Super Dooper Quick Christmas Present Roundup

(coz I forgot to do it before now).

For the kids, they both received a mummy made outfit. Ottobre shorts for DS, with a Farbenmix Hilde t-shirt. Ottobre tee and Farbenmix Carolyn skirt/leggings combo for DD. All fabrics are from Crafty Mamas, also the ribbon embellishments.
EDIT: The Otto patterns are: shorts - 1/2004 #24 (I think they were pants, but I made them shorts, in a size 134).
DD's tee is 3/2010 #31 in a size 116 - I found it is on the small side, or intended for a very slim child.

They also asked for a set of beanbags - so I did 4 sets, so my nieces received a set each too. Except I was a little overzealous making these, I made the outer with velcro so they could be removed and washed - never, ever, again!! That was pure madness - though they will be easy to wash :)

For my younger cousins, and another young family member, I made covered journals. Super happy with these. The bigger ones are A4, and the smaller ones are A6. Embroidery designs are all from Huups.

A lanyard for a great Aunt. I was unsure of the colours in this before sewing it up - but it is just perfect for her.

And lastly, a Keyka Lou Half-Moon Bag in Meadowsweet fabrics. This was for my Aunty and she loved it! So do I :)

Cheers!

Teacher Appreciation Gifts

We gave the teachers gifts early this week, as DD's main teacher will be away for the last week of school.

I am really into trying to give useful and consumable gifts at the moment, mainly fueled by the feeling that my house/life is too cluttered. I really don't want to give a gift that either, won't get used or is just going to take up space and the recipient finds annoying.

So this year I made some lanyards for DS's teachers, as they carry their keys on them for easy access.

DD's teachers I made key fobs for, as they don't use lanyards.

Not content to leave it just as that, I made some biscuits and some truffles. Biscuits I have done many times, but it was my first time making truffles and I read so much that I was totally confused. Some places said you could keep them for up to a month, others said no more than 3 days. In the fridge/definitely not in the fridge - argh! So I did my usual take on things and went my own way.


I followed the advice of some, slightly boiling the cream, and coating them in chocolate (apparently this is NOT how real truffles should be, but tough, I needed them to last and be a little more foolproof).

Lets just say - they worked! And were totally scrumptious! They passed my 3 taste testers with flying colours and requests for more lol

I think the teachers appreciated the gifts, and I hope they found them useful.

All recipes are from here. I used Baileys Truffles, Dark Chocolate & Rum Truffles, Lemon Poppyseed Swirls and Cranberry & Pistachio Biscuits - though I swapped the pistachios for walnuts.

Cheers!