Finding [re]purpose

I've made another dent in my stuff-to-do-before-Christmas list. I know. It's only October. But another way to look at it would be: it's already October. That means November is coming and then it's just a blink before I realize that it's Christmas eve and I haven't taken down the handprint turkeys the kids brought home from school.

So... like many out in blogland, and other fantasy worlds, I will take baby-steps each day and be completely prepared for whatever's done, is done by Christmas.

Here's my start: I made some gifts! Yay me! I've always wanted to make gifts for friends and family but have never made the time to do it. Well, with my belt cinched a little tighter [and not because I lost any weight] this year, I'm making myself make time. 

This gift was inspired by The Wellsprings of Life, who was in turn, inspired by others. But visit her site for more info and how-to. I started with a thrifted placemat [set of 4: $1.50].

I made sure to get one that had corners and wasn't rounded off. I folded and pressed. Sewed up the sides and made 1" straight seams where the pencils go. The most time was making the straight seams, but all in all it took about 1/2 hour, start to finish. And here it is:

I'll add a pack of coloured pencils and ta-da! The sparkly bits and teal ribbon will appeal to my niece and little cousin. Add some colouring pages, books, maybe some paper dolls and the entire gift will cost less than $15. 

My godson's 1st birthday is coming up in a few weeks and here is part of his gift:

I was inspired by LilBlueBoo for this one. I loved bean bags when I was a kid. I also know that my kids would rather play with blocks or builders or boxes etc than flashy plastic light up toys. Sure, those things hold their attention for all of 5 minutes, but it's the non-moving toys that last the longest and get the most use. So, this is my contribution to my godbaby's collection of stuff he'll actually play with. 

The fabric is upcycled pillowcases. Even the cute dragon print on the back of the bags! I gave them a good thorough wash, cut to shape, pressed, stenciled the letters in fabric paint, let dry, sewed, turned, pressed, filled, topstitched, done! These took about 1 hour to do and most of that was cutting out "perfect" squares [note to self: get rotary cutter!] and the stenciling. I let them dry about an hour before I put them together. The Girl "helped" me fill the bags with dried beans and then had to test them out for 1/2 hour before I reminded her that they were for the baby and I would make her some of her own. 

What do you think?

Next up, I'm going to try my hand at some scarves.....

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