Christmas wishes

Merry Christmas!

I just thought I'd check in with a few festive 'selfies' - nothing like a Christmas jumper to get you in the festive spirit.  I've had a few ideas for handmade Christmas jumpers, but just didn't have time this year - maybe next year I'll be a bit more organised!  In the meantime, this one has received lots of compliments.

And here we are looking a little bit more tidy - all dressed up for my work Christmas do!

Lest you think I've abandoned crafting for the moment, I can assure you that's not the case - my recent crafting has been for Christmas presents though, which has meant that I've not been able to put much detail up here.  Hopefully after Christmas I'll get some pictures of handmade Christmas presents on here.

However, I did make this little hat the other weekend - it was actually intended to be a beanie for a Christmas present, but it was chunky wool and I used the wrong size of crochet hook.  It made up quite quickly, but instead of being soft, it actually was quite firm!  I popped it in my head, footered about with the brim, and suddenly realised I had created a cute little hat!

The photos are quite deceptive - it's actually brown, but it's quite an endearing little hat, and really cosy.  If only all crafting disasters turned out so well...!

Bright stripes cord skirt - pictures

I promised pictures for my cord skirt, and here they are!  Thanks to my sister Esther who took these on our shopping trip to Bath the other weekend - giving my long-suffering husband a break.

 

 I think it's just the thing to brighten up the winter days!

Christmas crafts

We had a quiet night in on Saturday night, after a busy weekend visiting two Christmas markets (Cheddar and Bristol) and having Pete's brother, sister-in-law and lovely niece staying with us.  As well as watching Christmas music and generally feeling festive, I decided to do a few little Christmas crafts.  Here's all my goodies laid out on the kitchen table...

After the Christmas craft night, my latest purchase has been a glue gun.  A major time saver for things like brooches, I really think it's been such a worthwhile investment!

I now have a little gang of snowmen - using the cheapest rice in ASDA (40p a bag), some cheap sports socks, and my hand new glue gun, I created these little bods...

Snowmen

Somehow this rather exciting snow effect got added to this picture, so here's a very authentic looking snowman in the snow!

I also recently learnt how to make little roses out of felt, and this was such a simple little brooch to make. Two pieces of felt, a length of thread, a glue gun and a brooch back, and here we are with a cute little rosebud brooch. I think this will be a lovely little stocking filler Christmas present.

I'll post a little tutorial on how to make these brooches soon - they're so simple and effective.  Watch this space...!

Christmas Crafts with Crafty Parties

Welcome to December!  Christmas is coming...!

On Friday evening I went to a fantastic craft party, run by the lovely Juliette of Crafty Parties. Juliette is a great teacher and makes 'making' so much fun.  It was this time last year that I went to her Christmas craft party and got my first taste of crafting! As well as running parties and classes for kids and adults, she also makes beautiful brooches, bags, and just about everything else.

Juliette talked us through making gorgeous Christmas lanterns, tree decorations, brooches, and even Christmas snowmen. As you can see, the table was laden with crafting goodies - and once Juliette had finished we dived right in! She was always on hand to help with any questions - and just giving lovely little ideas too.

So this is my adorable little snowman!  He (or maybe she) is made of 2 socks, and filled with rice. So simple, and yet so effective.  I have a feeling there is going to be an entire snow family in our house to help us celebrate Christmas...!

If you're looking for a someone to run a craft party for you - or your children - Juliette is definitely someone you should call!