Merry Crafty Christmas!

Merry Christmas! I wanted to share some pictures of our minimal holiday decorations, including our concolor fir that we love! We chopped one down last year, and they last forever! They have a more unique look than other Christmas tree types, but you have to be careful as they are not the best with heavy ornaments. This was the first year I put out any of my Dept. 56 houses my mom and others gave me growing up. I put a few under our tree and some in other places in our living room. 

I mentioned it is a crafty Christmas in my title, and over the next few days my plan (the best laid plans...) is to post on the different homemade gifts I made for people this year. I'll link to the tutorials I followed for most and offer any tips or ways to avoid disaster that I found. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas! On to the pictures...

Twas four days before Christmas, when under the tree

All these presents had vanished, packed up to leave

The stockings were hung under the TV with care

Precisely perched, the remote sensor not to ensnare 

Alright, I'm done with the poem thing. It's far too long to continue :)

And because I already gifted this item and have no plans to tell you step-by-step how to create your own, a picture of one of my gifts.

This is the largest rag quilt I've made--11 rows of 8 squares--and I won't make one this large for awhile! I actually started it for my friend Sarah for Christmas 2010, then her birthday 2011...finished for Christmas 2011! I've made about five or six of these before, but I always made them for babies or toddlers. Sarah really wanted one her size (she's a grown-up) yet still made of "little kid fabrics." I'm happy I was able to deliver this year. And don't worry, I also gave her a second present to make up for the lack of gift last year--it will be included in a later post.

I'll leave you with the tutorial my friend Jana found when making some of these for her daughter. There are several out there, and instead of using batting for the middle layer, we both used more flannel. Enjoy!