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Monday 29 November 2010

Blue Birds Hanging Wall Garland

Here are some photos of some new pieces I have just made for the craft fairs. I'm especially enamoured of my blue birds, made from recycled wool and cashmere felt, they are available on etsy now...



Tuesday 23 November 2010

Papoose Baby Dolls


I'm making a series of Papoose baby dolls. I was inspired by a film I saw recently called Babies (2010). It's basically a documentary following the births and babyhood of four children, one born in San Francisco, one in Tokyo, another in Namibia and the last in Mongolia. It's really fascinating. It very much illustrates to me how much we, in the west, are having fewer and fewer "real" daily experiences. There is a scene which cuts between a baby in San Francisco, playing indoors with plastic toys and a baby in Namibia exploring the banks of a creek with his sibling which I found particularly moving.

For a baby, those "real" experiences of the world are so important for development. By "real" experience I mean sensory experiences of the natural world. That's why I believe that the baby should be clothed in  natural fibres and surrounded by things made from natural materials as much as possible. Maria Montessori wrote in her book 'The Absorbant Mind', "The child has a different relation to his environment from ours. Adults admire their environment, they can remember it and think about it; but the child absorbs it. The things he sees are not just remembered; they form part of his soul. He incarnates in himself all the world about him that his eyes see and his ears hear...the child is transformed by them."

But I digress! Back to the dolls...In the film when the Mongolian baby is born, he is swaddled tightly in a blanket that is tied up with a number of ribbons.


The next scene shows her swinging her leg over a motorbike and riding back to the yurt on what must have been the bumpiest of terrains, ouch! It was quite impressive yet also slightly unnerving. 


The image of the swaddled baby has stayed with me.  I have collected a few colourful, ethnic woollen garments that I have boiled up and felted and turned into these little Papoose Baby Dolls. I think they are quite adorable. I'm selling them at the St Paul's Advent Fair and on Etsy/Folksy if anyone is interested. 




More pictures of the other dolls coming soon....

Monday 22 November 2010

Nesting Elephant Puzzle

I just love the Made By Joel blog, he's a dad who makes lovely simple toys for his kids on an almost daily basis! Lucky lucky children. Anyway, I was inspired to make one of his Elephant Puzzles for Merlin. I wanted to try my hand at a bit of woodwork. I had memories of doing this kind of thing at Montessori school, drawing a design and cutting it out by hand with a children's coping saw. I remembered it being quite easy so I was surprised to find that actually cutting through an inch thick beech Ikea chopping board was not the gentle carving motion I had in mind, but actually a sweaty, curse inducing labour of love. Anyway, with cutting over, I sanded it well, and gave it a couple of coats of Danish tung oil (which is a beautiful natural wood oil), and I was quite pleased with my efforts. Oh, and so was Merlin for whom I was actually making it, umm I think, or was I making it for myself? I get muddled sometimes.


Monday 15 November 2010

Advent Fair East London 3-4 Dec 2010

Put the date in your diary and come along for a great Christmas shopping experience. I'll be selling my felt fruit, woollen owls, papoose dolls, crochet bunting, woollen Christmas decorations and more!


Thursday 11 November 2010

owl scout family

I've two more Owls finished. Each time Merlin wakes from his midday nap, the owls have multiplied. I'm thrilled that he is so smitten with his owl buddy. I can't wait to make more, I think I'm going to make a whole Forest Critters Scout Series, including red robins, foxes, squirrels, deer, owls, badgers... we'll see how far I get before the next project consumes me! But for now, it's all about owls.

If you fancy one of the new owls, I have just listed them on my Etsy store, take a look.






Monday 8 November 2010

owl scout

I'm making a series of owl scouts out of recycled felted woollen sweaters. Merlin loves owls and I was inspired by a felted kids jumper i found at a carboot sale which had all these cute scout badges on it from 1981 so they are nearly, what, 30 years old, wow so they are vintage now I suppose. I think owls make the perfect scouts.

I'll be putting the other owls up for sale on etsy as I make them so watch this space!
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