The Lead Up to Christmas . . . .

Greetings lovely friends & readers

I hope the lead up to Christmas Day is going well for you & you are remembering to give yourself some grace.  

Verse courtesy of  simply_anxious on Instagram

After achieving so much in November & moving through projects at a rapid pace, December has found me moving more like a turtle, slow & steady ...... & some days not achieving much at all.  I have tossed the "to do list" in the bin & whatever I get done will be just fine & what I don't get done - will be just fine too.  

 Todays pickings, before the winds came ... Alstromeria Christmas Red, & white Penstemons 🤍

These wooden stockings were purchased last Christmas, put in the cupboard & promptly forgotten about.  I got them out last week & painted them both in Vintage White chalkpaint.  I painted some grainsack stripes on the largest one using Forrest Green chalkpaint.

Some oddments of festive transfers got applied to the large one & the smaller size one got some pretty decoupage paper mod-podged to it.  I've used every single scrap of this lovely paper & just adore it 🎄

I get a little giddy with excitement when The Mr brings home junk treasures from the old sheds on the farm & this violin was no exception.  It was covered in bird droppings, this is clean above, compared to what it originally looked like.  Nothing that a good scrub won't remedy & a dry in the sun.

Again two coats of Vintage White & then some more Christmas transfers applied.  I love it sitting here by my cabinet full of red/white china & I can look directly at it when I'm sitting on the couch.  I just love how this turned out even though every single person that I show it to says "It's got No strings" (!!) (I don't actually plan to play it !!!)

When I had the red velvet curtain out to make the Santa's LongJohns in my last post, I decided to make a simple Santa Hat for the mohair bear that sits in my room.

  I made this bear 22 years ago now for Mum, on the first anniversary of my Dad's passing. The pattern is Old Boy as that is what Mum always called Dad (affectionately).   I made a large pom pom using a remnant of teddy bear fur that I gathered up & stuffed.  I think it suits him.  The silver letters around his neck, "Snow" was my Dads nickname as he had snowy white hair & everyone called him Snow, although his real name was Hector (!!) 

After I'd made Old Boy a hat I remembered that I had this gorgeous length of fabric in my stash that I'd thrifted - I'm pretty sure this is a Sanderson remnant.  So I made a stocking using the velvet curtain as a cuff & the beaded trim is leftover from my sewing room lightshade.  I love how this looks sitting in a corner of my bedroom - just simple & pretty 💗

My dear friend Shirley gave me her favorite candle jars & asked me to please refill them for her.  I made up the 4 of them last week using the very last of my soy wax.   The fragrances are Fireside - Lime, Basil, Mandarin & Black Rose Oud.  My sewing room smelt SOooo good while they were hardening.  

I've finished the Christmas Baking that I gift & it's all been packaged up & delivered to various friends.  I even came across these cute stickers that said Baked With Love & an oven glove on them.  

When I revamped the cradle for Juno & Sadie in *this post*, I put it in my sleepout with a large sheet over it.  

After I'd finished their stockings in *this post*, I bought the cot inside as I had a vision in my head of it sitting under the tree with the girls stockings sitting beside it, filled with their gifts & the cradle to be shared between them both.

This is what happened to that vision dear friends .   .   .   .

First night - top left - she's sitting in the cradle, on top of both stockings.  

Second night above right, The Mr removed the stockings & tossed a cuddly in there on top of the bedding to protect it.

Third night above ... she's moved in permanently - thinks "how wonderful that Mum made this especially for me"  & there are two cuddly's in there for her!!!       

After night 3 I had a wobbly, removed cot back to the sleepout, washed bedding & vacuumed pillow & it can stay there until the wee girls visit this weekend  😠😟😖😬😣😑  Lord give me strength Please !!

Thank you as always dear friends, for your welcome visits here today,

I hope to be back for a final festive post before the 25th,

Sending much love & friendship to you all,

A November Sewing Marathon . . . . . . . . . . . .

