5 for 5 Handmade Gift Challenge

"I'll make five handmade gifts for the first five to comment on this post if you in turn re-post this in your status and make five handmade gifts for the first five to comment on your status. You have all year to complete these."

You can take this challenge in 2012. Go ahead and post it as your Facebook status. I bet you'll get several takers right away. The stipulation was it had to be handmade and it had to be done before the turn of the year. I didn't meet that deadline. I finished up in the first few weeks of 2012 but I kept my word.

So here's my handmade 5 for 5 lineup.

I saw this idea on the Martha Stewart show. An Etsy Shop owner had been invited on the show and gave a tutorial on how to make your own. Well I fell in love and knew I had to recreate this for my sister-in-law, Melissa. Doesn't she look adorable. Only a few more weeks to go! The Etsy Shop is called Culpeper General. If you don't have the tools or the time to create your own you can order one of these fabulous shirts directly from Shannon. She's got lots and lots of wonderful gifts for expectant moms and babies.

I gifted my friend Cindy with a cozy, flannel, infinity scarf. I also made a little flower pin with a fabric covered button. She can embellish her scarf or her handbag with it. These are really simple to make. Maybe I'll put together a tutorial in the future and post it here on my blog.

Okay, let me just say Facebook is amazing. I've been able to reconnect with so many people that I wouldn't have otherwise been able to keep up with. This crocheted hat went to a neighbor friend of mine, Jessi. She lived just up the road a field or two. Oh how I miss that country road.

This hat went to a college friend of mine, Holli. She was in the same visual communication program with me. She's a graphic designer as well. She told me she likes greys, blacks, olive green and chartreuse. I hope she likes the hat.

Last but not least, Lisa received this neutral, chunky hat. At least I hope she did. I haven't heard from her as of yet. Lisa was a childhood friend and part of my graduating class. This yarn is a wool blend and very warm. She resides in my hometown and lets just say the weather is much colder there than where I currently live.

I hope all 5 ladies were able to complete their challenge.

Are you willing to take the handmade challenge in 2012?

Linking up to Tatertots & Jello and The 36th Avenue.

Thanks for stopping by Blue Sky Confections!

Jenny K.

Posh & Colorful

...handmade pillowcases and afghan for my wee one who just so happened to turn THREE yesterday!

I made these lovely pillowcases using a designer cotton fabric. If you remember and have been following me you know I used this fabric to create some bike basket liners for a couple of my Etsy Shop customers. I absolutely love the colors and the floral pattern. It lent itself perfectly to this scalloped, crocheted edging in bright pink. This combines two things I enjoy, sewing and crocheting. If time serves me well in the coming weeks and I have small windows of creative time you will definitely be seeing more of this from me.

Over the coming months I will be decorating bedrooms piece by piece. They are sorely lacking in style right now and the pillowcases are a start for one of the 4 rooms. My sons room has been repainted and it's a perfectly blank canvas. I think I'm going to go nautical for him.

I'm also working on an afghan for my wee three year old. It started out as a baby afghan but because I did not finish it in time I'm having to enlarge it for a twin bed. I work on this a row or two at a time and the colors just so happen to pair wonderfully with the pillowcases. I'll be adding the same scalloped edging to the afghan that's on the pillowcases. Crossing my fingers that this is done sooner than later. I don't want it to turn into a wedding gift.

I was just watching Martha this morning and she had some style experts on saying that this year is a year of color. Lots and lots of bright colors and color blocking so my wee one will be on trend this year at least.

So these are a couple of gifts for my strong willed, independent baby girl. I also have one more in mind that I did not get to due to a lack of time. Now of course she's to young to get excited about this kind of stuff so she also got a new storybook, "Heaven is for Real".

Here she stands with her shirtless brother and her new book. For whatever reason he will not keep his shirts on while he's at home. I don't know why. It's frustrating! Anyways, they love when they're daddy reads to them each night so this book is a welcomed addition to their library.

 

Of course there had to be a new baby doll. That's all she ever asks for. She's got quite the collection and loves each one of them.

I hope to be sharing some more handmade love tomorrow.

Linking up to Freckled Laundry, Tatertots & Jello & The 36th Avenue.

Thanks for stopping by Blue Sky Confections!

Jenny K.

Some Things I Discovered This Week

...that I love.

Create your own handwritten font at MyScriptFont.com.

Krystina and Lollipops Cards gives a great tutorial.

I named my font Just Kidding. I'm not a big fan of my own handwriting. It's the tool I love and I plan to play with it a bit more and create some fun little doodles.

I'm also going to share this with my oldest daughter. I think she would enjoy creating her own font.

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Then there's this little thing called Instagram. I've seen it a lot in the blog world and finally checked it out for myself. A free App for iPhone or iPad making it easy to snap, snap, snap and share. I took a photo of my wee one using my iPad. The quality isn't fantastic but I love the fact that it encourages you to just take pictures and not get hung up on the quality.

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On a musical note there's this group, Edens Edge. I stumbled upon them via a blog that I visited because of a color palette I liked on Pinterest.

Social Marketing is a pretty amazing thing. Don't ya think? 

I just so happen to be a farmer's daughter (hobby farm) married to the preachers son.

I'm a country girl through-and-through right down to the music.

Photo by my friend.

Thanks for stopping by Blue Sky Confections!

Jenny K.

Belief in Yourself

...will propel you forward

Sometimes this can be the toughest thing to do.

If you're like me, you look around at the vast talent and the wonderful ideas and sometimes slump over with a feeling of failure. But I'm tired of that feeling. It is debilitating and only brings failure. There comes a point when we as women need to recognize that what we do, our gifts, talents and strengths are unique and valuable as well. To cast a shadow of doubt on ourselves is a slap in the face to the one who created us.

