a Winter Embroidery

I’ve been inspired  to pick up my embroidery needles and take note of nature.  You really have to look closely in order to interpret a sprig or branch or flower.    This  was done in the last days of winter.

Phone Home….

Well, my main man recently got a funky but chubby cell phone.  He bought a handy-dandy carrying case and broke the connecting belt clip his first day of use!  With this being a new, non-standard sized phone there were no other carrying case options at the store.  So in pops Chicken Hill to the rescue!  I dashed on over to Goodwill and found an 100% wool navy blue sweater for a steal of a price.  I also grabbed this super bright orange kid’s corduroy shirt.  I ended up cutting a nice sized rectangular piece of wool and washing it in my washer for about 4 cycles to get a good density of felt.  Then, with the proper phone measurements, (I made sure the phone was going to have a snug fit, as I was trying to keep it quickly accessible with a simple, drop-in design) I threw some orange corduroy inside for a fun lining.For the belt handle, I think I double or triple folded the felt and stitched it up separately before attaching it to the main pod.  I made sure to triple machine stitch everything to give my phone pouch some longevity, knowing my husband will probably accidentally abuse it.  

Check out the final result!  Mind you the picture is current…it’s been in actual daily use for about 6 months, not to shabby looking (I love how strong felt is).  Like the energizer bunny, “Still going strong”!

Crafty Friends

I will be the first to put up some work by Looliloo’s own Jennifer since I snapped some photos yesterday of her awesome felt goodies.  My children and I have a birthday party to attend tomorrow and had asked her to make some for us to take as our gift.  Not only did she fulfill my order of some cupcakes but she also threw in a very yummy looking cinammon roll and a beautiful slice of blueberry pie.

So nice to have crafty friends.  I’m sure that the 3 year old recipient will be quite pleased when she opens the 2 cupcakes that I am actually parting with.

To Be young again

This is my 4 year old bottle of energy and enthusiasm.

Sometimes when i get my on this swing i can feel it too.         i should swing everyday.

Walk in the Forest

After feeling the cold the whole winter it is invigorating to get out for a hike in the forest.   I have always loved moss… if you look at it closely it looks like a miniature forest.  And always faithful to be green.

Happy Spring

I love the signs of spring that are making their way into our home.  Opening up the windows for the first time and letting the fresh air breathe new life into the house instantly changes my mood just like the first flower cuttings that begin to sprinkle corners of each room always brings a smile to my face…especially when they are carefully arranged by a darling 3 year old.

An otherwise empty little vase kept from my grandmother’s treasures becomes a little piece of art…

And, although, he is and has always been a regular fixture in the house, Mr. Rabbit even looks happier when he sits next to some azalea and lilac blossoms.

Play Food

In a constant effort to turn over our abundant toy supply into non plastic, gentle, quality over quantity and useful toys I am currently working on felt play food for our little second hand montessori wooden kitchen that we picked up off of Craigslist last spring.  We have some good wooden Melissa and Doug food but I fell in love with these patterns at Bugga Bugs and have visions now of eventually making every set.  However, I have found that they require a lot of hand stitching which is taking me into a whole new realm of patience.  That’s a good thing but instead of knocking out a whole pretend refrigerator full of food in an afternoon I have had to consider this a long term project.  We have milk, though!  I’m thinking about conquering the eggs next.  I’ll keep you posted.

Godspell

So probably the most gratifying creative experience I have had lately would have to be working as the costume designer for the musical Godspell.  What an honor it has been to work with such a talented bunch of people.  It’s been a journey of hard work for all involved (especially the cast!) but all came together so nicely last weekend with 4 sold out shows.  Looks like we may be running it again this summer, too…happy news to me since I was beginning to have withdrawal.  I’m just not ready for it to end…good stuff.  If you are in the Asheville area and missed it stay tuned…

 

.