I had a much needed rest over the holidays. I love to blog, to show you what I’ve made, and to encourage you to create too, but there was so much going on over Christmas! I have no doubt you felt the same way. If you’ve read the About Me section, you know that I’m a musician. I had a recital at the beginning of December for my voice and piano students and I sang a solo on Christmas Eve. I conduct my church choir, which sang three times throughout December (including one that we had to cancel when I was too sick to go to church, and then reschedule). And of course there are all the normal things to prepare for Christmas: cooking, shopping, wrapping, etc. But I also got to craft my little heart out during that time, and just couldn’t find a minute to show you all I’ve done! I made some from my own ideas or methods, and also crafted a lot of other people’s brilliant ideas, which I found on Pinterest. I thought that this week I’d let you in on all (or most) or what I’ve made throughout the Christmas season.
Sewing:
Car Seat Poncho
I’ve been thinking about making a car seat poncho for, literally, years. But I never did. Then, at our homeschool co-op, my friend said that she made a bunch for Christmas presents this year, and they’re so easy. I told her of my constant desire to make a poncho, and how I thought those days were over. So she came over three days later and helped me make one! And she was right, it was SO easy. When she made her poncho she followed a pattern, which she told me was confusing, so she taught me how to make it from her trial and error. So I made the one you see above, and it was so easy that I made another one for my nephew! If you think this is a good idea for a child in your life and you want me to show you how to make a Car Seat Poncho let me know in the comments and I’ll make a post on it.
Cape and Cloak
I made both the cape and the cloak exactly the same way, but my son insisted that his is a cloak, not a cape, and that my daughter’s is a cloak, so there you go. Fabric was seriously on clearance when I went to Fabricland, so I got my flannel for the car seat poncho for $4/metre, my son’s cloak material for $4/metre and my daughter’s cape material for $1.50/metre! And you should have seen their little faces light up when they opened them on Christmas morning. They all helped to make their own, and were allowed to wear it for the day it was completed, and they were each still so excited to receive it on Christmas morning. It was so adorable! If you want me to show you how to make a cape let me know in the comments and I’ll show you how to do it. If you’d prefer a cloak (haha!) let me know in the comments and I’ll show you how to make a cloak.
Crafts:
Christmas Crackers
And, of course, I made Christmas Crackers. If you want to see how you can make your own click here. My parents came for Christmas dinner this year (Woohoo!) so I made some for them too. The contents this year were: Me- hand lotion, Husband- beard oil, Dad- maple spread, Mum- socks, my son- flashlight key chain, and my daughters- stick on earrings. They all also contained a joke, a candy and a tissue paper crown.
Wood Slice Photo Ornaments
I made these wood slice Christmas tree ornaments for my parents. We had family pictures taken last year, so I used two of them to make these ornaments. There are lots of tutorials for these on Pinterest, but all you have to do is paint the wood slice with Mod Podge, put your trimmed picture on the slice, let it dry, then paint over top of the picture with Mod Podge. Allow to dry, then hot glue ribbon to the top so it can hang from the tree. They are fairly quick to make, and really look awesome. If I’d had more time or inclination I probably would have put “Merry Christmas” or a Bible verse on the back with my Cricut and adhesive vinyl. There are so many possibilities to personalize with these beauties! And they’re perfect for a rustic family Christmas!
Pine Cone Christmas Tree Place Markers
These were such a blast to make! I went on a walk with my kids and challenged them with finding the 7 most Christmas tree-like pine cones they could find. We let them dry out for a few weeks (we collected them in the rainy fall) and then we all painted them green…I may have done a few touch ups! After letting them dry I glued a wine cork on the bottom (cutting off the bottom end so they would stand up straight) and a paper clip on the top.
I saw these adorable pine cone Christmas trees on Pinterest, and then added the paperclip with hot glue to make them name card holders for Christmas Dinner. You can see the original post by clicking here. There are so many things you can do with these once they have a paper clip on the top. You could add a ribbon to them and hang them on a tree, or you could put the names of different cheeses, etc. to add to your charcuterie board.
Hardcover Book Purse
This awesome purse, made from an old hardcover book, I did a full post on. You can read the tutorial by clicking here. My babysitter loved it, just so you know!
Iron-On:
Canada Flag and Goose T-shirt
My husband requested this shirt in the summer, he even designed it – as much as he could anyway, not knowing how the Cricut works! For Christmas I made my son a matching one. He was SO excited when he saw it because he knew it matched Daddy’s! I made it on my Cricut with Siser heat transfer vinyl.
Adhesive Vinyl:
YETI Decals
Oh, the YETI Decals!! Apparently YETI products were one of THE gifts of Christmas 2019, and my family was representative of that. My husband got me one for Christmas, and I got him one too! I also got the YETI 36 oz bottle for Mother’s Day. So I took the days following Christmas to decal them! Take a look!
I also got my kids travel mugs and put their names on them with a little picture. I would show you (and you’d love them!) but I’m really trying to keep their names off of my blog, so when they’re 18 maybe I’ll show you!
Baby’s First Christmas Ornament
I bought got clear plastic ornaments and used my Cricut to cut “[Baby’s name]’s First Christmas 2019” from permanent adhesive vinyl, and put a snowflake on the other side. I was blessed with two new nieces this year, so I made them for these precious little ones.
Would you like tutorials for any of these projects? Let me know in the comments and I’ll be sure to post it. Which of these ideas appeals to you the most? What have you made this Christmas? Is there anything you’ve been putting off making – like me and the poncho?! I want to hear all about it!
But First We Craft 