more wrapping ideas

Even the simplest gifts become more special when they are wrapped in a beautiful way.  Take the idea of the bakery bag you can find anywhere this season.  Pop in your gift and tie on a pretty bow add a tag and you're done..

Fabric bags are also a big hit.  They are easy to make and reusable.  Guestimate how big your sack needs to be to hold your gift and gather the top to tie it closed.  Cut 2 pieces that size plus 1/2" for seams.  Sew 3 sides together, use pinking shears on the top or fold over the top edges and stitch down.  Turn inside out and add your gift That's it instant gift bag.

packaging

The holidays are getting closer every minute and it's time to think about all that wrapping.  Now I'm known for plopping the gift in a bag with a couple of sheets of tissue poking out more often than not.  This year I've been searching for new and creative ideas for gifts.  Here's one  for those small little gifts, jewelry, ornaments, cosmetics, Chinese take out boxes.  They are cute, sturdy and easy to find.



these are 8 and 16oz boxes.



A quick Christmas stamp add your gift wrapped in tissue if you're feeling fancy and a bow around the handle.  You could even hang these on the tree to give to your visitors.

I'll use  mine for little soaps and lotions for tall those little gifts I like to give.

Thanks and giving

What a great weekend celebrating with the family.  The company was wonderful and the food was never ending.  I was however greatly saddened when watching TV by the greed and nastiness of people as they tried to get the best deals on black Friday.  Seriously people how important is getting the latest video game or $20 off on the latest clothing trend?
How blessed are we that live in a country of such plenty.  As you go through this holiday remember what it really is all about.  The birth of our Lord was the ultimate gift.  When you are out doing your shopping think for just a minute about those close to your home who are without enough food to eat, warm clothes to wear and possibly no place to live.  Every community has people with these needs and many more.  Give where you can.  You're are not promised a rich  life and all the things in the world can be gone in an instant.
Fill your coat pocket with dollar bills and give them every time you see a bell ringer.  Buy two of some of your groceries and donate  it to your local food pantry.  But a coat, hat or gloves for someone with out.  Donate the cost of one dinner out to a children's charity.  If we all did these simple things think about how much of the need in each of our communities we could take care of one dollar, one can one coat and one meal at a time.

Thaksgiving

Give thanks for all you have today.  Tell your  family you love them and try not eat too much.  Have a blessed day!

first public appearance

 We made our first public appearance as a business this weekend.  It was tons of work, totally exhausting and we learned  a lot.  The customers were interested and the response to our products was great.  We can't call ourselves rich with the money we made but we looked at this as a test of what needed work, what would sell what we can change to get our name and products out to the public.  I did craft shows back in the dark ages and had forgotten how physically hard this kind of show can be. 


Our booth  caught a lot of attention mostly because of our  display  and eye catching products.  We also learned we had way too much on our tables and should have stuck more under the tables and brought it out as necessary.




The lifts were great.  they could have been better spaced  maybe a different color.



Goats milk soap.  It's beautiful but didn't sell well.  We did have a tray with each kind of soap out so people could smell them.  Maybe some kind of info on the advantages of goats milk.





Bath salts too crowded and we were so busy we couldn't tell people what they were. 

 It was a great learning experience and the other vendors, Sandy and Michelle who ran the show and the customers couldn't have been nicer.  I don't really want to go back to the days of shows every weekend, but one every once in a while would be OK.
The biggest surprise of the day?  Our natural laundry soap.  We've been working on this one and had only brought a few jars to sell.  People went nuts over it.  I'll share the recipe someday.

holiday wreaths

My friend Kathy's birthday was last week and I wanted to make her something she could enjoy not just for Christmas but for all the winter season.  She had admired a wreath at a recent craft show we went to so I used that idea as my inspiration.
I bought basic green wreaths  and picked up some picks, flowers and snowflakes at the dollar store.


fluff the branches of the wreath to give it a fuller look



I like to put all of my materials in front of me before I start, here I'm using 2 kinds of little white flowers. Just hot glue them in so the bottoms are nestled into the wreath.



Add your focal materials.  Here I've used frosted looking fruit picks.




The last detail I added was 4" snowflakes and gold berries.  Yes that's my head casting the shadow.  I'm still not a good photographer.




The final product. 

The wreaths can be used through the winter season, on a door, as a candle ring or 2 wreaths stacked one above the other on a door or wall.  Total cost $15.00for the pair because I bought everything new.  Total time 35 minutes.

puzzle pumkins

I made these pumpkins a few years ago.  They are simple and inexpensive and my grand kids love them.  Sorry no before pics but you can get the general idea.
Here's what you need:
1X12 lumber for 2 times the size of pumpkins you're making.
Paint
Clear spray
Draw out the shape of a pumpkin on newspaper first.  Notice mine are all slightly different shapes.  Cut a slot 3/4" from the top half way down on one side, from the bottom half way up on the other.  This sounds way more confusing than it really is. Make sure the pieces will fit together.  Sand your pieces and paint with 2 coats of your base color.  Add high lites and shading to suggest the pumpkins ridges and curves, keep it simple.  Let dry and spray with 2-3 coats of sealer.  Store as flat pieces just so they don't get stuck together.