Okay, so I decided to make some handmade presents this year. You remember the camels. And the dress I made for Andy? And there are a few other things that will show up in the Party post. I swore years ago I wouldn’t ever make big Christmas projects again—it always come down to the wire and muddies up the season. But money is tight all over, and I really do love making stuff, so I took a leap and forged ahead.
But before I post the images, I have to say this—I wouldn’t say that I’m a person with tons of friends. I mostly hang around my house and my little family. Rachel and would hardly ever see each other if we didn’t both end up at church every week. And yet, when I sat down to make a list of all the people I’d like to give something to – even just a tiny token of affection – I was pretty shocked by the length of it.
There are beloved family members – parents, children, sibs, cousins, grandkids – and friends that are like family, then neighbors I may not even know all that well – because there isn’t time in the world to become intimate with every person who lives in the neighborhood or the church ward or the school – I mean, so many people you’d really like doing things with if you only had the time.
And when you try your best to give something to all those people, you can’t. You just can’t. So then you have to winnow down the list – do you give only to the very special kindred spirits? Or do you give to the people you know are lonely? Or the people you like very much from afar? Or the people who have been so kind to you? Or to the people you really DON’T like very much, but you should try? Eventually, you start finding reasons why you shouldn’t have to give to this person or that person, and the whole thing becomes one big rotten mess of confusion and guilt. Which is stupid and no fun at all.
Hurray for the party, where I get to give some of my dear ones a sort of living Christmas card all at once in person. And church, where we get to do the same thing in a different way.
In the end, I still ache to give something to some of the people I feel kindred to, but missed this season. I want to send good wishes and affection to them, even without an accompanying something. In fact, as I handed ornaments to some of my neighbors, I got glimpses of their trees – my earthy little ornament and their dignified, very carefully color coordinated and formally sparkling designed trees – and realized that I had just burdened them with something that didn’t match them very well at all, well meant as the gift might be. They’d probably have been much happier with a hug and a kiss – or maybe a cheeseball (like I know how to make those).
Ding Dong: Little Drummer Girl at the door.
Oh, too many words and not enough pictures.
Pictures of Sultan, just because I love him. He came with Gin for Fake Thanksgiving.
And a picture of our amazing and wonderful neighbors who came after the huge snow storm broke dozens of huge branches off our trees in November. One day there was a knock on the door, and there’s Luke – offering to haul away tons of dead branches in his giant contractor’s trailer. Then another neighbor stopped to help. You can see Luke’s very young son, working like a man, raking the driveway. This is about un-making messes. This is about a gift that goes far beyond a token in the hand. Given TO me.
The pile of presents destined for Gin’s car. If you look closely, you can see the very beautiful tags I made to put on the boxes.
I made the tags with this machine. It’s call a Cricket and it belongs to a very kind, wonderful, funny neighbor and friend, Lisa, who hauled this thing to my house and taught me how to use it – and then trusted me enough to leave it with me till I’d used up all my tag paper.
I cut these -
Out of this. How glorious the holes are -
And I cut them in this place, hung with lights and guarded by the Three Wise Deer.
I made these guys. The crazy one is for Andy. The dark Pendleton blanket one with the red mane is for Max, and the Gozo green guy is for Donna, and the light blue Pendleton is for Sandy. The last one is for memememe.
This is winter pony. He’s twins.
You remember the seventeen camels? They’re all part of this, too. I just wrote to the camel pattern designer and sent him the link to the Dressed Camels post and got a note back – he was pleased with my excess and the baubles I added.
Then, after Donna taught me to make reed deer, I made a few. Forty of them.
They all look like this one – leaping deer, trimmed with ribbons and feathers and a fine, tiny red bell.
Gin sent me a picture of a really cool ornament she loved, so how could I not try to make her something close to it?
Front
Back
Remember the stool I made a few months ago? The burned and painted piece of wood I’d been aching to try doing for years and years? I thought I’d better try to do one for Sandy. So I asked a few probing questions about motif and came up with this:
To remind Sandy of his California trip. The beach and the seals.
