Finally Finished!

They're finally finished! It only took over a month to get them completely done. Ugh! Here's a couple of close-ups of the dolls. So cute!

The lighting wasn't the greatest. Actually, it started to rain today. Which is always nice ... sitting at the craft table while it's raining. Anyway, I have to figure out what project I'm working on next. Maybe a couple of pouches, I don't know. Or some flower accessories. I only have a couple more days of admin leave, so I have to make the most of what's left. We'll see what tomorrow brings. I'll have to get these dolls photographed and posted in my Etsy shop.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas. The hubby and I spent it at home, alone. We went to Mass. Then spent the afternoon watching holiday movies on Hallmark! Since I did NOT want to spend the day in the kitchen, we ordered one of those holiday meals from the grocery deli ... you know, it comes with the turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, etc. Umm, will not be buying that again. The turkey was okay, but everything else was "pre-fab," as my mom would put it. I think Stove Top Stuffing would have been better. But, at least I didn't have to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Maybe the $100 choice from Whole Foods might have been better. Maybe the best thing is to bite the bullet and cook the meal myself. Next time I had better go home to Kauai to enjoy my mom's cooking. Hahaha!

Progress

They're bald and legless, but I'm making progress. Slow progress. I think the yellow strawberry dress doll is my favorite of the bunch. Here's a close up:

I think she's sweet. Tomorrow, her hair goes on and her legs get attached. Oh, and I can't forget about her bloomers! Stay tuned for tomorrow's update, and maybe a new project.

Gifting

I spent all day yesterday in the kitchen whipping up some holiday treats for my Kauai family. It rained all day and it was just great being at home (as opposed to work)! Unfortunately, all that rain meant no light for photos. So just imagine a huge batch of Chex Mix and some Peanut Butter Cinnamon Pretzels. I packed everything up and sent it off in the mail today. Hope the family likes it!

I spent a portion of today with two friends. We had a nice lunch, as is our annual tradition. Can you believe we get together only once a year, during the holidays. What a shame. We live on the same island. We had so much to catch up on. And knowing that I would be seeing them today, I put together a little gift for each. In addition to the snacks I made the day before (I had LOTS, I still do), I gave each a pouch I made:

I had two of these that I had made a few months ago. I followed Skip To My Lou's tutorial found here. It came together so quick and easy. And since I've been on a baker's twine, kraft paper and paper doily kick, here's how I packaged the pouch:

The doily was a little small for the package, but it still looked cute. And it matched the snacks, which were packed in its own kraft paper bag with red tissue. Pretty! And quick (believe me, I was up past midnight getting everything together).

So the last two days of admin leave have been pretty busy for me. Thankfully, tomorrow is all mine! I will be sitting in my craft room finishing off those four Annie dolls and perhaps starting something new. Maybe something for the Guava Girls line ... I have got to get that going. My fabric closet is so chock full of fabrics that are all meant for little pouches, clutches, etc. And there's always more fabric that I'm always drooling over. But I'll save that post for another day. Until next time, happy crafting!

Hi! It's been a long time.

Hola! It's been far too long. My last excuse for not blogging was my move to a new place. Well, that took place back in September! And we're pretty much all settled in. Sadly, there hasn't been much crafting going on here. But, like last year, I'm on furlough for two weeks. Wonderful! And I hope to get some crafting in somewhere in there. My poor Etsy shop is almost empty. Oh, wait! I am working on 4 Tiny Annies ... remember her? See her here. So perhaps I'll finish them up within the next couple days and get them in the shop. A bit late for Christmas, but better late than never!

And speaking of dolls, here's the last crafty thing I worked on. Very old and vintage-y looking. I have a few more to sew and stuff, but I need to tweak the sewing around the neck area ... I think I followed the outline too much, resulting in a small neck, which doesn't stuff well. So these 4 will sit on my bookshelf and keep me company!

That's it for now. Hopefully I'll be back sooner than 3 months!

Moving

I am in the middle of moving from a 1 bedroom apartment to a 3 bedroom townhouse. The good news is that I hope to have a dedicated craft space. It'll be small, but better than having it in the bedroom. The bad news? Moving!!!! I'm tired and sore! And the stairs! And I don't even want to mention the amount of stuff that I have accumulated! Craft and baking stuff coming out of my ears! Most of which have not been touched (heck, seen) in years! What a nightmare! But I will be de-stashing big time; now is the perfect time. So I hope to be back after I've gotten everything out of the old place! Wish me luck...

Crayon Rolls!

