the baby sheep pattern..

I was thinking, hoping, wishing for something to jump at me to craft for my little niece Kayda and I finally found it from this great blogger harugurumi. It is the cutest crochet pattern for a sleeping sheep and it was so fun to make. She recommended a fuzzy yarn so I found some really great vintage mohair yarn and mixed it with some organic cotton yarn for the head. The second skein of mohair was much thicker so I used that as the body. Instead of grey I found this beautiful lilac peruvian wool and used that for the cutie's appendages. It turned out so cute! I am thinking of repositioning her eyes but haven't had a chance yet.

I lined the body within with some organic cotton fabric stuffed with organic kapok, sewed it all together with matching Valdali embordery thread and voila!

a treat..

I am so loving the cowl look. It is such a classic look for women. I wanted to create one for myself but wanted to make it from fabric as I am not a knitter and I occasionally crochet but am too impatient for that at the moment. Luckily I had purchased a lot of this wonderful fabric that is hand woven in Nepal. It is this wonderful cotton weave that feels as good as it looks. So using some of this I sewed a quick mobius scarf. It turned out better than I thought it would..I might try a few more in different lengths to see which is the best look but I think this one will be going to my beautiful sister who is off to Europe for the holidays. I think it would go great with that nice black coat she just purchased (yes i am very jealous! : )

Ready....Set....Sew!

I was a busy bee this weekend making sure our holiday spirit was as present visually as I felt it was within. The burgeoning spark within me of Christmas time..of warm nights by the fireplace, shimmering lights on rooftops, twinkling stars and yummy treats, was just bursting to get out.

Wooh, and did I have fun. Michael and I hunted for the perfect Christmas tree on Saturday and found just that. After the fruitful hunt we headed back to the homestead where I started my crafting and Michael... like every day went surfing. I love that this is his thing, it doesn't hurt that when I decide to stay home from the beach I get a few hours of "me" time at home. Like most other days I tend to bring my selected supplies from the craft room downstairs where I explode with fabric tidbits, errand strands of thread, the occasional lost embroidery needle (ouch..found it) , and all scraps and wonder of cutting, piecing, threading, looping...while watching my girlie movie drinking my coffee or lambrusca. With a quick clean up and a log in the fireplace I am good to greet him with a smile and satisfaction of a finished product…
So that isn’t always true..the clean up sometimes happens later that evening but the satisfaction is always there!! Since it is our first Christmas together (we met right after the holiday last year) we needed some stockings for our hearth so I set on the idea of quilting us a pair. I went with a colored scheme of blues for him and reds and oranges for me. I pieced and pieced and pieced then quilted and sewed until voila!

Realizing our tree looked a little dormant (I had decided I better not use the pink ornaments of previous “Emmy only” years on the tree), I thought I fill the empty space with a few felted birds. I pieced those together with Vandali pearl cotton and Rainbow “felt” (this stuff is really cool, it is made from 100 percent recycled plastic bottles, not wool at all) and voila!

Realizing the need for a wreath (I asked the tree cutter for some greenery and he send us home with a ton of extra branches) I decided to use an old acorn wreath I picked up at a thrift store and added some fresh sprigs and voila!

I was getting tired and hungry so Michael and I cooked up some tasty red beans and rice from the Moose Lodge cookbook and voila… aaah sorry no picture there we ate that with gusto!

Well I hope your weekend was satisfying and productive…onward to work and Monday! Grunt..

Greetings with Ellie Pooh

So I fell hard for Mr. Ellie Pooh Paper aptly named after it's source …err… you got it Elephant Dung! Our local eco-conscious, eco-friendly store supplies this in a range of jewel tone and natural colors, that is just fantastic paper to work with. Textured, sturdy, papyrus-like and of course saves elephants! The process is the collection, the cleaning (yes they sanitize), the dying, and the drying. Just like paper-making at home just with a smaller step (the cellulose is already blended, hee hee).

Not one thing gross about this stuff i swear. So this is what I gathered from my stationary stamp from them…In Sri Lanka there is a lot of conflict between agriculture and elephants so this business came in and started paying for the collection of elephant dung (which is basically raw cellulose as they are strict vege's) thereby decreasing the deaths of many large beasts as they were not seen as a commodity before rather a nuisance. With the dung being priced out many ellie’s are alive for that fact.

