Holiday crafting & new machines

I was a busy little elf in preparation for Yule & Christmas. My girlfriend Leslie brought her daughter over so our girls could play and we could have a "craft day". I made cookies while teaching her how to sew pants. We both made pants for the girls, out of rainbow patterned fleece. I'll put up a picture next time we get together since we want to take a photo of both girls in their rainbow pants.

I also made 4 stockings for my family. We went to the fabric store and each picked out fabric we liked. The same day, I bought fabric to make a tree skirt, which I'm really happy with, and supplies to make a new wreath for the front door. I have pictures that I will post later.

Then I made one pair of jammies for Risa. I got the fabric a while ago, but got busy with holiday baking and such so didn't get to make them until December 23... since she was going to wear new PJ's on Christmas Eve. She was so happy to have them!

Hubby asked me a couple of weeks before Christmas if I wanted a romantic gift or a practical gift... I asked him what kind of practical gift he might mean, and he said he knows I really want a serger. Right away, I opted for the practical gift. After all, my birthday and anniversary are coming up next summer, so I can use the serger while I wait for the romantic gift, right? *LOL* We did some research, and found a package deal on a White Quilter's Star 1780 and 2000ATS serger. I received them on Monday, and watched the instructional videos that night. I was so excited to get new machines I could burst! I used them both for the first time yesterday, making a second nightie for Risa. It looks SO MUCH BETTER than the first one. The gathers are more even, the stitching is tight and perfect, the buttonhole is beautiful, and the seams are sturdy and sure not to fray. I have one more nightie to make then I'm going to make something for myself. I can see myself doing a LOT more sewing now that I have these two beauties! The only downside is that the machine doesn't fit in my sewing machine cabinet, so I'll have to replace it.

Happy crafting! I have some bracelets to make today so my hubby can take them to work tomorrow.

Hairstick update and Yuletide crafting

Well, the hairsticks are coming along. I haven't touched them in a week or so because, big surprise, I've got some other projects on the go right now. Since the holidays are coming (okay, they're here) we decided to ditch some of our old decorations and make new ones we would be happy to see every year. We went to the fabric store and bought fabric for stockings and a tree skirt. Everyone picked out their own stocking fabric (except for our son, who isn't even 2 yet), and I got two different colours of the same pattern fabric for the tree skirt.

We also bought stuff to make a wreath for the front door. I finished it that night. I've seen wreaths like this for around $40 or more, but this only cost me about $15 to make. Granted, a lot of the stuff was 50% off, but I'd have to say it turned out nicely. There were also some deep red hydrangeas that I wanted to include, but somehow they got paid for but didn't make it into the car. I was pretty disappointed about that, because they were so pretty and it would have been nice to have a few flowers here and there on the wreath. My hubby was really impressed with the finished wreath, and I have to say I'm pretty happy with it too. It took me about an hour to put together, and I'll be happy to see it every year! I also bought some glittery twigs, but they didn't seem to fit in, so I don't know what I'm going to do with those.

I also have one more project to do... I have to make a skirt tonight for my friend's 5 year old daughter. It is her Yule gift. I meant to do it all this week, but I'm sick with a really awful cold so I haven't gotten around to it yet. I need to make it tonight though, because they're coming over to do crafts tomorrow, and I won't see them again before Yule! Uh oh!

Wah!

I got a couple of jewelry orders this week. One small, one big. Well, I just spoke to the customer of the big order, and it turns out that instead of 9 bracelets, she only wants 3. Hopefully I can revise my supply orders before they're shipped tomorrow, otherwise I'm going to be out a couple hundred bucks. The supplies aren't cheap, after all!

Handmade Hairsticks

My current project. Okay, one of them! I bought some dowel rods, cut them into 6" lengths, made one end pointy, and sanded the dickens out of them. These are drying with a single coat of polyurethane to seal the wood, and will be painted. Once they're painted, I'll be adding beaded toppers to them. The sticks will be going up for sale in my Etsy store, though I will keep some for myself. More soon!

Jewelry set

I made this bracelet and earring set as part of a gift exchange I did with some friends last Christmas. It is made of sterling silver findings, Labradorite beads and freshwater coin pearls.

Beaded hairsticks

I get these beautiful corkscrew hairsticks from www.ketylo.com. I beaded them myself of course.

Tinted lip balm

I love lip balm. I'm addicted to it, actually. I made this with coconut oil, shea butter & red/gold mica. It smells heavenly and makes my lips really soft. I made a big batch of it to give away as gifts, and have been considering selling it on www.etsy.com :)

Medieval Garb

I finished this project in September. I used McCalls M4090 for the skirt and M4107 for the corset. The white shift is from another pattern I made years ago, also from McCalls, but I can't find the pattern number. The skirt is made of broadcloth, and the corset is made from drapery/upholstery fabric.

Welcome to the reluctant crafter

Hi. I'm Kim. I'm a crafter. Nice to see you!

Why do I call this blog "the reluctant crafter"? Well, let's just say I have a tendency to start a craft project then abandon it. I can't say how many times I've done it. It is a little embarassing, to be honest! I have boxes of half-finished sewing projects in my closet that I have no interest in finishing anymore.

Hopefully by blogging about my craft pursuits, I will see more of my projects through to the end :)

I'm always working on more than one thing at a time. Right now, I'm working on a webpage for a friend's business which will be launched December 1, I'm making a batch of hairsticks that I will be putting on my jewelry website ( www.isara-creations.com ), and I am making nightgowns for my daughter who would live in dresses 24/7 if I let her.

What do my craft pursuits include? Well, not all of my creative ventures involve crafting, but here's a list of what I like to do... writing poetry/short fiction/articles, sewing, beadwork, cooking, web design, and I'm sure that as I move on in life I will add more to the list. I used to do a fair bit of painting but I haven't been doing it for some time.

I'll be posting pictures of my craft projects as I go along. I hope you enjoy the ride!