Another crafter in the family

I am not the only crafty one in the family. Actually, my son is an avid crafter and we recently pulled my husband into the crafting realm also. Max attends a local public Waldorf School where we have an incredibly talented Handwork Teacher. Of all subjects Handwork is one of his favourites and with Ms. Ahart, he has blossomed into an amazing self-directed crafter. I am not a knitter or crocheter (yet) so when he crafts at home, he is on his own. Any mistakes that he makes, he has to figure out on his own. I am constantly amazed by the wonderful projects that he work on at home. Wouldn't you rather your son crochet on a four hour long car trip than play on a handheld video game?

Max made this knitted doll named Oscar at school, isn't he great?
He made the hat for Oscar at home.

This little drawstring bag was crocheted by Max yesterday. Amazing right? He tells me that it's a fishnet bag. A girl at school was making one for a project, he watched what she was doing, came home and made one all by himself.

Cruising around Joann Fabrics before Christmas I saw these looms called Knifty Knitters. They seemed interesting so I bought a set for Max. He opened the set on Christmas Day and lo and behold the first person to make a hat was - my HUSBAND! He slaved over that Knifty Knitter for hours and this (below) is his first hat. Then he made another and another. He wears the hat that he made for himself all of the time. I know that technically it's cheating but hey, they come out great and they're handmade. I even made one for a friend's daughter in Tahoe. My husband is constantly busy, it was great for him to just sit quietly for a while and work with is hands. I think that after hat #3 he realized how crafting can be a bit addicting for me! :)

Here's a pic of my husbands first hat and the knift knitter loom.

In awe of my family,

Project Doll Quilt

I have checked out my partners blog and so far these are the fabrics that I have come up with.

While trawling her blog I saw that she had recently used the orange and white checked fabric in a project so that seems a good place to start. The mushrooms definitely add some whimsy and fun and the bee fabrics are a favourite of mine. The flickr group for the Doll Quilt Swap is a wonderful way to find inspiration and receive some excellent advice/support. Being new to this swap I can use all of the help that I can get. I posted this pic of my fabric choices and possible quilt sketch - the feedback was great so I think that this may be it!

The back would just be a simple off white Kona Cotton -but a wonky log cabin square (tutorial found here) added in may be a fun surprise ..................

Doll Quilt Swap 8

I was looking through SwapDex the other day and saw the announcement for Doll Quilt Swap 8. Quilt making is still pretty new to me but I decided to go for it. As luck would have it they managed to squeeze me in so now the work/fun begins! Typically I just make what I like but now that I have been assigned a recipient I have to do my best to make quilt that fits her style and aesthetic too! I have already looked at her blog and seen a few of the doll quilts that she has made. I am really excited to get movin' and have even started a few sketches and picked out some fabric possibilities.

So I suppose that since I have been given a recipient, I myself have been assigned to someone as well. What do I like? I enjoy simple quilts in bold colours, japanese fabrics, kokka fabrics, mushrooms, not a big fan of 'traditional' quilting prints.

Here are some kokka fabrics at Purl Soho that I like.....

also loving these quilts over at Mr. Monkeysuit..............

Have a wonderful weekend!

In Gratitude,

What next?

I finally sat down to catch up on all of my favourite blogs and was totally inspired by this quilt over at Mr. Monkeysuit. Voila! I have found my first big project for 2010!

I have amassed quite a fabric stash but I think that some new fat quarters are called for. A trip to Peapod Fabrics in SF should do the trick. I found Peapod a few months back and it is such a gem. Located on 18th Avenue near Golden Gate Park,parking can be a pain but it is well worth the effort. A trip to the fabric shop can be really inspiring. Admiring the beautifully organised bolts of fabric and thumbing through the colourful fat quarter selection really gets my colour wheel spinning!

This should be an exciting project as it will be my first time trying my hand at free motion quilting - maybe I should start with a large doll quilt first :)

Wish me Luck!

A New Year!

