Christmas Stockings

Now the mantle is complete! My mom came down this weekend and inspired me to finish them. She helped me figure out how to sew the top of the stockings... just like you would a sleeve. I bought the supplies on Black Friday at JoAnn. The felt was $1.50/ yard. I had most of the ribbon.

The top of the green ones have an embossed red felt. I found the cutest RicRac on Black Friday... it's much larger than normal. Kolin seems to think the stockings are giant, but I think they are just right... more for him to fill up! ;)

These two are my favorites because of the toes. The ornaments on the red one were fun to make. I found my inspiration from a pampered chef flyer and a site on etsy. If you ever have a creative block - go to etsy and you will have more ideas than you ever imagine.

Merry Christmas!!

Our home is ready for Christmas!

The presents are wrapped... The tree is lit... The nativity is out... FaLaLaLa... isn't that cute? The door is ready for guests... The candles can't wait to be burned... The stockings just need to be hung... Coming soon - I'm making our Christmas Stockings! Santa can't come without them. Merry Christmas!!

A Christmas Mantel

I just added two trees to the hearth - more pictures coming soon!

Semi - Homemade Ornaments

The ornaments below were store bought... pack of 18 for $2.5o. I saw others in the aisle that had many different embellishments. Instead of paying more for them, I strolled over to the craft aisle and spotted a silver paint pen. I was tempted to get a glitter pen, but wasn't sure if it would stick. I also considered tacky glue and glitter, but a paint pen is much less mess. I tried to do stripes, but it's hard because they are round... I found that it was easiest to decorate them in the package instead of trying to hold them. I hope you enjoy the idea. You will see them in my next post!

A Taggie you're it!

I tried my first attempt at a Taggie (Small Blanket for a baby with ribbons along the edges). After a long day at Church decorating for Christmas I was in a crafting mood. When I got home I learned that our niece Grace wasn't feeling well... perfect time to make her a taggie. I started going through the remnant pieces of fabric and ribbon. I decided on the ribbon and material and lined it up in order with 4 pieces for each side. I think the blanket is 20'' x 14''... but I never measure anything... I turned the fabric inside out like you would sew a pillow. Then added the ribbon inside every few inches. You can see this step above This is a picture to illustrate the ribbon being inserted before sewing that side shut. I sewed almost all 4 sides, but left 2 ribbons out as I turned it the right way. Then I turned the last edge in and added the last 2 ribbons with a small straight stitch. Grace loved it! The bright pink fleece and pink and white polka dot were just what the doctor ordered :)

A Polka Dot Pumpkin Project

1. Get a pumpkin and something under it... 2. Cut out circles of contact paper. Stick the dots all over the pumpkin... 3. Spray paint the pumpkin... and wait till it's dry to remove them... 4. Voila.. a polka dot pumpkin!

New Shades

I have had these shades for months. I found them on sale at JCPenney on their daily deals - it's a different extreme value each day. I was able to get these roman shades for $14.99/ each. I got the white panels for $9.99 each. They are thermal backed too!