turkey feathers

Chillin'

Although the sun is shining brightly, as it has been all week, it's barely 11 degrees here this morning.  Only two degrees warmer than yesterday at this same time--without the chill factor.  Not as cold as some places, but nonetheless COLD for here in the northwest.  Happily, Christmas has taken over my kitchen.  My favorite way to warm up is to turn on the oven, tie on an apron, and bake something.  This will serve a dual purpose because the girls and I are planning a craft party next week--and that requires festive food and refreshments!

But before I start measuring, sifting, and mixing, I thought you might like to see how the tissue cozy turned out.  (It's so cold that, apparently, even the tissue box needs a wrap ha ha.)  What I wanted was something cute for the kitchen though.  So, looking to my collection of Swedish/German coloring books for inspiration, (via dear Ida Bohatta-Morpurgo, in particular), I got the idea of cookies--dangling on "strings" or in this case, peppermint-candy striped butcher's twine.  A nice effect I think.

    Now...time to go bake up a storm.

For the love of felt...

I've been obsessed with felt food like this lately.  Particularly these pancakes, although I am really loving my Scandinavian cookies at the moment.  I've been thinking about making this holiday tissue cozy for awhile now.  Temptation got the better of me.  Will let you know how it turns out.

   

Red & White Sweeties

Ok, maybe just a little more sweetness from MCI for good measure.

  (Check out that awesome colonial stove.)   It's all so good! 

 These candycane hearts inspired me to create something special.  Grab it here.

 

Pretty in Pink

No news today. . . but how about a little more inspiration from Marie Claire Idees? Can't decide which I like better, the crochet tea cozy, or the PINK cups. 

December Daze

It suddenly feels very cold in our neck of the woods.    (November, in contrast, was mild, golden, and mostly gorgeous.)  It's wonderful to have our tree up early this year.  We usually go out for it later in the month, but decided to take advantage of the dry weather over the weekend.  With what little light we have this time of year fading away early in the afternoon the warm glow is a cozy comfort.  And there's nothing quite like the fresh scent of pine to get you in the mood for Christmas fun.  I've pulled out all of my Gooseberry Patch books that I've collected here and there over the years and am feeling very encouraged and inspired.  There's something about all that collective enthusiasm that's so appealing, and I love how it all began with two friends. 

 We did a minimal amount of decoration, adding only a few ornaments.  I'm STILL using these recycled paper stars I made a few years ago (blogged here and again here).  The larger scale adds a playful element, but a string of smaller ones would be *swell* too.  Maybe I'll play around with that idea.