I leave you with this challenge today:

Appreciate and love your own gifts. This belief in your God given talents will begin to propel you forward rather than leave you with a feeling of failure.

Now go create something fabulous.

Thanks for stopping by Blue Sky Confections!

Jenny K.

Family Photo Session

This past fall my family and I had a photo session with my good friend, photographer and blogger. We traded services. I designed her business logo and she took our photos. If you're in the VA area you really need to give her a ring. You won't be disappointed.

We hadn't had family photo's done in a long, long time. I'm so thankful and grateful for this business trade because now I have some really fantastic photo's to document this time in our lives. I wanted to share the photo's earlier but the busyness of the holidays happened and I didn't blog for a long time.

I'm happy to be sharing a couple of canvases that I had printed up for our photo hall. I ordered them from Easy Canvas. Another friend of mine shared her photo canvas a while back and when I was checking prices before Christmas, Easy Canvas had the best price + free shipping. I also ordered canvases for my parent's and my mother-in-law as gifts. I usually try to do photo books but I was short on time this year.

You see the "K" above the door. I hand painted that. Now I want to change the wall color sometime in 2012 so it will be painted over and I'm sure I will paint another "K" in its place.

This is the other side of the photo hall. I've still got space to add additional photo's over the years.


I also used several family pics for our 2011 Christmas card which I ordered from Tiny Prints.

I hope to share another custom sized canvas I recently ordered for our master bedroom. It hasn't been delivered yet.

Thank you Stephanie McFarland for capturing our family!

Thanks for stopping by Blue Sky Confections!

Jenny K.

It's 2012

HAPPY NEW YEAR

From our family to yours!

Photo's taken by my friend, Stephanie McFarland.

Do you have any 2012 resolutions? A word that will be your personal mantra? Any great places you plan on visiting?

2012 came so fast I'm still thinking on it all.

I know I want to be more aware of what really matters. I want substance in my life not just fluff. Don't get me wrong frills and fluff are really nice but at the end of the day I want to be able to say that I made a difference. A difference in my children's lives, a difference in my husbands life, my parents, siblings and extended family.

I would like to be better at documenting lives milestones whether it be with a camera or a journal. I would like to hand write letters and notes to loved ones so they know I'm thinking of them and that they matter. I would like to speak more kindness into peoples lives to build them up and to see their strengths, talents and dreams manifest.

Have you ever noticed that when you begin to build someone up with words letting them know that you recognize their God given strengths, gifts and talents that it helps propel them into their destiny? It really does.

I'd like to spend a bit of time taking care of myself in 2012. Making exercise and healthy eating part of that plan. I'm usually the last one on my list and sometimes I don't even make the list.

I'd like to grow this blog into something really amazing and meet some of my fellow bloggers in person. I'd like to learn some new skill sets in photography, fiber art & sewing. I'd like to pick up calligraphy because it's absolutely beautiful. I'd like to learn some new software, mainly online magazine software and maybe even app creation.

I'd like to do some horseback riding and if I allow myself to dream really, really big I'd like to add a horse to our family in 2012. A larger family vehicle will trump a horse but I did say, "if I allow myself to dream REALLY BIG".

Oh... and I'd like some adventure in my life this year. I don't know what that entails yet but it needs to be something that makes my heart leap.

Well now that I took some time to sit down and type it out it seems I have a pretty good idea of what I want 2012 to look like.

May all your plans and dreams come to fruition and I hope and pray mine do too!

Thanks for stopping by Blue Sky Confections!

Jenny K.

A Handmade Christmas

At the beginning of 2011 a college friend posted this on Facebook...

"I'll make five handmade gifts for the first five to comment on this post if you in turn repost this in your status and make five handmade gifts for the first five to comment on your status."

Well of course I jumped at the chance because Jennifer was sewing even in college. I knew whatever she made would be beautiful. I also thought it would be a nice gesture for Facebook friends of mine. I had all of 2011 to complete these items.

I tossed and turned over what to make these women. I wanted it to be something useful and pretty. I wanted it to be something that would fit their aesthetics etc... etc... etc...

Time came and went and before I knew it, it was the end of the year and I had to hurry up and complete these handmade gifts.

So I started making these infinity scarves out of a soft flannel that I found at the local fabric store.

My beautiful daughter is modeling them for me.

I made a dozen of them. Two from each cutting of fabric.

Why so many you ask? Well once I started making gifts for Facebook friends I started feeling guilty that I wasn't making something handmade for each of my family members. I'm happy to say that each scarf has a new home as of Christmas with my husband being the recipient of one of them. However, with the 60° winter that we're having here in VA he probably won't need it. My father, brothers, sister, and the older niece and nephews unwrapped one this year. One of my FB friends will be getting this infinity scarf as a gift. "Part of the make 5 for 5 challenge of 2011".

I made this crocheted infinity scarf for my mom this Christmas. I used Lion Brand, WoolEase, Thick & Quick and I have to say I'm addicted. She's asked for a matching hat so she's obviously addicted too.

I crocheted this little tasseled hat for my youngest nephew using the same yarn. I made hats for my two youngest as well. I'll share those in another post.

My wee one is modeling it for the photo.

I also crocheted these pretty little hair pieces (headbands and hair clips) for my brothers daughters using the Stitch Nation wool fibers and bamboo fibers. I love the colors the collection has to offer. My oldest daughter also received a collection of crocheted flowers for her hair. I'll share those in another post.

The handmade 5 for 5 challenge got me into a gift making frenzy this holiday season and I still need to complete four more gifts. They are in the works and I will complete these gifts and mail them even in the beginning of 2012. My word is good!

I'll be sharing here on this blog as I finish.

Thanks for stopping by Blue Sky Confections!

Jenny K.