Homemade Gifts

This year, like many in the past, I made a lot of the gifts I gave out for Christmas.  I know I teased you a little with last week's post of all the wrapping I did, but I didn't want to give away any clues to my family in case they were reading!  So here are some of the gifts I crafted:

I started off with this blue box that housed something in it's former life, then sanded it and painted it black

I bought some pens

a booklight

(I stole borrowed his a couple of years ago)

and found some great printables online including library cards

library envelope templates

bookplate templates

and some cute little list books (this gal also has some super cute books for sale in her etsy shop!)

and put it all together to make a little library kit for my son:

He and I share a love of books and feel a twinge of sadness that it all seems to be going digital, so I thought he'd appreciate this for the books he already owns.

When my son was in town for Thanksgiving, we went to a craft fair and he saw a scarf that resembled this one, but it was grey and it was crocheted.  He asked me if I could make one like it in black; I told him I could try knitting one and see how it turned out.  He loves it!  I'm so glad- it looks great on him, too.  It's an infinity scarf, so he can wear it like a chain, or double it up to keep warm. 

I decided to "tea stain" some coffee filters and flour sack towels for a few projects.  I live in an apartment, and it was 30 degrees out, so I opted to dry them right there in my kitchen window.  Once dry, the filters flattened out nicely and held a little texture to make these snowflakes that I used for wrapping the presents.

 And with the flour sacks, I ironed them and used freezer paper stencils to make these cute little kitchen towels for my sister:

Other than that, I just printed out some other "freebies" I got off the web, cut them out accordingly, and packaged them as nicely as I could so they could pass for a gift:)

We hope your holidays were filled with warmth and joy and that this new year brings everyone great happiness.

Hannah moved to a new home with her fiance and son over the New Year's weekend and her sewing studio is no longer in the dungeon (the basement)!  She couldn't be more excited- so no more pictures with bad lighting- at least from her house.  I'm still a night owl, so I'll have to work on that!

Cheers to a great new year!

Thanksgiving Teaser

My whole family knows I'm not too keen on cooking; it's just a fact.  I do try to help out around the holidays, but I decided this year to just take over the decorating. Well, not takeover, per se- our older sister, Carrie, is having Thanksgiving at her house this year and she is a fabulous decorator (I really think that is her calling!).  But after I showed her some of the fantastic ideas I've been spotting all over the interwebs this year, she has given me free reign.  And I've been having so much fun with it, I thought I'd share a little sneak peek of what I've been working on:

Oh the awesome ideas that keep swirling around in my head!  I can't wait to put it all together and share so much thanks and giving with my family on Thursday.  I also thought that I would post some links to a few "freebie printables" that you all might enjoy and be able to use this year.  So here are some links to things that I plan on using. 

-Labels from Just Something I Made
-Thanksgiving Sign from Craftily Ever After
-Medallion Clip Art from Martha Stewart
-Alphabet Garland from Martha Stewart
-Fall Themed Tags from Creature Comforts
-Vintage Labels from World Label
-also inspired by this Bookpage Wreath from Under the Table and Dreaming
More pics to come hopefully Friday or Saturday!  Have a GREAT Thanksgiving!!!

All of Our Ducks in a Row

Well, really, they're chicks.  Aren't they cute?  Remember when I found them via Jinjerup?  (you can download them for free here)  I've just been waiting to get a new ink cartridge before printing them out and this weekend, I did just that!

This weekend, Hannah and I also got down to business.  And I mean Business with a capital B!  We spent most of Saturday not doing the fun stuff (i.e. making fun things for you all) and just decided to focus on the behind the scenes stuff.  We got out our creative business books and got to work on a Business Plan, marketing strategies, long-term goals, and much more.

We also re-photographed all of our goods that are in our Etsy shop to see if that and re-newing our listings would help sales.  Within twelve hours, we had ourselves a sale, so that was nice!

We've also decided to hold regularly scheduled meetings which is a must if we are to keep up with all that we want to accomplish.  Keep comin' back and keep an eye on our Etsy shop for new items.  We listed that orange handbag and two wallets, so if you like those, head on over and pick something up- trust me, they will brighten your day! 

Blog Lovin'

Unfortunately, I've had to lay low this weekend,  and it's probably the most beautiful weather we've had here in the Midwest in months!  But... I've been able to work a little more on some projects and I've also been doing some blog surfing.  I can't even remember how I came across this, but I immediately knew I had to have it.

There are so many wonderful people and fellow bloggers who offer free things to download and print.  This particular one is so freakin' cute and since we are Fly Chicks, well, it just fits.

I don't know about you, but when I read I always tend to "dogear" the pages when I'm trying to keep my place.  Most of my books end up with many creased pages as I often take books along with me when I go places and have to stash it quickly back into my FlyChicks purse or tote.  I also like to mark certain pages that have words or quotes that have inspired me in some way so that I can refer back to them in a pinch.

Jinjerup offers this printable freebie in a variety of colors; I'm downloading all of them.  My printer has been slowly running out of the color ink and I've been printing things off, each time just crossing my fingers that there is enough left.  I'm definitely waiting until I get a refill because the colors are so vibrant and fun.  And just in time for Back to School, too!

Oh yeah, and there's a little tutorial she gives for cutting out and using these cute little chicks...  Happy Reading!

Spread the Kindness!

I got this wonderful freebie printable from my friends over at Kind Over Matter and posted it on my apartment door before I left for my Dad's place:

Imagine my happiness when I came home four days later to find most had been taken! :):):)

Get your own here, print it out, and spread the love!