Little Hearts

Hello Dear Friends!
I'm back from my little blogging break and feel quite inspired :)
I've been getting a lot done and so have a lot to share...

My kiddos are long past the Valentine stuffed animals.

We usually give them a little chocolate and a little spending $$ (who doesn't love that combo?)

But this year I gave my little sweethearts some warm fuzzies too...

A little Valentine special order I completed...

And a little Anniversary/Valentine I made my Sis and BIL,

because their anniversary is the 12th.

I stitched this a couple years ago,

and maybe in a couple more years I'll get one made for my V-day basket :)

Hugs and Kisses

by Erica Michaels

fabric:  32ct antique white linen 

fibers:  WDW, my own selection

(Strawberry Fields, Sweetheart Rose, Bordeaux)

I think that has me caught up with all the Valentine's stuff.

But believe me, I still have plenty more to share.

They'll just have to keep for another day.

Thanks for stopping by my neck of the woods.

Sending you all a little Colorado Sunshine!

Wrapping up before the Big Day

Good Morning Dear Friends!  I got up this morning and got cracking on the last two gifts.  This one just needed all the ends woven in and a ribbon tied 'round...

And just needed to knit the toe of sock #2...

And that concludes the 2010 edition of the Handmade Holiday Gift List!  Hurrah!

I received some wonderful gifts in the mail yesterday from some really wonderful friends.

Dear Julianne sent me two ornaments, one for last year and one for this year...how incredibly sweet is that?  Thank you so much Julianne, you are so kind and thoughtful and I just absolutely adore them!

And thoughtful and talented Harmien sent me this clever ornament.  I just love it!  Thank you Harmien for being such a dear friend!

And then this pretty card with some equally pretty red thread came from sweet Michele W.  Thank you so much Michele for thinking of me, you always make me smile and it seems we're often on the "same wavelength"!

I feel so lucky to have made some really wonderful friendships through blogging.

Thank you everyone.

And a BIG HEARTFELT THANK YOU to each of you who stop by and visit me here.

Wishing each and every one of you a Very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year!

I hope this holiday season finds you surrounded by peace and love.

See you all in the new year!

Hugs, Staci

A small sampling...

of some of the gifts that are arriving at their destinations...

Youngest's teacher had eye surgery on the 8th and will return after Christmas Break.  Everything went well and she is home recovering.  But we felt that she needed a Christmas gift that was just a little bit more special...

Only a couple more gifts to finish and 9 days left...plenty of time, lol!

It's Time...

For my final giveaway of the year!

It's become a sort of tradition for me. 

There was one my first year of blogging in 2008 and last year's was a little late but it still happened.

So here's this year's giveaway:

One of my handknit and felted heart ornaments,

rusty bells and safety pins I made this past fall,

and an assortment of red ribbons :)

All you have to do is leave a comment on

This Post Only,

AND

Please Include Your Email Address.

That's it.

This Giveaway is open to EVERYONE!

A winner will be randomly drawn on Thursday, December 9th.

Sending you all a little Christmas Cheer!!!

I may have...

Finished an ornament...

And sent it off to a friend...

Added delicious organic French soap to spa cloths

and crossed three more names of the HHGL*...

Finally finished a sweater that was begun last summer...

Done some happy dancing...

*HHGL: Handmade Holiday Gift List

In through the front door,

Run around the back,

Out through the window,

And off jumps Jack.

Youngest (8yrs) has been wanting to learn to "knit for real" for a while...no more spool knitting.  And his face lit up when I told him I'd teach him.  Within 30 minutes he was reciting a shortened version of the poem ("in the front, around back, out the window, off jumps Jack") in his head while working very seriously on his stitches. 

And he was Q-U-I-E-T!  Which is saying something because he's a top-volume motor-mouth, lol!

I broke my own personal rule for buying knitting books by getting this one...as it doesn't contain very many projects that I want to make.  My saving grace is that I had a 33% off coupon. 

And that cute yellow cup?  I've liked them for a veeery long time and they're now 75% off at Borders!

BUT, those little hearts on the cover had me!

And I just knew they'd make cute Christmas ornaments!

The 2010-handmade-holiday-gift-production-line has officially begun.

And those little hearts are just rolling off the line!

They are so fun and sweet...

and they make the book purchase totally worth it!

I'm doing mine with worsted weight wool and size 9 needles.

Finished size after felting; approx 3"x3"

Happy Weekend!!!

Small Felted Bag

I made a felted bag for my dear friend Jody's (no blog) birthday...

I used 2 balls of Patons Classic Wool in color #225, Dark Grey Mix. Size 15 needles, 2 strands held throughout. I found a pattern, and then did my own thing (which for some reason seems to be the case when I felt. This really isn't the norm for me, I am a direction follower.) If you want to know the original pattern and my changes, just leave a comment and I'll post them :)

Here is the before pic (after knitting, before felting.)

And here is the after (after felting, ie washing.)

In case you aren't familiar; felting (or fulling) is purposely washing a knitted wool object in hot water with lots of agitation. Have you ever accidentally washed a sweater, only to have it shrink up to fit a 2yr old? That's felting. It doesn't have to be just wool, it can be almost any animal fiber (alpaca, llama, mohair, etc.) The degree of felting will vary though. Felting is always an experiment!!! Here's a terrific site to check out with lots of patterns and tips :)