Airy Spirits ~ Textile Art

Continuing with my new hobby love ~ a little more Textile Art, only this time, something with wings.

During the lock-down, due to Covid 19/Coronavirus, my brain got busy and spoke to my fingers, which began conjuring up butterflies. Although textile butterflies aren’t the easiest thing I’ve ever made, they’re mighty enjoyable, and all so precious when I’ve finished them. They all seem to have their own personalities, and they make me smile for one reason or another.

The Nectar Collector

Each one I’ve made is in a different fabric, and this particular one, called: The Nectar Collector; was made from Vintage Embroidered Fabric, which I tea stained then added a little ink to give it a warm peachy effect to the fabric itself

Why is this butterfly called: The Nectar Collector? Ah, well that’s an easy one to answer….

Butterflies ‘eat’ nectar and do so by the use of their ‘tongue’ – they have a long, curled proboscis, which is like a soft drinking straw, which uncoils to sip liquid food, and then coils up again into a spiral when the butterfly isn’t feeding.

But … what happens to all the nectar which the butterflies can’t reach, or miss because they don’t notice it?

Well, *I’m reliably informed by the Fairies which live in Cobweb Wood*, that there are special butterflies whose job it is to go around foraging for all the left over nectar which can be found on flowers, and collect it in special bottles. They then take it back to ‘Nectar Central’, where each of the bottles of nectar are dated, stored on shelves and saved for use on days when it’s too cold to go out or too windy, too blustery or those rainy days when the weather isn’t suitable for delicate Butterfly wings.

*Once all this was explained to me* it totally made sense, as I’m sure it does to you too, now that I’ve explained it to you!

The underside of a Butterflys wings are just as important as the tops, but for a totally different reason. The underside of a butterfly wing is actually called ‘The Ventral Side’. This ventral (under) side is more often than not, used for camouflage so that it can avoid being dinner for some passing bird or frog.

And the importance of the Ventral Side of the wings was important to me too. After all … I don’t want some passing frog to eat the Nectar Collector! So it clearly states on the underside of it’s wings that this butterfly isn’t for chomping on – for this is a Cobwebs Butterfly!

The tops of butterfly wings are used for signalling to another butterfly that the butterfly rather likes them and would like to marry them. (*That’s how it was explained to me, anyhow*).

Before this particular butterfly takes flight and leaves me, when it’s found it’s forever home, there will be a very tiny button sewn to the underside – of a particular colour and shape, which will have a special meaning. An explanation of the meaning of that button, will be sent along with him, so that he can be treasured for the treasure he actually is.

Now before I sign off …

I want to say a HUGE THANK YOU – to all who replied and commented on my last post [<— clickable link] and who helped me – because I was near to being a big melted down mess on the floor, and BIG THANKS to those who gave me hints, tips and guidance on how to use the new block editor that WordPress have forced upon us.

As you can see, with your help, I have made a post! [a roar of cheers can be heard from all over the land].

I can’t say that I like the new editor, because I don’t. I REALLY don’t.

• It has no spellcheck;
• No ‘update’ button;
• It won’t colour selected words in a paragraph – but simply colours all the words in that paragraph. (Unless you know a trick to that … and if you do, please share it with me);
• It has pop up boxes which appear out of nowhere and block the view of what you want to see – which I’m sure are meant to be helpful, when the time is right – but they’re a darn nuisance!;
• Things are hidden behind unknown ‘terms’ and names;
• Silly symbols which mean diddly squat to regular, not unintelligent users!;
• Everything about it is so darn tiresome and seems to need an abundance of clicks to do the simplest thing–
• even changing the colour of the words isn’t the one click it used to be!

The new system is clunky, silly, old fashioned in many ways, behind the times and boringly, stupidly long winded.

It truthfully feels like the coding has been written by a junior member of staff instead of someone who knows what she/he is actually doing. It’s taken me a lot longer than I would normally have spent building a post – but . . . at least I now have a post, after lots of help from other WordPress users.

My sincere thanks to you all – for without you, I truthfully would have thrown the towel in and given up. Bless each and every one of you.

Thank you so much for coming today and sharing a coffee and some time with me, while I introduced you to the Nectar Collector – who is the first of my Airy Spirits. I love seeing you here, and love chatting with you all. So please feel welcome to leave a comment. It doesn’t have to be a huge comment, just say hello – because it’s always so nice to know who I’m chatting with.

And …. before I sign off, there HAS to be some Monday jokes:-

Q:- Where are average things manufactured?

A:- The satisfactory.

~~~ ❤ ~~~

Q:- What does Charles Dickens keep in his spice rack?

A:- The best of thymes, the worst of thymes.

~~~ ❤ ~~~

Q:- What do you call an apology written in dots and dashes?

A:- Re-Morse code.

~~~ ❤ ~~~

Q:- What do you call a rooster staring at a pile of lettuce?

A:- A chicken sees a salad.

~~~ ❤ ~~~

Just before I sign off … although I’ve been commenting on blogs over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been told by various bloggers that they’ve found my comments in their spam folders – so … please check your spam folders, as a comment or two might just be hiding there.

Have a wonderful Monday, and a truly blessed week. Sending love and squidges through the ether to you ….

* the ASTERISK * marked * statements [above] may or may not be entirely, exactly d’ twufe, d’ whole twufe and nuffin but d’ twufe. But I’m absolutely certain dere is some sort of twufe.

The Copper Topped Lavender Mob

I promised, last week, to share with you some Textile Art, made by yours truly. [grins]  – So,  Ladles and Jellyspoons,  may I introduce  …  The Copper Topped Lavender Mob.

Three enchanted mushrooms mounted on a piece of aged, half round, wood which was cut and sanded smooth for me by Mr.Cobs.

The wood was treated and sealed, and then finished in a way that I love – it has a soft sheen to it and it’s as smooth as a baby’s you know what!    It has a beautiful softness and warmth about it, and picks out the various shades of natures gift.

The mushrooms began life as part wire armature, with a selection of fabrics which go through a process of:  washing,  – dying,  – staining,  –  then a lot of sewing,  followed by colouring with a type of fabric paint,  and finally, finished with whatever I felt the mushrooms needed in order to bring them to life.  Everything is sewn by hand – even the gills (on the underside) are all hand pleated and stitched into place.   Likewise the frills on the mushroom stalks are sewn and stitched in place by hand.

It’s not a quick craft, but it’s certainly one I’ve fallen deeply in love with.

The end result from all the work and an abundance of patience,  is something magical, normally seen only in The Land of the Fae.

Although they look quite solid – they actually aren’t.  They do have a gentle stiffness to them – after all, I needed them to hold their shape and be the piece of artwork I wanted them to be.  But when you touch them, they have a ‘give’ or a slight ‘bounce’ – just like the regular mushrooms you buy from the supermarket or greengrocer have.

The green stuff clambering over the wooden base …  isn’t moss…  well no actually, it is, but it’s not real moss.  But the stones and stone chippings …. well they are real.  As are the trail of teeny tiny oak tree leaves.  Yes, they really are real.  How did you harvest oak leaves so small? [I hear you ask] ….  Well, what else would you expect from the Land of Fae?   Tiny fairies,   tiny trees,  teeny tiny oak leaves.  Naturally!

