from the heart.

one of my goals this past christmas was to give more homemade gifts. i didn't really succeed with that goal, but i did manage to knock out a few gifts that were a hit with the recipients.

in christmases past, i've always made ornaments for my children's teachers. i didn't do that this year. instead, i made rag wreaths. four of them, to be exact. each wreath was 12" {i also made a 16" rag wreath that was part of my gift for the sneaky santa game we played at my mother-in-law's house}.

 {my kitchen table was a disaster for most of the month of december}

{the pics were taken with my cell phone}

each of my children have two teachers and i let them choose the color scheme for each teacher. this project was super easy, but time consuming & slightly messy {if you can't tell from the frayed fabric pieces on  my legs in the picture above}. as for cost? you can make a 12" rag wreath for less than $10. how? the wire wreath frame is only a couple of bucks {even less if they are on sale or you use a coupon} and i used one jelly roll of quilting fabric for each wreath. the jelly rolls were about $12 regular price, but i used 40% or 50% coupons to buy each. the jelly rolls made it easy because the fabric was already coordinated & the fabric strips were the perfect size to cut with minimal waste. i cranked out three wreaths in one night while sitting in front of the television.

i also knitted a scarf for my sister. i promised her an orange scarf last christmas and, well, that didn't happen. so this year i taught myself the mock cable knit stitch and whipped up a small infinity scarf out of some very lovely orange peruvian wool yarn. the color is called clementine.

{this is what i do while the kids are at their kickboxing lesson}

i have one more skein of this yarn and i'm thinking about making another scarf just like the one i gifted to my sister. what do you think?

i think the best present of all was the picture i drew of my parent's dog, nono. originally, i was going to frame a picture of her, but i decided - at the last minute, in fact - that i would draw one instead. it's been years since i've sat down with a sketch pad & pencils. but, considering we said goodbye to nono just weeks before the holidays, a framed, hand drawn portrait of nono would be a perfect gift. 

i managed to draw this picture two days before christmas while watching "the hangover, part 2" with adam. i'm not entirely happy with how it turned out, but i'm proud of what i did. i think i even like it better than the painting i did of frisco nearly a couple years ago.

at any rate, my mother cried when she opened the package containing nono's picture. i can't wait to visit my parents to see where they hang the drawing. 

so, i know the holidays have come & gone and i really should be focused on organizing & cleaning my home, but i think i'm going to start now to make a more conscious effort to give more homemade gifts. they truly are the best gifts to give.

i linked up with kristen from ladybug blessings for handmade tuesday.

needles.

many, many years ago my mother tried to teach me to knit.  it was a lesson that required much patience.  looking back, i'm very lucky that i was not strangled with yarn or blinded by knitting needles.

last november, i asked my mother to teach me how to knit...again.  she obliged.  but, maybe she only said yes because she was visiting for the weekend & knew her teaching time would be limited.  so, she taught me...in about twenty minutes.  my first attempt at knitting {again} was not pretty.  by the time my mother visited again {my parents live 2.5 hours away & visit us frequently}, she took great joy in taking apart the wannabe scarf i was so proud of.  somehow, i had managed to add double the amount of stitches that i originally casted on.  did i also mention that there were about eight holes in the scarf, too, thanks to dropped stitches?  whoa.

so, i started over.  this time we had more time.  my mom sat with me to make sure i was knitting correctly.  she was there to help me pick up dropped stitches, fix my mistakes and cheer me on.  by the end of her visit, i had made my very first scarf.  the day after she left, i had already knitted a second scarf.


i was on a roll.

during my first successful week as a novice knitter, i taught myself how to bind off my stitches & how to perfect the garter stitch {a.k.a. the knit stitch}.  i was experimenting with different sized needles & different textures of yarn.

just a few weeks into my knitting frenzy, i taught myself how to purl & how to knit with two different colors of  yarn.  my personal style of knitting is not what might be considered standard.  i'm not a fast knitter, but i'm certainly an entertaining one.  adam & the kids like to sit and watch me knit.  either they are entranced by the "swish, swish" of my metal knitting needles or they take sick pleasure in watching me undo projects i had once worked so diligently on.

so far, i've made ten scarves and i currently have four more scarves "in the works."  well, i call them scarves.  perhaps they are more like neck warmers.  infinity scarf, circle scarf...whatever.  my next project will be arm warmers. before the kids & i went on our mini vacation, all i did was knit.  i haven't done much knitting since, but i'm gradually getting back into it because it really is relaxing {and i have a shit ton of yarn to use}.  oh, one other thing:  i have been encouraged to sell my scarves.  

what do you think?  

i have some lofty knitting goals for myself {like knitting on the round, learning more stitches, making a dog sweater}, but the idea of trying to sell my knit creations makes me nervous.  we'll see what happens.  if this whole knitting thing turns out to be THE opportunity for me, then wonderful.  if not, well, now you know what everyone will be receiving for christmas for many years to come!

finally!

it is soooooo late {i'm gonna need a lot of coffee in a few short hours!} but i just had to share the news with y'all...

my etsy shop is up & running!

