About Me

Lindsay M Starr is a beadwork and mixed media artist currently based in Nashville, TN. She spent her early childhood in Alaska, and her school age and college years in Oregon. Lindsay has a great appreciation for history, science, and nature and is consistently inspired by insects, sea life, color, and the significance of beads and beadwork throughout human history. She spends her days beading, walking at the zoo, and practicing yoga. Lindsay loves to share her knowledge and passion for beads and beadwork to hobbyists of all skill levels.

Friday, December 22, 2017

Art Elements December 2017 Ornament Challenge

I was really excited when an ornament challenge was chosen for the Art Elements blog challenge this month.  I have loved making Christmas ornaments since I was a child, for even longer than I have been beading!  Every few years I still make an effort to make a large batch of ornaments for the whole family, and lots of friends.  This is more difficult to do with a full time day job now, but that is the main reason I am glad for the challenge theme this month.
I procrastinated quite severely though, due to both a lack of ideas and too many ideas.  The problem was that I have made lots of different types of ornaments before, but didn't want to repeat something I've already done and couldn't make up my mind on something new to try either.  Then a package arrived from back home, and my mom included two little gnome hats she had made.  This hat is cut from a worn out wool sock.  Apparently her original idea was to make little gnome ornaments with them, but this is as far as she got.  So she threw them in the Christmas package and sent them to Tennessee for my dolls!  There are two hats, but one got used up in this challenge...
Because now I have a Christmas Gnome!
I used a circle of felt for the head, and a circle of boiled wool fabric for the body.  Ran a gathering stitch around the outside of each, stuffed, and sewed the two balls together.  Then I sewed on the hat, and glued the beard to the face.
The scarf is also glued on, and positioned to separate the beard and mustache.
I used a piece of wire pierced through the hat to make a tree hook.
And glued on a couple of buttons for eyes.
Christmas Gnome wishes you and your family the very best holiday!  Stay warm and cozy with some beads and maybe some kitty snuggles!  He hopes you will hop along and see what everyone else has made too!

Guest Designers
Art Elements Team

15 comments:

  1. What fun, Lindsay! What a creative family! I love your gnome! Happy Holidays!

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  2. Ohmygoodness!! He is just the most adorable thing. How serendipitous that your mom sent that little hat. It seems that it was meant to be. I hope you have a very lovely Christmas!!

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  3. OH. My. God.... I love your Christmas gnome!!! I also thought about embroidering a Christmas gnome but never actually got it started. Now I just shave to sketch one out and try to stitch one up. This little guy is adorable!

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  4. THE HAT! Oh, please tell your mom I squealed seeing the tiny wee sock gnome hat! I think they alone could be used as little ornaments ;) But the finished gnome looks super cool! Actually the buttons make me think he got sunglasses to go with the hat ;)

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  5. Crazy cute! Such personality! Does he have a name?

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  6. Happy Christmas Christmas Gnome... he's fantastic!!

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  7. How precious, omg! I love him so much! Those big ole eyes and that prefect hat. Great work!

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  8. Everyone NEEDS a Christmas Gnome! He is lovely.

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  9. Christmas Gnome is awesome. Those large black button eyes sort of look like dark sunglasses and with the beard, give him a ZZ Top vibe. :)

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  10. Ha, at first I thought the hat was an ornament and I sincerely think it would've made a great one but it looks so much better on the gnome :) Very whimsical!

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  11. He is the cutest Christmas gnome! I love him!

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  12. What a cute ornament. Love the whimsy!

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  13. Sorry to be hopping so late! The holidays and new kittens (3 of them!) have eaten up much of my time. Your Christmas gnome could not be more adorable! What a fun idea!

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