It’s that time of year again! I love to create and sew handmade gifts for the holidays. I mean I really LOVE it. I am the most happy when I am crafting and really happy when the gift gets to go to someone special. I have to come clean though, I actually made this beautiful Ruffled Tote for myself. I have carried this purse all over the place. I made an iPad pocket inside too, so my iPad has its only cozy home inside. I also put a phone pocket inside. You need to keep your technology handy so you don’t have to dig to the bottom of this big tote. It is big enough to fit folders or books. Or say you are shopping at a craft show, you don’t need a bag for your smaller purchases, just tuck them inside this awesome tote. You can purchase and download the pattern for this beautiful tote from my Shop. It is really easy to sew and the directions and pattern come in .pdf format. This is an awesome gift to sew for your sister or a teacher, or ahem, yourself!

When you purchase the pattern you get complete sewing instructions, detailed pictures and the patterns for all the needed pieces. You can purchase this pattern in my Store by clicking this link: Ruffled Tote Sewing Pattern or by visiting my Store. Please note that this pattern is for personal use only. You may not sell this pattern, variations of this pattern or clothes made from this pattern.

If you want to create the FABRIC FLOWER shown on this bag you can find the instructions here: How To | Fabric Flowers

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Jewelry is a staple in any girl’s wardrobe, am I right? Of course I am. So making jewelry to give as a gift is the perfect handmade gift idea. I made these pearl ribbon necklaces to give out at a gift exchange. Mix up the colors a bit and they would be a fun Valentine’s Day necklace!

If you aren’t familiar with jewelry making and working with wire, check out this link for a how to on making a simple wire loop.

Supplies:

• Pearl Beads
• Satin Ribbon
• Jump Rings
• Clasp
• Chain
• Eye Pins (has looped already formed on one end)
• Metal Ribbon Clasps
• Crocheted Flowers
• Gemstone or Pearl
• E6000
• Wire Cutter
• Round Nose Pliers
• Flat Pliers

How To:

1. Start your necklace by joining the pearls together with wire loops. You can find a great tutorial here.
2. Cut two pieces of ribbon, mine are each 5 1/2″ long. Using a pliers, add the metal ribbon clasps to each end of the ribbons.
3. Using jump rings, attach your joined pearls to the metal ribbon clasps.
4. On the end of the ribbons attach a clasp to one side and a jump ring and short length of chain on the other side.
5. Use E6000 glue to adhere the crocheted flowers and pearl to your necklace. Let dry.

The post How To | Pearl Ribbon Necklace appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.

Have you ever thought about how many thank you cards a teacher has to send home with students at Christmas? What if all of her Thank You cards were already handmade for her? I decided to make handmade Thank You cards for my son’s teacher. Do you think she will be delighted? You can easily whip up some of these for a favorite teacher too. All you need are blank cards, washi tape, a stamp, ink and envelopes.

Supplies:

• Washi Tape or Crafting Tape (I found mine at Michaels, Recollections brand)
• Thank you stamp
• Ink Pad
• Blank Cards
• Envelopes
• Scissor

How To:

1. Use crafting tape and scissors to create patterns on cards.
2. Use stamp and ink to stamp Thank You onto card.
3. Tie a ribbon around your card and envelope bundle and gift to your favorite teacher.

The post Handmade Holidays | Washi Tape Cards appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.

We are already on week 2 of my Handmade Holiday posts. You saw in an earlier post that my youngest daughter loves mermaids. Of course her doll needed a mermaid costume on Halloween too. Now I have this mermaid doll costume pattern available for you to purchase. My daughters have had so much pretend play fun with their dolls dressed up as mermaids and my boys pretending to be the pirates. I just know your daughter will love putting this costume on her doll.

This pattern also works, with a slight variation, for 15″ Bamboletta Dolls and for Bitty Babies. When you purchase the pattern you get complete sewing instructions, detailed pictures and the patterns for all the needed pieces.

You can purchase this pattern in my Store by clicking this link: Doll Mermaid Costume Pattern or by visiting my Store.

Please note that this pattern is for personal use only. You may not sell this pattern, variations of this pattern or clothes made from this pattern.

The post Handmade Holidays | Doll Mermaid Costume Pattern appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.

It is the first full week of November and I am kicking off my Handmade Holiday series with this adorable fleece hat pattern that is available for purchase! Wouldn’t your son or daughter love to wear one of these warm hats outside on a chilly winter day? Animal style hats are already really popular this season. This hat is worn similar to a hood to help keep their head extra toasty. Front flaps tuck easily underneath their coat to keep their neck warm and covered while they play. As you can see there is a lot of animal ear variations that can be done to create different animal styles. Lucky for you, all the ears shown here are included as part of the hat pattern.

