Soul Humming

Christmas Spirit

"A good conscience is a continual Christmas."

-Benjamin Franklin

It seems that more and more every year I hear people say that they just don't have the Christmas spirit. With Halloween decorations hitting the shelves while it is practically the 4th of July, we run right into Christmas so fast and furious it is a bit unsettling.

 

And as many people have had to cut back on frivolous things, Christmas can be stressful with all the shopping and constant urging to Buy, Buy, Buy. There are so many gifts to get. And the kids all want the newest technological gadgets, which can be very expensive. No one wants to disappoint. But no one wants to rack up debt either. That surely can squash your Christmas spirit.

I remember last year I felt pretty bah-humbug. None of my family is here. I haven't seen any of them for a holiday in the last 15+ years. Mostly, I put on a happy face and enjoy my husband's family. It is true what they say, you can never go home again. It wouldn't be the same, I suppose.

So this year, I wanted to try harder to feel the Christmas spirit. I don't just mean to feel the love of Jesus. That is of the utmost importance, don't get me wrong. But that's not exactly what I'm talking about. I mean to slow down, enjoy the season, and revel in the small joys. I want to use my words and actions to actually mean something. When I get a Christmas card, I want to appreciate it instead of sticking it in a holder and rushing off to the next item on my long to-do list. I don't want to wait to be invited, I want to create my own happy each day and share it with all around me.

I'm not up to anything magical. But I am making time to be with my friends. And when I am with them, I am engaged. I am listening and right there with them in the moment, instead of wondering if the bike I ordered has arrived on time.

I am making cookies and treats for the kids. And when they call me for the third time in a row to see the ridiculous things the dogs are doing, I get up from what I am doing to go to them. I need to give them my time, now, especially. They are small for such a short time and I can get caught up in shopping for them rather than truly seeing them. As much as they love new toys, I know they want their parents' attention and interaction even more. They want to be seen, as we all do.

And, it is working. I feel more calm this year. I've made things with my hands for gifts. I've put my heart into these things instead of just my debit card. I don't always make time to create gifts by hand. Life is too busy. So I hope these gifts are appreciated for what they mean.

To me they mean I Care. They are the simple paired against all that is gilded. And in sharing my heart through gifts, cards, hugs, walks, carols, and smiles, I discover that I am finding my way back to being full of Christmas joy.

How is it for you? Are you filling your heart with small happiness?

Are you taking time to be a Christmas angel for those around you? I hope that you are enjoying this season with love.

 

A Trip to Roger's Gardens

 

I met my girlfriends the other day at Roger's Gardens in Corona del Mar.

We have coffee together every Friday and have for the last six or more years. 'Love those girls!

If you've never been to Roger's before, it is a little intimidating to even begin to try and describe it to you.

First, it sits on seven acres on a hill above the sea.

It's been called America's Most Beautiful Garden Store.

And I can't imagine one more lovely.

They had amazing live old-fashioned Christmas trees 14' tall.

And while the gardens and accompanying buildings are fantastic,

it is inside the Gallery's 5,000 square feet in December

 

that takes Christmas decorating to crazy new heights.

Love the pheasant feathers on the tree top!

Little Boy Blue featured ornaments for a baby boy.

And Little Bo Peep was decorated in all pink for a little girl.

Looking into the Christopher Radko room filled with exquisite hand blown glass ornaments.

A snow angel ornament.

A stunning Santo with a skirt covered in milagroes is guarded by a band of St. Nicholas.

Every ornament you can imagine can be found here, even a Christmas Rat!

And today was my friend's son's third birthday.

He had such a good time watching the trains on the big track in the garden.

Everything is beautiful here.

If you get a chance,

Be sure

to stop in!

Merry Christmas!

 

 

 

 

 

Party People

 

“Life is partly what we make it, and partly what is made by the friends we choose." - Tennessee Williams

 

As promised, here are a few photos from our annual progressive dinner.

 

Liz's tree is always beautiful in silver.

We've been getting together during Christmas-time for seven years.

 

We start at one house for drinks and appetizers,

then move to another house for the main course,

 
and finish up at the last house for dessert.

 

We take lots of photos.

Lots and

lots and lots.

We eat.

We drink.

We play games.

And we laugh

and laugh.

And generally act very silly.

It was great, great fun. Thank you all for sharing in this tradition of friendship with us. You, my friends, definitely make this life lovely.

 

 

 

 

The End has Come - Day 12

 

Today's gift, a sacred token, the last of our fabulous exchange, comes from my dear friend, Pilar.

She sewed a clear pocket onto the front of the package. It is filled with peppermint string, glittering beads, a felt heart, and star.

The package itself is a stitched up brown paper bag.

So cool.

Ooooh! What's in here?

Wow! It is a gorgeous Virgin of Guadalupe milagro!

Pilar etched the virgin into a copper square then beaded and stitched it all onto a felt heart along with resin papers and dyed and stitched fabrics. Beautiful!

She added a gorgeous mercury glass button.

It's so pretty, Pip! Thank you so very much!

And that is the end of our happy exchange. Now I get to enjoy my Christmas tree with all these new beautiful ornaments adorning it. That is such a rich and happy blessing. I hope you all have enjoyed the ornaments along with me.

Preparations are underway...

2004

...For our annual Christmas Progressive Dinner.

Last year, it was our turn to serve cocktails.

And we had charcuterie.

And a nice cheese tray.

2009
This year we are in charge of the main course!

It's gonna be busy around here today.

I'll post photos after we have recovered from the celebrations.

Be sure to make time to get together with your friends this holiday season. I think it is wonderful to have traditions with all the people you love.

