Today I spent time working on the flyer for my upcoming Magical Vision Map playshop in January, including learning more about how to set it up on Zoom. Turns out I need to contact customer support tomorrow.

One of my neighbors came by to show me her new puppy, so cute and little! My neighbor also took photos of my tree and wreath for me; however, they are in a format my computer can’t read, so I’ll see if she can resend another way.

I made a quick little gift tag, inspired by Gi Kerr of Happiness in Crafting, using some pretty flat-back pearls to make hanging ornaments. Aren’t they pretty? I goofed up on the “ribbon” above one bauble; oh, well. Next time will be better. EnJoy!

Christmas Bauble Tag

Went to see my local chiropractor today, thankfully. Got some relief from a lot of tension and discomfort! Wrote a reply to my new penpal–we’ve exchanged Christmas cards so far–then took a walk. This evening I made venison steaks with dark chocolate and balsamic vinegar, served with baked potato and green beans. Divine!

I finally finished this tote bag, adding some lace and sewing on an earring to complete the look. What do you think? I love it! and may even keep it. EnJoy!

Blue Paisley Tote 5

Blue Paisley Tote 6

Wowieeee! I made it to 300 days on this journey, just 65 left to go! I can do it!

I started my morning with a business call with my coach and a customer for the Debt Shredder, only we had some technical issues and had to delay closing the sale.

Late this afternoon I went out for a few extra groceries–and ended up with a 5-lb bag of Satsuma tangerines, a 5-lb bag of russet potatoes (the bags were more economical than buying loose by the pound), and probably more flour than I need for my Christmas almond wreath and mince and cherry pie. Ah, well, better too much than too little, I can always freeze the excess flour. I’ll need to eat lots of tangerines and potatoes every day!

This evening I finished the upper edge of the tote I made yesterday, first zig-zag stitching the raw edges with my machine, then sewing on the lace by hand. I overlapped the finished top edge of the lace to cover up the edges of bag and fabric. Tomorrow I’ll cover the side seam and perhaps add a lace flower. EnJoy!

Blue Paisley Tote 4

Today I woke up with a splitting headache and felt very tired. A good neighbor helped me take the extra leaf out of my dining table and carried a chair to my garage for me, then loaned me her massager, which I used on neck, head, shoulders and spine. It has an intense vibration! and felt good to use, too. I still did not feel up to doing much today.

This evening, during my artists meeting, I did, however, create this tote–not quite finished–by opening out a paper gift bag and covering it with some beautfiul home decor fabric. I love paisley! I still need to trim the opening to hide the fraying edges and cover up the seam on one side of the bag, then I’ll embellish.

Next time I’ll use a lighter fabric; this was hard to adhere and I used up my e6000 glue getting it to stick. Plus I mistakenly covered the bottom of the bag with fabric, then had to pull it apart there and trim so that I could fold the bag bottom in again; it was too thick with the fabric on the bottom. It’s a good learning experience. EnJoy!

Blue Paisley Tote

Blue Paisley Tote 2

Blue Paisley Tote 3

I finished my laundry and did some stretches, then spent the rest of the day preparing for my party! I made a tasty shrimp and coconut dish with fennel and celery, using a recipe from Green Chef, and my guests brought Jasmine rice, green beans, and butternut squash that was marinated in smoked vinegar before roasting. Yum! For dessert I had a tray with the jar of peppermint sticks, a bowl of almond biscotti and one of my fabric bowls with mixed nuts in their shells.

The company was delightful; the four of us are all artists with various levels of selling experience, and conversation wove around the challenges of selling today vs selling many years ago, and the pros and cons of doing shows. It is a lot of work

Now I’ve put away laundry and washed my dishes and am ready for bed! No more creations today. Oops, I did forget to have anyone take photos, even though I had planned to designate one guest to that task. Oh, well, I’ll ask someone else to take pix of my tree and wreath. Here is one of my dolls on a pillow; enJoy!  Good night!

Moon Maiden Pillow

What did I DO today? Oh, yeah: I put up a new clothesline and hung laundry out, as it was sunny and cold. Love that fresh air smell on my clothes! I also wrote a Christmas card for my new pen pal, made a little table-top arrangement, and hauled out some extra bowls and serving dishes for my party tomorrow evening. I prepared bowl of almond biscotti and a jar of peppermint sticks for dessert, adding red paper and a bow to the lid.

Later I tidied things up after decorating, posted some items I’m giving away, and had a short call with a friend who moved a couple of hours away and whom I miss a dearly! She was helpful in giving insight when I brought up a challenging situation. So grateful for good friends, for my Christmas tree, for yummy food and nourishing music. What are you grateful for?

Peppermint Sticks

Peppermint Sticks 2

Today is Ludwig van Beethoven’s Birthday! He was born 252 years ago, and his awesome music lives on. He composed over 700 works, many of which were completed when he was totally deaf. Imagine that! So inspiring.

I made a wreath for my gate this evening, using some trimmed twigs from the base of my bushy tree. Here is the basic wreath; I added some star garland and a few colored balls when it was hanging in place, so I’ll get a guest to take pix on Sunday. Finally adding the tinsel to my tree and will have photos taken of that, too. EnJoy!

Wreath with Bells

Got my package of gifts mailed off to family today, yay! I needed to add a bit of filler to keep things from shifting, and had the silly idea of using marshmallows or even Cheerios! hahahaha! I decided those would be to messy, so just used some brown paper crumpled up.

I also mostly finished decorating my tree, just need to add tinsel for the finishing touch. I’ll have a guest take photos on Sunday.

Nope, I didn’t make anything new today, either. And I’ve decided to pass on the art show on Saturday; I’ve not had good sales when doing live events in the past, so not worth the efffort. I will get back to creating again soon. Here is a little piece I made using burned matchsticks years ago. I saw several cool items made with matches years ago when I lived in New Mexico, and had to try it myself. If I did it again, I’d use a better base, maybe paint it gold. EnJoy!

Match Stick Art

Today I got invited to participate in a pop-up art show this weekend, at a local gallery. Fun! I think I’ll do it on Saturday, at least. I have plenty of items to sell!

Spent most of this evening wrapping gifts to send to family; that was my creative endeavor. That and choosing what to send to some of my siblings! The guys are harder to choose for, as most of my art is not aimed toward men.

I wish you all a wonderful weekend; do check out my online boutique for last-minute gifts! I have plenty to choose from, including custom print gifts. Go here to make your selections and EnJoy!

Zipped Tote

My lovely wall calendar arrived, hurray! It’s very beautiful and I’m quite pleased. Good quality paper and images, though one image did not fill the entire page, so I corrected that in my project editor. I’ll make a video showing the gifts I ordered in the next couple of days. Be sure to check out all of my custom print gifts here, along with my other art pieces. Order Today for holiday gift giving!

I started decorating my tree this evening, after stringing lots of fairy lights on it. I’ve decided to us a soft color palette of silver, pale blue, white, and possibly purple, if I find ornaments in that color. Sorry not to have photos right now; I will have to wait for a friend to come by who can take some, this Sunday if not sooner. My computer camera won’t reach.

I also got out my collection of Nutcrackers; I have nine in various sizes and costumes. The largest is about a foot tall, and the smaller ones hang on my tree or in other parts of my home.  Once again, I’ve not created anything new to show, so here are a few of my Nutcrackers, as displayed last year. EnJoy!

White Nutcracker

Large Nutcrackers