More Crocheted Afghans

I finally finished up (after Christmas) some afghans I made for Christmas presents.  So I made a total of 6 this year for presents during the holiday.  I am grateful for this talent and knowledge.  Each afghan is a total of 3 lbs. of yarn.  Now it's almost time to re-open the Etsy shop for the new year.  Thanks for looking!

Crocheted Christmas

After I finished up my Etsy shop orders, I immediately started on some handmade gifts that I wanted to give.  I typically revert to these lap blankets that work up quickly for me and I bought the yarn throughout the year when sales would come up.  I love making these!  They are my favorite gift to give.  Thanks for looking!  I have three more to go!

My Quilted Gift!

I am so excited to share something I received for Christmas!  I normally do not like to brag about gifts I receive, but when it is handmade, it's hard not to share! And this is especially sentimental.  My mother had a rough upbringing; and thus dropped out of high school, later got her G.E.D., and then worked at schools close to home as a school cook which gave her the flexibility to still be at home with the children when we would be there.  I admire my mom for a lot of reasons for she has overcome a lot of hardships in her life.  Well, she does not craft.  She jokes she can't sew on a button even!  But she retired a couple of years ago, and she had hundreds of those "scrubs" in fun patterns and colors since she worked at an elementary school.  She asked a distant relative who quilts to take all of the uniforms and make each of us children (four in total) a quilt from her old uniforms.  Then she gave them to us at Christmas.  I absolutely love mine!  I am not even going to use it.  I bought a quilt rack from Etsy (here: https://www.etsy.com/listing/101014543/reclaimed-wood-3-foot-quilt-rack-with?ref=shop_home_active_22) to hang it on in my home...at least until my children are older and we can be more gentle with the quilt.  This was such a wonderful gift to receive and I look forward to handing it down in the family along with the stories of my mother and her life.  Thanks for looking!

A Handmade Christmas for the Kids

Typically every year I make a lot of my gifts for friends and family.  However, this year, with babysitting three days a week for 10 hours each day, and not having the down time we had last year after Brent's hip surgery, I found I was really too busy to get much done craft-wise outside of my Etsy shop orders for others.  So, I chose just one gift for each of my kids and went with that for a handmade Christmas.

The first is the fabric alphabet set I made for Shelby.  I had inherited a lot of scrap fabrics from my grandmother this past summer, and I really wanted to recycle it into some cute things for my family.  I researched some pins with tutorials about fabric alphabet sets on Pinterest, and I then did what was comfortable for me with a combination of steps from different tutorials.  Overall, I was really pleased with the outcome of my product, and my grandmother was impressed with the idea and wanted a set for herself!  :)

For Carly, I scrapbooked a page of pictures from Taylor Swift's concert that Carly and I attended earlier this year.  I also included her ticket from the concert, and an actual autograph from Taylor Swift addressed to Carly that a friend gave her for her birthday a few years ago.  (Before Taylor Swift became really popular around the country, she had stopped in my town...yes, just one mile away!...at a local grocery store to sign autographs and release her first cd.  Oh, how I wish I had known how famous she'd become...I would have been there myself!)  Carly now has the shadow box framed page on her wall to remember that special day we shared as mother and daughter.  :)

For Jayna, I had pinned some peg doll ideas because she really loved playing with a set I made identical to our family before Shelby was born.  So I pinned a few and when it came time to choose, I decided since she loves princesses so much, why not "the Princess and the Pea" to add to her collection of princess stories?  She didn't know the story yet so I ordered the book off of Amazon.com and set to work on the peg doll set.  Again, I used fabrics from my grandmother to "dress" the dolls and the "quilt" the mattresses.  Jayna has loved it so much and I'm really glad I didn't second guess my crafty abilities and went through with the plan.  I will make more for her in the near future!  Just pinned another set I'm sure she'll love....  ;)

When it came to Adam, well, boys are just harder to craft for, and there's not as much "cute-sy" stuff for them.  But when I saw this pin, I knew it was the gift for him.  http://www.meggipeg.com/2012/04/boy-bedroom-makeover-scout-blanket-with.html  I have so many extra patches that do not go directly on his uniform, and also some that Brent acquired as a Scout, so I have begun working on sewing them all to a blanket.  I have the trim almost all done along the edges as well.  While I haven't completed Adam's project to date, I did show it to him close to Christmas and he was happy with it.  I look forward to giving him something special and that accounts for time he has spent learning things with Scouts.  I also think it will be nice if he has sons that he can hand this down to them and they can add their Scout badges as well. 

I had about a week to work on my children's gifts for Christmas after I had completed my Etsy orders, so it wasn't much time to finish everything I wanted for them. 

