The rest of Xmas and then some!

When I got back from vacation, I decided to make something with the rest of yarn I got to make the pinecones. I got extra to make another "Weekend Sweater," but have since decided that I'm just going to try to make the one I have a smaller size. Anyways, I decided to try to make another sweater off of LionBran's website:

http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/70210A.html?noImages=

Since I too this picture this morning I have finished the body. However, it too big, so I think I'm going to take some rows out. The sweater itself is worked starting at one side, going all the way around the body. The stripes are vertical.

For Christmas I made little "Goodie" baskets. They included earrings, bath salts, scrub, milk bath, massage oil, tea bath, soap confetti, foot fizzies, and a face mask that you put in the microwave.

To the right are the earrings that I made. I made both blue and read. They are made using a brick stitch. When I started this project, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. The brick stitch itself is fairly easy to grasp, when taught right. With that being said, a lot of people don't teach it right. Lol. Brick stitch, also called a chevron stitch, is not to be confused with the peyote stitch, but they are similar. This type of beading takes A LOT of patience, but you can make beautiful jewelry. I found this video to be the least complicated:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nT_u97EzMHs

Here is the pattern I used:

http://livingwiththreemoonbabies.blogspot.com/2008/11/seed-beaded-christmas-light-bulb.html

There are several other free patterns for different occasions that I have found around the web. But I feel as though I have done enough of the brick stitch to last me a while.


This Christmas present is easy to make, it just takes a while due to the drying time. I originally got the idea off Craftster.org, except the original crafter cut their own trees and base out with a table saw. I don't have those resources so I purchased everything at my local craft store. The trees were already painted, but to make it more interesting, I painted them different shades of green. I used a hot glue gun to glue the trees to the base, as well as the candles, the snowman, and the sign. I added glitter on the base and used regular glue to add glitter to the trees and the sign. I crocheted the hat and scarf for the snowman. The scarf is just a chain, and the hat I chained 2 and single crochet in the first chain until it made a hat-like shape.


This is one of the baskets I made. Here's how I made the things in it:

Bath Salts: Use epson salt (NOT table salt), baking soda (4:1 ratio). Add fragrance oil one drop at a time until you are satisfied with the scent. I also added dried lavender buds.

Milk Bath: Use powdered milk and add fragrance oil, herbs or both.

Salt Scrub: Make a paste with epson salts and oil. I would suggest sunflower, almond, or olive oil. Add fragrance oil. I also added food coloring to this one (it's blue).

Coffee Scrub (The caffeine helps you cells to regenerate): Make a paste with epson salts and oil. You can either refrain from adding fragrance because coffee has its own aroma, or I added a drop or so of vanilla fragrance oil to give it a smoother smell.

Soap Confetti: Choose any bar of soap and grate it with a cheese grater. It is good for some one with really messy hands, or you can add it to your bath water.

Eye Mask: I made a pattern for my eye mask (similar to a sleep mask). Fill it with almond pits, cracked corn, or rice. I also added lavender buds to give it a nice scent.

Massage Oil: Take oil and add fragrance. Make sure it it mixed thoroughly.

Foot Fizzies: I used alkaseltzer tablets. Each fizzy takes 2 tablets. I put a drop of eucalyptus oil on both sides of the tablets. Take one small drop of water and put it on the tablet (it will fizz). Place the other tablet on top. You will have to periodically check them to make sure they are still lined up because the top one will bubble off.

Tea Bath: I made my own casing for the tea, and it was made as a one-time use. However, it would probably be more beneficial to the person if it was made to be reusable. I did not have the time or energy to figure this out. I made mine like a pillow and sewed enough ribbon so it could be hung on the faucet and seep into the bath water. I put epson salts, herbs, baking soda, and fragrance oil in mine. Do NOT try to mix the fragrance oil in the tea bag. I did this and the oil got all over the sides and looked bad. You do not have to add the salt or baking soda.

**On a side note, you can get fragrance oil (make sure it is the kind that you can use in making soaps, perfume, etc.) at your local craft store or you can get essential oils at your local health food store. I prefer essential oil because it is higher quality than fragrance. Do not use the oils directly on your skin because it can irritate or burn it. The only essential oils that you can use on your skin direct are lavender and tea tree.

I free handed all my scents and was just able to pick scents that went together (vanilla sandlewood, lemon sage, etc.), but you can find a multitude of recipes and scent combination on the internet. Also look in your cabinets for herbs that you can use. I used lemongrass, lemon peel, rosemary, and sage.

Happy Crafting!