Handmade For the Holidays

Every year I try to make my family handmade gifts.  I usually make one or two things, then give up because it's just too frustrating and time consuming.  But I vow that year will be different!! Maybe.  

I just placed an order for a bunch of yarn from Knitpicks.com in hopes of having a lot of time to knit.  But I do have a new addiction.  You see Michael made the mistake of getting me a new book called Warm Fuzzies: 30 Sweet Felted Projects.  Basically it is full of things to do with felted sweaters.  I love this book.  I have spent a lot of time at my local thrift store buying inexpensive wool sweaters to shrink and cut up because of this book.  

My first felted project was a vest for the boy.  I took a nice sweater, shrunk it, cut it up, sewed it back together in the form of a vest and then added a robot.  If you think that isn't the coolest thing ever-- you're wrong.

This book also has a very fun pattern for adult sized mittens. I decided to modify them to make a pair of mittens for Madison.  This was NOT a good idea.  They were really hard to sew together because they were small.  However, in the end I produced a decent pair of mittens.  

I had to add the dark blue band of felted ribbing to the inside of the gloves because the glove openings were too wide and would have let snow in.  They weren't perfect so I just gave them to her.  I'll have to make her something else for Christmas.