You can purchase this pattern in my Store by clicking this link: Fleece Animal Hat Pattern.

Please note that this pattern is for personal use only. You may not sell this pattern, variations of this pattern or hats made from this pattern.

Check back in soon, there just might be a free downloadable hat pattern for your daughter’s special doll! Follow me on Facebook to stay up on my blog posts.

The post Handmade Holidays | Fleece Animal Hat Pattern appeared first on Alanna George | The Craft Nest.

{Handmade Holiday Idea #2}

Hot Chocolate Mix in a cute package is an easy to make gift. I find these little packs are great gifts for co-workers and school teachers. They are simple, thoughtful and usable. Use my free download for the printable gift wrapper to create your own.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients and supplies you will need:

Supplies:

• Cello bag (not wider than 4″)
• Ribbon
• Tape
• Hole Punch
• Hot Chocolate Gift Wrapper Download (Free Below)

Ingredients:

• Hot Cocoa Mix
• Mini Marshmallows
• Chocolate Chips
• Mini Candy Cane

How To | Hot Chocolate Gift Wrapper

1. Print out and assemble Hot Chocolate Gift Wrapper. The wrapper is in two pieces on the printable sheet. Cut out the pieces and tape them together at the bottom where directed. Fold at fold lines.

2. Follow the directions on your Hot Chocolate Mix and add enough for one 8oz. cup to your the bag. Next add the marshmallows and chocolate chips.

3. Roll over top of bag until it reaches desired height to fit inside gift wrapper. Tape bag closed. Tape bag to one side of gift wrapper.

4. Use your hole punch to punch two holes (try to go through to bag also) at the top of gift wrapper. Use hole punch to punch hole at top of candy cane wrapper. Thread ribbon through holes, then thread one side of the ribbon through candy cane wrapper. Tie ribbon and trim off extra length.

5. Present your handmade gift with a smile!

Wrapped and Ready to Gift

*Free Downloads:

Deer Theme Hot Chocolate Mix Gift Wrapper

Holly Theme Hot Chocolate Mix Gift Wrapper

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Here are some great links to check out to gather inspiration for more gift ideas:

• Amy from Inspireco made this most delicious digital magazine featuring a number of talented artists (including Mary Engelbreit). You can find oodles of inspiration for holiday decor and gifts here: inspired ideas
• Martha has a great list of ideas for Christmas Ornaments: Christmas Ornament Photo Gallery
• Here is a beautiful way to send your Christmas greetings and save paper. I love the way it still comes in an envelope: Paperless Post

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The months of November and December are a very busy time of year at our house. I love to prepare activities to do with my children each day of Advent. I also love to make handmade gifts for friends and family.

This year I am busy preparing my Advent activities, which will center around the Jesse Tree. I will be posting a children’s advent craft focused on the Jesse Tree theme every day in December. I will be posting instructions and more details a little later this month (this all depends on if the baby comes early or not). All of you who want to join in and do the same activities with your kids will have time to prepare and pick up supplies before December begins.

On another note, a lot of bloggers are posting ideas for enjoying a Handmade Holiday. I am hoping to post at least four handmade projects you can create and give as gifts. These are simple gifts that don’t require too much time or money. This calendar is the first of four (or more) handmade gift posts for November.

I made this calendar project for Colorbök back in 2009. I think it makes a perfect gift. It is a great size for hanging in an office or on the refrigerator. I slipped my picture behind a photo frame so that I could easily switch it out every month or two.

How To | Photo Calendar

Ingredients:

• 8.5 x 11 Scrapbooking Paper
• Assorted Scrapbooking Products
• Adhesive
• Stapler
• Favorite Photo
• 2011 Year-at-a-Glance Calendar
• Eyelet (optional)

1. Print calendar and cut in half. Staple to bottom of 8.5 x 11 Scrapbooking Paper.

2. Decorate top of calendar page using scrapbooking products. Add your photo in the appropriate spot.

3. Set an eyelet in the top center of the page to create a place for it to hang from. You could also tie a ribbon through the eyelet and create a loop for hanging.

4. Wrap in a pretty mailer envelope. Another option is to use one of these printed file folders to enclose your calendar and then wrap a pretty ribbon around the outside. Printed File Folder

Free Download: 2011 Year-at-a-Glance Calendar

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