Let The Holidays Begin!

Hey Everyone!
I hope you're all doing well. The holidays are right around the corner... so hard to believe. We finally are having fall weather in So Cal. We had a little rain and one morning while I was on my way to the office, the temperature was 56 degrees. I don't know about you, but that is a little chilly!  It does help to set the mood though for Thanksgiving and Christmas. And I can wear my new boots :-) That's what it really boils down to!

Thanks to one of my FB friends, I've joined LISTiA .  It's a new website that you can auction off things you no longer want. You get credits and you're also able to bid on things you want that others are listing.  "One man's junk is another man's treasure"  Not sure who I'm quoting but I truly believe that. Lol.  And I like shopping online while still in my jammies sipping coffee!  You can earn credits by referring friends if they join as well as other tasks you can do for credit. I listed a few craft items I no longer needed. I had some brand new decorative patches.  I knew I'd advertise "free shipping" so I wanted something that would fit into a standard envelope and not cost me a fortune to mail out.  Bingo. Well all four of my listings ran 4 days {you pick the length of auction} and all 4 sold. It went swimmingly well.  I also bid on a pattern and won.  YaY Me! So my first week went well. I will attempt to post a Badge to MY Listia page ** H E R E ** and also on my blog sidebar for easy access.  One gal I spoke to via email, said she does really well and she has already purchased most of her Christmas gifts and got a few luxury items for herself. The best part is the de-cluttering of her closets, etc.  I'm not sure if she charges s/h. The website itself is 100% free. It could be a pretty cool way to clean up a bit!

I had the best Mom Surprise this week. My son in NY is visiting me this weekend! His company flew him out on Monday to work in the LA office. He's staying in a nice hotel in Venice Beach right on the sand. He checked out last night and came home for the weekend. He's able to work out of the local office today and he'll head back up to LA on Monday morning for two more days. I am so lucky that he's able to come home as often as he does. There is a chance that they will send him back out early December too! He already has his planned vacation a few weeks around Christmas. This is one happy Mama :-)  

In case I'm unable to post before Thanksgiving, I hope everyone has a very thankful Thanksgiving and has a wonderful time breaking bread with loved ones.

Until Next Time, 

New York & Lined Bags

Hello Everyone,

Things are starting to slow down around here just a bit, and just in time for the holidays.

I hope everyone is doing well and I especially pray that if you have loved ones on the East Coast right now, that they are safe. As most of you know, our middle son is living in Midtown NY. Right there in the heart of the city. I have not been a happy camper at all. Thankfully, he is totally safe, and has plenty of water and food. The first day of the storm, I requested a text update every five minutes, but that didn't fly. He was fortunate enough to have power and the ability to use his cell so I know it was best to keep lines open for others less fortunate. With Facebook and other ways to communicate, I was satisfied that he was going to be okay. He has been working from his apartment because his office is without internet, probably for the rest of the week. The pictures and video footage I see on the news is just devastating. I asked him about the crane that is sorta hanging over the city. He said he can see it from his bedroom window and it is a strange sight. To back up just a bit, he left his original apartment two months early due to bugs in the building {He was practically best buds with the bug guy}. Since he left quickly, his back up plan was to rent a room in the Chelsea neighborhood until he could find another apartment. After a few weeks of searching, he found a 3 bedroom apartment on the third floor in Midtown. Move in date was Nov. 1st but since it was vacant, he and the other boys were able to get the keys and move in last Saturday.  Would you believe that the very next day after he moved out, that neighborhood was evacuated. I am such a thankful Mom right now! One of the apartments in his "old" neighborhood, lost the entire front wall. It's like you're looking into a doll house. All of those poor people! I can't imagine. 

On the crafty side of life, I added a link on my Tutorial page for the coolest lined drawstring bags.  They are pretty simple and are such a nice addition to a gift. Presentation is everything!   I've made several for gifts.  One idea I used was to fill the bag with different hair products like a brush, pony tail holders, hair clips, hair spray, pretty barrettes, etc.  It was really appreciated.  It's kinda fun to pick themes especially if you're able to match the fabric of the bag as well.  In this case I wasn't but it would've been really cute if I had hair products or something "hair dresser" oriented in coordinating colors.  You get the idea!!  With Christmas around the corner, a reusable bag is like giving two gifts in one! 
Check out Jeni's link right here!! Her blog is called "In Color Order". Be sure to check out her other pages too. Lots of amazing info and inspiration. 
I have the next two days off work and keeping my fingers crossed that I'll get to do major craftiness this weekend :-)

InColorOrder.com- see link above

 Happy Crafting to you.
 Until Next Time,