Re-Post for the Holidays

I'm re-posting this from last year because, well, I've already used this trick this season and I think it bears repeating in case you missed it.

Since the holidays are approaching, I thought I'd share one of my favorite grift-wrapping tricks. I learned this when I worked retail... a real budget saver when you offer free gift wrap because you can use half as many boxes! I am much better at showing than explaining so you can find lots of pictures with instructions here. You'll see how I can turn one half of a shirt box (because I'm always losing or ruining half) into a usable gift box with a little bit of folding and a couple of snips. This is my first go at a sort of tutorial, so if the instructions aren't clear just let me know.

Go from this:

to this:

Tree Pickin'

One of my favorite family traditions is picking out a live Christmas tree. As a kid, some years we went to a local tree farm and other years we picked one from our own farm.

Since the latter isn't an option for us up here, we go to a great little tree farm in Goobertown, AR (Yep, that's really the town's name.) There's hot chocolate, lots of trees, and fresh roasted peanuts. And here is Taylor with our tree. She named it Mrs. Clause.

Sweet Dreams Butterfly

"Sweet Dreams Butterfly" has always been a part of our bedtime ritual.

I hope she'll cherish this pillow forever... I will.

The embroidery pattern is by Vol.25 stitched with variegated thread.

Holiday Baking

I am oh so happy that the holiday baking season is here... like I need an excuse to bake. It's just that now I do so without guilt because we all know that calories consumed during the holidays don't count, right? Besides, with two weeks off from school Taylor and I have to fill the chilly days somehow. I've been bookmarking recipes all week so that we have plenty of new ones to try. And the warmth from the oven keeps the house's heater from working so hard.

See? It's the just right thing to do.

I don't really have any cherished family recipes or baking traditions from my childhood really, so Taylor and I are making our own. It just so happens that Santa and I share a favorite cookie... crispy oatmeal chocolate chip. We make these fresh on Christmas Eve because Santa also loves them warm from the oven. (I coulda sworn I had a picture of us baking them together, but I guess not. You get this cute picture from baking 4th of July sugar cookies instead :)

Anyway, I thought I'd share the recipe with you all.

First Mixture:

1 c butter 2 eggs 1 tsp vanilla

1 c granulated sugar 1c brown sugar

Second Mixture:

2 c flour 1/2 tsp baking powder

1tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt

Sift together and add to the first mixture.

Add 1c quick cooking oats and 1c chocolate chips (or anything else you'd like in there, like nuts).

Mix together and drop by spoonfuls on a greased baking sheet (important because these are thin and can stick really easily). Bake at 350 for about 8 minutes.

There you have it... easy peasy!

Fabric Garland/Advent... with Tutorial

This year, I decided that we'd countdown to Christmas a little different.... without spending any money! I love, love fabric garlands so I thought that I would incorporate that idea into an advent calendar type thing. I made 25 links, put them in a pretty glass vase, and each day in December one link will get added until it looks like the picture above. I figured out that by the end of the second week, the chain will be long enough to drape nicely. Until then, they will just snake along the mantle.

If you'd like to make your own, here's what I did.

You'll need:

-(25) 4.5 x 12.5 in. pieces of fabric (I went with random scraps, but you could be more coordinated if you are so inclined.)

-(25) buttons (I let my daughter rummage through the buttons and pick them out.... shear 5 yr old girl heaven!)

-You could use a light interfacing if you want, but I didn't.... just starched them well instead.

-Your basics - needle, thread, scissors, rotary cutter, ruler

Once you get your fabric pieces all cut out, iron them in half lengthwise, right-sides together. Then, with a 1/2 inch seam allowance, sew up the long edge and one of the short sides. Clip the corner and trip the seam allowance. You've made a tube that looks like this:

Then, carefully turn your tube inside out. Be careful about using pointy things when turning, you don't want to poke a hole in your fabric. Once they are right side out, iron them well. To finish the other end, turn the raw edges in about a 1/2 inch and press. Use a teeny seam allowance to close it up. (hint: Start stitching on the folded side instead of the seam side. My machine likes it much better that way.)

Now here is where I had to really overcome a major fear.... buttonholes. If I can do it, so can you! Mine are not perfectly perfect by any means, but they work (glad my machine has good instructions). Here's one before I opened it up. See, not so perfect. I put the buttonholes on the "pretty" end, the one without machine stitching because that is the side you are going to see when you button them up.

Once you have that done, all you have to do is sew a button on the other end!.... Easy Peasy!

This entire project took me a few hours. The bulk of the time was spent choosing, cutting, and ironing the fabric.

Happy Holiday Crafting!!!

Thanks so a group of students at the local high school vo-tech, you can now find plenty of bike parking in downtown Jonesboro. The kids made 21 of these 2-bike racks and one nice mulit-bike rack and installed them all throughout downtown. The project didn't cost NEABC or the City a dime because the class did this as their community service project. However, as a "Thank-You", we presented the kids with a nice check to help cover their costs when they go to the state welding competition later in the school year. I love that we were able to partner with them! We got great racks, the kids got experience designing and building, and the community gets to see what a great program the vo-tech is.

In other news, I am officially a grad student!! I'll be starting my masters in community development in January.

I've also been a little bit crafty... I can't post pictures because the item I made is for a swap. But, I'll be sure to post once the person gets it. :) I've also been trying learn sock knitting. It is very, very, very slow going. I have about an inch (maybe a little more) done of one cuff. Maybe I'll have the pair finished by summer??

The Brass Hussy GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

The Brass Hussy GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!