I highly support this stationary not only because it supports a great cause but because it is gorgeous! I swear it! Check out the website and order some, you won’t be disappointed.
Because I love it so much I have incorporated it into my annual holiday cards for the last three years. This year is no different. I got started yesterday and had so much fun with it. I am not completely done yet but I took some pictures nonetheless. I usually make an intricate stamp but this year went for an easy design inspired by a stamp I saw online. I also used banana paper stationery (the lighter colored paper) and printed "Merry Christmas" in ton's of different languages as a backdrop to the stamp. I decided on a pop out design for the inside and made a lil evergreen forest within each card. So much fun! I will be finishing them up soon and will post the final product. Merry Christmas!

I wanted to post some new pictures of the finished product so here they are!

...inside with added stamps and sequins..

..the front with added cream colored ric rac

giving thanks

Since Michael and I did not to head to our families this Thanksgiving we decided to host a little Thanksgiving dinner at our place. A few of our close friends came over for the feast that Michael and I prepared. I was so excited about Michael and I’s dinner a few weeks ahead of time I decided to make a table setting, with last minute attendees I had to finish up three extra settings the day off admist the cooking and I did it just in time. I even was able to rest and get ready for the event! Now that never happens, thank goodness for my wonderful man Satyavan *don’t be confused he goes by Michael.

So here is the table setting that I put together. I placed bird or tree appliques on the table cloth, place mats as well as on the cloth napkins. Each person had a little name card I photoshopped to look like the napkins I made. The floral arrangement was inspired by Martha Stewart, she had a great video for mums and I couldn’t resist! I had to use lots of candles by Vance Kitira ofcourse..and the setting was complete by Fire and Light candle holders and glasses.

I was going to use our dishware and then decided I didn’t want to do the clean up so used the nifty biodegradable/compostable plates. I didn’t regret that choice. And surprisingly everyone loved the name cards and wanted to take them home. Thanks for reading and I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving….and now we are onward to Christmas! Can't wait to post the recent projects from the after thanksgiving push towards a merry home!

semi precious

I was inspired when I went into the city this weekend and met a fellow crafter that also loves working with silver, shells, pearls, and gems. When I got home and I went and did it, i pulled out my jewelry supplies. And I have a lot! Once a year I enter a wonderful event that is in support of local artisans of all make and kinds; crafters, dancers, musicians, clowns, everything you can imagine. It gets bigger each year and hotter too…But this year I decided I should start early and get some of my inventory started.

I named my small business Natural Objects as I work with natural elements, no plastic nor glass. Although I have nothing against those items I just love working with the natural elements of semi precious, stone, shell, coconut, pearl, wood and bone. They hold such a warmth and energy. I usually do primarily jewelry but this year I think I will diversify and bring in more of my sewn objects as well.

I am going to post some newer wire work I have been doing really soon. I can't wait for my camera to work again! Here are some shots of the earrings I made this summer...

Spools in Order

Well, with the change in weather and the darkness settling around us earlier I decided to do some much needed organizing. I find myself more often trying to fit my projects into a basket which I take downstairs to work alongside my boyfriend with the tele going more often than naught. Having a functional sewing room is pointless if I decide not to use it, so with that in mind I took a hard look at the mess I had created and thought to myself “no wonder I don’t work up here!”

Fortified with a 16oz double-shot Americano, with room for cream of course, I decided to get my space put together. I have to say it was more fun than I had thought it would be with the little finds of fabric and notions shouting out to be noticed and not forgotten. I have more ideas to put into play but the act of organization was so cleansing I instantly wanted to create.
I realized I won’t have to use my JoAnn’s 40% off coupon this week nor do I need to hit up my local fabric shop filled with Amy Butler and Alexander Henry delights, I have tons of projects to do and textile to use before I hit up my current drug of choice, fabric.
I am not kidding when I said it was a mess…

But it was a much better space when I finished!

I am not showing the cabinets I have filled with fabric as that is a work in progress but progress is progress right? ;)

Onward to sewing

With my digital camera in working order I wanted to start posting recent projects. I am a fanatic of late at my local fabric store and have bought tons of Alexander Henry Fabric. His style is so great and whimsical with a touch of modern that I just eat it up.
Deciding on a quilted wallet (based from this wonderful blogger's tutorial http://darnkat.wordpress.com) to show off the cute lolipop print(sorry i forget the fabric name!)I went to town.
The process was fun and easy and remembering the panic of my first quilted object this tiny little piece of fabric and batting washed away the fear "my first" had lodged into my memory and it's possible I might try to go back and finish it..hm well atleast I don't panic at the word quilting anymore .. Here is a shot prior to sewing the wallet outside and inside peices together. I decided on contrasting fabric and quilting on the inside backing as well (but you can't tell because I didn't put my macro view on!)

