Poinsettia pillow

Mom and I were browsing through catalogs a few weeks ago, and I noticed this pillow from Pottery Barn:

I thought at the time that it would be a fairly easy pillow to make (and improve upon - I'm not a fan of the linen).  So, I picked up some felt at the store and threw one together yesterday.  It was fairly simple, and I'm happy with the results:

Next time I'll make the leaves a little less rounded and more poinsettia-like, but I still like my pillow...

The tree skirt

For many years, Nichol and I have searched for a tree skirt that would sufficiently work under the 6' span of the bottom of our Christmas tree.  Last year, I decided the only way it was going to happen was if I made it myself.  So...here is the fruit of my labor.  Keep in mind that I have only been sewing for a little over a year, so my ambition is almost at the point of ridiculousness.  In any case, I jumped in headfirst and made it anyway.  I made the template using kraft paper, a pencil and some string.  I then used the templates to cut the fabric. I'm starting to realize that my biggest sewing issues come from less-than-precise cutting... Interesting note:  the ivory fabric is the silk that was used to make my wedding dress...I still had quite a bit left over, so I figured it was time to use it in Something...(the center is red velvet and the outer ring is faux dupioni from a drape).

We wanted to add snowflakes to the skirt, so we looked into buying embroidered ones, and we even considered an embroidery machine (those are crazy expensive).  Finally, I decided to make them out of beads.  That is the one aspect of the skirt that I'm quite proud of.

Once the eight beaded snowflakes were completed, I had to start sewing.  I worked from the outside to the inside, and I'm thinking in hindsight that it probably should have been the other way around.  Oh well.

I started this in October, and finished the day before Thanksgiving.  The timing was good, seeing as how we put the tree up the day after Thanksgiving.  As it is, the skirt is finished, and it serves its purpose. I know it has flaws, but somehow that seems to make it more appropriate for this household...