The ‘Copper Tops’ aren’t real copper (of course), the fabulous colour comes from them being blessed by the Sun.  These mushrooms grow in the woodland areas of The Land of Fae, and like nothing more than stretching their necks right up, in order to catch some of the sun rays, ~  from which they get their coppery sun tan! 

Oh, and of course … as artists of the world do …  the Copper Topped Lavender Mob are signed on the underside of the base ….

…. and the Union Jack nestled in the base is there to show they are UK mushrooms, produced in the United Kingdom by a UK artist!

These photographs don’t truly show the incredibleness of this little gang of three,  the pictures don’t share their magic;  nor their extraordinary twinkles which happen when the light catches various parts of them;  neither do the photos share the unbelievable glow they have!  I roped Mr.Cobs in to see if he could capture their amazing magical glow which my camera couldn’t….

photograph by Mr. Cobs

Mr.C took the Lavender Mob outside and perched them on the bird bath, hoping that the natural light would enable photos to show exactly how lovely they are.  Sadly it didn’t work.  It would seem that only the naked eye can see these majestic little creatures in all their glory.

I had the most amazing, enjoyable pleasure making these wondersome creations and they encouraged and motivated me to continue my journey with Textile Art.

But … the next magical makes are to be shared another time, for I’ve kept you here more than long enough.

The Copper Topped Lavender Mob have already gone to their forever home.  Daughter No.2 saw them and fell in love with them, so they now live with her, and her husband, and my magical grandson, Little Cobs.  And it’s the strangest thing.  but I feel bereft.  It’s kind of like having a child leave home.  I miss their presence. 

But … now it’s time to go.  

Hmmm ,,,  – hang on –  …  there’s something I’m forgetting  … [thinks] … oh crumbs!  It’s the JOKES….

These are the Jokes Folks!

What do you call a parade of rabbits hopping backwards?

A receding hare-line!

~~~ ❤ ~~~

What rhymes with Orange?

No it doesn’t.

~~~ ❤ ~~~

Why can’t you hear a pterodactyl dinosaur go to the toilet?

