Archive for the ‘Crafts/Projects’ Category

This is the gingerbread house Kaia, Grandpa and I built in early December. Look at Kaia giggling when the gingerbread man and Santa fall down… Costco sells these kits for around $10.00 - how can you go wrong - they provide too many hours of fun and aggravation…

PPP

I love most types of crafts and especially a simple one which yields fabulous results.

This is a ‘jewelery pillow’ which has great meaning to me and it’s a simple way to ensure my costume jewelery is displayed beautifully but never stolen if thieves break in to my home. They can have the TV, the DVD player, heck - take the microwave too, but don’t touch MY personal STUFF.

Many of the brooches on this pillow belonged to my Mom, others were given to me over the years and they all have great sentimental value. The three snowflakes are made with swarovski crystals and are very special as my husband started, three years ago, to buy one each Christmas for me. Swarovski puts out a different one each year and I love them.

So how does any of this relate to thieves stealing my jewelery? Well, if all these brooches were in my jewelery box on the dresser, they’d be easy pickings, if they were in a safety deposit box I’d rarely see them.

Each morning when I make the bed, I put this pillow in a prominent place in the center of the throw pillows - then whenever I walk by, I can admire the beauty of all the brooches. When we go away for a day or a week or longer, I just turn the pillow so the brooches face down on the bed - tadaaaa! They are hidden in plain sight - and I don’t think there are too many thieves interested in pillows. Well, I hope they aren’t. It’s like hiding your treasures in the tampon box - who’d think to look there?

Now, don’t tell those thieves where to look for my stuff, okay?

Click on the photo for a fabulous close-up!

While reading blog posts at the Blog Village Carnival, I came across “Jewels“, a lovley family story by Almost Here. She asks, “Who are the Jewels in your life?”. That question reminded me of the reason I created my Jewel Tree.

My Mom never threw anything away and saved her family’s bits and pieces of jewelery and all my childhood treasures - cute brooches, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, pins and even buttons from special clothing. I seem to have inherited the trait and I kept every little treasure since then - my son’s shark tooth necklace from our trip to Hawaii, my daughter’s first earrings, my husband’s gold birthstone ring and of course all my odds and ends.

A friend showed me her “Christmas Jewel Tree” and that set me off - of course I had to take it one step further, making it into a piece of art, not just a Christmas decoration. All of a sudden I was rummaging through drawers, searching in boxes of old clothing, my jewelery box, my daughter’s jewelery box and even the ‘catch-all’ drawer in the kitchen, amassing a surprising amount of treasure.

I started hitting the garage sales, looking for the perfect wooden picture frame - it needed to be ornate, preferably gold tones and a size to fit a special wall I designated. I also bought bits of jewelery at the garage sales, preferably gold toned, pearlized, white and most especially, rhinestone - bling, bling, bling - the more bling the better for me!

My husband cut a piece of thin plywood just a little smaller than the frame (”21 x 25″) and I covered it with black velvet, gluing with Alene’s Craft Glue. I hand drew the outline of a Christmas tree shape on paper, being sure both sides were the same and laid it on the velvet, trimmed, tried again and again until it looked to be in proportion to the frame and had nicely curved lines. My husband then drilled holes at random in the plywood, so I could insert a small set of Christmas lights to add a more festive touch.

At that point I started laying out long necklaces of pearls and gold chain, trying to match sizes, making the outline of the tree. When I was satisfied, I spread a line of glue around the outline of the tree, removed the paper then put the chains onto the glue, curving them around the corners and adding more as I went when I felt it needed to be a wider outline (nearer the bottom).

The hardest part was deciding which pieces of jewelery could go on the bottom layer to be the base. I knew they wouldn’t show but just provide a fairly solid backing to place the more important pieces.

Once the inside area was pretty well covered, I started placing my jewelery - first things that didn’t have a huge emotional value then topping them with my prized posessions. I sent out word to my female relatives and friends that I was making a family jewel tree and if they had an odd earring, brooch, necklace, pin - whatever they could part with, I’d love to add them. My family is wonderful that way and soon I had lots more pieces to add.

My Mom came up with stuff that belonged to her Dad, her Mother, my Dad, my brothers and some of her precious pieces. There were earrings her brother made of stones he hunted for and polished then set into gold, there were buttons from my Grandfather’s WWI uniform, shoe buckles my Grandmother wore, a pin my Mom’s first employer gave her, my Dad’s cufflinks, an English coin which belonged to my Dad’s ‘Pappy’.

