craftlog

I go back and forth on whether I like Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion. She does often have references to good stores and stuff to buy, and I generally like the articles about artists, particularly the photos of their workspaces. The text is too gooey throughout for me to actually enjoy reading it, though. I mainly look at the pictures. And most of Mary Engelbreit’s actual designs are not so appealing to me. The whole magazine reflects her very busy, cutesy aesthetic. But, I am also a sucker for paper dolls. I love paper dolls. I am anxiously awaiting the day my niece can wield a pair of scissors and I can get her some. My sisters and I used to play with them all the time, although our favorite part was not so much playing but rather cutting them out and sorting all their clothes and accessories. Anyway, so my paper doll attraction makes it very tempting to buy the magazine each month, and I also always try to remember to get her yearly paper doll calendar. [EDIT: I can't find a 2005 paper doll calendar on her website. Too bad.]

I also have a weakness for Christmas issues, so I went ahead and got it this month. As usual, the artist article is wonderful. One of my favorites, Jennifer Murphy, who makes the best stuffed animals I have ever seen. I think I first heard about her from Loobylu, but I don’t 100% remember. Anyway, great pictures. Some other good stuff: little furniture made of floral wire, a candelabra-turned-Christmas-tree, a sequined lampshade, and some decent decorating and wrapping ideas that I might consider adapting closer to my taste. Maybe once my Real Simple subscription runs out (I am so over Real Simple), I’ll consider subscribing to Home Companion. We’ll see.