Mr Yet To Come 3.0

Here's Mr Yet To Come 3.0 (right) hanging out with Mr 2.0 (left). I think most of the design kinks are worked out on him this go round. I will change only a couple minor things for 4.0 and I have a good mental outline of the order of steps needed for his build. I'm still trying to make a gravestone I like, though. It's fighting me. 

My top priority is getting this pattern released before the end of the year. Will it happen? *suspenseful music plays* No one knows! Stay tuned...

(This Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come ornament will be the 5th in my ongoing Ebenezer Ornament Series. The first four patterns are available in my Etsy shop: mmmcrafts.etsy.com)

make lighted glass block Christmas presents

Have you guys ever done this Christmas craft? It's pretty easy and I love the way the lighted presents add festive magic to tabletops and bathrooms. Anyone who can tie a bow and use a hot glue gun can do this craft. My sister Leigh had a Christmas craft party years ago and we made them. I got the big idea a couple years ago to repeat that party with my own friends and I planned it all and bought the supplies and then ended up getting sick and not being able to attend my own craft party. But my friends had a blast making them.

WHAT YOU NEED:

• Glass brick with a hole in the side to feed in a string of lights. Back in the day you had to purchase the bricks from your local Home Depot or Lowes and make the hole yourself using a drill bit for glass. Forget that! Craft stores have clued into this and nowadays you can usually find glass bricks in various sizes with handy premade holes available at your local craft/fabric superstore. 
• If your brick is clear and not frosted you will want to frost just the sides (not the top or bottom) with a spray paint designed to look like frosted glass. That's at the craft store too.
• A string of lights to put inside. Battery powered or electric, depending on whether you have an outlet handy where you want to put the finished present. Just make sure the wires are either white or metallic. The green wired kind won't look as nice. I think warm white lights look best. 
• Wired ribbon to make the bow. It's also nice to glue on some festive berries, pine cones, or greenery if you like. If you make your bows using a bowmaker jig, you may need some thin wire or twist ties to secure the loops. You can also use non-wired ribbon (I did on one because I loved the color) but wired ribbon gives nicer results and you can fluff it up after storage.
• Fray Check to keep the cut ends of the bow from raveling
• A hot glue gun
• A frothy coffee (optional)

TO MAKE:

1) Frost the sides (not the top or bottom) of your glass brick using the frosted glass spray paint and let that dry. (I won't attempt to tell you how to drill a hole in a glass brick since I've never done that, so I'll assume you can purchase a brick with nice big hole in back from your craft store.)

2) Feed in your string of lights, leaving the electric plug or battery pack on the outside of the brick. The hole/plug will be in the back. 

3) Measure and cut lengths of wired ribbon to wrap around the center of your brick in both directions, being sure to neatly overlap and hot glue the ribbon to the center top of the brick and not the bottom (so it can sit flat). Don't worry, your big ol' bow will cover the overlaps.

4) Make a big ol' bow with your wired ribbon. (Bow tutorials abound online.) A classic bow or a fancier one with more loops are both fine, just be sure it's big enough to cover most of the top of the brick. It's a nice touch to angle or notch the ends of the bow. Use Fray Check on the cut ends to keep them looking nice. 

5) Hot glue the bow in place in the center on top along with any little embellishments you want to add, like berries, greenery, sparkly bits, etc.

Tada. You're done! Plug it in or turn on the battery pack and enjoy. Makes a nice gift too! 

thank you!

A huge thanks to you for making my annual pattern sale so successful! Y'all have a LOT of merry mmmaking to do! Love to see the handmade ornaments, stars, and gifts you sew, so be sure to tag me on Instagram or Facebook. Now, you get crackin' and I will too.

only hours left in my annual sale!

Hey there! If you've been thinking of starting a new project, now's the time to grab that pattern from my shop! Save 20% off your purchase, no minimum, no coupon required. Sale expires 11/27 at 11:59 PM EST.

Shop here: mmmcrafts.etsy.com

Happy Thanksgiving! My annual sale is officially on!

Happiest of Thanksgivings to you, no matter where you may live in the world! It is always good to pause and reflect on our blessings and take time to be thankful. And if you can also manage to sit and devour an entire pecan pie with people you love, even better! 

A huge blessing in my life is the opportunity to design little projects, sell them in my Etsy shop, and have people actually buy the patterns! And actually make them! And actually enjoy it! It is amazing to consider. 

