Fill Your Hearts with Christmas Cheer!

I went to the doctor today, friends, and the news was that I don't have strep (yay?) but that I probably* have the flu (even with the shot; they guessed wrong this year). My throat feels like it is filled with knives, and I'm beyond achy. I have some meds so with luck (and science) I will be better soon.

My Santa head mugs have been arriving, and I found this glittery tree at my local A.C. Moore. I like it better than the dyed red trees featured in the magazine, although I still might try to find one of those peppermint trees. (The originals, for reference.)

Since doing anything but sitting was too strenuous, I picked up a project to stitch. Don't ask my why Merry and Bright called my name. This Hearts Content kit is fairly difficult since it is over one on 40 count fabric (natural linen). It's stitched with DMC. The frame is now complete (and matches up!) and I added several strands of gold to it. I have begun the funky tree-person. I know that "Bright" looks misaligned, and it is, but luckily it is the bottom of the B that is messed up and not everything to the right of it! You can compare the before photo here.



* Waiting for the test, which takes 24 hours, would put me outside the timeframe for taking the meds, so she just assumed I had it, which I think is a good guess.

Grande Finale to National Craft Month!

Sorry this note is so late. I had to wait for my neighbor to come reassemble this project. Parts of it were outside of my abilities.

You have seen parts of the "map room" aka the guest room aka the study aka Stella's "chewing room." It's very masculine: suede paint on the walls and a giant map as a focal point. (Ours is a wallpaper that we got from Rand McNally. They don't seem to have it any more, but they have something similar and way more expensive.) And then there was the fan.

Totally wrong. Too white. Too feminine. Too blaaaaah.

So I was cruising Pinterest one day and saw this:

Photo from dimplesandtangles.blogspot.com

She had spray painted the base (on another one she had done the whole fan, including the hardware that holds the blades) and applied fabric with decoupage. Ooh...I could decoupage fabric onto the blades in the craft room. Another use for the extra yardage. But wait...why work on a fan that was basically fine when there was a horrible fan in serious need of some spray paint? Hmmm. Decoupage...map room...decoupage maps! I discussed it with the dude* and we decided to go for it I should do it!


And voila!

Each blade shows a special place...from Edinburgh and Durham, from New Hampshire to Los Angeles and Philadelphia.

I'm soooooo happy with how this came out! I can't wait for the dude to get home! (And I know I left the stickers on the new shades. I wasn't sure about them, and I want to be able to return them...)

*I know a lot of you have husbands who don't care a whit how you decorate and what crazy-ass changes you make. You are so lucky. We decorate by committee here, and everyone has a veto vote. Which is why we don't have decorative pillows in the bedroom, for instance. OTOH, we feel lovely and cozy here.

Day 27: Time Flies

Remember I told you I needed a clock for the craft room? I got right on solving the problem!

I bought clockworks and a wooden disk (find them next to the clockworks) at the craft store. I decoupaged fabric onto the wood. Once the fabric is dry (and hardened) over the center hole, jab it with the scissors, and it will give way like paper. Then you just stick in the clockworks and cry because the hands don't seem to balance properly nor can you figure out the order of things. The box the pieces came in will be absolutely no help. Nevertheless, you will persevere.

The hands were gold and I colored them black with a Sharpie so they would stand out enough to read them. I do wish they were less "clock hand" and more graphical (straight, chunky). Apparently all the clock makers shopping at the craft stores want their clock hands to be shapely.

I like the idea of this better than the execution. I'm not gonna lie to you: it's a little lumpy. The wooden circle has routered edges, and it was difficult to get the fabric to lie flat.  Frankly, I'm thinking I may have to start over on this one, but you get the idea.

From the Window to the Wall

A freelance designer in the Netherlands, Eline Pellinkhof, has taken cross stitch to new places: the wall. {via Craft Gossip}

Awesome!

How the Grinch Was Won Over by Who-ville

Tonight, at family dinner, I was shamed into putting up the Christmas tree (a tree--I may yet put up my "handmade" tree). Fortunately, the shamers were willing to lend a hand, and I had help schlepping the boxes up from the basement; the tree was put up before I knew it; and I got to do just the fun stuff (putting on the ornaments). Of course I threatened them with having to take down the tree on a Sunday in January.

I have to say that dinner went swimmingly tonight. I usually am out of my head and off my feet trying to get the house cleaned and three courses on the table. I'm exhausted and unable to enjoy dinner. But this week, I decided to start early. I did the bulk of the housecleaning on Friday. On Saturday I made dessert (pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting) and the appetizer (Southwest corn dip) and did a tiny bit more cleaning. On Sunday I brought the dog to the park and vegged until people arrived. This was why I was so agreeable when Jersey chided me for being Scrooge. The Grinch? Whoever. We're going to Florida for Christmas, why put up a tree? But everyone was willing to put in the effort. So now we have some decorations pointing toward winter holidays.

