Starting on Personal Christmas gifts

Hi all,

Well we are back for the most part. So I am posting some pictures of the Christmas gifts I am making over the course of the next few weeks. Todays pictures are of the items I am making for Aki Ann who is my great niece(my nieces daughter). She is 1 year and 3 months old. She is quite tall for her age and is wearing size 2T already. We have not gotten to see her in person, but she already talks a lot and is always asking Why? and What for? All the babies in our family always talk really early and ask lots of questions. So here they are all made from scraps of material I had laying around and the sweater are all ones that we found in the trash piles along side the furniture and wood we scavenge for. We found so many clothes this year it is almost sickening and lots of them were in really really good if not perfect condition. Again we say," Why people Why"? Donate, Donate, Donate!! Please. Anyway the first item I have made is a reversible jumper.

 

Here is a close up detail of the applique and the pockets on the reverse side.

The next outfit was a rescued sweater and scraps of material that was used to cover up some spots and the rest of the scraps where used to make a complete circle skirt. Always remember to make the front of the skirt about 1 1/2" shorter in the front for little girls sizes 2T to 7 as they stand a little bit differently than when they mature some. If you notice when little girls wear skirts they tend to dip badly in the front. Making the skirt shorter in front will help make the hem look more even. The skirt is double layered  and is great for twirling around in. All the laces and ball fringe are from the overwhelming stash I am trying to use up. Its going to take years I am sure.

  Any way so that is one persons Christmas done and dozens more to go!  I Will show you next Tuesday, sheets I made for our bed ,and some short intructions so you to can make luxury linens for a fraction of the store price. See you tomorrow.

Please Forgive my lack of posts

Please know I will resume blogging in the next few days. I went to the eye doctor a few weeks ago and was given the news that in the two year since my last eye exam(in which I had the same vision 20/40 nearsighted that I have had for the last 32 years) that I have developed rapidly developing glaucoma which can be treated AND also severe and agressive macular degeneration which is looking like is not treatable for the kind and condition I have. Needless to say I was given a diagnosis of becoming completely blind within the next 5 to 10 years. With the likelihood considering the progression so far in such a short amount of time, that it will be most likely near the 5 year mark. Needless to say I am completely and utterly devastated. I am by no means capable right now of making a living of any sort being blind. I and my family are still in shock and disbelief and are having a rather hard time excepting this, as I am sure anyone would be. Please know we have not forgotten our new blog family. We just need some time to work through our disbelief and trying to come to terms with this news. We thought we had already had a rough year, but this is the icing on the cake. Thank you for your patience and know we will get back to our blog and our lives in short order and do all we can for as long as we can. Thank you ! The Bell Family