Gabriel's gift

In the midst of all my gift-making for family and friends, I received a special hand-made gift from my nephew, Gabriel. He's been getting really creative with a certain type of craft, which you'll see below. I think it's great!

From the moment we arrived that day at his house, he kept mentioning that he was still working on a gift and that I was not to go into a certain part of the house. Then, after a long day of playing and hanging out, it was time to open presents. Gabriel's eagerness could not hold out any longer, so I was the first one to receive a gift--his gift of love.

He did some wood burning on a frame, and I love it!

On it, it says, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart," Proverbs 3:5. This is one of my favorite verses.

Thank-you, Gabriel...I will treasure this gift always!

He also made some ornaments for a few others, including this one for Quentin. Isn't it awesome?

Coming up...one last gift I made for each family...I can't believe I forgot about this...it is SO. MUCH. FUN!!!

Abigail's scarf

There's somewhat of a craze right now with repurposing items into other things, and it's fascinating to me. Not too long ago, I learned how to make a t-shirt scarf (a picture of that one will be coming next month because I'm doing it for a M.O.P.S. craft). Anyway, there was another style that my sister-in-law and I really liked but had not yet learned how to do. I found the link to a video tutorial here and I learned how to make it. It was so much fun! 

In fact, I made one before I made Abigail's for a M.O.P.S. Christmas party. We had an accessory exchange for one of our games that night. My scarf was exchanged three times and all three gals who "owned" it loved it a lot!:) The last gal got to really keep it, but I've thought about making one for the other two ladies some time. I know they would be so surprised. 

Abigail really likes navy blue, so that's the color I used. I also made a felt flower pin for it if she'd like to pin it to the side. You really must check out the link above as it shows how it drapes so beautifully on a person. I have got to make one for myself one of these days, too! It's a simple craft that gives instant gratification to the maker and receiver. 

Not only did Abigail love it, but her kids seemed to like it as well. :)

Peek-a-boo house

When I saw the idea for this baby toy, I knew I had to make this for my nephew, Jedidiah. It is so fun and adorable and I enjoyed every minute making it. I actually made it on the day we spent with he and his family, and while I worked two of his older brothers watched. They are really into crafting, too.

This craft uses scraps of felt and recycled materials like cardboard and flip-top lids from wipies! Take a look below....

Isn't that such a novel idea? Behind each large window and door, I taped on pictures of his brothers and sister and his cousins on the Johnson side of the family.

To protect the pictures, I used packaging tape instead of regular tape. The rest of the house was constructed using hot glue. I knew that little hands are eager to pull things, so I wanted to make sure nothing would fall apart (or at least I hope it doesn't right away!).

Most of the kids gathered around Jedidiah showing him how to play with the toy.  We all had a blast watching him...isn't he just the cutest little guy?

Kit's box and nightie

I love surprises, don't you? I think I actually like being the one who surprises more than the one who is surprised. Alyzza has been wanting pajamas for her doll, Kit, but because I was already planning on making her one for Christmas, I down-played it any time she brought it up. And what better way to present this gift than to put it in a special box where all of the other doll clothes and accessories would go in, too.

And boy, was she sooo surprised when she opened up the box!

It's hard to see, but I hand-painted the top of the box with her initials and on the inside, lined it with felt.

Look at that look of surprise....

....and a hug for Mom!

She totally loves it, don't you think?:)

Here she is with her cousin, Annalina, who has another American Girl doll, Kaya. The girls enjoyed playing with their dolls together during Christmas break. And there's Kit with her nightie on--so cute!

This makes my heart smile.:)

Handprint t-shirt

Little S and I made a gift for Daddy, using materials we already had. We grabbed one of his t-shirts and paint to create this special memory.

I painted her hands with white craft paint. Then, using fabric paint, wrote, "I Love you, Dad....then her name with the year.

Super cute and easy! I love memory-type crafts, don't you? 

Framed Christmas Carol Print

This gift was fun to give to a couple of gals this year! You can find the free printable here, then print on card stock and frame it however you choose. I decided to put a red border around it by gluing the print onto red card stock. The frame and star (it was an ornament; just used some glue to keep it in place) were both from the Dollar Tree, so not only is this decoration so pretty, it's pretty affordable, too! 

Bird Nest Necklace

Don't you love Pinterest? It's a great place to find lots of ideas! When I was looking for ideas for M.O.P.S. crafts, I came across this beautiful bird nest necklace. I knew it would be too difficult to do in a large group setting, so I did it with the steering committee at our retreat. It was a huge hit! 

So....since then, I've made one for my sister-in-law, myself and the other ladies in the family. For Christmas, my sisters, Raquel and Sonia, my mom, and mother-in-law, all received this personalized handmade gift. My mother-in-law chose the colors she wanted while we were together in Tennessee, but for the others, I chose colors and the amount of beads to represent each of their children. Not only did this make a great Christmas gift, but it could be made for Mother's Day as well.

I haven't had a lot of experience with making jewelry, but the tutorial here was wonderful! I felt like I accomplished such a gorgeous piece without lots of hassle. Enjoy!