Mistletoe and Merriment

i guess i only blog when i need to procrastinate - i have had almost a week of free time and i still haven't updated.

Finals are over, and we finally got our tree! (it fits in the trunk!!!!)

and we celebrated the season with good friends and lots of dessert...

Now its on to knitting for the husband, getting my gnome swap packages ready to go to family in CA, MI, and NM, and more crafting... I am one happy girl!

signs of the season part 2

I. Want. My. Christmas. Tree. I can craft and craft and craft and craft, and it just isn't Christmas until we have a tree. As a child, whenever things got messy around the holidays (as anyone with a family knows it does) i would sneak off into the corner behind the tree. Surrounded by favorite ornaments, soft white lights, and the smell of pine, everything just sort of seemed to get better. Now i am an adult, our trees seem to be getting smaller (no joke - last year we definitely waited too long and ended up with a Charlie Brown tree) and i don't fit as well as i used too. But i have found a new favorite spot. These days, even when things aren't messy, i love to snuggle with my husband and my kitties, comfy on the couch in front of the fire. Luckily, this time of year is cold enough for the roaring fires Todd likes to keep going (it was almost 85 in the house last night when we finally went to bed), and we haven't had a bill from the gas company since September! But i digress....

As i look in on all my favorite bloggers out there, i keep seeing images of trees and conversations about wonderfully hand knit garlands, and heirloom ornaments. I have finals coming up, and all i want to do is decorate, craft, bake, snuggle, and celebrate!!!
So i have chosen one of the five to keep me sane while i muddle through the last week of school.... crafting! The bowl of felt balls has been depleted for garlands galore!!

I finally made a few trial runs of the felt tree, and was greatly impressed! (by the way, a good old paper Trader Joe's bag works wonderfully if you are like me and don't keep interfacing around the house)

I even made a felt-ball snowman... who is adorable - and just a teensy bit creepy (i think its the eyes, i should have used a colorful bead).

And then i just had to have some holiday cheer for the couch, and so a few scraps of printed cotton and corduroy became these lovelies!

Signs of the season...

It is definitely that time of year again. I have unpacked our Christmas candles, Todd has been busy splitting firewood, and i have been dreaming up new crafts for my never ending decorating schemes. This year i really want to make cone-trees (in felt instead of fabric), snowflake table toppers and runners (inspiration here), and felt-ball ornaments and garlands.



The first round was pretty successful, as you can see. I still have a bowl full, waiting to be beaded or strung, and a new tradition has been born! Todd suggested we make felt balls every year, especially as they are extremely easy, uber kid (and kitty) friendly, and a delight to touch. I can already see them dangling from the bow of pretty packages, hung around a special bottle of wine or champagne, or even just slipped into a pocket when no one is paying attention. What a fun way to give a gift!

His name was Erwin...

...and i touched him!


Todd couldn't even wait till he was on the serving platter...



...what a day we had!

Holiday Bazaar

so i didn't end up selling a single thing... now i have a huge collection of jewelery and nowhere to wear it...

little things...

it doesn't take much to make me ridiculously happy....


a beautiful table for sharing good food with great friends

a warm fire on a cold evening - and one blissed out cat!

sparkly

i like to create things... but i never thought of myself as the super duper crafty-business type... my items have always been on a whim and for a gift. one of those gifts was a pair of trendy earrings for a birthday present a few years back... and the other day the recipient called and asked me to make lots more to sell in a holiday bazaar.... and i said "why not?" umm... the reason why not is that i am a student, i have no time, and i have hardly any money to go out and buy new supplies... however, i really really wanted to... and because i have a wonderfully supportive husband who encourages these whims, i did... and this is what i made:



not earrings, but just as lovely?

wee gnomes

so i finally finished a craft project (!!!) - a trade with a friend for some amazing art work. she is creating a beautiful hand made painting inspired by this photo of a jelly at the Boston Aquarium, and all i had to make were these wee little gnomes.

They are inspired by the charm that Chelsea brings into her home, work, and friendships, and i hope will show her how much she has touched me these past few months!

So sorry the photos are all yellowed... i had to take photos tonight becuase early tomorrow morning they will be making their way towards their new home.

more about my dream nursery

this is my crib - The Manhattan - by Litto







and some poofs which i will hopefully be able to recreate with the help of my wonderfully crafty in-laws! These are from my favorite page moderntot


more things i love love love:
from land of nod












from my favorite jewelery designer Hether Bearinger

brand new blog

I am not a great pen-pal/phone-caller/communicator, so i may end up severely behind the times on this thing... however, i do love the thought of sharing my finds and maybe making some new friends... so here goes nothing!

first off, i need to thank Chelsea for inspiring me to do this. her blog is ittybittybirdy. look at all the crafty things she does! She amazes me.

Now for some things i love:
i have such huge baby lust right now and am planning my nursery, even though i am neither pregnant, nor financially stable enough to have a child (i am still a student!)... but i can dream right?






these lights are so amazing.. whimsical and fun, yet so perfect as a night light or even just art! (find them at moderntot)










this fish mobile is fantastic... my husband says he will work on making one for us when we finally do get pregnant! If only he would follow through on these things! (find this one at egiggle)









and finally - some wall art that i want to use as inspiration when i finally do get to create a nursery... i love the layers of tissue paper, and all the colors! (these are also at egiggle)