Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Blue Girls


To complete one side-swap, I needed to make some blue Dotee Dolls. Next will be a few more Fairies, this time, mint green. This is so much fun, do you think I will be able to stop?

Fairies & Mermaids, Oh My!



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Here are my attempts at Mermaid Dotee Dolls and Fairy Dotee Dolls. The Fairies were the most fun. Who would have thought they would need skirts?!?! Eighteen (18) group participants will be exchanging sixty-four (64) Dotee Dolls. WOW!!!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Unexpected blessing

Five sunny temperate days afforded me the opportunity to get my bike down off its storage hook and ride through the countryside. I have decided that the reason I enjoy bicycle riding so much is that it is the closest thing right now to flying. Five more sunny days ahead may bring the total to TEN in a row. That has to be a record for this area! I plan to get outdoors as often as possible and catch some rays. Spring is, indeed, almost here. Yea!!!

While trying to live-trap and relocate some smelly skunks, one rabbit and one opossum have been caught and released. Still no success catching Pepe la Pew. I may have to change the bait.

Tonight I assembled three mermaid Dotee Dolls which turned out weird and cute all at once. I had to simulate seaweed, of course. One of three fairy Dotee's is halfway there, but I haven't figured out how I want to make her wings. Should be interesting. I am eager to see what the other participants in the group swap create. Pictures will be posted soon...

Sunday, March 15, 2009

First Paper ATC's


A lovely woman named Jo in Spain agreed to a paper ATC swap with this theme: Green/Stamps. I had been saving used postage stamps for a while. Working with paper seemed a lot flatter, less dimensional than with fabric. I mimicked the gymnist postage stamp with a rubber stamped image, and extended the dragon's body using a piece of melted Tyvek. Small rubber stamped shapes accented with gold paint and sponged gold rubber stamp ink fill the background. I added fine border lines with a black marker. It's a good thing I didn't look at the ATC's she made and sent before making mine, or I would have felt very inadequate. On her two ATC's she extended the subject matter of the postage stamps by drawing and coloring in more of the images flowing from the stamps. They were truly works of art! Our next challenge will be even more of a stretch: stay tuned!

I Can Because I Can...

It gives me satisfaction to find good prices for necessities. Yesterday's specials at the meat market have kept me busy. Last night I canned 7 quarts of pork tenderloin and 7 quarts of chicken. Today I made and canned 12 quarts of bean and chicken vegetable soup, 16 pints of meatloaf, and am up past midnight waiting for two canners with 11 quarts of ground chuck to finish processing. How nice the jars will look, labeled and arranged neatly in the pantry. Meanwhile, my neck and hands are hurting... I need massage therapy badly!

Monday, March 9, 2009

Dotee Swap

And now, I've volunteered to host a Dotee Doll exchange at my online fabric postcard group, PCPZ. I hope there will be many participants. I posted three themes to choose from: Spring/Garden (flowers anyone?), Fairies/Angels (wings and sparkles?), or Beach/Mermaid (tails, seaweed, bathing suits, fish, seashells?). I'm eager to see what people come up with.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Dotee's On Parade...









After a dear friend went through a house fire, she needed some "craft therapy" so we played in my sewing room. Fifteen Dotee Dolls later, I have some to trade and gift. Another friend asked what the purpose of Dotee Dolls was, and I wasn't sure what to say except that they are easy dolls to make, fun to collect, portable, and nicer than worry stones. Can you tell we had a good time decorating them? Oh yes!

Friday, March 6, 2009

Altered Composition Book



My brother and two sisters and mom are encouraging each other via emails regarding our efforts to get healthier/lose weight/stay active. This was the perfect opportunity for me to try my hand at altering composition books, since I purchased a pile of them last fall for this very purpose. My first one came out quite well except that the covers warped due to the dampness of the glue, although I did weigh them down while they dried. Maybe I needed heavier weights? The mesh over the butterfly on the back came from a potato or onion bag. This was to symbolize anything that holds me back from reaching my potential. It was a fun project, and may lead to some other attempts. Stay tuned!