here + there

Gearing up for the holiday season around here…lots of planning for decorations and gatherings. It’s also a big birthday time with my brother, myself, and niece celebrating within two weeks of each other. I like to stretch mine out for as long as I can though, don’t you? This current week is going to be so crazy busy, and a lot of outside events planned…which of course is when the cold front comes through. Oh well, I guess it’s just putting us in training for the winter. The word on the street (or country roads rather) is that we’re in for a cold one this year. I take that as meaning there is gonna be plenty of time for hunkering down inside where its warm with hot chocolate, movies, and crafting. In that regard, bring the cold!

I’ve been cranking out some crafts in hopes of shop updates and a holiday market we are having here on the farm this coming weekend. I’m totally obsessed with making woven tapestries at the moment, and plan on riding this obsession wave for as long as my back can take it. This  is one I am working on at the moment and it is turning into one of my favorites and I am loving the color scheme. I haven’t gotten to the point of planning out on paper what I am going to do, so it is always interesting to see where it takes me as I’m working. I’m loving where this one is headed.

Today is for drinking hot drinks, hanging around the wood stove, watercoloring envelopes for a stationery set I’m putting together, and hopefully finishing up some craft projects. I’ll let ya know how it goes….

Any big plans for your day?

// Let Us Give Thanks print by Caravan Shoppe found here + weaving loom by Martha Stewart found here //

thanksgiving invitations.

I have appointed myself as the 'invitation maker' for the family. It’s a job I love and I job that I am proud of, and 9/10 am absolutely in love with what rolls out with the mail. The leftover 1/10 is when I feel rushed or just can’t find that special something that my vision is looking for. At the last minute (of course), I am pulling together our Thanksgiving invitations for this year. I have not talked to anyone about what we are doing, but I figure since I am making the invitations then I get to call the shots, right? Yep.

Using my October + November Project Life Kit* from Kelly Purkey, I chose some of the papers that I liked the best and cut some feathers out with my die-cut machine and these Lifestyle Crafts feather dies. I made up the invitation on my computer last year, so I just changed the font, the date, and moved some things around to better match up with this year’s design. I then used (for the first time!!) this awesome metallic gold thread on my machine and sewed the feathers down with a “spine-y” stitch, and folded up the edge of the feathers for a little texture. I just love the gold metallic with this color scheme….

I grabbed my kindly deliver to stamp to add a little pizzazz to the envelope and out they went for their ride on the Pony Express!

 

*This particular kit is sold out, but you can preorder the December Kit here.