Christmas and catching up

Hope everyone had a great Christmas or whatever you may celebrate this time of year.  We knew wrapping up presents we had bought too many for our one 2 year old girl.  I thinned it a bit by donating some, and holding others for her birthday.  Just like my own mum there are always several gifts stashed in the closet.   I wonder how old Averleigh will be when she figures that out?  I had an older brother to show me. 

No picture with Santa Claus this year as I was told repeatedly “I don’t like Santa Claus” each time I asked about it.  I was also told, repeatedly, “I don’t like presents”.  This last one didn’t stand up.   As I type this there are new toys everywhere and there is no sense in cleaning them up since she wants to play with all of them right now.



Christmas Eve is always at my in-laws and we started a tradition of new pyjamas from us so here she is Chrsitmas morning showing off said pyjamas.  We spent about two hours opening gifts since she likes to have everything out of the box to really check it out before moving on the the next.  She actually left four presents still wrapped under the tree telling me she would open them later.  Funny girl.  Then we were off to my parents house for Christmas with my family, there’s eighteen of us.  We spent the whole day relaxing with the family and all was how it should be.

As the end of the year is coming I know there are some things not yet done.  I still have bracelets to make for 7000 bracelets of hope and I will get them done, just maybe not before the 31st.  I have to finish my dad’s Christmas present first.  It was going to be ready for the 25th but I decided I wasn’t pleased with the final execution, it needs a take two.  I’m letting that breathe a bit.  I did make some necklaces for my mum though (and actually give them to her on time).



These are very similar, in the end I just couldn’t decide so opted to give her both.  I believe she prefers the one on the right as it is adjustable on the black silk cord.  The version on the left above features sterling chain and some of my all time favourite pearls, hard to see here but they are facetted
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The silk goes through that spiral bead on opposite directions making the necklace easily adjustable and it holds very nicely if I do say so myself.

I’ve declared that 2013 will be the year I improve my wire skills.  It’s needed.  I have all sorts of great ideas for polymer with wire but I really need to bring up those wire skills to make some of those ideas reality.  So I signed up for Kerry Bogert’s Aspire to Wire course happening online this January.  I also was lucky enough to get her lasted book under the tree, (no surprise since I “added it to cart” myself practically) and then there was this in my stocking



Ain’t he a sweetie?!  My hubby remembered the conversation where I went on and on about trying to decide if I should invest is some quality wire tools now or keep going with what I have… He just couldn’t remember the actual names of anything I was talking about and the folks at the art store he tried to buy from just stared blankly.  He did remember me saying they were “the world’s most expensive” so that’s what I got.  I now have some Tronex tools on order, I will be very excited to put them to good use.

I have one last blog hop to close out the year on New Year’s Eve come on back to see what I made with one of these awesome labyrinth components from Jenny Davies-Reazor as part of the component of the month from Art Jewelry Elements