The elephant in the room...

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Hello again,

Time for a quick Advent day 17 update. Today our little menagerie was joined by this fuzzy pachyderm...

 

Not much to say about this one except that it was fun to make. I am really enjoying the needle felting these days. It's getting easier and easier and I am slowly picking up little tricks along the way. One of these days I'll do an Advent needle felting round up and share the dos and don'ts that I'm learning. For now I'll just leave you a few pictures of Ella the elephant...

 

This is another one that would be great for little ones and playtime. the only vulnerable parts are the ears and tail. And who could possibly rip that cute tail off?

 

Here's a glimpse of my sweet fan club...

 

It's nice to be appreciated :)

~xox~

alison

 

Weather report...

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Hello to you and to Advent day16! A bit of weather blew in to help us mark the day...

 

Yep, get out your umbrellas and galoshes, folks. Here's the weather report...

 

Do I hear you asking why?...Why a rain cloud feltie? Hmmmm. Well, just because I suppose. I did like making this one. That's for sure. Fun, fast, and forgiving. What's not to love? Besides I was humming songs about stormy weather, raindrops and singing in the rain the entire time I was making it :) Love. And now for the extended forecast.

Stormy weather and squalls...

 

Followed by rainbows and silver linings...

 

Wishing you a day of those :)

 

~xox~

alison

 



 

Awaiting Thumbelina...

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Hello there,

And happy 15th day of Advent! No cute little animals in the Advent garland today, just this happy little toadstool...

It looks perfectly placed out here amongst the lichen and moss, like it's waiting for a party of wee folk to come and shelter under its canopy. I think it looks like the perfect spot to hold a fairy folk cotillion. Don't you? It makes me think of the world of imagination, of magic, and of flights of fancy. And I needed to be reminded of that today.

 

This was one of the quickest and most satisfying needled feltie that I've done so far. I think it's going to look great on our Christmas tree but it would also be perfect for any little one in your life. It is just the right size for chubby little mitts. This is the the kind of thing that my now not so little ones would have clutched in their toddler hands or secreted in a pocket as they went through their day. It might come out to join whatever game they were playing...castle, deep sea/forest/jungle adventure, school, kitchen, you name it. A little shroom like this would get pulled out of the pocket and become part of the play. It would dutifully watch meals and drawing and be held tightly during stories and stroller rides. Makes me smile to think of those sweet, sweet days.

 

I wish you peace and serenity on this day. May it be filled with goodness throughout.

 

~xox~

alison

 

All you need is love...

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Happy Friday and Advent day 14!! Look who flew in for the occasion!...

This little lovebird perched himself right on stocking number 14 of our Advent garland. He's pretty cute, no?

 

Too cute?...Maybe, but if so I blame that little perky little puffin from yesterday. Obviously I can embrace cute but generally try to stop short of cutesy. Okay, okay, I know. I didn't say I was very good at it ;-) Anyway, I could feel my resistance to the cute weakening while I was working on Puff. I kept thinking, "Oh dear, here we go. This could be a slippery slope."

And indeed it was. This lovebird is fully in the cute camp and may even be from Cutesy. Right?

Yep...pretty much. Oh well. I'm okay with it because he really does make me smile. Okay, I can't help it. I kind of love him. I think he would be perfect for Valentine's day. He's another good beginner feltie~easy shaping and fun to make.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend full of all good things!


~xox~

alison

 

Puff...

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Oh dear!... I almost let this post slip through my fingers. I posted today's Advent ornament on Instagram and then I got busy and almost let this post get away from me. Anyway, without another moment's delay, here he is...

A perky little puffin for day 13!

I rather liked working on this little guy. He was just so chubby and cute from the get go and he really was a walk in the park to make. Just a sphere for the head and an egg shape for the body, a tail, some flippers, a beak and feet and that's it. Making a penguin or puffin is a really a good starting place for anyone wanting to try needle felting. He's a very forgiving little guy. I highly recommend him.

He's making friends around here already...


Dashing off for now. Until tomorrow...
~xox~
alison

 

Throw me a bone...

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Hello, hello...

Did you think I'd forgotten the 12th day of advent? No,no, no...just postponed a bit due to after school activities. Tha lad and I observed our little advent ritual post dinner. Want to see?

 

So you see it was back to needle felting today. I still might have to work on this pup a bit. He's veeeeery close but not quite there, I think.

Maybe I'm feeling he falls a bit short of the mark because I'm trying to get close to the incomparable cuteness and sweetness of the my darling Susie.

I'm still plugging away on the old needle felting but do find it a bit frustrating to have such a clear picture in my head and not be able to get to it. It's keeping me humble and my dear family is so appreciative of my feeble efforts. It makes it worth it and keeps me trying.

Almost forgot my favorite part...Those poofy corgi pants, of course.

I may have to throw some easy advent goodies in the mix in the coming days. I have a couple of design deadlines looming and, like everyone else am in the throes of holiday crafting. And my big kids are coming home next week!!! So exciting!! I want to make sure all of my ducks are in a row so that I can devote my full attention and energy to soaking up those few days when all my babes will be under the same roof. I cannot wait!!!

What are you crafting right now? I love imagining you out there, working away while I busy myself into the wee hours. Take care.

~xox~

alison

 

Starring Birch...

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Hello,

Advent day 11!...wow! We are really ticking these December days off at an alarming rate.

Today we had a something a little different in our little advent stocking...

A couple of birch bark stars! I decided I might need a little break from needle felting when I woke up the other morning and realized that I was felting in my sleep~my hand was holding an invisible needle and making little stabby motions on an invisible handful of wool. Hmmm.

Besides, since these advent gifties are also going to serve as our tree ornaments this year, I thought a little diversity might be in order. Hence the stars.

First, let me say that no birches (or anything else) were harmed in the construction of these stars. All the bark was found loose on the ground, on site and I carefully avoided any big pieces that looked like they might be home to any little critters who were engaged in important decomposition work.

A cool thing about working with birch bark is that a relatively small strip will yield quite a bit of material. It is composed of paper thin layers and once the bark is cleaned and dry you can carefully separate the layers, giving you bark that is as thick or thin as you desire.

I washed mine with warm water, blotted the excess water off and then let it air dry until almost dry. Then I wrapped the birch in a cloth and gave it a quick press. My husband took this lovely shot when he chanced upon me ironing bark, much to his amusement if not dismay...

These stars are based on Moravian stars. They are so easy to make and there are tons of good tutorials out there in webland. If you like them, you should check out these fabric stars. They are lovely and come with an easy to follow tutorial. Don't forget to follow Betz's links. They will lead you to more inspiration and how-to fun.

Well, that's about it for now. The light is waning and it's time for me to cozy up here and get my knit on.

Sending cozy thoughts your way.

~xox~

alison

 

Sealed with a kiss...

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A quick pop-in with today's advent friend. Please forgive the fuzzy pictures. We were in a bit of a rush this morning and the lad didn't get to check out today's stocking until after school today. And as you can see, by 3 o'clock we have almost no light left. Anyway, here he is in all his fuzzy glory..

Clearly, I'm still working my way through all the blobby shaped species...

It's so funny to me how these things go. I wasn't so thrilled with this guy, but my husband has claimed this little seal the best so far and his fave (I think it's those cunning little whiskers, that and respect for a fellow fisherman that got him). Anyway, it just proves that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Wishing you a wonderful week. Be good to yourself during these busy days :)


~xox~

alison