Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Nutcracker Suite on The Humble Arts....

As usual, I was running terribly behind for my HARTS upload! (sigh) But hey, when costumes go from Charlie Brown-to-a ROCKIES Baseball Player-to-Miss Potter-to-Dorothy and Toto...it happens. And then, there was Maned Wolf-to-Butterfly-to-Little Red Riding Hood-to-Broccoli-to-Little Red Riding Hood-to-Broccoli-to....well. Frankly, Halloween really might be the devil.

I volunteered for the class party, of course, with my BFF...our kiddos were in a Lutheran Pre-School together, and now, first grade...I finally realized why the craft table was so, um, intense. Twice as many of the little darlings and hardly any acted like they love Jesus...let alone their neighbor with the glitter glue. But, I digress...if I would of been on time, this would have been on The Humble Arts...which you must visit this month. Directly. Go now!!

Are you back? Alright, let's go...


Welcome! Thank you for visiting my page within *The Humble Arts*~~ I bet you’ve gathered by now that we have a “Nutcracker Suite” them this month!! And I did manage to carry it over into my Mohair creations…and no, it’s not the Rat King (or whatever he is)…I would love for you to meet


*Sugarplum & Clara the Bun’*

a 14’’, One-of-a-Kind Ele’

and her constant companion

a 6” Bunny




Perhaps an unlikely pair…perhaps not! I mean, their names are just enchanting…to be named for a fairy tale ballet! Oh my! Sugarplum and Clara have seen many, many, Christmases…they first met under the tree, and that was years ago! Since both are so old, of course they are stuffed with excelsior, poly-wool, and sand…like olden bears! (And look at Sugarplum’s antique button eyes!...Clara’s are black glass… ) Both are stitched from over-dyed mohair (Sugar-plum’s bodice is hand-dyed wool), both are loosely 5-way jointed…I love how these two feel…you would think them directly off the toy shelf at the antique store!

I have used only the finest materials, new and vintage trims…this set is truly splendid with lots of details and plenty of sweetness.


However…I suppose I should mention…a disclaimer, of sorts: these are terrible gossips!





*Sugarplum & Clara the Bun’*
SOLD! Thank you...
(includes travel fare)
email me to purchase
*Ginny Brown Bear*
a 13’’, One-of-a-Kind Bear







A more helpful and courteous bear you will never find! Of that, I assure you…Ginny is made from mohair that has been carefully aged~~ and her nose is stitched on, roughly, with dark brown pearl cotton. She is loosely 5-way jointed, and those pretty eyes are wool felt and antique boot buttons. Her little jacket is sewn from vintage cloth that my friend Jenny gave me…(Hey?! You don’t think Ginny is named for Jen---…naahhhh. Could it be?!) Ginny’s felt are shaped like a prim dollie’s, Jenny’s feet are about a 7? And Jenny has long red hair, while Ginny’s is light brown… Enough. Vintage and modern trims…a wonderful, humble, bear who does NOT gossip.




“Ginny Brown Bear”
SOLD! Thank you...
(includes travel fare)

email me to purchase

I hope you enjoy this month's offerings as much as I have their creation…
~~ please take a moment to visit my blog to apprise yourself on happenin’s in the nest (ummmmm....yeah, ignore that part. 'cause yer here!!)…and if you would like to be added to my mailing list please let me know…


Blessings,
Meg


And I think that's all she wrote! We had a wonderful evening...lots of laughs and fun, and I took plenty of pictures. I'm sure I'll share with you as I find time. (right) :) I love this time of year...the weather is cold, the air is crisp, and Thanksgiving is on the way. I really, really, dig Thanksgiving. A lot. And this year I have some new recipes to try...yum! If pigs fly, I might share those with you too~!
Thanks for your time,
& Blessings,
Meg


'Twas Halloween...





Have a Happy, Safe, Halloween!
Blessings,
Meg


Monday, October 15, 2007

Bears in Chairs...