Felt Nativity Set

Over the past few years I have really started collecting Nativity sets.  For a few years into our marriage, I didn't have any.  Then I started buying them after Christmas on sale, and friends even bought a couple of sets for me.  But with Shelby, my 1 year old, it was hard to let her handle any fragile sets or small pieces.  Yet I wanted her to have something for herself to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ along with the rest of us...something she could touch, feel, and play with as I talked to her about Christ.  Therefore, when I came along this pin: http://whatmadeleineloves.blogspot.com/2011/12/felt-nativity.html on Pinterest, I knew it was something I had to do for my baby girl.  Bonus:  I didn't have to buy a single thing to make it as I already had all of the supplies in my craft stash.  After a week or so in my spare time, I had it completed!  It was really fun!  And I will admit that although she didn't take the interest in it right away that I thought she would, she did like to carry around one piece at a time and she knew it was "hers."  I look forward to seeing how she interacts with it next year when she's a few months older and can understand a little more about our Savior's birth. 

Christmas Bauble Wreath

I've not had a lot of extra time on my hands for crafts with kids being sick, hubby recovering from hip replacement surgery, and the kids home on Christmas break, but I did find time to make this simple wreath for my door.  I got the idea at a homemaking meeting at church in December.  Basically, you take a wire hanger, bend it into a circle, then string on dollar store ball ornaments around the wire.  The whole thing cost me less than $10, and that includes the ribbon, which also came from the dollar store.  It was really easy and  didn't take too much time, except I did have to take some off and re-string them so I didn't have a clump of ornaments all the same.  I wanted it varied.  My friends made red and green ones, red and gold ones, and so on.  I like the gold and silver, and even though I've already put away Christmas at our house, I did leave this wreath on the door as it doesn't scream Christmas altogether. Some of the ornaments have glittered snowflakes printed on them so it's wintry to me!  I think the lady I got the idea from had found a tutorial on Pinterest.  I just realized as I uploaded this picture that it's not a very good picture and it's much better in person on the door.  But...thanks for looking!  PS - My Etsy store is back open on-line now that things have settled back to somewhat normal!

Elves!

I've been on Pinterest a lot lately, and found this cute little tutorials for kids to make Christmas Elf ornaments! Too cute! So I had my kids try their hands at them, and these are ours! Thanks for looking!!! P.S. - Even my 3 year old could get in on this action...very easy! http://www.parents.com/holiday/christmas/crafts/christmas-kid-crafts/

School Christmas Crafts

So, I've mentioned before I'm heavily involved as the Volunteer Coordinator at my kids' elementary school, and this month is no exception! It's Christmas-time! And as such, our PTO decided to do away with the typical "Secret Santa Shop" and host our own craft nights so the gifts are more sentimental and handmade. I scoured Pinterest for ideas (of course!), and also received some ideas from friends. Since we live in the great state of OSU territory, some of the crafts are buckeye keychains and necklaces. We are also crafting fleece scarves (the kids are basically just tying the fringe at the ends into knots); making Christmas tree canvases; glitter bulbs; painting porcelain tiles; and decorating picture frames, etc. I am also crafting some snowman face kits with buttons for the kids to use on their real snowmen this winter.

We have a total of 175 kids participating, with a grand total of 580 craft orders placed. We have two nights with the children (approximately 5 hours total) to finish everything! We'll see how it goes. I am sure it will be hectic...but when kids are involved, isn't it fun?!?! I love spending time with my kids and their friends at school. It's heartwarming. However, I do need to learn to say "NO!" sometimes. :) But aren't these cute ideas?!

The Perfect Wreath

There was a special gift I received for Christmas. Well, I got a few including snowmen ornaments, some things from my hubby, and my favorite glass icicles (yes, I gave some and got some, too), but there was one that I felt was thoughtful, and also handmade! Which I give handmade so I love to receive handmade! It was the yarn wreath you see above in my new 2011 header. It was made by my friend, Sarah, who was so instrumental in helping me achieve my quilting goal in December. She was supportive, caring, and just there to listen to my gripes. I have a few of those sometimes. ;) And she's always there for me. Anyway, I love this wreath. She said she saw a tutorial on-line. It's made of yarn; burlap roses; and attached to a wooden, distressed circle. The sentiment is this: "As YOU take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, YOU improve not only the WORLD around YOU, but also the WORLD within YOU." Just perfect! (And to top it off, she added my shop and blog name - The Cozy House Crafter!) Thank you, Sarah!

