End of August

I took Max and Mila to Altitude, the trampoline park, yesterday.  An hours worth of bouncing all over the place was enough to deplete my energy, and I was just watching!  

The above pic is from the Altitude site.  I wish I'd had my camera with me; getting pictures from my phone to my blog always presents a problem.  M & M were all over the place--from the regular mats to the Ninja obstacle course.  :)  

The last of the postcards using the 

steampunk mail carrier figure I

made several years ago.

A thank you to Iliana, a friend from my book blog,

who sent me a book.

To Melody in Singapore.

Melody  is also a friend from my book blog,

and a regular correspondent!

Because the letters take so long to get

back and forth,

we send postcards in between.

I didn't like the face before it was painted.

I don't like it now, either.

...maybe a hat would improve things.

Nope, not so much.

Will re-paint face and hope for something better.

Then the hat may stay or go.

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I am not sad to see the end of August,

but summer here is not over until 

the temperatures drop into the 80's.

We do love those cool snaps.  :)

Stitching Therapy

I'm still not in a creative mood and continue escaping into my shows, needle in hand, stitching compulsively, self-comforting.  (Wow--did the conclusion of Grimm's  latest season ever surprise me!)  Even without the head, this body is nearly 18", one of the largest I've ever made, so it has kept me engaged through quite a few days.

  

Stitching arms

 and legs.

When I finish stitching the body, 

I suppose I'll have to get around

to making a new head.

I have three more bodies that I made for dolls (all much smaller) that somehow didn't work out.  Maybe I'll just embroider bodies until the urge to move forward occurs. More blank canvases to fill.

I used a disappearing ink pen for the spirals, but the rest is simply improv--calming, soothing, an escape from problems I can't solve. Requiring no planning or thinking.  Just filling the next empty space.

One problem that I can solve and worked on yesterday is culling and de-cluttering.  So many half-finished projects that have been shunted aside and that I know will never go anywhere, along with all kinds of "stuff" that I thought might come in handy some day. Filled a trash bag and dumped them.  Still a long way to go, but a start.

Working myself into the Christmas mood with all of the blog posts I've been seeing lately.  Not there yet, but I can feel the need for a snowman or two beginning to take hold, and I can tell there is a Pinterest marathon coming on....

Fire burn, and caldron bubble.. (the last? of the Halloween decorations)

Witch from last year is back again.

Another decoration from last year.

In the mirror,

is one of Sandy Mastrioni's

 wonderful creations.
I love the mismatched eyes
and cone hat.

Below is my Halloween baker
on a vintage eggbeater.

I made Bitter & Boo a couple of years ago,

but they remain a favorite

and take the same spot each year.

Last year, a skeleton took up residence in this cloche;

this year, I stuffed the basket of ghosts 

and flowers inside.

Altered baby doll

What's missing?  The La Calavera Catrinas that I made for the girls and some black cats.  Quite a few  Eccentrics have gone to live elsewhere.  

Even though I won't make anything else for Halloween, I've been getting tons of ideas from other people's blogs and from Pinterest.  

As if I didn't have enough ideas and unfinished projects, I'm inspired by these Halloween Fanatics:

Jann at Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson
Shirley at Hudson's Holidays
Peggy at Woman with Wings
Carol at Birds and Beads
Viv at Vivs Whimsy
Kim at Hunt & Host

Double, Double, Toil and Trouble

I think I'm about done with Halloween for this year.  Really--I think I'm going to leave the rest of the unfinished projects alone.  For a while.

The little antique looking witch is finished.  She finally got some clothes, but never got her hat.  She still has some reading and studying to do before she earns her hat, but she is hard at work on her homework.  I'm not sure if she has learned her spell-casting sufficiently, but she is certainly making an effort.

I made one more "whatever" and would happily make a dozen more, 

because I love using the scraps and embellishments in my Halloween stash,  

and I can watch Drama Fever or my Amazon shows while working on them.

But it seems hardly worth the effort since Halloween is this weekend.

This shelf is above the television cabinet.

 

Mostly last year or older Eccentrics.

I did leave this Catrina undressed,

but she doesn't mind as long as

her black cat is close by.

I'm going to hate putting all these Eccentric characters away.

Another Monday!

Working on the last Catrina.  For now, at least.  They have been such fun!

 This one I'm keeping,

but I don't know if I'll even dress her.

No armature for this one,

although I included some wire in her arms.

Instead, I weighted the bottom of her torso,

and she will be a sitting La Calavera Catrina.

I had the body made last week,
but had to wait for something
to give her some weight, some heft.
Used clay cat litter
(fresh from the box, y'all!)
to give her the weight,
then stuffed the rest with polyfill. 

-----

I can mark these Dollar Tree babies

from my list.

All I did was cut styrofoam balls in half,

cover them with clay,

and add some party hats.

and one more thing to mark off the list...

 I had one little tiny gourd,

and made a tiny witch for it.
From bottom to tip of her hat--5"

Now, to tackle the doll
that was put on hold nearly 3 weeks ago.
Poor, neglected witchy doll.

