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.