Because the ‘p’ is silent.

~~~ ❤ ~~~

I’ll be back with some more Textile Art in the next blog post – only next time it will be something a little different.  Thank you so much for coming and sharing a coffee moment with me.  Have a beautiful Monday, and a truly blessed week.  

Much love and and a bunch of squidges ~ 

 

 

Four Fabulous Fairy Fungi, Freshly Found (and very special indeed!)

In the Realm of the Fae (Fairy Land), the Elements of the Realm are represented by various things dependant upon the area where the particular Fairy Land is located.  And …  just like us humans, Fairy Land has the same sort of set up with Woodlands, towns, villages, counties, states, and countries!

Each ‘Town/Village/Country’ [etc] has its own way of expressing things, (just as we all have our own localised languages or terminology), and within the ‘village’ of Freckled Mushroom Wood, the four Elements of Earth, Air, Fire and Water, are represented by some of the most incredible mushrooms I think I’ve ever seen, and it’s some rather special specimens of these Elements that I’d like to share with you today!

All the specimens are held securely in glass test tubes, which have been sealed shut with a cork.

The test tubes you see in the photographs are all the same length:  10.2cm long – that’s 4″ (inches) to us folks who still love imperial measurements, and they’re just 1.5cm wide – which is 8/12th’s of an inch (or [roughly] just over half an inch for those who don’t do fractions).  

So they’re quite small, and getting those Elementals to be the right size, took some doing  er … searching.  I had to search high and low to find long enough, but slim enough, Elementals which would fit inside those little glass tubes.  Yes I did.  I did indeed sweat buckets trying to get the size right!  Phew.  Fairy Land gets very hot and bothersome on some days.

These are the Mushroom Elementals of Freckled Mushroom Wood, each of them embodying one of the powers of nature:  Earth;  Air;  Fire and Water.

The task of Elementals is to look after the nature kingdom.  They are responsible for the therapeutic effects you feel when outdoors amongst nature, at the beach or sea-side;  at lakes and by rivers;  in parks and nature areas.

A little bit like a Phoenix, these very special Elemental Mushrooms live for only a specific length of time but once they’ve reached their ‘age’, each of them cyclically regenerates itself and is reborn again as new.  Each of the Elemental Mushrooms not only represents an important Element of nature, but also plays its own part in the well-being of Fairy Land.

Shall we take a peep at them individually?  Let’s begin with . . .

The Fairy Mushroom Elemental: Earth

The Element of Earth shown in a Fairy Mushroom Elemental.

The Earth Elemental is responsible for creating, sustaining, and renewing life on Earth.  It helps:-

• Plants, grass, and even weeds to grow, and helps the Fairy Gardeners to grow all the food needed for the Fairies, Gnomes, Pixies and all the other occupants of the Land of the Fae.
• It encourages Trees to reach their full height and potential.  Which gives the Fairies somewhere to play hide and seek and have races with other fairies.
• It helps Children to flourish and develop in a healthy or vigorous way.  It also helps with the birth and growing of Fairy Babies.
• It is the sole purpose of all the elements, since it represents a basis for each of them.
• Earth is the element of our planet and how got its name by it too.
• The Earth Element has one very important job in Fairy land …  it helps fairies to find their way home from wherever they may be.  It’s a little bit like a satellite.  It has a certain ‘vibration’ to it, which each Fairy recognises, and so can fly home whenever they wish, be it night or day!

 The Fairy Mushroom Elemental: Air

The Air Element is important in that it connects all the other elements.  It’s invisible, but that doesn’t make it less important than any other, because, well, without it, we couldn’t exist!

The element of Air gives us

• what we need for our lungs to function
• opens our Souls 
• is important for the first breath of a new-born baby!
• Where Earth is fixed, Air is definitely a mover!
• It’s connected to the mind, spirit, wisdom and soul.
• Air is required for flight.  Not just Air-planes and the like, but for birds,  flies, insects and bats,  but also …. Fairies!  Imagine Fairies flying in the wind – tiny creatures bestowed with pure intuition who fly where ever the air whispers to them.
• The wind (and so Air) has a voice, and you have to listen carefully to it.  The wind blowing in from the South and East hints of good things.  But the wind can change direction and with that it itself predicts change – sometimes good, sometimes not so.  Listen to its voice.  Is it an angry voice, or is it gentle and soothing?  It’s what Fairies do. Perhaps we should become like Fairies now and again, so that we can see things through the eyes of the innocent and hear things in an innocent way.

The Fairies in Freckled Mushroom Wood have taught me much about the Elements – both the ones in Fairy Land, and the ones in our human realm – and I now realise that they are, in fact, very much the same things.

The Fairy Mushroom Elemental: Fire

Fire has something particularly special about it.  It’s the only element that shines.  Water can sparkle,  but only if it reflects the light created by Fire, whether a campfire or the Sun.

Of course, in the Land of the Fae the most Fire is found within the annoyance and anger of a Fairy Dragon.   However, a Dragons Fire is a much-needed and very welcomed Fire, for Fairies need it to:  Toast Apples;  Roast Chestnuts;  Cook Mushrooms;  Bake Acorns;  Warm Berries to eat and to make Fairy Jam with, and oh!,  all sorts of other things!

Note Well:  Humans won’t often find a Fairy Dragon – but if you do, treat it kindly and don’t disturb it if it’s asleep, for when baked in fire, you are crunchy, and Fairy Dragons discovered Ketchup on toasted  ‘umans works wonders!

The Fairy Mushroom Elemental: Water

The Water Elemental is the element of constant movement, moving sometimes slow and steady, and at other times rushing and a torrent;  a destructive force of almost unimaginable proportions.

Fairies need water not only to drink and use to water their flowers, but to bathe, feed the birds and to make the dew drops which will sparkle in the early morning sunlight, and add joy to the early morning chorus.

If you’re really quiet, you might come across a Fairy playing or washing her hair under the dripping water of a Mushroom Water Elemental, for the Mushroom will drip, drip, drip continually, supplying water to the earth beneath it’s feet.

It was  r.e.a.l.l.y.  difficult to capture, in a photo, the dripping water on this Mushroom Water Elemental because water is transparent,  but I share about the best shot I managed to get . . .

And that concludes our four Elementals.  However … the observant among you will have noticed that there is a 5th Glass Test Tube in the two photos at the top of this post. . . 

. . .  can you spot it?  That one right in the middle.  “What’s that?”  I hear you asking . . .

Well …  it’s a Gnome … or a Tomte . . .  or  a Nisse.  This little figure has different names depending on where in the world you find him,  and … he’s a Protector.  In this case, he’s a Fairy, Mushroom Elemental Protector.  A very important job indeedly doodly!

This Gnome / Tomte / Nisse hides himself in little places so that he won’t be spotted by anyone rambling through the woodland which he’s protecting.  This particular Gnome/Tomte/Nisse is a very special protector, for he is in charge of protecting all the Fairy, Mushroom Elementals which live in his wood.

He was almost impossible to capture a good image of him on film, because the little rascal kept moving!  He would turn or stick his nose in the air, or generally refuse to hold still just for a moment, while I captured his image on film.  You can barely see his nose … but I did manage a slightly blurred photo which kind of shows it in close up and share that with you . . .

A Gnome / Tomte / Nisse, captured (slightly blurred) in a photograph.  (Blurred because he just wouldn’t keep still!).

His beard is of the whitest white, and it twinkles like nothing else I’ve ever seen.  Again … I just couldn’t see to capture it in a photo.  It looks incredibly magical when seen with the naked eye.

I admit that taking photographs of these Test Tube Elementals was one heck of a job.  Lights bounced off the glass.  Shadows showed up where there were none before.  Patterns played across the glass from things on either side of the room and it made viewing the Mushrooms really difficult.  Aw … it’s not something I’ll undertake so lightly again.  Next time I go in for photographs of anything in a test tube, I’ll be more aware!  (probably still take a hundred rubbish photos, but I’ll be aware.  LOL).

Well…  that’s me done and dusted regarding the Fairy, Mushroom Elementals.