If I didn't have crafting ADD,
she would have been done long since.
But I'm easily distracted
when a new idea hits.

Finished and In Progress

I finished two of the Catrinas I've been working one.  First, the one I took to Amelia when I went to the office yesterday.

Then the one for Erin, which now I must figure out a way to package so I can mail it to her.  I'm hoping I have a box  to use; surely with all of the boxes I save, one will work.

Love using the tiny skull beads I bought in New Orleans at The Bead Shop.  

Two down, one to go.  But the third head, the one with hair, doesn't appeal to me as much, so for the time-being, she is on hold.  I made the body (which I like), but this time won't use an armature--when I get back to her, she will either sit or stand.  And I also have the old-fashioned witch doll on hold.

So...yesterday, I started working on a sock doll.  Haven't made one in several years, but I saw a pair of children's socks with a pumpkin in the dollar section of Target and decided it was time to make another one.  The body and limbs are sock, but the head is painted muslin.  When the paint was dry (gessoed, sanded, painted with watery black, then with orange) I liked the effect and now I have other ideas--and I haven't even finished this one.

Also, a couple of years ago, a friend gave me some small gourds.  I used one, but went into one of my dry spells, and they sat (washed and scoured) waiting.  Vintage Halloween black cats are one of my favorites and after the gourd was painted black, I checked several images of vintage cats, sketched out a few variations for eyes and have a cat in progress.

I have these fits two or three times a year and will spend about 8 hours a day playing with cloth and clay.  It's messy.  Partly because I move from one thing to another, starting something new before finishing something else.  

Making Stuff

I've put aside this little lady to work on two more La Catrinas.

  Of course, I am doing everything differently on the Catrinas and am having to solve new problems.  I made the heads differently, slightly larger, and made a new pattern for the body, which ended up being a little too small for the head size, so have to make another pattern and try again.

Since the new Catrinas were being difficult, I decided to work on the box for a tiny jointed doll finished last week.  I used  lace for wallpaper, glued a plastic embellishment on the box, painted the entire thing, gave her a little rug that doesn't show, painted a wooden bead for a vase and used some tiny flowers I had left from an Etsy order,  used a tiny block for a table, and took the face off an old watch I paid $3 for at a flea market and used it for a wall clock.  

 She is almost 3 1/2 " tall

I truly admire those miniaturists who make realistic items to scale for doll houses and miniature displays, but this was a fun little project that didn't  need to be exact and only required me to search through all my stash of stuff.

Here are the tiny flowers from Julie Collings' Etsy shop.  I ordered them last year for a project and still have some left.  Last year it took some courage for me to slip a few out of the packaging because it is so charming.  I love these tiny millinery flowers!  It may be time to order more.

Five Finishes

This September has been a busy one, 

but I've still managed to spend a lot of time in the studio!

Finishes for September.

 Oops, I forgot to include the tiny witch!  

Six Finishes.

All of these guys (and the tiny witch)

are going downstairs.

My favorite is Maude, the witch.

Her hat may come off after Halloween,

and the broom may be replaced with

a Thanksgiving menu...

or something.

She looks a proper housewife to me,

and surely she would have a pumpkin pie in the works.

Anyway, she may stick around longer 

and join the Autumn gals,

who are eager to make an appearance.

Progress on Halloween Eccentrics and Reading

Made a body for the zombie head in the previous post. 

 Stuck one of the tiny skulls from 

The Bead Shop in N.O. into his hat.  

 Marvin is a dandified zombie,

but he does prefer the outdoors.

 I found the little crow and trick or treat bag

in some stuff I bought last year,

and Marvin was delighted 

with both the companion and the treats.

Marvin is just a touch under 11" tall
including the spool base.

And below is the strange horned creature
from some far-away fantasy forest. 
 

 Muffletop is only 4" tall --
from the tip of his horn, to the base of the block.

 He, too, prefers to be outside.

I'm working on a few more Halloween Eccentrics at the moment.
A Day of the Dead skull head and a couple of pumpkin heads,
started last year, but left unfinished.
------

Reading:

I just finished The Order by A.C. Donaubaur.  An excellent fantasy that depicts a fully realized world and contains interesting characters that come off the page.  I've already reviewed it on my book blog.  High marks for Donaubaur!  If you are a fan of epic fantasy, this may be something you would enjoy.

Still reading Failing Our Brightest Kids which keeps me pondering the successes and failures in education in the countries covered.  No question but that education reform and innovation continues to be a high priority and a touchy subject, not just in the U.S., but in all of the 13 countries examined.

Sometimes...

you get lucky!  And I did!  I won a Whisper from Penny at Art Journey.    :)   :) 

And Wonder is lovely in appearance and attitude.  She is settling in, getting acquainted right now, but will soon grace the wall in the living room.  

 I love her hair and all of the embroidered details.

 And on her back, her name.

Thanks, so much Penny,

she is a delight!