Aspiring Artistry

Sew Liberated Holiday Traditions Exchange

What a wonderful exchange this is! I did it last year for the first time, and was really looking forward to the 2009 exchange. Many thanks to Meg for continuing to organize this (and while busy with new baby and a new book!)

My exchange partner was the ever-creative Annika of Through The Looking Glass. My cross-country match-up is expecting baby #2 any day now, and has a great blog - check it out!

For my holiday decorations, I started with my ridiculous love of paper. While not technically a "decoration," these gift tags will look beautiful adorning a package.  The great stamps came from PaperSource, and I heat embossed the white tags with a red powder, and tied them up with red raffia.

The next part of the exchange was inspired by this post on Design Mom. The negative space embroidery immediately caught my eye as a hip new take on an old-school art form. It was quite a bit harder than I expected, but I'm really pleased with this first attempt.

 

The family recipe I included was the sea-glass candy recipe that we used to make holiday treats for our friends. I thought Annika and her family might enjoy these tasty treats and could easily make them as a family.

All wrapped up in some remnants of this great Heather Bailey fabric, I think it made a lovely package! 

 

Sea Glass Candy

What a hit! Literally - so much fun to whack at it with a rolling pin, hammer, or in my instance, a metal citrus press.

This was our make-it-as-a-family holiday food this year, although I found that I was in charge of the hot sugar melting on the stove and once it hardened, the kids were able to whack at it and brush the sparkle dust all over.

The recipe is found here, but I'm going to repeat it below for you, with some of my notes added in.

I found great glass-topped/magnetic-bottomed spice jars at Ikea, and they are a great size for this gift.

Ingredients

2 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup water

3/4 cup corn syrup

1/4 – 1 tsp. flavoring oil (I used cinnamon & peppermint, and found I had to use much, more more than the recipe called for)

Icing sugar (to coat cooled candy)

 

Step One

Grease a cookie sheet or cake pan with butter.

Step Two

Measure ingredients.

Step Three

Pour granulated sugar, corn syrup and water in a medium saucepan. Place over medium heat and stir until sugar dissolves.

Step Four
Without stirring, boil the mixture until a candy thermometer reads between 300 and 310 degrees. (This will take about 30 minutes.) Drop a small amount into ice water. If it separates into brittle strands its ready. 

Step Five

Remove from heat and let boiling subside.

Step Six

Measure flavoring oil and pour into candy mixture. Also add food coloring if desired. Blend with a wooden spoon. (You’ll notice that it will get really steamy for a few seconds.) Actually, mine spat and sputtered and really intensified the scent. Crazy!

Step Seven

Pour onto greased cookie sheet or cake pan. Let cool. (I put mine in the fridge) Must refrigerate - don't waste the time waiting for it to cool. You're going to want the satisfaction of cracking into it!

 

Step Eight

Cover hardened candy with parchment paper and tap with a mallet to shatter candy into small pieces. I skipped the paper, and found I had no flying particles! As I said above, I ended up using a heavy metal citrus press to break it up, not having a mallet on hand!

Step Nine

Use a basting brush and coat candy pieces with icing sugar. I brushed the large pieces, then broke them down a little smaller and coated both sides and the exposed edges. Very fun. 

 Step Ten

Place into favor tins. (I lined the inside with a cupcake liner.) Tie with ribbon and adhere labels. My size tin called for an extra large cupcake liner, and then I used a 3" circle punch to cut out some decorative paper, which I inserted inside the lid. I then printed out a holiday message on cardstock, punched it out with the 3" circle, and taped it to the bottom of the tin. 

This was such a fun project to do, and the kids were able to take ownership of it also. 

Thanks, Intimate Weddings Blog, for the great idea!

 

Tis the Season

Wow, I didn't realize it had been an entire month since I'd posted, and much longer since I'd posted anything of any consequence. 

I've actually been busy with lots of crafty projects, and have documented them with my Nikon, but those photos haven't managed to make their way to this blog just yet!

As a little reminder to myself, I'll highlight in some future posts:

• The super-cute pants I made for my son from an Oliver & S pattern (my first!)
• Some new Christmas decorations, including a new wreath and paper-circle garlands for the fireplace
• Adventures in the kitchen, including a few new recipes from my new favorite Western Woman, Ree! Totally inspiring!

I've just finished up my goodies for Meg's Sew Liberated Holiday Traditions Exchange. It's off in the mail to Annika in Los Angeles. I hope she likes my Christmas package...I'll post photos once I'm sure it's gotten to her!

Textures

Here and there, I've been gathering up things that seem to have a common theme ... texture. Whether real or illustrated, these beautiful treasures either feel distinct to the touch, or give the illusion of such touch.

Check out this beautiful French wire tray that I found at a  flea market last month. It's fairly small, just a bit shorter than an envelope, and I love it's gently curved sides and delicate, yet sturdy, wire frame.

In a local home furnishings store last week, I saw this remarkable paper on their walls. I immediately thought about the walls on which I'm contemplating grass cloth, and decided I had to have a sample to bring home. 

The multilayered paper is a combination of metallic finishes and cork products. It is fantastic! It's a Candice Olson branded paper, but I couldn't find the exact one on the website.

And last, but certainly not least, this super-cool faux-bois packing tape. I have no packages to send at present, but come Christmas, this will be decorating my kraft paper boxes. Or maybe some simply-wrapped gifts under the tree!

How Sweet It Is

Happy Valentine's Day to all. Ours was a very, very sweet morning.

Rocket Man

In the nick of time, I've finished a very sweet Rocket Man for my little man. Great tute here, by Ellen of The Long Thread.

Her instructions are easy to follow, and it was a pretty simple project, the majority of it finished in just two hours. 

