Happy Holidays from Neil!

Hi all, 

Back again for a few more pictures. Had to show some of Neil's new hats.  Happy Holidays!

Cindy Breninger

Deerwood Creek Gifts

The end. ;)

A Quick Update

Hi all,

I didn't realize it had been so long since I last posted so I will give you a quick update. During the last eight months, I have had some changes. First of all, we moved. This was a good move as we are close to school, work, and I love the new place. But...we moved to an apartment and I can't do any of the woodwork that I love doing. It was a pretty hard adjustment at first, and I still really miss it, but I now know that I will one day move back to a house just so I can start up the log work again. In the meantime, I am learning new things that I enjoy making. 

Second, I got a new job! I work in a wonderful place that I really like and am very happy.

Third, and last, I am still making new things. Since I started sewing not too long ago, I have fallen in love with making hats. Big hats, little hats, velvet hats, felt hats, hats for our tortoise, mini top hats, all hats!   With that said, I am going to post a lot of pictures here and then hopefully I will be caught up. I will try to post more often and will be back as soon as I can. :)

Cindy Breninger

Deerwood Creek Gifts

Hats - It is all about the hats.

Hats - it is all about the hats!  I have always loved watching the Kentucky Derby and seeing the wonderful hats. Same with watching the Royals - I love their hats. Now, I realize that I have a very slim chance of ever going to the Kentucky Derby, and an even slimmer chance of ever becoming a Royal, but that won't stop me from making hats as if I were going to the Derby or wanting to make hats for the Royals. 

I am relatively new to sewing, but it is addicting and I love it. When I first saw the package for a hat pattern, I thought, "How hard could this be? There must be two, maybe three pieces of fabric, sew them together, and wha-laa - hat! How hard could this be?" Boy was I ever mistaken.  It was very hard - about eight hours for one hat kind of hard. But, I loved the hat and it was very well worth it.

I have also been making mini top hats, or fascinators and I love the look of these little hats. They are so cute and fun - what's not to love?  These can be as simple or as crazy as you make them - I love that. 

Please have a great rest of your day and here are a few samples of what I have been working on.

Take care! 

Cindy Breninger

www.etsy.com/DeerwoodCreekGifts

www.facebook.com/DeerwoodCreekGifts

www.Pinterest.com/CindyBreninger

www.Twitter.com/DeerwoodCreek

Starting Over.

The last two years have been quite a journey.  I never thought I would use a power tool, let alone own several, and then become pretty skilled with them.  Never did I imagine I would be able to tell the difference between almond, oak, or olive logs. Never did I imagine I would be out in my garage working and sweating in the summer, or freezing in the winter - all to make something new from a log! Never did I imagine that I would enjoy sitting in a garage that was either too hot or too cold, music playing and working away on anything I wanted to make. Never did I imagine I would look at a log looking for the beauty of it and make something other people would want. Never. Funny how life does that to a person. 

With all that said,  I no longer have a workshop where I can keep the logs or use the loud power tools. Somehow I don't think an apartment manager would be too understanding of a 12" skilsaw revving up at 10:00 at night. 

This was a very tough decision for me to make, but instead of closing my shop, I have decided I want to start my shop over from scratch. I feel a bit lost, as the logs were such a huge part of my shop and life. I used to work with them about six days a week - now zero. It was a bit of a shock at first. But, I am not one to sit and dwell, but more of a "what can I do now" type of girl.  I have been teaching myself to sew, and looking into a variety of fun things to make. I hope you will bear with me as I go through a trial and error period.  I love a good challenge, and I am definitely up for it.



I will always be so grateful to have been a small part of so many weddings, proposals, gifts, and even funerals of people I have never met. People who trusted me to make something they would enjoy - I can't explain how amazing that feels - it just feels amazing. 

Maybe someday when I move again, I will make sure to have a workshop and just might get back into making log items as I really love doing that. :) This is a huge change, but I firmly believe in making the best of any situation and to always move forward. I am excited for the new things I will be making and hope you will be too.

Here are some of the things I have made that I loved making. Maybe someday I will make more. :)

www.etsy.com/shop/DeerwoodCreekGifts
www.pinterest.com/CindyBreninger
www.facebook.com/DeerwoodCreekGifts
www.twitter.com/DeerwoodCreek