Favorites Old and New

Get started on a homemade holiday by hopping over to Gudrun's blog today. She has a free "Quilt As You Go" pattern that is sure to become a favorite. It's simple enough that you'll have plenty of time to whip one up in fall colors and another one for Christmas!  

During our Cross Country Christmas blog hop, enjoy a free pattern from each of the 12 designers and remember to comment on all 12 blogs to be eligible for a big grand prize! Tell your friends and enjoy the hop together - I look forward to meeting you and sharing some Christmas stories! 

And now for some old favorites . . . When I was growing up, my favorite Christmas presents were usually creative toys. I loved making my own flowers - each one different. Fun fun fun!

I spent hours and hours at the kitchen table baking plastic critters with a Mattel "Thingmaker" - my favorites were the ones you could put on the end of your pencil. I can still smell that hot plastic and hear the sizzle when it went into the water to cool.

My sister and I got each other surprise presents every year. One year, instead of splitting up in the toy store and being sneaky, we decided to get each other the exact same paint set. At first we let my mom think we both chose the same thing by accident - but we eventually "fessed up" and told her that we had planned it together. I still love paints and markers - in fact I often start my quilt designs on graph paper with crayons and markers.

Comments

[Cindy]

Oh my word - I can remember the Thingmaker too...LOL I had one!! I remember trying to scare parents and grandparents with the "thingies" I'd create. Now that's a fun memory - thanks for helping me remember...LOL

[Jill]

One of my favorite gifts was a potholder loom. I loved making those things!

[Jayne Honnold]

Enjoying all the memories you girls are sharing! Those toys are a blast from the past! I am sure some of those were under our tree, too!

[Wendy]

What a hoot! I too had the Vacu-maker and the Thing-maker. Loved them both. Yes I agree, many hours were spent with those great toys. I even remember some burned little fingers. So much fun.

Thanks for that great walk down memory lane.

[Lin]

Love the memories

[Diane]

Jill mentioned the pot holder loom! I had one and in a fit of nostalgia I bought one for my girls and they loved it too!

[Darlene B]

I remember that flower making kit. However, my flowers never looked like the samples on the box!

[Pat Sajovie]

Sounds like you and your sister kept Christmas very interesting!!

[Jenny]

Oooh, oooh, oooh! I had a Thingmaker, too! And a Lite Brite. And an Easy Bake Oven! Good trip todnw memory lane! Thanks!

[Linda H]

Such sweet memories to have with your sister. I have 2 sisters that I rarely see...your blog today makes me want to call them and I will today. Thanks

[Jewel]

Oh I had some od those creative toys too... usually used once or twice then left to dry up.... I was a doll girl at heart... This is so much fun hopping around to everyone's blogs :)

[Nancy]

My daughter also loved paints and stuff...one year we got a huge box and filled it with all stuff creative... it was her favorite present...

[Mandy]

My sisters and I did that to my mom once too! She was soooo mad!!! I still remember it lol!

[Carolyn]

I'd forgotten about the fun flowers, I loved playing with them...making the house smell. My kids had the bug maker...

[Linda G]

I too loved the creative gifts. Wish more parents would do that these days. I think creativity in most kids is almost nil. Let's give them a couple of pieces of chalk and tell them to go draw on the sidewalk.

[Chris]

Thanks for sharing your Christmas memory. One of my favorites was the "Pom-Pom Pet Kit", complete with little googley eyes to finish your creation. We had critters everywhere!

[Dolores]

I always looked forward to creative gifts. Playing with dolls just wasn't for me.

[cyndi valentine]

Creative gifts are always fun. I loved my pottery wheel. My pots were always small, short and think but I had fun!

just noticed that on some blogs my posts just have my fist name. hope you gals will notice and still count me in on all the blogs. Thanks Cyndi

[SewLindaAnn]

Wow, I just started looking at your blog for the first time because of this Hop. I'm excited because I love your designs! and it's nice to put a face to the name. I remember making creepy crawlies and thinking the easy bake oven was the best, how about those looms/loops making potholders! Can't wait to have time to check out your tutorials.

