So in Love

I used an embroidered girl I had done and put it into a sketchbook. The embroidery was one I drew freehand and stitched. Here's how she turned out.

I love this fabric I found with postmarks and mail.

Hellloooo!

Hi everyone!

Hope you had a wonderful holiday. We sure did, and I'm still enjoying the days off! Lots of time for crafting...and using my new laptop! Yes, I have my own now! Woo hoo!

I need to get caught up on all your blogs and I am busy making Valentine fabric postcards for my shop. I didn't really prepare for Christmas so I thought I would get the jump on the next holiday!

Here's a fabric and felted XO I made today, and some more felted beads--- I love the name "Midnight Ride"! Ha! Just calling them all felted beads seemed a little boring.

Merry Christmas! ( I'm nearly computer-less)

Our laptop crashed today. Well, I guess that's one way to take a break, but I didn't really want to. I have blogs to visit and etsy shopping to do! Hee!  I may have limited accesss to a computer the next week, so I wanted to make sure to wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Since I can't post anything new for the time being I thought it would be fun to post the quilt my mom and I made together. It was from over a year ago and I don't think a lot of you have seen it. We each made about 22 blocks, with all different fabrics, and quilted it on the longarm machine at a local quilt shop. We wanted to say we did the whole quilt. Mom being the more skilled sewing gal, finished the binding. It was a gift for my brother and his wife. I forget the dimensions but it's pretty much a king size quilt.

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday!

xo

Raspberries and Sea Life

The felted beads seem to be the hit in my etsy shop so I felted up some new beads yesterday. Had to move the operation indoors....getting the kitchen drenched from crafts is one way to get it clean!

Here are the new ones...

mmmm,raspberry...

Sea Life

Have a great day!

The end of the year is fast approaching...

December is zooming by and a new year fast approaching. I pulled out my 2011 list of goals and was thinking about all the things I've done this year. I had specifically written on here "Keep the list in front of you" because I am always making these New Year's lists and never see them again until the following year, or later.

This year's list was all about crafts. In years past I have had things like "learn a musical instrument" on there...and, well, that didn't go far. However, I can play "Silent Night" on a harmonica...poorly.

Here's my list:

I did accomplish a few! Yay me! Ha!

1.Sign up for some classes ( egg tempura painting and mixed media with Serena Barton in Portland!)

check.

2. Try more felted pincushions and submit them. ( I'll give myself a "sort of" on this. The felted dolls are sort of pincushions, too. Hee)

3. Submit my art doll (this I did do...still waiting to hear. Fingers crossed. It's a doll I've never posted.)

check.

4. Try new doll techniques. ( Did a lot of that!)

check.

5. Play with shrines. ( Still want to do more with those. And I have some great ones from Donna!! It'll be on the 2012 list!)

6. Small quilts. ( made 5 tops, finished one, bound 3 but haven't sewn...ugh)

7. Sewing brush cases (done, and gifted to friends)

check.

8. More seasonal cards ( uh...this just didn't happen except for 3 I whipped up yesterday...)

9. Do a series of work. ( felted dolls...5 finished! Yay!)

check.

10. Take more photos. ( Even got a new camera for my birthday in May. This one was easy!)

check.

11. Make more from what I have. ( Hmmm, I did well in the fabric department on this one, but wool is another story!)

12. Less for blogs, more for me! ( When I first started this blog I was mainly doing challenge blogs and really ended up creating for those. It wasn't leaving time for what I really wanted to do. I had a great time, and it helped me find the things I really love to do, but I definately moved into more creating for me and my mood now.)

check.

I didn't even have "open an etsy shop" on my list, but that has also been a fun new adventure. And thank you all for your kind supportive encouragement! It's going along well...and for 2012 I may have to put on my list "less for etsy, more for me"! Ha! I am definately the kind of person who right out of the gate is pretty obsessed with things...oh, I'll admit it, I'm a bit of an etsy junkie these days!

We still have a few weeks to go and Christmas is nearly here, but it was fun to pull out my sketchbook and look at what I have done this year.

