Greetings from the center of the Christmas tornado! I don’t know what happened here. I thought I was doing ok, and then last week it was like I ran full force into a mountain of holiday… stuff. I am madly crossing things off my list — you know, all those bonus projects that you delude yourself into thinking you’ll have time to do. I’m sure that even Martha Stewart herself has to do this sometimes, so it’s ok. I’m fairly confident this is normal.
Thank you all so much for your kind comments on my gold dress. I’m not sure how often I’ll be using these new fabric draping skills (I’m so much more comfortable with a roll of pattern paper), but it sure is a lot of fun even if it is a bit time consuming. (People, those pictures are something like 6 hours into that project – so I don’t want you to think I’m just whirling the fabric around over here and making a dress every afternoon.)
Deciding to take a few classes this past year really changed my life. I guess that is very dramatic to say, but I ended up meeting all sorts of special people – new mentors, friends, potential collaborators. If I can offer one lesson I learned from 2010, it would be to put yourself out there. I used to watch other people’s successes and think that they must be luckier or more talented or have more resources, but really, I am finding that no matter who you are, you have to just go out and make opportunities for yourself. And it’s almost impossible to do if you’re not willing to get out there and make new friends. I treasure each person who stops by here, says hi, leaves an encouraging note. Thank you for all of the lessons you’ve taught me this year. It makes me happy to have a chance to cheer you on in your own endeavors. I am beyond excited about 2011 and all of the things I hope we can accomplish together.
Best wishes, Kelly
P.S. – I’ll be here a few more times this week to share some of that mountain of holiday stuff I’m working on, so don’t think I’m disappearing quite yet. Good luck with your own holiday prep!
Filed under Holidays, Inspiration.
Tagged with encouragement, holiday prep.
By Kelly
December 20, 2010
[I am really happy to bring back my little column, the last 5, after a couple of months off. the last 5 is a series of posts about tackling unfinished decorating projects and adding those personal touches to a room. Find out how it all started here.]
Last week, I shared my personal “Cozy List” – a quick list of simple pleasures I wanted to enjoy during the holidays. Well, a week has passed and I’m finding that time is moving at lightning speed around here. So today, I thought I would do a bit of decorating to give myself a little push in the right direction. I pulled out a few of the things I wanted to enjoy: some pretty yarn, hot cocoa and chai, a journal, and a few favorite holiday magazines.
I was inspired by one of my favorite posts from Alex at Hygge House about preparing for house guests. She talks about how much she enjoys setting up her home for guests with thoughtful touches like leaving out special magazines, a basket of snacks and beverages, beautiful linens, and so on. It’s a beautiful post, definitely worth reading. Since we don’t have a guest room yet and no house guests to speak of, I thought I would appropriate a few of her ideas anyway. I look forward to having guests one day (the drawer full of special soaps is ready to go.) However, in the meantime, I have started wondering: Why not treat yourself and your family members like treasured guests?
As we prepare for the holiday and some vacation time, I’m doing a bit of extra cleaning and arranging this week, and thinking about what can be moved in each room to encourage relaxation, holiday fun, and that feeling of being taken care of. Maybe it’s laying out a robe and slippers for someone or tucking a nice lotion in with your sewing basket — or even just de-cluttering the coffee table so you can actually find that novel you wanted to read. I’m thinking about those 5-star touches you can bring home – especially the ones that don’t cost a thing and make use of what you already have.
Anyone want to play along? I would love to hear your ideas!
Filed under Friends & Family, Holidays, House & Home.
Tagged with guests, the last 5, winter comforts.
By Kelly
December 10, 2010
[Don't miss the free download at the bottom of this post!]
I am so excited to share this project with you! I think of it as a little holiday gift from Superbuzzy Kelly and myself. This is a free pattern for a square-bottom nylon eco bag that folds up into a pouch + a lined cotton version, too. We’ve had this one in the works for awhile, but it was really important to us that we do this project right.
Ever since we saw that first teaser image of the Echino fabrics in nylon, we knew that the fabric was practically begging to be made into reusable grocery store bags. Now, I”ll be totally honest with you. The thought of sewing with nylon made me really nervous at first, but I’m happy to report that it’s not as scary as you might think. In fact, we included some tips and tricks in the pattern to get you started. A teflon walking foot and the right needle/thread combination (70/10 sharp + polyester) really do help. The fabric sews up so beautifully that I definitely think it’s worth the little bit of extra care.
I know some of you may still be paralyzed with fear over the nylon, so there are also instructions for a lined cotton bag that’s reversible. Kelly selected a really cute trio of prints in a mid-weight cotton that has a nice heft to it. Both bags include flat fell seams and reinforced handles so they will stand up to repeated use.
The nylon bag folds up into an elasticized pocket on the front when not in use.
I love giving gifts like these – pretty, practical things that you can give to anyone – neighbors, teachers, and friends. As an added bonus, you can use the bag as gift wrap too so you can participate in the Green Grocery Bag Challenge.
Happy Holidays! XOXO, Kelly
(P.S. – I’d like to give a very special thank you to my friends at the Sewing Arts Center who shared some great tips and suggestions with me to make this bag possible.)
Filed under Fabric & Sewing, Holidays, I Made This, Tutorials & Downloads.
Tagged with DIY, Echnio nylon, free download, green grocery bag challenge, grocery bag tutorial, nylon eco bag, nylon sewing tips, reversible cotton bag, square bottom bag, superbuzzy, tutorial.
By Kelly
December 8, 2010
Thank you so much for all of the kind comments on my post about the Christmas tree. I really appreciated them – and I made sure my husband knew what you all thought, too. You know, just in case he was inspired to do something else over the top and romantic.
Today, though, I’m thinking I need to start wrapping gifts. One year, we waited until Christmas Eve to wrap all of our presents which, I’ll just tell you, I do not recommend. There was a bit of a melt down at 1 AM when we still had a mound of gifts to go and neither of us felt like tying any more ribbons. Ever since that year, we have a pretty strict “wrap 1 present a day” rule so that we can be tucked into bed nice and early on Christmas Eve. (I’m pretty sure Santa prefers it that way, too.)
Tomorrow I have a holiday present for you. I really hope you’ll like it.
Filed under Holidays.
Tagged with gift wrap.
By Kelly
December 7, 2010
Only a few days ago I was talking about wanting to get the Christmas tree, but putting it off a bit because of all of the drama that can involve.
I had no idea that my husband was planning to surprise me. Late last night I got home and walked into a dark apartment – lit only by the lights from this Christmas tree. (Awww!) He had secretly purchased the tree, set it up, and added the Christmas lights without me knowing it. My husband is incredibly thoughtful, but terrible at keeping secrets so this was a true feat. I am so excited to decorate the tree this weekend. It’s a very skinny, very tall tree that is just the right size for our space. My friends and family know that I would gladly get a really fat tree and practically sleep under it to make it fit, but this tree is just the perfect compromise for us and our current place.
I am thinking now of the very small, wonky tree we had at the beginning of our relationship. It was a 3.5 foot tall fiber-optic tree that was supposed to cycle through a rainbow of different colors. Only something had gone wrong, so instead it would light up at random green-orange-blue and red-yellow-white all at once. We spent many evenings being entertained by our sad, little tree doing it’s odd rainbow dance. We decorated it with pint-sized vintage ornaments in candy colors, a gift from my Grandmother. I am reminded once again that it’s the people that make this time special, not having everything magazine-perfect. And I feel so blessed right now with the special people in my life.
Wishing you a merry weekend. XOXO, Kelly
Filed under Friends & Family, Holidays.
Tagged with Christmas tree, surprise.
By Kelly
December 3, 2010
