Stamped Gingerbread Holiday Cookies

Christmas is only a week away, so maybe all your holiday baking is done and delivered. (Or maybe it has dropped down, or completely off, your "to do" list.) But if you are looking for a fun alternative to traditional cut out cookies, here is a delicious possiblitity. They would be a great family baking project between Christmas and New Years--and all the baking supplies will be on sale!

There are a lot of gingerbread cookie recipes out there. The one I used is a favorite from "Our Best Bites." 

This recipe works well for cut out cookies, but this time my goal was to use a decorative rolling pin. Next to it is a ceramic cookie stamp that can be used to create similar cookies:

I made the cookie dough and put it into the fridge for a couple of hours to chill. Getting the dough the right temperature is really the only tricky part. If it is too cold, it is difficult to roll out; if it is too warm, the stamped images are less sharp. I kept any dough that I wasn't working with in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap.

Roll out the dough just a little bit thicker than the recipe suggests with a standard rolling pin. Then roll over the dough with your special pin to make the designs:

Create a similar look using a cookie press like the one below just by stamping individual designs into the dough:

Using a paring knife, score through the dough to create separate cookies. Place on baking sheet:

After the cookies are baked, you can decorate them with white piping to accentuate the design or let the subtle texture speak for itself:

Merry Christmas!

Picture a Christmas Singing Time

Hellooooooooooo Christmas! I love the month of December. I love Christmas songs! It's a wonderful time to be Primary Chorister of the children at church.

Alas... I do not get to enjoy this wonderful time in that wonderful calling, as I was released a few weeks ago. Bummer. However, as our kiddos are singing at the upcoming Christmas party, I did get to half-way teach them Picture a Christmas before my reassignment.

I came across an idea to use the Primary Cutouts as my visual aids for the song (I used pictures from Set 8 and Set 3.) I didn't take a picture of my final result, which is probably just as well, since my printer is on the fritz and won't let me change the ink, despite printing ghastly lines across all my pictures. I had a giant, gold, cardboard picture frame on hand (from my "Fat Lady," Harry Potter Themed Halloween costume last year). I put the frame on the whiteboard and slowly added the visuals as we learned each line of the song (I made a basic "stable" out of brown construction paper). After we learned a verse or when reviewing the song on subsequent weeks, I liked the idea from Sugardoodle to let a child come up and be the ones to put the pictures in the frame as we sang the song.

It was a simple and effective way to learn the song. If you'd like to save yourself the trouble of cropping out the pictures you need from the online sets, here is the version I pieced together and sized to fit my frame. It worked out just right for our Primary.

Glitter Stenciling on Fabric

This is just a simple idea for embellishing fabric--napkins, table coths, runners, etc.--for the holidays. I found some natural, linen-type table runners at Target on clearance, and I thought they could be fun under Christmas decorations:

The runners are edged with twill tape that has a fine thread of gold running through it, but I wanted to give them a little more glitz. I searched both in stores and online for appliques but didn't find what just the right thing for the right price. So I began looking for another alternative. Browsing through Michaels, I found a display of Christmas stencils. This freeform ornament trio caught my eye:

And right next to it was a variety of glitter pens:

Making sure that it would work on fabric, I grabbed one in gold and headed home to try it out. The stencil is reusable and has adhesive on the back so that it adheres well to the surface you are working on. I centered it in the middle of each end of the runner and used the pen to fill in the stencil:

The pen sounds easy, but it was a bit of a struggle to keep the glitter flowing evenly. Still, I was generally pleased with the result:

It looks festive with Elin's candle ring:

This would be a fun holiday craft to do with children and would make lovely gifts. Think how cute a small snowflake stenciled with white glitter would be in a corner of a red or green napkin, or gold stars sprinkled on a placemat, or silver bells on a winter blue stocking, or . . . . So many possibilities.

Get your sparkle on!

Pinecone Candle Ring

Elin and I both fell in love with the pinecone wreath that Laurel posted about last month. So while we were all together for a few days in October, we set to work making one for Elin:

After they left, I stared at the bag of extra pinecones and thought, "Hmmm, these shouldn't go to waste. I need to make Elin a candle ring to match her wreath!" (Sorry, Elin. Present spoiler alert.) So I chugged back to Walmart where we had purchased the filler flowers, berries, and picks to buy some more.