So …  how are you?  I trust you are well, that life is treating you kindly and that things are going in a nice direction for you.  Anything happening in life that you’d like to share?  Need some advice from someone?  Post your question in a comment and I’m sure you’ll get an answer – even if only from me!

Here in Cobweb Towers … it’s been a little cooler the last two days, and we’ve had some rain!  [doing a BIG happy dance here!].  Finally the sun has given us a couple of days break and sleep has been much more comfortable for the last two nights.  Such a blessing.  I know that Dorset holiday makers won’t be finding it a blessing, but we very much-needed some cool weather for a while and the gardens desperately needed some rainwater.

All that’s left for me to say is that I hope your Monday was a decent one, and I wish you terrific Tuesday.  May your day tomorrow begin with a smile and end with one, and may the hours in between have smiles shared and dotted throughout the day.

Sending squidges, from me in my corner, to you in yours.

 

Freshly picked Goblin Snot … and other fine produce from the Land of the Fae!

GOBLIN SNOT!  Freshly picked!

Oh yes.  you read it right.  What you’re looking at really is Goblin Snot!

Now that I have your full attention,  😀  I would like to introduce you to a few items of produce and products that can be found in the Land of the Fae  (Fairies) – but only if you’re observant; careful; quick; ready with your collecting jar, …  and . . .  only if you truly, TRULY believe.

And,  of course,  you need to know what you’re looking for.  

a handful of ‘products’ available in and from the Land of the Fae (Fairies)

Amongst many other things, you can find:

• Kisses of Mushrooms. 
• Thumbelina Thimbles
• Freshly Picked Goblin Snot
• Wild Harvested Gnome Whiskers
• Organic Dragon Soot.

Let’s deal with the Freshly Picked Goblin Snot first, shall we?  . . .

Now fresh Goblin Snot is a rare find indeed.  One has to be as quick as flash, as sly as a fox and as clever as an owl.  You have to sit about, in long grass, being very, very quiet, for  quite a long time, waiting . . . waiting  . . .  w.a.i.t.i.n.g.  … until – – –  you hear that distinctive rustle of little chubby Goblin feet, accompanied by the  sound of …. “ah, ah AHhhhh…. CHOOOO!”  (followed by a lot of snorting, sniffing and grunting).

Now it’s exactly one second before the  “CHOOOO!” part of the sneeze that you have to be super fast and get your snot collecting jar in place and ready to catch the desired, much prized, JUICE!

If you’re really lucky your JUICE might even contain ‘things’ which you might not recognise, but they’ll be the sniffed up ‘stuff’ such as pollen, leaves, grass, and all sorts of oddities from the woodland carpet of Fairy Land.

Now you’re probably asking yourself why anyone would want to collect Goblin Snot, and the answer is as wild as you might expect.  You see … Goblin Snot is magical stuff.  A tiny amount, onto the tip of your finger, will open ANY door.  If you wanted to go and see inside Buckingham Palace, then Goblin Snot would open not only the big gates at the front, but it would also open all of the locked doors you need to get through in order to go and see the Queen herself.  Or perhaps you’d like to get into The Whitehouse, or how about going midnight shopping in Tiffany’s?

Well if midnight shopping in Tiffany’s or a bank vault is your pleasure, then you’ll also need ….  Organic Dragon Soot.

Organic, Wild Harvested, Dragon Soot!

Finding Organic Dragon Soot is indeed a moment of pure magic in itself.  It’s so easy to miss it.  I mean to say ….  would you notice extra-fine soot on the floor of a Woodland area?  Probably not.  So to come across it and manage to collect it up before it magically disappears is a real stroke of good luck!

Why would you need Organic Dragon Soot from Fairy Land?  Well . . . 

• One tiny pinch of Organic Dragon Soot sprinkled over your head, will turn you invisible for precisely one hour.  Not a minute less, not a minute more.  One Hour!  Think of all the things you could do in an hour, if you were invisible.  [GASP!]  Oh, you little rascal!  I can see your mind working from here!  FORT KNOX?  Good grief, you think BIG!  Well, if you bagged yourself some Fresh Goblin Snot to open the doors, whilst invisible from using the Dragon Soot, I guess that even Fort Knox wouldn’t be that much of a challenge!

Next on our shopping list is . . .  Wild Harvested Gnome Whiskers.

Now these are a tricky one to obtain, for you first have to find your Wild Gnome.  A Wild Gnomes whiskers are stiff and prickly.  They’re not the soft, white, fluffy, cloud-like whiskers you see on Garden Gnomes.  Wild Gnomes are protectors.  They protect the perimeters of their particular area in Fairy Land.  These particular Wild Harvested Gnome Whiskers were carefully and quietly collected from a Wild Gnome who was taking a warm afternoons snooze, lent against a tree in Freckled Mushroom Wood and snoring his head off.

With the help of some Dragon Soot to make me invisible, I crept up and with my manicure scissors, I snipped a few of his whiskers and popped them into a collecting jar.

Wild Gnome Whiskers are a great addition to your potions closet because:

• They offer protection – much like putting on a suit of armour.  All you have to do is crush and grind the whiskers using a Pestle and Mortar.  Once all powdered down, you then add one tiny pinch of powdered Acorn Cup, and one Fairy Spoon of mashed Mushroom Cap from the wood where you gathered your Gnome Whiskers.  Mix it till you have a paste, and then put a tiny dab onto the middle finger of your right hand.  You will, within minutes have an invisible suit of armour.  You could be a Super Hero …. but beware … you won’t be able to fly!  (After all …. you’re not a Fairy and you don’t have Fairy Wings!)

Next on this Fairy Shopping List are ….  Thumbelina Thimbles.

 

You’ve no doubt heard the story of Thumbelina and how she was very tiny.  Well in Fairy Land, Thimbles are highly prized.  They aren’t just used for protecting your fingers when sewing, but they are a symbol of affection.  They are the Fairy equivalent of a Kiss.

Peter Pan, when Wendy Darling said she would give him a kiss, held out his hand to receive this gift.  He thought ‘a kiss’ was the thimble which Wendy had in her hand.  Wendy gave him the thimble, and from that moment on, thimbles became ‘kisses’ in the Land of the Fae.

Why would you need Thumbelina Thimbles?  Well …. they don’t offer you anything other than  the magic of love and affection.  They bring warmth into your life and a warm smile to your face when you look at them.  Just holding a tube of them in your hand can give you a warm feeling deep inside.  Right in the middle of your body.

Thumbelina’s Thimbles are made especially for Fairies (and of course for Thumbelina herself) by the Head of the Sewing Department, in Fairy Land.

I’m very privileged to know his name.  Come closer …. I shall whisper it to you ….  The Head of the Sewing Department in Fairy Land is Fineous Wizzigig.  But shhh… don’t tell anyone because it’s a secret – shared only between you and I!

If you look carefully in a Fairy Wood where you live (if you can find one) you might just find some Thumbelina Thimbles.  They are left by the young, giggly little Fairies, for the human folks to find.  It’s their way of passing on a kiss, from one realm to another.

And finally . . .  you’ve seen in some of the photographs here, a ‘Kiss of Mushrooms‘.  Another gift from Fairy Land, for Humans to find.

A Kiss of Mushrooms is something that the Fairies hope you will keep, for the spotted mushrooms are a bringer of love and luck.

I found this one last week and have mounted this Kiss of Mushrooms on a wooden block, painted red, and there it will live for ever more.  A very lucky find, indeed!

❤  ❤  ❤

Thank you so much for coming and sharing these wonderments found in my little bag, after a mid afternoon trip to Freckled Mushroom Wood.  There was no need today for my Fairy Net, for I captured things that needed no net – but I always take it with me – just in case.  Who knows when I’m going to need it!

I hope your Monday began with a stretch and a yawn, and that from there it just got better and better.  If it didn’t…  leave any troubles at the door (outside the door) and allow nature to take care of your Monday troubles.  Tomorrow is another day.  A gift, for you to choose how you want to spend it.  Grumpy, cross, annoyed.  Or …. happy, smiling and with love in your heart.

Have a wonderful tomorrow my friends.

Please note:  The stories, tales and narrative, and tales of fantasy and fable were written by me and belong to me.  Therefore copyright begins here.  Cobwebs.  23/7/2018

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Home under the Dome 3 ~ MEGA DOMES!

What’s that saying  ~  “Go BIGGER or go home!”?   We’ll we’re doing both here!

Although …  not going so big that you could see a ‘Home Under the Dome’ from Space.  I might be calling them ‘Mega Domes’ – but they’re still tiny. Small enough to put in your pocket.

