... on this year, next year.

It's new year's eve. That means today is probably the day I should take down our christmas tree and pack away all signs of noel. I always feel a little sad about doing this, as I just love the fairy lights and sparkles, the glitter falling off ageing decorations, the big old stick-o-bling standing over there in the corner. Putting them all away is going to make the house feel a little empty for a bit, and me, too.

This year I made a few tiny pompoms out of embroidery thread to add to the cacophony.

So carried-away was I by pompomming, they made an appearance on gifts. This year I used these lovely die-cut gift-tags from Polli, which come with a length of string so you can assemble them into a garland if you wish. 

I made bonbons - I started making them years ago when I was disappointed by all those plastic trinkets you generally get in bonbons. Even though they may rattle promisingly, the contents are usually a let-down, right? In these you get a scratchie, a Lindt ball, a party popper, a home-made hat and this year, instead of a joke, an 'interesting christmas fact'. For example, did you know that the first commercial christmas card was produced in the 1800s, and if you had one in decent condition these days it would be worth many thousands of dollars? Interesting!

This year, as I no longer have convenient access to a paddock containing a tree dripping with the real stuff, I made us a bunch of paper mistletoe. I had an old atlas that has maps in the most lovely blues and greens, so I tore out a page (which did indeed feel wrong!), cut and scored the leaf shapes (to give them twists and bends) and attached them individually to twigs using floral tape.

Time to put it all away! The boxes are ready, tissue paper awaits. Goodbye little pompoms. Goodbye twinkly lights, glitter, mirrors, sequins and stars. Goodbye little bunch of paper mistletoe. See you all again next year.

I hope you've all had a wonderful holiday, and a most happy new year to you!

... on getting busy.

A week ago I started to itch. Most of the moving boxes were unpacked. I'd got going with the vegetable garden, and overblogged about it as a result. Me and the new oven were getting acquainted, and I'd tested it out with a few roasts, biscuits, a cheesecake and two apple crumbles. The Pekins were settling in and although they have been the cause of itchiness in the past (mites, bird lice, uuurgh) they weren't the culprit.

This was a 'making something' itch. It was time to get busy.

Task for the week? 'Make a stack of plaster eggs'. Cast, dry, trimmed and sanded.

C bought me a set of my very own drill bits. I was delighted!

As I don't yet have my old Airspeed fan at the new house, I had to find an alternative! This woven lightshade worked pretty well while the undercoat dried.

Colour coat. I'm planning on be-speckling most of this lot - I might leave a few plain too.

Aaah! The itching has eased somewhat.

Although I haven't been making anything for the past months, Etsy has been on my mind. Now that our house is finished and we're comfortably moved in, I find myself in a rather delicious place. I can have my dream job - that is, to work from home as a maker-of-things, full-time. All those 'give up your day job' Etsy blog posts - that's me now. And I'm terrified!

In the meantime, there've been a few good things happening on the making-things front. I've rejoined BrisStyle, originally a small group of Brisbane Etsy sellers. Since I went to their very first coffee-meet-up four years ago, this group has turned into a large incorporated organisation running a variety of markets around Brisbane. They also host information sessions about crafty business, and a few weeks ago I attended one about 'Pricing your Work' which made me think rather hard about whether I had ever really thought about this. The answer? Not really. Beyond 'a dollar's worth of plaster + a bit of paint + some glue + a finding + a piece of ribbon + some of my time equals... oooh about that'... no, apparently there's such a thing as a 'profit margin' that I should be very interested in. It was also great to meet all those lovely people with craft in their hearts, and I look forward to getting to know them better.

Another good piece of recent news is that there's going to be an official Etsy symposium in a couple of weeks. Called 'Etsy Success Sydney', it's a one-day event held at the Museum of Contemporary Art featuring a variety of workshops and speakers, including Etsy's CEO, Chad Dickerson. Any excuse for a trip to Sydney - I promptly bought a ticket.

***

So, what's next? I'd like to have or share a stall at at least one market before the end of the year, and the challenge will be to build up enough stock to fill it. I'm advertising... starting small with ads on Etsy, Facebook and in a shared BrisStyle print ad coming out in the next Peppermint magazine. I'm thinking about new products. I'm excited about a possible studio solution, as it's become apparent that me working in the lounge room just isn't feasible in the long run. And for a moment, I'd like to stop and reflect on just how blessed this all feels, even though it's terrifying too!

... on eggs. Lots and lots of eggs!

Well, they're ready! I've been making these eggs since the start of the year, and they're finally ready. I think I kept getting distracted by other new things - and in the end I was getting flustered because I had so many new things on the go and none of them were nearing finishment!

I've found a new use for my lovely old Airspeed fan. It goes really well, by the way, even though it makes a sound like a jet engine when it's on. I have to make sure everything's weighed down - it's been known to blow books off the table.

I've become a dab hand at this egg-speckling business - it's quite laborious, and I can only manage about three at a time before my thumbs give out! First I use a dry brush to flick on the fine specks, then go over again with a larger brush to be-blotch. Finished!

I've just spent the morning threading this delicious chocolatey ribbon through their loops, and taking photographs for some Etsy listings.

Now I'm feeling quite keen on the idea of making some blue-ish eggs. I also have a couple of little wall-hangings on the go - look out for them soon!

... on the tree!

Feeling a bit sticky this year. This little paperbark sapling didn't recover from last year's bushfire so I've brought him home and covered him with my plaster seedpods, tissue-paper pompoms, some lovely paperboatpress ceramic ornaments and a few tiny glass baubles.

And I can never resist a good pile of presents! I'd stocked up on cord and ribbon from Pepe's Paperie in Canberra earlier in the year. Hooray!

Merry Christmas, everyone!