My last day of work was Wednesday, June 2. I chose to make a going away cake--I looked into buying one, but having one decorated the way I wanted was just going to be more hassle than it was worth. It was a crazy weekend of packing some of my stuff into a moving trailer, taking care of the lawn, working late, and, on the night before my last day, making my cake. I took some pictures along the way, so you could see the steps. I feel like it turned out pretty well--not to be boastful or anything.

I started with a quarter sheet cake, which is 11 x 15. Because it takes two cake mixes and I am trying to clear things out of the freezer, AND I'm a people pleaser, half of the cake was milk chocolate and the other half is white. You can see where the line is in the first picture, though I tried to marble it a little bit (did I mention the people-pleasing part?).

I did make some cut marks on the surface of the cake to give myself some guidelines as I frosted--they show a little in the photo below. Then, I started frosting the ground--chocolate frosting was perfect to represent Illinois farm dirt.

I was worried about blue frosting being unappetizing, but how else do you make sky? So I took a container of white frosting, set some aside for other colors, and tinted the rest of it with sky blue coloring. It sure didn't take much to make it blue--they mean it when they say use a toothpick! Then I frosted the sky area, going around the barn area.

Next was the red frosting for the barn. That was a frosting mix that I tinted with no-taste red coloring. To get the barn THAT red, I used the entire container of coloring! I had actually mixed the frosting earlier in the evening while the cake was baking when I still hadn't decided how I was going to decorate it. So I got carried away with how much red frosting I made--WAY too much, as it turns out. But I did figure out that the angled spatula is the key to decorating this kind of cake--I was able to use it to frost right up to the line. Here's a shot of the barn mid-coverage.

Then it was on to detailing the barn. I had used a coloring image I found online. It had barnboard-lines, so I figured I could add those with a toothpick, but the details would need to be added with frosting. Into the next container of white frosting I went. Couldn't find the outlining tip anywhere (I found it later that night in the cabinet I thought I'd packed), so I added the barn trim with the small star tip. I also tinted some of the frosting I set aside earlier with yellow, and put it in the hay mow, then sprinkled some yellow Jimmies on top to look like hay.

Then it's on to the details. The rest of the set aside frosting went to greens. Not sure if it was supposed to be a crop, a garden, or just grass, but it needed something.

And finally, the words. Though I'm very excited about my impending move and changes, I will miss my former job, my co-workers, and even my apartment, so "greener" pastures seemed inappropriate. Here's the finished cake.

And it was a lovely farewell celebration. So many of my coworkers stopped by to get some cake--so much so that at the end of the day, there was only one piece left--a top sky corner that I ate while I was still at work around 6:45 that night.

Now I'm looking forward to being closer to family and friends. For the hundreds of reasons I'm looking forward to it, there's one more--the chance to decorate more cakes! I've always wanted to learn to decorate cakes, so maybe there's a cake decorating class in my future....

I wrapped presents Friday night. At that point, I thought I was about 75% done with wrapping. Boy, was I wrong! Tonight, I sat down and did the rest of the wrapping and I think I'm actually done now. But I had two presents yet to make, so after the wrapping was complete, I sat down to make two sets of wine charms (which have since been put it no-need-to-wrap cute little boxes).

I'd ordered the charms MONTHS ago from Oriental Trading Co.--this summer, perhaps--and had divided them into two sets, one for my sister and one for my dear friend, since a party at her house triggered this whole project. At her birthday party in March, I realized she didn't have a set of wine charms (mostly because several guests asked) and she expressed a desire to have a set. So when I saw these two sets of charms: a beach theme and a travel theme (which I can't seem to find on their site), they seemed perfect for her AND for my sister. Both gals are definite travel buffs, but they also both really enjoy the sand between their toes. So tonight, Dec. 21, I finally got them made.

As you can probably tell from the photos, I used two different sizes of wire rings. Since I have both fine-stemmed and wide-stemmed stemware (so to speak), I figured having options was a good idea. And with such fun charms, they might decide to use the charms on margarita glasses or around the handles of coffee mugs or whatever.

I love to make personalized wine charms as gifts. I have a couple of sets I made for myself--one set showcases state-shaped charms of all of the states where I've lived along with a few extra charms. Another set was made with shrink plastic--I think this is a VERY fun idea for a small party of creative people, just precut the plastic into tag shapes (I used a die-cutting machine), have your guests draw a design and add his/her name, and then, the best entertainment of all, watching them shrink in the oven.

So I did it. I actually made a Christmas present--two, as it turns out! Just hope neither of them reads this before Christmas.....

I spent Sunday wandering around the Cedarburg Wine and Harvest Festival. There were SO many booths filled with art and crafts: jewelry, paintings, photography, pottery, sewing, etc. And though I can't say I came back with the "I want to make that" bug, I do feel inspired to be creative. It was nice to see other people express their creativity. It's interesting to wonder whether these artists are able to make a living selling at shows like this or do they supplement these shows with other venues (boutiques, galleries, online). Or do they have a day job and they pursue their art in their spare time, selling at shows as they can.