2009 started slowly and then ended in a flash. I aplogize for pretty much abandoning my blog but I will do my very best to be more present in 2010. During the next week I'll get you up to speed with my most recent pics, projects and endeavours!

Newsworthy Items:

#1: I actually worked up the courage to sell my handmade crafts! In the past few years I have done a LOT of sewing and general crafting - all of it has been for myself, my son or just as gifts. I have often received compliments and the suggestion to sell my items at faires. The thought of putting my items out there was terrifying for me, akin to making a dish for a potluck..... will they like it? does it look appetizing? will it be the only unto.uched dish?

Well, I put all of those fears aside and went for it. I had really no idea how to price my items and probably ended up pricing too low, oh well. I found two local Holiday Faires to sell at. Without going into tons of detail I can happily say that all went well, even better than I had hoped! Given my small success I have decided that I will try to sell again in the Spring, maybe at a local Spring Faire.......................only time will tell :)

#2: We have a new dog! His name is Chip. He came to us as a "change of career" dog from Guide Dogs for the Blind in San Rafael, CA. He is an amazing dog and a welcome addition to our family. So yes, we now have three dogs and two cats. Considering our high pet count I have decided to put off plans for our chicken coop. This saddens me but for now I just can't imagine feeding more animals :)

As you can see in the pic, Chip and Max are best buddies. Max finally got his very own dog.

PS. I am happy to report now that Max has his "own" dog it is now required that he helps to clean up after him outside. :)

A light at the end of the tunnel.......

So just when I thought that I was ready to return to the blogging world, I had to disappear again! Effective July 1, 2009 we moved to Point Reyes, CA. Although we're further from my family and Max's school we are very close to the ocean and are thrilled to have moved here.

The yard needs an incredible amount of work; however, we see the potential and can't wait to get our hands dirty. So far we have counted two pear trees, four apple trees, a huge blackberry bush and potentially a walnut tree. The pears are very nearly ready to be picked and Max cannot wait to harvest our bounty. I also have a fenced veggie garden area, the soil needs a lot of turning and amending but I'll get there in good time.

My favourite thing about our new home is my new craft space, with three windows and a view of our lush garden what can be more inspiring?. I'll put up pictures once I have organized and cleaned up the space better.

Now I hope that I am really back, my internet connection is finally hooked up so her I am!

My sewing machine is finally unpacked, my creative juices are trickling back, here are some projects that I am hoping to try my hand at soon...... picnic blanket from sew mama sew, gathering apron (perfect for harvesting our fruit trees) and this oilcloth grocery tote.

Something Old and Something New......

I have been doing a LOT of machine sewing lately and a few weeks ago I finally came to terms with the fact that my "old Singer" was on its last legs. In truth it is not my "old Singer" but rather my husbands "old Singer". Many many years ago my husband and I friend started a clothing company. Instead of having someone else make their samples my husband made them himself. I am very proud to say that my husband is a very good sewer and initially taught me how to use his machine. It was an old machine when he bought it and it's even older now!

Anyhow, after many months of the machine shaking shuddering and violently stabbing mybeautiful fabrics I realized that it was time for "old Singer" to retire. The only problem was that 1: I didn't know what to buy and 2: I didn't really have the $$ to spend (especially with the threat of having to move looming). Number 1 was easy to handle, Judy at my favourite fabric shop (which is sadly closing its doors next week) informed me that I should invest in a Bernina. I was warned that unless you buy new, they can be very hard to find and expensive. Tackling 2 was harder - I held a mini garage sale (8 am - 11am) and raised just over $200.

Every day I trawled Craigslist crossing my fingers that something would come up. Many machines were put up for sale but only a few were Berninas and they were at least $400 and ancient!!