I had hoped they would have a smaller wreath frame that I could use for a candle ring, but they didn't, so I browsed in their craft section until I found an unfinished, 6 1/2" round wooden plaque. I used it for my base, and it worked great. (I often don't think about taking pictures until I am in the middle of a project, but you can see the plaque here:)

Leaving a 3" hole in the middle for a pillar candle, I glued on rings of pinecones, tipping each ring outward a little until the final ring was almost parallel with the table. I then filled in gaps with red and orange flowers, berries, green leaves, and gold filigree flowers and picks. Elin specifically wanted oranges as well as reds in her wreath so that it can be used in the fall as well as in the winter, so I continued that theme:

As Laurel suggested for the wreaths, I sprayed the finished ring lightly with gold spray paint to add a little extra sparkle and then inserted the candle:

Merry Christmas, Elin!

Rudolph Treat Jars

I recently got to spend a magical week with three of our grandchildren. While I was there, our thoughts naturally turned toward Christmas. One of Delys' goals was to come up with an idea for a fun gift for their friends and neighbors that the children could help prepare. Glancing through a craft catalog, she saw a kit for creating reindeer treat jars. The kits weren't cheap, but we realized that we could purchase our own supplies and make them ourselves much less expensively. (These would make great teacher gifts.)

Here is what you need:

glass jars with lids (we chose pint size, but you can go bigger or smaller )
brown felt
brown pipe cleaners
large red pom poms
large googly eyes
ribbon
hot glue gun and glue

Use the top of the lid as a pattern and trace a circle:

Fold the circle in half and cut two small slits near the center:

Fold a pipe cleaner in half and thread it through the slits to create the antlers:

Bend the pipe cleaner into a fun antler shape, glue the felt circle to the lid, and replace the metal rim. Ben and Katie, ages 4 and 6, were great at threading and bending the antlers:

We were worried about using hot glue with the children, so we chose over-sized eyes and pom poms so that their small fingers would stay far away from the heat. We placed the glue dots, and they simply put the eyes and nose over them:

Of course, the best part of the process was filling the jars with candy. We chose Tootsie Roll minis, small sleeves of Whoppers, and Smarties. But Kisses or Dove or any wrapped candy would be perfect. A whole lot of sampling went on . . . .

We trimmed the rim with ribbon--you could also add a bell--and Rudolph was ready for Christmas delivery:

Christmas Cookies Part 3: The Best Chocolate Cookies Ever

So my friend Amber once gave me the ultimate gift: a cookbook devoted to cookie recipes. And in this cherished recipe book, my sister Laurel and I found the best chocolate cookie recipe. And I am going to share it with you.

The thing I like about these babies is they are moist and almost brownie-esque in consistency. The recipe book suggested adding things to them like chocolate chips and nuts or white chocolate. But it was Laurel that truly came up with the best addition: chopped up Hershey's Cookies n' Cream bar. Yes. It is delicious. I didn't happen to have a cookies n' cream bar in my house, so I just used chocolate chips for the pictures shown below (which is still delicious)...but if you are going for out of this world good, purchase a Hershey's Cookies n' Cream chocolate bar, chop it up, and add it to the cookie dough.

Double Trouble Chocolate Chip Cookies
from Got Milk? The Cookie Book by Peggy Cullen
(I get about a dozen cookies from this recipe and I make my cookies on the big side.)

4 oz (1 stick) butter, softened to room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa (preferably Dutch-process)
1 large egg
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips or 1 chopped up Hershey's Cookies n' Cream bar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Beat the butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla until combined. Beat in cocoa and then the egg. Add flour and baking soda and mix on low speed until combined. Stir chocolate chips or cookies n' cream bar chunks into the dough.

The consistency of the dough is almost homemade fudge-like. Try not to taste the dough because you may eat it all before you get around to putting it on a cookie sheet.

Drop by spoonful onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Leave on pan for 5 minutes before removing.

Merry Christmas!

Beautiful Family (Christmas) Tree

Once again, the timing of this post may seem just a bit off--too much to do to think about any kind of project just days before Christmas. But I absolutely LOVE this idea and want to share it. The reason that I am posting it now is that if you decide this is something you want to do--perhaps next year--you may want to keep your eyes open for supplies when they are on sale during your after-Christmas shopping

I have a wonderful, talented friend who is truly a Christmas decoration artist. Her home is a holiday fairy land which includes four large trees, each with a unique theme. They are all gorgeous, but my absolute favorite is her "ancestor tree." This picture doesn't begin to do it justice:

I learned from my friend that the key to creating this look is to layer the decorations; start hanging ornaments near the trunk and work outward. She also stays within a chosen range of colors. The palette for this tree includes crystal, muted purples, ivory, greens and golds.