My challenges:

I didn't have any regular polyfill, just rolled batting. So I sliced it into thin strips and then again into small pieces. The result is pretty lumpy, but I'm hoping it'll smooth out over time.

The pouch for the Rocket Man himself. Now, Ellen had some complex equations regarding Pi and such, which I simply can't fathom :-).  

So, I traced the widest part of the egg's circumference onto a piece of fabric and cut that out. Then a made a strip of fabric, about half the egg's height. I trimmed that strip to match the circumference of the cut circle, sewed the short ends to make a loop, and then sewed it, painstakingly, to the fabric circle. And that pouch to a same-size hole cut in one of the panels. I just sort of figured it out as I went ... the best way, I think!

I thought it was a great project, and I'm hoping it's met with delight.

Next up to photograph: The peg people family I made for my daughter, inspired by the goods found here.

Fete Success!

I can't believe I did it! We had a party, a real honest-to-goodness Christmas party, and while terrifying to  host such a big party, it went off without a hitch (well, only minor ones) and I think everyone had a great time. Woo woo!

Some numbers:

• 4 hour open house
• 96 adults
• 41 children (babies to young teens) +
• 6 jars of candy =
• 41 children jacked up on sugar
• 225 feet of cedar garland
• 6 spice balls brewing apple cider
• beverages consumed: uncountable
• food devoured: plate after plate after plate ...
• 1 child throwing up (mine, thank goodness!)
• 3 neighbors who stayed late to eat leftover Gruyere mac & cheese

Much, much fun was had by all.

I didn't manage to get pictures during the party, but I did get some of the house prior. Enjoy!

And a note to all you holiday party-goers: If you are so kind as to bring along a hostess gift, please take the time to sign your name on whatever goodie you may bring. We have such dear friends, and it seems like everyone came with a bottle of wine, some homemade breads, candies, or treats for the children. And probably half don't have a tag or card. I wish I knew, so I could thank everyone next time I see them!

Deck the Halls

My hands are tingling with cold and a bit itchy, as I've just finished hanging up umpteen feet of fresh cedar garlands. I have decked the front hall stairs, three mantels, and the front porch banisters and rails. All that's left to do is to run it up and around the front door, but I'm going to wait for my husband to do that (so I can supervise, of course!)

I ordered three piles of 75 feet each, and I think it's going to be just enough. I was hoping for some significant leftovers, so that I could make wreaths and do some additional swags and such, but I think I'll have to find them elsewhere.

Luckily for me, I have a sister-in-law who is a talented gardener and lives on a few acres, just near the city's limits. She has a number of beautiful old magnolias, lots of nandina, and other evergreens ripe for the picking. She's bringing me a bag tomorrow ... sort of a surprise goody bag!

* * * * * * 

Speaking of surprises and goodies, I just mailed off my swap for the 2008 Holiday Traditions Exchange, organized by the delightful Meg at Sew Liberated. My swap partner is Stephanie from Florida, and I hope that she enjoys all the little holiday treats that are in her package. I'll post photographs of her goodies once I hear that she's opened them, so as to not spoil the surprise.

* * * * * * 

For the first time in many years, we are actually hosting a party ... a real live party. We used to be the hosts with the most, but the arrival of two squirming infants sort of put the kibosh on it. 

I'm thrilled that we're back in business, and are hosting an Open House on Sunday afternoon. Hence all the decorating and decking of halls... It should be a big one ... I feel like we've invited everyone we know (and their children). 

I've got the food and drinks covered for the most part, but I need to think of a festive beverage that will work for both adults and children. Frankly, I'm not a fan of eggnog, but I will go to it as a last resort. I like a spiced cider, but I have the issue of keeping it warm. The kitchen will be occupied by the folks cooking the food, so I can't really keep it on the stove. Is it easy to get one of those large coffee urn-type things? Is that the best solution? Thoughts?

* * * * * * 

I haven't taken pictures of all the holiday decor, but here's a sneak peek:

When we purchased our ramshackle, tenant-worn duplex eight years ago, there were BAD chandeliers in all the rooms. Think cheap brass, trying to be ornate by tacking on gobs and gobs of plastic crystals. In every room. 

When we finally renovated a few years later, I couldn't wait to tear down those atrocities. But I picked off all the crystals, and put them in a plastic box to be dealt with later. Over the years, I've been working on them, slowly but surely. Unhooking each individual crystal, cleaning them, and reassembling them with new silver jump rings.

I've gone through perhaps half of the original booty, and have some gorgeous garlands to drape on my beautiful New Orleans-inspired chandelier.

But will it take me six years to finish the rest?

* * * * * * * * *

Wow, wow, wow. This is the kind of dress I would love to wear myself. Given that it's toddler sized, that's certainly not going to happen. But I'd love to win it for my daughter! Check it out at Grosgrain Fabulous!

The Fruits of Fall

I love an early fall afternoon like this. The kids are taking a long nap, NPR is on in the background, and I have a big pile of "need to do" projects and a small pile of "want to do" projects. Of course, I take the latter.

A trip to a local farm last week with the children brought forth these great 'cotton candy' pumpkins, as well as a small haul of traditional pumpkins and gourds. Our front porch is under construction at the moment -- well, actually, it's completly demolished -- so I have no outdoor space to display pumpkins. So, I've made one vignette for the front hall table, and the other for the dining room.

I read an article in Cottage Living last fall about "studding" pumpkins, and I promptly went out and bought some nailheads, which then were misplaced and before I knew it, it was January and all seasonal decorating was finished. They've been resurected, and although they cannot announce my house number in shiny metallic outlines, they'll look nice inside, too.