Homemade Dolls and an Alien

February 8th, 2010

What to do on a cold, dreary winter day? Make homemade dolls with a made-up pattern and any materials you have around the house, of course!

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I used eyeliner and lipstick for the doll faces and we cut off leggings with holes in the knees to make dresses for them.  I didn’t want my son to feel I was favoring the girls, so I let him design an alien pattern and helped him sew it up.  I think the girls may have had more fun playing with the batting than they had with the dolls!

Illustration Friday: Muddy

February 5th, 2010

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This elephant is on a muddy, brown background.

Homemade Peppermint Patties

February 4th, 2010

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I made these with my son and they were really yummy, (and messy!), but fun to make. The peppermint filling can get very sticky, however, so use lots of cornstarch to roll it out on. I also refrigerated them when they were finished to let them set. I tried rolling the filling into balls before dipping into melted chocolate and that works really well, too. They would make a yummy valentine’s treat! I’ve tried a couple of different recipes, but here is the one I tried when I took the pictures: Peppermint Pattie Recipe (Click on any of the images to view larger.)

Playing in Water

February 4th, 2010

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Amazing how a bowl of water can breathe new life into those old toys! (Click on any of the images to view larger.)

Illustration Friday: Focus

January 31st, 2010

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I thought I would revisit some elephants I did a while back and focus on the color purple.

Valentine’s Day Last Year

January 30th, 2010

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Last year for Valentine’s Day I made felt crowns and little skirts for my girls. SO much fun! My husband made my son a wooden rubber band gun like his grandpa used to make for him. I made my son a little gun holster and a pouch to hold a bunch of felt “disguises” that I made for him. Grandpa even tried on the beard. It looked so funny! I didn’t have any patterns or anything, so they are definitely not “perfect,” but they were so much fun to make and surprise them with. Especially while they are young and think that things made of felt are cool! We had a pancake dinner with whipped cream and pie cherry filling to top them off. I need some good ideas for this year. Any suggestions?

Valentine’s Day Decorations

January 27th, 2010

We’re getting ready for Valentine’s Day around here with vintage valentine decorations and lots of pink and red…

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Trees at Night

January 26th, 2010

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