What makes this tree especially meaningful to me, however, is that tucked among the lights, ribbon, silk flowers, balls, and other ornaments are tiny jeweled frames, each containing a photograph of a beloved relative.

Many of her frames came in boxed, Christmas ornament sets that she found in department stores like Dillards or in craft stores like Hobby Lobby. Others she found at novelty shops, like Hallmark stores, and at thrift stores.

Hint: An easy way to obtain small, quality copies of pictures for this project is to scan photos into your computer and then go to an online photo store like Walgreens and plug your photos into a collage. It gives you a format that provides room for a lot of small pictures--just what you want for this project. Once the collage is printed, you can carefully remove the glass from a frame, place it over a photo, trace around it, and then cut out the picture to fit into the frame.

Since my parents passed away, I have scanned hundreds of family photos, including many pictures of ancestors that I never had the opportunity to meet. But I feel like I know them from hearing their stories, reading their journals, and seeing their faces.  I love the idea of honoring them next Christmas with a special place on my Family Christmas Tree.

Merry Christmas!

Patchwork Christmas Stockings

My mother made beautiful, hand appliqued Christmas stockings, dozens of them-- for her children, for her sons and daughters-in-law, for many of her nieces and nephews, and finally for her grandchildren. Each time I hang them up, I am flooded with wonderful memories of Christmases past:

Now I love to see Delys, Elin, and Laurel beginning their own stocking traditions. Recently, however, Laurel had an unexpected and unpleasant surprise when she went out to her storage closet and discovered that all their Christmas decorations had been destroyed by water and mold from an undetected leak in the apartment above. So I dashed to my seriously over-loaded fabric closet, pulled out some favorite Christmas fabrics, and went to work.

I know it's already late in the season, but if you are looking for a fun way to make unique Christmas stockings, read on. (This technique can also be used to create beautiful pillows and quilt squares any time of year.)

Mom made up her own pattern. I am less creative and bought this one. It is a traditional shape and size and was easy to work with.

Now, select your fabrics. I chose fairly traditional Christmas patterns, but you can also think outside the box with colorful polka dots, florals, or even elegant velvets and brocades. You can choose as few or as many patterns and solids for the patchwork as you want. You will only need large scraps--a few inches wider than your stocking pattern. You will also need two pieces of fabric that are about 3 inches wider and longer than your pattern. One of these will be the backing for your patchwork, and the other will be the back of your stocking. (See below.) 1/2 yard will be plenty for the back, backing, and a cuff:

Start by cutting a fabric strip the width of your backing and as deep as you choose. Place it right side up on the bottom of your backing:

Cut another strip, lay it right side down on the top edge of your first strip, and stitch across the top through both strips and the backing with a 1/4 inch seam:

Fold up your second strip and iron it flat:

Repeat the process, building your design upward and varying both your fabrics and the depth of your strips to create an interesting pattern:

Once you have filled your muslin backing with strips, you can add interesting detail either by sewing rickrack, ribbon, or braid over each seam line or sewing across the seams with a decorative stitch. That is what I chose to do:

Now you are ready to cut out your stocking. Lay your pattern on your completed patchwork, pin it in place, and cut it out. (You will also need to cut out a stocking back.)

Pin the stocking and stocking back right sides together. Sew around the entire stocking with a 1/2 inch seam. Be sure to back stitch both at the beginning and the end. Carefully make tiny clips from the outer edge toward the seam line around the curved parts of the stocking, being careful not to cut through the seam. This will make the curves look nicer when you turn the stocking inside out:

Turn right side out and press. Cut out two pieces of fabric using the Cuff 5 pattern and follow the directions for stocking B, steps 10 through 12. Now, tuck the cuff inside your stocking so that the right side of the cuff is touching the wrong side of the stocking and the raw edge of the cuff lines up with the top of the stocking. Match the cuff side seam with the left side seam of the stocking. Pin it in place, and stitch around the top of the cuff and stocking with a 5/8 inch seam. Turn the cuff to the outside and press. I cut a 3 inch piece of ribbon, folded it in half, and stitched it to the inside of the left seam to create a hanger:

Using the same fabrics, but changing how I placed them, I created four coordinating but unique stockings. And as their family grows, it will be easy to add to the collection. I personalized each stocking by stitching a name along one of the solid fabric strips. (You will want to sew the name on before you sew the stocking front and back together.)

Merry Christmas!