Cuckoo Clock!

Hello Everyone!

I feel like it's been forever that I've posted but I just looked at the date and it's only been a week. I guess the holidays made it feel like a lot more time has passed.
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and spent time with your family, friends and all your loved ones. I know I did! I've noticed as I am getting older and because I live far from home and most of my family that I really appreciate the time I get to spend with them. I still really hate how far I live from my Dad and my cousins =(
I got a lot of amazing and thoughtful presents but the most amazing of all is the cuckoo clock Jeremy got for me!!
My friends and he joke that I'm like an old lady. I like old stuff, I crochet, I don't know...apparently I'm like an old lady. So a few weeks ago I text him to let him know that I will have cuckoo clocks one day, just to add to my old ladyness. I've always loved grandfather clocks, my great grandparents have a beautiful one that I loved even as a kid. I was at a craft/auction store a few weeks ago and saw this giant, beautiful cuckoo clock. It was a ton of money but I fell in love...and that's where it started.
A couple weekends ago Jeremy went to the city (NYC) to visit a friend and let me know that he was on a scavenger hunt all day looking for my gift. I had no idea what he could possibly be getting for me. Then he told me he finally found "the one" and bought it from "a shady Russian guy on Bleeker St. who insulted him" Haha!!
We exchanged gifts at his Dad's house on Christmas Day (except the Big Ass Xstitch which I gave him Christmas Eve at my apt because I wasn't sure his Aunt, Grandmother and little cousins would appreciate it very much). On a side note, I don't think I've made anything that he was so impressed with. He couldn't get over the amount of stitches in that thing and how long it took. He seriously stared at it for 15 minutes just looking at all the little stitches. He brought it to his Dad's house anyway but left it in the car and asked his Dad to go outside with us when we were leaving so he could show him. His Dad kept asking me all these questions about how I made it; how much thread did I use, how long did it take, where did I get the picture, etc.! I kind of got embarrassed, I feel weird talking about the things I make for some reason.
However, it was really gratifying to see Jeremy appreciate how much time and effort I put into something for him. That's not to say he doesn't appreciate everything I make him but he was really impressed with this!
Anyway...this is the beautiful, German cuckoo clock Jeremy gave me!!





This is the rabbit on the lefthand side.



This bird is on the right side.



And here is Mr. Cornelius Cuckoo(yes I named him.)





I had this sitting on my dresser since Christmas waiting for Jeremy to help me hang it up and show me how to set it (it takes almost a whole day to get the time right because you have to keep adjusting the leaf to make it go slower or faster). Last night I couldn't take it anymore and hung it up myself. It's right in my hallway and looks so cute!
Two things I learned about cuckoo clocks that I did not know...
A. The chains are super long when the pinecones are pulled up to the clock! Seriously long, they touch the floor!
B. Those pinecones are super heavy, I'm talkin' so heavy that if dropped one on my toe, I'm pretty sure it'd break!

I am madly in love with this clock and just kept going out into the hallway to look at it! I am so lucky to have such a thoughtful boyfriend!!

One more Kitty

I had made these two other Domestic Kitties for Jessie a few months ago. In reality I started them all a long time ago but never finished them.
Her one main Christmas present that she asked for this year was an apron. My sewing machine was sort of broken until Sunday so I had to come up with a back up plan in case I didn't get it fixed in time.
Luckily! I fixed it and felt pretty damn proud of myself that I was able to figure out what was wrong and then that I could fix it! (The feet that pull the fabric through the machine dropped down and the thing that I slide so that it pushes them back up, wasn't pushing them. So I just pushed them up and clicked them in place myself, yay!)
In the meantime I finished this kitty which was about 90% done. I just had to finish the scarf, ground and add a border.







Thanks for looking!

Woodland Creatures!

Man I have been a busy bee with finishing Christmas gifts! I found all these adorable patterns by Crafty Alien and decided to make my sister a few of the Backyard Critters.
She loves woodland creatures, I think it's because of all the Disney movies but I'm not sure. I mean she wants a squirrel as a pet for crying out loud!

First up is this little fox!
He's so tiny!

Look at that face!!

And that tail!!

Then I decided he would need a friend...meet Mr. Beaver.



Here the two friends are together!


There are so many adorable little patterns on Crafty Alien, I am definitely going to be making more in the future!
I really love Christmas and making gifts for people but I can not wait to relax and actually make something for myself again.
(I'm thinking a granny square blanket, eek!)

I wish I could show you...

I've been sick the last few days so I haven't gotten too, too much crafting done. I did finish one of Liz's presents though and I sooo wish I could show you. However, she reads my blog and I don't want to ruin the surprise.
So just to prove I have been crafting away...here is another sneek peek at something I made for her!
(After I give her this I will post real picks with a link to the pattern of course!)

Winner!

*drum roll*

The winner of my first giveaway is....AMY!!!



Thank you everyone for playing along. I wish I could send everybody a gift!! I'm definitely going to do more giveaways in the future. It's really fun to just give someone a handmade gift for no other reason than I like to!
Amy, send me an email with your address (my email is penny.dreadfull@yahoo.com) so I can get this mailed out to you tomorrow so you can have it before Christmas!!

Oh and my favorite Christmas movies are Muppets Christmas Carol, A Christmas Story and Elf!

It's Christmas Time!!

