Home made Santa bag

I've been going to the post office with lots of boxes the past few weeks(YAY) and been feeling like Santa.  One lady at the post office even commented on how many boxes I had.  I've been using big black trash can bags( how attractive!) but could only get a few boxes in them at a time.  And they get holes torn in them, too.  So I decided to make a Santa bag!

I'm not very good at sewing but I can sew a straight seam, sort of. ;-)  I bought 2 flannel throws, stitched the bottom with 2 seams just for strength, stitched up each side, and folded over the top into a flap to run some cording through for a draw string.  I used an old drapery tie back in purple.  I tried to sew some black satin ribbon along the top but that didn't work.  I just had to rip that out.

flannel throw bought at the dollar store

I set up in my daughter's old room to spread out

this is the bottom

this is up the side

5 boxes, one 12 x 12 x 8, four 10 x 8 x 8

ready to go to the PO

I'm heading to the post office right now.  Then we go get our Christmas tree this afternoon. HO HO HO!!! 

Christmas Open House

Christmas open house at the shop today was awesome!  We had people there starting right at 10 am and didn't really slow down till almost 3:30.  I love to do this every year. And I always thank my regular customers so much for choosing to support my little local business.  I have some customers that have been buying from me since way back when I used to do craft shows and have continued to buy my work through the years.  I even let people cruise the "Etsy" room and sold some stuff out of there.  And my smart phone was so handy to be able go into my shop and deactivate items.  I would love to get a Square reader to do credit cards but we are in a dead zone for signal and I don't think it would work.  As it was, I had to go down to my husband's shop where he has wi fi.  But I got some exercise!

This gets me in the mood for Christmas!  Listening to Christmas music all day, and you know I love Charlie Brown Christmas and Mannhiem Steamroller the best.

Tomorrow, I'll get started on some more decorating at the house, my blue and green tree that goes in the front room we call the parlor.  My sister is coming to spend the night and will help me.  She loves, loves, loves to do Christmas!  So we'll put some more music on and have a good time!

Come on in!

Look around!

There's stuff in every nook and cranny

This little table top tree is a button tree(and all kinds of other stuff).
I bought from an artist several years ago who had work at the gallery where I demonstrated.
Every year she would bring them in and get gone
before I could get on.  So 2 years ago I grabbed one first thing.

 

Pumpkin bread muffins, chocolate chip cookies and the Pillsbury cookies with
the Christmas trees in the middle, rice krispie treats and hot cider.  OMG, I'm full!

 I still have lots of stuff and some things will make their way to my Etsy shop or maybe given as gifts.  Or just stay on the shelves.  But for now, I'm tired but happy, a good tired when you know you've been busy.  

Are you in the holiday spirit yet?

Christmas in July!!

Gold star ceramic ornaments

If it's July, it must be Christmas in July on Etsy!  My sale is running July 2-29. I'm using Etsy on Sale this year to automatically give my sale section a 15% discount.
http://www.etsyonsale.com/shop/WillowTreePottery

I've got a variety of items in my CIJ section, some holiday themed but most are just good pots that want to go home with someone else.  I'm hoping to clear out some shelves for more stuff!  You know I make a lot of stuff!

And you know, Christmas will be here before we know it!

Christmas time is here

I'll have to admit, I've been too busy to post for awhile.  With the new baby in the house we aren't on any kind of schedule, yet.  But I did manage to get the Christmas decorations up.  I started in the front room we call the parlor with the artificial tree.  I can put it up at my leisure or maybe just not as frantically.  Then the house decorations go up, wreaths on all the doors, Christmasy nick knacks here and there and then finally the real tree in the living room.  That just happened last Saturday.  It's already starting to drop needles so I hope it will last until Christmas day.

I put on the Christmas music while I put everything out.  Charlie Brown Christmas and Mannhiem Steamroller are the favorites, any version of Carol of the Bells and I love Sleigh Ride by the Boston Pops Orchestra.  Silent Night always makes me cray.

Then baking starts.  Many batches of Pumpkin Bread for gifts and for eating by the family.  Christmas sugar cookies will be tomorrow.  Then we'll have a big Christmas Eve dinner.  I hope to get some rest Christmas day.  I'm really tired.

Front door.  I just started doing the trees by the door and the swag is now artificial garland with lights. I used to do it all with cedar branches that just ate my hands up but decided the artificial looked just fine.  

The main event.  The real tree.  Decorated with ornaments collected over years and years.  All the little things the kids made in school, hand made ornaments and some vintage glass ones.  One year the tree fell over and broke lots of the ornaments and the vintage point that we bought when we first got married,  I cried!

The parlor tree all in blue and green lights and blue, copper and silver ornaments.  I love this tree.

Dining room table will be loaded down with food in a couple of days.

Fresh from the oven pumpkin bread.

Here'e the recipe.  I got it over 25 years ago as a recipe card from the grocery store.

3 1/2 cups AP flour

3 cups granulated sugar

1 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 tsps baking soda

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 cup salad oil

4 eggs

2 cups canned pumpkin

Sift together all dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Bake in 2 well greased loaf pans 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool and sprinkle with powdered sugar.  

Enjoy and Merry Christmas!!!

White Christmas in Georgia

The impossible has happened.  An almost white Christmas in Georgia.  The snow started falling on Christmas day and continued through the night and is still falling as I write.  About 6" so far!  Looking at decorations with snow out the window is almost surreal.  Did we get transported to an alternate universe?

This year's Christmas was a challenge.  I came down with the flu a week before and just barely got the tree up and presents wrapped. Fortunately, I gave art as gifts so didn't have any shopping to do. I hate shopping.

Family was here and that makes the holidays special. Christmas Eve dinner is magical and even if I don't feel good makes me happy.  My daughter and I made cookies and listened to Charlie Brown Christmas(was there ever a more perfect Christmas album?) and Mannheim Steamroller.

So we'll watch the snow and mark this year as a Christmas to remember for many reasons.

Moving day in the mountains

Yesterday was spent helping move shelves, display boxes and cases from the Heritage center in Tallulah Falls to the new location in Helen.  It's amazing the amount of work we got done.  But then we are a determined group.  My big red Ford F250 was loaded to the max.  We made it to the new location in one piece even if we did take it slow!  This will be a new set up for the Georgia Heritage Arts Association.  I'm really excited about it.

This Sunday we'll go and start setting some of our things up.  I'll probably have to consolidate to a smaller area but that just means I'll be more selective.  So, hopefully, Jaymi will be ready to open by Oct 28.

I'm making progress on open house for the studio.  I've got an ad coming out in the Hometown Neighbor magazine with all the details, Nov. 26 and 27.  We doing the Black Friday thing as well as Saturday.  I've got all the post cards ready to go out to all my mailing list people.  So, Christmas shoppers, bring it on!!