[sndy1]

Reading these stories brings back my own memories I had forgotten.

[Busy Little Quilter]

I remember having a Thingmaker, too! I forgot about it!!!

[linda lewis]

I had the insect maker!

[Judy]

I use graph paper and colored pencils too. In fact, I'm working on one right now!

[Ruby]

Wow, I had one of those flower mold kits, that is going way back!

[KatieQ]

Terry,
Thanks for sharing some of your Christmas memories. I wish I had one of those thing makers. It looks cool.

[therese bell]

Oh my, I had that flower maker, I loved it and my brothers even got flowers.(thats so funny)boy does it bring back memories.

[Regena]

My grandmother would knit things for me doll cloths or blankets.
Fun things
thanks
Regena

[Rhonda]

I remember my little sewing machine, pot holder maker and lots of crayons and paint. I even got a typewriter. Talk about stereotypes.!

[Julie in WA]

Nope, I don't recognize either of those crafty idea boxes. I do remember making potholders, though!

[www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1029856627]

This is all so exciting, and lot of fun. looking forward to see the next project

[eamylove]

OMG! We had those Fun Flowers, too! I had forgotten about them somehow until I saw your post. Thanks - I can still remember how they smelled!

[Penne]

We made those pot holders that you put on this little loom and wove them in and out of one another. I always loved doing crafts as a kid.
Nothing has really changed even now.

[CJ]

Too funny about the paint sets! I love the sweet memories. I never saw a VAC U MAKER but it looks alot like the Creepy Crawler Machine (or maker or something like that). LOVED those flowers too! Sigh......

[Brenda Karl]

Don't even recognize those toys!! I liked a Spirograph that a friend received for Christmas, though!

Brenda K.

[robin(rsislandcrafts)]

I used to always get a crafty toy each year too. Loved to see what it would be each year. I remember making lots of those potholders too :)

[Darlis]

Clever idea getting each other the same thing. Love your designs.

[Mary on Lake Pulaski]

Great memories (and photos) Terry Ann!

[Sandy]

Sounds like you were born to create...cute story about your sister and you and the paint sets. Thanks for sharing.

[sandy]

Hey those type of kits are still popular. I never had one of those .... I wonder if I can find one on eBay. thanks.

[Joyce]

I had the same thing.. I loved playing with it! There are quite a few of us with the thingmaker.. Love your blog.. thanks for sharing!

[Tara]

I realize how lucky I am now that my parents got us creative gifts as well. Forstering that creativity has really made me happy! cool gifts!

[Jane Weston]

Great memories...and great toys...why don't they do anything like that anymore!

[Christine]

How frustrating is this? I guessed everyone's baby pics, but it seems none of my comments went through because of the cryptic letter feature popping up after I press 'submit comment'. Well, that was a big waste of time!

[Tora]

Thank you for sharing your childhood memories :)

[Pat]

There have been some good, creative kits over the years. Then there seemed to be very few...and now it seems they are making a comeback.....which I think is a good thing.

[Carol Holmstrom]

Now I really know I'm old, I think I bought those for my kids! Time flys when your havin fun!

[Piecefully, Pam]

Festive FUN! That's always the BEST. ; )

[Ann D.]

I remember getting a cake mix set with tiny little pans, similar to the ones with the easy bake oven. But at that time I had to put them in a real oven. I loved it, but I think it may have been a bother to my mom.

[Tammy L]

What wonderful memories! Thank you for sharing.

[Leslie Schmidt]

I didn't have one of those toys, but I also liked getting crafty things. One year I got a daisy winder tool, but I could never make it work.

[Kersten]

Very fun, creativity-inducing gifts!

[www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1592097682]

I always dreamed for the craft type kits out of the Sears catalogue; guess I should have known that and Grammy would have lead me to quilting.

[Marianne]

My foray into crafting in childhood was strictly a potholder loom. I used to make them very colorful and then go door-to-door selling my product, or trying to!

[JoAnne]

I, too, have always made things. From my childhood I remember making Indian designs with seed beads on a loom.

