Handmade Christmas Tree Skirt

As I unpacked my boxes of "Christmas Stuff" I soon came to the realization that my beautiful burgundy velvet skirt is MIA. Over the summer, when we moved (military) from Florida to Colorado, some 20 boxes disappeared along with a mattress set. I'm certain my nativity, my tree skirt, and a beloved snow globe were some of the missing boxes. I didn't want to wait until I had a skirt to put up our tree and ornaments (thank goodness those didn't disappear). I went ahead and put up the tree without the skirt. I came across this idea to make this skirt through "Pinterest" but this is the original link to the project from HGTV.


I did make a few modifications. I used a white skirt from the Dollar Tree instead of paying $15 for a canvas painter's cloth. The skirt is already cut out in a circular shape, so half of the work was already done. Also, instead of using linen, I used about 2 1/2 yards of 45" wide cotton fabric in the pattern I liked from Joanns (on sale). Instead of a glue gun, I used fabric glue. If you do follow my method, I would advise that you work on this on top of a surface that you don't mind getting ruined. In other words, DO NOT use your beautiful dining table. I used an old card table that had a vinyl surface. If you are going to use your dining table, I would suggest protecting your surface with an vinyl tablecloth. The glue is a permanent glue, and believe me, it got tacky and hard quickly.
I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The best thing is it's a 'no sew' project; and I completed it in 5 hours. I hope you and your family are enjoying the blessings of the season. I wish you a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year!

A New Quilt for Lucas

A year ago, I had bought Flying Geese rulers from "A Quilt in a Day" by Eleanor Burns. I love the idea of making 4 geese at the same time; and not to have to deal with ironing along the bias (we all know how distorted a quilt block can get when you stretch the bias). One weekend, I started to play with the rulers. I kept making geese until I had enough to consider making a larger quilt with all of the geese. This is the result. This quilt has 119 flying geese. It was quick and easy; and my son will get to enjoy it at our new home in Colorado Springs.

For a very long time, I could not decide on how to create the border. Since I still had a lot of leftover batik fabric, I decided to piece long strips to create a colorful border.

This is what the quilt design looks like. I picked this one because of it's 'Polynesian style.'

Lucas is pretty happy with the results!

Crystals and Coral

I was inspired to make this necklace after seeing one similar to it at Michaels. I placed the toggle on the side of the necklace, rather than the back. I also love the combination of blue and silver. I'll give this necklace to a dear friend of mine.

A closeup of the pendant.

This necklace uses sterling silver wire and crystals from the Bead Gallery collection at Michaels (plus a few findings from my stash). It's about 18" long. I'll also give this to one of my girlfriends. It's a pretty piece to wear this springtime.


Thanks for stopping by and have a blessed day!

Industrial Chic

I knew I was in trouble when I went to Michael's and saw this pendant holder. All of the 'talismans' and findings are from the work of Susan Lenart Kazmer from her line titled "Industrial Chic." Her artwork has been in exhibits at the Smithsonian Museums in Washington DC and at the Art Institute in New York. She calls the pendants 'Talismans."

I chose talismans which fit my personality and wired each one to the pendant holder. I also added crystals to the end of some of the talismans just to give the piece added color and to 'soften' the piece. I have many more talismans left and plan to make a whole lot of other jewelry pieces with them.