sleepy sunday -

If you need inspiration for Christmas...

..decorations and homemade gift ideas, you need look no further than this gorgeous book. It's called "Sew Pretty Christmas Homestyle" by Tone Finnanger (Tilda), who also wrote a book for general all year round homey prettiness!
The projects are all simple enough to get them whipped up in no time at all, and range from home decor, to hats, mittens, angels and wonderful ideas to make your child's room an absolutely magical wonderland. There's great little bag ideas, which can be filled with goodies to make a wonderful gift. It's also a hotbed of inspiration, if you need to get into the spirit of the upcoming season, this is the book to do it! A definite must-have!
So get the book, and get making all the wonderful gifts you need to make everyone's Christmas a little more handmade!

what I've been working on -

I have a new creation - keyrings! I really like how they came out, I originally had something different in mind, I was going to use fussy-cut fabric images on the top, but as I started it seemed so natural to do the felt applique instead. It's more in keeping with my style too, I think.

I think my favorite is the oak tree, and the inspiration for it came from an unlikely source - Noggin. If you have small children you'll know what I'm talking about, if not, it's a cable channel just for kids (a favorite of mine, not only because of the cute gentle programs, but also because it's commercial free! A big plus with little ones, and their impressionable minds), and one of the shows, Oswald to be precise, has these cute stylised trees which I have admired for a while. If you're a non-crafty person, that last comment has probably left you wondering, "is she mad?", but as the crafty ones know, we find inspiration everywhere, even cartoons! Right?

Christmas goodness -

Is it time to make gingerbread houses yet? Nearly, but honestly they're so hard to make why not buy a cute piece of folk art instead! This adorable picture, on a stretched canvas, is by Diane McGettigan - http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16664709 . I think maybe this year I may be decorating my walls with this kind of gingerbread, instead of all that baking, and cooling, and cutting, and glueing, etc..........

window shopping -

The super cute Squirrel Family Puzzle is from UsNavyRetiredVet - http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_list_1&listing_id=16908208 .

The custom napkin rings are from RaeDunn -

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_list_16&listing_id=16283451 .

The Woodgrain Ring is from HoneyBee -

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?ref=sr_list_21&listing_id=16084012 .

And last, but not least, the Moss Terranium is from LadyFarrah -

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16859032 .

So, today I was doing a little window shopping with the holidays in the back of my mind, I think this year more than ever, it's important to buy handmade gifts. It is important, of course, to the small business' that artisans, like the people on Etsy, are, to keep them afloat enough to keep doing what they're doing. Which is making beautiful, unique, hand crafted items that carry a feeling of love and meaning in each piece. But also, it's important to veer away from the corporate retail image of more, more, more - the idea that Christmas can't be a success unless we've spent the most, or given the most presents to our family and friends, it is a trap we've fallen into. It certainly has added to our poor economy, and credit reliant society, and is not what the season is all about!

So this year I am personally going to be very picky about what I buy for my children, it's all about quality and meaning, not quantity! So here's hoping we have a wonderful season full of the important things - love, family, friends, good health, and peace and goodwill to all!

what I made today -

This is my first creation with Winter in mind! Not that I personally want to think about that season at all, I'm just not a snow, ice, bitter cold kind of girl! Of course, my children love that time of year, just getting bundled up in snow clothes brings out smiles and gleeful giggles.

But that's enough of that, I'm going to live in the present, which today is a really warm, in the 60's, beautiful Fall day. If you're feeling like me I have just the thing for you, a beautiful fall leaves felt garland -

wordless wednesday -

happy halloween!

fashion friday -

Here's a collection of some beautiful clothes you get at Etsy, since Fall is the time of year when I get a real itch to go and buy new clothes, I thought it was appropriate to do a little window shopping. All the clothes are from www.desirapesta.etsy.com, and the boots are from the vintage shop www.vintagebazaar.etsy.com. Aren't they gorgeous?

October's featured Etsyblogger is.......

BF Beads! - aka Mama's Magic Studio - yes, Jen has two awesome etsy shops for you to check out!

The name stands for baby friendly beads, and she specializes in necklaces designed to grab the baby's focus and attention while they breastfeed, so they won't pull on your hair, or pull off the privacy blanket while you're in public, a wonderful idea indeed - and did I say that they're just beautiful to wear also, as you can see from the cute purple one in the picture. She also makes clever "reminder" bracelets so you can remember which side to start on first by switching the bracelet from wrist to wrist. How cute is the "gardener's bracelet" to the right, I would love to get that as a gift!

Jen lives in California with her husband and two sweet children - check them out on her blog http://www.mamasmagic.blogspot.com, not only is Jen a talented jewelry designer/maker and crafter, but she is also a published poet and an aspiring children's author, what a talented lady indeed.

Things we have in common are - readers of Soulemama, listeners of Cowboy Junkies and Sting, and supporters of breasfeeding and attachment parenting. Sounds like my kind of gal!

Make sure to check out both of her shops at Etsy.

meet the new family members -

here they are! The first, a tortoiseshell tiger, is called Suki and her sister, the grey, is called Sen. Both names are from characters in Miyazaki movies, chosen by my children, of course.

They were born on July 19th, and came to us last Thursday. Life with kids and kittens is fun, and nothing , if not, entertaining - chaos rules in our house at the moment, but that's okay.

Suki is a little timid, and Sen has proved herself as quite a lap cat, always ready for a snuggle and a pet. All is well with life.

what I made yesterday -

love it!

I was going to use lots of random jewel colored circles of different sizes, and played around with ideas for a while. Then these colors came together and looked so cute, very earthy and Fall inspired.

Am I the only one that remembers what I was watching when making a particular piece? Anyway, this came together while watching Iconoclasts with Richard Branson and Desmond Tutu, a wonderful thing indeed, the idea behind this series is truly genius and it's lovely to watch.

Find it on the Sundance channel, and find my bag at my shop!

waiting for the school bus......

Welcome to my walk to the end of the driveway, to wait for the school bus to bring my sweetie home to me. Fall is just a truly beautiful time of year, maybe it's because all the colors are guaranteed to harmoniously blend together, designed by Mother Earth herself - not the amateur garden designer, "should this go here?".

All my flowers have finally bit the dust, thanks to last weeks visit from Jack Frost, all except a fuschia that had been hanging outside and shall now bedeck the halls inside!

Speaking of decorations, I really must put up the halloween stuff before it's too late altogether.

Happy Tuesday.