Marvelously Messy

Monday, April 26, 2010

A Fairy Bower

Fairy elves,

Whose midnight revels, by a forest side

Or fountain, some belated peasant sees,

Or dreams he sees, while overhead the moon

Sits arbitress.

~John Milton

I spent some time the past day making some little Elf homes to adorn our herb garden and to encourage my Munchkins imagination. These were SO simple to do.

Supplies:

Large Rock (with a flat side)

Wood

Stik All Glue

Hinge and Screws

Paint

Small Hook

Thread

Wooden Knob (for lantern....or chimney too)

Clear Acrylic Spray

Tools Required:

Jig Saw

Paint Brush

Screw Driver

Take some wood and use the jig saw to make a door shape. You could do any shape you'd like: round (hobbit door-shaped), rectangle (modern), pointed (for the elf look), or triangle (just because you're weird). :-) I'm mortified to say that I used a beautiful piece of Cherry wood that I found in our barn....I thought it was just a nice piece of oak, but no. I was mistaken. Oh, boy was I EVER mistaken (according to my husband and my father). Jeesh. Well, it turned out lovely anyway. ;-)

Now it's time to sketch. Make a quick sketch with pencil (lightly) of what you'd like to paint....or, go right ahead and free-hand it with a paintbrush if you are feeling bold.

Paint away!! You should paint the accessories too. To give my doors a more aged look I took a wet paper towel and dipped in it some black paint and lightly sponged the entire door.

Once they're dry you can screw the hinge onto the side and bend the remaining hinge back behind the door. Then, glue the door to the rock securely.

Almost there!! The glue will need to set for at least 24 hours. You can make the lantern by tying some black thread around the little wooden bobble and securing it to the hook (which has been glued onto the rock as well). If you would rather make a chimney, you can just dab some glue on the flat end of the bobble and stick 'er right on top of that rock. To make it more weather proof, you could coat it with some clear acrylic spray (just be sure to cover the rock behind with something so that you don't spray that too). I made two different doors just to try out some of my ideas. Here is the other door, finished with chimney:

I know I was forever imagining these kinds of dwellings when I was a child. Nature provides us with so much to encourage the imagination. I know my Munchkins reaction to this will be to fill the day with stories of the people who live in the dwelling next to the chives and sage. There will be food gathered for their lunch and a nap time announced as well. They are going to be prospering in our herb garden for sure!!!!

Check out these linky parties for some great ideas!!!!
Just Something I Whipped Up
Making the World Cuter Monday
Made By You Monday
Made It Monday
Market Yourself Monday
Do It Yourself Day
Trash To Treasure
Talented Tuesday
Take A Look Tuesday
DIY Project Parade
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday's
Tip Me Tuesday
Get Your Craft On
Metamorphosis Monday
Works For Me Wednesday
Show Us What You're Working With
Penny Pinching Party
Boardwalk Bragfest
Thrify Thursday
Strut Your Stuff Thursday
Get Your Craft On Thursday
Flaunt It Friday
Frugalicious Friday
Feature Yourself Friday
Plant A Punkin Seed Party
Look At Me I'm So Crafty
Saturday Nite Special
Favorite Things Friday
Frugal Friday
Under $100 Linky Party
Friday Favorites
It's Hodgepodge Friday
Weekend Wrap Up Party
Sunday Showcase Party
Making The World Cuter
Just Something I Whipped Up
Made It Monday
Market Yourself Monday
Nifty Thrifty Tuesdays
Get Your Craft On
Metamorphosis Monday
Made By You Monday
Just Something I Whipped Up
Weekend Wrap Up Party
Saturday Nite Special

Friday, April 23, 2010

The Easy and Pleasant Life

"The Inhabitants of Carolina, thro' the Richness of the Soil, live an easy and pleasant Life."

~John Lawson

Our first vacation with the Munchkin was a complete success. We spent a week on the beach in South Carolina and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. It also helped to jump start the spring for us Northerners (though, I'm currently in sandy beach/sundress withdrawal). I took lots of pictures and even did some sandy crafting. We went to a gorgeous botanical garden, spent part of every day lounging on the beach, ate some grits, and saw some gators. I even discovered my inner Kookaburra at a local zoo. Here is a brief photo recap:

We flew.

We found the beach.

We built with an intention to fail.

We gathered.

We connected with our inner Kookaburra.

We sculpted mermaids.

We were thankful we did not have these back home.

We wandered in a garden.

We were jealous of the rosemary (and in awe of the buns).

We giggled at a piggle.

We found tranquility.

We intend to return. :-)

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Mimi's Gift

My Munchkin's Mimi (and my Mother-in-Law) will be celebrating her birthday today at our house. I found a fastastic antique egg scale for her on Ebay and to go with it I made a few things. The wreath above, for one. Here it is in the making:

It was just a plain wicker wreath I found at Goodwill for .99 but I think the yarn turned it into to something a little more stylish. I used beige homespun yarn I found at a lawn sale this past summer and wrapped it nice and tight. Then I made some little cotton flowers to adorn the wreath. The bead in the center of the flowers is a leftover one from my Bead Bling post this past December. Clink the link if you'd like a tutorial on how to make the beads. :-) Here are the flowers being assembled:

I just used some embroidery thread of a similar color and stitched the strip of cotton together (with the bead in the middle) and then sewed it onto the wreath. Moving on!! Here is the egg scale:

I love it. Basically, I love any old farm antique. They have so much character and they are always so well-loved. And, well-used. I made the egg out of sculpey and painted it with acrylics based on a image of a Murre's egg from the book, Eggs by Marilyn Singer.

To buy the book click here. There are some *really* gorgeous illustrations in this book and a lot of great information too. For instance, did you know that the Murre egg is shaped more tapered than the regular egg so that it will roll in a circle (and not right of the cliff, where all the Murre's nest)??

Anywho. I made a little stamped card using cotton paper and some stamps I found at, you guessed it, Goodwill. Most people shop there for clothes.....I go there for CRAFTS. :-)