Top detail.
Being no artist, I search for photographs, images of the thing I want to render. Then I trace the outline of the thing in Photoshop and print out the line drawing. Then transfer it onto the stool, part of a bigger design. The sun and the fish and the water and the clouds are characters I’ve “drawn at” all my life. And palm trees.
And not-really-Nemos, because Sandy loves them.
Old lady, wrapping.
And I kind of wanted to do something for Andy and Scooter, too – so I did.
One day I asked Scooter what he’d like on a stool if he had one. He said, “A tree with four happy dogs under it.” So I found four happy dogs. The blue one is his sleeping buddy, “pup.” Andy just got my long-time loved cat.
Last, but not least, Murphy came to me privately—swathed in a dark cloak, his face covered with a slouchy hat – to say that Laura would never ask such a thing, but had confided to him secretly that the Christmas desire of her heart was for me to make her a Calvin-and-Hobbs Hobbs doll. Which I had no idea how to do.
I love the net. LOVE IT. When it behaves. It was the act of a moment to find a pattern—drafted, it turns out, by a man who loves to make things for his son. The pattern is on “Instructables” (sp?). He happens to be Mormon man who sews and does carpentry, among other things. So I girded up my courage and gave Hobbs a go. How could you not try to deliver somebody’s secret Christmas Desire?
Holy cats. Hand sewing on the stripes. I didn’t do a swell job. But it was all done with love. My fingers are still sore.
And he seems to know how to do his job.
I watched a whole lot of very smarmy Hallmark Christmas movies through all this making and the hours of wrapping and cleaning while G worked his heart out in the studio (we are so grateful to be working in this bizarre economy). It was such an odd season, kind of running before the storm, keeping the bow to the swell. But then, it was a strange year. Many of you have said the same of it. I wonder why? Did the earth shift just a piece of a degree on its poles so that the shadows haven’t lain quite right?
But there has been no dearth of love or fun or living. I can’t figure it out the feeling. I just can’t.
The beautiful Chaz
Ahhhhh….. I loved this post. It warmed my heart. I love how you love so many and show it so well. The topper was Hobbs, of course. The Christmas party was really fun, as yooozh. Thank you for the reed deer which we hung on our tree!
Thank you for your dear, familiar face – and the fact that you guys drive all that way just to play crazy with me.
I want to come live there and make craft projects all day (of course I have absolutely zero crafty skills, so you would have a lot of teaching to do), then write all night. Well. Some nights we would sit by the fireplace and perhaps read aloud from recent manuscripts.
I am trying not to feel too vain about the fact that I am one of the “friends from afar” who rated a handmade gift.
No vanity at all. I think, after almost 30 years of friendship, that you shouldn’t be in the least surprised. And you can work the mag anywhere. So come on out – those evenings by the fire sound like heaven to me. And teaching is what I do best – if you could sit at this Table of Chaos I call a craft studio, your brain would explode. So many little things yelling to be combined. So little time.
You are so crafty! I love homemade gifts! Just think of all the love and time sewn into these lovely projects. It makes my heart glow to think that someone took the time out of their busy schedule to make something with their own hands. The ponies are lovely and the cat too! You should sell them. You would be surprised how many orders you would get. I would be your first customer because my grandkids would love them. BTW I love the book! I am halfway through. Love and hugs from MO dear cuz!
I loved mailing that book to you. I had to sit down and try to make a list of all the things I had actually “done” this year, I had to blink. I don’t know what got into me. I wonder what will come next. Thank you for being here for me over the years, my dear.
Even when I am silent, I am here for you dear cousin! Thank you for beig there for me as well. Sending much love and hugs from MO!
Kisses your way!
Once again, you astound/amaze me. You’ve got me thinking about that wood furniture we both love so much. I know! I’ll buy the wood, you burn it, and I’ll try to paint it……… HA! And then I’ll cry because I’VE RUINED IT!
Your creations are like you. Lovely and thoughtful and heartwarming.
