Monday, January 2, 2012

My 2011 Ornament Swap.

Forgive me for this long overdo post. As host (especially as host) of the ornament swap, i've been meaning to blog about my end of the exchange and showcase everyone else's thoughtful gifts to one another. 

so without further delay, these are the beauties i received and sent. 

since we had an uneven amount of exchangers, i paired myself up with two wonderful girls. the first one was Bianca from Romania. 
what Bianca sent me : unfortunately, the postal system wasn't kind in transit and two of them as you can see were damaged. i tried to get the pieces of the snowflake back together but i think small pieces fell out of the envelope. drats! but it's the sweet thought that counts... Bianca, thank-you for my ornaments and the chocolate (the bottom right one is actually a magnet and she's currently holding my grocery list). 

what i sent Bianca : i went with a flight of fancy theme for her. My fingers were crossed the glass bauble would travel safely across the atlantic and i was happy when she emailed to say it did. Thank-you air mail!

i also paired myself up with Lauren Nicole over at Letters, She Wrote, a good friend of mine. I had planned to swap ornaments as Christmas gifts with my close friends and it was perfect when she joined and suggested we be swap mates. She had never got around to sending mine from last year so as her cute note read, "i present the Lechuga-Maxham ornament collection of 2010-2011!"
what Lauren sent me : don't you just love every one of them? she said the skating shoes are what it would look like if i designed skates (sparkly and pretty). i adore the anthropologie M from last year and this year and i can't get enough of that hot air balloon! but everything is absolutely gorgeous. 

what i sent Lauren :  i fell in love with the deer glass bauble and had to include it but the above two are the ones that really stood out as very lauren.


those were the ornaments for my third annual Ornament Swap. Below are the ones exchanged between me and my closest girlfriends as part of our holiday tradition and christmas gifts to one another (because honestly, is there anything more sweeter or fitting for Christmas?)

what Claire sent me : a cute little birdie from Anthro (her most favorite place) and a glittery heel for our shared love of shoes.

what i sent Claire : i thought these mini kisses were adorable and what says Christmas more than a christmas tree ornament? (i was a sucker for the pom poms too)

what erin sent me (both made me gasp, both were so perfect!) :  the sweetest deer ornament and festive Rockin' hot chocolate a la ELVIS, knowing what a fan i am of both.

what i sent erin : because she's a sucker for a cute snowman, this little one just seemed to have her name all over it! rosy cheeks included.

what my bestie sent me : i fell in love with the charming vintage/country feel to the ornaments M sent me this year. Don't you just love the fabric candy canes? and the key one is perfect from my soul mate since she carries the key to my heart always. 

what i sent Marisa was a combination of my favorites : the glass deer bauble (like the one i sent lauren) and the fabric christmas tree (like i sent claire). 

sweet surprises from sweet girls : a cowboy boot from rhianne, a locally handmade ceramic star from gracienne, and a winged christmas fellow from athanasia.

what amanda sent me : a hand made ornament of our wedding kiss... magical! 

what i sent amanda : a mermaid ornament from jupiter designs (combining her love of crafts and mermaids)

what april sent me :  hello birdie! i love the beads and the romantic vintage feel.

what i sent to april : a day of the dead sugar skull ornament from liz miera embroidery. how awesome does it look on her christmas tree?
i had to show you this cute mug i threw in for april who loves polar bears. look at the little one sitting inside the mug!

i'm such an ornaments girl... there's nothing like hunting for the perfect one for dear friends and swooning over the perfect one they find for this girl. xo

since i've already overloaded you with photos, tomorrow i'll round up your photos, promise!

ps. who else is sad to be taking down their christmas tree?


(see my ornament exchange 2011 & 2010)

11 comments:

Erin {pughs' news} said...

I love that we send each other ornaments every year. What a wonderful tradition! So glad you loved your deer {and that rockin' cocoa} so much :)

Good news! In keeping with the British tradition, our Christmas tree stays up until 12th night {Jan. 5th}, so I have a few more days to enjoy its twinkly magic before I have to take it all down. I admire my little snowman every time I see it. Thank you again, sweet M! xo

Erin {pughs' news} said...

PS: Thanks for linking back to 2010 and 2009, too. Loved looking back!

Faiza said...

oh i love the day of the dead ornament you got for april! so unique.

even though i don't have a xmas tree of my own, i will miss seeing everyone else's. i'll also miss all the lights and finery of the city. now if only we could get some snow!

April said...

You put so much thought into the things you give! So glad you're in my life!

Summer Athena said...

i so missed being apart of this again. you are fabulous.

Sarah said...

Ok... I MUST know where you got that adorable polar bear mug! B loves them & it would be a fun gift for him for valentines day!

ps all the ornaments are super fab!

FourJedis said...

Those are really great ornaments. I'm so glad we got to participate in the exchange you hosted this year. Kelly and Tayler spoiled us rotten,and I hope they loved what we sent them! Such a fun, special thing to do each year. Your group of friends must have so much fun since you know each other so well and can personalize!

Claire Kiefer said...

I have been woefully behind on everything this season. Phone calls, emails, letters . . . I didn't even send out my Christmas cards! UGH. Gotta get in gear this year for sure. I loved looking at your ornaments on my tree, though . . . and I love the ornaments you and April sent each other--both of them!

Alyssa said...

Oh my gosh - I cannot believe someone made an ornament with you two in it! that is the most romantic and magical thing ever! That is by far my favourite!!

Kym @ Travel Babbles said...

These ornaments are LOVELY!!!!!! They put the biggest smile on my face - I love the creativity and thought that went into each one. What a wonderful keepsake and growing collection :) xo

Elisse said...

I enjoyed being a part of this swap! December was such a gong show for me, I didn't have time to blog what I got, let alone appreciate Christmas the way I usually do! Thanks for sharing these photos!

Related Posts with Thumbnails