The Christmas Ball that Almost Killed Me

It all started back before Thanksgiving when I took a trip to Hobby Lobby and was sucked into buying Christmas Craft Supplies far in advance. I found these little styrofoam ball covered in glitter and bought two packages. Little did I know that these balls would do their best to make me want to quit crafting forever.

My first thought for these terrible balls was to make a little tree similar to one I saw in ballard designs, but alas I did not have enough to cover the whole tree. I thought to myself, "That's ok. I'll just go buy more."

Fast forward to black Friday when Amie and I went shopping. After spending about 2 hours in JoAnn's draining our bank accounts we went over to Hobby Lobby to get the elusive balls. Upon arrival I was shocked to find all of the white balls were gone! Luckily Hobby Lobby is just a few stores down from Michael's. I thought I had hit the Christmas ball goldmine when I found the white balls in a different brand.

When I returned home I realized they were not the same white. My OCD self would not be able to accept this. So I went back to Hobby Lobby and bought red balls. By now I became very worried about what to do with the balls. I had spent so much time searching for them I didn't want to waste them. I decided to go with what I know best- Wreath Making!

I haven't made a wreath in a while since I went crazy and made a million wreaths last year, but I think this one is well worth the wait.

Behold- The Christmas Balls!

These terrible nighttime pictures do not do them justice. I will try to get a daylight one so you can really take it in. 

Dollar Store Ornaments

A few weeks ago, my work held a craft fair and I invited Amie from Kitty Cats and Airplanes to come sell her super cute jewelry. The craft fair was free for employees to sell their items as long as they sold $50 raffle tickets. So I had to sell something, which I have never ever done. I was so ridiculously busy that week throwing a baby shower that I literally threw some ornaments together the night before.

I was totally shocked when people bought all four of the ornaments I brought plus two small wreaths. I really only made them as a technicality so Amie could get the table for free. Even more shockingly I had two people place orders of ten each. At that point, I decided maybe you guys would like to see them.

They are so simple I didn't document the steps, but I found a tutorial from my friend Katie over at Smile Like You Mean It. Hers look way cuter than mine. Plus the fact there is never any daylight during the winter makes my pictures totally crappy.

I placed them in a cookie box for the purchasers. So easy and so cheap!

Christmas Wishes

My friend Annie asked me to post this on her behalf. This is such a wonderful creative way to help her cousins. Please read her post below:

Nothing can prepare you for those moments when your whole world changes. It happens so suddenly. The seconds crawl while that one moment is seared into your heart and your mind. You lose all track of time while your reality shifts from just-fine to not-anywhere-close-to-fine.


It was sunny. Cold, but that’s normal for early February. I’d had a weird feeling that I should stick around home that day instead of going out with some friends. For once, I didn’t ignore the weird feeling and stayed home, working on various projects.

It was 3:41 p.m. when the phone rang. My mom never calls at that time of day, and I wondered if one of my siblings needed a ride or something. Matt was working from home so I had a car. Good thing, I thought. I hate saying no.

I answered the phone and could hear something was off in Mom’s voice. I wandered into the dining room as she told me that my uncle, Sam LaCara, had been shot at the school where he worked as principle.

My breath caught in my throat. I wonder how long his recovery will take.

“Shortly afterwards, he passed away.”

“What?”

I looked down at my phone. 3:41 pm. In California that would be…11:41. I have to tell Matt…how is this even possible?

I have to get home.

My family—my huge, loud, hilarious, beautiful family—lives in California. After Matt and I married, we moved 3,000 miles away to Maryland. As much as we love it here, we really miss our friends and family back home.

Never more so than after we lost Sam.

Being so far away has made it difficult to offer consistent support. I stewed for months over what I could do for my aunt and her three young daughters. I wanted to help make things even a little bit better, knowing full well that the holidays would bring a special kind of pain.

The result of all that stewing is a multi-authored storybook called Christmas Wishes: A Collection of Holiday Tales and Truths. Originally I only meant to print a few copies for my aunt Lisa and her daughters, but then the vision expanded a bit. We decided to sell the book and give all proceeds to the girls’ college funds. Education was a huge priority to Sam, a priority that took a back seat to only one thing: his family.

The following video was created to explain a little bit more about Christmas Wishes. Please take a moment to check it out, and please consider purchasing a copy of Christmas Wishes. You can order through Amazon, or go to any bookstore and order it using the following information:

A Legit Christmas Project

If you are a regular reader you know I've been skimping on the real content lately. I've actually been doing tons of stuff. I've just been very bad about taking photos. Finally I created a Christmas project worthy of going up on the blog. Sadly, I didn't take step by step photos, but I feel confident you don't need them. Also, this is proof I am no longer afraid of my cricut. Thank you all for your tips and encouragement!

Sorry for the poor photo quality, but I am rarely home during the light of day anymore thanks to daylight savings. 

Let me give you a rundown of what it took to make this baby.

1. I painted it with some satin Martha Stewart Craft Paint. It was pretty sheer so it literally took about three coats to get it where I wanted it. 

2. Next I cut the "Be Merry" vinyl lettering with my cricut. I used the outline to make a stencil. I wanted to paint it rather than just use red vinyl so it would be more shimmery.

3. Next I made some more stencils to create the snow flakes. I also used Martha Stewart Satin paint for this in Mother of Pearl.

4. Finally I cut some tress from holiday paper with my cricut and mod modged them onto the board.

It was kind of tedious, but I love it! I am really into blue and red for Christmas this year. What do you think!