I added a few things like a zippered pouch where the money and change should go, a pearl snap, and appliques on the card slots to tye in the fabric's motifs but it is pretty much the same pattern that darnkat provided.

I did get confused by the inner card slot pocket directions so I decided to just forget them and make it per my measurements, which ended up working great.

I had a great time and I am guessing I might just finish that first quilting project I started when my twin nephews weren't even born..(fyi the twins are now 18 months old!) lol isn't that fear+procastination in it's finest form!)

A Princess Cake for a Princess

So, my good friend's little girl was having her third birthday and I was asked to make the cake. Of course I was delighted. I was told it was going to be Cinderella themed. With that in mind I did a little sleuthing and found websites galore on women around this nation creating the cutest princess cakes I have ever seen. Unfortunately, due to helping a friend work a booth at our local artisan's fair all weekend I knew it would be a late Saturday night ;) I still was excited.
I prepped the doll on Friday, I purchased one of the Dritz Cake dolls and dressed here hair in a Cindrella chiffon tied with a blue ribbon, pierced her ears with blue gems, created a blue corset and black choker, and ofcourse blue gloves made from winding pearl cotton embroidery thread around her arms. It worked out fantastically.
Next was the baking and creating the cake. I saw from blogs that women didn't by the overpriced doll skirt cake pan and instead used pyrex or stainless steel bowls. I decided to do the same. I first made two 9" cakes, and then the bowl like cake for the top. I layered them with the baby girls favorite fruit, strawberries, and a fresh strawberry mousse I created. I then used my favorite icing, the light and airy italian meringue buttercream to cover the layers. Then using the sky blue Wilton cake dye I went about coloring the buttercream. Onto frosting the skirt and voila finished product. Please note it was 3am when I finished so I was a bit blurry eyed ;)
I wanted to let you know soon I will be showing my other fun crafts soon. Lately, I have shown my cake expereinces but soon soon I will start posting on my fun embroidery projects I have been obsessed with lately :)
Thanks for reading!

A Vegan Wedding Cake Later...

As my title implies yes I did it. I made a 100% vegan, organic wedding cake for two wonderful friends. Yep, it was a doozy in experience but I had a great time and surprised myself on how easy it is these days to bake vegan and get great results.

To start off I did a lot of research, as I am an omni not a vegan, I never thought about replacing my eggs and dairy in my baking. Now that I am equipped with the knowledge and the how to from countless bloggers, websites, chefs and cookbooks I feel that if you can bake a vegan wedding cake then you can bake anything vegan! I am telling you it is easy and it tastes wonderful! Seriously if you haven’t tried it don’t be scared! Everyone taste tester had no idea it was vegan…oh sugar and flour what a wonderful thing ;)

To be honest, I was daunted at first but the more I read the more excited I became. Once I got started I realized how much simpler some of the tasks are and how much less fat and cholesterol there was in the modified cakes. From the outbursts at the wedding of folks saying “Are you sure this is vegan?”.. “This can’t be vegan?” And countless positive remarks I know it was a hit!


After paring down the recipes I decided to get started on testing. And testing I did, until I found the spongy, moist, and delicate cake I was looking for. That done I made the testers with input of the flavors from the bride and groom.

Vegan Vanilla Cake with Fresh Strawberries and Vegan Vanilla "Buttercream"..
Vegan Chocolate Cake layered with Vegan Chocolate Mousse and Vegan Fudgy wonderment, covered in Vegan Vanilla "Buttercream"
Vegan Lemon Cake with Fresh Rasperbbies, Vegan Raspberry "buttercream" covered in Vegan Vanilla "Buttercream"
and last but not least
Vegan Coconut Cake with Vegan Coconut Cream, Fresh Pureed Mango, Covered in Vegan Vanilla "Buttercream"

The winners.... the vanilla strawberry, chocolate wonderment, and coconut mango
I wish I took fotos of the insides and their tiered yumminess. But alas the dj was playing my song and I was hitting the dance floor with the last shred of energy I had, and that was probably from the greygoose cocktails;)
Here is the final product..

Weddings...a memoir of last summer..

I so enjoy weddings. I love them really. The joy of two people declaring their love for one another in front of everyone they might know is so enthralling. And that is the exact reason why I love participating. Last summer two of my close friends asked for me to help with their weddings. One asked for me to craft some jewelry for her and her Five bridesmaids..the other with baking the wedding cake and jewelry for the bride. Completely touched by their asking me to create such key elements to their weddings I accepted. Of course, fate would have it, their marriages were within a month of eachother; needless to say it was a whirlwind summer..