Etsy Buy Handmade maliasma

it is still very much a work in progress and, right now, my listings are pretty much a hodge-podge of things, but i want feedback. give it to me. tell me what you want to see. what you don't want to see. i still have a couple more items to list. i just haven't gotten around to it because i really, really, really need to go to bed {i have to get up for work in less than 5 hours...yikes!}.

monday, monday

first of all, don't forget to enter my pink & green giveaway. i want to help keep YOU organized in 2010 so click here to enter, okay?

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whew.

it's been a while since i last posted, huh?

i've been around. here, there. well, mostly here. here being at home. the unemployment saga drags on, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. of course, the obvious light at the end of the tunnel would not only be a job*, but to have my unemployment hearing side in my favor. yes, folks, i'm battling for unemployment benefits. at the end of this month, i'll find out if i, indeed, qualify or not. waiting a month & a half for money sucks...and that's all i'll say about that.

the kids are back in school. adam's back to work. i'm back to crafting things, dreaming about things, wishing about things & wondering about things. it's all good, though.

i really do think i'm serious about opening an etsy shop. i don't know where to begin. i don't know what i should peddle {sounds so much cooler than saying sell}. well, i do, but it's such a random smattering of things - reverse-applique shirts, glass ornaments, ribbon topiaries & wreaths. nevertheless, i've got dreams. i've got plans. i'm just not ready to put it all on the internet yet...or am i??

i've been creating lots of things. things i owe you pictures of {tomorrow, i promise, but i'll link you to my twitpics for now}. i painted four wineglasses {the glasses were upside down because they were still wet & not heat set}. this one is mine and i l♥ve it. if you haven't guessed, i hang out with some w{h}iners. i made my momma a cone-shaped breast cancer awareness topiary. i have yet to completely finish it {i.e., set it in the pot} but i'll do that either tonight or tomorrow. i also made my friend, maria, a lovely purple topiary for the desk she'll have at her new job. and, this afternoon, i finished this heart-shaped wreath for my front door. i've definitely been busy.

i've got lots & lots on my plate this week - mostly deep cleaning & organizing our home {oh, and painting...finally...my bathroom} - but thank goodness for some fun with friends. on wednesday morning, i'm having coffee with her & her. and, on friday night, i'm getting together with her {again!}, her & her for some mexican food. yum! we've all met up before and, let me tell ya, i'm gonna be in good company as they are three fabulous women. saturday night, i'll be crafting again - painting more wine glasses - with friends & family.

so, there's my week. it's gonna be a busy one. don't worry, i'll be a bit more faithful with the blogging. i've got a bunch of kidlet-related shenanigans to report. trust me.

have a great week, y'all!




* so, about that light at the end of the tunnel i referred to as a j to the o to the b. i've been offered one. it's part-time {with potential to go full-time}. it's kinda-sorta for a company i'd love to work for {all i'm gonna say is that the company i would be working for...if i accept the position...is for a wholly-owned subsidiary of that really big company that's getting ready to move it's headquarters from california to northern virginia}. i've got lots to think about because monday the 18th could potentially be my first day back to work. i'm thankful. very thankful.

merry & bright.

momma's got her holiday groove back, i think. ask me later on this afternoon when i'm pulling my hair out & i might say otherwise. perhaps a trip to trader joe's for some el cheapo {but absolutely divine} vino is in order. why not, right?

anyways, and i'm ashamed to admit this, but i haven't made any more topiaries since this one. cranking out topiaries is on my list of things to do today...along with painting four wine glasses. should be easy enough. the kids are home & they can help me with the pup while i get crafty {they had BETTER help...it's still not too late for me to cancel christmas}.

even though i haven't accomplished my entire list, i am very proud of the few things i have completed - ornaments & shirts.

not all of my ornaments turned out absolutely fabulous. this always happens. but, even my "bad" ornaments turned out semi-decent. i think a little glitter on the outside will make it all better & soon they will have a permanent home as they will be added to our ornament collection.

