:: earnest crafting ::

my creations

Visiting a friend and fellow-Taruna student recently, Phoebe spied some magical little people nestled into her 'Seasonal Table' - it was a Winter Family, a Father, a Mother and a babe in a crib..."Can we make some, puleeeeease?" came the request almost as we walked back in the door at home.

I truly thought I'd done pretty well at 1) remembering how to make these wondrous wool felt dolls and 2) the creating of them.  We were taught how to make them while on the Course in Rudolf Steiner Education, last year at Taruna College.  I'd made about three at the time and thought that was a skill embedded in my cranium and finger tips forever, however time passes...

Phoebe's creations

What was remarkable was Phoebe's effort she put into making the same figures - these above and below are all of her own making. 

also Phoebe's creations - with fine detail - baskets, aprons with flowers on, wrapped braids...

I was fairly taken aback at her persistence to learn how to make them in totality and the rapid expression of her newly learned skill - in total she made 8 figures and at the beginning I showed her every single step, until on the final few she made them each, entirely herself.

And then, there is the hot water bottle cover -she was inspired to make her own, after I'd set out to make us a family set...one of the cut covers just disappeared, along with the child,to her bedroom for a portion of the day...listening to something Roald Dahl, I believe...

Again, more "Mother-incredulousness" as I witnessed her stitch away completely free-form - she had a picture she liked and just began embroidering as if drawing - wonderful!

Lady Vermillion

Those small hands are capable of very crafty business! 

:: flower petal rag rug (something I've been meaning to make for ages!) ::

These past couple of days I've been working away at this mat. My energies probably could have been spent more productively, perhaps.  There is a project I really do need to be working on.

 But this sewing project grabbed me.  I've been meaning to make one of these mats for ages, you see.  Since I first saw similar mats in a holiday place in Fiji...in 2003...10 years ago!

Before I can mobilise my energies for the other project that I really do need to be attending to, I appear to have 'needed' to craft and craft and craft...

I think what I'm actually doing is the rumination and 'turning over of' in my mind what I'm about to dig into that I really do need to attend to (-you know - that other thing)...

 And in a way, creating this mat, tidies up a lot of fabric scraps into something lovely and useful.  Scraps from items of clothing I've made for Phoebe, curtains for her room, dolls clothes, op shop finds - like the, ahem, "contrasting" retro curtaining for the backing...lots of memories...

quite randomly-shaped pieces were cut - I quite like a project like this - completely freeform

and spiralling ever inward, just like my thoughts and feelings as I sew...turning over memories and imagining new ones to come out there in the future...

....is now!

The Mandala Garden and Pruning the Fruit Trees

Here is our mandala garden. Wendy has been in it for two straight days and the results are amazing.
There were so many weeds to pull and there were about 50 plants (super sized) to plant. (That's right, this is Aaron reporting).

The chickens were moved first, onto a new bed. They clucked and squabbled all day - which they do - and demolished every bit of living green available. Not to many eggs though.

I have been pruning. Scared me to death I have to say. Having completed a certificate in organics and biodynamics with Taruna, I thought I would have a little more knowledge, however I found myself searching youtube for tips.

The fruit trees had not been properly shaped from the beginning and so 'water sprouts' had become large limbs and had to be 'sorted' out. If you had been watching you would have seen me up the orchard ladder looking confused, worried, pensive and all those emotions that come with having to 'deal' to a beautiful fruit tree.

The Mandala garden and its 14 or so fruit trees is now done... off to the orchard tomorrow... or sometime later.