Christmas crafting

I always have grand intentions of making Christmas presents, but never make time to do it. Plus, I'm just going to be honest and say that I'm afraid some of my family wouldn't be happy if I gave them something handmade instead of something off of their list (especially since I'm severely limited in what I can make at this point). And, since I know that I would be upset if I spent hours making something for someone that went unappreciated, it hasn't seemed worth my time.

That said, this past Christmas I did manage to make one gift (with LOTS of help from my amazing seamstress of a mom). I made a purse for April, and, thanks to Mom's help, I wasn't embarrassed to give it to her. In fact, I thought it turned out pretty well. And, of course, A claims to love it ;-)


For the most part we followed the pattern that the Second Saturday Sewing girls used last month. You can find it here.

I don't have any grand visions of being able to make all of my Christmas presents any time soon, but I do want to make more and more as I have the time and as I get a bit better with the sewing machine. BUT, I am making reusable Christmas bags this year. I bought a TON of holiday fabric when it went on sale after Christmas and I plan to make bags that I can wrap my presents in for years to come. I hope that my family and friends will understand that I'll be keeping my gift wrap. Is that incredibly tacky? I know I have friends that will tell me it is if it is. I want to be more environmentally friendly, but not at the risk of being rude. ;-)