Archive for November, 2009

Hi again,

With December just a calendar page away, I'm sure lots of you are kicking your holiday preparations into high gear. At the same time, you might be wondering if there's a way you could make this holiday a little more green (even as you're wishing for a little snow to fall). If you'd like to give this year's celebrations a bit of an eco-twist (or if you're just looking for ways to change up your decorations), this week's giveaway prize might be just what you're looking for!

Anna Getty's book I'm Dreaming of a Green Christmas contains all sorts of ideas for ways that you can make your celebrations a little more eco-friendly. From tree decorations to greeting cards, from gift ideas to gift wrap, from tree toppers to table toppers (yes, there are recipes, too), this book is full of great ways you can make this Christmas a green Christmas. As well as craft instructions and recipes, you'll also find "celebrity green tips" and information about Christmas traditions from around the world.

(Looking for a sneak peak? Try a project from the book that we've excerpted on the Canadian Living website: Cork Place-Card Holders with Seeded Paper.)

For your chance to win, leave ONE comment on this post by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, December 6. This week, I'm interested to know: what is your favourite part of decorating for the holidays? (I'm looking forward to getting some inspiration from you as I gear up to wrestle with my Christmas lights!) I'll post a winner here on Monday, December 7.

...Whoops! I almost forgot the bonus giveaway!

I had a peek at my stats today, and we're within striking distance of 2,000 comments! If you leave the 2,000th comment here at Make+Do (I'll count any comment made on any post this week), you'll win a copy our brand-new cookbook, The Canadian Living Slow Cooker Collection. One word: yum.

(Please be fair to each other and don't leave multiple comments on each post. Thanks!)

Alright, it's back to work for me. Have a happy Monday.

Good morning!

I hope you all had a good weekend. Mine was alright – I bought some Christmas glitter, ate a tasty fish supper (and some lemon meringue pie!), and got a little bit more Christmas knitting done (but just a little...running out of yarn mid-project will do that to you). Judging by the comments on the sock supplies giveaway post, some of you might have spent the weekend dreaming of fancy feet and twinkle-toes!

So, on to the business at hand. The winner of this week's prize, the copy of The Big Book of Socks, from Taunton Press and grab bag of sock wool from Patons (Kroy Socks Jacquards, Kroy Socks FX and Stretch Socks) is...

...lucky #129! I don't think we've ever awarded a prize to the very last entrant before – good timing, Sophia!

Maybe there's an upside to being up late with Baby after all! Sophia, I'll be emailing you shortly with details about your prize (if you don't see an email from me by lunchtime, please check your spam folder!).

Thanks to everyone for entering – as usual, I loved reading your comments and finding out what you're all working on (or would like to be working on!). I've got another great giveaway from Patons coming up in a few weeks, but tune in later today for a giveaway that's in tune with the season.

Hi friends,

I've never been much of a one for crowds (or staying up late!), so as I read news reports about "Black Friday," I'm extra thankful to be a Canadian who's making her own Christmas gifts this year. (Although, it occurs to me, I'd probably get a LOT of knitting done standing in line!) If you're looking for Christmas ideas, you might want to peruse some of the collections our web crafts editor has put together for you...

Every tree needs a macaroni angel. Photo by Angus Fergusson.

• Watch our slideshow of 4 easy Christmas ornaments from the upcoming January issue of Canadian Living (including those macaroni angels, above).
• View our collection of handmade gift ideas – there's something for everyone, including gifts to wear, gifts to play with, or gifts for the home.
• Find even more ideas for festive Christmas ornaments you can make – what a nice way to spend an afternoon with your friends (and maybe a plate of cookies?) amid all the hustle and bustle of the season.

Alright, that's it for now. I hope you all have a nice weekend – and I'll be back here on Monday to announce the winner of this week's sock-tacular giveaway!

Hi friends,

Remember this?

I'm happy to say that you can now find the full instructions for this cute handsewn felt ornament online at the Canadian Living website.

This ornament went together fairly quickly, even with the hand-stitching and sewing on all those tiny beads. I think it would make a nice present topper, too (you could embroider the recipient's name on the back, instead of the year).

Need to brush up on your embroidery skills? This handy guide to common embroidery stitches will help.

Have fun!

Hi friends,

I saw Saartje's baby booties on SouleMama a while ago, and they were so sweet that I bookmarked the pattern right away. The last time I was at Romni Wools I made sure to pick up some yarn, and on Monday night I finally cast on.

The wool is fairly substantial and I was knitting with 2.75 mm needles to get the gauge right (always, always do a swatch, people!). The booties are intended for newborns, though, and they're sized appropriately – which means that even with the tiny needles, they don't take long at all to knit up.

(In fact, if you're into timing-by-TV-show, the first one took one episode of FlashForward and an episode of The Office (with a break to learn the long-tail cast-on), and the second one took one episode of Battlestar Galactica. Over two nights, of course.)

Leaving long tails means that it's easy to sew these booties up with a minimum of work (even at midnight, as in the photo above). I had lots of fun choosing just the right buttons!

And just to give you an idea of how small these booties really are...just a bit bigger than a large egg. Too cute!

Links:
Saartje's baby booties (look for the PDF in the right sidebar)
Saartje's baby booties on Ravelry
In Diamond Luxury Collection fine merino superwash DK
With 2.75 mm needles

Hi friends,

I'm running to keep up today, so I've just got a few quick links for you (and high hopes for tomorrow)...

