I've always liked the look of these ornament wreaths so decided to try making one this year.

Aside from attending some craft sales, I rented some space downtown for a few days and held an open house. It exceeded my rather hopeful expectations. Unfortunately I didn't take photos at the start when everything was set up - this is mid-way thru and half the stock gone.

The 'presents' in the photo above are painted wooden blocks and then have ribbon and bows, etc. I make them in sets of 3.

These are the centrepieces made up with fresh greenery.

This is a table wreath - the little sign in the centre just gives suggestions for what a person could put in the centre. The pots held candies, but I also suggested ball candles.

The plaques are a joint effort between DH & I - he does the sawing and routering, I do the sayings (computer), and he does the sealing. I enjoy doing them - I wish I had a job doing something like this.

That's about it - nothing too extraordinary but it really satisfies my creative side. That people buy them just feeds my obsession, LOL.

I love your style! Great work Pudge!

Ang

As for where do I find the time, well, I'm not a very domestic type person so little time is spent cleaning, cooking, etc. My job (the real one) is only 15 hours a week, spread over 3 days. My workroom is in the basement so it's easy to just slip down there for a couple hours, and I can leave it a big mess and just close the door. I haven't put away seasonal supplies just yet - DH is out cutting wood right now so that I can keep on making the wooden block sets for next year, and maybe that will make January and February pass a little more quickly. After that the work room will have to convert back to the grow room for a while, and then come summer it becomes the bouquet making room, LOL, its usually the busiest room in the house.

When I first started crafting to sell, an elderly friend of mine who also crafted and sold for many years cautioned me about how buying supplies and making stuff, and constantly thinking of new ideas becomes almost addicting - she was right.

You are right, crafts can take up a lot of room. I know, because my craft room also has to have a spare bed in it and there is not that much extra room in there. I need to tackle that room this winter and see what I can do to organize it a little more. When we have company it would be nice to see an organized rather than an unorganized bunch of craft supplies. Do you have to have a spare bed in your craft room also?

Brenda

My basement work room doesn't double as a spare bedroom. I did have to set my niece up in there once on an air mattress but no, it's a work room with a big long bench that I don't have to worry about getting paint or hot glue on, and a concrete floor that I don't have to worry about spilling water or soil on. Supplies and tools are all over - on shelving, under the bench, on a pegboard, on my grow light stand...

Funny you should mention organizing, I was just looking at this week's Canadian Tire flier - there's a small (4'x4') wall unit-type piece of nice looking furniture meant for just such a thing, and it's pretty nice. Our spare bedroom also holds my computer desk & stuff, printer, paper, etc. DH has his own office downstairs, but since I do the majority of the printing, all that is relegated to my desk. It's starting to get a little cramped in there so I need to look at getting something to better organize it. You should take a look at that in the flier - might be just what you need for your spare room, depending on what you have to organize.

BTW, some of the 20" wreaths, equivalent to yours, Pudge, sell for about $300 at Michaels. When I was doing a grapevine one this year, I was thinking it would be a great business to get into - doing commercial wreaths up to 8' in diameter for commercial display. Have you searched some of the websites and the amounts that they charge for these? WOW!

Terrific job, Pudge. Truly awesome!

Shauna

On top of the armiore is about 20 clear Rubbermaid Keepsake Photo and Media Boxes. Love them! I have all the pictures I have taken over the years in them as well as sewing patterns, assorted ribbon, and supplies for making homemade cards. Here is what they look like...

http://www.spacesavers.com/keboxbyru.html

I just measured an old 2 drawer legal-sized filing cabinet that we have and it will just fit (with 1/2" to spare) into a space between a shelfing unit and the antique dresser in the craft room. It would be great to use to organize all the craft patterns that I have collected over the years, info for the farmer's market and my plant sales, etc, etc...papers that clutter up the bookshelf.

Anyone else have a craft/sewing room and how do you organize it?

Brenda

Making those large wreaths would probably be a great moneymaker if you had the market for it. If you shop the sales and have a good wholesale supplier, the profit could be huge.

Wow, Brenda, that's a lot of stuff to organize - I can see where you'd have a time with it. DH ran into Yorkton yesterday and got one of those 'project organizers' at Canadian Tire. Spent about 3 hours or so putting it together and it's just the ticket for my needs, which is mostly paper and desk/computer stuff. I have one of those rubbermaid totes for hanging files, and that works pretty good for everything else.

As much as I'd like to get started on more crafts, at the moment I'm dealing with a pretty good case of tennis elbow so I need to take some time to rest it. It started last fall after I planted the last batch of lily bulbs and has gotten progressively worse - the christmas crafting didn't help it at all - probably made it worse. I also need to start doing all those things the physiotherapist said, like the exercises, stretching and icing. If it's still plaguing me in the spring, I'm in trouble.

Aren't I really starting to sound like a grannie these days. : D Yeesh. But, I'm really getting tired of all of this joint pain.

BTW, I was thinking of you today when I was at IKEA for a bit. They had 5 m. rolls of bead garland for .49 in gold and red. reg. 1.49 They also had green, burgundy and brown, I think, all in matte colours for .99. Let me know if you want some. Actually, go onto the IKEA website -ikea.ca- and check out all of their Christmas stuff. They've got other cord and thin tinsel garland, too.

Shauna

That's awful nice of you to offer getting garland for me, but I have enough on hand. That's a super price - hope you got some for yourself. There's a lot of things a person can do with it besides stringing it on a tree. You can wrap a styrofoam wreath form with ribbon and then wrap & glue on the bead garland, then add a few more thingies or even just a bow. Or wrap plain cheapo pillar candles. I've also used bead garland, rolls of ribbon and tree ornaments to make - hmm, what would I call these ... sort of like long hanging swags, I guess. Use various lengths (3 to 5')of ribbon (let it keep that loose curl) and various lengths of cut beading (make sure it's the kind that won't fall apart if you cut it). String ornaments onto either very narrow ribbon or fishing line and stagger them in length. Wire everything together at the top, keeping a loop for hanging. Then finish with a bow at the top and hang wherever. Bead garland is FUN... oh great, now I'm in the mood to craft and I have to go to work instead.