Crafting Christmas Gifts - Part Four and a Storybook

This was the big project that I worked on for quite a while. I had this vision planted in my head of exactly what I wanted it to look like for months. It helped that I had seen one previously made by my sister-in-law for our mother-in-law. But I knew I had to make something similar for my Grandmother Fisher. She is so very special to me. And so is my Grandpa Fisher. But my Mama Fisher for sure holds a very tender and special place in my heart. She has always been a great role model to me of a gracious, kind, giving, mannerly, beautiful, reserved, and loving woman. When I think of a perfect woman as a wife, mother, saint, and friend, I envision my Grandma. She has always placed others before herself. She does not complain, gossip, or speak unkindly about or toward another person. And there are so many examples I could give you of why she personifies these traits to me. But the reason I chose to really make this quilt for her is because I knew she would cherish it. She has always made time for us. She has been giving of her time. And that has included making each grandchild (ten of us) a quilt for his/her 16th birthday. And each one was designed specifically for each of us with certain colors and images and fabrics chosen by her with lots of thought. And she worked on them by hand herself, and always had them ready on time. She has also given each great grandchild a handmade quilt, though smaller, for keepsakes. She loves to quilt. I have to admit this has not been a talent I have yet acquired in my crafting abilities. But I have done more and more sewing in the past couple of years so I decided it was time to try my hand at making her quilted gift. I chose the pictures I wanted (given to me by her when working on genealogy together years ago), and immediately set out after the Thanksgiving holiday to get them made onto the fabric. I bought muslin and went several different places to make the pictures. I couldn't find but one place in my town who knew how to make the transfers, and it was WAY out of my price range...like really, really WAY out of my price range. So I decided to give my sister-in-law a call on how she had done it and what she had paid. I waited a couple of days, and in the meantime, relayed my sense of panic and difficulty about the picture transfers to a dear friend whom I know is very talented when it comes to many crafts. She has a loooong line of family who is also very talented...therefore, while waiting to hear back from my sister-in-law, my good friend talked to her sister who lives in Idaho about my problem. And my friend's sister volunteered herself to take care of my problem and make the transfers onto the fabric for me if all I would do was prepare the muslin squares and mail her the pictures -- for a 1/3 of the price I was quoted, and that only because she would need to buy some special things to get the job done and mail it back to me. I couldn't believe the news when I heard it! A stranger willing to give her time to me in such a major way at such a busy time of year! WOW! A true blessing to me in a time of need. So I decided that's just what I would do and within a day or two the materials were on their way in the mail from Ohio to Idaho. The next day my sister-in-law returned my call but I had already mailed my things out and was now going to the fabric store to choose my fabrics. This was very painful for me...not physically, but mentally. What would my Grandma like hanging on her wall? What colors should I choose? What patterns would fit well with her decor? Yes, I know, I have been in her house hundreds of times before, but I wanted this gift to her to be perfect. My good friend once again assured me that I could do this -- she said, "It's like putting together a scrapbook page, and you know how to do that!" True enough, but I was second-guessing myself. I tormented myself over which fabrics and colors at the store, and finally had everything cut. I got in the car...and immediately I hated what I had chosen. It just didn't seem right. I got home and showed my husband. He told me what to take away and what to add. "Alright," I thought, "I can do this." But then my beautiful pictures came back on the fabric a week later, and I knew I had to get different coordinating fabrics. What I bought just was not going to mesh well with the fabric pictures nor with what my Grandma's house already looks like. So back to the fabric store...a different one this time. I immediately picked out exactly what I knew would work and felt 100% better about the colors and patterns for my Grandma. The next day, I spent time laying out the picture blocks, and cutting my fabric blocks to pin them together. I felt right about that phase. Then the next night, I decided to start sewing the blocks. It was all still good. The next day, I realized I had a broken sewing foot that I needed to sew the quilt, and had to get to the only dealer for my sewing machine in town, and buy a new one. They had one! Shew!! I started the border around the square blocks. All was well. The next day, I decided to add borders along all outsides of the quilt. Good deal...until I find that since I didn't put my little one down for a nap, she dumped out a bottle of shampoo and wasted a tube of toothpaste on the counter in the bathroom. No more sewing and laboring over this quilt in the daytime anymore (without her napping)! So I waited until that night, I decided to start quilting the top, bottom, and batting inside altogether. But this is where major trouble started. I kept getting a ton of bunching in one of the corners...no matter where I started, and it wasn't always the same corner. Dang it! I didn't have a clue what I was doing wrong since I had never quilted. I consulted my friend again...for moral support and for possible suggestions. She called her lovely sister in Idaho for more information as well. And I "consulted" with videos on YouTube. God Bless YouTube videos! No, not really, but at least God Bless those lovely people who share their knowledge on YouTube about sewing and quilting!! ;) ha! Because apparently I needed to fix the pressure on my sewing machine pressure foot, and all was good! Like I said before, I have very little sewing experience and am self-taught so sometimes I just don't even think of the obvious solutions. Finally, late that very same night as Jayna pouring out my shampoo!, I was able to quilt the piece and get it ready for the binding. It was finally Dec. 23, and I spent two hours hand-sewing my binding edge around the sides of the quilt. I did that alright, thanks to a YouTube video when I made the table runner a few months ago, following the "blind stitch" video tutorials. And I was finished! Oh, how good I think it looks in person -- much more than in these pictures here. But I was able to present it to my Grandma on Christmas Eve. I think she loved it...she carried it around on Christmas Day to show to my relatives what I had made for her. I was happy that she liked it so much and was appreciative of the time I had spent on it. She said so anyway. ;) But here comes the most honest bit of all of this...and I almost cried when I found out...my Grandma was almost too gracious to tell me...but the only picture I thought was of her as a child, was not her at all! It is a picture of my Great Aunt Lorene, which is my Grandma's little sister. Mama said she loved the quilt despite its imperfection, and she also said that my Aunt Lorene would be honored to have her picture on my quilted work when she finds out! ;) So there you have it...hopefully a family heirloom with quite a bit of story to tell! ;) Thanks for reading all of this...if you did! ha! My BIGGEST THANKS to Sarah Hansen and Marsha Warren!!

