handmade holidays, at last

i realize that we are now far past the holidays and looking toward spring, but i thought i'd share a quick run down of the very few things i made as gifts this past yule season. i usually try to make at least one thing for each member of my immediate family. the projects were pretty small this year. there simply was no time with a busy work-life schedule, so much sewing for the holiday market, and christmas sneaking up on us as it did! 

for tashi i made a fabric garland. she moved into the downstairs room this past fall and many of her gifts were geared toward updating her teen space and finding some decor for the walls. her room is still in flux so the garland hasn't quite found its permanent home yet, but for now she has it draped across a corner.

for dan i made a didgeridoo case. this was pretty exciting. i found directions here. 

my fabric wasn't quite long enough, so i added on fabric pieces to both ends, to give it a symmetry. i sewed the pieces on so that the selvage fringe would show. i like the way it turned out.

and i think dan is pleased to be able to sling his didgeridoo over his shoulder.

for tristan i made an apron. i made several for the holiday market and each time i made one, he would ask where his was. and so it was thus. the body of the apron is from a vintage fabric scrap my sister-in-law mailed me.

right now he prefers to wear it as a cape!

i offered to make my mom a curtain to cover the open space under her kitchen sink. 

it's cheerful!

i handed out lots of mug mandalas to family as well. i didn't sell a single set of them at the holiday market, but no matter, i think they made nifty little gifts and it was fun to see them used here and there. my mom's match some place mats i made her one year, and they look nice as part of the table setting.

simple, minimal, handmade.

tis the season to be grateful

welcome to my home

we have been lucky renters, dan and i. we have shared quite a few lovely homes to date. 

we started living together in a spacious edwardian studio on haight street in san francisco. lofty ceilings, latticed windows looking over the city to the east bay, a huge walk in closet, glass china cabinets, and an enchanted garden in the back, were a few of the stellar features. 

while our house in north oakland didn't really look like a house, it was a charmed flat above three garages. it had a large kitchen with art deco features and an antique stove, beautiful hardwood floors, big windows full of lacy light, and a healthy meyer lemon tree in the yard. 

our apartment in dharamsala was palatial by some indian standards; i was pretty pleased that my kitchen had a refrigerator. in ann arbor our home had a big stone fireplace, two acres of lush land with a natural pond, woods all around us, and a trail down to the huron river outside our front door. all of this within walking distance of ann arbor's downtown, the university of michigan, and my workplace at the food coop.

yes, i am grateful for this home, and all of my homes. 

and for yule trees. they are most certainly a reminder of the majesty of the green world, and when decorated, are light vectors. everything looks better when there is a yule tree in the room!

i have been a long time away from the blog. it always ends up a large time commitment, uploading all the photos, formatting, and finding just the right words. that time has lately been spent sewing market wares, running around a whole bunch, working, and being a mom. those things. 

i look forward to a renewed commitment to blogging, and writing in general, in the new year. and while i love selling things that i make at the holiday market, i will be happy to have some down time with my family once it concludes.

we march toward the solstice at an awesome clip. the world is so troubled and so stunning. i am grateful for this place. so many amazing people. my life. as the season of stress and consumerism steps up, i'd like to issue a grateful challenge. i will try my best to make a post a day featuring gratitude. and a good picture to go with it! does anyone want to join me?

happy, happy december!

around the house and into the holidays

things have been beyond busy around here. when there are small late night breaks i find myself a bit comatose in front of a movie, book, or the internets. it seems we have all managed to lift away the seasonal blanket of malaise after a series of coughs, fevers, heavy heads, and sore throats. and so we turn toward the holidays and think about food, gifts, crafts, and road trips. mostly i can't believe how quickly the days are passing!

autumn days around the house are cozy

there was indeed a halloween with my teenage viking and shy pirate

aunt sue visited

yia yia showed us a great trail behind her housing community

i saw abby epstein, co-producer of the business of being born speak at 

the birth matters virginia award celebration. she was fantastic. 