Last Friday morning I typed "Bernina" in the search box and lo and behold "For Sale: Bernina 1020, $125" appeared. This was it, this was my chance! I researched the machine and quickly sent an email to the seller telling her of my great need for a new machine and what a wonderful home it would have with me. Thirty minutes later my telephone rang and the machine was offered to me, she even bargained down to $100. One hour later I was on my way to sewing machine bliss. After 2.5 hours of driving I returned home elated with my treasure.

She is beautiful, with many additional feet, bobbins, a cover and all the bells and whistles I could want.

Here she is! My Bernina 1020

It has been a week and I am definitely intimidated by my new toy. Every day I read through the manual and try out a few new stitches. To help me get her mastered, yesterday I visited our local Bernina dealer and inquired about classes that they offer. I think that I may take some in the near future. While at the store I was pleased to find a very similar model (maybe 1008? I can't remember) with a few less stitches and features on SALE for $849.99 reg. $1200. Woo Hoo! What a deal I got on my 1020!

They say that money can't buy you happiness - and I fully agree. But I will say that after screeching in frustration at my old Singer while it knotted up/shredded my projects/vibrated and jumped up and down on my sewing table and then moving to my new machine that whizzes through projects with barely and sound and no fabric shredding - it puts a huge smile on my face. I cannot wait to tackle new projects that were previously impossible to try on the old machine.

In gratitude....

A

Another To Do - DONE!

Last week I decided to take a break from the computer, tackle a new project and finish another. During a trip to my local fabric shop I was admiring the quilts on display and resolved to make on of my own. Using tutorials from other blogs here and here I actually finished my very first quilt. It's a doll quilt, it's small, but I MADE IT! I was so pleased with my little quilt that I made another! The second one was larger with 12 squares and it turned out well too!

I did all of the quilting by hand and stitched in the ditch of the seams. My hope is that after a few more small practice quilts I will make one for our friends who are expecting a baby later this year. They don't know the sex yet but as soon as they do I'll get started.

I can't tell you how excited I was to complete my first quilt. I know that mine was a simple first try but I never though that I'd be able to tackle one at all. Yippee!

This is the other project that I finished in the past week. Her name is Ella and she's wonderful. She sat naked for a week and I finally worked up the courage to make her a dress. We love Ella very much and Max can't wait to introduce her to her new Waldorf Doll family.

Our Crayons..................

Yesterday as part of celebrating Earth Day, Max and I recycled some broken up crayons. I had seen this done on other people's blogs and after I found some silicone ice cube trays at the charity shop it was a must-do project!

After melting down the crayons we drizzled the wax into the tray, put the tray into the freezer (to help the wax harden) and VOILA!

New heart shaped crayons!

We are really pleased with how they turned out and can't wait to make more once we track down some more broken crayons. I thought that these would make a great gift or some fun items for a goodie bag. The brown heart shaped crayons look like chocolate!

Spring Break........

What a wonderful Spring Break we had. Typically we stay local during school holidays but this year my husband mentioned that his friend had a house in Tahoe that goes almost unused! Aha, our Spring Break vacation was found! Here are a few pics of Max's fun.

We found this awesome sledding hill just a few miles from the house.

Although most of the snow at lake level had melted there were still a few patches dotted around. We found this one right outside the back door.

I am so grateful that our friend was generous enough to lend us his home, this trip made our break very special. Lucky for us we have an open invitation to use the house whenever we'd like so it goes without saying that we'll be back to Tahoe very soon :)

On Sunday we did this........

Amazing right!?! We spent Sunday at Stinson Beach playing in the waves and collecting sand dollars.

From sledding on Saturday to sitting on the beach in nearly 90 degree heat on Sunday. Only in California can you do that!

I did do some crafts this past week, mostly making wool felt balls for friends and our school crafts faire booth. My next project will be another Waldorf Doll and some figures for our nature table.

Easter Surprises!

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter weekend!

Max was up bright and early excited to hunt down his Easter basket. I love that Max still has that child innocence where he still believes in Santa and the Easter Bunny. We have decided that if we leave an empty basket and some eggs for the bunny to fill, he will stop by our house. The bunny was nice enough to leave Max some little toys, a book and a few chocolates. Mommies can add to the basket too, and Max saw that I also included a handmade bunny. I found the pattern here at Revoluzza.