Take a look at the measurements…  (the purple rule is in centimetres, but I’ve done the conversion into inches to help) . . .

The Home Under the Dome in the centre (above) is the regular sized dome that you’ve seen me make before.  (you’ll  find information about this little Dome later).

The Mega Dome on the right hand side of the above photo contains something very special,  because it holds a ‘Fairy Kiss’, and, of course, a Fairy Home[under the Dome] along with some Fairy Mushrooms and a few other tiny fairy things.  The Dome on the left hand side of the above photograph contains a Fairy Wish Tree as well as not one, but TWO Fairy Homes, and a bundle of Fairy Mushrooms.  Let’s take a look at that one first, shall we?

The tree really does have a tree trunk – but try as I might I couldn’t get it to properly show up in photographs.  The trunk is made from a piece of branch which fell from the humongous protected Pine Trees which are in my garden to the rear of Cobweb Cottage.

There are two Fairy Homes, and an assortment of Fairy Mushrooms – all freshly collected from Freckled Mushroom Wood ~ which can be found near to where I live – but is only known and shown to those who truly believe and enter with a pure heart.  If you look very closely towards the top of the tree, you will see the tiniest of Fairy Bluebirds, sitting happily in the tree. Can you also spot the really tiny multi coloured, sparkly butterflies?

What you can’t see in the photos above, is that the Fairy Wishing Tree was collected when there was a low breeze, and so it is held in suspension, or ‘frozen in time’, and bends slightly,  and the foliage still looks exactly as it did when the low breeze blew it – all blown and sort of ‘leaning’ in the same direction.  It looks like there is a gentle wind blowing inside the Dome. Magical!

The other Mega Dome – well that’s a special dome and possibly my favourite.  It contains a Fairy Kiss, which holds a Fairy Home and some Magical Freckled Mushroom.

It has flowers, and some teeny tiny buttons which the Fairies had collected and were using as stepping-stones up to their house.  Knowing that the Fairies wouldn’t mind, I gathered up just two of the minuscule buttons and added them to the base of the silver Thimble Kiss.

… The Fairy Kiss – is the Thimble you see holding the Fairy home and mushrooms.

Do you remember in the story of Peter Pan, the boy who never grows up, (written by Scottish novelist J.M.Barrie), who interacts with Fairies, Mermaids and Pirates (‘think’ Captain Hook!). Wendy Darling and Peter Pan became friends and wants to give Peter a kiss – which Peter thinks is the thimble which Wendy is holding, so holds out his hand to receive it.

That thimble from the story made a huge impression on me as a child and I grew up knowing that in reality, a thimble to humans, was a ‘kiss’ to a Fairy.

When my daughters were old enough to understand and treasure things – one Christmas I gave each of them a special gift from me of a silver bracelet (one each), which I’d had one tiny, real silver thimble hung on each of the bracelets, and when they’d opened their bracelets I shook my arm and showed them that I too had a silver bracelet with a silver thimble on it, and told them that wherever they might be in the world, and if I was ever a long way away from them, they only had to look at their bracelets and would see that they would always have a kiss from me.  They loved their bracelets, and the knowledge that they would always have a kiss.

Now lets deal with that tiny little Home Under the Dome which is in the middle of the two Mega Domes, shall we ?  . . .

 This regular sized, tiny Home Under the Dome (in the centre of the above photo) is quite a special dome, and it’s up for grabs!

Edit: 22nd July 2018:

The ‘GIVEAWAY’ is now closed to new names being entered into the ‘hat’.  Anyone adding their name from this moment forward is, I’m afraid, too late to be included in the ‘draw’.

  The Winner of the Home Under the Dome will be announced later today; Sunday 22nd July 2018.

This tiny little dome is packed to over-flowing with charm and has some very special features.  There are two tiny homes under this dome, both of which speak of the quirkiness and fun of the Fairies who once inhabited the homes – for both are slightly different in that they are wiggly wobbly.  Bending and curving just slightly.   They’re …. different in a special way.

It was difficult to show you what I mean in photographs, but you can just about see in the photo above that the tallest of the two houses begins at ground level and then curves backwards and, had it been taller, you would have seen that it’s on it’s way back to curve the other way.  BUT .. if you then look at the smaller of the Fairy homes – that home also curves and in fact matches the curve of the taller house!  How do the Fairies know how to do that?!!!  [gasp!]

There are blue freckled Fairy mushrooms, and also one teeny tiny red freckled mushroom, all growing in the grass.  But … there is something very special that I haven’t included in any Dome before . . . 

. . . there – in a ‘held in a moment of time’, is a tiny blue butterfly, which landed on a freckled mushroom, and is captured forever under the Dome.  This special Dome is now the subject of a Giveaway for followers of my blog.

Edit: 22nd July 2018:

The ‘GIVEAWAY’ is now closed to new names being entered into the ‘hat’.  Anyone adding their name from this moment forward is, I’m afraid, too late to be included in the ‘draw’.

  The Winner of the Home Under the Dome will be announced later today; Sunday 22nd July 2018.

If you would like to be the custodian for this Home Under the Dome, and you are a follower, all you need to do is:-

• In a comment on this blog post, put the word  ‘GIVEAWAY’ right at the beginning of your comment.  Put it before you type any other word – this helps me to find those folk who would like to be included in the chance to be the new Home Under the Dome, guardian.

And that’s it.  That’s all you need to do.

If you can’t find the comments box, then you need to scroll all the way to the top and click on the title of this post (‘A Home under the Dome 3 ~ MEGA DOMES!’) – and that will load the blog page this time with the comments box – which will show up at the bottom of the post.  (You can also read any comments other people have put too!)

Please remember that the Giveaway is only open to followers of The Cobweborium Emporium Blog.

Edit: 22nd July 2018:

The ‘GIVEAWAY’ is now closed to new names being entered into the ‘hat’.  Anyone adding their name from this moment forward is, I’m afraid, too late to be included in the ‘draw’.

  The Winner of the Home Under the Dome will be announced later today; Sunday 22nd July 2018.

Well, crafty wise,  that’s me done and dusted.

However . . . I’ve learned some things this week that I’d like to share  . . .

1. Don’t trust that the new receptionist at your doctors has actually booked you in to see the doctor you told her you wanted to see, but instead might (accidentally) book you in to see some doctor in the practise you’ve never seen before in your life.  [sigh]
2. That although your husband/partner normally has the worst memory in the Universe, sometimes they will surprise the heck out of you and know exactly where to find a particular thing, that you know you have, but WHERE THE DICKENS IS IT?!!!
3. I’ve learned that I haven’t lost my power to bargain with stores and get a better deal than they first offer you.  SOOOO happy, and Mr.C is in awe!  (But I don’t go in for hero-worship so … ahh, no … a little hero-worship is great for the soul – so long as it’s only for a moment).
4. I’ve finally admitted that my big boy cat, [read ‘small Panther’], Alf Capone, is, quite frankly,  the nosiest cat in the world.  He likes to sit or ‘lounge’  anywhere at the front of our cottage where he can observe every single thing which goes on in the area where we live.  Any neighbour who comes or goes, doesn’t do so without being counted out and counted in again.  Any car which drives past is registered – both in colour, make and model, for future reference by him.  He’s the laziest, nosiest, most beautiful cat with the biggest personality, and he makes everyone laugh.  He’s also the biggest eater.  We’ll go bankrupt with this cat.  He can really put it away!  (But then, he is a huuuge cat – so I guess it’s understandable).
5. Finally …  I’ve learnt that ‘accidentally’ being booked in to see the wrong doctor actually might be beneficial – so don’t discount seeing someone different when the need arises, for a fresh set of eyes looking at things differently and can sometimes come up with what possibly might be the answer.

I’m sure I’ve learned more than these things, but my one brain cell can only hold so much information, and when there’s too much going in it forces the brain cell to ‘evacuate’  some older things in order to make way for the new stuff.  (But I wish that it would hang onto passwords or at the very least be organised enough to stick post it notes to the inside of my skull!)

