Happy Thanksgiving! Lucky us, my mother is cooking this year. All we did was bring our Tofurky! Have a great day.
Alphabet Book
My four-year-old and I have been going around the house taking photos for an alphabet book that will be a gift for her sister’s birthday. Eva has really enjoyed finding things that start with the all the letters and I think Laura will get a kick out of it. We included some of her toys, food, parts of the house and pictures of our family. I’ll add the text and then we’ll upload them to a photo site to make into a book. But if you couldn’t use Photoshop to add the text, you could just add it as a caption. This has been a really fun project. We’re just missing a few letters!
Liberty of London
In the midst of an unruly number of projects, holiday shopping, birthday planning and vacation preparation (not to mention that I can’t walk across a single room in my house without stepping on a bead or tiny toy), I’m thinking about spring. Perhaps this is a form of escapism? But I’ve had these Liberty of London fabrics stuck in my head all day. They are very expensive, but I’m thinking of Easter dresses now. I’ll need to hone my sewing skills a bit because it’s a different ball game when you’re working with fabric that’s $35 a yard. But aren’t these embroidery hoops such a nice display? I keep running across this image from PurlSoho. Ahh, I love fabric!
Preserving Children’s Artwork (Part II)
I had to add some images of this snowman drawing that Eva made. I digitized it and embroidered the design on some hand towels. See my recent post about preserving children’s artwork. This time she had me make some changes after I scanned it into the computer (she wanted to change the hats) and she picked the thread colors. We’re going to give these to the grandparents.
Also, I had another thought about children’s artwork after watching Eva get super excited about these rubber stamps from the small object. You could turn a drawing into rubber stamps! I think a simple line drawing would make a fabulous rubber stamp (and a great stocking stuffer). Here’s a site that can do it. The customization feature is not totally user-friendly, but you can see your design after you upload it.
And I love the idea of making your child’s drawing into a stuffed animal. Here‘s a nice example from Fruit of Her Hands:
Thanksgiving Centerpieces
I’m not one for fussy centerpieces but instead like something simple, artfully arranged that will last a while. Right now we have some squash and pumpkins, a couple of low candles, and bundles of wheat decorating our table. I made a runner from burlap that was leftover from the scarecrow. I keep seeing the Martha Stewart pumpkin candles and wish I had a grown-up occasion to light some candles. Seems like the guidelines when it comes to centerpieces are: keep it simple, keep it low and avoid overpowering fragrances. Glittered pumpkins on a silver platter, glass bowls of acorns, several small vases of hydrangeas and berries. I think the only essential is that you have candles, and the more the better.
And if you have a sideboard, don’t forget to display those beautiful desserts so your guests can save some room. How about this apple spice cake baked in a pretty bundt pan? Yum.