I've recently been on this crafting streak. Pulled out the box labelled "Xmas Crafts" and dug through it to see what projects were left unfinished from last year. The biggest one, and the one closest to completion, is a poinsettia wreath made out of ribbon.

The wreath is made of individual poinsettias; each poinsettia is made of three pieces of ribbon, carefully folded and wired together in the middle. I made poinsettias from dark red velvet ribbon, bright red velvet ribbon, and cream satin ribbon. The flowers are then attached to a foam wreath base, which I've wrapped with dark green ribbon.

Last year I made about 30 flowers and started attaching them to the wreath, only to find out that I needed probably another 15. I think I started working on the project right after Thanksgiving last year, and found out I was short on flowers three days before Christmas. With shopping left to do, I threw the whole mess in a box and left it to finish now.

Last night I made six more flowers, and I'll probably be able to finish up the wreath sometime this week.

The other project I'm in the middle of is a paper mache bowl. Saturday I got the urge to make a bowl, so I shredded up newspaper, mixed up some watery glue, and embarked upon the bowl project.

I have a large flat bowl that I'm using for the mold. I carefully covered it with plastic wrap, covered the table with a protective layer of freezer paper, and started in on the bowl. I quickly discovered that this project doesn't suit my usual need for instant gratification.

I applied the first layer of newspaper strips, and had to wait about 6 hours before applying the second layer. I finished two layers Saturday, did another two on Sunday, and I did two more layers today.

I was really anxious to see what it was going to look like, so tonight when it had dried (enough) I attempted to pry my cast off the mold. It wouldn't come off.

I think the plastic wrap caused way too much friction to just pull the cast off. For some reason, I thought I was just going to be able to flip the bowl over and be done with it. I tugged and pulled and fretted. Then I checked the internet to see if anyone had any tips.

No luck. But everyone else's projects were all lumpy looking, so I feared the worst. I didn't want to have to misshape the damn bowl to get it off! I finally settled on prying the bowls apart with a bone folder. This worked great, and my bowl is still perfectly shaped.

I don't know exactly how I'm going to finish this project (other than with paint and lots of varnish), so the final bowl will be a surprise.

I will post pictures of each when they're completed.