Joyeux Noel...Secret Santa Was So Good To Me!

There's nothing quite as nice as a Secret Santa Swap to celebrate the holidays.

In our Marie Antoinette Mail Art Group we were assigned our SS recipients by our lovely swap hostess, Debi.  Alter a muslin bag holiday style and fill it with little gifts. One gift had to be a handmade ornament and one a sweet treat. The rest was up to us.

My talented Santa was Terri

and this is the gorgeous bag she made for me.

Even the back of the bag was beautifully done,

all in a French theme of course.

Terri's handmade Marie ornament is amazing!

Her body is a sugared cage that holds a dove perched in her nest, covered by a most gorgeous lace skirt. And look at how elegant Marie is, all jeweled and feathered. This is one ornament that's not getting packed away with Christmas!

 

The rest of my gifts were just as lovely......a perfect little bag of laces, trims and that sweet, frozen Charlotte.

Terri's packaging is a gift in itself. A stunning necklace of lace enclosed in glass was tucked into a fabric, flower adorned envelope.

(I must admit, the chocolates are history.)

Thank you Terri for being the best Secret Santa ever!

 

This is the bag I made for Kris.

I used some new "vintage" materials but the gorgeous underlay is antique lace.

 

My handmade ornament, also lace trimmed

included a rhinestone snowflake.

Isn't that vintage hankie pretty?

I also included a bag of bits and baubles.

This Santa adores frozen charlottes

and couldn't give a Santa bag without including a very special altered Charlotte.

Most of you won't be familiar with my sweet treat..

It's sponge candy, and a western New York favorite. The inside is a spun carmelized sugar covered with delicious milk chocolate.

 

I wish I had a better picture because this turned out really cute. 

I bleached a little botle brush tree and put it in glitter snow inside this vintage salt shaker.

 

No French Christmas is complete without a lavender filled sachet,

 

or an altered fleur de lis ornament.

 

You knew there had to be an altered matchbox in here somewhere, right?

This is a mini that I altered in a French theme and it was the perfect size for my thrift store find brooch.

 

I hope each of you had a Santa that treated you well!