Projects!

As with many of the blogs I read, I'm finally able to post about the projects I've been working on for the last...oh... two months! 

Some skirts for a friend of mine to give to her nieces.

The Josephine Apron from the book A is for Apron.

The other side of the Josephine apron.

Levi got a leather and plaid dog bed.  Here he doesn't look too thrilled about it.

But he seemed to like it later!

As always, he is a big help to me when I need to produce a million Christmas presents in three days.  He takes his role as fabric/pattern warmer very seriously!

Many *many* more gifts were made...I'll post more later!

Pine Cone Elves (subtitled: I don't have time for this)

I should be knitting, I should be wrapping, I should be sewing, I should be cleaning, I should be putting away laundry, I should be eating meals that do not involve frozen dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets, I should be sleeping. Instead, I'm going to BLOG and show you my pine cone elves! They were in the December issue of Martha Stewart Living and I think they are adorable!  These are the ones I made.  The first one was for my Irish dance teacher, so I made sort of an Irish dancing elf.  They are pretty easy and would make great present toppers or ornaments!  

Crafters Give Back

Sew Mama Sew has a post today on their blog asking for nominations for crafters who give back.  I immediately thought of Anna from Pleasant View Schoolhouse.  She probably doesn't even know I read her blog (she has a HUGE following!), but she is definitely a crafter who gives back! 

She periodically donates proceeds from her Etsy shop to help people pay for adoptions.  Here is a post explaining the adoption:  Kimmie's Adoption.

She has also inspired other readers to do the same thing for Kimmie's adoption! 
Katie
Beth

Brava, Anna!  Your kindness and Christian love is inspiring and contagious!

Decorations

I have been having a great time reading each and every response to my giveaway.  I like hearing about the different meaningful decorations that loved ones have given you, made for you, or left for you.  Sentimentality and simplicity seem to be two themes running through the comments.  When I post a winner, I'll tell you about my favorite Christmas decoration. In this post I'll tell you something neat about my husband.  He loves Christmas.  He loves Christmas decorations too.  In fact, he loves Christmas so much that he came with a whole bunch of Dickens Village pieces.  They are set up in his bookcase right now.  They are so beautiful all lit! 

 

I love how God put us together - "Loves Christmas" was not something on my list of things to look for in a future husband, but God took care of that for me!

Giveaway Day!

Today is Giveaway Day in blogland!  The lovely ladies at Sew Mama Sew coordinate a giveaway day each year.  This year, my giveaway is a bit of a twist.  I figure that many people coming here from Sew Mama Sew probably know how to sew already.  So I went in a different direction.  I'm giving away a book I made. The book blank I used is from The Paper Source,. 

I use my version of this book to plan all my sewing projects.  The inside is grided, which is great for sketching. It's a perfect size to slip in a bag - not too small OR too big! 

While I was taking the pictures, I shut the dog out of the room.  Here is what he had to say about it:

(Yes, we need to replace these old doors!)

Details:  I will ship to the United States and Canada.  International must pay shipping.  Please leave a comment telling me your favorite holiday decoration (or just leave a comment if you don't have one).  I will choose a winner on December 6th and ship shortly after that!

Have fun and happy Giveaway Day!

Edited to add:  I would love to increase my followers list.  When I get to 100, I am going to do another giveaway for anyone on the followers list. Add me?  We can be friends!