All that’s left for me to do now is to wish you a truly wonderful week.  May reality be better than your dreams!

Have a blessed day all.  Sending you heaps of squidges and lots of love ~

Edit: 22nd July 2018:

The ‘GIVEAWAY’ is now closed to new names being entered into the ‘hat’.  Anyone adding their name from this moment forward is, I’m afraid, too late to be included in the ‘draw’.

  The Winner of the Home Under the Dome will be announced later today; Sunday 22nd July 2018.

Homes Under the Domes 2 ~ THE SEQUEL!

Hello . . .  tis I,  Cobs.  . . .  I have returned,  –  with a complaint  …  IT’S TOO DARN HOT!  People are on the beaches supposedly sunning themselves and getting a tan!  They’re really not.  Not in this heat.  They’re actually frizzling up like crispy-cooked bacon!  I can smell them. sizzle, sizzle, sizzle.

Joking aside … I’m not a Summer lover.  I love the flowers that the summer brings; the birds, the butterflies, the bees,  and love the overall happiness which Summer packs in its little suitcase and brings with it,  . . .  but I don’t like how the heat of Summer affects my body.  It’s been making me feel proper poorly. (Hence the reason I haven’t been around). 

My body is a talking package of broken rubbish,  and for some reason warm weather seems to put this package of rubbish under a microscope and blow it up to  M.E.G.A.  proportions.  It’s been the hottest day today, (Sunday evening as I type this), here  in the South of England,  and they are predicting that this weather is going to go on for some weeks to come.  I do hope not.  (crosses fingers)   We need a few days of cooler temperatures and refreshing breezes …. and some rain for the land.

So… if you happen to be reading this God, could you please turn the heating down a few notches, and turn on the rain for a few nights.  You don’t have to make it rain during the day … I don’t want to be a party pooper to holiday makers who are here having grand fun, but I would like to see the wildlife and the ground get a few nights of rain, every now and again.  Thank you, in advance.  😀  ~  me.  xxx

Aanyhooooo.…  let’s talk about crafts and  …

Homes under the Dome – The Sequel!

I’ve been able to craft on the odd day here and there (with two fans going in the craft room, and only before the sun comes round and tries to cook me at Gas mark 8!).  I wanted to make some more Homes under the Dome, and also make a Bottle of Magic.

I was asked about how to make Fairy Domes on my last post, and because I know that the Domes can be a little difficult to get hold of, I suggested that perhaps a glass bottle would be an easy project, and so I thought it would be a good idea to actually make one so that you could see what I meant.

But that will be in a few minutes … first … let’s do some Domes, shall we?

These are the Home under the Dome projects I’ve been able to make.  The numbers in the hearts, with arrows pointing to each dome, are there so that I can show you each dome closer up and you’ll know which dome you’re looking at!  Clever eh?

You can see a much closer up view like this, and still refer to the original photo to see the dome from (kind of) arms length.

Now I’m going to miss out number 3 just for a moment and go straight on to number 4….

This Home under the Dome does have a home,  it’s on the other side, but I wanted to show you the teeny tiny REAL clam shell with the bright shining pearly bead inside it.

Ok …  let’s ‘do’  the missing number three Dome, shall we? . . .

The reason I left number 3 till now is because it’s not a Home Under the Dome, but instead it’s a Gnome Under the Dome.  Look carefully and you can see his little face – his nose, eyes and a little grin going on there too!

Finally …  I made a Magic Bottle.  Blogger Susie Shy was asking about making the Domes, and since I’d suggested a bottle I thought perhaps I’d better make a bottle so that she could see what I was actually going on about. So here’s a Fairy home in a bottle.  The Fairy Home and all the Mushrooms were freshly gathered from Freckled Mushroom Wood just a few days ago  ….

As you can see, it’s  100% Pure Magic.   You won’t find purer!  Let me show you the back of this Magic Jar…

Both inside the jar, and on the wax seal around the corked top, there is evidence of Fairy Dust.  There is also evidence of Fairy Dust on my desk, on the floor of my craft room and …  even in my bathroom!  Heaven only knows what on earth the Fairies were doing in there, but my goodness, the place twinkles like stardust has been spread around freely!

Well that’s me done and dusted, craft-wise.

I’m sat here in the living room, with my little lap top, tapping away at the keyboard, and I have the ceiling fan on ‘fast and furious’  ….  a tall standard fan on ‘Blow your Brains Out’,  and  a 16″ desk fan on the floor manfully struggling on, trying to blow cold air, but actually blowing warm air around – but its trying and for that I appreciate it’s every effort.

I also have my water spray bottle from my craft room, over to my right, and every now and again I give my face a little mist from it.  It feels lovely and I highly recommend this idea to all who suffer in the heat.  (I take mine to bed with me, filled with really cold water from the fridge, and use it whenever the need arises.  It helps).

Thank you so much for coming and sharing each Home Under the Dome with me over a cup of coffee.   Hope you like them and that they gave you a smile.

Have a truly lovely Monday.  Make it amazing,  and don’t settle for anything less!

Sending many squidges and much love ~

 

 

 

A Home Under the Dome!

When Fairy and Pixie families begin to grow, bigger homes are obviously required.  So they move out of their little cottages and normally the empty little homes will stay empty until another Fairy or Pixie take up residence in the little home.

But sometimes, if they’re very lucky,  a human might come across an empty Fairy home and, providing they’re careful, the human can gently lift the Fairy home from its nesting spot, and carry it home, and keep it safe for ever more.

I bought a whole bundle of these tiny Domes about 9 or so years ago for another ‘tiny’ project that I was doing at the time.  I couldn’t buy just the right amount I needed, as they came as a certain boxed amount (can’t remember how many), so once I’d done the projects I wanted to do, I packed the remaining domes safely in a box and put them away, with the thought that they might come in useful another day.  And, as you can see … they have! 

It was quite difficult to photograph these as the light bounced off the domes.  Too many lights made white dots on the domes, all over the place.  Not enough light and it wouldn’t allow you to see inside the dome properly.  So I hope that the photos I’ve chosen allow you, dear reader, to see into the Homes under the Domes.

Each dome is different from any other, and each dome has its own words or ‘story’ which runs around the base.

All the homes you see inside each individual dome, all come from ‘Freckled Mushrooms Wood’, and the toadstools which accompany them are all collected at the same time as the teeny tiny houses.

In some of the domes there are still signs of evidence of Pixie and Fairy dust, which twinkles madly!

This next dome (below) was a special request from my much-loved Grandson, Little Cobs – who put in an order:  “Can me have one?  Put blue mushrooms in my dome Grammy!” . . . and as any decent Grammy would …  I made sure he got his wish …  but … there was a surprise waiting for him today when he came, after school, for his tea.  Not only did he have a Home in a Dome waiting for him, with blue mushrooms inside it . . .  but his Dome also had a Gnome inside it too!

It just looks like 4 blue Freckled Fairy Mushrooms ….  until you turn the dome . . . 

. . .  and then you find that there’s a little Fairy Gnome, snoozing the day away, under his Freckled Mushroom Cap, and all you can see of him is his fabulous Gnome Nose, his wonderful Gnome feet and his little chubby toes!

And then a further turn of the dome reveals that there, nestled into the Freckled Mushrooms, is a genuine, really real Fairy House.  A ‘Home under the Dome’.

I knew I had to do something with my domes when I came across them a few weeks ago.  I saw them and instantly felt that I’d like to put some ‘Fairy Home’ specimens under them.

If you would like a play with something similar but don’t have the domes, I recommend those little bottles that are available at craft stores and suppliers.  The bottles are way easier to come by than the domes, and they make the most fabulous little ‘Specimen Bottles’.  So sweet, and would be lovely as gifts!

Well that’s me done and dusted with regard to Fairies, Pixies, Gnomes and Homes.

I seem to have been trying to keep the all the plates spinning this week.  I’m not overly fond of weeks like that, as they leave me feeling proper drained.  But  I learned an important lesson this week  …  If I change my password on ANY internet site, then I need to write the darn thing down and keep the note until I’ve finally got the new password lodged inside my one and only brain cell! 