You may think that I've taken a lot of time away from my gift-making schedule. And you'd be right. Unfortunately, the sewing machine clattered to a halt again on Thursday. I broke four needles in a row--a whole pack! I guess I'm a slow learner. The needle seems to be contacting the shuttle.  Despite this setback, I am buoyed by your wonderful comments about what I've made so far and I am confident that I will finish some of the sewn gifts on Wednesday at quilting class. I am hopeful the machine will be ready soon or that maybe I can get a loaner. We'll see this afternoon.

Oh to see a great big man entirely made of snow

(From my favorite Christmas movie: White Christmas)

Here is my collection of snow figures in the living room with the snowy tree:

The small snowmen have gathered near my sewing spot--that's my Ott-Lite in the background. And "sew warm" is "sew cute" with that needle in his hand. Do I love the Williraye or that no-name guy with the droopy hat more?


These are my candle holders. The small globe was made by my niece.


"Fall Guy" needs some friends I think...


But I can't take anyone down from the tv cabinet. Any fewer and it looks a little sparse.

I don't know how I came to collect snowmen, but I find them happy-making.

Sissy's appointment took forever tonight. First she arrived at 4:45 for her 5:40 appointment to be told it had been rescheduled to 6:30; didn't she get their call? Fortunately, I work close by so we went to Jones for dinner where the dude joined us. Then we showed up at 6:20 and they were waiting for her. They led her back where they must have held her captive for a while before administering the test. They didn't release her until 7:45. We got home at 8:30...there went the hopes of a second coat of primer on the bathroom...but we are closer to knowing.

Decisions, decisions

My dining room is a color called "Fragrant Clove." (Now, it even smells like cloves.) When I saw these napkins, I thought they'd be a great color combo for my Boxing Day dinner party. (The napkin looks red, but it's orange.)

So I've dressed up my chandelier and created a centerpiece, seen here:

Isn't that purple candle perfect? $3.00 (three) at Home Goods. I love that place. I have a couple of dilemmas. First, that table runner is about 4 inches shy of the table ends and it has tassels, which I think should hang off the table. (It was cheap--Home Goods. Okay, really I forgot to measure the table before I went shopping.) I could take out the leaf--we're not eating at the table (fourteen of us are never fitting in there), but is it enough room for the buffet? Or I could try to find another, but that copper color is perfect. (And it has chenille squiggles. What's not to love?)

The other problem is that I put my handmade ornament tree in that room, and I think it's the wrong feel. Even with the gold tree skirt.

I could move the tree to the study, but then, who'd see it?

Today, I painted the patches in the hall and around the door. I decided not to paint the front door--It does need another coat, but I think it can wait. And I primed the bathroom. I know the dude is going to help with that when he gets back because we can't shower upstairs until we finish painting and hang the new blind. Though the downstairs shower has superior water pressure, it's a long walk in the morning. ;)

House Tour

The title's a little deceiving. This is just a little corner of the living room. But I promised to show you the Christmas quilt I saved from the Dumpster at my mother's and the tree skirt.

The quilting on it is terrible. The stitches are so huge you can practically see them from here. But I popped it behind the tree, so you can't get a really good look. It's festive anyway, and the dude cracked me up with a postmodern analysis of the dual fake trees. This is only part of my snowman collection. I have four small areas in the living room with more snowmen. Not bad for a girl who didn't know she collected them! (NB: You'll notice the woolie snowman doorhanger perched at the top of the tree. I went to three stores looking for a papier mache gourd to make a tree topper, and Joann's, AC Moore, and Michael's all told me they only have them at Halloween. Go figure. So I repurposed the doorhanger, and I'll be sure to buy a gourd next Halloween so I can make a proper topper.)

Here's a shot of the tree skirt--and the cute snow couple I picked up at Home Goods on Black Friday. You can see that I didn't iron the skirt... but you're the only people who are going to look that closely.


Close-up of the ribbon embroidery.

After hitting 4 stores to get a 4' prelit (with white lights) Christmas tree for the handmade ornaments, I finally settled on a 6.5' unlit tree. I can stop running around. When we were leaving the third place, the dude told me he would give up all his Christmas presents not to have to shop for other people (fat chance). Then he turned to me and said, "Of course, you've done all the shopping...Thanks." Well, he turns out not to be so bad after all...