A Happy Handmade Christmas

Welcome to our
Happy Handmade Christmas Swap!

With the focus of this Christmas Season
being on less consumerism
and more things made from the heart
we thought we would focus on something
that was less "big box"
and more "home made."

Don't think you have to sew
to be in this swap!
In fact, we are finding more fun things to do
that are made in the kitchen
or at the craft table
than at the sewing machine or off the knitting needles.

Stamped ribbons, embellished cards,
garlands, wreaths, boxes full of goodies,
cookies and gingerbread houses, oh my!
Put some Christmas music on, browse through our
posts of inspiration (coming soon!) and
sign up for our swap to join in on some
happy handmade Christmas!


1. When can I sign up?: right now! Deadline is Sat. Nov. 15.

2. Who’s my partner?: We will send out your partner info via e-mail around Nov. 15 or 16

3. What goes into a package?: Anything handmade!

Stamped gift tags, scraped Christmas cards,
a handmade garland or banner,
some delicious cookies along with the recipes,
a jingle bell wreath, handmade soaps or lotions,
your own designed earrings or bracelet,
burn a CD full of all of your favorite songs,
an ornament that you knitted, sewed, glued, or folded,
homemade bath salts, handmade candies,
an advent calender, or a December Daily binder.


If you would like you could also throw in some:
beautiful tissue paper, bright colored ribbons, twine,
raffia, colored or striped tape, tulle,
small items to be tied on top of packages,
Christmas scrapbook papers, Christmas fabric scraps,

Christmas buttons, Holiday stickers,
vintage Christmas sheet music,

a candle or two of your favorite Holiday scent,
some tea for calming frazzled nerves, a delicious treat.

4. How to I join in on all this fun?: send us an email at

Domestic.B@hotmail.com

with the following details

- first and last name

- postal address
- email address
- blog address (if you have one)
- describe your Christmas/Holiday

colors and theme in a few sentences.

Packages to be sent by Saturday, Dec. 6th

Please note: This is an International swap, so if you do not want to ship internationally,

please let us know in your email.

5. How much should this package be worth or How do I know how much to send?: We would like everyone to make one handmade gift item for their partner
and include a CD of your favorite Christmas music or a Christmas magazine issue that has inspired you this Holiday season. Anything extra, is up to you.
In the spirit of the swap, let's try to keep the monetary expenditures at a minimum
but the joy of the season at a maximum. :)

Introductions: Aminta

Hello Ladies!
I have been a member on here for awhile, but I guess I never introduced myself properly. :)

So, here goes!

About Me: I am THE wife to a wonderful, hard working, hard core "boy". Who comes home to us in the evenings instead of the numerous things he could be doing. We have been married for almost six years, YAY!!! We have one daughter, Faith (April '99), and two sons, Nelson (Nov. '03) and Beau (Dec. '06). I home-school Faith and am starting "Sonny" this year......very slowly. Slowly because he is not interested. Therfore I must slowly interest him. I love, love, love to sew, bake and be with my little family. I have really enjoyed our few times away to just enjoying eachothers company. Those are my favorite times. I am from a family of TEN. EIGHT children and two parents. My mother and I enjoy visiting with eachother and encouraging one another in our Faith along with our craftyness. :) I love each of my family members, and am very close to a few. Time and distance along with different personalities in a large family and the dissolve of my parents marriage has left a large family in a bit of turmoil. Time will heal (with Gods direction).

Decorating Elements/Favorite Colors: Neutrals, browns, tans, greens, blues, reds and a little bit of burnt orange for good measure. Autumn colors. Warmth. Cozy. Pottery-Barn-y. Beachy. Cottage-y. Romantic. Ecclectic. Vintage (more 60's then anything). Scandinavian. But, mostly an ecclectic mix of cozy.

Inspirations: OH....this is a fun, but difficult one for me to answer. I find beauty in everything (almost), as long as I have my eyes open. Open to the beauty of that which surrounds you. Custume home-y. Nature. Sunrise, Sunset. Grass. Mud. Falling leaves. My sister Chelle, My Mother, My sisters. My brothers. My hubby. My children. Heather Bailey. Anna Maria Horner (especially her house!!!)My friends on the internet......... smiles!
FABRIC! Scrappy designs. Laura (my friend). Christ. My kids. My amazingly taltented Petie.

Define Home: Hmmm....... heaven. For this place is only temporary.
No, I mean, yes it is, but that is not what this question asked for.
So, I really feel at home in a place that is clean and cozy, where I am excepted and loved for who I am. My home is home. My family is home. My hubby is home. My children, home.

Creative Outlets: I do love to sew. I adore to create things for my little family and others. Sewing. Sewing. Sewing. I also love to bake. Baking for my family and others gives me peace. I just hate the mess it creates! lol LOVE fabrics. Textures to work with.......