I'm deeply grateful for all of you lovely mmmakers who support my shop, take the time to show me what you are sewing, and even sweetly encourage others who are posting about their projects on FB and IG. Not to mention all the kind words that you send my way. Thank you! Y'all are the best! It just makes my day to imagine all your carefully crafted and beautiful handmade gifts being opened and exclaimed over by your delighted friends and family this Christmas. 

(If you've been pondering a new project, now is the time to purchase the pattern! It's my annual sale for 20% off your purchase from November 23rd to the 27th EST, no code necessary.)

some beginner friendly ornaments

Here are some of the more beginner-friendly ornament patterns in my shop. Each one can be hand-sewn by a confident beginner in one or two crafternoons and would make charming handmade gifts:

1) True Love Heart (included in the Lord a-Leaping pattern)
2) Snow Bird
3) LodeStar ornament (Included in the LodeStar Tree Topper pattern)
4) Goose Egg (Included in the Goose a-Laying pattern)
5) Partridge & Pear

If you like to use freezer paper for pattern transfer, choose Snow Bird. If you love the ease of using Sulky Stick ’n Stitch, choose any of the others shown here.

NOTE: The heart, star, and egg are bonuses/variations included in more advanced patterns and detailed instructions are provided.

SKILLS NEEDED: hand sewing, hand embroidery, cutting pieces with precision, glueing stuff, printing stuff, and enjoying coffee. That last thing is optional but recommended.

To buy the patterns: mmmcrafts.etsy.com

Shown: lovely wool felts by @benziedesign and @feltonthefly

Not Even A Mouse: detailed Benzie color guides, kits available!

Not Even A Mouse is the fifth pattern in my 'Twas the Night Ornament Series. Below are the detailed felt/floss/sequin/bead color guides for you, so that you can easily make sleepy-mice-in-teacups that look like my four samples pictured above. 

Benzie Design has long been one of my favorite places to purchase wool-blend felts (and they also have 100% wools). They have stellar customer service, quick shipping, and their felt, floss, sequins and beads are an absolute joy to work with! Their friendly staff will be very happy to help you find what you need, including a good many of the tools and other notions you'll need for this series.

First, some handy links to get you started:

To buy the Not Even A Mouse pattern: mmmcrafts.etsy.com

To buy the Classic or Retro felt palettes featured below:
Benzie 'Twas the Night felt palettes

To buy the helpful notions kit:
Benzie 'Twas the Night notions kit

To shop their beautiful sequins & beads:
Benzie Sparkle & Shine page

Check the end of the pattern if you are looking for local sources of supplies. Outside the US? Benzie gladly ships internationally, but if the shipping cost is a consideration, check here for ideas. 

OK! Here are the Benzie color guides:

Classic Palette White/Red Teacup

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

White: Teacup, mouse 
Swan: Quilt
Coral: Pillow

Mustard: Teddy

DECORATIVE FLOSS/SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:*

Teacup: DMC 666 and D3852. Clear iridescent 8 mm + gold 5 mm sequins for large flowers, Benzie 4 mm gold sequins for small flowers. All seed beads for flowers are Benzie Gold. On the rim: 5 mm iridescent translucent sequins + Benzie Rainbow Iridescent seed beads.

Quilt: DMC 666. 5 mm iridescent translucent sequins + DMC White French knots.

Pillow: DMC 666 and White

Mouse: DMC 310

Teddy: DMC 310 and 666

*Matching floss colors are not listed. All sequins/beads sewn with gold sewing thread. 

Classic Palette Blue/Gold Teacup

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

Swan: Teacup 
Mustard: Quilt
Peacock: Pillow

Graphite: Teddy

White: Mouse

Bellwether Gold Metallic*: Teacup handle and foot
*Not included in the Classic palette

DECORATIVE FLOSS/SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:**

Teacup: DMC White (at rim), 3844, and 3852. Translucent iridescent 8 mm + Benzie White 4 mm sequins for large flowers, translucent iridescent 5 mm + Benzie White 4 mm sequins for small flowers. All seed beads for flowers are Benzie Rainbow Iridescent. On the rim: Benzie 4 mm Gold sequins + Benzie Gold seed beads.

Quilt: DMC 666. 5 mm iridescent translucent sequins + DMC White French knots.

