Teacher Gifts

When someone watches your child 40 hours a week the least you can do is make then a Christmas gift. I made each of the teachers at my daughters daycare one of the Amy Butler, Stash and Dash bags. This is the medium size and just perfect for makeup or any other little things you want to stop from disappearing in your ginormous handbag. This pattern is great because you can use up some of the smaller pieces of fabric in your stash or scrap bin. I love how the bag is two pieces so you can mix and match multiple fabrics. The lining on some of these is also a different fabric.

I followed the pattern and used a sew in interfacing for the first bag which I found a little too stiff for my tastes. On the other 3 I used a heavier weight iron on interfacing. I also like how using the iron on interfacing saves you the step of basting all the pieces.

This is one of those gifts that was really hard to give. I wanted to keep all these lovelies for myself. I guess now I have another project to add to the never ending list of things I want to sew.

Christmas Cooking

I really enjoyed Christmas this year. I think its because I finally began to focus on the things that felt good to me and not the things I felt I had to do because of other peoples expectations. I really enjoyed taking a few days to spend time in the kitchen whipping up some Christmas goodies for gifts.

I made Rolo Turtles. So easy and so delicious. If you can turn on the oven you can make these. The real trick is to buy the Rolos at Sams Club and not in the bag at the grocery store. If you buy them in the bag you have to unwrap each individual candy, which in MHO is a PITA. If you buy them at a bulk store you only have to unwrap each roll. Recipe is here if you want to give it a go.
I also made Peppermint Bark. I found the recipe here, as directed by Soulemama. BEWARE: this stuff is highly addictive. I ate 2 bags of it for dinner one night. I even tried taking the leftovers to work so I wouldn't eat it, but I ended up hoarding it at my desk and polishing off another bag. Dark chocolate is normally too bitter and white chocolate too sweet. When you put them together with the peppermints, its the perfect combination of Christmas goodness. This treat is on my list to make every year.

I told myself this year I was going to do a 100% handmade Christmas next year and only give gifts that I made myself. Guess I better start now and not wait until the last minute. What did you make this year?

Christmas Crafting

First things first. Something ate my birdseed ornaments. I think it was a Yeti because it didn't just nibble the seeds like a good bird should, it chewed through the yarn and took off with the entire ornament, then the 2nd and third that I freed from the freezer. I actually think it was the squirrels that hide in the tree and cackle at my dog. Whose laughing now? I bet they have a bout of coconut oil induced diarrhea.

This post is really about the best lip balm ever. I made a bunch of it for Christmas gifts. Recipe is from SouleMama.

This stuff is AWESOME. It's softer than your store bought lip balm but it smells divine and tastes delicious. I could eat the whole pot if I was having a sugar attack.

The recipe is super simple and you can find all the ingredients at your local natural grocery store. The tins I ordered on etsy, otherwise known as that hole in the internet where all my money goes.

The finished product. I left mine natural with no coloring, so the men folk would not be put off.

Try it, you know you want to.

Birdseed Ornaments

I love handmade Christmas gifts. I found this little project in Country Living magazine and thought I would test it out to see if it could become one of my handmade gifts this year. Link is here if you want to try it yourself.

I found that the recipe made more ornaments than it stated. I filled 3 cookie cutters when it only called for one. I also added a lot more birdseed than called for. It just seemed too runny so I kept adding. I think I could have added even more. I also had to wait a LONG time for the mixture to thicken up to pour into the cutters. If you don't wait long enough it will spill out the sides and you will have a huge mess.

In the end I love the thought behind them, but I don't think I will be giving these out. This is definitely a cold weather craft. I set them on the kitchen table when I was done and they started to melt. You have to hang them outside immediately in the cold air for them to stay hard. Just having the heat on in the house and the little but of sun from the window softened them right up, which would make them hard to wrap and give away. You would end up with a soggy mess of coconut oil and seeds.

This would make a good winter craft to do with children. I envisioned a beautiful evergreen tree in the front yard filled with these, and tiny little birds munching to their hearts content. I guess that is where I went off track. I dont have an evergreen tree and I think my dog sitting in the window is scaring off the birds from eating the one I have hanging from my planter hook. It remains untouched. I want something to eat it so bad I almost would not mind the squirrels taking a bite. I have two more in the freezer if you have an evergreen tree and don't mind riding home with no heat. They are all yours.

Totes for Teachers

The nice thing about having a blog that no one follows is that I can post all my Christmas goodies before the holiday and not really have to worry about spoiling it for anyone.

I made these Winslow Tote bags by Kathy Mack for the 2 main teachers at my daughter’s daycare. I really think they truly like their jobs and the children they care for and I wanted to show my appreciation with some handmade goodness.

I love this boat fabric. Its another nice piece from the gifted stash from my husbands Aunt Tiny. The bottom of the bag is a pirate treasure map fabric I picked up at Joann's.

I dipped into my stash for this bag and used up the last of my Melissa Averinos Sugar Snap fabric. I should have bought 10 yards of this stuff. I love the color combination of the aqua, orange and pink. I am going to have a hard time parting with this one, it is so pretty.

The horse fabric I used for the lining is just darling.

I love this pattern. You can use all fat quarters, or small pieces of fabric you might have left over from some other project. Plus the patchwork effect is great. Anything goes. I hope to make a couple more of these to keep for shopping or running errands.

There is still lots more Christmas sewing to get done. I wish I had the time to make all of my gifts. Maybe if I start in January I might be able to do just that. It would be wonderful to have a completely handmade Christmas in the Hill house.

Christmas Quilt and Mindless Chatter

I have a confession. Christmas is not my favorite holiday. Actually it ranks pretty low on the holiday list of favorites. I tend to get a little weighed down by the consumerism, travel, constant running around and the idea that you must do it all with a cheerful smile. I much prefer Thanksgiving or Halloween where you can still stuff your face but with so much less pressure. Which is why I was surprised to be drawn to this Christmas quilt pattern. I guess sometimes the projects pick you and not the other way around. The pattern is Trees Up Lights On by Sandy Gervais. I am making this one for my family. It’s been a long time since I made a quilt that will stay in our home and is not for someone else. I am really excited to create some simple, quiet and cherished Christmas family memories with this quilt. I can just picture my daughter snuggled under it on Christmas morning.

All the blocks are complete. Now I need to square them up and piece them together. It really is a pretty easy quilt to put together. You sew a little here, trim a little there, then sew some more. It’s a perfect pattern for anyone who hates exact piecing. I cannot wait to find the perfect backing and binding fabric. I am thinking some polka dots.

On a side note I cannot keep my daughter out of the dog food and water bowls. There is an irresistible magnetic force that draws her in. It’s rather frustrating but amusing since I am amassing a large array of blackmail pictures for when she is older.

Superhero Fort Kit

My super awesome neighbors have a son who just so happens to be born on the best day of the year (my birthday). He was having a superhero themed birthday and I needed just the right gift since well, he is special, being a Libra and all. I thought about buying him another man barbie action figure but then I found this great diy gift idea here and here and here. It was pretty quick to put together and I hope it brings him hours of imaginative play time. I remember building forts when I was a kid and loved it. Heck I still feel like a kid, anyone down for some fort time? Here are all the superhero fort building essentials you need, a cape, flashlight, glow sticks, clamps, rope and a giant sheet. I picked up a yard each of this Batman and Superman fabric at Joanns and made the cape reversible. This way he can choose which hero he would like to be on any given day. I used the leftover fabric to make the bag.
This is a great gift idea if you have any little boys in your life in need of a birthday present.