Christmas Memories & Gifts

Another wonderful holiday has come & gone.

All our dreams & wishes came true, we even got our 'white Christmas'.

 



 

So I'm sharing my favorite memories, gifts & pictures.

Lots of pictures.

 

 

You may recognize this gorgeous star from Rebecca, it's made more than one Christmas home tour.

 

My beautiful sister Molly, hugging Owen after receiving her #1 Grandpa notepad.

 



 My wonderful Christmas angel made for me by Dorthe, she's been with me for several years now.
 

This ornament from Carola hangs in my studio when the tree comes down.



 

Handmade gifts for teachers, I finally got to use this tutorial from Cathe!

 



 

And I also made a few of these this year.

 



 

 

 

 Another amazing gift from Rebecca!

She used some of my felted wool to make it.

I have some in my etsy shop.

 

 

The kids made gifts too.

 



 

There's nothing better than a child's face on Christmas morning,

 



or a Great Grandmothers on Christmas Eve.

 

 

Trying out all those presents.

 



As Buddy says, 

 ' We elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup'.



 

 

One of my favorite gifts of all time,

my top hat from Carola!

 

 

Poor Izzy says,

'Are we done yet?'

 

 

I hope all your dreams came true too.

May all the sadness, grief and tragedy be left in 2012, leaving only happiness & joy in this coming year.

 PS

Thank you sweet friends for not giving up on me while I was on my sabbatical.

Making Paper

I was inspried by an article in this magazine to try my hand at paper making.

The weather was sunny & warm, perfect for an outdoor kids craft project. 

First we gathered flowers from the garden, seeds, feathers & other 'nature' as the kids call it. 

Then we shredded up some old catalogs, Daddy some 8x10 screened frames & we were off!

Any project that involves water & getting messy is a winner here.

If you don't have Mary Janes Farm, there is a link to the project here.

Yes, Ms Butters has started Mary Jane TV.

So here are the fruits of their labors. A little bag,

and a card.  I'll be doing this again, the possibilities are endless!

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I just love the look & feel of beautiful handcrafted paper. The textures, the way it tears, it just elevates collage to a whole new level. I've purchased some pretty papers locally, at Asle Art in Fort Worth. Then I discovered PaperArts.com through KC Willis, & it was like finding buried treasure. The proprietor is C Grey, & you can tell from her site that she is passionate about paper. She offers very personal customer service, you can call & ask questions, she's so friendly. You could seriously spend hours browsing through her online catalog. I love the birds nest paper, it comes from Thailand & is made of compressed coconut hulls, feathers & other plants. Really cool stuff!
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I have to show you what my dear friend Pat made.

Pat is one of the sweetest, most generous & talented people I know. Someday she's going to teach me to crazy quilt, her work is amazing. 

 

Pat is self taught & I swear, this girl can do anything.  Re-do furniture, upholstery, stitching...you name it. Anyway, she found these sewing cabinet drawers & topped them with her special ribbon work & quilting.  They would be so precious in a craft room or anywhere else.  If your interested in purchasing them, go visit her blog, My Tattered Elegance.