A Maker in December is a force to be reckoned with.

I am a maker. I make all manner of things throughout the year, but December is like my Olympics for making. I have a list of things I know I am going to make. And then there are all the little surprises that bump into the "to make" list.

This year, the interrupters ended up being the most "fun" part of the making. When I heard that my grandson's list included a "bow tie", I decided "I can make that." But I also think that a bow tie needs a vest, so now there was a vest on the list.

Let me take a moment to say how incredible the sharing is among makers on the internet. I found a free pattern from Melly Sews. along with a super step-by-step tutorial to make this vest.

Is it perfect? No. But is it perfect for a 5-year old. Yup.

Then came the bow ties - another wonderful tutorial I found online. I can't find the one I used right now, but suffice to say there are many. I made one for the holidays out of taffeta - and then a second one with leftover fabric from a Spiderman quilt.

I think I know which one will be the fave.

Making the taffeta bow tie triggered a need for a Christmas dress for little sister "Evvie", which resulted in this little number.

So much fun to make little people clothes. So fast. And good, because they will seriously only wear them once or twice. (But I do see that little vest getting a good workout with the Spidey tie and a t-shirt.)

Because this little lady needs some sun clothes for her upcoming trip to Barbados to visit Grandma and Grandpa with Mom, Dad and Jackson, I went through my stash and found fabric that was toddler-friendly and after picking up a little companion fabric, am creating some very cute outfits that will be the hit of Holetown in February.

Here are two reversible pinafores with matching "bloomers", a word that makes many folks giggle, including Evvie's mom. 

One more set to sew, with fabric on hand. Hope she is happy to wear these. I have a feeling that my years of being able to sew for her may be short. So I will have fun while I can.

Normally, this is when I post about what I am making for me, but this year I really don't need a thing. Maybe one dress for the brain injury fundraiser we attend while we are "on island". And the knit pattern that I hoped would be done - one of the projects that got interrupted by this other making - may need to be replaced by a little jersey dress. Stay tuned.

The last, and maybe best, thing to share is a rug hooking project that I have been working on since being there last year. I think I posted about being "gifted" an incredible portrait of a model named Chanda by my friend Vishni Gopwani. She and I have been virtual friends for a few years, since I first saw her art at the Gallery of Caribbean Art.  Last year, we met in the real world and she gave me this incredible painting.

I told her that I could only accept this gift if I reciprocated with a fibre interpretation. That way, we would each have a Chanda in our lives. I love hooking portraits - it may be my favourite thing to hook, but adapting a painting of a friend is another story. And I probably fussed more than I would have it were Van Gogh or one of the Group of Seven. In the end, I am pretty pleased with it.

Here is my fibre Chanda. I am pretty sure that Vishni will love it. I'm sure she will be amazed at the loops needed to recreate a single brush stroke. I loved being able to take a painting I loved and interpret it into the fibre medium. Although there is no "blending" as there is in painting, it is an exercise in values - which is a common denominator in all art interpretation.

Hopefully the wool will be as happy in that wonderful tropical climate as I am every year.

Back to more making today. Another sunsuit and a pair of bloomers. And then maybe that little jersey dress for me.