Crafternoon and the Best Christmas Present Ever!

Christmas came early at my house this year! And it gave me a big smile!

I got my biopsy results back and no thyroid cancer! Benign is such a nice word!

And the lip is healing well, at long last. All is good. So many of you have been so supportive, with messages and good wishes -- I wanted to let you know. And thank you!

I wasn't sure what the results would be on the day of my appointment so I decided to pack the day full of good things -- like a crafternoon with two of my fellow Southern Exposure fans. Instead of doing a single project, we'd work on what we most needed to get done! But first a celebratory toast, with Kate's delicious prosecco!

It's always fun to drink to your health when you've had a good report!

Then lunch. I prepped up a nice batch of Julia's French Onion Soup with some Jeanie Crostini and did up the table.

Jan made a wonderful chopped salad and dessert was Christmas cookies from Whole Foods because baking comes soon!

Then it was creative time!

Kate was creating her own gift bags using stamps she'd carved. When these are done they will be a Christmas tree with several different blocks in diminishing sizes.

Jan was taking a container from an earlier Southern Exposure workshop (HERE) and revamping it for Christmas.

Looked great!

I had a couple of projects. The quick one was to cover a crack in the glass of this little glass house and when I was done it made a lovely home for a wee nativity I had bought at an art fair years ago.

The other was inspired in part by Barbara at Fairmeadow Place. I recommend checking out her easy how-to post HERE When I was at Gardenviews on that horrible, rainy greens market day, they had some branches I loved that were overpriced at $15 each with flocking and pine cones. Then they had plain flocked branches for $3. I bought five, the same as one fancy branch and a $2.50 box of mini pine cones.

Using white paint and crystal glitter to tip the cones with "snow," I adhered them to the branches with gel medium. A glue gun would have been faster but I wanted it to dry clear.

(Barbara used epsom salts for her snow and I forgot I had them or would have but the glitter is subtle and fine.) They're currently on my chandelier but that's for another post.

I sent them home with Jeanie Crostini, which is my go-to appetizer and wonderful with dips or as a crouton.

 Included was my feta dip recipe and two Susan Branch bookmarks that she shared in a recent post.

Such a wonderful day, capped off by the beautiful musical "Finding Neverland," based on the film that tells of how James Barrie came to write Peter Pan.

And guess what?

Baking is next!

Sharing with Happiness is Homemade / Happy Holidays 2019 Party