however, let me share with you the successful ones. they turned out even better than the ornaments i painted last year. they are all decked out in red, green & white christmassy fabulousness. all but two of them were handed out to teachers yesterday...i hope they all liked them:

the last two photos are a bit on the dark side...whoops. the lighting in my kitchen isn't the greatest at o'dark thirty. i'm quite please with these lil' guys. i didn't adorn them with any additional ribbon & i think they turned out quite perfectly!

in addition to ornaments, i made three monogrammed shirts done in a reverse-applique style. the shirts were purchased from wal-mart & target and the fabric i used came from a contest i won over at lauren nicole gifts. all of the stitching was done by my own two hands with embroidery thread. i am making one more to give as a gift {another 'm' monogram because their daughter is named malia...just like mine!} and then i'll create two more for my malia. she already has one {made with scrap fabric from gussy}.

here are the three i made - one for my sister's niece & two for my little cousins - they turned out soooooo cute {if i do say so myself!}:

i'm actually thinking about opening an etsy store and possibly selling these shirts as well as my topiary items. i'm not 100% certain just yet, but it's one of my goals for 2010. i'm doing what i love, i love what i'm doing...so why not try to make a buck or two, right?

anyways, if anyone IS interested in a shirt, just let me know what size you want, whether you want long or short sleeves and what the initial is. the price is $15. pretty reasonable, i think.

so this is the crafty side of me...the baker in me will appear in the next post. promise.

lofty goals.

Christmas is in a week.

one week.

i can't believe it. well, yes, i can. the years go by faster & faster as we get older...and they seem to pick up even more speed once children are involved. trust me, i know this.

anyways.

i've got a very busy weekend ahead of me. perhaps it IS a blessing in disguise that adam is going hunting tomorrow with his brother from another mother, matt.

forget santa's workshop. it's going to be craft & cookie central in this house!

last night i started these {excuse the fabulous crackberry photo quality...and my sloppy counters}:

they are still drying as there is still a bit of paint coming out of them. once they are dry, i will put the ornament tops back on them, put a hanger on them & adorn them with a pretty piece of ribbon and they will be ready for gifting.

in addition to those glass ornaments, i have to make four more of these {well, using different colored shirts & different designs}:

{another fine crackberry photo}
oh, and i also need to make more topiary ornaments & regular topiaries, cookies, cake balls and...for the first time ever...homemade marshmallow.

lofty goals. yep. i know it.

and, somewhere in all of that, i have to do a wee bit of grocery shopping, finish up some Christmas shopping, wrap presents, do laundry, clean the house, keep the kids happy & fed, watch the pup like a hawk, appease my three cats and steam clean our carpet.

i'm not sure if i need peppermint mocha creamer in my coffee or peppermint schnapps.

not your typical ornament.

it started as a 4" styrofoam ball. now it's between 5" to 6" in diameter and it's been covered in pink & green preppy goodness {with a bit of light blue thrown in for good measure}. and, it's currently en route to this fun gal.

this is only the second topiary-like item i've made. i have more that i need to create. my mother insists that i sell them. i'm skeptical because my creations are not nearly as fab as some of the others i've seen online. tell me what you think...please...

i just don't know.

i do know that i like making them. i do know that i like giving them {well, you know, when i make more of them}. next on my list is a couple small topiary trees for the holidays & a breast cancer awarness topiary that has been specially requested by my mother.

i'll post pics when i'm finished. promise.

Hometown Swap - All the way from Ohio

A month ago or so, I jumped on the bandwagon and signed myself up to participate in a hometown swap over at Shannon's blog, Welcome to the Nuthouse. The idea of the swap was to be paired up with someone from another part of the country and you would send that person goodies from your hometown. Pretty neat, huh?

I came home this afternoon and there was a big, white package on my porch from Heather (check out her blog, "This is the day..."). It was full of yummy, beautiful and sweet smelling goodies from her town of Lebanon, Ohio:

Heather sent me some yummy donuts made from a local farm...they didn't fare too well while in transit but - trust me - they are so damn good! I also got some homemade apple butter...YUM! I can't wait for breakfast tomorrow - guess what I'm putting on my toast?! The candle is coconut scented and is soy-based and it's heavenly. She also sent a little apple recipe book, a small plaque about family and the most beautiful handmade cards - Heather is a crafty gal!

Heather - you outdid yourself and I am just taken away by your card making talent. Thank you for making some ordinary gal from Virginia Beach happy on what has been a semi-crummy Monday! I will drown my sorrows in a ice, cold Coca-Cola and munch on the yummy donuts and wait for a sugar high to rescue me!

Shannon - thank you for putting together this swap...it was fun, yet challenging! I mean, I had a hard time coming up with things - I even forgot something - so my swap partner will receive TWO packages from me. Oops!