Brrrrrrrr! It's Cold Outside . . .

On my way home this morning, I heard on the radio, that December was the coldest one since 1989. We had lots of snow too! Now the forecast calls for another 20 to 30 cm of the white stuff again tomorrow. Well, in keeping with the snow theme, I have found a few sites to visit. The many projects shown can be a springboard to doing something original. Think about it.

• Craftsy's has 6 snowmen related projects to see. Some great ideas there!
• Quilting Snow Ladies from Chickadee Hollow Designs
• Free Snowmen patterns  (these are cute) and Winter Quilts from Quilt Inspiration
• Snow Man quilt pattern from Free Quilt Patterns
• More Free Patterns HERE at With Hearts and Hands
• Snow Birds Rug Mug  from the Crafty Quilter
• Let It Snow free embroidery from Shiny Happy World
• Snowy Christmas Mantle Quilt from Happy Dancing Quilt (idea)

I just found the photo of this little quilted wall hanging that I made years ago for the Cabot Quilt Guild Auction. I called it "Charlie Brown's Christmas Tree".  I added it here to show that small projects don't need to be complicated. To change this from Christmas to winter, position the tree to the side (omit the seed bead lights) and add a little snowman and / or some birds.
Enjoy!

Happy New Year's Eve!

What a difference a year makes! Last December was a mild one with very little snow. In fact, we had a green Christmas. This year, winter started very early with piles of snow and very cold temperatures. The thermometer below shows one of the very few days that was above freezing.

I am looking forward to 2014 and all that it will bring.  Last March, I decided to go wholesale with some of my small production art work (Shimmer Ornaments, Wearable Art Pins, Art Cards, Felted Ornaments and Greeting Cards). It was a big step for me to take as I had been resisting it for many years. However, it has opened up other opportunities. I was invited to the Atlantic Trade Show (ACTS) in Halifax so I will be going there the end of January. Then, the local wholesale show is in March.

Production work is taking up much of my time at the moment but I'm hoping to set aside some time to experiment with more surface embellishments. I have some copper wire that I want to play with as well as a small gel printing plate for fabric printing. My yarn stash is overflowing and my wool roving needs attention. I have a few new toys to play with in my studio! Who knows where all that will lead.

Thank you for following my blog posts and to those who leave comments. I may not respond to all of them but they are read and appreciated. Happy New Year! I wish you health, happiness, time with family, and lots of fun in 2014!!!

Enjoy!

December 2012

December 2013

Oh Christmas Tree

Welcome to December (one day late)! It seems that people are putting up their Christmas Trees earlier every year here in St. John's. As I was driving home last evening, I could see brightly lit trees through the windows. Many houses had the outdoor lights on last week. My house won't be decorated until the master bathroom renovations are completed. That will hopefully be tomorrow. The flooring is going on today. The other bathroom will not interfere with downstairs decorating once the new  tub and surround are removed from my main hallway. We had to open up the wall between the bathrooms to remove the old tub in one room so two bathrooms had to be renovated.

I have been working on some felting as you can see from the photo. The colourful background will eventually become felted tree ornaments. Usually I do several felted sheets and put them aside until they are needed.

To get into the spirit of Christmas (very difficult to do when things are topsy turvy around the house), here are some trees for future projects. I don't know about you, but I like to collect things for reference later as you never know what new ideas emerge.

Many of these projects are quick and easy to do so you might get one done for Christmas!
Enjoy!

• Tree Skirt Poppyprint
• Wall Hanging  Barb Creations
• Advent Calendar Quilt
• Penny Rug Les Petits Points de Boute
• Patchwork Christmas Tree Softie Sewn Up Teresa Down Under
• Mod Tree Wall Hanging May Chappell
• Tree Pouch
• Modern Christmas Trees  Christa Quilts
• Tis The Season Patchwork Pottery
• Christmas Tree Quilt Projects Fave Quilts
• Christmas Tree Package
• Ruffled Ribbon Christmas Tree Tutorial
• Patchwork Navidad 
• Oh, Christmas - Fat Quarter Tree Patchwork Posse