Pillow: DMC 3852 and 831

Mouse: DMC 310

Teddy: DMC 3844 and 666

**Matching floss colors are not listed. All sequins/beads sewn with gold sewing thread. 

Retro Palette Pink/Teal Teacup

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

Flamingo: Teacup 
Chartreuse: Quilt
Julep: Pillow

Marigold: Teddy

Ecru: Mouse

Note: I dithered about doing the Teddy in green and the quilt in orange instead. If you make it that way, show me! haha

DECORATIVE FLOSS/SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:*

Teacup: DMC 606 and 991. Translucent iridescent 8 mm + Benzie White 4 mm sequins for large flowers, translucent iridescent 5 mm + Benzie White 4 mm sequins for small flowers. All seed beads for flowers are Benzie Foxglove.** On the rim: Benzie 4 mm White sequins + Benzie Rainbow Iridescent seed beads. 

Quilt: DMC 991. 5 mm iridescent translucent sequins + Benzie Foxglove seed beads (or sub in DMC 3806 French knots)

Pillow: DMC 904 and White. 

Mouse: DMC 310

Teddy: DMC 310 and White

*Matching floss colors are not listed. All sequins/beads sewn with iridescent sewing thread.

**Benzie no longer offers Foxglove. Try Magenta.

Retro Palette Mint/Pink Teacup

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

Julep: Teacup 
Moss: Quilt
Chartreuse: Pillow

Flamingo: Teddy

Ecru: Mouse

DECORATIVE FLOSS/SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:*

Teacup: DMC 936 and White. Benzie Gold 8 mm + iridescent pink 5 mm sequins for large flowers, iridescent pink 5 mm sequins for small flowers. All seed beads for flowers are Benzie Foxglove.** On the rim: iridescent translucent 5 mm sequins + Benzie Foxglove** seed beads. 

Quilt: DMC 959. 5 mm iridescent translucent sequins + DMC 3806 French knots

Pillow: DMC 3851 and 3847 

Mouse: DMC 310

Teddy: DMC 310 and 666

*Matching floss colors are not listed. All sequins/beads sewn with gold sewing thread.

**Benzie no longer offers Foxglove. Try Magenta.

I hope these guides were helpful! (Looking for other color guides? Check here.) The way I've combined these Benzie Classic and Retro felt colors are just a few of the possibilities! Feel free to follow these guides exactly or come up with your own lovely color variations. I'd love to see what you make. :-) Here's the IG hashtag:

#twasthenightornaments

ghost couture

Making steady progress on the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come. Forgive my artistic license here, but I find I just can't restrict myself to varying shades of black. My apologies, Mr Dickens. 

The pointing hand is made with cotton pipe cleaners. It's easy, no worries. And I've decided I don't want to cover up any portion of his robe, so I think I will make the gravestone a separate ornament and throw it in as a bonus. 

I posted this initial test hood/head earlier and I'm still working out how best to do his facial features, which according to the text can't be seen at all. But there has to be a bead inside the hood, so I'll settle for casting his creepy face in deep shadow by wiring the rim of the hood. 

See other patterns in this ongoing series:

https://mmmcrafts.blogspot.com/p/ebenezer-ornament-series.html

Not Even A Mouse pattern is in the shop!

Yay! My new Not Even A Mouse PDF pattern is now available in my Etsy shop: mmmcrafts.etsy.com

Skill level: INTERMEDIATE
(If you finished my Twelve Days series, you are ready!)

Not Even A Mouse is the 5th ornament in my ongoing 'Twas The Night ornament series. It is entirely hand sewn. Sleepy mouse and Teddy are both removable so they can be ceremonially tucked in on Christmas Eve. 

There are options in the pattern to give Mouse a tether or fix him permanently in place. The natural grabbiness of the wool felt keeps the free range mouse securely tucked in. He even stays put when I turn the ornament upside down!

The samples you see here are made with my curated Classic or Retro 'Twas The Night palettes at Benzie Design. One of my samples also features a small amount of their lovely gold metallic felt if you want your teacup handle and foot to be extra fancy!

I'm so excited to be FINISHED! I hope you enjoy sewing your sleepy lil' mice and teacups.

Pattern available here: mmmcrafts.etsy.com

Coming next: The fifth ornament in my Ebenezer series, Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come.

