Well the sew-jo has returned, but the time has evaporated! Sound familiar? Instead of showing projects this week, I want to share a few of my favorite things I’m enjoying this Christmas– maybe they will bring you a smile, too! In full disclosure, I receive NO commission from  this blog, and some of the “simple joys” might be hard to resist and also EXPENSIVE– particularly the set of twelve chickens. You are forewarned. Let’s go!

     1. See’s Candy So this is a thing I discovered during my time in San Francisco– when you think of San Franciscan chocolate, does Ghirardelli come to mind? Heavens, no. Grandma Sees has the best of chocolate of them all–I discovered her in a mall shop near my home in Dublin, CA when we lived there. They would actually give anyone who set foot in the store a “free” chocolate– boy, did I ever get sucked in. Those free candies have cost me quite a bit over the last 20 years! Thank goodness for mail order– my beautiful sister sent me a box as my gift, this year. I promptly turned it over to my DD, with the instructions to just give me one a day, a role she seems to really enjoy. Added bonus: They always have such nice tins for the holidays– what sewist could resist a tin?

     2. Silly Christmas Crafts. One of the great loves of my life– craft projects of any type. Ahh, the joy of assembling any little thing with instructions not written by me. Many of you will recognize the name Herrschners– I so enjoyed getting their catalogs back in the day before the internet, and they came to mind a couple of years ago and I was delighted to find they were still around with a website. They’ve got it all– felt, yarn, paint, pony beads. This year, I snagged these cute felt ornaments, and I can’t get my mind off the Perler bead Christmas craft set that’s currently on sale. So enjoyable to just zone out and let your hands do the work. I also got the cute set of plaster ornaments at Michaels for $4.99. All will be ready for Christmas 2024, I swear!

     3. Chickens. I say this with absolutely no pride and only the facts– if the bottom drops out of machine embroidery, I am hitting it out of the park as a egg farmer. Every morning, my precious sweeties get oatmeal– every afternoon a bowl of grapes. It is delightful to see how fast they can peck up those grapes– making even my highest rate of consuming Sees candy seem dang respectable.  The rooster is such a gentleman– he’s the handsome guy in the back there–he lets the hens eat first. He steps up to the tray, looks to the right, looks to the left, then slowly chooses a grape and steps back. In an instant, a greedy hen will peck it right out of his mouth. Eventually he will step forward again, look left and right, choose a grape, only to lose it again. By the time this process is repeated three times, the grapes are gone. I love him, and I could watch this every day for years.

     4. The Jingle Ball. So this was a thing I saw advertised on Instagram last year, and I made a mental note to do it this year. It’s a virtual cross stitch convention, happening the first weekend in December. For a $10 ticket, you get free cross stitch designs from twelve designers, the chance to work at Zoom tables with various groups of people– “New England Stitchers,” “Antique Sampler Stitchers” and what not. Or there’s a “speed dating” area, where for five minutes you randomly stitch with a random person, then switch again. There’s a shopping area, and a main ballroom with entertainment. So, I didn’t really have time to enjoy it for hours like others were doing, but I fantasized that I was still living in my first Brooklyn apartment, never married, and stayed at my same job for 30 years. And I had all weekend to sit around in my jammies and virtual party at this thing with no responsibility. It was a beautiful dream, but like George in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” I did end up wanting to get back to my real life. So this event is over now, but I’d definitely do it again, just for the shopping and the spectacle of it.

     5. Folded star ornaments. How long have we seen these batting around the internet? I finally did make some of these this year, and I really enjoyed it. Now you can always count on me to tell the truth about things– so I have to dispute the folklore that this would be a fun family activity. First of all, one star uses a heck of a lot of fabric! Four 4″ x 14″ pieces– that’s the better part of a fat quarter! So with the price of fabric these days, you’re not gonna make a killing at a craft fair. Second thing, ironing is involved- a lot of ironing. And the final nail– it really takes a good deal of concentration to figure out how to do it- and then, do it neatly. So that rules out the kids and just about everyone else in the house–except for the person who is good at wrapping. Do it with that person if you must have a group activity. I made twelve stars (oops! thirteen… there I go, overachieving again!) over the course of about a week– I ordered big wooden beads to string together and make a garland. I’m pretty well set to have this for this year– I’ll be sure to take a picture! 