Recipe We Induge In: Home-made Chicken Fettecinni. Nelson loves it so much he closes his eyes to eat. And now, everytime Beau gets hungry he asks for "ticken". :)

Favorite Spot In My House: Hmmmm..... there are so many! I love my sewing room, our "sitting" room, our dinning room, our front porch.................... my bed! Lol!

Household Tip: Hmmm....... Get organized before you have children. Because I find it almost impossible to get to it now that I have three! Other then that, I have no idea..... Oh wait! I try to wash each dish as I bake and cook, to minimize dishes. My hands are my dish washer and has been most of my life. I am soo looking forward to a plug in, on button push away, dishwasher one day!

So there you have it! That is me, and my life in a very small nut shell.

Giveaway!

Morning/Afternoon Ladies!

Just wanted to mention that yesterday my blog turned 1 and to celebrate I am having a giveaway and would definitely love each and everyone of you to join in. For the details come over to my blog and check it out!

Love to you all
Katie x

ps. how's everyone's scrappy fabric'ing' going?

A few more...

suggestions and ideas

( picture borrowed from somewhere on Apartment Therapy )

to help you come up with the perfect little gifts to make for your 3 partners , with your scraps for those in our { Tidbits } swap. Happy inspirations!

Fabric Pom Pom

Fabric Flowers More Fabric Flowers


Fabric Magnets


Fabric Tags


Vintage Fabric Wall Art


Fabric Covered Button


Fabric Greeting Cards more on these here


Criss Cross Coasters


Fabric Covered Barrettes


Fabric Panels How To

Scrap Party Garland

Scrappy Christmas Ball Ornaments

Getting to Know You: Blessings All Mine

hey ladies! so excited by the privilege of joining you all in this delightful little blog (and perhaps a wee bit intimidated...you gals have lovely decorating, quaint homes, and so much domestic prowess!). i'm glad to finally have a chance to introduce myself!

About Me: wife, mommy, daughter of the King...i am 29 (30 in may). i was born and raised in indiana all of my life (with the exception of three summers aways...one in ohio, one in new zealand, and one in colorado...all with campus crusade for Christ). i'm the youngest of two daughters. my husband michael and i met through Sunday school class at church and never in our wildest imagination thought we would eventually be married, but that's God for you. in july 2003 God stirred both of our hearts while we were cleaning fruit together, we started dating, were engaged just 2 months later on sept. 20, 2003, and our wedding took place the following spring/summer on june 5, 2004. hard to believe it's been 4 1/2 years! in early 2005 we were surprised with the news we were pregnant, and in october 2005 we welcomed elizabeth irene to our family. and in august 2007 we were blessed with the gift of another precious daughter katherine christine (kate...and the name kate just fits her...our little firecracker!).

Define Home...home is where you can completely be yourself. it is full of laughter and love, and yet it is a place where you can bare your heart and still be accepted. it is not always neat and tidy, but rather, it is stuffed to the brim with the little "clutter" of life. right now home is wooden choo-choos, pink socks, and my little ponies stashed in the most random of corners. home is where i snuggle up on the couch next to my husband or settle in for a stories with my girls. home smells like fresh bread or brownies baking in the oven. the older i get the more that i realize home is much less the physical structure and much less the "stuff" and so incredibly and completely the people. home is family.

Favorite Color...this depends. when it comes to clothing i seem to be in a brown mode as of late...deep chocolate browns. when it comes to decor i'm all over the board....for our bedroom a light cerulean bluish, two tones separated by a white chair rail. downstairs, a bold red splash of color for our living room, and an accenting of oatbran that will soon be painted on the walls of our front room. when it comes to the girls its bold and bright colors...a vibrant yellow in elizabeth's room and bold murals of curious george in the nursery. (although i'm seeing visions of pink and green when we eventually move the girls to the same room!).

(incidentally the plates in the pic above were my favorite piece of accent decor in my house (they have Scripture on them...until Miss Kate decided to reach up and manage to pull them off the wall during E's birthday party Sunday...shattering every plate to pieces except the yellow one...UGH!)

Decorating Elements

...i suppose you would call it "eclectic"...since there isn't really any rhyme or reason. i would like to have more simplicity but struggle to keep my head above the water when it comes to clutter! :) i feel like i see ideas that others share and would love to pull them off, but apparently that would involve finding the time and/or money! :) here are some snippets of decorating elements around our house though!

Creative Outlets ...you name it, i enjoy it. seriously...sewing, knitting, tile coaster making, writing...and on and on! :) i find i have far too many creative things i enjoy and far too little time for partaking in them! oh, and cooking...mostly the baking part.