Greetings lovely friends & readers & Welcome to December 🎄 

(warning - a photo heavy post - I've tried to condense my pics as much as I can)

November was a really busy month in which I tried to get a lot done so I would not feel so pressured once December rolled around.  I am slower these days & need to factor in that creating takes me so much longer now. 

I made up the little kit of the "Ted in Bed" that I purchased at the Quilt Show as it came with everything required.  It was a sweet & simple project to whip up.  I then decided to make my Grandsons & my step-grandaughters one each for Christmas.

I used some wool blanket offcuts for the girls "beds", lined with Tilda fabrics, & contrasting felt for the Teds.  I enlarged the pattern slightly for the boys & made theirs using Minecraft fabric offcuts.  I made their Teds in bright flouro colours & then knitted them a scarf each.  These are going in their Christmas stockings.

I completed an order for 16 lavender sachets for my friend Sally using muslin that she provided.  I ran out of satin ribbon but Sally said to leave the others as she had ample herself.  These were made using last seasons homegrown lavender.

I made each Grandson a Minecraft pillowcase using this simple tutorial Here..  Little One very kindly gave me a lesson in scissor safety seeing as he is such an expert on the subject 😉

Many many years ago (over 10 in fact) I tore this picture (top left) out of an old Country Craft & Decorating Magazine. I'd always loved it & wanted to make my own handmade Christmas Crackers.  

This year I finally gave it a go using toilet roll tubes covered in wadding, all fully reusable, just untie the ribbons at each end. I did put a cracker snap in each one (purely for fun) & filled them with gourmet choccies.  I used double sided cellotape to hold the fabric closed, a yo yo heart & a christmas charm tied on - such a fun project 💗

Last year I purchased the pattern above for Santa's LongJohns from * this etsy store *.  It is called Santa's Union Suit in the pattern.  I decided to make it up as I came across this velvet curtain in my cupboard, purchased for $5 from the Hospice Shop in Mum's town (so quite sometime ago then).  It was a fairly simple project though in hindsight I would've have enlarged it as it's more like a child's size rather than fitting a grown-up Santa.

Sally kindly loaned me her number stamps so I could make the tag that comes with the pattern download.  I had rusty bells in my stash to embellish it & wiped dark wax over a pale wooden coat-hanger to darken it slightly. 

Here it is hanging in my lounge ... Yes dear friends, I Am rapidly running out of wallspace to hang things (!!)

My friend Gail cleared out a lot of her Christmas fabrics & very generously gave me a pile.  I loved these two above & decided to make a stocking each for my step-grandaughters Juno & Sadie.  I used quilted calico for the backs, lined them with fabric & wadding, appliqued their names on & made a little pocket in each stocking. 

I stitched a strip of the complimentary fabric to the top, added some festive braid so I could hand sew some christmas charms along the top.  

The reason I added the pocket is because I planned to make a little felt toy to sit in the pocket of each one.

Using this free molly and mama download I made little felt Angels but I stuffed mine with wadding rather than just having them flat as the pattern calls for.  I found some silver charms in my stash with the girls initials on "J" & "S" so I sewed these to their necks.  I've added a tie to the back of the head in case they want them to be tree decorations. 

When I went hunting in my drawer for the Santa's LongJohns pattern I came across this very old craft magazine - Vol  2, No 3.  I'd made the flat doll Angel in it years ago for an Order so I thought I'd quite like to make myself one.  

I put the finishing touches on her last weekend & have yet to find just-the-right-spot to hang her.  She is so sweet.  Instead of Love Blooms in Christmas Hearts, I stitched Christmas Wishes on my banner.

(When I made her for an Order I'd enlarged the pattern by 200%)

She is meant to have Perle thread for her hair but I'd run out of the right colour so just used some mohair that I had in my stash.  Her wings, arms & dress are all Liberty fabric. 

If you've made it to the end, give yourself a pat on the back! (You may all need a little Lie down now)

Well done & Thank You 💗for reading my waffle ramblings.

Wishing you a great rest-of-the-week dear friends,

With much love & friendship to you all,