Crafting Christmas Gifts - Part Three

Pulling an Oprah, I decided to gift some of my favorite people with my favorite thing for the Christmas tree. (Do you watch Oprah and know what I'm talking about?) With limited time due to the "Crafting Christmas - Part Four" that I'll post next week, I didn't have a lot of time to really make something wonderful for my three good friends. But they mean so much to me...they give me insight, friendship, service, kindness, and support on many different levels. So I wanted to give them something I feel is special to me. Well, when we moved to Ohio five years ago, it was still early in my marriage and consequently Brent and I were still collecting things here and there for our Christmas tree ornaments. I decorate in turquoise blue (one of my top favorite colors); white; pearls; snowballs; snowmen; white lights; silver bells; etc. When we to the mall that first winter here, we discovered an old man who would create glass pieces to sell at Christmas time. I loved watching him, and found out that he made icicles. Real glass icicles. They are absolutely beautiful!!! They are hard to capture the beauty of on camera, but they are really stunning on the tree in person. So I bought my first dozen that winter. That's all I could get at the time. And every winter since, I have bought another dozen to add to my tree. So this year, with five dozen, I have finally filled up the tree from top to bottom (on the front side) with my other "snowy cold" ornaments. (The funny thing is that even when we lived in California, I decorated with snowmen for the tree and winter months...even though I never wore a coat at all. It wasn't ever really that cold there...not compared to here in Ohio or WV. I definitely missed that about the East Coast when we were on the West Coast.) ANYWAY, back to my gift, I felt like it's something really special to me, so I decided to take some old cigar boxes bought on E-bay a couple of years ago, alter the boxes, and fill them with a dozen icicles each for my sweet friends. I hope they enjoy them. I think the boxes turned out lovely, but I think they will like the shiny icicles on their tree at night the most -- I hope! Thanks for looking!

Crafting Christmas Gifts - Part Two

These are crocheted wash cloths I made following the Vanilla Grit stitch found on www.lionbrand.com. I love the stitch...it is very pretty and thick so I think it makes a great cloth. I paired up my cloth creations with some soap made by a friend -- see her shop here: www.etsy.com/shop/annesgarden. I bought English Rose for my recipients, but I am partial to the Ivy Mint. These gifts will be for ladies I work with at church, Sunday School teachers, and so on. It's something small...but handmade and useful. To me, the best kind of gift. :)

A Gift Worth Waiting to Receive!!!

My dear friend, Sarah, is completely talented when it comes to all crafts. Right now she is very into doing vinyl projects. On our way to visit out-of-state family on Christmas Eve, she called me to see if I would be home to receive a gift she made for me. I told her no, and also when we would probably be returning. Well, you know how the holidays go with keeping families busy, and then my son got strep throat...so just today I received her gift, and WOW! It was definitely worth waiting to receive! I love it so much! Thanks, Sarah! If you would like to purchase the same for yourself or anyone else, contact me and I will let you know how to contact her.

A Handmade Christmas

Here are some gifts I made for others for a "handmade" Christmas. I love making things for other people, and I hope they enjoy these special gifts. Where I got my ideas: the Christ frame mat idea came from my local Relief Society "Super Saturday" at church this year; the magnet board "Sugar and Spice" idea was copied from one of my good friend's creativity; the "Family" shadow box frame was something I learned from a class at my LSS (found here: http://www.pizazzitscrapbooks.com/); and finally the multiple shadow box frame for "Hansen" was copied from here: http://www.cricut.com/messageboard/tm.aspx?m=2742695&mpage=1&key=&#2744171. I am currently working on one more Christmas gift project, which I will show at a later time. And I also made some of these for loved ones: http://www.sugardoodle.net/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3077&Itemid=5. Thanks for checking out my blog,...and Merry Christmas to everyone!