Six times I’ve forgotten the new password I’ve made up for one particular website.  SIX TIMES!   Each time I forget, the website asks me make a new password, and it has to be one I haven’t used before.  Well quite frankly, I’m getting to the point where I think I’ve used all the words available to my brain – so I’d better not forget this latest one, because if I do, I’ll be well and truly stuffed!  I’ve written it down on a post-it note and stuck it to the side of my shelving unit in the craft room.  Please God, don’t let it fall off the unit!

Thank you so much for coming, having a coffee moment with me, and for sharing the Homes under the Domes.  There’ll be more of these coming – as this is something I’m having lots of harmless fun with.  But …  I have been working on something which I originally bought these domes for all those years ago.  So this will be a crafty re-visit to an oldey but goody.  When I’ve finally taken some photo’s of them, I’ll share those with you too.

In the meantime . . .  I wish you a bright and beautiful Thursday.  If you see someone without a smile, give them one of yours.  It costs nothing, but it makes the world a whole lot better place to be a part of.

Sending much love and plenty of squidges, from me in my corner, to you in yours.  Have a blessed day my friends  ~  

 

Meet: Monsieur et Madame Champignon (or, to you and me, that’s Mr. and Mrs. Mushroom)

Bonjour mes amis!  (translation: ‘Hello my friends’).  Ok, that’s about ‘it’ for my schoolgirl french that I’m going to try to impress you with.

Meet: Monsieur et Madame Champignon,   also known as: Mr. and Mrs. Mushroom . . . .

I’ve been playing with clay again  (in case you hadn’t guessed).  I actually started out with the intention of making some little-whittle mushrooms for another project I have in mind, but by the time I’d got my clay on my desk, modelling tools all lined up (well, ok, thrown in a jumble onto my desk), my water spray bottle,  and the various other bits and bobs which come into play when modelling/sculpting with clay,  the mushrooms had grown in size and character, and fired by a random memory which popped into my head of some grumpy faced mushrooms I’d seen quite a while ago, (link Caroline McFarlane-Watts <—clickable safe link).  Then the idea grew because of a song which was playing on the radio, I began to think I would make some ‘Mushroom Folks’ (as I’ve Christened them), but doing them my style.  Happy and joyous.  And, from that initial thought, Monsieur et Madame Champignon were born.

Please allow me to walk you all around the home, and friends, of the handsome French Chap and his beautiful Parisian wife . . .

Madame Champignon is a well dressed lady, as you would expect, with a swanky french hat complete with snail. And, as you may have noticed, she has the longest of long, silky eyelashes, ruby-red lips and a little rouge to her cheeks.  So Chic!

They sit atop a small mound of grass surrounded by moss – which allows other creatures from Fairy Wood to hide, and they keep the romantic couple company.  There are mice (who love to eat the left over bits of Camembert and Roquefort which picnic makers drop). There are also two slugs, (complete with tentacles) who leave the most delightful shiny trails behind them, and will sometimes have a game of ‘Guess what I’m drawing with my Slime!’ with the Champignons. And of course – there are the two snails, which the the French couple allow to clamber over their hats – although as they climb up to the hats, they do have the tendency to tickle the Monsieur et Madame, and Madame giggles quite audibly. 

Mr. Slug – he’s the bigger, and stronger of the two slugs.

The rear view of Monsieur et Madame Champignon.  If you look carefully you can see a tiny mouse to the left and Mrs. Slug, leaving her slug trail behind her on the right.  (that’s a teeny tiny pine cone behind the Monsieur).

 

Both of the snails which adorn the  Mushroom Caps  Champignons Hats have pink bodies and pearly yellow shells.  Sadly the camera didn’t seem able to pick the colours up.  But it did a half good job in this photo.

The curled and ‘frilly’ bits on both of the mushrooms aren’t mistakes.  They’re the bits you sometimes find on your mushrooms which you buy from the greengrocers or supermarket.

There are other little dints and dents on them both …which are there simply because I looked at some mushrooms in the fridge closely and saw that each one had its own character lines … so the Monsieur et Madame have their own dints and dents to add character too. (They also have ‘dirt’ marks –  as you would expect!)  😀

The Monsieur has a lip …. and a half!  As I was creating him I began to think of fabulous French men who I knew from movies … and the one which reigned supreme was Maurice Chevalier, who my mother was all dreamy and doe eyed about.  Inside my head I could see how he used to extend his lower lip, and from there …. Monsieur’s own lip developed.

I’ve been told that Monsieur Champignon calls his wife  “My sweet, my darling, my one true love!”.  ❤  Somehow, I feel that this is probably true, for he looks like he would,  don’t you agree?

The whole scene is set upon a small piece of slate

I had SO much fun making this happy couple of romantics and all the way through the creating process, I kept on singing ‘I Remember it Well’ – sung by Maurice Chevalier and Hermione Gingold in the fabulous film:  Gigi . . .  eventually I went to YouTube and found it, and played it while I was sat at my desk, so that I could be reminded of the words.  I share it with you here:

Thank you so much for coming and sharing a coffee moment with me, and to meet Mr. & Mrs. Mushroom.  I hope you liked them, and that you got a smile from them.

I love to know that you’ve visited, so please do let yourself be known and leave a comment and / or a like if you’re a little shy.  (But don’t be shy … we’re all really lovely people here on this blog).

Wishing you a truly magical Monday.  May the weather be calm and beautiful where you are.  May life be treating you kindly … and may you find contentment hidden in the folds of the hours as they pass by.

Much love to you, from me in my corner, to you in yours  . . .  have a blessed rest of your day my friends!

The Fairy Wedding Dress ~ hiding inside a little Altoids tin!

You are invited to a very special Royal Wedding….

 

No, don’t get excited. It’s not a delayed in the post invite to THAT wedding, because THAT wedding happened a week ago.   This is a different wedding altogether! 

❤  ~  ❤  ~  ❤

I’ve been trying to share this Fairy Wedding Tin for the last week,  and … well life got in the way and the rest is history.  But here I am now, doing the sharing!  Whoo hoo!

Chatting with another blogger, (Gillyflower)  in comments on my  last Altoids (size) Tin Transformation (<– clickable link)   a couple of weeks ago,  I told her that I had plans for a Fairy Themed Tin …. and began it straight away.  So this is me, sending you an invitation to come and share the secret of the tiny, all handmade (by me), ‘Fairy Wedding Dress hidden inside a Tin’!

Let’s begin at the beginning, shall we?

The Front of the Altoids size Tin is the first page of a three page ‘book’  which is an introduction to what’s inside the tin!

The front of the tin is the beginning of the story.  There are another two pages to the ‘book’, which are held closed by a small hidden magnet.

It says:   The Fairy Prince asked the Fairy girl to marry him, and she said ‘Yes’!  So with lots of excitement, a Fairy Wedding was planned.  With the finest silk spiders put to work, spinning the finest webs to make the finest Fairy Wedding dress.  On the opposite page is a tiny sketch of a wedding dress.

Then …  you open the tin to see the Wedding Dress of the Year (well, almost), which was all hand-made by Cobwebs.  er …. using Cobwebs …  ah,  no … er,  umm  ….  aw… just open the tin!

I wanted to do a fancy arty type of photo.  Black and white, but the dress and tree in colour.  Not sure it’s worth the effort, but it was an enjoyable few minutes of play-time.  😀

All the papers you see lining the inside of the little Tin are Graphic 45 ~ Fairy Dust.

The bodice of the Wedding Gown was made from lightweight, air dry clay.

That’s an English Penny you see at the base of the tin, in the centre.  An English Penny is (roughly) the same size as an American penny.

The tin measures 9cm tall,  and 6.cm wide, which is approx or just over  3.5″  in inches tall and 2.36 inches wide,  and it’s just over three quarters of an inch deep.

The Fairy Ballet Shoes you can see hanging from the knob, next to the mirror, are also made by me, and are roughly about a third of the size of a penny.

The dress isn’t dangling on the floor of the tin, as it looks in that last photo.  I can actually put my finger between the ‘grass and flowers’ and the bottom of the wedding dress … which you can see in the next photo .  .  .

… can you see the grass and flowers beneath the dress, in the above (bit fuzzy) photograph?

