Shop Update Photo Dump :)

I've been busy creating new items for the shop, including a new design with bird's nests on linen with moss and fabric-wrapped branches. THOSE are fun to make! Sweet and tiny in 3-inch painted wooden hoops.

I also made another tree stump that's a bit smaller than usual, with sculpted mushrooms instead of wool. When I was done with the new tree, it kinda reminded me of the movie Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind...when Richard Dreyfuss is sculpting that shape out of mashed potatoes.. :)

So I'm doing a photo dump here and then I have to get back to making more stuff to prepare for cold-calling on local gift and art shops. Hope you're having a wonderful week.

Woodland Mushroom Wedding

That post title makes it sound like mushrooms are getting married :)

Nope, no mushroom matrimony (toadstool trysts?), but a wedding taking place in a clearing in the woods by a river. This is the custom work I mentioned a few days ago.
The bride-to-be wanted spiral mushroom boutonnieres and one of my tree stumps with mushrooms for the ring bearer's pillow.

I had never done any wedding-themed items before, but I had fun coming up with ideas and I'm pretty happy with the way everything came together.

The boutonniere leaves are the same color green as the mossy base of the tree stump, and I added a little spiraled twig to each of them to tie in the spiral theme even more. Everything is secured at the bottom of these, but I like how it seems that the mushrooms were just plucked from the ground and placed into the leaf.
I hope the bride likes them :)
♥

I seriously love my job --

I'm taking a quick coffee break from doing a custom wedding order. The ring bearer's pillow will be one of my tree stumps, and the boutonnieres are based on the swirly style of mushrooms that I did in this photo. I'll post photos after everything's finished...it's so nice to be involved in someone's special day like this!
It seems that lately, every custom order brings something new to the table for me and I'm really enjoying branching out into new ideas. Hence the post title.  :)

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

♥

Customer photos - LOVE!!

I was thrilled to get a message today from the lovely customer who ordered the tree stump with mushrooms to display in a library. She included photos! It's the first time that I've seen one of my creations in its new environment...so neat! This is the tree stump that was created in this post.
She put it under a glass dome and attached it to a vintage book (she said the glue was still wet here, but will dry clear)...so creative and I think it looks wonderful.

Simply awesome.

I am currently waiting for some little clay mushrooms to cool off so I can paint them, and of course I took pics of the process :)

Have a wonderful weekend and a Happy Easter to those who celebrate :)
♥

Mother's Day Shrooms

So the clay goodies I hinted at in my last post aren't ready yet (waiting for more supplies and then a photo shoot, can't wait!) but I did get some more mushroomy things made! :) I love having the opportunity to give my felted mushrooms little personalities, and these 'new mom' scenes were just the ticket.
So far I have a a boy and a girl, and I'm working on some twin scenes right now. It's amazing how just a little bend of the stems can evoke some kind of protective feeling.

 

Finished! Tree Stump WIP photos part 2

Yay! The tree stump and mushrooms display is all done and it shipped out today to go to its new home :) If you missed part 1 of this, you can see it here.

I took a few more photos this time than I did for part 1, you can click on them to make them larger. Here goes!

Here I'm starting to shape the base with core wool (this is where the tree stump will sit). I pretty much just make a coil and keep felting it together with the needle as I go, adding more wool until I think it's large enough.

Mushrooms are ready after an all-nighter :)

Hi there! I know in my last post I said I was going to bed, but...yeah...that didn't happen. I couldn't sleep knowing that these little guys were just waiting to be out in the world :)

I took some photos and started editing them, and I was having so much fun that I didn't notice the time...I got to bed around 9 this morning! Anyway, I got a few mushroom sets listed in the shop before I conked out, and I just finished putting another one up (after a nice nap and some coffee).

Here are some photos; these are listed in the PinTops/Terrarium Decor section of the shop:

I want to say a special thank you to Kinga Nichols of Crimson Frog Designs (she does breathtaking beadwork, please check out her work when you have a minute...your eyes and your creative spirit will thank you)! She encouraged me to keep going with this product line when I was (unbeknownst to her) second-guessing the whole idea, and she also turned a light bulb on for me and said that these little mushroom caps would go great in terrariums. Thank you Kinga, my kindred 'sprite'! ;)

I still have more to photograph and play around with, but you all are probably sick of hearing about mushrooms so I'll leave you alone for a while! =)

Wishing you a wonderful day ♥

Almost ready, sneak peek!

