Happy Kwanzaa!

Kwanzaa is a celebration of family, community and culture. It incorporates African traditions and symbols in a seven-day celebration which begins on December 26.

The free Kwanzaa Motif pattern incorporates some of the special symbols associated with Kwanzaa celebrations. It is a quick to stitch project that may be added to a card or framed for a small remembrance of your tradition.

Kwanzaa Crafts and Recipes:

• Kwanzaa Craft Projects
• Kwanzaa Recipes
• Kwanzaa Jewelry Projects

Design © Connie G. Barwick

Crafting on Christmas? Spend your afternoon trying out one of these project ideas from some of my favorite Crafty Bloggers.

• About Family Crafts
  Check out the current make-it-over craft challenge! Do you have a snowman craft to share?
• Eileen - The Artful Crafter
  "Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night". Read Eileen's tale of her first magical Christmas birthday in Mexico.
• Mixed Media Artist
  Cyndi shares the steps as she begins to assemble a small quilt using her own handpainted fabrics.
• Crafty Princess Diaries
  Valentine's Day already? Yes, it is a good time to start thinking about it if you hope to sell some Valentine's crafts.
• Aileen's Musings
  New Project Announcement--Every Inchie Monday A "small" personal challenge....an inch a week is all we ask!
• Craftside
  A behind-the-scenes peek at a crafty world
  This week at Craftside there are a whole bunch of Holiday Goodness Giveaways that include a Boye Electric Ball Winder, Deluxe Rotary Cutter and Embosser, Deluxe SideWinder, The Crochet Dude tools, and of course wonderful and inspiring craft and design books, pop over to leave a comment in all the posts to get yourself in the running!
• Carmi's Art/Life World
  Carmi sews up an elephant using a vintage cigarette card pattern.
  
  Add a link to your favorite crafty blog in the comments below. Don't hold out on us! Share the Crafty Joy this holiday season!

I have loads and loads of handmade ornaments, but last year, I got a new artificial tree and it is ample enough to hold loads and loads more ornaments. Since we decided not to put the tree up this holiday season, I am taking the time I would be putting it up and decorating it to make more new ornaments! I figure if I end up with too many ornaments for this tree, I can always add another one somewhere in the house.

Two of the ornaments on my to do list are the Jeweled Ornament (left) and Jeweled Holiday Ornament (right). I plan to use metallic flosses and blending filaments to add sparkle to my jewels, but even if stitched with only embroidery flosses, these ornaments will add a special shine to your tree or make a great ornament for a last minute gift exchange or to start early on stitching for next year - It's never too early to start stitching for Christmas.

See More:

• Jeweled Ornament Collection
• More Free Christmas Patterns
• Let Your Light Shine Chart

_{Stay up-to-date with when free patterns and articles are added to About.com Cross Stitch. Subscribe to the About.com Cross Stitch Newsletter today.}

Irene recently shared this finish with us in the About.com Cross Stitch forum. I have enjoyed watching this project as she worked on it. Irene's mother started the project with the intention of giving it to her granddaughter, Irene's daughter.

As Irene says, "I can't believe it but it's finally done.... My Mom had such a hard time during that last year of working on it. I put both her initials and mine, her's come first of course. Now comes the fun of decided what I want to stitch next." It's always fun to finish a project and even more fun to start a new one!



I never seem to keep my posts completely wordless, but here are more blogs posts featuring photos on Wordless Wednesday at About.com.

_{Follow About.com Cross Stitch on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.}