Our Easter started with a group trip to our local Farmer's Market where we made up our menu on the fly. It was nice to just go with the flow instead of stress out about the menu and feel like you have to have everything perfect. At the market we also picked up some long bean starts which we will be planting today!

We celebrated Easter Dinner with family and family friends. We have clebrated several holidays with The Howards - it's been fun especially for Max because he associated Holiays with "The Howards". They have all sorts of fun big kid toys and a Nintendo Wii - Max has only ever played video games at their house so he's always very excited when we have holidays chez Howard.

I also finished my very first limbed Waldorf Doll this weekend - her name is Millie. . This was the first full head of hair that I have constructed. I found the tutorial for her hair here at Starry Sheep and I love the way that it turned out. I definitely need to work on constructing clothes, this is not my forte. From a distance they are fine but up close the work is a little messy :) See the wet felted eggs in the pic? Max and I eeked those out on Easter eve, we found the tutorial here.

We are now on Easter break - a friend has a house in Tahoe so Max, myself, a school buddy and his mom will be heading up later this week to hopefully squeeze in some end of season sledding!

Hello!

I have been super overwhelmed by life lately - mostly struggling with Max's school. Our Waldorf school is such a huge part of our lives that when you start to question it, your foundation feels very unstable. Trying to center myself and come to terms with the realities of what is and is not possible in our school has been hard for me but I think that I am getting there. In meetings I tend to be the one person who is the "hard ass" asking the hard questions, making parents think about what is really going on - I know now that I can only be that way. It is not in my personality to just sit by and watch things happen. As of yesterday I felt more empowered than I have for the past week so HOORAY!

Onto the fun!

We've got lots on or plate today:

Natural egg dyeing
Wet felting easter eggs
Attempt to make some fabric eggs
Pre-Easter food prep
Easter basket assembly!

Maybe even a quick trip to the craft store........

All fun stuff but also time consuming so I'll post more tomorrow about what I've been up to :)

Lovely Things

Bread is a lovely thing to eat -
God bless the barley and the wheat!

A lovely thing to breathe is air -
God bless the sunshine everywhere!

The earth’s a lovely place to know -
God bless the folks that come and go!

Alive’s a lovely thing to be -
Giver of life - we say - bless Thee!

H.M.Sarson

In Abundance and Gratitude

A

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly.......

Let's start with the good....

I have been very crafty lately mostly cranking out lavender gnomes. I think that so far I have made 14 and may have the energy left for a few more. The great thing is that I have had a LOT of practice making doll heads - at this point I'm pretty confident that I can tackle a larger sized head.

Aren't they great? A few will live with me, some will be gifts and others I will give to the school for our craft booth.

I have also been working on some Felt Wee Folk. I borrowed the book from fellow Waldorf parent. I really enjoy making these although wrapping the body w. the embroidery thread does get tedious very quickly!

I just love the way that they have turned out, I have made several Wee Folk but these pics came out the best.

PS. Thank you Tammy for the amazing acorn caps, they are just what I needed!

Now for the bad......

After a very trying meeting at my son's school I am feeling very disheartened about our Programs commitment to staying true to the Waldorf pedagogy and its future. I know that I am committed and will continue to attend meetings!

And the ugly......

I hosted our third Waldorf Craft Circle and one parent showed up. Yes ONE. I am bummed but will continue to hold the circles hoping that "if I host it, they will come". This is hard for me because I feel as if I have a gift that I want to share with our parents and they are not embracing it. Despite it all, I will continue because I feel as if this is very important to me, my son, our Waldorf Program and community.

Ending on a happy note, I did receive a beautiful fat quarter as part of a swap and have two Easter swap packages ready to go in the mail tomorrow. I am also working on creating a felt mushroom tutorial - coming soon. :)

Say Hello To My Little Friend...........

