Farewell Irene

In the midst of any storm; you can huddle, plow through or keep things going forward with a lighthearted touch. This is what we returned to as Irene was reaching her peak of torrential rain. We had gone up North to make sure that my Mom and the house would be okay; that emergency supplies were brought out and accessible. We headed home a bit early  on Sunday and just in the nick of time as roads closed. So many of us were under a state of emergency. We were fortunate and fared better than those who lost their homes and their lives. 


I am just working on all my emails and orders as of yesterday~ there are so many! If I haven't answered you yet, I will and have started invoicing. I am behind with the flooding of Irene and the blessing of orders that have poured in. I will extend the Sale until midnight tomorrow. This way, those who have lost power and have attended to homes and families, will perhaps have something to smile and look forward to. 

Trying New Things...And Loving It!

It's no surprise that I love to draw. I draw nearly every day in some form. I just never had the itch to take my drawings beyond, leaving that part to others. Perhaps it is just because I had no clue where to even begin! After much thought and with more than one deep breath, I jumped in the paper world yesterday....and I loved it.

It was way too damp to have everything go smoothly and I will tell you that dying crepe paper and tissue paper can be difficult. Tuesday had renegade pieces floating down the streets of Schenectady.....But even with the newbie bumps along the way, I had a great time and I am making a kit for the top Pumpkin Gal for next week....the lovely one in a crepe paper dress will come along, a few issues to correct, but I now have more inspiration and less resistance to this art form and I can see some fun things in the works. Oh yes, like I needed another media to captivate me!


You can see both girls at American Holiday Artists Studio Marketplace this month along with other pieces of fancy from my colleagues.

New Site & Pattern Releases!

It is with great pleasure that I announce the opening of my new web site and home to all of my available patterns. (I did retire a couple). You can hitch a ride over by clicking on my Early Homestead Bee. She is one of the new patterns available. There are 7 new releases and a pattern sale to celebrate! There are 3 new non seasonal friends. The bee, above.....

Persephone Pig, dressed in Regency look.

And Esme, the cat. I think she needs a witches for October, though.

My Hedge Witch is a favorite. She is small, but full of personality!

Jeffrey shouldn't be sticking his neck out quite so far...

Dickens is a Holiday cutie!

and everyone's favorite~ the Santa trout!

These patterns along with all the others are on sale at the website only The sale runs for a week and ends on the 31st. Patterns are on sale for 7.00 each! I don't have Paypal buttons up just yet, but you can email me with your order and I will invoice you, or you can order direct with instructions on the home page. Have a goode time creating and enjoy!

Art Reflects Life

Today opens TDIPT Mercantile and with it , two of my friends! Elwood is a fun little Spider and he does indeed reflect my life right now, which is a Circus! Summer brings so many things to do along with times to gather with friends and family. It is a goode Circus around here, but a Circus never less. The concept for Elwood was drawn late last Fall and put away for another Fall. After looking at the sketch and playing around with it a bit more, he truly came to life with a jacket and top hat. The Ring Master was born! 

Out of the past came this gal too. In my very beginnings I had a witch rat called Nat, short for Natalie. Natalie has morphed over the years and was a piece that I would do only for Shows. I took her and revamped her once again, this time taking a more refined Art Doll look. Natasha is freestanding on her wire feet and tail. I am so pleased with how she came out. I was a little fearful with her face proportions, but she worked out beautifully. She is the inspire now, for another Rat friend to come.


I also am pleased to announce that I will be releasing new patterns along with a new site which will be home to all of my patterns. It has been quite the project to put them all together and to celebrate, I think we need a SALE. I am about a week behind in my schedule, so I am hoping that I can open at the end of this week! Keep an eye out here for the latest news and directions for the long awaited arrival~

Published!

It is a very great honor to announce that I have been asked to be a part of the Better Homes and Garden's Holiday Crafts   magazine this year! It was VERY difficult to keep it under wraps since Spring.

 Last week when I was shopping, I saw it in the magazine section of the store~ I thought I still had another month to wait! With shaking hands I noticed the cover featured  a spider by my friend, Cathy Pendleton! You know her best from The Cheswick Company . she has been a favorite friend, colleague and part of the Heritage Show that we did in February until it's ending last year. When I opened the magazine, I was delighted once again to see friend Nancy Malay's snowman pictured on the Editor's page! Such fun~

After some page turning with still shaky hands~ I found it! Eliza's glove! The free pattern is bit bigger than the original and done for Halloween. They did a boo-ti-ful job with it! There are plenty of Fall and Winter projects to keep one busy and I have marked several for myself.  You should find it in your local Walmart, grocery or pharmacy, but if not, I found some here: http://equilter.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_main.html?catid=329


Ahh, but there is more news too! I am working hard so that by the end of next week, I will have a Picture Trail with ALL of my patterns in it...and some new pattern releases too. To celebrate, I do think there should be a pattern sale! I'm off to complete more pattern masters and get everything ready~ such an exciting time!

Always Learning

I was always the kid with my nose in a book and I loved school. When I was in grade school, I wanted to be an Anthropologist and had dreams of digging up bones, learning how they fit or deciphering Hieroglyphics. My travels as a Military daughter taught me that new places held opportunities, and to open myself to them. There are opportunities to learn about history, people and their spirituality, even if it was different from ours. My later High School and college years would find me engrossed in special classes such as Eastern Religions, the Mayan Culture and Avian Biology. Which I still step back to today. 

Most of my pieces have some kind of research done on them, be it the clothing, history or skeletal structure. My offerings for the new group that I am in, Olde Primitive Peddler, were no exception. I had just finished a commissioned piece for a vintage style elephant pull toy. Where better to go, for an inspire but Steiff? Interestingly enough,  with the antique riders, the trunks were all down and not up. Wasn't that bad luck? You will see Dharma has his trunk down. I learned that the trunk up for luck was pretty much an American idea dating back to approximately the 1920's. A trunk up, held luck, but a trunk down dispensed it....and so, Dharma reflects the elephant toys of old and it is my hope that he dispenses tons of luck in his new home. 

In the days of old, many a Healer or Midwife was accused of being a witch. They often lived outside of a village and near the hedges...or edges of a forest, where they could gather their barks and healing plants for their medicines. These brave women were sometimes called, Hedge Witches. This wise gal is made purposely with twig arms and legs; and dressed in humble fabrics made from cotton and linen. She holds my spirit in all that she is. 

Finally, my offering for Simply Primitives. I am certainly learning a new dance here...how to have enough offerings for 2 sites that open on the same date! It will all come together in time. Esme is made in primitive and early style. A favorite of mine. She is a bigger door greeter and I love that expressions can be meaningful and so very simply executed.  


Now the cleanup begins, some research starts alongside my creativity. Always learning... I like that.