As I placed items on the tree, I kept a list of where they came from or to whom a certain piece belonged. It is now thumbtacked to the back of the plywood. I realized the Christmas lights were not necessary - just more work and it had to be near an electrical plug-in and the cord hanging down the wall didn’t look great. I wouldn’t bother with lights another time.

Now, if your jewelery is very, very special I wouldn’t recommend putting glue on it - and if you ever want to wear it again don’t put it on your tree! I’m not saying the glue will damage anything, but use caution.

Each time I pass by this piece of artwork - for that is what it turned out to be, a very valuable piece of art as far as I’m concerned, I say hello to my Mom, my Grandparents, my Aunts, cousins and dear friends. Some may be gone from my life but they live in my heart and are as close as my “Family Jewel Tree”.

Don’t you love receiving or giving a hand made gift at Christmas?

This is a very simple project if you have a sewing machine and can sew a straight line. (A serger gives a professional finished look but edges can be zigzagged or turned under).

I’ve made black velvet aprons with rhinestone trim for the past 4 years and give them as hostess gifts, gifts to friends, or just to indulge myself. I love mine especially because I have black “bling, bling” flip flops

to wear with it this year. Hmmmm…. I’ll bet my husband would like it a lot if that was all I were to wear while cooking the turkey!

If you’d like to tackle this project here is a supply list:

1 yard (36 inches) black velveteen (or any other color or fabric you like)

2 1/6 yards (78 inches) 1 inch wide black satin or grossgrain ribbon

1/4 yard (9 inches) rhinestone trim (you will find some to be very expensive but there are lots of trims that are reasonable as well - depends on how glam you want your apron)

Black thread

Pattern - buy a simple pattern, find an apron in your closet to cut a pattern from - or just wing it from my approximate measurements ***

Method:

Cut out apron - I’ve allowed 1/4 inch turn under for side hems and 1 inch hems top and bottom.

Serge or zigzag all the edges.

Turn under underarm edges 1/4 inch, easing around the curves, pinning in place. Top Stitch.

Turn under side edges 1/4 inch. Pin in place. Top stitch.

Turn under top edge 1 inch. Pin in place. Top stitch 3/4 inch from top edge.

Turn under bottom edge 1 inch. Pin in place. Top stitch 3/4 inch from bottom edge.

Cut 2 pieces ribbon 29 inches long and 1 piece 20 inches long.

Turn under one end of a 29 inch ribbon 3/8 inch. Pin and stitch carefully to under arm opening with wrong sides of fabric and ribbon together. Do the same on the other side (as per photo).

Turn under tail of ribbon 1/8 inch then 1/4 inch so it will not fray. Pin and stitch carefully.

Turn under 1/4 inch of neck ribbon (20 inch piece) on each end. Pin to hold.

Place wrong side of ribbon against wrong side of apron fabric. Pin and stitch carefully at each end (as per photo) to create a neck loop.

Cut rhinestone trim to fit (I usually leave about 1/4 to 1/2 inch at edges (as per photo below).

Use Alene’s craft glue to attach the trim (then let it dry overnight) or hand sew it. I’ve tried using my hot glue gun, but it’s messy and doesn’t hold very well. A large zigzag stitch on my sewing machine worked in a pinch to attach small trim, but I wouldn’t recommend trying it unless you have lots of practice and know your machine well.

I make this type of apron throughout the year - as gifts for men as well as women. Denim works great and you can add a large pocket - across the front or one on each side - even one cut off the butt of an old pair of jeans. The apron is fun to embellish - you can buy any different appliques or be inventive and draw your own idea then embroider it - by machine or hand.

Be ready for the ooohs and aaaahhhs when you give this beautiful gift of creativity! And send me a photo

*** Here are the approximate measurements I use - and it’s easy to make the apron longer or bigger around:

Cut fabric into an oblong, 28 1/2 inches wide by 35 inches long.

Fold fabric in half lengthwise.

At top, measure 4 3/4 inches from fold and mark with a pin in each layer (this ends up being a 9 1/2 inch (9 inches finished) top edge).

Measure the side from the bottom up - 24 3/4 inches and mark with a pin in each layer.

Mark a nicely arced underarm from pin to pin (see the photo of my apron above) Be sure both sides are the same.

Lay fabric out flat and cut the arcs for the underarm - from pin to pin.

If you find my directions a bit vague for the cutting without a pattern, let me know and I’ll draw and email you a diagram.

Follow the directions above to finish your apron, then go meet your husband at the door wearing nothing but your apron and your bling flip flops or high heels! I’ll bet he thinks you are the most talented woman in the world

It still looks like this outside

so I decided to stop grouching and make lemonade out of the bowl of lemons winter served.

I developed a few (quite a few) Christmas traditions over the years and I’d like to
share this one with you.