A few decades ago, I was going along making very basic quilted wallhangings as gifts for friends and family. (I was in my early 20s, so I was always in need of gifts for bridal showers and weddings.) After many of them told me "you should sell these," I decided to do that very thing. But since it was before the internet was commonplace and I was young and inexperienced, I dove in without doing any research, and got a table at a local fall festival with my very dear, now ex, mother-in-law who had also just started selling crafts. (No, the divorce wasn't due to this adventure--I had fabulous in-laws!) Since the show was in a few weeks, I feverishly cut, sewed, and painted late into the nights during those weeks. I probably made 20 wallhangings, mostly Christmas, and all one-of-a-kind. If you haven't already guessed, it was a disaster. Didn't sell a one. It was a yucky fall day, weatherwise, and, of course, our booth on the square was just that--it wasn't actually a craft show, more like an extension of a small-town high-school homecoming day. The bright side of this situation was that, in the end, I did sell all of them--to coworkers looking for a homemade gift and to family members seeking the same. (My sister really doesn't like to shop, so she thought it was great!) So when Mom sees something that I've made and starts to say "you know, you could make those and sell those and make a lot of money," I just smile and ask "like those wallhangings?". Somewhere I have pictures of them--if I run across the photo album, I'll scan some in so you can all see. There's nothing wrong with them, they're cute enough, and they were priced fairly for what they were, but it was 1990 and I was a brand new quilter, so when I think of them now, I have to smile and think "oh bless my heart, I thought I was really something."

So tell me your stories. Do you sell your work? What avenues do you use? Anyone else have a rough first show? Lessons to share with the rest of us? Leave a comment and let me know.

Yesterday was spent clearing space everywhere in my house, it seems. I started in the basement, going through things in storage to make room for anything that needs to be stored down there. Then it was up to the sewing room. I started by moving the quilting machine parts into the living room (except for the machine itself, which is over 70 pounds). I cleared out the closet, moving things out, going through them, and moving the things that needed more time to go through out into the living room and dining room. I did the same with most of the rest of the stuff in the room, measuring and planning. Then I moved thing into the closet, including the bookcase, which fit perfectly and gets a large piece of furniture out of the room itself. As you can see, I have all the fabric on the biggest, tallest shelf. I had to go into the basement with a flashlight, as the cable coming up through the floor wasn't giving me any slack, but I was able to maneuver it so I was able to move the TV and VCR. I still have to go through the little white dresser and the short plastic three-drawer container, as I didn't sort through those things. The last thing was to get everything off the floor, including the rug, so I have the big space ready for the quilting machine.

Last night, I watched old "That's Entertainment" (all three parts) while I went through several of the containers that I had moved into the living room and dining room, sorting through what goes in the trash, what goes in the basement for storage, and what goes to the office to be given away to other crafty folks. And then there's the other stack: the one of all of the materials that I want to transform into gifts for next year. I think I need to set some goals for those projects or it will be like this year--too many projects I'd like to make and too few days to get them completed.

My first task for today is to clean the poles with nail polish remover and get the machine-building underway! And my plan after that is to go through more of the containers that have been dragged into the living room and dining room and start moving things to the basement. After all, who needs a tool box and jigsaw in the sewing room.

The exciting news for me today is that I'm NOT at the office for the next five days. It's possible the last time I had this many days off in a row (that wasn't a vacation) was when I left my previous job to take this job (six years ago January 2, actually). That break, though longer, involved traveling for the holidays, a few days driving around town looking for a place to live, and other busyness that was neither relaxing nor productive. And boy-oh-boy do I have relaxing and productive plans for THIS break! I hit the grocery store Tuesday night and got enough food to feed me for a month. And I went home and made the list of all the things I wanted to get done. So I'll keep you posted on my progress as the days pass. A lot of the plans revolve around the sewing room. I have to go through every single thing in there and make some space for my new quilting machine, so I really need to get organized. And I need to transform some raw materials into finished projects so they're not in the sewing room any more, taking up what has suddenly become very valuable space!

Once I get the sewing room together (optimistically within the first three days), I've got some crafty projects to make, food to cook and freeze for later, a Christmas letter to write and cards to send, and maybe, if there's time left at the end of the five days, I'll put away some of the Christmas decorations and make some cookies to take to work to celebrate my six year anniversary at my job!

Have you ever noticed how crazy things happen sometimes, like when your past catches up with you? Whether it's going home for the holidays, visiting your old stompin' grounds, or just catching up with someone who used to be part of your life, nostalgia creeps in and sometimes catches you quite unaware. I guess it's just that time of year where memories are tied to things and events.