Fun For More Than Just One!!!

 I recently had a request from a new dear friend for a goodie package of supplies. She has plans to make her own Pick-a-Lily Pincushion doll and was especially fond of the prints I used to make Lily Maida in my tutorial. (I've got it posted by steps down along the sidebar if your interested in taking a peek at her!) Since I had just enough of what was needed I told her "Sure thing," and got to work!

 

 Now I suppose it all could have been folded into a neat little pile, sealed in a baggie, and sent on it's way but I figured what fun was that? I had a hankering to arrange something and since the garden flowers are quite out of season I had a go at arranging the supplies instead and guess what?

I LOVED IT!

 

  My favorite part was coming up with a way to package the little seed beads. With only six in the lot they were sure to get lost if not contained in some way. In the end it only took a needle, some thread, and a few quick stitches to make them travel ready.

 

 I'm hoping she's as pleased with the results as I was. The only problem was it left me wishing I had a package of crafty goodies coming my way as well.

 

Lucky for me there is a dear sweet Gail Wilson in this world! Her kits are the ultimate in crafty goodness and wouldn't you know I just happened to have one tucked away.

 

 And so up next on the "Fun" agenda.....I'm going to try my hand at penny wooden doll artistry!
 

Made With Love

Remember that FUNtastic snow day we had earlier this week and the paper snowflakes we made? Well....they have now been put to use in my FUNctional space!

 

See them? They became my first mini garland of the year! I thought it might be a hoot to make a whole collection of tiny "tie-ups" like this to keep my space seasonally inspired in the months ahead.

 

Something else to look forward to in the months ahead will be a featured book of the month. These won't be just any books mind you. Nope, these will be a collection of books that in some way, shape or form have to do with dolls and I can't think of a better one to start off with than M. B. Goffstein's Goldie the Dollmaker.

 

Goffstein's book is about Goldie Rosenzweig. It's obviously no surprise that Goldie is a dollmaker but the manner in which she fashions each of her creations elevates her work to that of a true artist. Her days are spent in quiet harmony carving, painting, and drinking tea. Throughout the years I've read this book many times over. Goldie is perpetually inspiring and someone I always wanted as a friend.

 

So you can imagine my delight to have, through the miracle of Internet,  found a real live Goldie in existence! Her name is Erin Kleider. She carves, she paints, and she plays with dolls. If you want to get to know her better she can be found over at Fairie Moon.

 

Recently two of her wee creations came to live with me and I must say they are the sweetest little things ever!

This here is Daisy.

 

And this is Fairie Rose.

Every time I look at their little faces I see the love that Erin puts into and gets out of her work.

Such a thought cannot but make one wonder what it is they truly LOVE to do....so I've been doing a bit of thinking.....

 

 

  Probably the greatest creative enjoyment I had all week was making up this little hat for Hitty.

I loved working on a small scale.

I loved takings tiny stitches by hand.

I loved making something substantial out of what was really nothing more than three pieces of scrap fabric and a good length of thread.

But most of all, I loved that I had FUN doing it!!!

 

Snowday!

The wee hours of the morning found several of us huddled around the TV. Flakes had just begun to fall and the white coating on the ground was minimal at best. But by some miracle of miracles the call was made and school was canceled for the day. FUN-tastic!!! There would be no drop offs, no pick ups, and no homework. Instead there were funny movies, cups of hot cocoa, and paper snowflakes in the making. 

 

Hitty, however, was not tempted by such paper fantasies and preferred instead to head outside and give her new capelet and hat a trial run!

 

 

FUNctional Space

 Having a little Etsy shop is great. You get to make things, you come in contact with interesting people, and when you earn a little money you get to spend it in other Esty shops!!! Having to keep records for your little Etsy shop however is another story. Sales must be tracked, expenses logged in, sales taxes paid up (good ole Massachusetts!) and the cost of goods sold must be calculated. Having a designated area in which to conduct such necessary business is a blessing, but one which I had begun to poo poo. Over the course of last year my desk had become one giant paperwork magnet and I dreaded hanging out there. More often than not I could be found dragging my laptop here, there, and everywhere just to escape the visible reminder of my own personal paperwork purgatory.

