Giving and Receiving Handmade

Hello Lovelies! I do so hope that you enjoyed, and are enjoying your holidays. It has been quite sweet here at the little green cottage, if a tad busy and messy. There has been a glut of good food, a windfall of friends and family, and an all around feeling of being very fortunate. I offer one caveat; it may be some time before I am up for baking cookies again.

It was a very handmade holiday 'round here, though I did very little of the hand making myself, wait... I take that back, the food was all hand made; the treats, the dinners, the bread, etc. and my hands were definitely involved in the making. Except for the traditional Christmas Morning Belgium Waffles which were all The Engineer (thank you again darlin', perfect as usual!)

Because I didn't have time to make much for the holiday, I purchased some handmade goodness to give. I thought I should share a little of the goodness with you.

This gorgeous hand crafted ceramic horse ornament came from Christine's shop Shepherds Grove Studio. She was a joy to buy from and I couldn't be happier with the ornament. Pony Girl was pretty thrilled too!

Photo by Claire Moxon

A stunning bracelet made by Claire from Scotia Spinner. Claire spins amazing yarn and beautiful fibre creations, and she makes wonderful jewelry. Claire is one of the first blog friends I met when Lola Nova started out. Please check out her great shop! I was very tempted to keep this for myself, but I did give it to my sister in the end.

On the receiving end of things - there were hand made earrings from my beautiful sister, handcrafted beeswax candles from the divine Crystal, art from my dear friend Tricia and more!

I did want to show a very special gift that was made for Pony Girl by Aunt Lydia.

This amazing paper doll kit made from fabric! Dolls and outfits, a quilted panel with pockets to keep the clothes in and all in a quilted carrying tote! The pictures don't do it justice. The amount of work and love that went into this is amazing, I am completely in awe! Thank you so very much Aunt Lydia, you are a doll!

Lastly, I did manage to make one gift for the Engineer. He is a big fan of Waylon Jennings so I made him some wall art.

Here is a link to the original album cover I used for inspiration. My version is totally wonky, but my heart was in it.

Well, that's enough of my rambling on for today. All I can say is, I love handmade!

Winter Wish

Dear friends,
Thank you for another wonderful year. Thank you for coming to visit my shiny place and sharing with me. I am a lucky Lola!

I wish you a lovely holiday filled with joy and and happiness.

Be well

see you soon!

Lola

xo

I'm OK, Your'e OK

Are we?

Is it ok that I have been spotty at best attending to this blog-o-mine of late? Is it ok that I have written a dozen posts in my head and not actually shared them with you here? Is it ok that I have not come to visit you, nor replied to your lovely comments because there just doesn't seem to be a right moment anywhere in the day? Is it ok that I keep forgetting about the first grade field trip that happens this morning and that I am vaguely anxious about taking public transportation with 100 school kids into downtown? Is it ok that I am turning 43 on Saturday? Wait, is that right, 43?

I think it is ok. I'll let you know for sure if we make it back from our field trip in one piece.

Have an a-o.k. day!

Winter Morning

If I were to type my letter to Santa, what would I ask for? I would ask for my family to be safe, healthy, and happy. For myself, I might ask for time.

Time to sit and watch the beautiful morning light come through the front window. Time to meditate on how fortunate I truly am. Time to sip my coffee slowly at the table instead of running room to room gulping swallows of it as I stand in the kitchen for a second. Time to faff about the living room, arranging clusters of joyful here and there.

We are all so busy, there is always much to-doing; this being the most to-doingest season of all. What might happen if we took just a few minutes and sat still? What could happen if we watched the beautiful morning light, fog, rain, etc. for a moment and thought of how blessed we are? Do you think we might spin into chaos, throw off the balance of our to-do lists? Or, might we fill up our hearts and minds with a tiny bit of peace and joy making our days just a little bit better?

I don't know for certain, but I intend to give it a try.

Have a lovely day.

A little festive

We are playing with paper and little lights,

working on 3 page letters to Santa,

and making important decisions.

What are you up to?

DIY Friday - Holiday

I have been visiting some happy places out in blogland looking for some holiday inspiration. There are some gorgeous goings on let me tell you! I have decided to share some of what I found. Whether they be tutorials or inspiration for your own Do It Yourself holiday, there is certain to be something that will spark your imagination.

This beautiful wreath from the ever inspiring Rachel from Smile and Wave! She has the how to HERE. I am also over the moon for her holiday diorama!

My friend Vic from Punky's Mamma gives the basics of how she made this very cool tree decal for her home. I love her sweet Advent Calendar too!

And garlands! Always room for more garlands!

A classic felted garland tutorial can be found HERE.

This beautiful and inspired Dixie Cup garland how-to can be found HERE!

I adore these little winter jars. I found them at The Tortoise and the Hare. You can find them HERE!

and for a whole mess of lovely ornaments, we can always count on Martha!

Well, I have been inspired, how about you. Do you have a holiday DIY that I should know about? I've got some ideas floating around, now if I can only find the time!

Oh, and be sure to check out Dottie Angel's 12 Days of Joyfulness!