Holiday Crafts Week and Sunday Morning Coffee
I just finished up a fabulous holiday crafts week and I cannot wait to share with you all of the things I made! I can’t share them yet but it will be soon!
My friend Janine from Happy Happy Nester and I enjoyed our Craft-cation in Ventura this past week. The waves gently lapping at the shore, the scent of salt in the air, and the tranquility of our beach house in Ventura provided the perfect backdrop for what turned out to be a memorable and very creative week.
Season 3 Volume 43
Thanks for joining me for Sunday Morning Coffee. This is a place to share, learn, explain, dream, and have fun. Let’s get started!
About Me
A Holiday Crafts Week in Ventura: Five Days of Creativity by the Beach
Ventura, with its laid-back charm, has always been our sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of daily life. This time, however, instead of just lounging and basking in the serenity, my girlfriend Janine (from Happy Happy Nester) and I decided to immerse ourselves in a week-long holiday crafts week. We dubbed it our ‘Craft-cation,’ and it was every bit as magical as it sounds.
Crafting with a View
There’s something undeniably inspiring about crafting by the beach. The vastness of the ocean, the ever-changing hues of the sky, and the rhythmic sounds of nature seem to stir the creative juices. With a table set up facing the ocean, we embarked on our crafting journey, with every intention to let our surroundings guide our imagination.
Beyond the tangible creations, what made this week truly special was the bond it strengthened between Janine and me. Crafting has a meditative quality, and sharing this experience deepened our connection. We laughed over spilled glitter, marveled at our unexpected artistic talents, and supported each other’s crazy ideas, celebrating the joy of creation together.
I might have been a little too focused on crafting over fun, so next time I want to do a longer week so we can do lots of both!
We will definitely be doing this again!
As a bonus, Janine’s brother, who is a very talented photographer and can be found at Mark Yamamoto, also joined us and photographed all of our projects. We were so lucky to have Mark at the beach house with us.
On this blog, I may sometimes use affiliate links, which means a small commission is earned if you make a purchase via the link. The price will be the same whether you use the affiliate link or go directly to the vendor’s website using a non-affiliate link.
My Latest Project
As much as I loved our craft-cation, I wish it could have been longer!
I didn’t get as many projects completed as I had hoped as they just took longer than I had expected.
But here are a few sneak peeks!
I am so sorry that I am not sharing the finished projects but you will just have to wait a few weeks.
If you are enjoying my blog, you can sign up to receive my blog updates here. .
My Biggest Challenge This Week
The only drawback about crafting at the beach is transporting my crafting supplies.
I don’t have any craft supplies at the beach and I had to bring 100% of everything I wanted to use to the beach.
Not surprisingly, I forgot a few things. It was painful having to buy glue sticks, paint, and a lot more items, while I knew I had a lot of back home! And carrying everything down from the third floor at home, transporting it to Ventura, and then taking it all home (and back up to the 3rd floor) was a slight pain.
But of course, I loved our crafting week and I would do it all over again. And again.
- Finish up my holiday crafting projects from our craft-cation
- Drive to Northern California to visit our kids and Graham for Halloween.
- Host a cocktail party back home on Thursday night.
- Head to Ventura for the weekend, ride our bikes 40 miles to Santa Barbara, check in to a hotel, uber to the Santa Barbara Bowl to watch Kenny Loggins’ last concert ever (sob), and ride 40 miles back to Ventura the next day.
- Figure out how we can transport our “luggage” on our bikes. Hmmm.
27 Chicken Soup Recipes … Yum!
These Are the Best Books of 2023, According to Barnes & Noble. Do you agree?
Happy Happy Nester shared The Best Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies! Yum!
I can’t believe I am almost done sharing all of my fall ideas because next week is the time to start sharing lots of holiday ideas! Most of you saw my post about recycling wine bottles for water bottles and my new Gingersnap Pumpkin Trifle recipe. I also shared more fall table ideas, a pumpkin craft, a DIY wreath, and some pumpkin bread recipes.
Looking for last minute Halloween party ideas? Martha has a lot!
It’s hard to believe but my holiday content arrives on my blog on November 1st. I have teamed with my dear friend Karianne at Thistlewood Farms and we are once again sharing our Twelve Days of Getting Ready for Christmas series. We will be sharing lots of ideas to make your holidays easier including choosing your holiday color palette, decorating in the dining room, gift tag ideas, and stocking stuffers. I also have a fun blanket DIY to share and a fun tradition called Pie for Breakfast.
Shop This Post Here
- How Many Days Until Thanksgiving – S3/V42
- Holiday Crafts – S3/V41
- Amazon Prime Big Deal Days – S3/V40
- Amazon Creator Summit – S3/V39
- Eat, Drink, Relax – S3/V38
- Happy Weekend – S3/V37
- A Healthy Lifestyle – S3/V36
- A New Trek Electric Bike – S3/V35
- The Fall Color Palette – S3/V34
- My New Craft Room – S3/V33
- Fall is Here – S3/V32
- Thinking About Fall Decor – S3/V31
- A Backroads Bike Trip – S3/V30
- Summer Dinner on the Beach – S3/V29
- Why Do I Love Crafts? – S3/V28
- Our California Beach House – S3/V27
- Enjoying the Ventura Beach House – S3/V26
- Summer Decor Finds and Sunday Morning Coffee – S3/V25
- Looking Back at Provence and Sunday Morning Coffee – S3/V24
- Summer Birthday Week – S3/V23
- Welcome Summer – S3/V22
- Finishing the Exterior of the Beach House – S3/V21
- Happy Mother’s Day – S3/V20
- I Love New York – S3/V19
- A Spring Garden – S3/V18
- Happy National Picnic Day – S3/V17
- Welcome Graham – S3/V16
- Happy Easter – S3/V15
- Shopping Tips – S3/V14
- Happy Spring – S3/V13
- Girls Weekend Getaways – S3/V12
- Exciting News This Week – S3/V11
- Ventura Beach Favorites – S3/V10
- A Happy Family at the Beach House – S3/V9
- A Beach House Tour Deadline – S3/V8
- The Ventura Beach House – S3/V7
- A Busy Week at the Ventura Beach House – S3/V6
- Beach House Move-In Tomorrow – S3/V5
- Martha, “You are Wrong About My White Farmhouse Kitchen!” – S3/V4
- Valentines Day Decor – S3/V3
- Five Things to Organize Now – S3/V2
- Happy New Year 2023 – S3/V1
You Might Also Need…
Pin the image below to your decor boards on Pinterest (just click the Pin button in the top left corner). You can also follow along with me on Pinterest!
For more real-time updates, follow me on Instagram @My100YearOldHome
You are a genius with all ideas, crafts and recipes. Am anxious about next week. Have a great weekend.
Omg thanks so much Heidi!! ☺️
Loved going to concerts @ Santa Barbara Bowl. Ready for holiday ideas Leslie, bring it on. Temp here in Texas just dropped 20 degrees in 3 hours!
So fun! Can’t wait to share them with you ☺️🙌🏻
I had a fabulous time with you! So many great projects and memories were made last week! Thanks Leslie for your wonderful friendship!
So nice to tag along and collaborate at your beautiful beach house. An inspiring week for you. Thank you!