Hello and Happy Saturday!

I think I'm finally happy with the painting techniques I'm using on the mushroom cap pin toppers. Here are a couple shots of the ones I particularly like:

The ones in the top photo have a matte finish and seem more realistic to me, which is what I prefer. However, I know that not everyone loves the same styles that I do, so I also did some that are glossy with lots of spots (bottom photo)...they seem to belong in more of a fairy tale setting somehow. :)

You may notice that a little green leaf found its way in the group as well...I sculpted a couple of those and they were so much fun that I'm sure I will make more.

Some of these will be available in the shop by Sunday night once I get some proper photos taken (for those kind souls who are patiently waiting) ♥

Also, I'm excited that it's Daylight Saving Time here this weekend...I LOVE it when the days are longer and it's still light out at 8 p.m.! Makes the day's possibilities seem endless.

Have a wonderful evening!

How I spent my morning

Seems I'm a bit mushroom-happy lately. I spent most of the morning sculpting these caps, and I used a sewing pin for the details. These are waiting to be painted, photographed and listed as accessories for the pincushions in my shop.

A fun way to spend my first day of self-employment =)

♥

Mushroom Land

Hi there! Just a quick post to show what I worked on this weekend--tiny clay mushroom caps! I sculpted 25 of these babies, most of them measure only 1 cm. I can't wait to start painting them all kinds of woodland colors and putting them in my pincushions ♥

What I made this week

After what seemed like months of running into a brick wall with every crafty idea that I had, this week finally felt like I was doing something right! Everything I did just seemed to fall into place and look the way I imagined it. From the mixing of wool colors and getting the layering right, to actually having the perfect color ribbon on hand, I am one happy girl. I wish I could bottle that up, whatever it is!! Here's what I finished this week:

Birds Nest Dimensional Mini Wall Art - 3 inch hoop 

Tree Stump Mushrooms Wool Scene   

Faux Terrarium

Do you ever have those times when nothing goes right, and then suddenly, BAM it works?

♥

Re-opening my Etsy shop

Today I re-opened my Etsy shop after a year-long hiatus. I figured it's time to expand my little presence on the web and thought I would give it another shot there. I only have a few items up right now, it's taking me a little time to get used to the changes that have been made in the last year...but all in all, the listing process itself is easier than I remembered it. Boy was I surprised to have one of my items put in a treasury within an hour after the shop's re-opening! What a great welcome back! Here are a couple items that I hope do well...

Needle felted and embroidered bird's nest wall decor:

Needle felted mushrooms pin cushion/miniature scene:

Wish me luck! :)

♥

Needle Felting & Mushroom explosion :)

There are so many different ways to create things, and so many themes...and I seem to go in spurts for a couple months at a time, switching back & forth between all the things I love to do. I've been mostly focused on needle felting and embroidery for the past few months, while crocheting has taken a back seat somewhat! Mushrooms have been a favorite theme of mine lately; here's some of what I've been up to:

 Pincushion in a 3.5 inch terra cotta base, about 5 inches tall

 Close-up

Another in soft pastels with linen thread details (grass sprouts and pale yellow roses), about 3 inches tall

 

 Close-up

And a miniature version in a 2-inch pot with tiny embroidered cap spots & flowers

I'm looking forward to starting some Valentine's Day themes!

♥

Thrifty Find and New Hydrangea Bobbies!

Last weekend I went into an antique store for the first time. I had always thought of antique stores as places that had really expensive antique furniture and collector's pieces, etc., so I was never too interested in going into one.

Well last weekend a friend and I went into one...and I cannot believe that I've missed out all these years! It was like a well-organized garage sale, the kind of place where you want to see *everything* because if you don't, you'll always wonder if you missed something that you would have fallen in love with. Ya know those kind of places?

I left with this awesome, totally 70's style sugar and creamer set.

Here's the front:

and the back:

and the bottom:

They're about 4 inches high and I LOVE them.

I also got some more bobby pins made over the weekend...I recently discovered hydrangeas and they are such pretty flowers! I layered the fabric flowers the way I wanted them, sewed a faux pearl to each center, and attached them to the silver plated hair pins. I'm really happy with the way they came out.

Light Autumn Hydrangea Bobbies

That's it for now, hope you have a great day!

♥