Handmade Christmas...

This year I decided that I'm doing a handmade Christmas for our gifts. With a few exceptions, of coarse, like for a brother in law, and my husband, and probably for the Dads (so pretty much excluding all the adult men. I don't think any of them would really "dig" the handmade gifts.) But for all the women and kids, there are plenty of stuff to make that they would enjoy. Sadly, I can only post some of them, since others would be spoiled once a family member checked out the updated blog. But I'll show you what I can.

The fabric food is what I've started on. I have more then the strawberries done, but I thought I would just give this little peek until I'm done with all of it. The idea of the fabric food actually happened while I was browsing through this blog, where I've seen so many cute ideas for my daughter. This woman is the crafty mom I can only wish to be. So I'll show you more food later. My husband is getting in on this as well, since he has a talent for building things (he does construction, so he better be good at it! :) jk) So he decided he wants to build Kadie a doll house. Of coarse I'll have to decorate it, and find furniature and such. I'm very excited to have a little house that I get to decorate! Kadie will love it. We're not sure yet what my baby boy Gavin will get. We'll have to see what we can come up with. I have a few ideas, but nothing set in stone. There are others, but they will come later!! I'm very excited to do this, I've already started since I have a lot to make in only a couple months. We'll see if they all work out, or if I'll be running from store to store the week before Christmas! Wish me luck!!

Flower Brooches...

I love giving handmade gifts, so I always try to have something made come birthday time. This time I decided to make these fabric flower brooches. They're so much fun to make, I made a few extra so I could have some on hand (or for me). The only down fall is my fingers are a little sore. But it's worth it!

It's hard to tell, but this one has pieces of a peacock feather coming out of the side next to the netting. I may need to pick up a few more bird feathers next time I'm at the craft store.

I loved the pearl bead for the center. I used pearls for most of them.

I hope the person who is getting these like them!! (crossing my fingers)

Halloween Pillow...

I found this shop on Etsy that does art prints on fabric, and they have the cutest pictures. They also do custom orders, and will print up a digital picture that you send in to them. It's called Vintage Bella. I have another Halloween pillow I'm making also, but we'll see if I get to it before Halloween. I have quite a few projects going on right now!

Fabric Necklaces...

When you have a little one that loves to pull and suck on whatever jewelry you're wearing, I had to try to make this necklace when I saw them. What's better then a lead free necklace that is okay to throw in the wash? So one evening, my friend Channing and I tried them out. And they were really simple to make! You can find the tutorial here.

I did a few things different then the tutorial. We used smaller wooden beads, hence making it so we had to adjust the measurements a bit, and also we thought it looked a little "hoe-down" (Channings choice of words LOL!) to tie them in the back, so I just cut my ends shorter, rounded the edges with my scissors, sewed on some velcro, and put a cute coordinating button on top to make it look a little more finish! I thought they turned out super cute!

Dutch Apple Pie...

I got a bunch of apples from a friend's apple tree, and decided to make Old Fashioned Dutch Apple Pie. YUM! So I thought I would share this amazing recipe with you, since this is the perfect time of year for fresh homemade pies.

Basic Pie Crust

1 cup flour

1/3 cup butter

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. white vinegar

3-4 tbsp. cold water

Blend the flour, salt and butter together with pastry blender or a fork until the butter and flour are totally incorporated. Make sure all the flour is coated with butter.

Add the vinegar, then add the cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough is moist enough to roll out. Roll out on a floured surface and place in pie plate, then flute the edges.

Old Fashioned Dutch Apple Pie

Filling:

4-5 large apples (4 cups worth when diced)

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 tbsp. flour

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Peel and core apples, then dice into small chunks. Place in a pan with sugar, water, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg and stir well.

Cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until the apples begin to soften. Remove from the heat and let cool a bit. Pour into prepared crust and top with crumb topping.

Crumb Topping:

1 cup flour

1/3 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

dash of salt

Blend all ingredients together until butter is well incorporated and the mixture is crumbly.

Bake pie for about an hour, or until golden brown and bubbly. Let cool slightly. Serve warm with ice cream!! Of coarse!

Enjoy!!

My vintage load...

Here is all the beautiful upholstery fabric that I inherited from my Grandmother. My Grandfather apparently worked at an upholstery shop, so he had a lot of sample pieces. I have already started using these, and am so excited with how they are turning out!! I'll be posting them soon, and I can't wait! So many different colors and styles. I'm sad you can't see them all in the picture. There are just too many of them.

Sweet Skirt for a Sweet Girl...

It was my little niece's birthday yesterday (this sweetie), and I decided to make her a skirt.

I've had the middle fabric for a while. Every time I get a fabric that I love, it sits on my shelf, waiting for a worthy enough project for it to be used for. I thought this was a worthy project. I loved how it turned out. I have plenty more of it, and some others that coordinate with it so I can make more in different varieties.

And of coarse, I had to make a headband to go with it.

Custom Orders...

These are just a couple custom orders that I just made.
The flower tote bag...


The Rose-Patch bag...

Another Apron...

I loved this fabric combination. I think this is my favorite of all the little girl aprons I've made.