Homemade Holiday Was A Hit

This year, Jessie and I decided to do homemade Christmas gifts for our families. (minus the men. We just bought them stuff.) We were so pleased with the results. And maybe we need to have girls. Maybe.

After crafting for nearly 2 months on these bad-boys for our nieces, they turned out to be a hit on Christmas morning.
They are hair clip holders that hang on the wall. We also made a billion and a half hair clips to go on them.
Here is one with the hair clips clipped on.
Remember the octopus? I put them on top of the girls presents and thought they turned out cute.
For our mom's/ mother-in-law's, we made wellness bags. They consisted of:
Lavender Heat Therapy Bag
Eucalyptus Cold Therapy Bag
Cold Peppermint Headache Pillow

cold peppermint headache pillow

eucalyptus cold therapy bag

I'm bummed that I forgot to take a picture of them all together with the tags on them. They turned out great. And they work like a champ.

Hand-making gifts this year was awesome. I'd love to do it every year.

Did you make any homemade gifts this Christmas?

Please share. I need some good ideas for next year. It's never too early to start!

The Only Pet We'll Ever Have

Isn't he cute? I made him tonight for Brett. I've decided to name him Ocho. Is was the only name I could think of for an octopus that wasn't dirty, if you know what I mean.
I got the idea out of Family Fun magazine. I love that magazine.
I think I'm going to make these for my nieces in pink, purple and teal. I'll put them on top of their Christmas presents, instead of a bow. I think it will be cute. Fo shizzle.

Wanna make one? Here you go.

Craft Materials:

• Scissors
• Skein of yarn about 100 yards long (I used 170 yards)
• 3-inch Styrofoam ball or a tennis ball. (I used a 4-inch ball)
• 5 feet of yarn or ribbon, for tying the braids
• Tacky glue or glue gun
• Large googly eyes

Prepare the yarn:

• Cut two 10-inch pieces of yarn from the skein. Hold your hands about 3 feet apart and have your child/(husband) wrap the rest of the skein around them to form one large ring of yarn. Knot one of the 10-inch yarn pieces around the middle of the ring. Place the tied ring on a tabletop and snip both loops.

Form the head:

• Center the knot on top of the ball and drape the yarn so that the ball is evenly covered. Knot the other 10-inch piece of yarn just below the ball.

Braid the tentacles:

• Divide the yarn strands into 8 equal bundles, then braid each one, securing the ends with yarn or ribbon.
  

Glue on the googly eyes.

Time needed: 1-2 hours. Seriously.

For step-by-step pictures, click here.



I can totally be Martha sometimes.