Minor update on Gold Ring instructions

Hey lovely mmmakers! I have updated step 28 of the Gold Ring pattern to help clarify the pieces you are sewing together there. Several have contacted me over the years scratching their heads about that step, so I have finally gotten around to (hopefully) making it less confusing! 

I updated the wording to make it clear the FRONT piece is now a combo of the FRONT and the BACKGROUND, which have been sewn together to create one flat donut. Here's a screen capture of the updated step in case you are curious or wish to make a note on your copy of the pattern:

Note: the pattern has not changed, just some additional wording to step 28.

back to school means mmmaking!

Back to school means back to cozy fall crafting! Looking for a project? May I suggest my Twelve Days Ornaments? (Shown here in cheerful Benzie Design wool felts and DMC flosses, but choose any colors you like!)

A set of these heirloom wool felt ornaments made by your own clever hands will be such a joy to bring out each year at Christmas. And they are easier to make than they look because of the magic of Sulky Stick n Stitch!

Find the patterns in my Etsy shop:
mmmcrafts.etsy.com

time for Christmas crafting!

Christmas is coming! Do you have your fall crafting planned? May I suggest a nice coffee, a good movie, and a handsewn woolfelt ornament project? They make lovely gifts and are always treasured heirlooms brought out each year.

I have beginner friendly and intermediate PDF pattern downloads in my Etsy shop! All with detailed, step by step instructions: mmmcrafts.etsy.com

SHOWN ABOVE: Intermediate level 'Twas The Night ornament patterns:
1 - Santa Claus
2 - Mrs Claus
3 - Little Elves
4 - All Through The House

Sewn with my curated @benziedesign felt palettes: Classic and Retro. Detailed color guides:

https://mmmcrafts.blogspot.com/.../benzie-color-guide...

i like michigan

Hey guys! I’ve been on break for a bit. We took a family trip to Michigan before our two girls left for college. I’d never been to Michigan! Conclusion: I’d go back. 

Lovely summer weather (75 as opposed to 96 at home) and it’s generally gorgeous. I learned what a Yooper is. I learned that hostas and hydrangeas and every kind of flower get ginormous and are super happy there. I learned there is a very large Christmas store in Frankenmuth (see photo above, I really wanted to buy more pink glass Christmas joy but was constrained by the size of my carry on). 

I looked across the river at Canada. Hey, Canada! Maybe next time, Canada! I learned that Lake Huron has very clear water and wondered why water shoots spectacularly out the backs of the ferries. I learned where the good coffee is on Mackinac. I viewed lots of puzzling sculptures, saw more antique cars than you can shake a stick at, fled from yellow jackets, made friends with koi (I miss you, Spotty and Orangey), and toured a Frank Lloyd Wright house.

In short, it was fun. And now the girls are safely settled in at their schools and it’s back to 96 degrees and an empty nest. And designing stuff.

#mmmcrafts #travelisfun #michigan #stignace #saultstmarie #mackinacisland #grandrapids #butididnttryapasty

not even a mouse: prototype - year is in, chip is out

More prototype photos. I've found a placement for the year that I like the best – on the cup bottom where the maker's mark would be. Because the ornament hangs from the front rim edge at a slight angle, the cup bottom is at the back of the ornament.

 
The chip – meh. I don't think it adds much to the finished look, it's a pain to manage across the three sewn layers of the cup, and it seems to cause the cup rim to pull out of round. Three strikes – it's out. Maybe an optional embroidered crack instead.

I do like the embroidered ticking stripes on the pillow, but I'm going to try another version with more. Side Sleeper Mouse is the winner! But not happy with Mouse yet because eight year old inner Larissa insists that he can be removed from the blanket (because fun) and therefore he needs optional tiny arms and legs and a wee tail and the blanket needs to be secured somehow for easy in and out.

 
I envision small fingers tucking Mouse in bed with Teddy on the night before Christmas, when all through the house, not a creature should be stirring, not even a mouse. A fun tradition to do on Christmas Eve?

 
But of course if your inner 40 year old says NO way to that because you don't wish for carefully handsewn Mouse to go MIA every year, you may certainly glue him and Teddy in place.

Several have mentioned a tiny tiny stocking, and you may be unsurprised to know that one had already been included in the pattern for trying out on the previous round. So far I haven't gotten to try the stocking because I'm still working out the bigger stuff. It may go the way of the chip. LOL

maybe a chip in the cup?