A recipe we indulge in...i direct you to two a new fav and an old standby. cheesy corn tortilla bites and carrot cake

A household tip...i could use a few of these! okay, in all seriousness, schedule and routine. i SO rebelled against this for so long, and now it has become my best tool and is helping me grow so much as a wife and mom. i have designated times for chores and designated times for sitting on the floor playing or purposeful crafting with elizabeth...and it is SO incredibly freeing. but more than anything, my tip and my heart is to keep my focus on the people and not allow the "stuff" to take over!

Where do I find inspiration...everywhere. but i find much of my inspiration these days from my girls. but seriously, i find inspiration on all of your blogs, in my backyard, at my MOPS group, all over!

Favorite spots around my home

...this room right here...in fact, to be specific, in the corner of the couch, the one cut off in the photo. it looks out onto the front of the house, and with the window open i can feel the breeze. i love to curl up here with my Bible and journal, surrounded by pictures of my family and sweet little reminders of the blessings in my life. i will like it even better when i get around to painting the walls with the oatbran paint we already bought. but i also LOVE my kitchen...i love cooking and baking and creating...

Getting to know you: have a lovely

hello soon to be dear friends! I am so thankful to Chelle for the invite to be a part of such a special group of gals and look forward to getting to know each of you!!


a little about me...
I am a Texas girl living in PA and I'm married to the one my soul fell in love with. We are a real life "love at first sight" Mr. & Mrs. We have been married over 4 years and moved 19 hours from home to Cleveland, OH after one month of marriage for my husband to attend medical school. Might just sound far...but it was more than just the hours...my heart was still in Texas and that move {my first ever} in many ways came to define how I lived my life. God took me completely out of my comfort zone and away from our families {I am one of 4} and planted me where he wanted me to grow...even in the coldest of winters! I grew in ways only He could have fathomed and although I miss home and pray that we end up back there one day...I wouldn't have traded this journey for anything.

We just moved to PA in June for the next leg of our journey {at least 3 years}...for his podiatry residency. I am so blessed to finally be working from home for myself! I own a unique little children's boutique, Teacups and Tadpoles, and am working on my 2nd business venture now and hoping to launch in just a few weeks. My background is in children's interior design, retail, and well...Christmas trees! I used to design Christmas trees and homes during the holidays...and I loved it!

favorite decorating elements...
I heart all things vintage, must have: chandeliers, like the smell and feel of old books, find scouring flea markets relaxing, think peeling paint is beautiful, have an obsession with crepe paper ruffles, think glass glitter is divine, will never have too many dishes, can't stop taking pictures, collect silver serving pieces, adore my collection of transferware, and have a weakness for fabrics...but can't yet sew a lick! My home is my tangible scrapbook...it is a mix of everywhere we had lived and lived through. I love mixing the unexpected with the typical. For example...rice {and even black beans} are a fabulous medium {just keep up from the littles}...and plants don't have to just live in planters...

favorite color...
tough one...it seems to be different with different things...
-for decorating my accent color seems to be red
-for clothes...I wear a lot of basic colors {blacks, whites, creams, etc.} because I like to accessorize!
-and for just all around...I really like turquoise

creative outlets...
I spend most of my creative time on my businesses, enjoy making things with paper, blogging, could design on the computer until my eyes are stuck, and love, love, love "taking pictures" {I am not a professional or trained so I feel I can't call it "photography"}.

around our home... {in pictures... sorry...some of them are most current and we are all decked out for halloween}

definition of home...
my home is truly where my family is... When hubby and I moved to Cleveland I missed "home", but the first time I went home without him...I realized I had it all along. Home really was were he was and we were together. I can't explain the feeling, but going home to Texas doesn't feel the same anymore if he's not there.

favorite domestic tip...
make your bed. I got so tired of hearing it growing up. But...I do it every day. Even if its 7:00 at night sometimes...I have to make my bed before I get into it for the night. There is something about making your bed that makes you feel ready and put together...even if there are 4 loads of laundry waiting to be folded!

book recommendation...
The Purpose Driven Life...I picked it up years ago to read after a slew of recommendations and only read the first few chapters. I picked it up again at the first of this summer...and I can't recommend a more favorite book right now...if you too have picked it up and didn't get far...keep reading. You will soon move through the chapters of things you may have always heard and then you'll move into chapters that truly will speak to your heart.

Anyone else, want to join us?

I am about to send out swap partner info to those of you who have joined up for the { tibits } scrap swap. But I am one person short.

So we are looking for one more person

to even out the { tidbits } swap.

Just wondering if any of you ladies out there might have meant to sign up and then maybe forgot to? Or does one of want to play twice and send out and receive double the amount of scraps? please if so let me know by either leaving me a comment here or emailing me as soon as possible at domestic.b@hotmail.com .