Please will you meet:

*Netty and Bip*


























*Netty* is a loosely 5-way jointed 12" bear...9" seated. Her violet colored mohair is hand-dyed and very gently aged...stuffed with excelsior, weighted with steel shot, she has hand sewn pearl-cotton features. Netty's eyes are antique boot buttons, mounted on just enough 100% yellow wool felt to give a bit of a vintage feel...her sweet, sweet, jacket is sewn from a vintage handkerchief...hand sewn crochet lace for trim, and fastened with the same lace, a cream antique-replica button, silk flower, and vintage locket full of memories...now, *Bip* (sigh). Well, Bip is rather irreverent...and made from Mr. Funky's Super Crochet Wonderful, it's no wonder! (BTW, this little book is fun, fun, fun!!!) *Bip* is 7" high, made from wool yarn and stuffed with wool...her claim to fame is those glass google eyes...! *Netty & Bip* come with the little blue chair (7"high) and it is hand-painted and crackled~~looks quit old...Netty's jacket is fully removable...anything I've missed just email your questions!
SOLD! (Thank you)
~email me to purchase~
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*Scarlet 'n' Andy*






















Another 12" OOAK bear (and her little friend!)
*Scarlet* is 12", and made in the same fashion as *Netty*...but, to be fair, she is a bit more "nosey"...! Her dolly friend *Andy* is sewn from muslin, hand-painted and gently aged for a vintage appeal...his scarf is crochet lace, and his hat is white wool, pinned on with a sweet red heart pin...he has glass googly eyes like *Bip*...
Scarlet's pinny is so very cute...it is a wonderful print that looks quite a bit like a Vintage Children's Book...the panel I used features Mama bear giving a little boy bear a spoonful of medicine...fun! Scarlet has a bunch of baubles pinned to her red neck-bow...a little flapper button, beads that spell "dollie"...vintage red beads and little red dice...this set is whimsical and fun, and the little polka-dot crackled hand-painted chair is included too! So many ways to display~~and the pinny is fully removable...
SOLD! (thank you!)
~email me to purchase~
Well, I do believe that that's all for today....however~~I do have many more bears "in the works", as well as more styles of pin keepers, and those should be ready on Thursday evening...also, I hope to debut my first embroidery designs! (for tea-towels, children's clothing, your clothing, etc.!) Functional art....aahhhh!
I'll have a new bear form to show you too, inspired by my friend Jenny of Hearthside Cottage...hurry up and treat yourself to her yummy Halloween Buttons! And I hear that Christmas Goodies are on the way....
Until we meet again~~
Blessings,
Meg

Saturday, October 13, 2007

I am a smarty pants....

....maybe. We'll see if this works~! I am, hopefully, creating a page of my patterns that are available...we shall see~!! :)
The Magpie Nest
PATTERNS
each needle punch pattern is offered with instructions for 6-strand punch on a Cameo Ultra Punch with the height setting of "3" (or sometimes 4). All floss is DMC, or DMC Senso fingerweight in some cases...my thread designs are "large", and range from 5"X7", up to 8"X 10" in some cases...you may enlarge or reduce my patterns, use whatever materials you're comforatable with, alter away, and sell for fun and small profit, as long as you credit me, Megan Wommack, as the designer...
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*Christmas Town*

a little book for needleworkers




















... a collection of designs for you to punch, hook, stitch, paint...whatever suits your fancy...and here's the scoop, regarding these little books...a FAQs if you will:this book has 6 pages, plus the cover design...the above 5 pictures/charts? Those are all from the cover design...and then there's little borders, on other pages...and you can "flip and repeat" seperate motifs to suit your fancy...so when folks wonder "how many designs", etc....yeah. No idear. But if you are hideously disappointed upon recieving your little book, we can chat.

I absolutely love little houses tucked in with blankets of snow...snuggled in, cozy~~ that feeling you get, when you wake up in the morning and you can just tell...by the light or something, that it's snowed all night long! And then I immediately begin plotting pots of soup, baked breads...and isn't it fun to go foraging for the necessary supplies...the things we NEED! LOL Like popcorn, hot chocolate, and waxy donuts. And maybe a good movie or 2, a certain shade of floss, should the storm be on its way again...better stock up! OK I digress. But I do enjoy snow days...!
...my vision is that this little book is sort of a group of "puzzles"~~ you may break any element of one design and snap it into another giving you infinite possibilities! (Okay, not exactly infinite...but a BUNCH). Also, there are several borders you may pair up with your own compositions...or, of course, you can work them just as I've presented.
No dollies, these are all charts for punch, hooking, or even penny rug designs with notes and titles in the margins...

