I've jumped in on the advent calendar project over at Homemade by Jill. My steps are a little out of order but I've had a lot of fun working on this and am loving how it's turning out, love the color combination going on. Wool felt is so beautiful to work with. I made a lot of progress this weekend. I've got everything finished up except for all the little ornaments. I saved the fun part for last :). Homemade by Jill has some ornament templates available and a weekly list of steps. She updates every Wednesday so be on the look out tomorrow. There's two more weeks of the sew-along if you want to jump in! I'm going to be designing my own ornaments and have already made a list and some sketches. I'm excited to get started on those and actually have this finished before December 1st! Projects like this are so special because of the memories that will come from pulling this out every year and counting down the days until Christmas. I think the kiddos are really going to have a lot of fun with this and I love the idea of keepsake handmade decorations. I hope to add to our collection as the years go by.
*I made my calendar a bit smaller than the dimensions given for the sew-along. My background is 18" by about 29.5". My tree is also smaller, but my numbered pockets are still 2.5" square.
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44 comments:
I LOVE your advent calendar!!! The tree is just beautiful. I am also doing Jill's Advent Calendar sew along but I am actually totally behind and am trying to figure out my tree shape right now. Do you mind if I copy your tree design?
Jennifer
This is so great! Your post makes me want to make an advent calendar.
Beautiful! Makes me want to jump on board:)
You should jump on board! It's very fun, plus this project you make once and use it for years to come :).
As always, Katie, you amaze me. Beautiful job!
WOW - it is gorgeous. This makes me want to restart my advent and copy every move you make. Seriously - LOVE the tree, love the star, your colors are perfect ... I love everything about it. I'm linking over in my post this afternoon.
Wow this is so sweet! You did a wonderful job!
I'm following along also - I love how you did the tree!
I love your Advent calendar. It makes me want to make one from felt. I just finished one styled to look like an over the door shoe holder.
I adore this! I saw you featured on "homemade by jill". Your tree is just beautiful and love your color palette too.
I forgot to ask... where do you get your wool felt?
I love this! I mucked up and have gone the other way - larger!! I miss read the inches bit and as we work in cms I totally confused myself. Oh well.
Thank you for all the lovely words!
Jill- I get my felt at local boutiques in Loveland and Fort Collins, CO. None of which you can shop online. It's not 100% wool, it's a blend but it's still beautiful. I did find wool blend felt sold by the yard at my local JoAnn's. There are several shops online that carry wool blend felt by the square and by the yard.
Your calender is beautiful! I love how you used different colors for the tree and did that scalloped edge. Very very cute! I hope to post pictures of my advent tomorrow on my blog.
justenoughstyle.blogspot.com
I LOVE your tree!!! No time to start on one for this year but there is always 2011! Looking forward to seeing your ornaments :)
Absolutely perfect! I'm following Jill's craft along too, but started late. I'm wondering what kind of stitch you used on the numbers?
Pretty neat! I want to make one for my family this year. Thanks for sharing
Love the tree! I'm going to do a few things you did as well. Thanks for the inspiration! December is coming up quickly. . . I need to get moving.
I love your tree! I'm working on this as well! Do you have a template for the tree?
Karisa- I used a simple back stitch to embroider the letters and just machine stitched the pockets on. Have fun making your advent!
Alterknitiveknitter- I don't have a template for the tree, I just free-handed it. Though I referenced the background trees in the classic 'Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer' for my tree shape.
oh, i just love the shape of your tree. I imagine that you are planning on doing some machine stitching for the ornaments as well, maybe i am wrong. i love the idea of handwork, but the machine is quicker and neater. can't wait to see the ornaments. please don't hold out for long. i have decided to make a couple of pockets contain a simple strand of lights. i imagine my boys pulling the string and the bulbs just keep popping out. i plan to attach a different color button on the edges of the tree to attach the strand of lights to. i have added you to my reader. your work is really great.
Do you have a template for the shap of your tree? I really love it!!!
