Holiday placemats

Now that Christmas is behind, I can share the homemade gifts I had to hide before. I absolutely loved making this holiday placemats and napkin rings for my friend Amie and her hubby. She moved in an apartment recently and I wanted her to be able to make a pretty table with her white porcelain set.

I knew this would be perfect for her because she loves grey, yellow and mustard. I bought the fabric with a big smile on my face then had fun figuring out making the napkin rings, making sure they are all distinctive.

I will certainly will do this trick again for a set to keep for myself.

A gift for the teacher(s)

This week it the last week of school for bug. I made a selection of brooches, barrettes and clips for the teams that took care of her: Teacher, aides, speech therapist, occupational therapist, psychologist. They took great care of my baby and helped her so much. We still have a rocky road ahead dealing with her language difficulties but we are on the right path.

Layla handbag going overseas

Another on-call week at work made for very little crafting time but I still managed a few minutes in the studio to finish  this Layla handbag reload for my sister who lives in Switzerland. When she saw the first  Layla bag I made she fell in love with the design just like I did. She wanted earthy tones, reds, brown and ochre and a long strap. 

 

This time I added bigger inside pockets, one with a divider and one with a gusset. 

And for a finishing touch I made a fabric flower in coordinating tone mounted on a brooch so she can either leave it on the bag or use it as a pin. And now this sweet ruffled handbag is going to its new home. A pretty accessory for my beautiful little sister. 

Love it ? You can purchase the pattern at :

Christmas gift exchange - What I received

Silly me, I forgot about checking the mail since Saturday. Thankfully, an email reminded me about it {wink}. The box was chockfull of advertising, bills (meh) and Christmas cards. But I had to toss all of that aside to open that big envelope coming from Dee, my exchange partner. 

I opened it and I almost squealed! Look at that gorgeous little bag. It's a piece of spring and summer to keep my heart all cosy and toasty through the long weeks until the sun gets warm again. It's sunshine and joy. It's almost an excuse to ditch my laptop and get an iPad - if Santa could take care of that - in the meantime, it's the perfect size for a small sewing project like fabric flowers.

And look at the fabulous buttons

And the pockets

And this sweet batik she used as a lining

I'm so happy. This bag just makes me smile.

And then, tucked inside with a sweet card, there was the cherry on the cake. Dee made a lovely art deco inspired glass pendant necklace. So sweet and delicate, the picture of a mother and daughter in a tender embrace. A lovely gift from a mother to another mother.

Thank you so much Dee, your precious gifts will long be cherished !

And thank you Linda for picking out the perfect gift exchange partner for me

Christmas gift exchange - What I made

Last summer, the Craftaholic Anonymous Christmas in July gift exchange shook me out of a depression tailspin and got me on the road to this craft blog. There was absolutely no doubt I was going to participate again. And again it's been really a great opportunity to create.  And after boiling for days (believe me it was hard), not allowing myself to blog about it so I wouldn't spoil the surprise, I finally get to reveal what I made for the occasion.

My exchange partner Dee and I exchanged a few emails over the past 3 weeks. As it turns out we have a lot in common. Both married to a soldier, both moved a lot, she even used to live in Maryland where my husband and I have settled after he completed his commitment to the service. We both love thunderstorms and crab cakes, Art deco style and fireflies. 

Her colors : Aqua and Chocolate. She trusted me to pick everything else about her gift. She did let out that she liked some of my projects, especially this one 

Sooooo 

This is the Made for Dee's  version : 

The front 

The back

And just because I loved that aqua satin so much

And I knew she would love it too

I slipped this at the last minute in the box

And this is the email I got the day she received it: 

Dear Caroline,

 I am speechless.  Your package arrived today.  I am madly in love with the pillow, and I already had that exact size of pillow form! So, the pillow is already on an antique Stickley buffet table and I've been sending out pictures to everyone.  It's just stunning and I can't believe you handstitched that binding!!  The flower brooch was the perfect final touch and I've pinned it to the upper left corner of the pillow.  Our bedroom is very shabby/French, with sheer aqua drapes that have a print that's quite art deco, and I have all white and aqua bedding on a cherry sleigh bed.  With the bed made up and all my pillows and yours dead center my bed is to die for!!!

 You are a doll!  I hope you like what I made for you - it's kind of nerve wracking as you don't really know someone's taste/style even if you do know what colors they like.

 BTW, the BACK of the pillow is just as beautiful as the front and the snaps and all the finish work you did is so professional.  You are a fabulous seamstress.

HUGE HUGS!!

Deanna

It really made my day.. actually it made my week. I'm so glad Dee and I were exchange partners. 

And I'll be sure to sign up for the next Craftaholic Anonymous Gift Exchange.