Welcome to Spring!

The little brown bulb lies quiet and warm,

Sheltered from wind and sheltered from storm.

“Awake, Little Bulb,” call the rain and the sun,

“Wake and unfold

Your green and your gold,

For winter is done.

by Paul King

I have two separate posts today so be sure to read on...................

Last week I bought a Magic Cabin Mermaid Waldorf Doll Kit. The person who I bought it from had already started the head and torso. Let's just say that I can see why she was selling the kit. :) The head and torso looked like a pillow/pancake! I was happy to rescue the 'Mermaid to be' and voila! Here she is!

It was fun to take pictures of her with one of my favourite old paintings in the background and the shells/coral that we have collected.

For my first try on a Waldorf Doll with proper arms and a torso I am very pleased. Attaching the arms was not as difficult as I had thought it would be although they do stick straight out! Any ideas on how I can 'relax' them? My one issue with building these dolls is the face/expression, I'm still struggling with how to structure the face.

All in all a successful project - time for the next ..............

News, News, News........

Recently I have suffered from writer's block. I've done tons of projects but have not been able to put pen to paper. Let's see if I can get past it!

Home: Things have been plugging along at home. Max has had a great week with two after school playdates and a visit with MoMo (grandma, my mom). My sister is an accomplished rower with Marin Rowing Club (next year she'll be a rower at Stanford), she has a race this weekend in Oakland that I think we'll go to. The weather will be beautiful, it should be a great day. No matter what we have to go, my sister is Max''s most favourite person on the planet and he'd hate to miss it. During a playdate I showed Max and his friend how to make people using pipecleaners, now he is figuring out how to dress them. It has been a great project for him and a good lesson in trial/error and patience.

My creative space aka "Treehouse" is moving along nicely - I still have to re-home my husbands sport stuff. With the new set up I have been able to move my sewing machine in. It's been great to not have the machine in the kitchen and have to run up and down the stairs to sew. Now I can just turn from my cutting table to the sewing machine!

Crafts: After the sewing machine move, I did a big run of machine sewing. I ended up making about eight stuffies, some of which are pictured below. I really enjoyed making the skirts for the bunnies, cats and monkeys. I found the pattern for the monkey here and then adapted it for a cat and bunny. When we visited friends last weekend I took one as a gift :)

I borrowed a copy of Wee Felt Folk from a friend. I made this woman but she looks mad. I have tried several faces but they all look ticked off! Considering the amount of wooden beads that I have already put mad faces on, it looks like I'll have a lot of witches to make. I need to work on drawing more gentle expressions :) PS. I can't find an acorn cap big enough for her yet, so I just placed her hair on her head, I didn't want her to be bald in the pic - how embarrassing!

I also made this horse...........

and this kitty

There are a few new projects in the works. Once the schedule is set, I plan on signing up for a beginners quilting class at Sunflower Fine Fabrics. My hope is that a friend or two will do the class with me. My other project is getting some baby stuff made for friends. I found some great bib and burp cloth tutorials here and here. If I feel very brave, I may even tackle a blanket or some shoes. I highly recommend that you take a look a The Long Thread, she has a ton of great tutorials listed for all skill levels - a great resource.

Swaps: Check out the Easter Bunny Swap that we just signed up for. Max is excited to find out who our partner is and get crafting for this swap.

Fun Finds: This week I did take a trip to a few of my usual haunts. In addition to a stash of double sided binding (my new must have) I found:

This amazing large vintage heavy cotton tablecloth. Yes, it is covered in mushrooms of all shapes and sizes. I really love it and can't imagine cutting it up - if I found the right project though ....................

Four yards of this great vintage cotton ribbon/tape embroidered with "dutch" people and a heart/bird/flower motif. I am always looking for trims like this and finally found a stash. They had a lot more in other styles, hopefully the next time I return they'll still have some left.

A Day of Rest.................