The dress is festooned with soft pink and red flowers, with bits of greenery here and there.  It has a sparkly ribbon around the waist, and a petticoat made from white cheesecloth fabric.   The skirt of the dress is topped off with two layers of pure white, fine, Tulle. The shoulder straps on the bodice are satin.

The tree which the dress is hanging from was made from a Pine twiggy bit which I found in my garden, which has been drying out for weeks in my craft room.  I didn’t have any plans for it at the time I picked it up (and thanked nature for it), but I knew I’d use it in some way, and ….  this Fairyland Wedding altered Tin is the perfect place!

I really enjoyed making this lovely altered Tin, and would love to make one like it again at some point.  But making a different sort of dress next time.  I have a million thoughts about what sort of dress and how it might look.  But … this tin was quite an intensive make.  All stops, starts and stops again, as I waited for bits of things to set / dry etc, – and I will freely admit that patience isn’t one of my strongest virtues.

 

Anyhooo  … that’s me done and dusted for this lovely Monday. I’m so glad that I finally got to sorting the photos out, and getting to share this Altered Tin with you.

I’ve spent the weekend just gone, trying to catch up with other peoples blog posts that I’ve missed.  Now I think I’m up to date …. but just in case my ‘Reader’ is telling me porky pies, and I’ve missed a blog post of yours, please do let me know in a comment so that I can come and catch up!

Thank you so much for coming, and for having a coffee moment with me.  I love seeing you here.  I’m sorry I’m sometimes missing in action – I have some health issues which are being a proper pain in the ‘you know where’. (not literally, you understand.  I have no problems with my ‘you know where‘).  But …  let’s not bother about the health issues, for they are like dragons.  They’re only scary if you think about them too much!  So we won’t.  😀

As always. . .  I love your company and love to chat with you, so please feel welcome to comment.  Let me know what you think.  Let me know what’s going on in your life.  And … if you’re in the United Kingdom, then today is a Bank Holiday – so let me know what you’re planning to do with this day off work (if you have the day off work – ’cause some folks aren’t able to.).

Have a magnificent Monday, whatever you’re doing, and a truly blessed, wonderful week.  Sending much love to you ~ 

New Fairy Dragon Eggs, & meet one of the makers!

A hundred years ago ….  Ok, I might be exaggerating just slightly there. Let’s begin again.

Last month (February) I shared some Fairy Dragon Eggs that Little Cobs (my grandson) and I had made together.  They were a smash hit with him and he loved them.  So much so that I thought that while he was so enchanted with them, perhaps we could make just one or maybe two more, and enclose them so that they were protected, and (more importantly) they wouldn’t get lost or damaged.  So I put my thinking cap on and came up with the perfect idea.

Little Cobs comes for a visit on Tuesdays.  We collect him from School and he comes to Cobweb Towers for a bit of fun and his tea.

So on the previous day,  (Monday),  I made two tiny eggs – one around 2.5cm tall (just under an inch) and another approximately 1.25cm (which is little bit under half an inch), which I made from Hearty air dry clay, as I wanted them to be light in weight, and quick to dry.

Hearty Clay comes in a variety of colours, and they even have a super lightweight clay which would be fabulous for card adornments which have to go through the post.

The following day we went to collect him from school and, once he was safely ensconced in the car, I told him that I had got two tiny Fairy Dragons eggs in the house, and wondered if he would like to make them look amazing, since he was now considered an expert at Fairy Dragon Eggs.  He was all over the idea and didn’t stop talking about it all the way home.

He bounced into the house, hung his coat up, and was waiting at the table before I’d even managed to take my own coat off!

I stupidly didn’t bother taking photo’s of the undecorated eggs, because I thought “everyone knows what a white egg looks like” – but am now wishing that I’d have taken a photo of them,  next to a real [chicken] egg  –  so that you could see the size difference.  They looked exactly like eggs from the smallest chicken in the world!  Even the little chap said over and over how cute they were. Bless him.

I put out all the ‘Fairy Colours’ of Pinflair Buff-It, and told him to choose the ones he wanted to use.  He wanted them all.  (Thankfully I’d left the pots of ‘duller’ colours in the drawer).

I got out a selection of [cheap – pound shop] cosmetic sponges and put one on top of each of the Buff-it colours and he went to town.  He needed no reminder of how to apply the colours, and was so delicate and gentle.  Finally, when every last bit of both eggs was covered in the magical colours, he took a tissue and gently ‘polished’ them and made them shine and glow.

The Magical Eggs shone, and his eyes shone and twinkled as he gazed at them.

I then produced something which caused him to gasp.  A tiny miniature ‘cake’ stand and matching dome.  I told him that we were going to put these eggs inside the dome and then seal the dome so that no one else could ever touch them, and, even better,  they would never get lost!  “They’ll be sealed inside the dome for alllll eternity.  For ever and ever and ever!”  I said. (trying to sell him the idea because I thought he might not ‘see’ my vision).  He saw. He loved the thought that he would be the only person who knew what these eggs felt like in his hand.

By the time we were ready to put the eggs into the dome it was almost time for him to go home, so I said that I could do that bit, he just had to show me where to put the Fairy Dragon Eggs inside the dome so that I got it perfectly right.  He put them on the stand, and then carefully put the dome on top.  He sat at the table and looked . . .   then gave me a whole new set of instructions of exactly how he wanted things done:

“Grammy – they need petals.  Flower petals.  On the bottom, and the eggs on the top of the petals.  Like in a nest.  You put petals on there and then the eggs on the petals”.

He looked deep into my eyes to see if I understood.  I smiled at him and repeated what he’d said, pointing to the cake stand top, to show I knew where he meant the petals to be.  He seemed satisfied that I understood.

Daddy arrived to collect him, and the last thing Little Cobs whispered to me was: “Don’t forget the PETALS, Grammy!”.   Bless his beautiful heart.  He melts me every time I see him.

I did exactly as I was instructed to do.  I didn’t forget the petals:

It was stupidly difficult to photograph the Fairy Eggs when they were sealed inside their dome home, as the light kept bouncing off the curves.  But I did manage one which isn’t great – it’s a bit dull and flat, but it gives a slightly clearer view:

That’s a penny in the picture, for reference

As you can see . . .  I didn’t forget the petals.  😀  lol.

In the end, I loved the look of these so much that I’ve decided that I’m going to make some for myself. They look so impressive in real life that I just HAVE TO!

When he came on the Saturday, he fell in love with his Fairy Dragon Eggs all over again. He took them home at the end of the day, and his mummy (daughter No.2) told me a couple of days later, that the Fairy Eggs had barely left his side since he’d taken them home.  He was carrying them around with him everywhere he played.

I promised, in the title of this post, that you could meet the maker . . .  and you shall…

We’ve had snow here in Dorset in the last few days, and obviously, like all children do – Little Cobs wanted to play in it … and his mummy took photo’s.  She sent me some in a text message … and although I’m extra mega careful of sharing photographs of children on-line,  I asked, for the first time ever, if mummy would mind if I shared one of the photographs on my blog, so that you could see the little chap who I’m totally nuts about … and mummy said yes!

So here, with an enormous amount of pride [which bursts out of me like rays of the brightest sun, shining through every pore on my body], is my fabulous Grandson – Little Cobs…

photograph not for reproduction – altered or otherwise.

…  I’m totally dotty about this child. He’s an incredibly handsome little chap.  The product of a very pretty mommy (daughter No.2) and a very handsome daddy (son-in-law, husband of D.No.2).   But …  he has my eyes – the same colour of Hazel, with the same flashes of gold dotted randomly around the iris, which really show up when he’s happily excited about something.

This isn’t the end of the crafty creations that he and I have made together over the past couple of weeks.  I still have one final thing to share – but that will wait for another day.

Thank you for coming and sharing a coffee with me.  Wishing you a happy rest of your day. 

Love . . .