ornaments using unrolled cotton balls (I discovered cotton balls unrolled sometime ago, it was an 'a-ha!' moment for me) I tried my hand at making some winter favorites of mine--snowmen.  Glass beads, twigs and a tiny crocheted scarf made from embroidery floss. I love these guys :)

Bouffant girls

I felt like a little girl again playing "beauty shop" when I was arranging the hair on these small gals. Fun! I must do this more often. This trio will be for our Christmas tree, mounted on a wooden clothespin as a clip-on style ornament.

Christmas memories past & present

I can smell the scent of our tree as I type right now....mmmmm. Aren't fresh trees so wonderful in that way?  We had an artificial one growing up. Saves money year after year and that is a good reason to have one. And let me tell you...our family got every penny's worth out of it too until it died of old age, having lived a long and happy life.

I have some very funny memories of that fake tree. For instance, the last year of its life it kept falling over so we had to string it up at the top and anchor it to the ceiling! That was a sight...not only was it OBVIOUS that it was on its last leg overall, it also looked like it had taken a trip to the emergency room with that twine twine sprouting from its top! We still laugh about it today.

Noah is much more "tree friendly" this year being 4 yr. old. To date, only 2 ornaments have broken by his doing. He can't seem to resist those shiny balls. Of course not, he's 4... I'm just so thankful he did not cut himself on that sharp glass. He is the official "Ornament Arranger" and completes this duty about every hour. Many years ago this would have driven me crazy...I would want everything just so. I'm so glad I've lightened up. Having 5 kids can do that to a mom. I don't even care now...have at it Noah.

I started some embroidery work last night which I'm excited about...Pics. coming of that soon. I take that back . Maybe not soon, but coming just the same :)

(By the way, Thank you so much for all your encouragement on Hannah's drawing! I passed it along to her and she was very happy to hear it. You all have confirmed what we had a hunch about...she needs to get published! I wish I could have responded to each of you, but time would not allow. I appreciate the kind words on Noah's bag too! :) 

 

Totes & Cards

I've felt in some-what of a slump craft wise. When I have the time, instead of heading over to my little corner in the living room, I sit my rear down in my favorite chair with a cup of tea  and some interesting reading material. But, last night I did muster myself to finish Noah's little bag and he was sooo very happy. He said that is works well as a hat too...should of taken a picture of that!

I diverted from the original plan again...(i'm not surprised, so like me) and instead of having 2 straps, I used one as a binding for the top edge and criss-crossed the other strap from one side to the other. It works great for wearing across his chest...just like mommy :) Added a small pocket and gave it a personal touch with a wool patch featuring his initial. Wa-la...check that off my list.

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My mom asked Hannah to make her a card with a drawing of her famous shoes (famous in our family!) and while I was working on Noah's tote, she was creating this:

Isn't it cute? This one is sporting a Christmas theme as you can see. She has made many cards with all different kinds of funky shoes, always from the waist down. They would make great notecards and I should get around to doing that for her one day soon! I love how this girl is holding a tiny purse, and the fur edged skirt. She was experimenting with perspective here.