The rain has started again, the house is warm and dry - the perfect combination for a restful day at home. Max and I have had a wonderful week off school and tomorrow our routine begins again. We had planned for more day trips but instead spent more time around home - playing and being crafty together.

I finally caved and bought the book, Softies Only a Mother Could Love. There were several softies that we liked. Max loved the Albert Monkey - a pattern from Fiona Dalton her blog is here. Here is a picture of Max with his new monkey buddy. They seem to be getting on famously well!

It's hard to tell from the picture but the monkey is wearing a pair of overall pants. He is made from a pair of wool trousers bought from the local thrift shop for 50 cents. I enjoy recycling items to make something new.

I find that my craftiness goes in cycles. One month I'll work solely on Waldorf Crafts doing a lot of needle felting etc, the next month I'll do a lot of work on the sewing machine and the next it will be something else. I would love to try quilting but will I become obsessed with that too? Maybe I should concentrate on using the supplies that I have before diving into a new pool!

Watching the rain............

In gratitude and inspiration,

Two New Additions!

Congratulations to my uncle and his wife on their new arrival - a baby girl named Grace weighing 6lb 5oz. They live in Greece so an in person meeting any time soon is doubtful but with the wonders of email, Facebook and Skpe I'm sure we'll be seeing her soon!

Another new addition to my house is:

Bella Bunny!

I think that she is quite wonderful. My sewing machine and I were getting on fabulously so I was able to make quick work of her - just 1 day. She is made using a mix of Amy Butler and Marimmekko fabrics. I'll probably make a few more of these before I move on to the next project. Maybe next time I'll try a boy version of the pattern but with shorts.

Check out todays great post from Sew Liberated, she makes some great points about child safety and development. Although we are a Waldorf family many of the Montessori principles do coincide with ours and as parents in the end we all just want what is best for our children.

Introducing.............

Introducing the new addition to my sewing room!



Isn't she wonderful?! I found the pattern here. The pattern included the Mary Janes and a beret, but I may just make a bow for her. instead

It's still raining here which is great for California but Max is on Ski Week and is already getting antsy. We just took a rain walk, every puddle was fair game for Max and the dog. I put a coat on Rosie, she ran out of the gate and promptly jumped into a muddy ditch :) This is what happens when you have a Retriever!

Happy President's Day.................

Happy Presidents Day, I hope this post finds you all well. Life around here has been slow this past weekend. The rain has kept us all from top speed which has been a relief.

I worked on a few projects this past week, one of which was making balls from wool felt. In the past I have bought these at Waldorf Faires but now wanted to try my hand at making them. I made quite a few in a variety of colors, and put a small pouch of rice in two of them to make them more weighty. You could also put a bell inside for a baby..... hmm.....

I was sitting back admiring a job well done when a lightbulb went off in my head. With two strategically placed buttons the ball could become a great pincushion! So, here you see the ball/pincushion before and after! I will definitely be making these for future crafts faires and as gifts.

This past Friday while with my Grandma we stumbled across the most amazing Thrift Shop. When I walked in it looked like any other thrift store but upon closer inspection I saw 'The Annex" tucked in the back corner. The Annex is a separate room overflowing with vintage items. Boy did I hit the motherlode. You name it, they had it - shelves of vintage linens, clothes from the 40's - '70's, old games, books, pictures - it was all there. To top it all of it was all additional 50% off already insanely affordable prices! Here are some of the treasures that I uncovered..............

This amazing framed embroidery panel. The frame is trimmed with green velvet - it is now hung with pride of place in my little sewing room.

The picture up close - great detail.

A cushion embroidered with a farm scene. The foam is horrible, one day I'll change it out.

An embroidered tea towel. Could this deer be any more precious?

I am currently working on a "Mollie Monkey", I found her at mmmcrafts. Take a look at her blog, she has tons of wonderful ideas. I am making the monkey for my uncle's new baby Grace - she is expected any day now. ;)