The holiday for the rest of us

Another Festivus has come and gone.
For many years now, our good friends come to our home and eat lots of nibbling foods, air our grievances and responsibly enjoy holiday cheer. This year, I gifted my gal pals Lisa and Jennifer with aprons decorated with a giant cupcake.
These gifts were greeted with delight. Gourmand Jennifer says she has never had an apron. Lisa is now considering taking up cooking.
Such is the nature of Festivus -- when good things come to those who weren't expecting it in the days leading up to Christmas.
Merry Merry!


Here is the detail of the cupcake applique. I used some very lovely sequins I found at Papier Valise. And, that's a yo-yo for the cherry on top. The icing is lightly quilted. I used steam a seam for the applique. Its pressure-sensitive adhesive allowed me to clip all the curved edges, turn them under slightly, and then press them for a very neat edge finish.
I found the applique pattern somewhere on the net. I apologize for not having the link. When I find it, I will repost.

We beade, therefore we are faeries...

These are the Beade Faeries. We get together and create lovely jewelery -- or laugh a lot. Sometimes we do both! Our first show and sale last weekend was quite encouraging.
We are hoping do a spring one, and we'll get beading for it in the new year.
We have a lot of fun when we get together. Shared creativity is the best creativity of all!
We want to thank everyone who supported us.
We were able to make a donation to the Women's Centre of York Region, an organization that helps women find empowerment to overcome violence, abuse and poverty. Visit their website at
http://www.wcyr.ca/index.php
The Beade Faeries feel blessed to be able to not only encourage one another, but also help other women.

For the past few months, my singing friends and I have been getting together to create beaded jewelery -- on the Wednesday evenings we do not have rehearsal.
Mind you, the evenings are more about sharing and encouraging each other in life than they are about beading. Nonetheless, we have created a fair body of work in this year.
So, on Sunday, we will be having our first show and sale. A portion of sales will benefit the Women's Centre of York Region -- an organization that helps women set up their own businesses or help them discover their marketable skills.
This Christmas, I think a lot of people are looking to their own talents or those of others for presents. It is cheaper most of time, and somehow I think it means more to create and give from the heart.
I will be taking some photos and I will post them on Monday.
Enjoy getting ready for Christmas, and finishing up all those project for under the tree!