I hope you're all having a wonderful holiday season. See you soon.

Another felted bag in the works

Started another bag. Waiting for it to dry so I can play with free motion quilting on there.

A Felting we will go....

My Christmas shopping trip to Seattle last weekend turned into a shopping spree for myself at Weaving Works! Wool, wool, wool!!! Bamboo! Silk wool blends! Merino!! I couldn't pass up on the soft, beautiful colors!

With my wool baskets full, I decided to start a bag last night. It was first needle felted, and today wet felted. It's not quite done, but I was so happy with the progress. It's been a couple years since I made a felted purse, and I've only made one.

A little break from dolls and diving into felted purses, bags, and vessels!

And, I love close-up shots of felted wool...

A colorful gal

I finished a fourth felted doll. She's in my shop, too.

I've been so busy cleaning and decorating for Christmas. Where did my creating time go? I'm sure I'll squeeze it in.

xo

not as delicate as it seems...

I have added some beads and a button as a closure.

I have to just look at it for a few days. I'm not sure I like this bright button. I need to find a small natural colored one. I'd like the beads to be the only bold color.

They look really delicate, don't they? I was surprised at how strong they really are. To do the stitching I had to poke holes with an awl first. Every time I add something I think I'm going to break it or dent it in, but even with my clumsy hands it holds up.

In case you missed the first post, the content reads

" We all contain beautiful and delicate art."

She is coming along...

Quite a while ago I made this doll's head, and her cowboy friend.

A little progress at last.

Instead of paints, I used my chalks to color her. I like the way it blended and may just prefer it to paints.

Her bonnet still needs some ribbon and embellishing.

And, obviously, she needs a body. Time to pull out the stash of lace and vintage trims.

A doll...a magnet

I love blue hair. I had blue hair for a time in highschool. I'm not sure my parents share my love of blue hair, but I think this little doll does!  I decided she needed a magnet to hang out on a fridge and be enjoyed every day.  She is going to go in my etsy shop and I think I will make some more soon.  They'd make great little stocking stuffers.

New Fabric Postcards

Happy Black Friday everyone! I am not out shopping...still in my pajamas actually, and it's 2:30pm! Ha!

But, I have been playing with the free motion quilting, and made some new postcards for my etsy shop.

Hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving!

I am off to finish some other art projects!

colorful felting

Roll, roll, roll...more little bobbles ready for felted dolls. I am looking forward to 5 whole days off for Thanksgiving. No traveling. No big plans. Just dolls, sewing, a little shopping, and creating...

Exploring silk cocoons

I ordered some silk cocoons at Mud Hollow on Etsy recently. I had some different ideas for ways to work with them. One of those ideas was to make a tiny book.  It is coming along....I did some embroidery around the edge and added some pages.
The book reads "We all contain beautiful and delicate art."

 

I had to take a break from working with such a small thing. I will post the finished book soon though. 

And the winner is....

Kimmie at Art In Red Wagons!

Congratulations! Email me with your address and I'll drop your new needlecase in the mail.

My Mom's Handiwork

My mom is amazing.

What more can I say?

She cross stitched this angel for me 12 years ago. It is my most prized possession (you know that question "what would you grab if your house were on fire?" Well, I don't have pets or kids, so this is it! I am assuming hubby is running out on his own in this scenerio. Ha!).

 I think you can see why. She worked on it for about a year, here and there, while watching tv, and relaxing. It still amazes me every time I look at it.

At first glance I swear it is a painting, but those are all tiny, little stitches. And tiny, little beads, too.

In this close up the face appears to be a photograph!

There are small beads all throughout the dress.

I wish my mom had a blog. She does the most amazing cross-stitch, quilting, sewing, painting, and all manner of art and craft. Until that day comes, I think I will post some of her amazing work. I am heading over to visit my parents this weekend-- I will get some more photos-- her home should be a textile gallery!

She just had knee surgery last week and I am sure she would love to sit and read your comments! Say "Hi" to mom....and maybe you can help me convince her to get a blog going in the future!

ps. While you're leaving comments, don't forget to sign up for the last post's Giveaway!