Thanks dearies.

Edit: We have our extra lady! :) You will all be getting your partner info right away. Have fun!

Coming Soon!

Good morning to you beautiful people.
And a very special good morning to a VERY special person, on a very special day of her life.
Chelle,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
I love you very, very dearly.
I plan to write a nice little birthday post, but I do not want to rush the words written. Therefore I am going to work on it and post it tonight. So until then dearest of dears, know I absolutely adore the socks off of you.
hugs and kisses for you and two extras for today!
Your fan, "Min"

Introductions: Katie

a little about me:

Katie.
I am most definitely the 'baby' of this group :) I'm 20 years old and live all the way 'downunder' in Australia, which at times is way too far away from all you fun spirited ladies! I was born in the Northern Beaches of Sydney but moved further up the coast when I was still very young. We live near the beach, which we try to get to as often as possible, and just love the coastal lifestyle.

the area which we live (church is one of those little buildings):

I have an amazing family and equally amazing boyfriend, Morgan whom you can hear more about over at my blog. We met at school through a mutual friend who had a bit of a 'thing' for me. The friend asked Morgan to chat to me and find out if I had any feelings for him. It's safe to say the story didn't end the way he had quite hoped and I fell badly for M and he for me and we have been chatting like mad ever since ;) We have been dating for 3 and a half years - & it's been a blast!
We are actively involved in our little church, where we are youth leaders and both involved in the church and youth bands. (I sing and Mr Morgan is our drummer who is also occasionally seen on the guitar or bass or mucking around on the keys) I believe I am so blessed by what the Lord has given me and each day try to strive to shine for him and to get to that 'next level' in my relationship with him, though many times I may fail.
I am currently a legal secretary who deals with family law, criminal law etc (all that messy stuff!) I took this job almost 2 years ago to save up for design school which I was recently accepted into and start in February next year!! I will be studying Interior Design.. and will keep you informed on how it all goes.
I am so excited to see what next year will bring and to continue to get to know all you lovely ladies more...

What is your definition of home:
Home is where you are loved for just being you and love back regardless. It's full of laughter, crazy singing, dancing, dinner parties, friends, cozy warm spots and a place you can be totally the 'daggy' you and still feel the most comfortable in the world. I can't wait to bring all this to my own house one day - we're currently saving!

Favourite Colours:

I just can't decide on this one, there's too many beautiful colours! I do like them bright & happy though..
ps. I'm not a bad speller...this is how we spell these words in Australia, we're crazy I know ;)

Favourite decorating elements:
paint, texture (walls, fabrics & furniture), pattern, small personalized touches, objects that seem 'random' and add character to a room, objects that have meaning and a story behind them, photographs, throw cushions, candles, pretty lights and would love one day to have drool worthy hardwood floors :)

Favourite creative outlets:
Basically anything crafty I can get my hands on. I especially have a passion for sewing, interior design & photography (looking at learning much more about this)with a bit of card making, scrapbooking & cooking - I'm such a sucker for food! thrown in too.

A Favourite recipe:
I'll go with sweet...
sweet chocolate and berry brownies.

Favourite domestic tip:
hmm not sure I have much experience to give you all a domestic tip! I'd say get rid of clutter, I know it makes me feel better. I use one of those nice fabric covered boxes as my inbox for my desk. The junk which would usually go all over my desk is thrown in and the lid is put on, therefore giving the illusion that I am neat and have everything under control ;) I think got this obsessive nature off my mum who has a passion for containers and whos spice rack is in alphabetical order (no joke!)

Where do I find inspiration :
in so many places.. blogs, Home Beautiful Magazine (I seriously have about 3 years worth of these hoarded away which I refuse to get rid of! It's a goal to one day have a house that is worthy of gracing the pages of a magazine such as this), Etsy, shops, restaurants & cafes (their choice of colours, furniture, shelving and patterns etc), flickr, advertising brochures (I've also been known to hoard these even though they serve no use), photography, music..

Favourite spots around my home:
I still live at home with my parents (and plan on doing so until I've finished design school!) We live in a house my dad 'started' building when I was about 3 - home builder's houses always seems to take years :) Although we do love our house it is quite a lot of maintenance for my dad and my parents are looking at putting the house up for sale soon and moving on to something else. The colour and furniture are not particulary my choice but here are some things that I love about home:
p.s I would say my parents are definately not afraid to use colour..

my room, love putting candles and soft music on and drinking tea in bed while reading my devotion book or pouring through Home Beautiful and just winding down :)

all furniture by dad.

our stairwells (the left hand side is all windows) I love when the sun pours through..

Like Wendi, I like having a big kitchen, great for entertaining:

Love eating out here especially on summer nights:

Having scenery such as: