‘Twas the night before Christmas –and all through the house I’m surrounded by beautfiul art that I and others have created! Although I had planned to make something new to share, I simply don’t have it in me today. I’m not feeling especially cheery; being alone yet again for this favorite holiday just feels sad to me.I miss family, miss having someone special to celebrate with. I know there are others who also feel this way, so I send hugs and love.

I did make pie dough for my mince and cherry pie, cranberry sauce with apple, lemon and orange, and mashed potatoes, all in preparation for tomorrow. I also went to a local store for green beans, as I forgot to purchase any the last couple of times I went to town, but since the lines were all long and customers had full shopping carts, I gave up and left. Across the street at a natural foods store I got some broccoli, which while delicious, is not quite satisfactory when one wants green beans! Ah, well.

Here is a lovely envelope folio I made earlier this year, perfect for today. EnJoy!

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio 2

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio 3

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio 4

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio 5

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio 6

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio 7

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio 8

Christmas Sparkle Envelope Folio 9

Today was very mild, temperature-wise, and even a bit of sun peeking out from cloud cover. I got to hang laundry out to semi-dry and pick up the fresh air, and took a good walk. Oh, and I got invited by someone with Meet the Elite Podcast to speak on a five-minute segment on Wednesday the 28th! I will post details for how to listen as soon as I get that information. Save the date! It will be at 1:39 pm PST, 4:39 EST.

I made two little ornaments this evening, weaving yarn around the ring from a pull tab for the smaller one, and creating a spide web around the ring that seals the lid to a bottle of juice. I wasn’t really sure what I was doing when I started the larger ornament, so the spokes of the web are not as evenly spaced as I’d like. It would have been better had I made the buttonhole sttch all the way around the ring, then gone back to create the spokes, rather than going back and forth and ending up with double yarn on a few of the spokes. Ah, well, play and learn!

Woven Ornament

Spider Web Ornament

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