One of our nephews just had a birthday, so I made him this card. We put a collector's coin inside that we had bought at Mesa Verde National Park this past summer. I used a star stamp as well as scrapbook paper to create this card. The rest of it was hand-written. This simple card might give you an idea on what to do for an upcoming birthday.
I have been busy working on making Christmas gifts for family. (I'll show those pictures after the new year, so that they remain a surprise!) In the midst of all of that, I was asked to make a few costumes for the upcoming Sunday School Christmas program. I've never done anything like this before, but I was supplied with a sample, picture and measurements to go by. This picture shows one of the outfits I made--an overcoat with an undercoat (tunic). Instead of making separate sleeves, all I did was cut out two pieces and stitch them together. In the back, a notch was made to make it easier for the child to slip his head through. I hemmed the neckline, sleeves, and bottom of each tunic.
A couple years ago, my husband and I received silver snowflake ornaments at a Christmas dinner. They seemed too large for our "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree, so I decided to use them to hold our Christmas cards. All I did was attach blue ribbon and paper clips to the snowflakes. I also used push-pins to hold them up. As the cards come in, I just paper clip them to the holder and we have a simple and elegant decoration in our living room. Currently, these hang right above an end table where the snowmen reside this holiday season.
This past spring, I worked long and hard on making myself a shirt I could wear during the summer. Since it was my first try, I bought cheaper fabric just in case it didn't turn out. There are several mistakes if you look real close, but I thought it turned out well. I used an "It's so easy, it's Simplicity" pattern #3732. There are a couple variations to this shirt, so I think it's something I can definitely make again.
I bought material at Walmart and did snaps in the back since I'm a beginner sewer and have yet to master the technique of doing button holes and zippers. I have a new babylock machine and am excited to keep learning the many techniques of sewing. With three babies on the way in our family, this pattern may come in handy in a few months. There's also a pattern to do boy outfits as well, so I'd better get practicing just in case!
For the past two years, I've been able to make cakes for our school's annual Fall Festival. It helps raise money for the senior class. Cake walks are a lot of fun to participate in. Everyone walks around on numbered squares taped to the floor while music is playing. When the music stops, the moderator picks a number out of the hat and whoever has landed on that number gets to choose a cake off the table.
My husband LOVES books! He can spend hours at a time reading. Because of his busy schedule he doesn't do that so much anymore, but he still finds time every day to read. For last year's birthday, I thought I'd make a book for him to record all the books he's read. He has a few loose sheets that he can't always find, so making this book journal was the best thing for him. All I did was buy a blank book and used scrap booking paper to decorate it. I did this on the front as well as the back cover. I found paper that had the words, "dream", "imagine" and "explore" and cut those out to place on the front cover. I titled the book, "books!" I used rub-on transfers to spell out those words onto a tag that had a metal border around it. I also used metal brads for a decorative touch. There you have it--a journal for the book lover!
I decorated these boxes for two nephews last Christmas. The box on the left was for the coin collector. I lined the bottom with felt, then hand-painted his initials on the lid to personalize it. For a special surprise, I put some coins in the box from different countries. The box on the right was for the car enthusiast in the family. I painted wooden letters that spelled "CARS", then hand-painted the rest of it to say, "Isaiah's cars." A painted road went completely around the outside of the box. This box was also lined on the bottom with felt. My husband and I found some toy cars that he would like, including his favorite at the time, a Dodge Charger. Perhaps you are thinking of the kids in your life that may be into these things, or perhaps into something completely different. You can make boxes to hold all sorts of things: art supplies, marbles, or bugs and nature items. At craft stores, you can find boxes with handles made out of card board, wood or tin. Let your imagination soar, and post pictures of your latest creations. I would love to see what you come up with.
I decorated these boxes for my nieces to use to store their doll clothes. I first used some fine grain sand paper to smooth out the wood. Then I stained the boxes a medium wood color. 
a flower stamp and dipped it into pink craft paint and stamped all over the box. The leaves were a different stamp, so I dipped that into green craft paint and placed the leaves on the flowers. I used a paint brush to paint a dark pink dot in the middle of the flowers. I also used the paint brush to write the girls' names on the top of the boxes. The inside of the boxes were also stained, but I also did one more thing to give it that final touch. I bought sparkly pink felt and lined the bottom with it. After placing the doll outfit I made for each of them inside, there was still plenty of room to put several more outfits and accessories for their dolls. I know that the girls have a special place where they keep these boxes. They really love having a personalized box to keep all their doll stuff in.
