How was your Thanksgiving?  I enjoyed visiting with relatives I had not seen in awhile, joined in on Black Friday festivities with my in-laws, and wondered where all the time went.

It seems there was barely time to enjoy Fall decorations.  I packed them all up tonight, and am hoping to get up Christmas items before that season is gone as well.

My aunt gave me a ceramic cornucopia that my grandma made in 1972.  I love it!  I love the piece itself, with the curves and shape and color, but I especially am grateful to have a reminder of my grandma.  I will need to take a picture next year- I didn't get one before I had to toss the contents.  I filled it with mini orange and off-white gourds from Vala's Pumpkin Patch and corn and a hedge apple from our church Thanksgiving.

Below are the napkin rings (also made by grandma- no year though) my aunt used this year.

I love little touches that make something a little more special.  R and I co-hosted a jewelry party.  She did a beautiful job of preparing the food- scones, a cheese platter, beverages- and I provided the treat bags for the guests to take home.

Projects like this are so much fun because I can play on the computer, play with the sewing machine, play with paper and layers.

Continuing obsessions: sewing detail, chevron design

Correspondence Basket

I put together a "Correspondence Basket" for our church basket auction in September.  I wanted to include some watercolor pieces, but I have sold out of those cards- so I printed off some copies at home and added a little stitching detail.

Current obsession: striped bakers twine.  Rather than spend the money at a scrapbook store, I found a package of twelve colors at TJ Maxx.

Easy quilt cards- trim paper, adhere with tape, sew!

I've been fairly absent on here- with my hands in a few freelance and personal projects, I haven't had time to post.  That just means that I've got a stockpile of pictures to share!

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Turning to a wedding invitation for inspiration can be helpful when making a card- mostly when choosing colors or fonts.  If the look of an invitation sets the mood for the rest of the celebration, shouldn't the card reflect that as well?

Although I love perusing Archiver's and Hobby Lobby for fun papers and decorative elements- I can many times feel just as creative utilizing what I already have on hand at home.

Oh and I appreciate any opportunity to dip into my washi/decorative tape collection!

For "the Mama"

It can be so nice sometimes to take a break from the computer, and that's why I enjoy making cards with more textural elements, such as layering paper and sewing  (see previous post).

In progress:

Voila!  Birthday card for MIL that matches zebra pattern bracelet and tissue paper.