 

BUT NOT ANY MORE!

 

Nope, now is the time to put the "FUN" back into functional.

 

First things first..... I emptied everything out of the area.

 

Except for this.

It's the front of a Christmas card I received from dear hubby's grandmother many years ago and I've had it hanging around (quite literally) ever since. For me it has a certain quiet and clarity about it that I find very peaceful.

 

I let the space sit for several days with nothing more added.

Instead I spent a good amount of time thinking.

The little bit of action I did perform involved alot of pinterest peeking and just enough research to find myself a much easier bookkeeping system. 

 

Once I'd had my fill of empty space the first thing I added was my trusty old shelf, a length of yarn as a reminder of the garland I want to make, and a personal touch that was surprisingly fun to do.

 

I'd never would have had the nerve had it not been for the fact that the walls in this room are in desperate need of  being repainted.

 

We've been debating colors off and on but not yet found our "creative compromise!"

Our indecision was a blessing in disguise because had the walls been pristine and freshly painted I never in my wildest dreams would have......

 

.....taken a pen to them and scripted a quote.

Granted I wrote tiny in this instance but I don't think I'd be opposed to trying it again on a larger scale. And maybe even on freshly painted walls, OH MY!

 

Gradually items have begun to migrate through. Those that meet with my new standards of being either fun or functional get to stay. The basket for instance will function as handy storage for digital goodies such as camera, cords, and USB keys. The shelf is for fun as I intend to have it host rotating assemblies of inspiration. And the new Mollie Makes calendar? That one's a 2fer! Obviously functional but oh so fun when you decide to record a happy event from each day's passing.

 

The plan is to keep this space an equal balance of function and inspiration, not just for this week or this month but for the entire year ahead. I'll be popping back occassionally with updates, alterations, and of corse that garland I intend to make!

 

 

The Fun Starts Here!

So.....it started as something fairly routine, the packaging of an item for shipping. In this case it was a tad on the fragile side and needed a bit of "cushion" in order to err on the side of caution. Seems, however, my stash of supplies was raided during some one or another holiday wrapping endeavour. There was no bubble wrap, no peanuts, and no tissue paper!

 

A trip to Walmart was required but the thought of leaving our cozy little house and heading out into the single digits was not in the least appealing. Thinking there must be some cushy scrap somewhere I began to dig through the Christmas wrapping supplies (yes we still have this stuff hanging around along with a good assortment of VERY dusty holiday decorations.) Lots of ribbon but no bubble wrap. Lots of bags but no tissue paper. Lots of deconstructed magazines from this but no peanu....wait....stop right there! Magazines....hmmm....I felt inspiration glimmer, spark and then burst into flame. All I needed was my paper shredder.

 

Now I've had my fair share of shredder activity throughout the years and considered it nothing more than one of those mundane must do activities. But let me tell you.....there is a world of difference between shredding boring financial records and shredding magazine pages. I had not anticipated the explosion of color awaiting me inside the bin. I quickly realized I could control the the results by selecting choice pages rather than randomly ripping and spent the next 30 minutes or so doing just that. Control in this case was good.

 

Hours later, after the package had been shipped and the shredder stashed, I realized I'd had my first really "Fun" adventure of 2013. It wasn't the fun I had planned to orchestrate and post on. It was unexpected, exciting, and nothing more than a silly bit of nonsense but it sure made me happy. So now I'm thinking, while control can be helpful in some instances, control in all aspects of your life leaves very little room for surprises and that dear friends would not be fun, in fact, I imagine it could become downright funky!

  

 

 

Preparing To Take The "K" Out Of Funk

 OK...I'll admit it....I've been in quite a funk recently.

And frankly I've had enough of it.

So I've concocted a plan to kick that funk in the derriere and send the "K" out the back door!

I figure that should leave me with a big ole helping of  F-U-N!

 

 Everyone is invited to pop in now and then and see what fun ideas I find to serve up throughout the year ahead.Topics could range from fashion to furnishings, fabric to featherweights, flowers to fairies, food to fair island fantasies. Anything is game so long as it's FUN!

 

I'm hoping there will be an inspiration or two that you can take along with you into your day to day. Or even better yet, that you'll share one of your inspirations with me!