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*Fear and the Wolf*


*Fear makes the wolf bigger than he is...*~~a German Proverb, that has inspired this bit of folk-ish fancy~~a 4" by 7" Primitive style needle punch pattern~~the rectangle shape is approximate...a bit "sketched" here and there...~~the finished piece has such a primitive feel to it! Can you imagine a hooked rug from this design?! Oh my!! I include a reversed and regular image for you to reduce or enlarge as you wish, a high-quality color photo, and a suggested palette and general instructions~~with this design, you will recieve an enlarged image too...so, a photo plus 2 charts. ...this piece is a bit tricky, but easily simplified. I finished my piece with a neato-mosquito collage...
$8.40

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*Ol' Joe the Mistelcrow*


...what could be more fun to work up on a blustery evening? This fancy ol' crow is quite a charmer! I turned mine into a treat bag... The actual punched piece size is 5.5" X 6.5"...

$8.40

email me to purchase

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*Woodland Santa*


You'll recieve two 8" by 8" images of this pattern....those of you familiar with my patterns know that they are thorough, and that I always send the image reversed for punch, as well as the regular image...and of course a full-color picture as well as instructions...also included~~a suggested palette of threads and fibers. (This pattern uses a finger-weight wool sock yarn for the background!)
You will receive a paper pattern, very thorough, with 2 high quality photos…
$8.40
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*Snow Angel*


...I must admit that I am excited to make up a few of these little angel poppets!~~here's one of my best-sellers, pattern AND finished goods, from Holiday 2006:
This sweet gal is easy-peasy to make with just a bit of sewing experience...she is carefully styled after a Colonial silouette, and will be a great addition to your winter decorations...she is quite magical! I the enduring quality of this gal…here in Colorado you could take her out in September and leave her out ‘til late April!! J

*Snow Angel* ends up being a bit over 12” or so…her noggin is punched (front and back) and her arms and legs are made from soft, white, flannel…you could certainly embroider this gal’s face as well and sew her body from wool felt…endless options!

You will receive a paper pattern, very thorough, with 2 high quality photos…
$10.50
email me to purchase
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Saturday, October 6, 2007

How much is that doggie in the window?



*Doggie Pinkeepers*

available for special order at

$42.00 each


These are just too fun!! They are hand-sewn from wool felts~~ doggie is stuffed with sheep's wool, as well as the top pillow or top half of the cushion, then the bottom is filled with crushed walnut shells to keep your pins and needles nice and pointy...! You may request color schemes, and "approximate" breeds :) I'll do my best! Each measures between 5 & 6" high, depending on the style of cushion...each doggie will come with modern and vintage charms, pins, and buttons...very sweet, each puppy is sure to protect your pins precisely!




Did you ever see such a pair?! These two, my friends, are my last bit of self-shopping before Christmas...that wonderful vintage doggie pinkeep and the adorable Stieff Mecki Hedgehog...The Bear Garden says:





"Steiff has had exclusive rights to the manufacture of Mecki hedgehog dolls since 1951. Mecki is a German cartoon character who first becam popular in the early 1950s when he appeared in the TV magazine HORZU. He has been loved now by several generations and he is still carried as a companion or talisman in Germany today. Mucki M is the young girl featured in the series, she stands at 5 inches / 12cm tall. "





She is delightful...you may have noticed that a few days ago, Natalie Merchant was crooning "Jealousy" on the blog (...um, yes, I've been meaning to blog for quite some time!)...this little tune was tribute to Mucki, and my daughter Chloe...when I showed her my new dollie she had the most inscrutable little face...like she might vomit. You know that face, parents? That un-readable pensive paleness that suddenly launches into/onto....well. Chloe had a face like that. And I said, "Sweety!? What's wrong???" And Chloe said, "Nothing. Your doll's great. Really. I'm happy for you." Then she stalked away, as only Chloe can do...thus, the blog tune "Jealousy", to write about sweet Mucki. (And I didn't change the song just because Susan hated it! Really!)...which brings up the topic of blog music. Quite neatly, I might add.





