WOYWW - Advent Day 12

My photo was taken in the gloom - so it's not easy for you to see what I have been up to. Also - the work at the front with the clematis photo is a "dumfed" Christmas gift or two so I don't want to expose all. The clematis is called "Josephine". When I left Yorkshire, I left 6 of these in the gardens of the North - just so they didn't forget me!!!
You can also see a few little Christmas mice, my Christmas angels and a couple of dollies.
Some of our mice and dollies are winging their way to Spain and Belgium!!!

The other thing to show and tell are Maxine's button heart cushions - following on my theme of yesterday's advent post.

She is having a Christmas Cushion Sale over on her Tilly Tea Dance blog.
Follow the link and pop over and have a look - email me if you want a quick sale!

Well that's it for today.
I have, so far, managed to keep my advent posts going - not easy at this time of year.
BUT WOYWW is a must so join in by checking out the festive desk of Mrs Dunnit and see what we are all up to in the frantic frenzy that is the build up to Christmas!!!

Thanks for all your lovely comments.
See you soon.
x Jo

WOYWW -Day 5 of advent

Good morning all - a double purpose to my blog post today.

I am trying to blog each day in the lead up to Christmas so check back at the other festive posts, if you are interested.

 

I have had a big clean up in my sewing room and my table is empty so I thought you might like to see what I have been busy with instead.

Annie gave me a pattern for a little fabic gift pouch so I gave it a go today.
I used old gold silk and some cream satin for the lining.
I am using it to pop a little scrapbox angel in ready to post to a special friend.
I think it looks OK - it turned out a bit soft and floppy and Annie said it needs to be stiff - erm... ladies!!!!
Yes - I should have used a crisp craft cotton but I quite like the softer look.

 Next is my first attempt at a Christmas card.
I just can't get going with them this year.
This one has a little photo of snowdrops printed onto linen and then mounted over some tartan fabric with a little lace trim.
With a little more effort, I think it might be OK








And lastly - on funday Monday, Annie and I made a few more Christmas mice and I popped them in the blog shop - we sold all the others this week!

That's it for today.
I hope you all have lots of lovely Christmas ideas for me to snoop as I blog hop around the WOYWW desks today.
Thanks for calling in here - please leave a little comment and then I can zoom over to see what you are up to.

x Jo
PS _ Just added my name to Mr Linky and read Julia's post.
Then I popped over to check out Santas Challenge - I think I will be donating - such great work going on there and such a gorgeous little girl called Alya and her Mum Caroline, who many of us know through this lovely blogging family WOYWW. Check it out -!

WOYWW - dumfing fun!

A different view across my table today.
Notice a lovely little pin cushion attached to my sewing machine - thanks Jo - just what I needed. I love my pin cushions and have several which are great when I am hand sewing. BUT when I am machining they seem to bounce off my table - yes I work that fast and my table vibrates! SO  the little dragon fly covered one is perfect and means the pins will always be handy just where I need them.
I made a little Christmas mouse to post to my little Aunty in a residential home. She used to love all my crafty bits and bobs and I still feel the need to send her something even though she really doesn't take much notice these days, bless her.
Scattered round are a few of my latest dumflings. It's not a good photo - so dark and gloomy here today.

Now below you can see the stalls I loved best at the German Market in Birmingham on Sunday.
Lots of fab felted items - bags, toys, puppets, shoes etc. The colours were so bright and cheery. We had a great time - even though it poured down most of the day. We made up for it with cups of hot chocolate - and Gluehwein - and hot potatoes and mushrooms - and hot cheese sticks. YUM!
I didn't buy much but enjoyed seeing all the traditional German wares.

OK folks - only one more WOYWW before Christmas so let's see what you are all up to this week.

Join in the blog hop by following me over to Julia's Stamping Ground -  have fun!

x Jo

Beat the weather and the Christmas rush!!

Wipso and I have had a great time loading our new shelves in the Sisters Crafty Crations blog shop.

So, please make yourself a cuppa, pull up a chair and have a browse through all the new goodies. You will find lots of wonderful ideas for Christmas gifts.

There are lots of fabulous new Brooches and Gifts, and also two new shelves....a Sock dolly shelf with some cute creations  and a Christmas shelf with decorations and other goodies.

There are Felties waiting to be adopted and Puppets longing to be played with [suitable for over 3 year olds].

There are one off Pictures and sets of Cards that would also make lovely gifts.

We really hope you enjoy browsing and hope you find something you'd like to buy. Please contact us with orders and any queries at wipso@toucansurf.com.

Three little maids...

Have you ever done something that is so familiar to you that you can put yourself on auto-pilot and "go with the flow"? My daughter has decided that her tree decorations are going to be colour coordinated to match her new lounge. (Very "Ideal Home" and fine - until you get to the stage in life when the tree goes up at the last minute and the box of old faithfuls come out of the attic!!)

So, wanting to help with a few little tree decorations, I went into the sewing room and lifted down the box labelled "Christmas mouse bits". What a little treasure store of felt mouse heads, beads, ribbons, lace, lurex threads etc! I collected all the necessary - scissors, needle, sewing thread - and carried them into the lounge so that I could work and watch the Friday night comedy.

And then this was when nostalgia hit and my brain went into overdrive.....

I must have made hundreds of these little mice over the years. Many weeks, working up to Christmas, have been spent making these tiny creatures, either to go on our tree or to give to friends or to sell at craft fairs. Many, many more have been made for the children in my class each year. Girly ones with satin dresses and lace pinnies and boyish ones dressed in felt on skis made from lolly sticks with "cocktail" ski sticks! Each one being carefully wrapped and labelled to go under the class Christmas tree on the last day of term.

Then I remembered the birthday mice - probably for my daughter's seventh birthday. I made her a tiny, two tier wedding cake with a little bride mouse on top and seven, dainty, pink bridesmaid mice for her little friends to take home after the party.

I haven't made any for years now, but, as I sat down to sew, it was as if I made them yesterday. The needle flew and the scissors snipped and in no time at all I had three, gorgeous, white mice dressed in pink and silver. They stood on my mantlepiece over night, looking very festive, awaiting collection. I am sure they will delight their new owner and probably bring memories flooding back to her too. Now I think I might be tempted to make a few more - anybody want one?