and it was a beautiful day at the lewis ginter botanical gardens.

i've been slowly making things for the holiday market. i am overwhelmed by 

ideas and inspiration but seem to just keep making the things i know how to make best.

i've also been working a busy couple of days weekly, helping with order processing and social media content at a local crafty business called cardboard safari. "like" their facebook page for fun posts and new product updates by me! here is tristan's billy the bison:

the trophy heads are packaged kits that you slot together. dan has a bull and tashi, a rhino. there are a number of creatures to behold - including a unicorn - as well as wreaths, trees, and even an end table. it's a been a fun (and busy) place to spend some time and works out well with my doula schedule. 

as i write this post, tristan is pulling down the winter solstice books from the seasonal book shelf. as we enter the time of darkness we make sure to embrace all sources of light. may a steady flame warm your days this season!

hand made (or assembled) for the holidays

aside from all the baking of biscotti, cookies, granola, and granola bars that's been going on around here lately, and aside from all the blanket & bib sewing i did for the holiday market, there were a few precious handmade gifts that found their way under the tree, and there are even a few yet to come! i blogged a while ago about the tiny trinkets tote i made for tristan. gratefully, we managed to make a few more things.

for tristan, tashi found some like-new hard cover copies of winnie-the-pooh and the house at pooh corner at a thrift store, sans dust covers. so she made her own dust covers. pretty sweet, eh? she has been reading the books, chapter by chapter, to her little brother, who is loving it. and my heart melts.

i put together an outdoor exploration kit for tashi and tristan, inspired by this book, also thrifted.

i had all sorts of ambitions about what i would make for the kit, and what i would find for the kit, which didn't entirely play out. but i think it turned out pretty well regardless. 

firstly i wanted to make an outdoor collection bag for both tristan and tashi. i managed to eke out tristan's on christmas eve, and i still owe tashi hers. i will either make a tashi-sized version of the same bag, or another bag altogether. 

this one is amy karol's simple tote, from bend the rules sewing. i apologize about the quality of the phone photos, taken late on christmas eve!

here is the kit, with all its stuff!

a couple of magnifying glasses. . .

a few guide books (to add to the bird, herb, night sky, and stone guides we already have around the house):

 some notebooks & pencils, for sketching out and writing down observations. . .

a sunprint kit, bird alphabet coloring book, and few books about the mysteries of nature for tashi to read to tristan. they had a successful first session of exploration, though tristan was determined to find bugs, and there are very few aside from stink bugs this time of year. he will learn a lot from exploring the outdoors with tashi, and they will learn a lot together. more heart melt-age.

every time we go to the toy store downtown tristan spends the entire time playing with the little table top sand boxes. so we made one. i found this wooden box for $1. we scooped up some sand from our outdoor sandbox. and we found this collection of cast iron space toys to add in. moonwalk anyone?



of course sand gets on the floor. so the wooden box sits in this bigger cardboard box, which helps.



i picked up these cloth napkins for the family, made from recycled cotton. and then i made some napkin holders with pearly snaps. i came up with the idea for the napkin holders, though i'm sure there are dozens of similar and/or identical patterns all over the internet! oh and the hedgehog and tree stump? they are salt and pepper shakers, found at a favorite local crafty store, o' suzannah. need an owl or a hedgehog or a spotted mushroom? visit o' suzannah!







in addition to owing tashi an outdoor exploration bag, i owe her a pillow, promised at her birthday, to match her new bedroom decor (comforter, rug, and lamp, none hand made!). and so a ruffle pillow from sweetwater's handmade home is in progress. it should only take an hour or two to assemble, but i must admit, a post holiday laze has taken over me. so i have all the fabrics picked out, and only the front and back fabrics cut out!

finally, here is tristan, working on his hand art kit, gifted to him from aunt nari. googly eyes, pom poms, crayons, and glue = true love.

by the way, part two is coming, where i show off the amazing things my mother knit for all of us!

did you make or gift or receive anything handmade for the holidays?