It seems the closer we get to Christmas, the shorter the days become. I'm not talking about the hours of sunlight (or in our case, overcast skies :) but how there just doesn't seem to be enough hours in the day to get things done. So, in order to provide some new content on Wee Folk Art this week, I plan to share a few of my "holidayish" articles that I wrote for my now sadly neglected blog, One Generation to Another. This first article was shared on One Gen November 25, 2008. I did repost it here on WFA December 16, 2009, but we have gotten so many new readers in the past 3 years, I hope you old-timers will forgive the repetition. So... for your consideration...

Let me set the stage...late afternoon Thanksgiving Weekend, a snowstorm...no, a slushstorm...and (insert ominous music here)... THE MALL.

The principle characters...me, an extremely exhausted mom with my 9 year old son that just finished up his Christmas shopping.

The plot...after an exhausting but productive shopping spree, mother and son battle the elements and make what must be a four mile trek out to their car. It seems for the holidays The Mall annexed property in the next county to accommodate the hordes of shoppers. Having procured the WORST possible parking spot in the whole lot, tired mom sits in her seat and starts the car. She kicks the heat up all the way hoping to restore the feeling in her frozen toes before making the drive home, when 9 year old son in backseat says, "Uh oh, Mom. There's a problem." Nothing good can come of this! She begins praying for something simple like frostbitten fingers or a frozen seatbelt buckle. But alas, something far worse! When looking at a receipt The Boy notices that the Hallmark shop accidentally forgot to charge him for a $1.95 Troll he bought for his sister.

The conflict...9 year old son wishes to return to the Mall to rectify the situation. Near crazed mom wants to drive away fast and never look back! What to do?

At this point two axioms wrestle in the mother's thoughts. First, "Actions speak louder than words", and second, "Do as I say, not as I do". This is the type of moral quandary we face everyday as parents. We wish to teach our children to do the right thing...to be honest, to be fair, to take turns, to be compassionate, and to live by the "Golden Rule". Trouble is, as time goes by, rationalization has infiltrated our own personal values and our actions are often in direct conflict with the lessons we wish to instill in our own children. Mom's internal value system can easily identify the absurdity of tromping through the snow yet again for a measly $2.00. She can rationalize that someone, somewhere this week probably overcharged her by $2.00 so, in the long run, it all evens out. When faced with the Artic conditions, distraught mom wonders if it isn't time the child learned the nuances of honesty.

But there he sits, receipt in hand, with his integrity still intact. So, going against every survival instinct the mother possess, she turns, looks at the imploring eyes of her 9 year old son and says as enthusiastically as she possibly can, "Glad you caught that. Okay, let's go!" And back they tromp...through what has now escalated into a full fledge blizzard, to right a wrong. The salesgirl at the counter is not impressed. Her manager is standing behind her frowning. She'll undoubtedly be reamed later for her carelessness. Plus, the salesgirl is clueless as to how to fix this situation. Increasingly annoyed manager asks her to step aside as she takes over the transaction. The line behind them is getting ugly. Mom can feel their stares boring through her skull. No one is applauding her actions. No one is congratulating the boy for his profound honesty.

But, as Mom bundles up yet again to make their way back out to the car, SHE is proud; proud of her son, and yes, proud of herself. Sure, someday the son will start making his own rationalizations, but not on her watch. As long as she has anything to do with it she will encourage his moral behavior. She will also humbly learn from it!

Our children need us to be the people we hope they become. Although daunting at times, and near impossible at others, it is the gauntlet that challenges us to be our best!

The other day I saw the most adorable wee stockings at Little Cotton Rabbits. If you've never been to Little Cotton Rabbits, you are in for a real treat. Julie Williams is a gifted designer and knitter. She makes the most a.dor.able little creatures that she sells. The demand for her work far exceeds her ability to keep up, so periodically, she announces that she has a new gaggle of lovelies to sell, and you can place a comment, hoping that her random drawings will give you the privilege to purchase one of her creations. When you look around here blog, you will understand why her work is so highly sought after!  To learn more about Little Cotton Rabbits, visit her SHOP and her BLOG.

