This project started off as an advent calendar and kind of took on a life of its own. I was going to make fluted circle ornaments with the calendar numbers cut out of the middle, but then I realized that numbers like “6” and “8” were going to look a little odd because their entire interiors would be cut out. D’oh! So, I morphed the project into a riff on the polymer clay wreath ornaments that I made earlier this year.

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Eggnog used to be one of my favorite holiday guilty pleasures. It had to be the kind in the carton (non-alcoholic) with the artificial rum extract. I just loved that stuff and looked forward to having it with Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner every year. Of course, it was packed with sugar and who knows what else, so I had to give it up when I went sugar free, and I hadn’t had a sip for years … until I got a wicked craving for it a few weeks ago and decided to try making it from scratch.

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I’m not from Brooklyn, and I’m actually not even Italian, though I did grow up in a place where 75% or more of the population had at least some Italian heritage, but I’d like to think that all of those years of eating delicious spaghetti dinners at the local Sons of Italy have given me at least a decent ability to tell a good sauce from a not so good one. And, in my not-Italian-but-Italian-food-loving opinion, this is a very good sauce. Actually, it’s more like liquid meat with a little bit of sauce in it. The recipe is a descendant of Bolognese sauce, which I also love, but instead of containing a variety of meats, it only calls for ground beef.
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This craft is part of the 13 Days of Halloween project. Download number templates for the project, as well as the bug template for Day 3, in the tips and supplies post. Links to all of the crafts from this project can be found in the main 13 Days of Halloween post.

This is it, Day 13! This little owl may look menacing, but he’ll be holding Halloween treats for you when you get to the big day. Happy Halloween!

Quick Tip: If you’re pressed for time and want to speed up the process, you can cut 2″ wide x 3/4″ tall pieces of black cardstock and use decorative edging scissors (Fiskars Clouds and Scallop work very well for this) to make the feather ruffles, instead of cutting out the feather ruffle templates.

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This craft is part of the 13 Days of Halloween project. Download number templates for the project, as well as the bug template for Day 3, in the tips and supplies post. Links to all of the crafts from this project can be found in the main 13 Days of Halloween post.

This craft started as a tissue paper dahlia (you can find the original craft and template at Martha Stewart Weddings), but turn it upside down and you have a ghost! I scaled the original template to 65% to make the ghost, and though I can’t include that template here for copyright reasons (don’t want Martha and her people coming after me!), I have included a quarter circle template at the same size that you can download below. If you have pinking shears or decorative edging scissors, you can use those to create an interesting edge on the circle for your own ghost.

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This craft is part of the 13 Days of Halloween project. Download number templates for the project, as well as the bug template for Day 3, in the tips and supplies post. Links to all of the crafts from this project can be found in the main 13 Days of Halloween post.

These mini treat boxes can be used for all sorts of occasions. They’re the perfect size to fit a snack size candy bar or a couple of mini Reese’s peanut butter cups (my favorite – so glad they make sugar free now!). But you can use the boxes for small favors and gifts, too. Use different patterned and colored papers to create a limitless number of looks.

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