 

Eleven Pipers Piping

 

Today my gorgeous gift comes from my BFF Maija! I cannot believe it is the next to last day of our exchange. I think this has been the fastest one ever.

Life is so jam-packed during this time of year. It is nice to have something sweet to look forward to each morning. I will miss all this gift-opening on Sunday.

Maija has three dogs and two cats. Faelan is Very interested in her wrapped gift.

And I especially LOVE it all unwrapped! Look at this precious little felt house, all stitched with love!

I can't imagine sitting still long enough to make all these perfect little rows of dainty stitches.

And I adore this big green button! I love my house, Maija! Thank you, sweetie!!!

 

Ten Lords a'Leaping

Day TEN!

How'd we get to Day 10 already?

Sweet Joanna sent me this pretty, pretty present for Day 10.

And the inside is just as fabulous as the outside...

It's a beautiful snow angel.

Her body is like a little snowman's/snowgirl's

And she has wings!

I love her, Joanna! Thank you for making such a pertty Grace-filled girl for my tree!

Nine Ladies Dancing

 

And one thieving kitty cat. See her paw snatching the pretty, glittered bird that came on Lou's Day 9 present? Naughty kitty.

Lou McCulloch flew in this pretty parcel. It is sure to be a beauty...

Tra-la-la, LOU! It's awesome!

I love how the little snow house is colorfully painted and glittered. Charlotte is decorated with bells and surrounded by her Christmas tree and decorations.

It's fabulous, Lou! Thank you so much!!

 

My Ornament How-To

This is the very first felted dog I made. And, my real dog actually chewed it up. I had to re-do him which almost made me cry because they were so much work. I think Faelan was jealous.

  
If you've never needle felted before, I'm here to tell you it takes a long time to needle felt one dog with one needle. At least it took me a terribly long time.

And the needle is VERY SHARP. Out of twelve ornaments there were maybe two that I didn't drive the needle into my finger until it bled. Even when you think you are being careful it is easy to be lulled by the repitious quality of pounding the needle into the wool. And then, POW! You're bleeding.

There are also multi-needle tools that can be used. But because my dogs are fairly small (most are three or four inches long) a six-needle punch seemed like overkill. I don't think I could shape them easily with that big tool. So this one tiny needle and thousands of stabbings into the wool produced each little doggie.

I didn't read a book or take a class. I just made it up as I went along. So, here's the gist of how I made the pups...

First, I created a small armature with a single piece of 20 gauge annealed wire.

And then I wrapped it, bit by bit, with wool roving. Wool roving is wool that has been combed but not spun. It's pretty much like cotton candy.

One thing about that...All wool is not created equally. I learned this the hard way. The off-white wool was great for felting. It would matt up fairly readily. But this grey wool! And the black! Oh my! They were so soft and beautiful that they resisted felting at every punch. These took at least twice as long to felt as the off-white.It was very frustrating to realize this well into an animal.

So that's why I have so few gray or black dogs. Most ended up being white with spots of gray and black. So if you are getting roving, don't get an especially soft, silky kind for felting.

Then I placed the wrapped armature onto a block of foam (the kind you might find inside a cushion). It was on this that I felted the wool by driving the needle repeatedly through the fibers to wrap them into one another creating felt. First I did the body, then each leg and tail. Lastly I would do the head. Sometimes I would start felting the piece of wool before I added it to the armature. And I would felt layers as I went along so it wasn't one big puffy piece that had to be felted down. Finally, I created the ears individually on the foam, leaving a fluffy bit at the base to connect it onto the head. Then I added the eyes, nose, collar and a hanger.

Speaking of the hanger, each is made from the same 20 gauge wire as the armature. I made a loop at the top and hammered it.

Then I filed the end into a sharp point so it would work more easily through the dog's body.

After all that felting I didn't want to have to mangle the shape of the body in order to get the hanger through.

Lastly, I coiled the end of the hanger and bent it to act as a stopper and hold it in place. It's kind of like a belly button now. :0)

My little dogs aren't perfect. The legs on most aren't exactly the same size. But, I'm not a freak about that sort of thing. I like it when a piece has its own life. I'm the guide to bring it about. Besides, I think I'd go crazy if I were such a perfectionist.

So that's it. That's the basics of how I made my pups. I hope you enjoyed the how-to. And I hope I didn't frighten you away from needle felting. It was fun to make all the dogs for each of the girls. I really wanted to make each one to look like their own dogs. But that got a little nutty. And, I don't recommend starting at the last minute when you aren't sure how to go about what you are doing. lol!

 

Happy Christmas! I hope you'll be inspired to make some ornaments this year!

Today is My Day - Day 8

The Eighth Day of Christmas belongs to me.

 

I painted, glittered and wrote all over some craft paper to create my own original gift wrap for each present.

 

I also used some gorgeous vintage pink ribbon I got from Nancy at Gilding the Lily 

and an altered self-portrait tag.

And then I made something which is inspired by my crazy life. I made something in a medium which, prior to this, I've never worked, which made my life all the more crazy.

 
I made needle felted dogs.

Each one different.

With their own funny personality.

And each has gotten into the Christmas tree so they now wear a collar of lights.

 
I really, really wanted to keep them all!

They were so much fun with their fuzzy faces all together.

My boys begged me to let them keep them. But I told them I would make some for them for Christmas. So I'm busy with that. And, I  hope to have one or two in my Etsy store next week. If my fingers can stand it.

I hope the girls love them! I'll be posting a little how to about how I made them after I get the kids to school and make food for a special teacher's lunch and a few other things. But check back. It's be fun!