Pffff. You know I’m just addicted to – what – sculpting the air, turning time into something I can hold so it can’t get away from me? And you’d do fine. I was shocked at myself, the way that putting the paint on opened whole new ideas in my head. So yeah. Get the dang wood.
I keep trying to get the woods but it won’t come off my shoulders! No matter how hard I yank……….
That would be ‘wood’……. I don’t have more than one head…….
You are the silliest person ever.
Big fat cheesy grin……….
One of my favorite little details on the Sandy stool is the sea lion in the background who is rubbing whiskers with the smiling fish. A lovely moment.
I loved that too. YAY!
Well, fiddle dee dee! YOu are one oaf Santa’s elves. This year when I visit I am going to teach you how to make reed stars and you’ll be all set for next year’s ornament party!
I love Gozo…she sits and watches me as I create. Wood burning and painting…hmmmmm? NO NO NO! I absolutely can not learn another craft that requires tools I don’t already have. I have to borrow the cricket from a friend, too…kind of want my own….but NO NO NO!
Oh, you should go look at the post before my last one – the penultimate one (I love that word and get so few chances to use it) and see the owls I made. One of the few things I made multiples of…That’s what I would have sent to the ornament party, but I don’t think they are swell enough. Can’t wait to see the ornaments from this year.
Oh, an my neighbor gifts? Yeah, still working on them!
I am feeling some bubbles beginning to surface again….ahhhhh. :-)
Me too – bubbles and tugs and horrors. NO NO NO!
Wait – I thought I’d just replied to THIS one, too. Mind: empty. Garrrrr! I went over to look at the show post, which I could swear I’ve already read. Loose ends? We could weave tapestries out of the mess my mind is in. I love penultimate too – but most people think it means the UBER ultimate instead of the next to last. A grand word – and really, the star spot in Vaudeville (traditionally, in all theater) is the performance just before the finale. So the word would fit that quite nicely, with all its hoo-hoo and rah-rah feel. Wait – I DID answer this. with a lame little answer – I guess wanting to rush off to your blog. Fetch. I need to sleep another week.
I am making what my heart wants to make and giving them to who my heart shows me….that’s the plan….but no new crafts, I don’t think. :-)
Love you.
Oh, and I love Sultan, too. Are he and Toby and Tucker good friends?
Friends? After several days of dogfights (Sultan stood the impertinence as long as he could) he and Tucker began to get along just fine. But Toby never did give in–so sad.
:(
No I know that the best intentions are not going to keep me sane. I KNOW I’m going to take up something new – just a matter of time. Kisses back.
I really like my reed dear too! It looks neat on our tree, something different and unique.
Thanks for sharing about all the cool things you make at home. The pictures you take have so much color in them.
I’m so glad it looks great on the tree. Some people trees are so carefully decorated – all one color balls, or all vintage Victorian stuff, or all teddy bears – my ornaments look pretty sad and left out. So I’m wondering if ornaments are a very good gift, anyway. Anyway, just wanted to leave you a little love.
Being no artist, my foot! I love being immersed in your world of creation . . . sculpting air or whatever you want to call it.
The ornament created from Gina’s photo just astounded me! So much detail. I wouldn’t even know where to begin to create such a thing. I can only thing that you handle a jig saw as well as you handle a sewing machine.
BTW, I love your cyber friends who you’ve collected with your sweeping net comprised of your blog posts. So dear.
I didn’t cut out the ornament, though, Ginger. I just decorated a blank I found at the store. So see? Not so clever. And it’s no wonder you love my cyber buddies – you’d all love each other if I could ever get you all into one room.
I loved seeing all these wonderful Christmas projects. What a generous, beautiful heart you have! Those little footstools are adorable. I am in awe of your talent.
I don’t feel generous, Dawn. In the first place, I can’t seem to help making things. It’s like Tourrette’s disorder, except you get a physical thing at the end of it. And I never want to give up the stuff I make. I always think,”Shoot. I love this one. I think maybe I’ll make ANOTHER one for this person and keep this one.” So it’s therapy for me to part with things I can’t seem to loosen my grip on. See? Pitiful. The only thing that gives me power to do it is having love compel me more strongly than my self-covetousness does. And love is a gift, not a discipline. And I’m an idea copy-cat (but I don’t mind that – so many real artists are that, so who could blame a dilettante?) But I understand what you are saying to me, and I pretty much purr, reading it. Thank you. But then again, thank you for being the kind of being who inspires that kind of love?