Last month, my mom asked me if I wanted to get a table at their local hospital craft fair in November. Hmmm ... what to do, what to do? As much as I would love to, I have a ton of things coming up. I'm moving to a bigger apartment (with a room just for crafting!) and a short trip to Oregon in October. The move is the biggest thing scaring me. My small 1 bedroom apartment is crammed with stuff, and yes, it is mostly crafting stuff. My poor husband, what he puts up with! But, I figured I could at least start on some crafty goodies just in case I do end up attending the craft fair. So the first thing I worked on were these:

Crayon rolls! Fun!

These were really fast and simple to do, once you got all the prep work done (cutting, pressing, fusing). The worst part of it was sewing the lines for each pocket. I will mention that careful measuring is essential! My first roll ended up with only 15 pockets! Yikes!!

I was able to use a few fabric oldies, but I also got to go and buy some cute new ones! Like the little Hawaiian kids above. They came in pink and blue. Perfect! I did try to put rick rack around the edges, but that was harder than I thought. I would miss stitching some of the rick rack, so I gave up. I later figured out that the rick rack I was using was just too small. So next time I will need to purchase the regular sized packages and maybe give it a try again.

I did about 10 rolls. I think my favorite has got to be these old-time cowboys and cowgirls They're so cute. And I chose red bandana print as a coordinating print. Cute! For some reason, they just remind me of Pioneer Woman's ranch kids!

Sew what's next? Baby minky blankets! See you soon and happy crafting!

Dear Blog,

Yes, I have been MIA. And yes, you have been neglected. All I can say is I'm sorry and I'll try harder. I do have lots to share. Some fun crafty stuff I've been creating. A big apartment move coming up. A trip to the west coast in October! And what ever happened to the cupcake baby shower? See, lots to share. But it's late and my eyes are droopy. Real soon! I promise.

Signed,
Marlene

P.S. And since you asked for a photo, here's sneak peek at a little flower I created a while back; just ignore the dark shadow!

Dear Author of this Blog ...

... where have you been? I sit here, waiting for content to share with all the world. But you're not to be found! Will you ever come back to blogland? Even just to share a photo or two? I will keep hoping and waiting for that magical day you log in and post something. A neglected blog can dream, right?

Signed,
Your blog

The New Year Has Come & Gone!

Wow, it's already the end of February! So much has gone on since the last post. Some good, some not so good. Our new year saw a medical emergency ... one that has us at the hospital daily since January 3rd! My dear grandmother was flown to Oahu, underwent surgery, was in ICU for over 6 weeks, and continues to be in the hospital. But she's getting better every single day! Thank you, Lord! Constantly going to the hospital to be with her (who wants to be alone in a hospital?) and driving family to and from the hospital has finally taken a toll ... yep, I've come down with a stinkin' cold. Ugh! So I haven't been able to drop by the hospital for the last two days. Gramms will probably scowl at me when I do finally show up. Thankfully, Jess has been going.

So needless to say, I haven't done any crafting, cooking, baking or anything fun! And once again, have ignored blogland! Remember the raggedy from Furlough Day 2? Well, here she is:

She's such a cute size! And I love her pink dress! She was eventually going to make it to my Etsy shop, but has been brought to the hospital to (hopefully) bring a little sunshine into grandma's room! I definitely need to sew another ... she was so quick and easy to do! Now to find the time to go work on another!

Did you know that the best people are born in February? Yep, it's true. Moi! Hubby! Dad (one day after me, what a great gift you got, huh?)! Brother #1, born on Valentine's day! Sorry mom, you missed February by one measly day! Bummers. So yes, a lot of birthdays. My b-day happened to fall on Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent, so no nice dinner for me. That's okay, Hubby didn't get his b-day dinner either (too stressed out and busy). But that just means we get to have a huge treat once Lent is over. Hahaha! But back to February birthdays ... like I said, only the best people are born in Feb. And meet our newest little addition to the February b-day pack:

Isabella Corinne, my newest neice! She's adorable! You should see how she has her parents (of cupcake wedding ... no, they wasted no time!) wrapped around her tiny finger. I haven't seen her in almost a week, and now with this cold, all the more so I need to stay away. Can't be passing germs to the little one. I'm sure the next time I'll see her she'll have grown a bunch! I better get over this cold soon ... I need to squeeze the little bambino!

Funny, I refer to her parents' wedding as the "cupcake wedding" because of the more than 100 cupcakes that I baked. Addy must really like cupcakes ... because her baby shower also had cupcakes. It was bakery themed. And while it was a lot of work, I think we pulled it off. Maybe I'll blog about the shower in my next post. Until then ... have a great day!