This teacup in progress will have a chip in it. If I like the chip I'll make it an option in the pattern. Little known fact: House mice are commonly known to repurpose your discarded china cups as their tiny little beds. Actually, that is not a little known fact nor a generally known fact because I just made it up, but it sounds true. 

The chip is part of another round of revisions and samples I'm making as I fine-tune all of the pattern pieces. I think I like this teacup embroidery pattern better than the previous coral pink cup (see earlier post), but I'll wait to see how it all looks sewn together. I can't believe I forgot to include the year on the cup somewhere. Doh! I'll have to work that in somehow. More photos to come!

This Not Even A Mouse pattern is the upcoming 5th pattern in my 'Twas The Night ornament series. 

not even a mouse: prototype

Couple of prototype photos of my new 'Twas The Night pattern in development: Not Even A Mouse!

 
This sample is by no means final, as I'm still experimenting with details. Cheese wedge was a fail. Not included. Teddy bear was lifted directly from my Wee Mouse pattern and it will be included for sure. I think the side sleeper mouse looks so cozy and snuggled in, so he will probably be the final mouse rather than back sleeper mouse. (But I find back sleeper mouse pretty charming and wanted to do another round of changes on him later, maybe a one-off ornament. Cute little guy with his stumpy legs. Needs fattening up though, bless him. And arms.)

The felt pillow is currently too small. I love the cotton ticking pillow from my Wee Mouse pattern, but I don't want to oblige you to buy special fabric for a less-than-2-inch pillow, so I'm trying a hand embroidered ticking stripe. I'm not currently happy with the embroidery designs on the cup or blanket, and blanket isn't the right size yet...Blah blah blah and about 50 more details I'm dithering about. On we go!

Not Even A Mouse is the upcoming 5th ornament in my 'Twas The Night Ornament Series. Shop all my patterns here!

LodeStar Tree Topper: detailed Benzie color guides

LodeStar Tree Topper is the first in a short series of two wool felt Christmas star patterns. Here are the detailed Benzie felt plus floss/sequin/bead color guides for each of the samples I made, so that you can easily make LodeStars that look just like mine.

Benzie Design has long been one of my favorite places to purchase wool-blend felts (and they also have 100% wools, metallics, and glittered). They have stellar customer service, quick shipping, and their felt, floss, sequins and beads are an absolute joy to work with! They will be very happy to help you with what you need, including a good many of the tools and other notions you'll need for these patterns. They also have a .com if you prefer, but their kits for my patterns are only sold via Etsy.

First, some handy links to get you started:

To buy the LodeStar Tree Topper pattern: mmmcrafts.etsy.com

To buy the felt colors referenced below:

Benzie's handy Lodestar listings tailored to my guides below. You can choose suggested options in the drop down menu.

Shop all of Benzie's Metallic or Glitter felts
Shop all of Benzie's sequins & beads: Benzie Sparkle & Shine page

Below I'll tell you exactly what I used from my stash – all felt is Benzie, but some notions are Benzie's but some are not. For instance, I used bulk silver lined 10/0 beads for most, but Benzie's 11/0 beads also work wonderfully well. Feel free to make substitutions!

Here you go:

Aqua/Silver LodeStar  

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

Aqua: A and D 
Silver metallic: B, C, and E

FLOSS/SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:*

• A: DMC White, 5 mm translucent iridescent sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads
• B: DMC White and 958, 5 mm aqua sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads
• C: DMC 958
• D: DMC D168, Benzie 5 mm silver sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads
• E: DMC 958, Benzie 8 mm silver sequins, 5 mm translucent iridescent sequins

*All sequins/beads sewn with silver sewing thread

Note: Feel free to sub in 11/0 beads for 10/0, or use 5 mm sequins wherever I've used 4 mm.

White/Silver/Gold LodeStar

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

White: A and D 
Silver metallic: BB and E

Gold metallic: C

FLOSS/SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:*

• A: DMC D3852, 5 mm translucent iridescent sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads
• BB: DMC 832 (outlines) and D3852 (middle veins), Benzie 5 mm gold sequins, Benzie gold seed beads
• C: DMC 04
• D: DMC D3852, Benzie 5 mm and 4 mm silver sequins, Benzie silver seed beads
• E: DMC 832, Benzie 8 mm and 5 mm gold sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads

*All sequins/beads sewn with gold sewing thread

Note: Feel free to sub in 11/0 beads for 10/0, or use 5 mm sequins wherever I've used 4 mm.

