Owls, Owls, Owls!

I swore when owls became popular, I would not succumb to the trend. I didn't particularly haven't anything against them, just wasn't head over heels about them. Then it happens...darn it! First I became enthralled with Molly. WHOOOO is Molly you ask? Molly the Owl of course! She is quite popular now, millions of viewers have peeped in on her most private moments.  She has a live camera feed in her Owl Box. She has had two "clutches" (quite the educational channel as well!) that I am aware of since she moved in. I watched her sit on the eggs until they hatched, sat mesmerized as Molly yelled at McGee (Owl Hubby!) to bring the babies food. Then he would answer in the distance and come home with "dinner". Looks like there are two babies at the moment, just about shed all of there baby downy feathers. You can peek in on them here:

http://www.ustream.tv/theowlbox

Now I've heard an Owl now and then here at night. But a few new noisy, and much more social Owls have moved into the neighborhood. I actually got to see them flying through the canopy of trees near our house. That was it...I was hooked on Owls.  We recently had an Owl swap over at All Things Primitive- Yahoo Group. How could I pass that up!? We had an odd number of signups, so we didn't swap with the same person. 

Look at all the goodies I got from Barb!

A big cuddly Owl, an Owl Candlemat...

...and look at those adorable ornaments! A bat and an owl with black feathers and black glitter! *Love*

Here is the Owl I made for Val (yep another one of my creations is living in Australia!) I started with this pattern . Did I mention I can't leave things as is? LOL I had so much fun making him, I didn't want to let him go ;)

I also made a couple fall leaf mini candle mats for battery operated candles, but I forgot to take pics!

3 Wild and Crazy Guys!

Hello out there in blog land! I hope everyone is enjoying the cooler weather. It's a bit slow to show up around here, but I know fall is coming! I participated in another swap over at All Things Vintage. This one was a "Secret Heart Swap", with the sender being a secret until their package arrived. We could choose 1 large, 2 medium, or 3 smaller hearts. Once I decided on doing the 3 smaller ones, the "See no evil, Hear no evil, Speak no evil" monkeys popped into my head. But since these were hearts, and destined to be pin cushions, I couldn't help but do a "See no Needle, Hear no Needle, Speak no Needle" spin on it. I embroidered the letters across the top. Then I made the eyes out of paper clay using these fabulous tools from Pat Moulton here . I scored the backs of the eyes before they dried so the glue would get a better grip. I painted them with acrylics, then gave them a good glossy shine with 3D Crystal Lacquer. 

"See no Needle"

Once I finally got the first one pinned and very carefully sewn on the machine, I was wondering what I got myself into lol. I thought a box cushion would be a fairly simple design to sew. It would have been had I been dealing with a square or circle. But the tops of those hearts were tricky and fiddly! Once I got one done and loved the way they were turning out I had to do it two more times :) Luckily the side material had lines so it was a little easier to get everything lined up!

"Hear no Needle"

"Speak no Needle"

I think that was the look on my face as I went to the Post Office to send my first ever International Shipment! I had feared and dreaded it for so long, and I finally did it. 

 These crazy guys now live in Australia! Hey, does that make me an international artist? Hahaha ;) Have a great weekend!

Annie Swap!

The "All Things Primitive" Yahoo Group is wrapping up a Christmas in July Annie swap. I have been wanting to make one for awhile now.  If my swap partner gets a blog going I will link it here in the future :)

Here is my Annie in progress, awaiting some hair and a dress. You see she has already picked the fabric *grin*. That was an adventure! Apparently my sewing machine reeeeeally likes to eat stretch velvet lol.

Ah that's better, she's is so much cuter with hair!

And of course her dress! Annie and her candy cane are Tea Stained with a bit of Gingerbread essential oil added. Smells so yummy!

Here is the wonderful Annie I received from Sue! I tried to get my camera to capture the sparkle, her hair is sparkly, and her dress has gold sparkle. 

She's wearing the cutest little pin of a bent over Annie bottom! I've been Annie mooned! Haha.

All pics can be clicked to view larger.

Have a great day!

First swap, first doll..

I finally jumped in with both feet and participated in a swap! I was so nervous. Just hoping I could get could get it done by the deadline, get it shipped, and have everything arrive safely in one piece leaving my swap partner with a smile on her face. Luckily all was a success!

The swap was over at All Things Primitive Group, and it was called "Initially Yours". We were to use adjectives and nouns starting with the other person's initials for the doll and it's item. Half the fun was coming up with the words and idea for the project. For mine, A.J., my swap partner Carla B made me an Angelic Angelfish with a Jolly Jellyfish. Clever eh? This was a very fun swap, I'm so glad I jumped in! Be sure to visit Carla's blog to see more.

For Carla, "C.B", I made a Carnival Cat with a Bald Bird. This was the first time I tried using Genesis Heat set paints on cloth and I'm happy with the results.  I used "Fairy on a Stick" pattern by Faewyck Studios and altered the hands into "paws" and the feet into high heels.