Autumn Giveaway!

I decided to kick off my favorite crafting season with a giveaway! I thought you may like this little needle case I made.

All you have to do is leave a comment- tell me what you are looking forward to working on this winter- and I'll pick out a winner on Saturday, November 12th.

ps. I forgot to answer my own question. Ha! I have some silk cocoons coming my way and have big plans for them! All kinds of ideas swarming around. I've never worked with them, so we'll see how they turn out. I'm sure you will be seeing the creations soon.

Bold boxes

I have been doodling on fabric again...

....and playing with free motion quilting...

Ahhhh, I love fall and winter, so perfect for creating in my cozy home.

A Happy Little Doll...

Meet JoJo, the latest face with the felted bobbles!

She's a happy girl.

Here she is with her friends. I decided I like the painted face a little bit more. Although, the others have a cool earthy feel, I think.  I was able to take advantage of some late October sun and felt some bodies. I've completed four dolls so far.

November could mean me standing out in the rain rolling the wool. It will probably be a couple weeks until more dolls are in production. I'm also looking forward to working on some other projects- more fabric postcards, mail art, and fabric books. Sometimes, going to bed, I have all these ideas swirling around and just need to find more time in the day to do them. I'm sure we all feel that way!

Bobbles on my head

I finished the third of my "faces in the felt" dolls. Here she is.

Can I take the rest of the month off and just make dolls? Oooh, I wish I could!

She is also in my Etsy shop, ready to find a happy home.

I hope you all have a great weekend. xo

The Felted Bead Factory

More beads to show. I like this color combo! More dolls coming. I'm like a woman posessed these days!  Apparently, opening an Etsy shop has kicked me into high gear and I'm loving it!

A Giant Hug for some mail art goddesses!

The past couple weeks have been full of surprises. I am feeling so thankful to all my wonderful blog friends, mail friends, old friends, new friends, and everyone in between. I am feeling the love and feeling grateful to know all of you.

Look at the wonderful mail that's been rolling in from the US, Mexico, England, and Germany! It's international mail love, too!

My dear friend, Valerie, who I can only think of as "craft attack" (Val, that's what you're known as in my house! hee!), sent this amazing envelope filled with a paper art extravaganza! A very cool book of tags, all with amazing birds and collage! There was also one of her notebooks which didn't make it in the pic because it went straight to my purse for use!  Thank you Val for the amazing gifts and for stopping by my blog so much. It means a lot! If you don't know Valerie yet, you must stop by Bastelmania!

Bastelmania

Next up, my lovely friend, Donna! Oh, Donna, you always put together envelopes that are a joy to open! You never know what surprises may be in there! I am in love with your hand made stamps! This horse on the vintage fabric is going to work its way into something soon. And how great are these funky threads!!...right up my alley! Donna Did It is an amazing blog to stop by! Go, see!

Donna Did It!

Corrine at Dosfishes totally surprised me this weekend...you sly gal! I opened my door on Saturday to find a big envelope sitting on my doorstep ( a cool recycled cereal box, of course!). I am one of the lucky recipients of her wall hangings! Isn't this amazing! It is so cheerful and cool, and already hanging on my wall by the sewing machine. Such a special gift I'll cherish. I also recieved some really fun fabrics and ribbons!...for a gift for Corrine? I think so!

Dosfishes

Today, was another day of amazing mail--- and I mean amazing! Anyone who visits Lorna at Artymess has seen and admired her fabric postcards. ( This needs a better discription than postcard---this is insanely detailed and beautiful...I would never risk this one traveling without an envelope!!) I love these rich colors and the embroidery is enviable! Also, she put in some wonderful lace and ribbons! Lorna, you are amazing! Thank you!

Artymess

Artymess

I feel like the luckiest girl these days! And thank ALL of you for making me feel extra good. I look forward to more mail swaps with friends and  I always appreciate your kind words when you stop by. I wish I could give you all those big, knock ya over, hugs! xo