Merry Christmas!

On this Christmas Eve eve I am wishing you all a very Merry Christmas, a happy, healthy, productive New Year and a wonderful holiday season!

One Last T-shirt

I had one blank T-shirt left and deliberated doing some more gingkoes, since I was so pleased with the last ones. But I had these cute little fish stamps and thought that would make a good theme. When I tried them out I decided that they were too small and proceeded to carve my own. I used a Speedy- Carve block, an Exacto knife and a Speedball carving tool.

No matter how much ink I put on the stamp I couldn't get a good dark print, the way I could on paper. I had to outline them all with a Pigma Brush pen and then I took a small stiff stencil brush to get some more ink from  the pad on them. I also used a Pigma Brush pen for the "water". Now I need another project. 

I'm linking up with Off the Wall Friday. Please go see what some talented artists are doing.

http://ninamariesayre.blogspot.com/2017/12/off-wall-friday_21.html

Christmas party

For the past several years I have hosted a Christmas ladies' luncheon at my house. I love to decorate and this is a nice way to share it with my friends. I started out by having 10 in the dining room....very crowded and then last year new friends moved into the neighborhood and we were ridiculously crushed with 12 in the dining room (very small dining room). This year there were 14 I wanted to invite, that made 15 with me so I decided to break it up between my DR and kitchen. I put a leaf in the kitchen table and I sat 7 there and 8 in the DR.  I put a Christmas tree cutout under every other plate and those people had to switch into the other room for dessert. Everyone said that they liked this system and no one was crowded or smushed.

Dining room

Kitchen, adjoining the family room with my Santa tree.

Martini glasses being guarded by my Santa cookie jar. These were for the Santa Clause martinis. I made them last year and they were a big hit. First you dip the rims in light corn syrup, then flaked coconut. Martini mixture was vodka, red apple schnapps, and cranberry juice. Delicious. I was afraid that I would have coconut all over the floor, but the corn syrup acted like super glue. The glasses were difficult to wash if they were not soaked first.

Mickie, Donna and my sister, Ruthie, toasting with their martinis.

My good friend, Claire, and I are often taken for sisters.

Couldn't resist this Santa cake plate in Home Goods.

I have been calling this year the Eating Season. It has been one luncheon, dinner, cocktail party after another. I love it all but after the holidays I will have to go on my no-sugar diet. I have no resistance if it is in front of me or even in the house. So some purging will have to be done. But for now...bon appetit and Merry Christmas!

T-shirts

The Conservation Department of Woman's Club is going to sell decorated T-shirts at the February meeting to raise funds for a project that involves plantings at local nursing homes. Members were encourage to take one or two to decorate. We are to use symbols of nature and the word conservation has to be on the shirt. They bought the shirts in bulk for $1.15 and are selling them for $10. I initially took three shirts and was having so much fun that I at the next meeting I took 10. My sister is also doing some.

We started out by doing leaf prints and got a few done before a big killing frost that did in all the leaves. This first one uses geranium leaves. Acrylic paint was applied to the back and them firmly pressed to the fabric.

The lettering was done with a Pigma brush pen. I had a few from years ago and liked them so much that I ordered more online.

All the rest are done with Hot Potato stamps and Ranger Rick Archival ink pads. I outlined the stamps with the brush pens.

Of course I had to have gingkoes. I did this one and another below in different colors.

After seeing the picture of this one, I think I will add another  Allium to the opposite shoulder and one down near the hem.

I will be linking up with Off the Wall Friday. Please check it out and see what some talented people are doing.