Making Christmas - Week 4

Another week has whizzed by so it is time to check in with my progress (or lack of!) on my list of Christmas makes.

 

As I knew my sewing room was going to be out of action for most of the week, I wasn't feeling too hopeful on the sewing projects I would like to complete in time for Christmas. I was absolutely right to be less than hopeful! 

Whilst I had no sewing space to hide away in, I did have a kitchen to play in so I pulled out the recipe books and torn out magazine pages to see what I could add to my list of makes this week. I was so pleased with last week's chutney that I thought I would add another preserve to the cheese lover's hamper for my brother.

So here is the latest addition to the hamper!

This was even easier to make than the chutney, as basically I threw everything in a pot and let it simmer for 30 mins :)

The recipe is available here if you would like to give it a go.

So one item added to my list and immediately ticked off! Is that cheating ??

So here's the current list, hopefully, some of those sewing projects will see some progress in the coming week.

• A Christmas Table Runner for our new dining table
• Two Pleated Pouches to fill with make-up/nail polishes for my daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law to be
• Two Liberty and linen jewellery rolls for my sisters-in-law
• A Knotwork Christmas cushion - for me!
• A Fairytale Cushion for my grandniece using one of Quiet Play's Happily Ever After paper-pieced patterns
• Homemade chutney for my brother and son MADE
• Homemade relish for my brother MADE
• More dishwasher vodka!
• Biscuits for cheese for my brother

If you haven't already come across the Making Christmas Blog Hop, it is the brainchild of Janine and Rebecca who came up with the wheeze of asking fellow bloggers to post a list of the crafty projects they would like to complete before Christmas and link them up.

Along the way there will be posts and tutorials on holiday-themed projects, this week's post is by M-R at Quilt Matters, pop on over and check out what she has lined up for this week.

You can also check out all the great projects being ticked off those lists at the Making Christmas  Pinterest board.

So if you haven't already made a list, I don't like to worry you but it is November, maybe it is time you started thinking about that crafty Christmas you thought you had plenty of time for in the summer! Link up your list here and enjoy the support and encouragement of your fellow bloggers, and maybe get some handy ideas along the way :)
 

Making Christmas - Week 3

Although it doesn't seem like it, we are already in to the third week of Making Christmas, where did week 2 go??

If you haven't already come across the Making Christmas Blog Hop, it is the brainchild of Janine and Rebecca who came up with the wheeze of asking fellow bloggers to post a list of the crafty projects they would like to complete before Christmas and link them up.

Along the way there will be posts and tutorials on holiday-themed projects, this week's post is by the very talented, paper-piecing Queen, Kristy who has designed an adorable Christmas Robin Wreath paper-pieced pattern, where does she find the time?? The pattern will be available for free download from Kristy's Craftsy shop, but only for a limited time, so if you would like it you will need to be quick.

Having made zero progress on my Making Christmas list last week, I was hoping for better things this week, and I am pleased to report that I have managed to tick one thing off of the list. Yay!

Chutney for my son and brother. I had to wait until my son was away for the weekend before making this, so that I can squirrel it away for Christmas without his seeing it :)

The recipe for the Spicy Squash and Apple Chutney was from the October issue of Good Food magazine and is available here I used Butternut Squash in my chutney, but it would be a great way to use up the leftover pumpkin flesh if you are carving up pumpkins this week!

I enjoyed making this so much that I have decided to make some biscuits for cheese and put together a hamper for my brother. He is a very difficult person to shop for, but loves his cheese so I think that might just hit the spot.

So here's my updated list

• A Christmas Table Runner for our new dining table
• Two Pleated Pouches to fill with make-up/nail polishes for my daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law to be
• Two Liberty and linen jewellery rolls for my sisters-in-law
• A Knotwork Christmas cushion - for me!
• A Fairytale Cushion for my grandniece using one of Quiet Play's Happily Ever After paper-pieced patterns
• Homemade chutney for my brother and son MADE
• More dishwasher vodka!
• Biscuits for cheese for my brother

The room where I sew and craft is being decorated this week, so I think my opportunities for ticking off any of the sewing projects will be minimal. Maybe it is time to crack out the vodka :)

I hope you have been having a more productive couple of weeks than I have!

 Linking my updated list up to the Link party here 

Handmade Christmas - Part 1

Now that our youngest son's birthday has passed (last week) we are officially allowed to mention Christmas in our house!

So I decided to get a start on some of the handmade presents I am hoping to give this year. I have had lots of ideas spinning around in my head, but it is now boiling down to what I can get the appropriate supplies for locally and what I actually have time to do.

First up some pineapple chutney for my foodie son and daughter-in-law,

Before the big day I will search out some Christmas fabric and my pinking shears to make covers for the jars I promise!

Next up a bracelet from memory wire for my eldest son's girlfriend

This was actually a kit that I bought a couple of weeks ago and was so easy that I will definitely be out buying more memory wire soon. It must have taken all of 10 minutes in front of the television to do - definitely my kind of project :)

Finally I got around to using up some of my blocks from Quiet Play's Say Cheese Polaroid Block swap to make a doll quilt. The doll and quilt are for my niece's daughter, I am not quite sure what that makes me to her or her to me!

I had great fun sorting through the blocks I received picking out the girliest ones!

Now that I am finally reunited with my stash I had the ideal backing fabric - bright pink and flowery, not something I would normally use but perfect for this.

I hope she enjoys playing with this quilt as much as I have enjoyed making it.

Just in case you are thinking that I am really on top of things I am admitting to this disaster, a stollen that didn't rise!

 It wasn't entirely my fault as I went to what was billed as an "Edible Christmas Gifts" cookery class and we ran out of time to prove our stollens for the second time, which meant taking it home and having to leave it overnight to prove. I think the freezing cold journey home didn't do my poor stollen any favours and it could have doubled as a brick the next day!

Unfortunately the stollen wasn't the only disaster in the kitchen this weekend. I dropped my Christmas pudding when taking it out of the steamer (I know it should have been made weeks ago!) and the pudding basin cracked in two! Cue a hasty switch to another bowl, but I will only know on Christmas Day whether it survived the fall or not. I am hoping everyone will be so full of the festive spirit they won't actually notice that the pudding is a rather strange shape :)

Hopefully the next bout of handmade activity will be less disaster prone!

I hope your weekend was productive too.