Elves Hard at Work.

And that we were. Here's what were busy working on before Christmas. Many thanks (and due apologies in some cases) to our recipients for their gracious acceptance of our first attempt at homemade Christmas gifts.

For Jack and Elyette: Coloring Books and Crayon Rolls
Santa stuffed these goodies in their stockings. The crayon rolls where made from some scraps their mom had and with the help of Boz's photoshop expertise, Santa used some existing photos to make coloring books.


For Li'l Baby: Bike Helmet.
Since Santa brought Elyette a bike with a little seat for her Li'l Baby, he thought Li'l Baby should have a helmet. So he made her one from a Styrofoam ball (so safe :)), paint, elastic, and cute buttons. Santa's kind of a dork, I know ;).







For Hannah: Scripture Tote.
Modeled after the tote I made for my niece, I made one for Boz's sister Hannah (whom I had this year). I just changed my exterior design a bit and changed the type of closure. I'm afraid I basically made Hannah get new scriptures just so she could use this gift (sorry about that Hannah!), but is was made with love all the same...

For Scott: Personalized T-shirt
As personalized as they come! Who wouldn't want a shirt with their own face on it? Boz gets full credit for this one. I only bought the shirt he painted on. We learned you can just use freezer paper to make a stencil, iron it on, then paint, let dry and VIOLA! (for more detailed instructions, google: Freezer paper t-shirt)

For Dawson: Personalized Sweatshirt
We had my sister Steph and her family this year. Their last name is Crook (to clear some confusion) so this was for my nephew. Like his dad's, done with freezer paper. I was going to make the sweatshirt too (since I found a tutorial I wanted to try), but in the end I couldn't find the fabric I wanted for a price as good as this Old Navy Sweatshirt, so there you go... (let me know if you are interested in that sweatshirt tutorial- it looks fun)
For Steph and Kaytee: Cosmetic Bags
Simple, but fun to make. I found coordinating laminated cotton that I wanted to try sewing with (interesting stuff). Steph's is the green dot one and Kaytee's the pink dot. They got stuffed with nail polish (more age apropriate for Kaytee) and such.For Brynn and McKenzie: Tiered Skirts
More matchy matchy. Well sort of. They're both eyelet fabric tiered skirts for my little nieces that live around the corner . Maybe its because Elyette wants to wear a skirt/dress DAILY that I've come to really love these on little girls. Very versatile.
For Grandma Rae: Apple Apron
Boz's grandma, Rae is a fabulous cook so I made her an apron (Thanks for the suggestion Debbie!). Inspired by this ADORABLE Jessica Steele apron Elyette got from her Aunt Hannah.For Mom: Padfolio and Pin Cushion
My mom is an EXCELLENT seamstress, so really I can't make her anything she can't already make 100 times better, so I made her something she probably wouldn't think to make for herself, but is hopefully somewhat useful all the same. The pin cushion pattern is by Heather Bailey and the Padfolio is by Sue Bleiweiss, though I made it much bigger, to fit 8.5 x 11. (PS: if you try the pin cushion use the smallest ribbon width recommended. I used the largest and threading it was a HUGE pain).For Mom and Dad/Gramma and Grampa: Painted Denim Patch Quilt
By no means can I take full credit for this very special gift. It's from ALL my parents posterity! This past July for our Smith Family Reunion (my parents and 8 siblings and their families) all 22 of their current grandchildren each painted a denim square for a quilt. I got to make the squares into a quilt. I didn't want to hide ANY of the artwork in seams, so that's why I did it the way I did. Thanks to my family for trusting me to do it!
For Elyette and Li'l Baby: Diaper Bag and Clothes.
This was probably my favorite gift to make. I was suppose to save this one for last because I just wasn't going to do it if I didn't have time. Man, I'm glad I did it anyway because it was Elyette's favorite too! I think Li'l Baby appreciates it too. The Friday before Christmas I just really wanted to start this, so ALL day, well as much as my monkeys would allow, I spent sewing the clothes (taking precautions to not reveal what I was making). After bedtime I set to work on the diaper bag, not really knowing what or how I was going to do it, but it was very exciting that it was working out nicely. Ok, I admit, I was up till after 3am completing it all, but it was soooo worth it. The best part is, and Boz would agree, this most favored gift was COMPLETELY FREE! All made from scraps and materials I already had.

Though, I admit, stressful at times, making gifts this year was a lot of fun and really rewarding. I can't make any promises, but I got so many ideas that I didn't get a chance to try that I think I'll for sure be doing this for years :), so watch out!