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,

Summer Vacation Has Begun!

As of today Max's summer vacation has begun! This past Friday was his last day of 2nd grade, it's amazing how time flies........ On his last day his class hiked (about 45mins) to Roy's Redwoods near his school. This grove of Redwoods is very special to his class. During the school year every Friday - rain or shine - the entire class would hike to the grove to explore. This was called their Nature Day. Considering how sacred this place had become their teacher though it fitting that they perform their end of the year play there.

All of us parents gathered outside of the redwoods. The call of the childrens flutes beckoned us in and announced the start of the performance. Walking into the grove with the sweet sound of their flutes was truly magical.

The play was written by their teacher and was based on a Native American story.

This was the perfect way to end an amazing school year. I am so very pround of my little Max and can't wait to see what he does next year!

I'm Back!

I took some time off of blogging to put all of my energies into this crazy life I lead.... and some quilting. We have had lots of changes in our home recently and expect more to come. Just yesterday our landlord informed us that he has decided to sell the home that we are currently leasing! Needless to say I am disappointed and more than a little irritated by the thought of having to move, but that's life.

On a much more positive note, Max's Waldorf School recently celebrated May Day with a picnic, Maypole dancing and lots of fun. Here are some pics......

Dancing around the Maypole

Max in his May Crown

Dancing in celebration!

I havelots to share and will be doing so all week! I look forward to catching up on all of my favourite blogs.....

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.

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 ..............

Wee Ones..........

At our last craft circle (which I wrote about last week) we talked about new projects, and skills that we could teach other parents. One skill that I have wanted to work on is the Waldorf Doll Head. My last two attempts were ok but definitely needed fine tuning. So, now that I have practiced building the head I have started to make Lavender Wee Ones. These are the first three that I have finished although I have several bodies and heads pre-made. With allof those bodies and heads on my craft table it looks a bit eery :) For me, attching the head is the hard part, right now they just kind of flop around - any advice on how to remedy that?

These have been a fun new project for me! Their bodies are made of upcycled velour from pants. jackets and dresses (hooray for the 50 cent rack)and stuffed with wool and lavender, the heads are wool, recycled t-shirts and organic outer skin fabric.

Recently I found and bought a Magic Cabin Mermaid Waldorf Doll kit on Craigslist for $5. Once I have assembled my Lavender Wee Ones I think that I will tackle the larger doll.

A Great Swap.....

Last week I had writer's block and this week I have to much to write about! First, I must say Happy St.Patrick's Day!

So a while back I mentioned the Handmade Mushroom Swap that I signed up for. I made 5 felt mushrooms, sent them off and in return I was to receive 1 different mushroom from 5 other particpants. Well the long awaited box has arrived and my new mushrooms are amazing! I was so excited that I opened the box right at the Post Office. What I love is that they are all so different, made using different textiles and different crafting styles. Take a look!

From Sonja at HappyGoCrafty. I think that this mushroom is

made from clay and paper, then painted. Check out the great detail!

A crocheted pencil topper from Val at YarnisGras.

This is the exact reason why I HAVE to learn how to crochet! LOVE IT!

Needlefelted 100% wool mushroom from Logan.

The perfect new addition to our nature table.

From Lisa I received this papier mache mushroom.

The two halves actually come apart - it is a little treasure box. What a great idea!

This mushroom came from Rane. Isn't it wonderful? I was so excited that I removed it fom it's cellophane bag before I could take a pic of it all. The mushroom came with the wonderful yarn, tiny shells, acorns and maple leaves.

My intention today was to tell you about my most recent crafty project(s) but with the arrival of my new mushrooms, that will have to wait till tomorrow :)

in gratitude,

PS. Wish me luck at our School Board Meeting tonight! We need to hire a new Waldorf Kindergarten Teacher but the School District wants to make us take a Middle School Teacher with absolutely NO Kindergarten or Waldorf knowledge/experience. With the economy the way that it is the last thing we want is to see a teacher laid off, but we also need to keep the integrity of our Program intact - how can you have a Waldorf K without a Waldorf Teacher??????

A Great Weekend..........

We had a wonderful weekend starting with a FAB Estate Sale that Max and I went to on Saturday morning. This has become a tradition for us, Max calls it "adventuring". We adventure around for a few hours and the husband gets a quiet house . Well this Saturday we found a treasure trove of wonderful items which you can see below:

This is all of our booty, actually not all of it.

The rest was still waiting to be unpacked!

How GREAT is that poodle?

When I spotted this mushroom motif three piece Franciscan set I was hooked. I had a feeling that it would be way out my price range but was thrilled when she only wanted $3 for all three pieces :)

So, for all of what is pictured above plus two large quilting hoops a huge stash (about 100) skeins of embroidery thread, a rotary cutting set, hundreds of sewing and embroidery needles, three rolls of vintage satin ribbon, and several other bits and pieces I paid $7. Great right?! With my crafting circle still in the works I will let the moms use the stash that I just bought. It was getting costly for me to give new crafters embroidery thread and needles from my personal stash.

