what? it's over

just like that...

But wait...let me just rewind a bit...

We had a wonderful Christmas. When Santa asked Alfredo what he wanted he said "I trust you...you can just pick out something you think I'll like." Seriously.

We arrived at Santa's workshop just as he was taking a break to feed the reindeer. What to do at a crowded mall for 45 minutes to pass the time? We went to build-a-bear and made Erik, the penguin from Happy Feet 2. Except Alfredo named him Rojo. And dressed him up in a red power rangers suit. Just picture that fluffy guy shoved into a tight red body suit. (the penguin, not Santa!)

We're spending our mornings snuggled up in our pajamas until we can barely stand it, waging wars between dinosaurs and power rangers with some spy cars thrown in for good measure. Just now I overheard him whispering, one dinosaur to another, "Stand still now while I punch you in the face"...where does he get this stuff? I'm quite sure those are 10 words I've never uttered together. 

Hope you're having as much fun with all your new Christmas toys!

Happy New Year!

felt "paper" dolls

Here's what I'm finishing up today...talk about last minute! But I've actually been working on these, off and on (more off than on lately) since before Thanksgiving.

The idea is to make a paper doll from felt...the clothes just stick to the felt (the same way as a felt storyboard)

I used a Sizzix die for the paper doll, which made the job so easy! I embroidered a little face on each little girl and colored their cheeks with a bit of crayon.

I'm making 5 sets of these felt dolls for the little girls on our list...they'll each have a few changes of clothing, shoes, hairstyles. The hairstyles and dresses/shoes are separate dies. I found the dresses and shoes die on Etsy (the die has since been retired)

My friend Pam lent me the retired die to cut a cowboy hat and boots.

I glued each felt doll to a mattboard cutout of the same to give a bit of stability.

I'm going to package each set in a cigar box. If I have time, I'll make a little suitcase for each, using Eileen Hull's suitcase Sizzix die. But I'd better get back to work! Where are those elves when you need them?

Merry Christmas everyone!

pocket warmers!

Here's another gift I'm working on...pocket warmers! They are little pillows that you warm in the microwave and then pop in your coat pocket.

I did a little bit of research and decided to fill them with buckwheat seeds (not hulls). Here's an excellent source www.buckwheathull.com (They even shipped my order overnight to make sure I had it in time. I had purchased hulls from another source before I found out that they are not a good filler for an item to be microwaved. ) A cheaper alternative would be to fill them with deer corn (which is easy to find this time a year...Walmart has 40 lb bags for under $5) but they give off a slight popcorn smell when warmed in the microwave. Buckwheat has a mild odor...I scented mine with a few drops of geranium oil. Whatever you do, don't add dry herbs or lavendar. I did that with my first ones and they (and the whole house) smelled burnt right away.

I made the pocket warmers from sleeves of felted wool sweaters. Whatever you use, be sure to use a natural fiber material. Anything with a polyester content (including some felt) will melt and possibly ignite.

I cut a heart shape from another sweater and sewed it on.

I sewed the bottom of the cuff and then filled it with about 1/4 cup of buckwheat. Then I sewed it shut.
Please be very sure to label your gift with instructions to heat in microwave for just 1 minute. Just to be sure, I tested each pair in the microwave for 2 minutes. It's good to do that for two reasons...to be sure of the safety (maybe you don't know the content of the sweater you felted) and to kill any insect eggs that might be in the buckwheat seeds. The pocket warmers should be warm but not hot to the touch.


If it's too late for you to make these for Christmas this year, wouldn't they make great Valentine gifts?


Here are some sites of interest that I found while researching:


http://www.microwavecornbags.com/index.php?main_page=page_2 (Really great safety stuff!)


http://buckwheathull.com/page2.html


http://www.marthastewart.com/268735/homemade-heating-pad  (especially the comments!)


http://sassypriscilla.typepad.com/sassy_priscillas_craft/2007/12/martha-stewart.html (yikes! Martha had a pocket warmer project a few years ago using stone pie weights...they got so hot that the pocket warmers ignited! The project and all references to it were removed from the site.