Hand-crafted Love

(The winner to the jewelry giveaway is at the bottom of this post).

Home crafted gifts are the best.

A fun creative blue scarf that my mother-in-law knitted for me

always gets compliments.

 It is one of my favorites.

My sister-in-law is also talented with knitting,

but also raises the sheep, alpacas, angora goat,

and several angora rabbits that she pulls, dyes, and spins into yarn.

 The fact that she spent time making this angora scarf for me

from one of her rabbits is amazing to me.

It's softness and beauty is incredible.

She has also knitted me several pair of pretty socks

that are made of wool

and have gone through countless washes and still look freshly knit.

Home grown/spun wool is definitely far superior to yarns from the stores.

My sister made this beaded bracelet for me.

It's a favorite.

 She has also sewn lots of gifts:

aprons, pillow cases, and clothes for my kids.

My aunt Rosey crochetted this big beautiful doily for me

as part of my wedding gift.

 I love the color

and the thought that she gave me something she put so much time and effort into.

My Mom likes to stitch and quilt.

This tea cozy she made always reminds me of her

since tea is a main staple of hers,

although mostly herbal ones now.

A dear friend is a great maker of gifts as well.

She made me this perfect stitchery for my birthday.
(She explains in detail how she made it >HERE<.)

 I couldn't have found one I love better if I tried!

We enjoy creating things for each other.

I made this set for her birthday.

It is similar to the one I made from hemp
except I used doily thread.

One of the nicest things anybody has ever created for me

was the engagement ring my husband gave me.

I had no idea he was getting me a ring
never mind that he was having it made.

When he proposed,

we set the wedding for six months later.

Some girls have their wedding ideas planned when they are fifteen,
but I've never been very decisive.

Besides, I was nearly 26 when I got married;

most of my friends were married and had children,

and I had begun to accept the fact that I might not find the right guy.

So when I was suddenly hit with my future wedding,

so much thought, money, planning went into everything 

on a careful budget,

that the wedding ring became a simple purchase from Walmart for under $50.

My engagement ring meant so much,

that I figured that was enough.

 

 I often just wear my wedding ring,

so it became pretty boring seeing my hand with such a simple ring.

I kind of hoped that someday I could get something a little nicer,

something I would feel was perfect.

Before our anniversary this past year,

I began looking on Etsy,

I came upon a shop that had rings that I loved:

different and beautiful!
The seller had perfect ratings
and plenty of sales
which made me think that not only was her work was as good as it looked,
but she must be very professional in her dealings.

I had longed for a ring with both silver and gold in it

that was both sturdy, but feminine and delicate.

Beauty for everyday wear.

I found a certain style I loved,
but I was afraid it would be too thick with my engagement ring,
so I messaged the seller, Stacey.

She responded within a day
and told me her thoughts on getting the right ring
that I wanted
with the right thickness.

She even sent me a picture of the ring,

taped to that size so I could see what it would look like.

 My husband told me I could get it,

and I feel pretty spoiled but happy I have the ring I would have chosen,

if I had had the time and means to find it back then.

 It is perfect by itself while I wear it alone,

and I love the way it looks when I wear it with my engagement ring.

 Just like my husband,

it was worth the wait.

(Except when he's hungry:
then he's not quite as pretty as the ring).
* *
U

I wanted to share this story
because I thought it was a fun background to the giveaway.

And I wanted, before I announce who won,
to thank Stacey for her very generous gift
and to explain to you why I think her shop is so special
and a very worthy one to consider
when you are in the market for a special gift
or a fun piece for yourself.


So, without further ado,
I wrote down in order the comments of
the entrants to the giveaway
on both the blog comments
and on facebook comments,
and I entered the total into the Random.org. website.

and the winner is: SUE!

Hurray for you, Granny Sue!!
I am happy that you won!

Thank you so much for all of you who entered!

This was a fun giveaway!

And I'm happy that my husband also gave me a fun gift certificate to spend
at Stacey's shop
for my Valentine's Day gift as well!
What a surprise that was!!

Yay, for the Farmer!!!!


I hope everyone has a nice week!

Linking up to:
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Funkyjunkinteriors.blogspot.com 
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Little Daisy May: What I'm Loving Wednesday

*Blue Cricket Design

*Power of Paint Party - Domestically Speaking

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