Mustard/Bronze/Gold LodeStar

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

Mustard: A
Bronze metallic: B, C, and E

Gold metallic: D

FLOSS/SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:*

• A: DMC White, 5 mm clear iridescent sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads
• B: DMC White and 3845**, Benzie 5 mm silver sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads, Benzie Aquamarine seed beads  
• C: DMC 3845**
• D: DMC White, 6 mm copper sequins, Benzie 4 mm Copper sequins, Benzie Rose Gold seed beads
• E: DMC 3845, Benzie 8 mm silver sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads

*All sequins/beads sewn with gold sewing thread

**Blue not your thing at Christmas? Try subbing in another color for the blue stitching: bright red, mustard yellow, white, silver, or gold.

Note: Feel free to sub in 11/0 beads for 10/0, or use 5 mm sequins wherever I've used 4 mm.

Burgundy/Red/Gold LodeStar

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

Burgundy: A and D
Red metallic: BB, C, and E

FLOSS/SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:*

• A: DMC 666, 5 mm red sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads
• BB: DMC D3852, Benzie 5 mm gold sequins, Benzie Gold seed beads
• C: DMC 154
• D: DMC 666, Benzie 5 mm and 4 mm Gold sequins, Benzie Gold seed beads
• E: DMC 154, Benzie 8 mm gold sequins, Benzie Gold seed beads

*All sequins/beads sewn with gold sewing thread

Note: Feel free to sub in 11/0 beads for 10/0, or use 5 mm sequins wherever I've used 4 mm.

Iridescent/Silver 'Easy Button' LodeStar

BENZIE FELT COLORS:

Iridescent metallic: A and D
Silver glitter: B, C, and E

SEQUIN/BEAD COLORS:*

• A: 8 mm and 5 mm white iridescent sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads
• B: 5 mm white iridescent sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads, Benzie Foxglove seed beads**
• C: 5 mm white iridescent sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads, Benzie Foxglove seed beads
• D: 5 mm smoky translucent iridescent sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads
• E: 8 mm white iridescent sequins, 10/0 silver lined clear seed beads

*All sequins/beads sewn with iridescent sewing thread

**I used pink Foxglove beads because my iridescent white sequins appear mostly pink.

Note: Feel free to sub in 11/0 beads for 10/0, or use 5 mm sequins wherever I've used 4 mm.

I hope these guides have been helpful! Questions? Contact me at mmmcrafts.etsy.com

LodeStar Tree Topper pattern is now available!

 

‘Lodestar' means guiding star. This hand sewn, sparkly, heirloom wool felt Christmas star is a lovely way to top your own tree or bless someone with an impressive handmade gift. I was inspired to design it because of my own fruitless search for the perfect star for my tree. If you are like me and do not love the useless cones attached to retail stars, you will love this pattern. The LodeStar lollipop stick is very easy to attach to your tree with pipe cleaners or zip ties, and will stay straight! Yay!

The skills needed for this pattern are not advanced, it just takes patience. If you can sew basic hand stitches (whipstitch and backstitch), cut shapes with precision, and work with seed beads and sequins, then you can make this project and make it well. I've even included dashes on the embroidery lines so you don't have to guess at stitch lengths (but you can certainly set you own lengths if you'd like).

The secret to making this project easily and accurately is Sulky Stick 'n Stitch, which is a wash away printable stabilizer. Just print my pattern in on the stabilizer, peel and stick it to the felt, and stitch right on the lines. So awesome.

The Lodestar Tree Topper pattern includes two secondary ray styles (single-point and fancier triple-point) and options to make pendant, ornaments, mini ornaments, mini tree topper, garland, and an 'easy button' version of the topper. Basically, you can bedeck your world with sparkly Christmas stars.

All samples shown were made with Benzie Design wool blend and wool metallic/glitter felts. (They also have a lovely new selection of 5 mm and 8 mm sequins in really great mixed colors for you to check out. So shiny!)

 
Other materials you need to make a topper are a 12-inch 3/16 dowel, paint, floss, thread, seed beads, sequins, Sulky Stick 'n Stitch, Fabri-Tac glue, and Pellon 70 Peltex. That's not a complete list, but those are the highlights. Check the Etsy listing for more details. 

Happy sewing! :-)