For a few years, I went on a weekend cross-stitch retreat at a B&B about an hour from home.  It always happened to be right around my birthday.  One year there was a Christmas theme and among the projects was this tree skirt.  The burlap skirt was pre-made and features three different Santa designs.

It was fun to do, and quick!  I love Pere Noel's tree; in the favorites department, it's a toss-up between his jacket at St. Nick's.  The retreat was put on by two sisters, one of whom had once owned a shop.  The B&B owners got a rare weekend off as we all moved in.  The food was always marvelous, the setting divine, and projects wonderful.  One of the sisters passed away a few years ago after a long illness; I feel privileged to have known her and to have stitched some of their designs.

Here are Mdd's pink mitts.  I absolutely love the cabled cuff -- especially in pink.  Very feminine, no?  I seamed the gray Cascade mitts, and that's all the knitting news. I was feeling a bit off yesterday, so went to bed early.

Decorating the tree took away from some of my time otherwise spent knitting last night, too.  There are a few things to do yet -- prisms and icicles and maybe bead garland.  None of Kt's ornaments are up yet, either.  One casualty (my fault) -- an old blue glass ornament that was Grandma K's -- darn it.

Don't you think Martha's slippers (see yesterday) would make a good gag gift.  Even Mdd agreed that they look kinda comfy.  I'm glad y'all had a good chortle.

I had an email from my sister this morning (she's the one who sent me the slipper idea, and she's crafty).  She is making their Christmas cards -- she's made all her cards for years and would be hard-pressed to say when she last lined Hallmark's pockets.  This year, apparently, the card has something molded and something embossed.  She said that her mold shattered in the microwave yesterday, and she's lucky it didn't shatter the oven's glass door!  Then she burned out her embossing gun, holding it too close to the card.  She tried the "old-fashioned way" by holding the card over the toaster, but burned that out, too.  Last effort was using the stove, but the card got scorched (apparently, a glass-top doesn't work so well.)

I'm happy to be counted among the wackos, are you?