The perfect gift for a reader

This is actually the first piece of jewelry I've ever made. I saw this idea on pinterest and fell in love. I love to read but I especially love going back to my favorite books and rereading them. It's comforting to revisit all my favorite characters and stories. Maybe a lot like how my little 4 year old will watch her favorite movies over and over and over again. As I write this she is watching A Charlie Brown Christmas for the 3rd time in a row (she's sick so we are having a TV and pajama day).

I had a hard time deciding what book to use for this project but I ultimately decided that Lizzy and Darcy were my favorite. I also considered something from Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Jane Eyre (a very close second) and yes even Twilight (but only for a second). I could make more and carry all my favorite literally characters around my neck, depending on my mood.



All I did was make a photocopy of a page out my very well loved and reread book, Pride and Prejudice. It took me a minute to find the perfect bit of text, but I really liked this one with both "dearest Lizzy" and "Mr. Darcy" so close to each other.



I used this Diamond Glaze stuff that I've had on hand to adhere and seal my text to the jewelry. I found this little charm at my local craft store. It actually had something else attached, a little picture of a bird I think, but it was so cheap it peeled right off.





My husband and I both love to read. I think it was one thing (one of the many) that made us fall in love, our common love of books. We have a seriously cool collection of old books on our book self. Some of these books date back to the 1800's. It's one of my favorite things in our home.

Silhouette Ornaments

Just wanted to show off this cute Christmas ornament I made. That's my little P, my 7 year old, my middle child. I'm excited to have used photoshop for something creative! I made ornaments of my other 2 children as well but I think hers turned out the best.

Also I wanted to share this really neat idea I found on Pinterest. We will be starting this in our little family on the 13th of December. I'm going to be a little selfish this year and instead of doing the 12 days of Christmas for a neighbor I'm going to keep it in our family and do it with the children.

PJ pants for adults...

First off I want to say thank you for all the love I've been getting on my Christmas Pajama Pants Tutorial! It's been great reading all the comments and knowing I helped make everyones Christmas a little more homemade.

I've gotten a lot of questions about making adult sized pajama pants. I did make myself a pair once but honestly they didn't last long. I hesitate making them for me because a womens body has a lot more curves than a childs, and those curves are hard to work around. I consider myself a fairly medium sized person, but I have had 3 kids so the backside isn't as "toned" as it used to be :)

The basic idea for the adult size is you'll want to get enough fabric inches for the length of your leg, twice. I measured a pair of my most comfortable yoga pants and for me this is just over 2 yards. My yoga pants at their widest point are about 23", add a seam allowance and 44" wide fabric is just short of what I needed to get 2 legs out of one width of fabric. Since the legs of my yoga pants measured 36 inches long (and they are a bit long on me, but I like it that way) I bought that, twice. *Don't forget to add a seam allowance for the top and bottom, so to be safe I'd add about 4 or 5 inches to each leg. * Now, I think it best, because we all have wonderful curves to be proud of, you make adult women sized pants out of something with a bit of strech. That was the problem I had when I made a pair of pants for me and they eventually ripped along the seams.

I hope that answers some questions. The construction of the pants are the same for adults and I think if you used jersy knit or even fleece you'd have a more comfortable pair of pants that would fit a women better. If you just have to have those beautiful cotton fabrics though (that would be me) just make them roomy enough in the seat and they should work out, especailly if you reinforce your stitches along the crotch.

So be good for GOODNESS SAKE!

Is it just my kids who go a little nuts this time of year? I thought not. The "Santa's watching" thing only lasts for a moment and then they are back to WILD delight about the coming holiday.



So this year, in hopes of positive reinforcement, we are counting up the times the kids have been good. Santa will see our paper chain on Christmas Eve and is sure to be impressed!



The kids are super excited that it's almost reached to ground already, but I'm hoping by the 24th we'll have it wrapped around the kitchen. Every little good deed, from eating all their dinner, to letting mom and dad sleep in Saturday morning, to an A on a spelling test, gets an added chain.