[Debbie Richards]

I loved my thing maker! I made flowers with my sisters and my brother always wanted to make the bugs!

[Amanda]

I'm looking forward to this Christmas Hop. I love looking at Christmas designs

[Sheila Carita]

I had that Thing Maker as a kid too!!
Too funny

Sheila

shecarita(at)yahoo(dot)com

[di]

What is it about smells??? Just thinking about the smell the plastic Thingmaker takes me back to my childhood!

[Mary Flynn]

As I child I too had that same Thingmaker only I made flowers and I want to say brothers at creepy crawlers. It did have a weird smell so we would make them out in the garage...it would be so cold out there but it didn't matter it was fun! I'd forgotten all about it until now.

[lovetostitch]

I loved that you both wanted the same paint set - says a lot about sisters, doesnt it!! I was wondering if the paint cups were from your childhood or something available now - seems like a great idea in case of spills. If you know, would you post? Thanks!!

[Kathy Muller]

this is a fin way to share stories and tidbits

[Melisa]

I still love the smell of a new box of crayons! And I've been known to color pages in my grandies coloring books right by my lonesome, too!

[Lauren]

Every year we made stained "glass" Christmas ornaments -- you know, the kind that came with the metal outline and then you filled in with the plastic beads and put the ornaments in the oven and the beads melted and smoothed out. Very cool; however, the plastic did stink when it was melting! You can't buy these little beauties anymore! Fortunately, I still have some of the ornaments from years past and they still hang on my tree every year!

[Bonnie Nyquist]

I also had a Thingmaker! Loving this Blog Hop once again,great idea.So nice to read all the stories.

[Liz Tamiso]

Holy Cow, haven't seen one of those since my momma sold ours at a garage sale....I remember that smell, and singeing my fingers trying to get the flowers (and other molded stuff) out of the metal molds. Thanks for the trip down memory lane !!

[Cheryl]

Oh I just loved the smell of the vacuform thingie. I also had that thing that baked rubber bugs. Can you imagine them selling anything now that you could possible get hurt by....love these postings. Thank you,

[tami]

Craftmaking gifts were always my favoirtes too. I got an adjustable pot holder loom. The year after I got one everyone on my list got some nice hand made pot holders. ;)

[Rene']

Thank you for sharing your Christmas memories. My Mom wasn't a big craft person, but she always brought out the craft supplies around this time of year and made holiday ornaments and other decorations. Fun times.

[Debbie St.Germain]

Boy, does that bring back memories, lol.

Debbie

[Iva]

Creative gifts and games were my favorites. I had forgotten all about those Thingmakers.

[Linda P]

I'm trying to remember getting crafty gifts but I think that stuff was always available like felt and sequins and beads, so it probably wasn't considered a gift. The flower maker looks like fun.
Linda P in IL

[Sue Goodin]

Oh what memories. My favorite were always the potholder looms and loops and also I used to receive a treasure chest full of craft type items. I remember being so upset the first Christmas I didn't receive one.

[Terry]

The no spill paint jars are still available - just google "no spill kid's paint and you'll get lots of sources!

[Kim D.]

Isn't it fun going down memory lane??

[Christine Thomas]

I got a mosaic set once...like paint-by-number only with colored rocks and beads. And here I am, 45 years later, I still have the leftovers. I still dig them out occasionally to do crafts with my grandkids.

[Piroska]

I remember that!! My mom wouldn't buy me the fun stuff like that, but my best friend had them all! Of course, the boys in the neighborhood would terrorize us girls with the creepy crawlies. Haha...
My favourite gift was this felt stationary set. It had all these tiny felt flowers...and other shapes to adorn homemade cards and such.
:o)

[Leslie]

crayons, coloring books & graph paper oh my lifes essentials

[Monica]

All these stories just bring a smile to my face. I'm having so much fun!

[Darla Gaskins]

I think I got that same paint set. Can't wait to start on the mugs.

[Jocelyn]

Such sweet memories :-)

[arlette]

Love the memories!