Inspiration and Light

What a wonderful time of year!  Decorating with lights and fresh greenery, a time of giving, and getting together with loved ones.  This has been the first year that the majority of my gifts have been handmade.  I've had the desire, and with spending most of my time at home these days, it seemed like the perfect time to make it happen.  What worked well for me was to begin thinking about it in the spring and summer.  Whenever I came across something I liked, and had the skills and resources to create, I would save it.  If it was in a magazine, I kept the page, and also created a "Gift" document to save all the online inspiration. There is always so much swirling around my brain, I need prompts to remember. 

For the bookmarks, there was online inspiration, but no tutorial followed.  I basically sandwiched colorful fabric in between some linen, and cut either a heart or banner in the top piece of fabric, and stitched them together.  Pretty easy.  There were pinking shear challenges, so they're not exactly what I envisioned, but perfectly serviceable, nonetheless. 

The needle book and pincushion were finished yesterday.  The button I picked for the pincushion seems to have the same marble effect as the fabric and paper.  I had cut out a felt flower to apply to the needlebook, but after stitching the lace, I decided to leave it just as it was.    With the Winter Solstice arriving last night, daylight begins to lengthen once again.  Here's to the return of the light!