Handmade Gift Exchange

This year I joined hundreds of other crafters in the Handmade Gift Exchange.  It is hosted by Linda at Craftaholics Anonymous.

I was partnered up with such a talented crafter.  Her name is Kelsey and she has a super cute blog called Poofy Cheeks.  We emailed a few times.  And I found out she is originally from Northern Illinois, which was really cool.  But she now lives in Florida *so jealous*. 

So here is what I sent her.  I really love giving personalized gifts if possible.  So i stalked her blog to find out her kids birth months and the names of her husband and kids for her gift. 

I made her a nest pendant with her sons birth stones 

I also made her an alphabet photography picture
 frame/plaque with her last name and the names of her family

I arrived home yesterday to a package at the door.  I was so excited to open it.  Here is what she sent me:

She made me a super cute pin cushion from a 4 oz. ball canning jar filled with lots of goodies (buttons, pins, and ribbon), a cute red resin and fabric flower that will be perfect for Christmas or Valentines Day, and a yellow (my new favorite color) resin earring and necklace set.  And this all came gift wrapped in a cute take-out box!  Thank you so much, Kelsey.  I love it all.

Deck the Door

Christmas is my favorite time of the year.  When I was a kid I loved driving to my godparents' house (about 10 miles from our house) and seeing all the houses lit up with twinkling lights.  My mom always did up the house crazy style.  She had a whole collection of houses that she would arrange with a manger and baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph.  And she would always get a new house every year at JoAnn when they'd clearance them out at the end of the season.  It seriously took up 3 or 4 tables.  She stated giving away her houses the last few years she was sick.  She didn't want to leave too many behind, i guess.  She also made wreaths to sell and give as gifts.  She was truly a talented lady. 

This year seems a bit blah for me.  Maybe it's because she's gone.  I didn't really want to put any decorations up, but Annika has been asking since November 15 when we can put our tree up.  I don't want to jade the girls' Christmas just because I'm not in the spirit.  So we put up the tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  We put up a few other decorations here and there -- the garland and stocking on the mantel, the garland on the stairs.  Another thing I wanted to attempt was an ornament wreath.  They are all over Pinterest right now.  And now mine will be there too.  I pretty much followed the tutorial i found here.  And here is the finished product!

Doesn't it look amazing!  It really looks great when you drive down the street.  The only think I might change is the bow to something more like the one in the link.  I think I'm going to put a few lights outside this year, too.  I know the girls will love that.  The Hubby is coming home this weekend, so I'm sure he'll love to help with that project. LOL!

The Name Game

For a few years now alphabet photography has become all the rage.  I started putting frames together for friends and family.  I gave some to family members at Christmas one year.  I've made them for friend's baby showers or for their baby's christenings.  They are the perfect gift because of the personalization.  I truly enjoy making them and I hope people enjoy receiving them.  Here are a few of the ones I've done.

I did this one for a co-worker.  She was giving it to her sister-in-law for her bridal shower.  I framed it up and had it matted for her. 

This one I did for my baby sitter's son's Christening.  I had it printed in black & white and had a mat cut to match the letters below the name.  They loved it.

These are the last two that I made for a friend's brother.  He is giving them to his wife for Christmas this year.  They are the names of their children.

Here is what they look like matted and framed.

My friend loved them and was sure her sister-in-law will, too. 

A Monkey for my Monkey

So cold weather is in full swing here in Chicago.  That means that it's time to pull out the winter coats and hats.  Perfect!  I finished this monkey hat for Annika Wednesday night.  She was so excited to wear it yesterday.  I used Caron Simply Soft yarn.  I really love this yarn, but I'm eager to use I Love This Yarn from Hobby Lobby to see which one I like better.  The Caron is super soft and has been my go to acrylic.  But I've heard so many good things about ILTY that it's made me curious.  Sorry for the blurry picture.  It's from my cell phone.

This pattern is from Danyel Pink of Crazy Socks Crochet.  If you have never bought a pattern from Danyel, you are really missing out.  She has some of the best-written patters out there.  You should definitely check her out.  You can have a Monkey Hat of your very own for $22.  Please message me with the size and colors you desire.

Another new item is this cute ear warmer.  I love the stitch pattern.  It can have a button closure or ties and can have a contrasting color on the edging.  These are available for $10.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Inventory Update

It's really hard to make things for the shop.  I really admire all the moms out there that have a shop.  Not only have I been sick the last 2 weeks, but I also have 2 kiddos to tend to. And the hubby was away for work for a few days which made things crazy.  Being a single parent is not fun; I admire you, too.  Now that I'm feeling a little better, I plan to get going on some great merchandise.  The cooler weather is upon us and what better way to stay warm and stylish than with a great scarf, hat or headband?  I have a cute three-strand headband coming.  I just made a prototype and I love it!  It will be available in an array of colors.  And it can be made for little girls.  I have to tweak it just a bit, but this is pretty much what it will look like.

Three-strand Flower Headband

(pattern courtesy of CreativeYarn)

This is my new model.  I will call her Peggy.  I inherited her from my mom.  She used it for her wigs and I told my dad to save it for me so I can take pictures for the shop/blog.  All she needs is a little make-over.  I'm thinking some spray paint will do her good. 

Peggy

So tonight I will get another headband done.  I have to work on an ear warmer/headband and a few hats.  I've ordered clips for some rosettes, so those are coming soon as well.  I'll be a busy bee for the next few weeks.

Take Two

This is my second attempt at blogging.  This time it's for real.  I have a new name and new page.  I wasn't really feeling the old one and this one seems to represent me more.  One things that I've come to realize about myself is that I love to do all sorts of crafts.  I switch (or hop, if you will) from one to another.  It's not that I get bored or grow tired of anything in particular.  I just like doing different things.  So with this blog, I hope to show you stuff that I've copied gotten inspired from other bloggers or tutorials.  I also want to start on opening an Etsy store.  It seems like craft blogging and craft selling go hand-in-hand, so what better way to get my name out than through my blog, right?  Just agree with me, it will make me feel better ;)

So a little bit about me.  I'm 33 and have been married to a great guy for 11 1/2 years (yes we were young).  We have a 6-year-old (Annika) and a 2-year-old (Shayne).  My girls are my world.  Everything I do is to make their lives better. 

Annika on the frist day of First Grade

Shayne havnig a snack

I currently work full-time at a law firm as a secretary.  It's not my favorite, but it's a job.  Ideally I would work part-time (to keep my sanity) somewhere closer to home.  Unfortunately, you may have heard that the market took a crapper a few years back and now we can't sell our house to save our lives (it's been on the market for 2 years).  So that means that both the Hubby and I kinda have to work to keep the roof over our heads.  He works a lot harder than I do.  Here he is working at a refinery in Indiana:

Some crafty things you might see here are definitely crochet.  My mom taught me when I was younger, but I never really did anything with it.  A few years ago, a co-worker and I decided to learn or re-learn as the case was.  So I now have a bazillion patterns that I want to try and more yarn than I have time for.  Hence the Etsy store that will come sometime in the new year.  Some other crafts that I like are sewing, jewelry making, painting.  I've gotten so many ideas for painting furniture from various blogs.  I even have a garage full of stuff to work on.  I just haven't had time to work on it.  I hope to get to it soon though.  I've pretty much tried it all and if I haven't yet, I probably will.  Now I hope to share some ideas and projects with you.