handmade for mom...

I made a few of the Christmas gifts we gave this year. I have to say by far my favorite handmade gift was this one that I made for my mom. It was a labor of love and had a few crisis moments...but it turned out better than I had hoped so I am very happy with it!

I found this {heavy} hand engraved plaque at an antique store in PA when my sister was here this summer. I had all intentions of creating a sort of hanger with it to hang on a door...like a name plaque. Then one night I had the wild idea of turning it into something more and using my soldering gun... and the designing began...


I soldered each of my siblings and hubby creating a frame for each of their faces. This was my first time soldering since my lesson. I really really enjoyed it just as much as I had remembered until...The crisis came when the next step involved putting a ring on the top of each frame in order to hang it. I tried doing it with my "helping hand" tool and then hubby and I tried to do this part together...and well...that didn't work at all...at hubby's suggestion...I called Ms. Rebecca in a panic {I was still in PA}. She averted the crisis with a soft voice and the words I needed..."just come over one evening when you get into town and we will take care of it!" and I did just that! {thank you thank you thank you Ms. Rebecca for saving the day even during such a busy week for you!!! It would still be a project in process without your help!}


After Ms. Rebecca's help with the difficult rings...I began the assembly...and then the embellishing...pearls, vintage buttons, silk dupioni silk ribbon, old seam binding...and topped it off with one of my favorite old brooches.


I designed it so that as my siblings marry and little ones come into the family I will grow the strands under each of her children. She loved it and it was a wonderful Christmas surprise! ...and it was a great lesson in pushing your creative juices...{and knowing who to call for help}!!