     6. Jazzy Café. So this is a channel on You Tube, and boy, if you think Kimberly Jolly is killing it with monetization on her hour and half shows, she’s got a lot to learn. Jazzy Café is beautifully digitized virtual environments– choose your cozy corner– snow is falling, people are walking by on the streets, there’s always a roaring fireplace and comfy seating– all in an endless loop. And jazzy music– Christmas music, or not. So this is what I put on and just let it roll for hour upon hour, pretending I am working in some beautiful place. Highly addicting, super relaxing, and I’m sure a big money maker for the genius who creates it. Jazzy Cafe is really the only thing I can watch/listen to while sewing without frequent need of a seam ripper. Highly recommend.

     7. Snapfish. Back in the day, when the kids were growing up, I was an avid scrapbooker– it makes me smile, but some of the fabric designers like Basic Grey and Echo Park got their start with paper. This is before everyone just kept their photos on their phone. So at some point, when the coast to coast moving started, probably around 2008, the scrapbooking pretty much stopped. My whole family just loves pictures and nostalgia– so this year, I uploaded all my photos from a past Christmas and in an afternoon, created an entire 20 page scrapbook on Snapfish. Their interface is super easy to use– in fact, it will just add all your photos to the book for you, and then you just add text and cute graphics. My 8×8 book was $32– it’s a surprise for Mr. SFO. It was just really pleasant to go back a few years and make this thing– I’m thinking next year, I may do a bigger projects starting with 2008? Like the quilts, the scrapbooks are waiting to get finished and I still believe they will! On the plus side, I always kept my photos super organized on my computer, and while all my scrapbook supplies are still boxed up after the move, Snapfish could fill a nice niche for me with something I really used to enjoy.

     8. Kona Calendar. Now a half hour jog is fine for some, but new quilt projects to make is a bigger endorphin producer for most of us! I saw this Kona calendar quilt for next year– it is made of a different color of their solid fabrics every month and it is STARS. Fat Quarter Shop is selling charm packs for each month– it’s a bit pricey, but I’m hugely tempted. So what that I still have the Barn Star, the Dessert quilt, and the Cookie Tin star quilts to make. What do you think? I could always just get the calendar and see what happens…

     9. Dunkin Donuts. I guess I’m a simpleton at heart– but yes, I run on Dunkin, and they’re paper hot cups this year are really tickling me, In fact, I have saved them to reuse at home. And the vanilla creme filled donut has been my lifelong love, in case you wondered.  Thankfully, even though there are fewer street corners in Maine, there’s still a Dunkin on every one of them.

10. When Christmas decorating happens by itself. So Christmas is a bit of a shell game here– who will be the first to suggest we get a tree? We have actually gone up till Christmas Eve without one in past years! To redeem myself, I do like to leave it up well into January– it gets me though the hard part of winter. Thankfully the DD and DSIL took responsibility this year– cut, set up, lights, and decorating all! To redeem myself again, let’s just remember Mr. SFO usually takes little interest beyond the chain saw part. So while the kids were out of the house, I did this by myself for many years. Trust me folks– this was better. 

 11. Home Goods Store. If you are in a situation where you just don’t want to decorate– I’m at an age where I perfectly understand! Just go to your local Home Goods store and take pictures– ours was amazing– groaning with every style of décor in every department– food, kitchen, linens. Of course, if other people are willing to decorate, I’m willing to finance– look at this beautiful boy I snagged for $40! I’m in love.

   12. Winter Joys. Here we are in the Western Mountains of Maine, proof that life takes some surprising turns. Historically, I’m not a huge fan of winter– but when I married Mr. SFO, I knew he was a mountain man, and he promised me a Florida vacation every winter. So every day, I bundle into my long down coat, and go outside. I walk up to the mailbox, looking through the birch to the blue sky. I take in the Bigelow Mountains at the top of the driveway and check for happy mail. Then, I stop at the coop to look for eggs. Next, it’s downhill to our sweet cabin– almost completely renovated with the hope of plenty of company! And down through the deep forest to the lake, which each day has a different mood. Here, I stop to think how quiet it is in this place of White Christmases and a thousand more simple joys.