Monday morning and off and running...

I know, I know....every week I have great intentions on blogging every day, sharing my new and wonderful ideas, taking lots of photos, etc., etc.  I also have those same good intentions about getting on the treadmill, writing notes to my friends, and waxing the floor.  But then there's that little four letter word that keeps getting in the way!  LIFE!!!

But I have been working on a few new projects.  Since this has become the year of the bobblehead for me, this is my newest take:

This little guy has his stovepipe on and is dusted with the tiniest sparkly glitter.  I have five more of these hatted dudes in different stages of completion.

I also had some reddish print that I thought would be perfect for prim stockings.  I made these up from a free pattern off the web and stained a small wooden peg.  These would be perfect for the house without a fireplace!

 

And finally, if you know me, you know how much I love my little Westies, Angel and Sugar.  So in honor of them, I designed my little Westie ornies.

 

Now, if you want to make ornies likes these, they are oh, so easy!  First make your pattern,  You can freehand, if you can draw, or if you are like me, you can find a pattern free on the net or find somewhere around your house to get one.....I know, I know, you are saying, "This lady's is crazy.  I don't have anything like this laying around my house....."(I hope you said lady)  But au contraire mon cheri, you do.  The best simple shapes come from things we see every day.  My favorite is cookie cutters.  Look for shapes that you recognize immediately:  stars, reindeer, angels, stockings, or trees.  And other great place to look is in a child's coloring book.  You probably won't find what you are looking for in a Power Rangers or Barbie book, but most books have simple shapes that a child can recognize and are easy to color. 

So pick out your shape and trace it onto the fabric of your choice.  I chose this off-white felt, but you can acutally choose any sturdy, not stretchy fabric.  Cut it out.  Add your trims at this point.  On these I added the ribbon, hanger and a button eye.  You can sew them on but I just pinned on the ribbon and sewed on the eye by hand. 

Place your trimmed piece on two uncut pieces of felt.  This will make your ornie sturdy enough to hang without losing its shape.  Then sew along the piece that you cut out, going through all three thicknesses.  When you have completed the stitching, simply go back and trim.  Be sure you bend the hanger back so you don't cut through it.  You also want to make sure that you trim away any trace lines. 

So there you have it!  Some suggestions might be Christmas trees cut from green felt with buttons, rick rack, ribbon, sequins, etc. hand sewn on as trim, or maybe a Santa hat with a pom pom sewn on top.  You might do a cat or a football, a pair of ballet shoes or a musical instrument.  The ideas are endless!  You can make this a family project and let the kids add the trims.  You can sell these at your holiday craft fairs.  Have fun with it!

Stay tuned for more ideas.....I'll post just as soon as I get off the treadmill!