Bits & Pieces

a box of colorful ears...

stuffed & waiting by my machine to be spiral-stitched for that adorable quilted effect! This is perhaps my favorite step of elephant-making.

and a stack of embroidered faces on what will become the elephants' bodies.

I love seeing the pieces at different stages & watching a batch of toys come together from a stack of parts. These polka-dotty elephants will soon be getting some national attention! Can't wait until I can tell you all about it!

Work in Progress: Turtle Mania!

Just a quick peek at what I'm working on right now. Hopefully I'll have a finished version to show you very soon! Like maybe tomorrow, if things go well. Stay tuned...

A Look at My Messy Desk

Here's what's been accumulating on my desk lately: a giant jar of recycled wool stuffing, a refreshing glass of root beer, a plethora of needles & scissors...

a huge pile of fabric scraps (which I save for use in future toys and fabric collages)...

and this adorable parade of toy elephants in various stages of stuffed-ness!

Art Waiting to Happen

Oh, the (almost) blank canvas - sooooo much potential! It's an exciting part of the artistic process, I think. I like to let my ideas simmer, so sometimes I prep my canvas & then wait a bit before starting the main subject matter, as I've done with this garage sale frame here. I've painted it my fave shade of peacock blue & added a two-tone fabric background & some cute trim on the inner edge. Now it's just waiting for my next fabric collage to take shape! I'm thinking about creating a Charley Harper-esque bird, inspired by the recent Shout-out to Charley Harper on Craft.

Oh, and what's that dear little deer, you ask? Take a closer look.

It's a crazy-cute, lacquered deer plaque I found at a thrift store. Isn't it cool? I thought it was so cute, but just in need of a pop of color & some texture. I'm going to add some fabric collage on top of it, without covering up the deer. I'm imagining a kind of fabric flower & tree forest, with a tiny little bird or two. What do you think?