6th Annual Cookie Swap
Author: Jennifer
•10:49 AM
We have a blast at our annual cookie swap! And we always come home with the yummiest cookies.

What do we do with all of our cookies? Well, we eat them of course! Okay, most of us give the out as gifts to the neighbors or as hostess gifts for family Christmas parties.

What a wonderful way to make several different homemade cookies without the expense of multiple ingredients!

Here are this years cookie swappers....
We missed Sue in our group shot, but here she is. This was during the cookie judging.
And, I think that what makes our cookie swap different is that we entertain the kids, too! Here are some kid crafts that we did. Andrea was terrific with the kids. They made some great gingerbread ornaments and sequined ornaments and beaded candy canes.

Oh, and the got to try some of the cookies, too. :-)
Thanks to all the cookie swappers for your effort in making cookies and containers and for the contributions everyone made to the winners of the best cookie and container! Hope to see you all back next year!
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
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Homemade Gifts
Author: Jennifer
•8:33 PM
We've been working hard on homemade gifts for Christmas.

We love these beautiful Christmas Potpourri jars... and they made lovely gifts for our family during our Thanksgiving get-together for the Christmas season. Since the cost of spices and canning jars was quite a bit most costly than I expected, we used smaller jars and divided the recipe in half. I believe it'll still have the same effect. Also, if you shop at the Commisary, you'll find the spices and jars about half the price at Walmart.


Sweet Christmas Potpourri
3 Tbsp. whole cloves 1 handful of pine needles
2 bay leaves 3 pieces dried orange or
3 cinnamon sticks lemon rind
2 cups water

Mix all ingredients and place in a jar.

Attach this to the jar:
Sweet Smells of Christmas
Put Sweet Christmas Potpourri Mix in a saucepan. Add water.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer all day if you wish.
Add water as needed. When finished, refrigerate and reuse.

Here's another Christmas project. My grandmother made us some wonderful knitted dishclothes last year. I was afraid to use them because they were handmade, but when I finally did, I fell in love with them. So, this is what we're making for several Christmas gifts. The cloths on the right are dishcloths, made with Peaches n' Cream worsted weight yarn. These are very sturdy. The cloths on the left are made from a "silk soft bamboo blend" yarn. They are very soft and look lovely when crocheted.

These are quick and easy projects even for the amateur crochet crafter. :-) These are all single crocheted, some with a double crochet border. I chained 32 for each to start.

I completed my first baby blanket. I enjoyed making this! It has a lovely pattern. As you can see, I'm still quite the amateur. The points are not all even. Hopefully the mom who receives this blanket will overlook my errors. :-) Being handmade will maybe make up for that.

And of course, homemade Christmas cards. You can view these on my other blog:
http://stricklystamping.blogspot.com/

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