Green

The other day I died some more wool with apricot leaves. It made a lovely spring green color. The picture is of: white, natural; pink, apricot bark; and green apricot leaves.



I can't wait to start using this fiber!

New Cards

I have two new cards in the shop. In a way both of these were inspired by some adorable fabric I picked up one day. I made the skirt card first for my sisters birthday. I liked it so much that I created another one to list on Etsy. The illustration card was inspired by the colors in the fabric and the beautiful blossoms that have been blooming around here. I made it as a wedding card to go along with the hotpads I posted about here. Again I was so pleased with the way it turned out that I made another to sell.

Blossom Illustration Card














Blossom Skirt Card














Inspiration!

Rainy Days Work

Rainy days are so perfect for getting indoor projects done. The last few days I have been busy. Yesterday I spent all day organizing my room, especially my craft supplies. It wasn't particularly fun, but the results are satisfying. It is so convenient to have a place where everything belongs.
Today I took up the hem on a dress I am wearing to a wedding next weekend. It is a beautiful dress but was way too long on short little me :) Then I made patchwork hotpad tops for a gift for someone special. I will have to finish the hotpads soon. I am not a quilter at all. But I have been making quilted hotpads recently. It is more fun than I expected. When I get good enough at it maybe I will attempt a full size quilt.

Cute and Practical

Today I splurged and bought these very cute baskets and boxes. These should be helpful for my next project; organizing my many craft supplies. I think this will make it more fun! I am looking forward to the chore more than I normally would.

Hand Spinning

Recently I have been spinning the fiber from my Pygora goat, Willow. Well actually attempting to spin would be more accurate! I really have no clue what I am doing. I have a fun little drop spindle that I have been using and a book with instructions. So, I spun up quite a bit but somehow it just doesn't seem quite right :) It is very uneven and lumpy. Oh well, I just look at it as practice, someday I will probably be a wonderful expert :) I am planning on making some kind of funny hat or scarf out of the resulting yarn.

Fabric Inspiration

I love new fabric!! It makes me want to sew up something fun. Here is my newest. Now the question is what to make? Oh, my there are so many ideas!

Pink and Brown

In a previous post I mentioned some natural dyeing I have been doing. Well, here are some pictures of what I've done. The most recent dye I used was made from apricot bark that I saved after pruning the trees. It made such a pretty earthy pink color.I started by dyeing just a little bit of Pygora fiber, then a little more, and finally I did some wool yarn that I had. The brown yarn next to the pink yarn was dyed using oak leaves. I have also used eucalyptus leaves which made a rusty orange color. Natural dyeing is so fun. I love the subtle colors it creates.

Vellum Cards

There are two new cards in the shop. This line of cards is made from my flower illustrations printed on transparent vellum. So pretty! I will continue to add more so keep checking back.

Mini Card Giveaway!!!

To celebrate the opening of our shop and this new blog we are going to have a giveaway. All you have to do is post a comment on this post. The winner will be randomly selected. The winner will be posted in a follow up blog post, so keep checking back!

What are we giving away? I made this sweet little set of mini cards. Each card has a different flower illustration on it. There are six cards in the set. The cards measure 2"x3,5" and come with transparent vellum envelopes. These are the perfect size for attaching to gifts or bouquets or just for a fun little note.

My New Books

I received two books for my birthday. The first is Wild Color by Jenny Dean. It is a wonderful book on making dyes from plants. So far I have tried three dyes. I will have to post pictures sometime. I have been wanting this book for a long time but it is out of print therefore hard to find(at least for a reasonable price). My sister was able to find it online and she got it for me. I have such a great sister.


The second book is The Rim of the Prairie by Bess Streeter Aldrich. It is a sweet, simple story that takes place in a small prairie town. It is beautifully written. The characters are so real. You feel like a part of their joys, heartache, laughter, and trials.

Cinderella's Carriage

I grew some beautiful white Lumina pumpkins last summer. They have kept very well and I still have several left. They made some wonderful pies and baked goods. I recently decided to try carving an artistic design on one of them. This is the result. It reminds me of Cinderella's carriage.

The Cricket's Song Shop

Recently my sister and I opened a shop on Etsy. Etsy is a place for people to sell all things handmade. I am really excited and hoping things will sell. We are starting off selling greeting cards made from some of my drawings and photographs, all natural soap, and a few fabric items. Eventually we are hoping to add more items such as handbags, felted items, and naturally dyed wool/yarn.
This is going to be the official Cricket's Song blog as well as a place to share our other projects and ideas.