Saturday night Max was in our local St. Patrick's Day Talent Show Fundraiser. He and 13 of his Waldorf School classmates sang a song and played their flutes in front of over 150 people. We were so very proud of him! My mother and sister were also there so it was an extra special night for Max. Pictures of the event are forthcoming. That's it for now. Sunday was a great day too but I'll save that for another one of this week's posts. I have been crafting a lot and will also give you a peek at my new project(s).

Hope you and your family had a great weekend.

Yours in gratitude and appreciation for family and friends,

New Project.................

I've not been in the mood to blog this week and this is why:

This past Monday a fellow school mom and I hosted our second craft morning. I sent out an email to all families and announced it at last weeks parent meeting. 1 MOM ATTENDED, again. Yes, just 1, again. My initial feeling was disappointment, then I was ticked off, then I was frustrated, then I was confused. As I explained to families, the purpose for these circles would be to get to know one another, make crafts for the program to sell at a future craft sale and also to talk about our program for next year. Both the other mom and I are on the Administrative Council so we know a lot about admin and finance at our school.

I know just as well as anyone that we all have busy schedules - heck I work on Monday and asked my boss if it was ok that I came in late so that I could attend the circle. It's just hard when I KNOW that there are mom's who could come but choose not to. Do we give up? Do we keep scheduling these? Ack, I am just so frustrated. Our Waldorf crafts are very popular in our community, help to promote our program and raise LOTS of money for us - which in this economy with all of the cutbacks is crucial. I know that I need to get over this, I am SUPER dedicated to Max's school, I attend probably 5-8 meetings a month, and I need to realize that to many people it's just not that important and that's ok. It's not ok, but it is :)

Well, the three of us forged ahead. We taught mom #3 how to make the Waldorf Doll head and we are now in the process of making lavender gnomes & babies. Right now they are all just heads and bodies, once I put them together I'll put up a pic. I have a subject in mind for tomorrow, just have to plan it out in my head.

HOPE & PATIENCE are my words for the week. Lately I've been wearing a necklace that says Patience one side, the other side says "Patience is a tree with bitter roots that bears sweet fruits" - my new mantra.

Good Night.......

The light has faded from the sun

And He who blessed your work and play

Will bless your sleep until the day;

So shut your eyes and fold your hands

And journey into starry lands

The love that binds us warm and deep

Will bind us closer while we sleep.

The earth is dark, but there the light

Eternal shines on us. Good night.

yours in reverence and gratitude,

A

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,

A Break From the Rain.........

Today is beautiful, blue skies and an ocean breeze.

Time for some outdoor exploration before the rain comes..........

In gratitude.

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. ;)

The Weekend & Crafting for a Cause................

This weekend was great! Saturday I took my 'mom day off'. I sauntered around to all of my favourite thrift shops (spent $0) and then went and saw a movie. I saw a chick flick - He's Just Not That Into You (I love Greg Behrendt) and ate the wonderfully awful Kettle Korn. Sometimes you just need a few hours to yourself when you can do whatever you want in your own time. Coming home feeling just that little bit refreshed can make a big difference. :)

On Sunday, Max, my mom and I went to visit my great aunt at her care home. She loves it when we visit her, especially Max. The truth is that my great aunt is 86 years old, is very frail and thin, and looks a little scary. It's amazing that Max has never seemed to notice. He walks right in, gives her hugs and kisses and talks to her just as if she looks like everyone else. Maybe that's why she loves to see him - he looks past the facad to the person that she really is inside. Seeing him with her always brings tears to my eyes.

This weekend I also finished this Felt Wee Folk kit that I found in my stash.

Monday

A fellow Waldorf mom and I got together this morning to discuss starting regular crafts mornings for our school parents. In the world we live in today gathering to share knowledge and build new relationships is more important than ever. We feel that starting these mornings will benefit our community in many ways, three of which are:

#1: By meeting together outside of school parents are given the opportunity to build new and stronger relationships.

#2: Gathering and sharing a common skill or craft.

#3: An additional goal for these mornings is to help parents to contribute more to the Crafts Faire(s) that we participate in. In our community our 'Waldorf' crafts using all natural fibers are unique and have sold very well. It is our hope that parents will learn new skills/crafts and participate more in our Faire(s). By putting our skills '0ut there' it is a great way to 'advertise' our school and reach out to our greater community.

Of course there are many additional benefits to these mornings, we are excited to find out what they may be! Our hope is that periodically the group would concentrate on one theme or project such as: a group knitting project, making ornaments/items for our Holiday Faire........... Have any great project ideas? Please let me know, this is new for us and we can use all the help we can get!

My husband and I bought this gnome house from Bill at Heartwood Arts many years ago. These are some of our most chrished items. See the tiny gnome? He's about 1/3" tall.

An Experiment..............

After a meeting at school the other day Max's wonderful handwork teacher unveiled the skeins of wool that she and the children had dyed. The range of colours was amazing. This has inspired Max and I to try our hand at dyeing wool using all natural dyes. I went by the local Indian food store and bought a 7 oz packet of Turmeric (only $1.99, what a steal) and then we went by Dharma Trading Co. and picked up a large 50% Merino 50% Wool skein. I looked up instructions on the net and the pot is almost ready for the wool. I'll let you know how it goes!

Here are some pics of Max and his classmates.