Okay. Maybe I should ditch the play-list. I mean, I am the girl that mixed up about 35 minutes of jamming folk tunes and the such, back in the mid-nineties, and then plunked Nazareth's "Love Hurts" into the middle of it all like a shriveled, cold, baked potato with no shiny jacket...yes, friends, I am her. So admittedly, I am not the best DJ. But this latest foe-pass. Oh my...





You see, I also listened to "Cake". And I wanted to put this Cake song about a piano on my blog...and somehow, someway, that translated into "Italian Leather Sofa". Ever heard it? Well. Okay...I'll just out with it. Are you ready? Hmmmmm??? Thinking I won't confess?! Welllllll....the song talks about:









boobies









Is that dreadful or what? On a business-building, family-connecting, G-rated, fun-lovin' blog. I mean, granted, once you're a Mom, boobies turn into this whole other milk (or lack thereof) sort of thing....I remember so well visiting my local lactation nazis...sitting bare-breasted with all of the other milk-less mommies...secretly checking out each other's babies' cutie gap onesies (thought I was going to say boobies, didn't you?!)





I remember the day I exploded from the boobies clinic with such glee, such joy...I hope my shirt was buttoned, I was so happy~~ so free...skipping with 10 pounds of plastic slapping against my...chest...! My lactation loo-loo had come up with just the thing for my baby and her milk-less mommy....we could nurse! We could bond! It was going to be okay!!!





IT was this amazing/grotesque contraption that had tubes, a rubber disc to fit over said booby, and a little drip bottle of formula...baby gets fed, boob gets "expressed" (though there was no milk), and of course my little darling wouldn't know that a tangle of tubes and discs and the neck thingy it hung off of was not a real booby. No, no. She would be fooled and so would I. This contraption would be our saving grace....





My poor, sweet, tired, loving, husband just stared....at my boobs...in a whole new way, twice over....utilitarian AND plastic? Wow.





We never went back to the clinic.





I don't know where the contraption is either, for that matter.





When my 2nd daughter was born, the exact same lactation guru walked into my room with some hapless trainee following behind, obviously hanging on the woman's every word...the guru said:





"Oh, hello...we'll try just like last time and see...", and then she fled. My boobs are bad for business. Which brings me to another point...





Mommies, you rock. Don't let anyone tell you different. I spoke just today with friend who is sometimes concerned about others' perception of her...that she works a lot, does a lot activity and committment-wise...folks might not know that her kids are with her every step of the way...so they judge. (Of course, you aren't like that! :) ) So here's the thing...we need to all be sweet to each other...ease up on each other. It isn't easy being a Mommy....if you do it right, it's freakitin' exhausting, now and then...you deal with the unexpected...
You walk into a room and things are not as they should be...(like little plastic babies, floating in the fish tank!) Or you walk into an elementary school, that you've walked into a hundred times before, and you go into lock-down....something about a man with a gun? In the "surrounding area" (please define!!)??? And you crouch in the dark and drink a whole soda with your baby...while your bigger baby is in her classroom, which is a million miles or a few yards away, depending on how you look at it. And you wait, in the dark. And you don't cry, no matter what...and it finally doesn't matter one whit that you couldn't nurse, that you haven't done everything perfect, and furthermore~~ that no one else does everything perfect either. NO ONE. Nothing matters except that the three of you get out of the school and get home to tell Dad all about it...you just save what needs saving...scoop it up, fish it out...just what's important....and then... you have it. None of the rest matters.

And you'll never, ever, again forget that you have it.

Okay...I'll confess. We kept the contraption...we clean the fish tank with it.

Until we meet again...

Don't throw the baby out with the fish-water.

Blessings,
Meg