Neeley- I love the idea of adding a strand of lights, looking forward to see how that works out! I am using the machine on my ornaments. I kind of avoid hand sewing like the plague ;). Plus I have so much fun on the machine. I'll have a post about my ornament progress soon!
So beautiful. I love the shape of your tree. I've been toying with the idea of making an advent calendar. I didn't want to reinvent the wheel, but every pattern I've seen just isn't quite right. But this...I love it all so far! The shape of your tree is so much more realistic and creative than just a triangle.
looooove your blog!!!
How beautiful!! Thank you for sharing!
Here is the advent calendar that my sister made when I was a kid: http://gluegunannie.com/?p=88
This is stunning!! I love your blog... eye candy!!!
Love this! You are amazing!
Did you hand stitch the tree?
Polly- Thank you so much! I machine stitched the tree. I avoid hand stitching whenever possible, haha :).
how did you get the numbers so perfect? I'm having trouble getting them the same size and perfect.
Dear Anonymous-
Here's my secret to perfect numbers, they're not :). Mine aren't exactly the same size or shape either. I just hand drew them on and stitched. It's just not all that noticeable from a distance and doesn't distract as a whole. I wouldn't worry to much about it. There is number templates available through the advent project on the Purl Bee blog. Homemade by Jill also linked it in the sew-a-long.
You should market and sell these babies! Mass produce them in kits or something. :) You could make a killing! Your tree and ornaments are BEAUTIFUL!
What a beautiful advent calendar. I am a year behind and just finding these sew alongs, hoping to do one before December rolls around this year! What did you do to make the main white background sturdy enough? It is two pieces of felt sewn together? Or did you just sew around one piece to give it an edge? Not sure where to start...thanks so much. It's just beautiful!
Kelly K.— I just used two pieces of wool felt for my backing. Thanks so much for your kind words and for taking the time to comment. I hope you have a ton of fun making your advent calendar. I'd love to see the outcome :).
I have been looking for EXACTLY this. Problem is I am not crafty. All the other Jesse tree things I have seen, I hate to say it, are just not really cute. Would you be interested in making and selling this? My contact info is rumsey730@yahoo.com.
Thanks so much! Lisa
hi! my daughter is just turning 3 this year and i'm thinking this advent calendar would be a great thing for us to countdown to Christams together! may i ask how wide and tall your tree is? i really love the design and color of it. thanks so much!
hi! my daughter is just turning 3 this year and i'm thinking this advent calendar would be a great thing for us to countdown to Christams together! may i ask how wide and tall your tree is? i really love the design and color of it. thanks so much!
J—Thank you! My kids have really enjoyed our advent calendar. The first year we put it up my oldest were 2 and 4, they loved it! The tree itself is 15.5" tall (including the star) and 12" wide (at the widest point). Thanks for stopping by!
This calendar is beautiful! Can you suggest a good place to buy felt? Thank you!
Cheryl-
Thank you so much! I bought my colored felt at a local shop and bought the white felt, also a wool blend, by the yard at JoAnn's. I did a little looking online and this seems like a good spot to find a variety of colors and sizes at a decent price with decent shipping cost. I'm sure there's lots of great spots online or at Etsy to also buy felt.
http://www.woolfeltcentral.com/woolfeltcentral.html
Hope that helps!
I made a similar design last year having been inspired by your tree and the sew along on Homemade by Jill - I have something to run by you if you are able to email me? (sorry don't know how else to contact you). cari at ukchristmasstore dot co dot uk thanks.
Caroline—hello! I'd be happy to look at/answer any questions you have for me. I tried to email you back but wasn't able to use the address you sent me. Hopefully you see this. Sorry about the inconvenience! You can email me at hello@josh-n-kate.com.
Hi! I just wanted to let you know that this inspired my first sewing project. I started last night! Thank you for sharing with us!
Rachel—That is fantastic! Hope your first project went wonderfully and was more satisfying than frustrating :). I started sewing because of a blog too, Wee Wonderfuls. The inspiration found online and through blogs is priceless. Thanks for the comment and the compliment! I'd love to see you project if you'd care to share a link. Have a great day!
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