Merry Christmas

Lace Angel Machine Embroidery Design by John Deer

Christmas Stocking Gift Packaging

It's almost that time of year again, sewing friends

Do you have your gift packaging ready?

If you're a machine embroiderer, 

here's a great DIY gift card holder

The design is by Missy B Stitchin

and this is the smallest size

The stocking is completely done in the hoop

It ends up about 4 1/2" wide by 6 1/2" tall

That's a great size for gift cards, candy, or jewelry

For comparison purposes,

here it is next to a full-size candy bar

The zipper opening is about 3" wide

and the stocking is fully lined

Your special someone will be thrilled with the packaging as much as with what is inside

Okay, you have plenty of time to get some of these stitched up for your gifts

Go - fire up that embroidery machine

What's that?  No time to make these yourself?

They're available for purchase in my shop

Have a merry last weekend of October, my friends

Stampin' and Stitchin': Elf Shoes

Hey Sewers!

there's lots of Christmas preparation and decoration going on around here

these cute, cute elf shoes were stitched using my Bernina 750 embroidery module

 the design is from Kimberbell

it is an in-the-hoop project

I used leftover fabric scraps from my stash

the base of the shoe is felt

the fabric is then appliqued onto the felt

all the embellishments (twine, button, etc.)

are Stampin' Up products

 

a number of fun items will fit into the opening

I chose these yummy Reese's peanut butter cup canes

I'm not in love with the look of the label, however,

so I chose some Stampin' Up envelope paper (it is a little lighter weight than the DSP)

in cucumber crush to cover those tubes

plus, the stripe looks like elf socks, don't you think?

I cut each piece 4 1/2 inches by 9 inches

added some tear and tape to the front and back of one side of the paper

and rolled it around the cane

there, that looks better

and here's a decorating idea that I came across in my 

Better Homes and Gardens Christmas from the Heart book (2015)

they used silver egg cups

I used my vintage silver bowl that I found last year at a local consignment shop

the greenery is from my shrubs that I finally got around to trimming

and I picked up the pine cones that dropped from the pine trees at the grade school across the street

are you preparing for the upcoming holidays, friends?

whether it be Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or Christmas

I would love to see your handmade goodness

Happy Decorating,

Snow People and Winter Birds

Hey Sewers!

Here we are in early December and

winter is quickly descending upon us

If you are in a climate such as we are here in Utah,

the snow has already started falling, but it is also quickly melting

These little guys however, won't melt

I can't help but smile whenever I look at them

Tami, Ashley, and Brittni are my lovely sewing friends who brought them to life

at my Santa's Workshop sewing class last night at our local Bernina dealer

The pattern for these sweet little snow people heads is in Nancy Halversen's book,

Table Please Part Two

Another winter-themed project in the same book is this

winter birds table topper,

which I'm actually using as a wall hanging

The tree trunks are strip pieced alternately with the white background

the tree branches and birds are applique

I used wool felt for the bird appliques,

which adds great dimension to those feathered beauties

Appleton wool yarn is a perfect pairing with the wool felt and hand stitching

 

 

Enjoy your winter, my friends, and take time to do some

bird watching

and snowball making

And to all, a good night . . .

The night will be good underneath my warm, newly finished, Christmas quilt.

The pattern and fabric are by Anna Griffin (Christmas Toile).

 

 

 

The fabric is quite busy and I think it is easy to lose sight of the quilt design.

There are wonky stars inside each block.

 

 

 

The thing about those wonky stars is that all four seams come together right in the center.

That can cause a big 'bump' in the middle of the star.

Who needs bumpy stars!

 

 

My solution to bumpy-centered stars was to clip the seam just to the stitching.

Then I could press the seams in opposite directions to help minimize bulk.

It worked fine, but I just learned a better way to de-bump centers.

I will share that in an upcoming post.

 

 

I did the quilting on my Bernina 750.

The back is from the coordinating quilt print by Anna Griffin,
and the binding is a solid red from Riley Blake.

 

 

 Have a very warm and restful Christmas night, my friends.

"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you,
he is Christ the Lord."
~ Luke 2:11 ~

 

 

Beaded Christmas Ornament

When I was a kid, my mom purchased beaded ornament kits.

We would sit for hours making our delicate Christmas ornaments.

I treasured those fragile, beautiful, sparkling balls covered in beads.

My mom had a severe stroke almost 16 years ago.

It left her without the use of one arm, a leg, and an eye.

She now has Alzheimer's also.

She lives in another state.

She stayed with us for a while this November and early December.

She sorted all these little beads for me.

It was too difficult for her to 'string' the beads on the pins.

I did that part.

 



 

The ornament kit is from Mary Maxim.

Red is my favorite color.

 

 

This is my most treasured beaded ornament.

Thanks, mother.

 

 

 

"Listen, my son, to your father's instruction and do not forsake your mother's teaching.

They will be a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck."

~ Proverbs 1:8-9 ~