• If you're looking for a fun way to spend a weekend afternoon (and a great Christmas idea, to boot), you'll appreciate this link for marble magnets at Not Martha, sent in by Make+Do reader Maureen. Thanks, Maureen!
• If you're going to make the Mulled Wine Mitts from the December issue, you might want to check out the (slightly revised and hopefully clearer) instructions, now available here. You might also want to read this mitt-related blog post, here.
• If you're looking for general knitting help, I'd like to recommend knittinghelp.com. I used it last night and taught myself the long-tail cast on in about 3 minutes...their videos are that good!
• How cute is this Lego+paper=craft idea from Muji?
• Look! Free, downloadable templates for mini 2010 calendars at Shutter Sisters. They're Photoshop files...so remember that if you don't have Photoshop, you can download a free trial version of the program from the Adobe website. Sweet.

That's all for now. Tomorrow I'll be back with the cutest baby booties this side of anywhere. Seriously, prepare to clutch your heart and ooh and aah....they're that cute. Have a good night, folks!

Hi again,

A few weeks ago, for Giveaway #28, I asked you what you wanted to learn to knit. One answer that came up again and again (almost 40 times, actually) was socks.

So I'm pretty excited to be able to offer a super sock-tacular giveaway this week. This giveaway has two parts:

First, a copy of The Big Book of Socks, from Taunton Press. With 75 original patterns, there's something for everyone in this book – from plain-Jane socks to fancy cables and lace, from top-down to toe-up, from ankle socks to knee socks. The socks run the gamut from simple socks for beginning sock knitters to more complicated designs for people who are looking for a challenging knit. This book is currently the envy of all the knitters in the CL office.

Colours may not be as shown.

Second, a grab bag of sock wool from Patons. I've got one ball each of Patons Kroy Socks Jacquards, Kroy Socks FX (both self-patterning) and Stretch Socks (variegated). It's always nice to start a new knitting project with free wool, right? And these lively yarns, with their self-patterning or variegated colours, will surely lend a bit of pizzazz to your winter wardrobe!

One lucky soon-to-be sock knitter will receive the book and the yarn! For your chance to win, leave ONE comment on this post by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, November 29.  I can't think of a question this week, so maybe just leave a comment saying hello and telling me about yourself – where you're from, perhaps, or what you're crafting these days. Or ask a crafting question! I'm looking forward to reading your responses. I'll post a winner  here on Monday, November 30.

Good luck!

Hi friends,

I hope you  all had great weekends. I watched a bunch of movies and finally started to see some progress on my Christmas knitting – I think it's because I adopted the lever-knitting technique. Has anyone else tried this? It's great!

As usual, it was very interesting to read your responses to last week's giveaway question. Lots of great ideas there  – if  you're a quilter looking for a cause, you'd surely find one in those comments.

I'm sure you're eager to know who won the copy of Quilting for Peace, so let's turn things over to the random integer generator...

Congratulations, #44!

You can read a bit more about the Can-Go Grannies here. Pat, I hope you and your friends enjoy this book!

Stay tuned for a sock-tacular giveaway, coming right up...

Hi friends,

I'm sure you've seen Advent calendars in stores already; they're all over the place here, in grocery stores, drugstores...even the local coffee shop. But I've always thought there was something special about having a one-of-a-kind Advent calendar, so this year I designed one. Cutting out the stockings takes some time, but with the help of a glue pen and some glitter, it's not long at all before the stockings are ready for you to hang up.  The stockings can even be filled with small candies (or sewing notions, hint hint).

If you're feeling ambitious and you'd like a calendar that lasts, you could also cut the stockings out of felt. Embroider the numbers (from 1 to 24) on half of the stockings, then blanket stitch around the edges and tack on the hangers. I think this could be the beginning of a sweet family tradition!

In general, handmade Christmas ornaments make great gifts (or gift toppers) and they're a great way to decorate if you're looking for something that's both cute and cost-effective. Here are some great ideas I've seen around the internet recently.

• There are three options in this sweet Woodland Ornaments Tutorial from Sew Mama Sew
• Quick and easy thrifted sweater tree ornaments at The Long Thread
• Shake up your scrap jar and make some Mini Ornaments
• I love, love, love these embroidered felt ornaments from Posie
• There are six options in the Crafty Tree Ornaments e-book from CraftyPod (I love the little house designed by Betz White
• Make a festive felt bird with this easy step-by-step.
• This is one gingerbread man who probably looks better than he tastes (being made of felt will do that to you).

That's all for now. Have a great weekend, folks.

Hi friends,

This dreary day is finally drawing to a close and it's almost time to go home and snuggle up for the evening. It feels like a rice pudding night here in Toronto!

Photo from Wisecraft.

Just in case you need a spot of brightness in your day, I thought I'd point you in the direction of the fabulous Christmas projects designed by Blair of Wisecraft for Value Village and Savers (do we have Savers in Canada? I've never encountered one around here). Find the projects here. Value Village and holiday crafting...it doesn't get much better than that in my book! (Maybe I'd add an eggnog latte and a bit of glitter?)

See you tomorrow – I've lined up all sorts of ideas for your weekend!