December's challenge....

For my last project, I made an arm knit infinity scarf.   I used a video tutorial by TheCraftyGemini....I strongly suggest you check it out if you are interested.  She does a really good job and uses slow mo for tricky parts.  

This first one took me about 45 minutes but after making it I know it won't take that long next time.  The trickiest part was casting on.

Wishing you all a Happy Crafting New Year!

Holiday happenings...

A couple days before Christmas, the kids were home alone.  They heard a loud noise and went to investigate.   They never discovered what made the noise...but I did!  The icing on the gingerbread house let loose and fell off the cake stand!  The reason it made such a loud noise is it was up on top of the china cabinet.

I replaced it with some carolers....they looked just as nice up here.

I helped Kaela make stockings using sweaters.  She got the idea off pinterest.  They were SUPER easy to make....though a little tricky using a regular sewing machine...

Osa loves to shred tissue paper.  We had just started putting gifts under the tree....lucky for me, I heard her and saved the present.

  This is what happens when you don't have thumbs!

We all went to the midnight service on Christmas Eve.  It is my favorite service because the music is acoustical and they use candle light.

We were all tired but it was totally worth staying up for it!

Crochet coffee cozies

I love cute coffee cozies!  

Dean was out of town a couple weeks ago so I filled a few hours crocheting some.

It was a great way to use up some yarn in my stash while watching "Boston Legal" reruns.  Plus, they turned out super cute.

and of course, I made myself one.....

Now we just need some cool weather to give us an excuse to use them!

Beta club convention....

Kaela is in Beta Club and went to convention a few weeks ago.   She and another girl represented the school in the "art" category.....

They were given 4 sharpies and had one hour to come up with something that represented their area.

This is what they did.....

And, yes, they WON, beating out several other teams.... and are getting to go to STATE!

Weenie Roast?

Better not stand to close to the bonfire or the term "weenie" roast will take on a whole new meaning!

Nutcracker Nadine

Each year I host an ornament swap.  I wanted to send something special to one of the ladies.  She is so selfless.  She always creates the most AMAZING ornaments...and this year, she sent in a special treat bag for each of the participants.

She joins all my zombie doll swaps so while wracking my brain on what to make her, I decided a Christmas themed zombie doll would do the trick.

I know, I am so out of control....but here she is in all her glittery gory (oops, GLORY!)

Nadine:

I wrote a little poem to go with her of course, half the fun of creating these dolls is "telling" why they are zombies!

Oh, and she already has a boyfriend!  Of course, he had no IDEA that she was going to eat him for dinner after their "date.!"  That was fine with me, he was born in 1969, WAY too old for a young thing like Ms. Nadine!

Here is a little music to start your week....just imagine Nadine as the "star!"

How to: paper mache snowman heads!

A couple years ago I made some snowman heads for my tree:

I wanted to do something similar for this year's ornament swap....without the hat and frill. 

Since I had to make so many this time around, I thought I'd share the main process here.   This made 14 "heads."

Here are the supplies I used:

glitter
DAS premade paper mache "dough"
ping pong balls
drill with teeny bit
teen eye screws
paints
modge podge
paint brush and sponge brush
little bowl of water

this is what DAS looks like.  Use a coupon, it can be pricey.

Take your DAS and pinch off 14 equal sized blobs.  Roll each blob into a ball and set aside, keeping covered so they don't dry out.

Here is the ping pong ball brand I use, cheapos from Walmart.

 To get started, fllatten a ball of DAS and wrap it around the ping pong ball.  Using a teeny bit of water, smooth out lumps and edges.  Set aside and do the others.  

Once the heads are done, start the noses.  Make teeny cone shapes and carefully attach to the face.  Smooth out edged where the nose meets the face.  Now set aside to dry overnight or even for a couple of days.

Once dried, take the smallest drill bit and make a teeny hole where you want the hook to hang.  Use a bit smaller than the eye screw so it won't fall out.

Then paint your carrot nose and face and let dry.  Sorry, I forgot to take a photo! (Now Kaela said I should have made them into Gru faces or even Penguin heads...at this point, it is up to you.  I opted to stay with snowman heads.)

Once the face is painted and dried, "paint" your snowman heads with Modge Podge and sprinkle with glitter.  I actually used a bowl and dunked mine.    Let them hang and dry for a few days.  Then go BACK and check for coverage.  I hung mine in the washroom!

If you are weird, like me, and want the hook to be glittery, turn them over and glitter the eye screw the same way.

After that, you simply attach the hooks and you have a bowl of happy snowman heads.

Of course, I put one on my own tree!