Snowmen in July.

It's hot here in Virginia. It's probably hotter out west. Look at these snowmen pencils and cool off a bit. Cute, aren't they? The idea is from the 2006 Martha Stewart holiday publication, which had lots of great ideas. I made them for the preschoolers that I was teaching, for their little holiday goody bags. The instructions said to use white glue, but the trusty glue gun worked much better, and I skipped the seed bead mouths and just used a Sharpie. I like how they look gathered together like this. May have to make a batch for myself this Christmas.

Which leads to what I wanted to write about today. What kind of crafter are you -- the kind who is motivated to make things for the current season, or the kind that is busily making and stockpiling cards, gifts and decorations for holidays a season or two in the future? I'm the former. When the weather gets warmer and the garden comes back to life, I pull out the sewing machine and start whipping up purses and totes. I'm not sure why I associate spring with sewing but assume it is that I like cotton floral fabrics. When the leaves turn and the days shorten, I get the urge to pull out my orange glitter and black crepe paper and make Halloween things. And I'm aghast when I enter the craft store in October and there's not a witch or a ghost or a bat to be found -- because apparently it's Christmas! The downside to my "being in the moment" seasonality is that I'm way too busy at Christmas to make more than a handful of cards, and I end up having to buy a box at Borders. Maybe the whole problem is just procrastination.

So, the photo in my last post is an ornament that I made after this last Christmas, when things slowed down but I still was inspired by snowy days and sparkly things. I was basically a month late, but if you're feeling charitable you could think of it as 11 months early. The little mushroom was purchased at IKEA a few years back, and it is sitting in a German glitter-covered paper ball (well, half the ball) that I think was meant to hold candy. It's nestled in with vintage book pages I put through the shredder, and some wool fleece, and it's supposed to be evocative of the forest floor (humor me here). And of course there is some glitter on top. If you really like it, you can find it for sale at my etsy shop (cmitlo.etsy.com).

So, if you are deep into getting all of your Christmas gifts done, the snowmen pencils are a little inspirational gift for you. Or, if you're like me, refer back to this post in mid-December.