~ in the studio: messenger bag and crochet toys ~

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The first project to come out of my new studio 

is a messenger bag for me! 

I've been dissatisfied with having a purse that sits only on one shoulder, 

always feeling I need to keep a hand on it.

My friend Cookie mentioned how she felt a messenger bag simplified her life just a little,

so I decided I needed to give it a try, too! 

I haven't sewed in a while, 

and I'm so very, very pleased with how this purse turned out!

  

I used this tutorial from New Green Mama.

The print is IKEA GUNILLA in orange - it's decorator weight.

The body is the most special - a pair of so very soft wool dress slacks that belonged to my Grandaddy.

~ in the studio: getting there! ~

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Welcome to the studio!

Looks a little better than before, doesn't it?

The first day was less-than-glamorous.

Towering stacks of boxes that needed to be sorted and put in storage.

Children's clothing had to be moved and put in their new closet.

A bed and frame to be broken down and stuffed in the closet.

One old sewing machine from my uncle's mother finds her home!

A small stack of items still need sorting, but the hard part is done!

The 2nd story window gets great morning sunlight, 

and looks into the backyard.

That old vanity was in my childhood bedroom,

and reflects my new machine and pegboard.

More mess piles are revealed!

The full size bed just barely fit in the shallow closet.

When we have guests, we'll pull it out and set it up.

But in such a small room, where space is at a premium,

it doesn't make sense to leave it out,

unused for 99% of the time.

The little wall to the left of the closet, to the right of the door,

seems like the perfect place for yarn storage.....

My fabric is destined for those two temporary shelves.

They came out of the closet when the bed went in!

Hmmm, that vanity just doesn't seem to be very useful there.....

My newish machine, pegboard of notions and the man who helped make it possible. 

Looks like a pretty good start,

but there's more work to do!

I'm so grateful to have a space for creativity!

It's been a long time since I felt well enough to put my meager talents to good use.

But now that I'm better, I'm looking forward to making up for lost time.  

~carrie~

~ waldorf-style dolls for baby ~

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***Thank you to my sister, Rebecca T. Jones, for photographing the dolls!***

For my cousin's first birthday, 

I decided that she simply must have her very own Waldorf-style baby.

And when Lela caught wind of my plans,

she wanted to make one of her very own to give as well.

~ copyright Rebecca T. Jones ~

Lela's doll is mostly handsewn by her.

She sewed two squares of linen, wrong-sides together,

then turned and stuffed with poly-fil.

(The linen was a destashing gift from my friend Julie!)

She formed the head out of more poly-fil inside an old baby sock.

I sewed a tube of organic cotton knit "skin"

(from A Child's Dream Come True)

and then she fitted the head inside and sewed it onto the body.

With her blessing, I made invisible stitches around the neck,

then reinforced with more invisible stitches on all her seams.

(We were backing each other up - we discussed the importance of safety around babies!)

*I chose poly-fil because it was easier for her to stuff and pack tightly than the wool.*

~ copyright Rebecca T. Jones ~

Lela was present for the sewing of the face,

though I made the actual stitches. 

She helped with eye and mouth placement,

and securing knots in the back of the head.

From her vision, I sewed a tiny gnome hat for her baby.

Lela gathered the sides to form arms and a puckered dress,

and went over her doll to look for any places that needed more attention.

Then I stitched on this tiny heart,

and she came back to oversee the blushing of cheeks.

~ copyright Rebecca T. Jones ~

I couldn't be more proud of her effort with her first doll!

And that it was a gift for her baby cousin......

I know she'll always remember this.

My doll is made from a pair of corduroy pants that belonged to me as a young child.

The heart is denim, made from the hemmed remnants of my Papa's jean overalls.

I thought it would be special to give my baby cousin something 

made with the fabric from her great-grandfather and her cousin.

~ copyright Rebecca T. Jones ~

I am so pleased with how this simple baby turned out.

The corduroy is soft yet durable, and her body is like a warm little pillow.

As I was working on her, my mother and I kept passing her back and forth for snuggles.

I do believe she wants one of her very own. 

~ copyright Rebecca T. Jones ~

 The dolls were so satisfying to work on.

 I need to make some more!

~carrie~


p.s. I just shared this post with Linda over at Natural Suburbia for her Creative Friday.
p.p.s. I also shared this with Nicole at Frontier Dreams for her Crafting On.

~ summer solstice celebration ~

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Last weekend, our Waldorf group gathered to celebrate the Summer Solstice!

~ as usual, the kids get all the good seats ~ 

The spread of food was amazing, 

with everyone bringing delicious dishes,

from their gardens and farmers' markets.

Afterwards, everyone went outside to play in our host's amazing backyard!

I snapped this quick picture of my partner carrying her twin boys.

Brings back memories of when our twins were that small.  

~ hmmmm, i don't think he misses this too much ~ 

Our host also made 5 - 5!! - different flavors of homemade ice cream and sorbet.

I sampled the mint chocolate chip - divine!

Here's a sweet picture of her twin boys and my twin girls.

~ i love those little boys eyeing the other's cone! ~ 

Laurel and Daddy have a cuddle after ice cream. 

She was recovering from an encounter with my rotary cutter (!!!!)

which landed us in the ER for 4 stitches in the end of her finger.  

 ~ impossibly cute makenna ~

~ bursting with precious personality these days ~

~ dear friend t and lela holding clancey the kitten ~ 

For the third year, our family made the Sun pinata for the party.

This year is was tougher than ever,

perhaps from the fact that it was slightly damp,

and covered in mirrors, jingle bells and curly-cue paper

(which drooped in the thick NC air).

 ~ youngest to oldest ~

 ~ r giving it a good hard *twack* ~

 ~ liv and lela ~

 ~ t takes her turn, only days out of a cast for her broken elbow ~

 

 ~ parker ~

 ~ lela ~

 ~ 6 year old l means business ~

 ~ lefty jacob ~

 ~ s taking his turn ~

 ~ blake's daddy was manning the pinata, and didn't make it easy for him! ~

 ~ blake ~

 ~ swing and a miss as his daddy pulls the pinata up higher ~

 ~ n sends the pinata spinning ~

Having gone through all the children,

and the pinata was still intact,

we decided to let all the mommas have a swing.

 ~ tanya ~

 ~ our host ~

 ~ c sends it spinning! ~

Time to move on to the daddies!

Our daddy, former park ranger police officer, had the right technique,

and soon the pinata burst open!

~ lefty daddy subdues the pinata ~

The children all rushed in like a flood,

as chocolates, gems, lollipops, sparklers and taffy rained down!

As a testament to the overwhelming amount of goodies in the pinata,

and the practical nature of our children,

there were several large handfuls left on the blanket.

~ l camp prepared with a basket for her stash ~ 

Afterwards, all the adults were glowing with the laughter.

I'm so glad that we had a turn at the pinata,

it was a lot of fun and it was good for the children to see us enjoying it.

I also suspect that the boys especially were impressed 

by all the strong daddies.  

A short walk through the woods took us to a little pond.

Once again, our hosts supplied rods, reels and bait,

and the children all had turns fishing.

 ~ lela - she is her mother's daughter ~

Their were many species of frogs calling from the alders around the pond,

and fireflies began to rise up out of the grass.

In the darkness, we tromped up the hillside trail again,

where a small fire greeted us.

It was good to gather again.

~ carrie ~