Okay. Trying to collect myself here. I actually read this post not long after you published it, but was so astonished and overwhelmed with all of your glorious homemades that I was truly speechless. Now, after the weekend visitors have left, I have come back and am still agape. Good grief, you are a madwoman! A madwoman with a huge heart and artistic enterprise. You rock! I completely relate to your list making and the turmoil involved. I have even tried doing absolutely NO handmades, but it was no better and perhaps even worse than trying to do them for everyone. This year my intent was great, but my reality fell far short. Pity. I do love making things for loved ones.
I adore EVERYTHING you have shown here. Your snug-a-horses are SO loveable. The beautiful reed deer make me feel nostalgic for Finland. And you made me laugh with having made 40 of them. Oh, how you make so much sense to me. The ornament replication is astounding, and I love the back of it just as much as the front. And those stools! Oh my word. They are spectacular! Totally something I’d pay good money for. Actually, I’d pay
|
There are tired children battling on the couch beside me who need to get stuffed into snowsuits so that we can go outside to bathe the ducks. Yeah, that probably sounds odd.
Oh, why don’t we live closer, darn it? Rachel would pile all of her kids into snowsuits and join you, for one thing. I think it makes perfect sense to bathe ducks. It makes even more sense to me to bathe dogs, especially stinky dogs. Like my two crazies. One of them loves water – whenever Tuck escapes the yard (not often anymore, now that the Great Wall of Trailer Trash China surrounds the yard), the first place we go looking for him is the river. But that kind of bathing doesn’t help the essential olfactory problem.
My intent, obviously overblown on a usual basis, almost always falls short. Which sometimes is a good thing. Like, I don’t often punch people in the nose, even when intent is very, very strong.
And you have made me feel really good. It takes flipping hours to get all those stupid photographs into shape and then into THIS and sometimes I wonder if I’m just being stupid, thinking that, in the end, anybody will get any fun out of it. At the moment, I’m lying on the couch in a fit of self pity, nursing what seems to be a nascent sinus infection, so any light and laughter is deeply welcome. I want to be a tired child who can be forgiven for battling, near somebody who can arrange a charming distraction. G does that pretty well, but he’s sick too. So phooey. Except this little note of yours made me happy.
If you get chilled, do NOT get sick.
LOL. Really, one long chuckle at the punching people in the nose part. And the dog version of bathing. Well, the ducks are now clean (for a short while) and cozy in the coop. Kids too, but not in the coop.
BE WELL. I mean it.
yes ma’am. Going upstairs right now to work on that. Sleep – the great mender.
Hmmm. I see that part of my comment had a shy moment. So, Comment Part 2:
Actually, I’d pay good money for ALL of your creations, cuz they are THAT fabulous.
If only I had the heart to sell them – I’d be like the shoemaker – who can buy more leather, at least. Ha.
MOM! I love this post! I am absolutely astounded at the number of things you created this year. You always do a lot, but the abundance of projects that you undertook, and the diversity of the medium is staggering. You are a true artist. Thanks for the love with which you did all of these things. Hobbes is a precious addition to our household. And I love the benches! I didn’t know that you had made more than one!
But I’m NOT a true artist. That’s the point. I’m a some-assymbly-required sort of scrap-quilter of a person who just sticks stuff together, and if it works, it’s a MIRACLE. Laura is an artist. She has these skills inside of her, I will never have, and a drive to use them that I don’t have either. I just throw together cute stuff in manic spurts. That’s all. Hobbs was a true gift of the heart, that I will tell you. But then, you two are my very own Hobbs toys, there to be hugged when I need you.
I think there are many kinds of artists. And being able to beautifully fulfill the pattern that another person has invented takes an artist as well.
Or a person who loves you.