Since a friend taught me in 1981 I’ve been making Christmas Crackers every single year. You’re lucky, I don’t have photos of them all…..

Here’s how I go about this lovely little tradition:

Gather together the follow supplies - one for each guest at your Christmas dinner table:

Toilet paper rolls - start saving them early if you need lots
Colored crepe paper or gift wrap foil - to match your decor or traditional red/green - sometimes I use a double layer of red and green together.
Snappers - buy at a craft store
Lottery scratch tickets
Party hat - buy at craft store
Chocolates - I always use Ferrer Rocher but liquer filled ones for adults are fun
Chinese cookie fortunes - you can make up your own - personalized or general good luck
Tape (I use masking tape or invisible cello)
Curly ribbon
Small gift item for inside cracker(optional*)
Gift tag if you are putting special gifts inside so you know which one goes at which place setting
Small decorative item for outside cracker (optional)

* Some of the gift ideas I’ve used over the years are: sample’s of perfume and cologne, shock pens (heeeheeeheee), key chains, lip gloss, ornaments, anything small enough to fit - I used to spend hours combing the stores looking for suitable items - and this year - NOT a single gift item - too many times they’ve been left lying on the table - forgotten by the guests - so - a scratch ticket and a chocolate are wonderful treasures to find inside the cracker.

Directions

Cut foil about 10 inches wide by 14 inches long
Cut two lengths, or more if you wish, of curly ribbon 14 inches long, for each cracker

Place scratch ticket, hat, chocolate, fortune, snapper and gift in each toilet paper roll. I lay everything out in piles for each cracker ahead of time, otherwise I tend to forget if each cracker has everything inside

Place a roll at one end of the foil, centering it horizontally with equal lengths of foil on each end

Roll the toilet paper roll in foil

Tape securely and invisibly if possible

This part is easier if you have someone helping to hold it all together. Scrunch one end of foil near the end of the roll and tie with curly ribbon - I always use a butchers knot (go around twice instead of just once), pull the ribbon tight without ripping the foil

Tie the other end

Use dull scissors to curl the ends of the ribbon

Fluff out the foil so it’s neat and tidy and fairly even

Cut the ends of the foil to look like a grass skirt - being careful not to cut the snapper

Place seam side down and decorate top of cracker with anything you choose - as simple as nothing (let the foil speak for itself) or as special as a tiny shiny reindeer, a plastic poinsettia flower, a sprig of plastic greenery or as opulent as a lapel brooch

Attach a name tag if desired (the crackers do double duty as place cards)

Make your crackers early in December and place on a tray to display on your dining table as a centerpiece

I place one at each place setting on your table - on the plate, beside the cutlery or near the top of the plate.

Before passing the food, I ask each guest to hold his/her cracker by the snapper end in their left hand and hold it out toward the guest on his/her right, crossing their right arm under their left and holding the snapper of the other persons cracker.

This makes for a lot of laughter, discussion and prompting, so it’s a real ice breaker - but who needs an ice breaker at Christmas dinner? I’ve been doing this for over 25 years and still my family seems to need direction every year!

Count out loud to three and everyone pulls on the snappers - not hard enough to yank it out of the other persons hand, but hard enough to make the snapper “SNAP” - it’s like a “cap gun” if you remember how those worked.

I ask each guest to wear the tissue paper hat - at least for the photo, then I don’t care, but usually everyone keeps it on during dinner and sometimes all evening. It’s very festive.

As we start passing the food, each guest reads their fortune out loud, scratches their ticket and perhaps even eats the chocolate. I ask everyone to just drop the bits of paper and ribbon - and toilet paper rolls under the table - or in a bag if I’ve remembered.

You can go thru the bag later and rescue the important stuff if you want - I save the decorations if they aren’t damaged and use them again 10 years later

Tada…here’s the finished cracker. It’s a very special treat for very special guests! Kids absolutely love them for birthday parties and you can match them to any theme. I made pink and white crepe paper crackers for my daughters 12th birthday party - she helped me - the table looked so pretty and the girls loved them.

Pop helped me today to make the crackers by holding the foil for me to cut and watching carefully so I put everything in. We talked about the lottery tickets and that one of them might be a $5,000.00 or $10,000.00 winner - woohoooooo - and he said he’d share with me if he won!

AND in our household, there’s a huge possibility with scratch tickets - I WON $10,000.00 in 1986 and I bought a ticket for son Sean’s Christnmas stocking in 1990 - and he WON $5,000.00. Everyone remembers those times - and always hopes for the big one!

This is my planned place setting this year! Your invitation is in the mail.