The first task was the jewelry for the bride and her bridal party. The theme and color scheme were based on a California summer sunset so we went with firey colors. I chose freshwater pearls, amber, red coral, garnet, golden amber glass drops, and carnelian for the bridesmaids.
I strung two strands of the chosen beads and twisted them to form a spiraled rope of gorgeous color fastened by sterling silver clasps. For the earrings I went simple and made sterling silver chain drops ending with similar beads found in the necklace.




I went traditional with the brides jewelry; white pearl with freshwater pearls tinted pink. The earrings were simple pearl drops which worked excellent with her updo. The combo turned out quite stunning on the bride. To my surprise this photo was featured in our local wedding guide.

I thoroughly enjoyed the wedding; which was filled with amazing forms of art and music; live jazz, a female acupella group, west african dancers and drummers, and a gorgeous spread, not to mention a really, really strong beer on tap.

For the next bride I went a different path. She really liked copper and brass tones so I found some really nice copper and sterling silver chain and started creating. Now this lady has the skin tone to pull off anything, darker metals just seem to shoot right off her making her glow, I am trully envious :) The wedding was set at wonderful local beach named after a wonderful stone, a moonstone. I luckily found a gorgeous rainbow moonstone cabochon and went about making the necklace. Strands of copper and sterling swept together in arches to form the center peice that dangled the moonstone above her neckline. I wasn't sure at first, but then she put it on. I wish I had a photo of that as you wouldn't believe me but it seemed to glow on her.
Hm on to my favorite task: baking. I was very seriously contemplating attending a French pastry school last summer but many things changed around that time (i.e., finding the man of my dreams and more fulfilling work at my consulting firm allowing me to be outside utilizing my degree in botany and less time in the office). My plans switched but my love of pastry hasn't stopped. The couple are amazing organic farmers and wanted something fresh and light and of course organic for their guests. After several testers; including a chocolate-hazelnut and lemon-blackberry, the decision of a white chocolate raspberry cake was made.
Taking the day off prior as it was a Saturday afternoon wedding I got started early morning. Baking and baking, whipping and folding, layering and postitoning, frosting and smoothing all day long. Wedding cakes are not a quick baking experience but defintely a gratifying one. To create this tasty cake I layered white chocolate cake rounds with raspberry buttercream, fresh rasberries, as well as each layer getting a smattering of moistening syrup flavored by Chambord Royale Deluxe Liqueur. Each cake tier consisted of four layers (2 cakes each split in half)to create three filling sections. After making each tier I let them chill for an hour or so. During that time I whipped up an amazing creation that I learned from one of my cookbooks, an italian meringue buttercream. If you haven't tried it you will need to one day! Light and airy like whipped cream and sublty sweet like a buttercream, not to mention an excellent winner for frosting a cake, spreadable when at the right temperature and extremeley stable after chilling, no melting or moving at all. So, I went about making several batches of this which calls for whipping egg whites into a meringue while cooking a syrup to firm ball stage and then combining, whipping till cool then adding butter. Voila! I was ready for frosting the cake. Getting my nifty buys of a turntable, cake spreaders, spatulas, bags and tips I went about creating the wedding cake. The bride didn't want too much decoration mainly a smooth surface ready for the organic hawaiian orchids I purchased for a cascade down the cakes. With that finished I placed each cake in a cake box and schemed on getting it to the reception hall the next day. My brother-in-law a skilled woodworker *not kidding here, he and his father have created amazing works of art* made me a wonderful cake holder per my request. I wanted each layer to stand alone and float and since the only ones on market are plastic I asked if he could create a wooden form, he went above and beyond my expectations and created a beautiful oak and maple floating cake tier holder. He even constructed the base layer and entire unit to spin and lock into place once you have it positioned correctly. This turned out to be a great tool as once the cakes were placed I was able to spin the entire cake to get the best effect without having to touch the cake itself. After arriving at the reception hall I was greeted by the Wedding Coordinator and took over a section of the kitchen for the last touches. Adding the fresh orchids. All in all this was an excellent experience I trully loved every second of it. The finished product is below. Whoo so glad I got a photo of it, even if that photo is a phone cam one ;)

I hope you have enjoyed this blog, it's my first and I realize now how easy and fun it is to share your thoughts to the cyberworld. Thanks for reading!