Family Christmas! and ETSY SALE!!

Posted on December 27, 2015 by Sandy

I am just cleaning up from such a wonderful Family Christmas, and thought I would also offer a Clearance Sale in my Etsy shop! See below for the details of my wonderful Christmas, and the Sale details as well!

I spent many days before, baking cookies and shopping for food for the big day! I was so busy but Mom was here to help and we were definitely in our “element!”

So now as I am cleaning up, I still have remnants of a massive turkey dinner, 3 pies, 5 kinds of cookies, peanut brittle, fudge, and too many other goodies to mention!

But what a great time we had and I have so many fun memories!

Christmas Eve Service at our Church was wonderful as always. I love the tradition of it, and the reminder of the Reason for the Season!

After Church we drove around town to see the beautiful Christmas decorations and then headed home for snacks and fun. Amy brought some goodies she had made at her house too!

Ham and Cheese Sliders

and

Reindeer Chow

They were amazing!

(I love having a grown up daughter who adds her own touch to our holidays!)

On Christmas Day, we decided our theme for the day would be “Very Hairy Christmas”! And the whole family joined in! We had Santa beards, Cheetah vests, furry stoles, furry collars, hairy sweaters, dog prints, and even Harry Stiles! I love how creative my family is and how they join in when we come up with these wacky ideas! Lots of laughs!

So now that I am Cleaning up from our festivities, I am also hoping to clean up my Etsy shop to make room for new items for Winter and Spring!

So from now through January 1, I am offering 30% off EVERYTHING in my shop! Use Coupon Code CLEARANCE2015

So stop by my shop Handmade At The Lake and see if there is anything you’d like!

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

Posted on December 11, 2015 by Sandy

The holiday season in full swing around my house!

Decorating is complete (or as complete as it could be… you never know..) 🙂 Coming home from work lately is so cheery! We have candles in the window, and our decorated tree that I can see through the window. It just seems so warm and inviting!

And in the spirit of Christmas, I am offering free shipping on all items in my Etsy Shop through December 18, 2015 with coupon code FREESHIPCHRISTMAS15

So if there are any last-minute gifts you need, hop on over to my shop and take a look! And stop back, I might finish up a couple more goodies before the end of next week! 🙂

My Etsy shop is Handmade at the Lake (www.etsy.com/shop/HandmadeAtTheLake)

Merry Christmas!

A Fall Trip!

Posted on October 25, 2015 by Sandy

Last weekend we drove out to New Hampshire to visit my brother and sister-in-law. The leaves were amazing! Lots of trees’ leaves were in full color and only a few had already lost most of them.

And the weather was really perfect for Fall. We were able to take a long walk one afternoon with my sister-in-law and their dog Charlotte. You walk along where an old train track used to be. The rails are gone but a lot of the railroad ties can still be seen. Being outside on such a beautiful day felt so wonderful! We just walked and walked. And Charlotte (my brother’s dog) could run off leash. She would stay right with us on the path, then stop to sniff something as we walked past. Then we’d call to her and she would run ahead and just sit down looking at us, as if to say, “Well..??? Are you coming??” Ha! Ha!

Coming back to the house, this was our gorgeous view of their “back yard”!

And of course they treated us royally, to wonderful meals! (not the best picture… but hey! I was in a hurry to eat it! 🙂 )

It was only on the way home from our trip that I realized we didn’t get any good pictures of us together. But I did get a great one of my wonderful sister-in-law. She and my brother were such great hosts and we had a marvelous time! I sure enjoy our chats as we are catching up on each others’ lives!

And of course, on the way home I had plenty of time to finish up some projects to put on my Etsy shop!

Next time I need to be sure to get some pictures! (of course the next time we are all together may very well be my daughter’s wedding! So you can bet we will get pictures then!

I’m Starting Something New!

Posted on October 4, 2015 by Sandy

Today I listed some new items on my Etsy shop, Handmade at the Lake. Anyone who knows me knows that while I love to knit, sewing has always been one of my favorite things to do.

I was first introduced to sewing (as most kids back in the day 🙂 ) during Home Economics class in junior high school. As I remember, I made pillow cases (Yes.. very challenging!) But that summer, my mom enrolled me in a sewing class at our local Singer Sewing store. There I really learned a lot about sewing and made a really cute skirt and peplum top. We even had a “fashion show” when the class was over where we modeled our finished items! Later that summer, I also was enrolled in a “stretch and sew” class where I made several other clothing items. Even a bathing suit! I think Mom was trying to give me things to do that summer but she actually gave me much more! She gave me a hobby I still enjoy to this day!

Over the years I took quilting classes, and fabric applique classes too. I made many sets of curtains, pillows, tablecloths, maternity clothes, holiday dresses for my daughter, and even dance costumes for her whole dance class!

Now that my daughter’s friends are getting married and starting their families, I have started to become interested in sewing baby clothes. They are just so cute and fun to make! I love the prints and choosing cute color combinations!

My first items have been listed in my Etsy shop. They are 4 sizes (3, 6-9, 12, & 18 months) of a darling reversible baby girl’s jumper. On one side it is a sunflower print and on the other side, a black and white gingham check with a pumpkin applique that is perfect for Fall.

Next I will be making some cute boy’s overalls!

I hope everyone has a wonderful week!

So Is This What It’s Like?

Posted on August 15, 2015 by Sandy

You would have thought when I semi-retired that my life would have gotten less busy… But NOT SO! Don’t get me wrong! I am loving every minute of it, but I have sure filled in my idle time with lots of other activities. Never a dull moment for this girl!

Originally when I changed to work part-time I thought of the list of things I would do with my “free time”.

Volunteer at my daughter’s school
Knit more
Take up more sewing/quilting
Play the piano
Blog more
Learn more about photography
Spend more time at the lake
Do some major house de-cluttering
Read more

Well, I have found time to do some of each of these things, but not to the level I expected (as evidenced by my blog entries being sporadic at best!)

What I can say, is that I am loving my life! I may still not have the cleanest house on the block, or find time to knit much more than I did when I was working full-time. But I have been able to play the piano, which I hadn’t done in 20 years! And my trips to the lake are not as often as I’d like, but I have hauled out the sewing machine and started making use of it!

A few weeks ago one of my daughter’s friends contacted me to ask if I would be willing to help her out with some sewing for her Etsy shop. She is such a sweet young mother who is so busy with her little one year old daughter and had designed these darling vintage inspired rompers that she was receiving so many orders for, that she couldn’t keep them in her shop. So I started doing a little bit of that sewing for her, and I can tell you, these rompers are darling! You can see them by searching hashtag #mellyful on Instagram, or visiting her Etsy shop here.

Also, I have been busy knitting a few sizes of the really cute dress I made for that baby shower earlier this summer. I am listing them on my Etsy Shop today!

And next up on my knitting needles is a newborn (0-3 months) knit dress, to appear in my shop in about a week or so.

I hope everyone is having a fun summer!

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