Christmas Craftalong

End of Christmas crafting day #1 accountability list!

  • Finished socks
  • Ironed fabric for stockings (will finish them Monday night instead when Mr Imma is working)
  • Ironed and cut all fabric for tablerunner
  • Started cross stitch card

So, not a bad score at all! Tomorrow I’ll have to clean first and then we’re going to get a tree and that will need to be decorated of course. But there’ll hopefully still be a few hours for crafting at night.

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Time is in short supply these days but I’ve wanted to do this project since our auntie gave us the advent calendar house a year or 2 ago. The numbers are pin back buttons from Michael’s hot glued on. Our aunt was actually over the other day so it seemed a perfect opportunity to work on it together. We pulled the pins off to make the buttons more low profile.


It’s filled with festive chocolates the kids have been enjoying each day.

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Love it!

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So, I finished up the first 4 stockings, but they’re already on their way to their new homes! I forgot to take a picture.

I also made a bottle of speculaas cream liquor for friends that visited yesterday. The friends loved it and polished off most of the bottle and took the rest home, where it probably won’t survive the weekend. My guess is it’s quite strong but they didn’t seem to mind! I don’t drink at all, Mr. Imma only drinks beer, so we each tasted one teaspoon and it was nice enough. Because of the cream it doesn’t taste like alcohol that much and you can really taste the spices. I will post the recipe, it’s a slightly adapted version from a Good Housekeeping magazine. Here’s there recipe: Speculaas cream liquor

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How are you Christmas crafters doing? I have a few almost finishes that will hopefully all be done by tonight! It’s 5.15 pm here and I just put away my work laptop for the night.

  • 2 stockings left, one is done except for bias tape, the other one is pinned and ready to sew
  • Cross stitched piece (free kit that came with magazine) is done except for two buttons, I’ve found fabric scrap for backing, almost ready to sew
  • One large hoop embroidery, embroidery is done, needs to be framed in hoop
  • One small hoop embroidery (free kit that came with magazine) halfway done, needs to be framed in hoop afterwards
  • Christmas themed masks

I really hate finishing in a hoop, I just really happen to like the look of the finished piece.

Edit:
done with the stockings! Here’s the proof Christmas stockings finally done! No more stockings for me!

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I have completely lost the plot on my Christmas crafts. Thank goodness i made that candle mat and bell garland way early or i’d be a total disgrace! Haha
I got caught up in some new yarn for a no-deadline project and, true to my procrastinator core, just keep going back to that project. Ah well. Sometimes you just have to accept the muse is a tricky mistress and go where she takes you.

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Hmmm 14 days until Christmas? Any second now I will start trying to make a bunch of hand-crafted gifts that take too long (each). I mean, who am I to break the traditions of the season?

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I won’t be breaking that one either :roll_eyes:

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Did you already finish the no-deadline project or is that still a WIP while it’s being put on hold for Christmas? :rofl:

I’m actually doing pretty well with regards to Christmas gifts, other than that I’ve still not sent out any Christmas cards and I’ve only made a few. On the list for this weekend I suppose.

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Ohhh it’s still a WiP, yet another long-standing tradition that’s close to my heart! Haha!

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One of my own long-standing traditions is starting new Christmas projects between Christmas and the New Year, when I’m off from work, have time on my hands and am still in the mood for Christmas. Then after Jan 1st, put away the WIP until December 15.

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I have a shawl, 2 hats, and ornaments to finish. Let alone the cookies…

You’re in good company here. :laughing:

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… as the prophesy foretold… :laughing:

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I do love that yarn!!

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Kids made this gingerbread house.


Our trick for easy assembly of the base is hot glue, ssshhh, lol :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

I spend the entire weekend shopping for supplies and mixing up cookie doughs! The freezer has a stash for later baking just before we go to see family.


These 6 rolls are in the fridge chilling. So far there is:
Peanut butter oat
Ginger sparkle
Inside out chocolate chip
Oatmeal raisin
Russian tea cakes

Also Fudgey brownie and Spiced chocolate crinkles. That dough was so wet, it seemed more like cake batter to me but you are supposed to roll them into balls to bake so we shall see how they turn out. I’ll have to freeze the baked cookies and hope for the best with these two recipes.

I also made a double batch of chocolate coconut graham balls. A sort of lazy truffle-ish treat I fancy up by stuffing with dried fruit, candy, bits of chocolate, marshmallows, fudge, candied ginger, etc, then rolling in various coatings. They are literally called Yum Yum balls, ha ha.

Still to make are:
Chocolate chip
Sugar cookies
Drop sugar cookies
Toasted Hazelnut
Raspberry thumb print
Linzer

This year everybody is getting cookies and fresh baked bread.

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Looks very good!! Such a clever idea to prepare the dough ahead of time so you can do all of your baking on one day just before Christmas!

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We were quite literally making dough all day. I don’t know how people mix & bake more than a couple sorts of cookies at a time! Everything needs to chill & there are only so many baking trays, those should cool between batches too. Sheesh, I felt like a factory lol.

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Wow! That’s a lot of cookies!!!

My mom mails me a tin of cookies every year and it’s my favorite gift. Home-made edible gifts are the best. :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

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Homemade is the best, especially when it’s from mum or grandma! I always try to convince my mum to make my favourite childhood foods when I visit. She’s changed a lot since then and many of those dishes are no longer part of the usual rotation and she is completely baffled why I ask for food that’s so cheap and simple. But it just doesn’t taste the same when I make it!

@Magpie on my pre-pandemic, pre-Christmas baking days (when I was baking for lots of people) I always tried to avoid cookies precisely because of the hassle with chilling dough and waiting for cookies to cool. I would usually make several types of cupcakes, my grandma’s ginger cake, scones etc, the only thing that needed to chill was the dough for mince pies.

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So true!

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