Holiday Bliss

The last week or two seemed to be the holiday of the shovel, heading out early each morning to deal with the snow that had fallen overnight or lately, chipping away at the layer of ice on the driveway. It's been wonderfully mild so being outdoors was a joy, but the real fun began when I returned to my chair to stitch.

I was the lucky recipient of the leftovers from the cream wool backing for Betty's 12 Days of Christmas, so I looked for a way to use them up. Pinterest to the rescue! Some time ago I had pinned a sweet pattern for tiny felt stockings and mittens from Shelly's Gingermelons blog, the perfect excuse to play.

Soon there was a armchair full of stockings waiting to be stitched. So far, I have made a dozen all told.

It's been ages since I've beaded anything, but I did find a beading needle in with my floss so I was off to the races. Shelly suggested using a disappearing marker to draw the four tiny sparkle lines that surround each bead but I just eyeballed it and they turned out fine.

Soon the elements started piling up in my shoebox.

The pattern called for pinking the cuff edge but I used the selvage from the fabric instead - LUV the look. This definitely gives each tiny stocking their own personality.

A quick addition of a fine cord and they were ready to be hung on the tree and shared with friends and family over New Year's Day dinner. I think I've only used about half of the cream remnants so there will be more made to use it up.

May the coming year be filled with joy and peace and much project bliss. Happy New Year everyone!....M