Mama Deer

Ever since I stumbled across Scherenschnitte on One Pretty Thing, I've wanted to try my hand at paper cutting.  My stumbling block was getting my mind to understand all the spacial stuff.  I'm usually pretty good at that, but for some reason it did not computer.  I finally realized that if I just traced the pattern and cut around the line, I should end up with some sort of silhouette.  I'm a genius, right?  Well, I think it was a forest for the trees thing.  Anyway, I finally managed to complete a project.  Et voila!

When I saw this pattern on Scherenschnitte I let out the softest "oooohhhh."   It's so darn lovely.  I was looking for something sweet and mama-ish to create for my expecting friend Cheryl, for a Christmas present.  I think this fit the bill pretty well.

On a white background, with white mat and frame, I'm so in love with it I want to make one for myself.  And look, here's a video tutorial that would totally have helped me figure it out!

Toasty Toes

Considering how cold and snowy it's been, it's lucky that I just completed a project that has been keeping my feet warm.  As my husband will tell you, my feet are always cold - and when I say cold, I mean make-you-scream-out-in-the-night-cold, if they should happen to touch your defenseless leg in bed.  So, when I say that my feet are actually warm right now, you should imagine a choir of angels singing in the background.

The miracle fabric to make my cold toes happy?  Wool, of course! I mean, duh, right?  I'm not talking Smart Wool socks here, I'm talking felted.  wool.  slippers.  Oh yes. 

The gorgeous pattern is from French Press Knits, and you too can purchase, download and start creating your own.  The pattern works up very quickly on size 15 needles.  You work the souls, sides, then straps, sew your slipper together, then felt.  Here is the giant clown-slipper that results, pre-felting.

And, brought to you by the miracle of hot water - here is what they look like now! 

And here is what my feet look like:

They look happy, right?  It's cause they're so, so warm. 

This was a highly gratifying project.  It was quick, painless and now I have custom slippers!  I was thinking about sewing some black leather onto the bottoms, but then I realized I might not be able to slide around on the floor if I did, and what's the fun in that?  They were also relatively cheap to make.  I used Pattons Classic Wool, purchased on sale at Joann's.  The resulting fabric is shockingly soft, and really traps the warmth in the way a wool sock never can.  Add in a regular old sock, and you're cooking with Crisco people. 

I never thought I'd get into felting, but now that I've started, I'm not sure I can stop.  Hopefully there's a support group out there somewhere...

Holy Monkeys It's Cold!

I love having time off from work, don't you?  I got lucky, and hit a 4 day weekend this New Year's, so when I woke up today I actually had a little creative energy, instead of just the soul crushing have-to-clean-this-dirty-dirty-house depression.  You know that feeling, right? 

Well today, there was a new dusting of snow on the ground, so I grabbed my camera and wandered outside to snap a few shots of pretty winter things.  I wish it were easier to take pictures in blinding sunlight - all that light makes is really hard to actually see, well, anything.  Not to mention how it's pretty chilly out lately.  Anyway, here are a few I think are nice.

A sunflower, hanging on.  I love how stark and sharp this one turned out.  Very Wyeth-y

Our pea trellis.  I like the texture.

Cabbages, also holding on, as they do.  They actually look like tiny palm trees, which makes me sigh.

At least it looks warm!  I always chuck pumpkins out into the garden.  This one wasn't carved, so it's in pretty good shape.  The way the color is changing is pretty cool.

Brrr!  So, to combat all this chilliness, I'm off to go make bread!  Hope you all are staying nice and toasty.

What? I have a blog?!

Yeah, so I guess things have either been busy...or I've been lazy.  Clearly, posting has dropped to the wayside over the holiday season, but with the New Year I'm back, reenergized and ready to start working on this thing again!

I've actually been working away on a few things the past couple of months, Christmas presents and what not.  I've gotten into felting - it was only a matter of time, what with the knitting and spinning and all.  Also, I've finally gotten my mind around the paper cutting pattern thing, so hopefully I'll be sharing some projects soon.  My Christmas presents were pretty exciting this year: photoEZ screen printing set up (yeeee, I'm so excited!), and the most complete canning supply situation a person could ask for.  Seriously.  I know own 3 - count em, 3 - canners, one of which is pressure! 

So, stay tuned.  I'm sure there will be some trials, tribulations and hopefully some successes to share! 

And a Happy New Year to everyone!