Saturday, December 15, 2012

Ornament Swap Blog Hop

Today is the reveal for Sally's Second Annual Ornament Swap Blog Hop.  I enjoyed the first one so much that I just had to sign up for this one as well.  My partner is Bette Brody, who makes jewelry, handcrafted books, mixed media, and she loves paper. 


This is the ornament I received from Bette.  I wish I would have taken a photo of the package because she completely decorated the outside of the mailer.  I'm sure the postal service enjoyed it as much as I did.

The front side

and the back side

Also tucked in with the ornament was this darling handmade glass heart.


I had two designs in mind for this challenge.  I couldn't decide which to send to Bette, so I sent both.  The first one was inspired by one of my favorite Christmas Hymns 'In The Bleak Midwinter', a Christmas carol based on a poem by English poet Christina Rossetti written before 1872.  It was set to music many times, but the most famous setting being composed by Gustav Holst in the early 20th Century, and written for the English Hymnal of 1906.



The second ornament was inspired by my favorite childhood Christmas made for TV story 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas' by Dr Seuss in 1966. I love the whimsical characters of Whooville, the wonderful colors, and of course the message it shares of what Christmas is really about.

A big thanks to Sally for hosting this wonderful blog hop!  Please visit the other participants listed below.

 














23 comments:

Unknown said...

Wow! I just love that ornament! It has a wonderful, old fashioned appeal to me. And I'm with you, I love 'How the Grinch stole Christmas', and all those wonderful, bright colors.

Unknown said...

Beautiful Ornaments. What beautiful work.

Patti Vanderbloemen said...

I truly love the vintage feel she created with your ornament! So pretty...love it! And, I love the long, sparkly, dangles you created, too! I am now on a handmade ornament kick and have made several more for my own tree! Very nice, Alice!

Kathleen Lange Klik said...

Love the ornament that she created for you! And the glass heart bead is really sweet.

Christine Altmiller said...

Alice, I just love what Bette made for you...it has an old time feel to it...like a peak into a window of Christmas past.
And what you made---so opposite and so perfect for the season! I can clearly see your inspirations for both beauties :-)

TesoriTrovati said...

I love both designs that you sent to her! I still have my ornament from you....but it never made it to my tree! It is hanging next to my computer. I see it every day all year long! And I love the one that Bette shared with you. Very festive and I love that it is double sided. Enjoy the day! Erin

kimmykats said...

Alice your ornaments are beautiful and love the red striped....oh my what a tree full would look like! Who can resist Whoville??

Bits of Learning said...

Alice, Bette sent you such a beautiful ornament. I love the way the print under glass with the patina solder gives the ornament a wonderful vintage look!!
Also, I love the two ornaments you sent to Bette! I'm going to have to Google the hymn you are referring too, I'm not familiar but you peeked my curiosity. As for the ornament inspired by the Grinch, you nailed it!!!

Have a very Merry Christmas and thank you so much for participating in the swap/hop!

Therese's Treasures said...

Hi Alice,
The ornament that you received from Bette is beautiful I love the old world charm to it, and the little red heart is precious. I know that you will enjoy these for years to come.
The ornaments that you sent to Bette are beautiful too I really like the red and green one.
Merry Christmas,
Therese

SueBeads said...

Bette's ornament to you is gorgeous, like a vintage ornament! And yours are gorgeous too! Great job by both of you!

Islandgirl said...

Lovely ornament... I never figured out how to do that without the flux leaking inside the glass! Hope you have a great holiday season!

Karin Slaton said...

I love Bette's ornament! I just learned how to transfer images onto glass, so I'm thinking my Christmas tree is going to benefit from Bette's inspiration! And your ornaments to her made me smile, 1) because I love that hymn, too and 2)Whooville folk bring smiles to everyone this time of year!!!

Anonymous said...

What a pretty and festive soldered glass pendant Bette created for you. Wishing a very happy holiday season!

Karla Hartzog said...

Cute work, both you and Bette! 'Love that Grinch inspired piece, especially!

Becky Pancake said...

The ornaments you made look so colorful and fun. Good job. I also like the antique look of the ornament that Betty made you.

Becky Pancake said...

The ornaments you made made me smile. They are so bright and colorful. I also like the antique look of the one you got from Betty.

Jenny said...

Three very different very lovely ornaments! I love your Grinch piece - it really reminds me of the scene when his heart opens up!

AntiquityTravelers said...

What a fun hop Sally has here! all the ornaments have been so fun to explore ... and you made some really beautiful ones! Really love the Grinch inspired one!

Unknown said...

both ornaments are lovely

Andrew Thornton said...

You both made wonderful ornaments! The one your partner sent is a window of holiday fun! And I love the little heart she sent. Your ornaments that you sent were both a lot of fun! I bet the blue one has a lot of movement. And I really enjoyed how you created a Grinch themed ornament. The apple green bead with the reds totally does it. Good job!

Monique (A Half-Baked Notion) said...

What a sweet selection of ornaments, Alice... I decided I was too "busy" for another hop that involved using the mail this month. Of course, now that I see all the goodies I am feeling a pang of regret LOL.

I too have loved that old hymn since my childhood, Alice. I must comment also on your beautiful banner image... I love every reminder of the real Christmas story, so often lost in the bustle of our more commercial celebrations. I hope your Holidays are filled with love, hope and peace!

CraftyHope said...

Both of the ornaments you made are really divine! I'm not familiar with the hymn you used as inspiration for the first one. But I'm guessing it's quite lovely because that ornament sure is! And your second ornament totally reminds me of Who-ville!
The ornament you received is really great. I love soldered pieces and she did such an excellent job with it. I bet it has a place of honor on your tree as well.

Sandi Volpe said...

Great ornaments, my favorite if the grinch! Happy Holidays.