December 28, 2017

Handmade for Christmas

I hope you have really been enjoying this holiday season! I certainly have been, especially the relaxing because we are off work for two full weeks 😊

And now that all of the Christmas presents have been opened, I can share the things I've been working on!

First up, I embroidered 3 dragonflies for my mom. They're all done with only backstitching, which I found to be soooo relaxing. The pattern is from I Heart Stitch Art.
Dragonfly embroidery | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com
I stitched all three of them using Aurifil 12 wt thread, in colours 2784, 2720 and 5005. I loved them all!
Dragonfly embroidery | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com
Dragonfly embroidery | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com
Dragonfly embroidery | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com

Every Christmas I make each of my boys a special ornament that reflects their year in some way. You can see previous years' ornaments here.

Aiden is still all about music this year. He played in a music festival during the summer, called The Gathering. He and some friends were the band for a local musician and it was Aiden's first time playing at something other than school or church.
Cross stitch ornaments | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com
This was Zachary's most-used phrase all year long! He has always been an avid reader, but it was really pronounced this year as he'd come every couple of days and ask if we knew of anything else he could read 😊
Cross stitch ornaments | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com
Around this time last year, Nathan started walking with a man who walks his beagle, Gertie, past our house most days. They walked together throughout the whole year and Nathan even went with Shaun on the bus he drives a couple of times. Now he considers Shaun to be one of his best friends. This cute beagle pattern is by Lucie Heaton.
Cross stitch ornaments | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com
I made two of these cute "joy" signs, one for me and one for a friend. It's my adaptation of a tutorial by Ashley of Make It & Love It. I used a canvas and painted my letters, rather than using metal letters and boards for the background like she did. I was pleased with how it turned out, and it was much faster than making a quilt, lol!
Joy sign | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com
And last is this cross stitch I made for my husband. As soon as I saw the pattern, I knew I had to make it for him! It was really hard to find time to stitch it secretly, but I managed to get it done 😊 I gave it to him unframed and he'll pick out the frame himself.
Star Wars cross stitch | DevotedQuilter.blogspot.com
For the record, cross stitching on black fabric is nearly impossible! I needed to have a white piece of paper on my lap all the time, and sometimes I even needed a light under the paper, in order to be able to see the holes in the fabric.

The pattern is by Lucy Smith of Crazzzy Stitch.

Phew! With all that hand stitching, plus the fidget blankets I made, I ran out of time to make the ornaments I planned to make. Of course, that could have been solved if I had made all of my ornaments in time for the blog hop back in July, but oh well. Maybe next year!

Did you make any gifts this year? Or did you run out of time and not make something you planned to make?

10 comments:

  1. These are all beautiful, Leanne. I hope you had a very Merry Christmas! My husband and I make a calendar every year as our main gift to our families. :)

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  2. Your ornament ideas are amazing! Your kids will surely treasure them forever. All of your handwork is so creative and meaningful.

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  3. Wow! What amazing gifts and ideas! The dragonflies are beautiful and I love that you framed each one. Great idea on the kid ornaments, something they can look back on and remember specific times in their lives. And the cross stitch for your husband ... that is so cool and such a unique gift! I'd say you did good!!

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  4. Cross stitch is in the air and I love it! I'm seeing it every time I turn around. I really enjoyed watching you share sneak peaks of the one for your husband on Instagram. Homemade gifts are the best and I'm sure they will be loved by all.

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  5. I love your handmade ornaments for your boys. What a great tradition. I used to at least purchase ornaments for my 2 kids and when they flew the nest, I gifted them with their ornaments. I stopped doing that several years ago, and they have mentioned it. So, yes, children like that tradition....young or adult!

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  6. Beautiful cross stitch. The ornaments are so special and make a great gift.

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  7. Leanne, all of these are so wonderful! The different blues of the dragonflies look so nice grouped together in their crisp white framing. The personalized ornaments for your kids are fabulous - what treasures to have as a recording of the years! And the Star Wars stitchery is awesome. I can well imagine the challenge of the black!

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  8. Leanne, all so thoughtful and creative gifts. Hoping your holidays are going well.

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  9. The dragonflies are beautiful. You did a great job with all your cross stitch projects. I'm sure it was difficult hiding your husband's gift.

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