CALENDAR UPDATE
I've collected additional photos and art for the calendar. I've decided to make this easy on myself and choose 13 pieces of art/photos for this calendar. Now all I have to do is to find some rings to assemble the calendars with.

CALENDAR
I've started on the design of my 2004 calendars. I'm making each page 8 1/2" x 11". I'm allowing for a photo on the top of each page and the monthly calendar underneath. I always include the month of december so that recipients may use it immediately. I'm not completely satisfied with the photos and original art that I have available. On some calendars I get more personal (families or close friends) and include photos of my little girl. I always start off with something which is more general and I could give to anyone. I'll have to pull out the paints and pastels and come up with some other choices for the art.

I'm very satisfied with the way the calendar is looking. I have each page marked on the top and bottom (for hole punching) because I haven't made a final decision on how I want it to hang. I plan to bind it with metal rings unless I can find a source for plastic ones. When I finish this calendar, I will use the already designed pages to make a smaller version of the calendar which is saddlestiched and less expensive to produce. I give the larger calendar to my parents, in-laws and sisters. The smaller ones are usually given to my brothers, jealous relatives who didn't get the large one and friends. I sometimes swap out pictures to make it more appropriate for the person receiving it. For example, a calendar going to college buddies may include some old shots of us at school. Or my mother-in-law's calendar will include photos with my husband in them.

I am ahead of schedule with this project and hope to stay on track. Last year I ordered sketch calendars from Dick Blick and used those. They turned out great, but the next time I use the preprinted calendars, I would like to plan an original piece of art for each month and make stamps of them. I would then stamp each month accordingly and do several calendars at once. It was a little tedious having to assemble each page with backgrounds and photos like I did last year. I usually start my calendar project in October and finish just in time for the holidays. This year I hope to have them in the mail in early December.

Happy Crafting and have a nice weekend!

NATURALIST THINKER
Well, I just found out that I have the brain of a renaissance scholar with an insatiable desire to know everything. Like Leonardo da Vinci and Charles Darwin.


Hmmmmm..... Naturalist Thinkers like to understand the world and every living creature. They have an aptitude for communicating with animals and look for patterns in life and natural forces.


Hmmmmm..... Career paths include: biologist, meteorologist, forester, farmer, astronomer, or an alternative therapist.


Interesting. Are there any other naturalist thinkers out there?


Anyway, in my world of crafting, I am currently putting the finishing touches on "baby amanda's quilt". I am finally going to finish a quilt that I started YEARS ago. I finished the top and stopped.

I am getting an early start on Christmas gifts this year. I've finished one set of Soothing Bath gift-in-a-jar. I made a label to go on the tops of the jars but I think I am going to find a nice green fabric and tie gift tags around it instead.

I've got to get to work now. I work with a bunch of procrastinators and the deadline is today.

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!
I'm so excited that today is Friday!

I accomplished alot last night. I decluttered the overflowing basket beside my bed. I keep my Working Mother, Woman's Day, Child and Family Circle magazines, notecards for letter writing, and miscellaneous books in it. Well, needless to say, I've gotten behind on my reading because the basket was full as well as the surrounding area. Some were art and design magazines that I had already perused. I decided it was time to get rid of some of the "stuff". It was especially hard to get rid of the art and painting magazines. Those had perfectly good projects and lessons in them which I had not had time to do yet. Knowing that I really needed to declutter the area I decided to put the art and design publications in my local battered women's shelter box. There, it was done.

Everything now fits IN the basket and I did a good deed.

Have a nice weekend!

ARTS AND CRAFTS PROJECTS
I am currently working on several projects including:


BABY QUILT(S)

Currently, 4 of my 10 circle of friends from college is pregnant or have had babies within the last 8 months. In the past, I have made each of them a baby quilt or blanket for their first born. However, one friend has greatly complicated things by requesting an "extra" quilt for an additional child. Since I agreed to do this for her (she begged), I now have to make quilts for ALL of the kids. This project list now includes a recently born infant boy, a "still in the oven" infant girl and TWINS who are still in the oven!!
I try to simplify things by using fairly large blocks. I am going to experiment a little and have fun with these. Wish me luck.

I hope to finish all of the quilts in 2003.


CHRISTMAS


Ornaments

I've finished making ornaments from last year's Christmas cards. I'm not sure that I'll be doing that again. They are very cute but I personally wouldn't hang them on my tree. I enjoy the more traditional Christmas decorations and these are more geared towards country or folk art.

Christmas Ornament How To: The ornaments were fairly simple to make. First collect ALL cards given to you during Christmas. Cut out the most enticing part of the card and glue it onto felt. I bought 10 colors of felt and matched the card cut-out to the appropriate color. Get creative with this - cut around shapes and match with a contrasting felt color. I selected a decorative gold thread as the hangers and used tacky glue to secure the pieces together. I plan to give these ornaments as a small gift to coworkers and associates this holiday season. I will donate the remaining ornaments to the local battered women's shelter.


Gift Jars

Last year my gift jars were a big hit among family, friends and church members. I made Oatmeal Cookie gift jars and received positive feedback from everyone. This year I am going to do more of the Oatmeal Cookies and I am also trying a "Soothing Bath" in a jar recipe.

Oatmeal Cookie Gift Jar How To: Choose your favorite cookie-in-a-jar recipe (I found a recipe on-line which was similar to the ones I usually make). Layer the ingredients in a wide mouth jar according to the directions. Add the cooking instructions label to the outside of the jar or as a tag tied to the jar. You can also decorate the lid of the jar with paint or simply add a piece of fabric and seal. This is an excellent gift for anytime of the year.

Soothing Bath How To: Choose your favorite bath recipe (I found a soothing bath recipe on-line which includes epsom salt, oatmeal, salt and dry milk). Mix the ingredients and make a cute label. This is a great gift to give during the holidays, as a "get-well soon" gift or to a tired mom.

I will add my favorite recipes later.


Calendar

For the past three years, I've made calendars for family. I use photos taken throughout the year at family events and make a 12 month photo calendar for them to hang on the wall.

Calendar How To: Pick out 12 of your favorite photos of the year. Match up photos with seasons, birthdays, etc. Arrange photos on pages (refer to old calendar that you like). This can be done on the computer or as a cut and paste. Print or make copies of the finished pages. Arrange in the correct order and staple or glue. These directions, of course are oversimplified due to the infinite number of ways to arrange a calendar. Be creative.