I've always really liked Christmas. I love all the decorating and lights and I do love to give gifts. I am a self proclaimed "awesome gift giver". I like to think that I put a lot of thought into every gift I give. I try to give as many handmade gifts either made by myself or someone else instead of commercial crap that anyone could have as possible. I realize the point of Christmas is not the gifts. For me though, all the thought and time that goes into each gift is the point.

We've always had a real tree and a pretty big one at that. From when I was little and my parents were still married, to when we lived with just my Mom in the condo and went to my Dad's for the holidays and even when Jessie and I lived together. It just doesn't seem like Christmas if you don't have a giant tree covered in lights and ornaments.
This year however, I did not know what I would do in my tiny little apartment. There is literally nowhere I could fit a big tree. I've always been anti fake trees even though my allergies act up having a real one in the house.
However, this year I decided the only logical thing I could do was get a little fake tree.
I got this one pretty cheap and already strung with lights which was a plus. I didn't have any small ornaments at first so it has been up for about a week sans ornaments.
I also really love to decorate the outside of my house. Having a deck in all our condos/apartments was the perfect place to wrap garland and lights. I have a front porch but it is shared by my two other neighbors and I have a fire escape but no socket so...
I decided to string lights all around my big window. I actually like this more because not only does everyone on the street get to see them but I do too!

Here is a picture of the first night after decorating and putting up the little tree and lights.



This is my favorite ornament! A little Elvis snowman!




And here my tree is now with all the little red and silver ornaments I bought.





It's so cozy and Christmasy in my apartment now!

Ps - I'll be back to announce the Giveaway winner at 4:00 EST this afternoon so you still have time to get a comment in!

I finished it!! (Mature Content)

Warning: You probably dont want to look at this while at work, or in front of the kids!


Finally, after literally a year, I have finished this ginormous cross stitch!!! It felt so good to be done with it, I couldn't stop smiling!
Now I will preface this to let you know that I do realize this is kind of a really weird thing to cross stitch and give to my boyfriend. When we've talked about houses and our dream homes and what not, we both have two specific "wants". I want a craft room...not just a craft area like I've always had. I want a room! I want to feel cozy in my craft room instead of having my craft area where I house all my stuff and then I end up sitting in the living room crafting.
He wants a "Garage Mahal". His good friend has his entire garage redone into basically a Man Cave. There's carpet on the floor, a big screen tv, surround sound, stereo system, all his DVDs and music. It is decorated how he likes with skulls and beer mirrors, movie posters, hot chics on posters, etc. I have to say, it is pretty sweet.
So one day I thought I should make something for him that he would actually want in his "Garage Mahal" rather than feel obligated to have in there because I made it for him. (Although the XBox cross stitch could work in there too.)
I got this pattern from Crotch Stitch on Etsy last year with the intent to give this to Jeremy last Christmas. Obviously that didn't happen but I am so so happy to be able to give it to him this year!!
One thing I did learn...I will never, NEVER again attempt a cross stitch this size. Maybe not even half the size!
It is 100 x 100....10,000 stitches! I didnt even do full Xs, I just did / otherwise that would be 20,000 stitches, ugh!!
So without further adeu here is the big ass cross stitch!



For size comparison...





Here is a close up of the stitches so you can see how many there truly are and the different color changes.







Whew!! I can't believe I'm, actually done with this thing. It feels so good to finish something I started so long ago. Now I am on the hunt for the perfect frame!

More Snowflakes!

I made these snowflakes about a week ago. They were so quick to make and I think they are so cute that I had to make some more. Saturday while the boy was sick, we watched movies and I hooked up all of these!
The first ones I used just plain white yarn. I had bought sparkly white yarn last week and decided to use it this time. I really like how the sparkle just makes them all the cuter!!
I've hung a few from my windows and I gave two to a coworker who requested a "christmas craft".
They're all different sizes because I used different size hooks. The very small one is only the first two rounds of the snowflake instead of all 4...I don't like it too much but I wanted to try it out.


Can you see that sparkle? It's a lot more evident in person.



I wanted to make even more but I really have to get to work on my Christmas gifts. (I didn't finish the massive cross stitch by Thanksgiving because I got all wrapped up in Christmas crafts instead, doh! I picked it back up last night so I should be done in a few days!!)

My First Giveaway!

What happened to that 6th bunting? I'm sure you're asking yourself!

Well...I decided since I have won two blog giveaways, it was about time I returned the love.

So...
I have another bunting that I made, with little snowflake buttons as an added detail that you can have for your very own!
It is 4 1/2 feet long and the triangles are about 8 inches long.

All you have to do to win this is be a follower of my blog and post a comment here telling me your favorite Christmas movie. You can even get an extra entry if you mention this giveaway on your blog with a link to it in the comment you leave me.
Yup, it's that easy peasy!
I will pick the winner next Wednesday 12/8/10.

This is the exact bunting I will mail you.









Good Luck!

Christmas Buntings!

I finished a bunch of buntings last night!!
I started them earlier this week and I apparenlty bought WAY more fabric than I needed, I had so much that I was able to make 6!!
I have two hanging on the blank wall in my living/bedroom and I am so in love with it. I also have one hanging on the banister in my hallway (I could not get a good picture of it because the lighting is horrible in my apartment, especially in the little hallway!)
I brought two into work, one for my cubicle and one for my manager.
I haven't hung them up at work yet, they are sitting on my desk folded up and two people told me they thought I had underwear on my desk!! Weirdos!

Here are some pictures...







I have little snowflake buttons that I think I am going to add to them, just for a little extra something =)