Decorating for the Holidays

Today's crafting adventure was part of helping friends decorate their house for the holidays. First we unpacked the and then decorated the tree.

There is something wonderful about the whole process of decorating a tree. The house was full of laughter and activity. And there is something lovely about the uniqueness of each tree, filled with ornaments that are like a unique fingerprint to the household it is in.

After that lights and garland were hung, before we we broke out the crafting supplies. These glass bulbs have been in my craft stash for at least 3 years awaiting the perfect opportunity.

The process for making these is super easy, although it can require patience if you want an even layer of glitter on the inside.

Watered down white craft glue is swirled around the inside, and then you pour in glitter. Repeat as often as you feel like. Once you put the top back on the bulb, all the glitter stays inside making them relatively mess free to hang (if not to make).

We also used stained glass paint to decorate other glass bulbs, although unfortunately I did not get any pictures of them. I will have to think of it the next time I am there, because it was a really interesting process I had not tried before. Neat!

Another Baby Girl BSJ

It seems to be a baby year. These sorts of things go in cycles. One of the latest arrivals that we are awaiting is my to-be newest neice. My brother and his wife have gone through so much hoping for a baby, that she is highly anticipated.

The baby shower was several weeks ago, but I have just not been able to pull myself together enough to put a post together. So with out further ado another BSJ:

Pattern: Baby Surprise Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmermann

Needles: US Size 10 / 6.0

Yarn: Lion Brand Vanna's Choice in Dusty Purple & many leftovers (see below)

As with the last BSJ I made, I put this one together with a sewn seam rather than a crocheted one. That has definitely become my preference for putting together this pattern.

This is the third time I have made this pattern. (The first two can be found here and here.) As always it never fails to delight me with its cleverness, plus the finished garter stitch fabric is super smooshy and awesome. There is good reason this pattern is so renown. I have to admit that I like the stripy ones more though, both aesthetically and for their stash busting.

This sweater had a bunch of leftover yarns from previous projects. The grey yarn was leftover from a wedding afghan I made for one of my brothers. (That was not the same one who is having the baby. His wedding afghan was this one). The minor stripes are leftover from another BSJ which I had made for one of my other nieces.

After giving the leftovers to a friend who I am re-teaching how to crochet, my stash is feeling much better, and I am fairly pleased with myself. I think I may end up re-focusing on using up stash for a while.