This week's Cleveland Handmade giveaway

Every week Cleveland Handmade has a giveaway to spotlight one of their members and thank all their wonderful supporters and customers. It's a great opportunity to win some lovely items and check out the high-quality handmade art in their member shops. Entry is easy - full rules at the Cleveand Handmade web site.

This week's item is a lovely pair of silver and brass hoop earrings from Jewelry by Francine.

Cookie-baking marathon

Spent this weekend (all weekend!) baking Christmas cookies. I got a recipe for lime cookies from my sister - she made them last year but somehow I missed out on the taste testing. Anyway, I made them this year and they are YUMMY. This is my new favorite Christmas cookie recipe: Lime Snowflakes & Ornaments.

Holiday Tradition: Men in Tights

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I saw our local ballet company's performance of The Nutcracker for the first time about 13 years ago and have been going to performances every year since then. I love the grand old theaters, the music and seeing all the little girls dressed up for the occasion. For a long time it was a solo tradition, but over the past few years it's evolved to include my Mom, my sister and my niece. Last Christmas we tried adding my Little Guy and my nephew to the mix, but at five years old they just weren't that impressed. They agreed the fight between the Nutcracker and the Mouse King was pretty cool, but neither of them could understand why the characters didn't talk. So we're back to our "girls' day out" today. Bring on the men in tights!

Memories and Giveaways

Remember the Hallmark commercial from a few years ago with the woman going through the box of ornaments in the attic and remembering when she got each one? That's me. Every year when we get out the boxes of ornaments, there are always those special few I've had for years that have to go on the tree first. For the past two years, I've been trying to explain to the Little Guy WHY they're special to me.



This ornament was tied to a present on my first Christmas. (I won't tell you how old that makes it!) My Mom passed it along to me when I moved into my first apartment. It's been the first one to grace the tree every year since then.


These two were made by my Grammy. When I was little, her whole tree was covered with beautiful ornaments she made herself - snowmen and Santas, beaded ornaments, crocheted snowflakes. She passed away three years ago and the cousins divided up all the ornaments so we'd each have a few that she made.



Snoopy was a gift from my Dad when I was 9. He loved watching the Peanuts specials with us; Woodstock was his favorite. This is our third Christms without Dad. I'm not sure it's getting easier yet, but the ornament always makes me smile.


And full circle from my first ornament to the ones that commemorate the year the Little Guy was born. The teddy is a "Baby's 1st Christmas" ornament; the angel was a gift from a friend.

How about you? Tell me about your favorite ornament in the comments. I'll pick one commenter at random on December 15. The winner will receive a Luscious Lips Gift Set from my shop. Let's hear those stories!

UPDATE: And the winner (chosen by highly scientific random drawing) is... Vintage aka Vinty. Congratulations!

Cleveland Handmade Weekly Giveaway: Cranberry Bracelet

Cleveland Handmade is hosting a giveaway to thank all our wonderful supporters and customers, as well as give you the opportunity to check out the high-quality handmade art in member shops.



This beautiful red and purple glass bead crochet bracelet from Leah Ana Designs closes with a sterling silver clasp. The crochet design allows it to stretch slightly from 7 to 8.5 inches.

WIN Cleveland Handmade: Lucky Wishbone Earrings from La Petite Fleur

Cleveland Handmade is hosting a giveaway to thank all our wonderful supporters and customers, as well as give you the opportunity to check out the high-quality handmade art in member shops.



These simple Lucky Wishbone earrings from La Petite Fleur are hand forged from 16-gauge* sterling silver wire into delicate thin blades in the front. Light texture is evidence of their handmade nature. The earrings are tumbled to a high polish. Wishbones gracefully hang just a hair shy of 1-5/8 inches from top to bottom in the front. The backs are a bit shorter. These elegant earrings are sure to become a favorite.

"So I Was Having a Headache..."

Isn't that a great name for an Etsy Treasury? There are lots of great ideas here for cold and flu season, including my Lavender Eye Mask. Thanks for the love, NottyPooch!.

Maybe I should have a "Plan B"

So I'm planning to make Thanksgiving dinner this year for the Big Guy, the Little Guy and my Mom. It's not like I haven't done it before but it's been...a while. Like at least ten years. And both my Mom and my sister have set a pretty high family standard, turkey-dinner wise. Think I could get away with this as a decoy if the turkey is a disaster?

Now Why Didn't I Think of That?

Chalkboard tablecloths - what a cool idea! This would make sitting at the kids' table a lot more fun. And there are grownup uses for it, too. Like this, courtesy of Unclutterer.com:



Or this, from Elsie Marley's blog:

Bustin' Makes Me Feel Good!

Happy Halloween!