Introduction and My Tentative Christmas Gifts List

Hi everyone! I'm Tanya from Craft Couture by T.C. This is the first time I post in the Crafty Christmas Club. (Thanks Tilly for letting me participate in this fun activity :)).

This is the first year I will give my family, friends, co-workers, etc. some handmade gifts.

My current list:

My boyfriend - a photo album (scrapbook), Kindle case, and an amazon gift card to buy e-books

My mom and aunt - frame pouches

My sewing friends - camera strap cover, arm rest pin cushion from a tutorial made by Amy @ During Quiet Time

My students - a mac book sleeve, some small frame pouches

My colleagues - small pouches, facial tissue pouches

These are all I could think of right now. I will try to update my list again. :)

Thank you everyone for sharing some great ideas. I have really enjoyed reading your posts.

My Crafty Christmas plans

Hi, I'm Helen from Josie and May. This is my first time blogging with Crafty Christmas Club (thanks Tilly for setting this up!), but I did enjoy reading all the posts last year and I've been making presents for friends and family for quite a few years now.

I''m not making too many presents this year - partly due to the amount of time left, but mostly because I'm knitting this beauty for my brother in law -

He's been pestering me for a Mark Darcy sort of Christmas jumper for years, so last year he got the pattern for his present, with the promise of a finished jumper this year. So far I've finished the back, and am up to rudolph's nose on the front.

It's not perfect. There are a few places where I've switched yarns and it's a little loose or I've not wrapped the yarns properly, but nothing that can't be sorted once I've finished. And it's hard work having four balls of yarn on the go at once.

Last year I'd planned on making some decorations, and even got as far as buying the materials, but I was channelling my energy into finishing presents so never got round to them. (Also, as I'm don't spend Christmas day itself in my flat, I never feel like I *have* to decorate - sad, I know!).

So this year I'm determined to make lots of decorations in short bursts to fill my flat with Christmas cheer. First on the list is Christmas bunting using these fabrics (from Beyond Fabrics on Columbia Road and Seamstar).

I may need more than these three fat quarters, but I'm going to see how many triangles I can get from them before I start buying more!

And no home is complete without a wreath. I fell in love with this ribbon wreath when I spotted it last year.

http://thelongthread.com

This all black one is for Halloween, but I bought green, red and gold satin ribbon from a market stall last year (I'm hoping I don't regret not getting grossgrain ribbon, but the amount needed would cost more than I was comfortable spending). Rather than buy a foam wreath I got some wire, so I may need to pad that out a bit before I start tying the ribbon.

But then this year I spotted this on Pinterest. So if I can find the foam wreath then I'm hoping to make this one too. What? More Christmas wreaths than bedrooms is totally ok, no?

Source: domestifluff.com via Helen on Pinterest

I will be making a few make up bags using Flossie Teacake's excellent pattern for presents for friends and family. Best £3.50 I've spent on a pattern - I've made so many of these!

I've been planning on giving my Mum this shawl from a Rowan book for, oooh, probably 5 years. That's how long I've had the book and the yarn (Sirdar Wash and Wear double crepe dk). But it took me a long time to get my head round the lace pattern, and now that I have the brother in law's jumper is getting in the way! Hopefully this will be ready in time, but if not it'll make a lovely Mothers Day present.

Kashmir Shawl in Rowan classic alpaca (book 13)
Source: www.englishyarns.co.uk

So that's the crafting sorted, and I haven't even thought about baking! I'm organising and taking part in a Christmas bake-off at work, so any suggestions of Christmas themed goodness kindly accepted!

A Slightly More Organised Gift List

So after my very rough and ready ideas post a few weeks ago, i have now come up with a much more organised list! Quite possibly prompted by the only-2-months-to-go fear, I sat down today and wrote a list of the people i am planning to give gifts to this year, and worked out what i hope to make/buy for them. I realise that this kind of organised approach is probably the usual one for most people, but it helped me so much to have everything written down properly on paper rather than an abstract list in my head. Before the task of making any presents seemed so overwhelming that i was a little confused about where to start, but now i have a much better idea. Ahhh, Zen!

So my current list (which may change again as i realise how realistic it may or may not be) is:

- Knitting needle roll for my mum, probably based on Wendy's very helpful tutorial

- 2 or 3 scarfs, for the men-folk (Dad, Brother, Boyfriend)...as many have lamented on here, men are notoriously hard to craft for. I figure i can't go wrong with scarfs, right? I'm thinking a basic rib idea, i did see a pattern somewhere but if it doesn't turn up not the end of the world as i have a pretty good idea of how i would like them to look.

- A washbag for my Nana, probably a larger version of this little bag i made previously...

 ...only with some kind of waterproofed fabric/lining if i can figure out where to get this from!


- For some little people i know (both under 6 months) i am thinking baby quilts and perhaps also a patchwork toy as i fell in love with this one, both based on Cath Kidston patterns. I have this fabric for the quilts which i love, I'll probably mix it with pale blue polka dots.

- For another little person i need ideas...he is 2 yrs old so i think perhaps a bit old for a quilt? Any input welcome!

- Also a (somewhat manly!) apron for my boyfriend, who loves to cook

- For my two or three of my best friends i am thinking perhaps bags...something along the lines of a simple over-the-shoulder messenger bag. I have not looked at patterns yet so any ideas welcome :)

- A couple of small makes for crafty friends...i thought perhaps pin cushions or something along these lines

- For other friends, my boyfriends family and also probably for my family i would like to make some sweet treats. I love the idea of making Lebkuchen but I'm a little bit concerned that these might go off after a day or two, so i am also looking to make some goodies that will last for a few days so that i don't have to make them immediately before giving. I'm currently thinking fudge...flavours i am drawn to include Cherry and Coconut, Rum and Raisin, and how could i possibly resist the sound of Baileys and White Chocolate?

So that's that's the list! At the weekend i went on a course where i learnt to applique. I absolutely love my newest skill, as i think there are so many options for adding personal and unique touches. So expect to see this technique cropping up all over my Christmas makes!

That's all for now...hopefully the next time i post i will be able to report some progress on this rather long list...!

K xx