Now, onto my Gnome Christmas Stockings. I saw no reason to reinvent the wheel, and decide to use the pattern for Mini Christmas Stockings Julie graciously shared. The pattern is available HERE. These are the only changes I made:

I used a single ply yarn instead of a worsted yarn. I had some beautiful Mini Mochi Rainbow yarn (it is Crystal Palace - Mini Mochi, #101 - Intense Rainbow) that I had left over from a pair of Rainbow Mittens I knit last year.

Then, I used size 1US (2.25mm) dpn needles, instead of the size 2US (2.75mm) called for in the pattern.  Finally, instead of adding a pattern to the stockings (Fairisle, zig-zag or trees are available), I simple continued the stockinette stitch through the patterned section, and let Mini Mochi's natural striping do the work for me!

And, there you have it!

Although Mini Mochi is a washable wool, using warm water, dish soap, agitation, and a tumble through the dryer, I was able to felt the stockings to make them even smaller. The only thing left to do was to add a loop for hanging the stockings.

I really wish to thank Julie Williams for sharing this adorable pattern. Because she knits the stockings flat instead of in the round, even beginners should be able to work this pattern, although using the small needles can be a little more awkward.

You have a little over 1 week to until the gnomes will need stockings. Collect up some scrap yarn, and get knitting :)

Photos - 12-5-12

I've had many requests for photos of our winter gnome house. I still need to get our Starry Night silk draped behind it and add lots of snow... aka... cotton balls! Of course, I can almost guarantee you that somewhere between now and Christmas, I'll make something new for the gnome's holiday celebration... I always do!

The first thing I do whenever I change out the season is to clean and polish the wood. This is one of my favorite things to do!

Many of the gnomes and furnishings shown here are shared as tutorials. Check out our Gnome Home offerings in our Gallery. A few of the items are also shown in our toy section.

BTW... If you have a blog and have featured photos of your holiday gnome home, please feel free to share a link. I'll try to remember to post a photo when our gnome home is all done :)

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Copyright © Wee Folk Art 2008 - 2012. All rights reserved.
 

Photos 12-5-12

The other day on Facebook I shared a link to a posting for handmade Christmas cards on Back to the Drawing Board. The designer made a landscape using tissue paper trees, had them reduced and photo coped, then used them to make some awesome Christmas cards. Do check out her project. I thought the inside of her trees was especially clever!

We loved the bright and cheerful trees so much that we used the idea to make pictures of our own to display throughout the winter. We began by taping our water color paper to the table. This stops the paper from moving around and creates a border around your picture when the tape is removed. We used this same technique when we made our Winter Birch Trees last year.

After the paper was taped down, we used water colors to paint the sky blue, fading it into white. 

Next, we chose our tissue paper colors and cut them into squares.

We then smeared glue stick on cardstock paper, and added the squares in random patterns.

When the pages were dried, we turned them over and drew very geometrical triangles on the back, and cut out our trees. This was a joint project. We only made 2 pictures, one for Michelle's and one for my house. Usually the wee ones make their own projects, but it was fun working cooperatively on this project :) Together we decided on the placement of the trees and glued them down.

Funny, as it turns out, their favorite part of this whole project was using the hole punch to "make snow". Even though their hands got tired, they were delighted they could make these perfect little circles. Pixie, btw, preferred to make crescent moon shapes by punching overlapping holes :) (BTW... As soon as we were done, Fairy went to a 5 hour final dress rehearsal for the production The Nutcracker that she will be dancing in, as a cute mouse, this weekend. She needed her hair braided and pinned close to her head so all of her hair would fit under her costumes hood! Doesn't she look like she fell out of the pages of Heidi :)

Finally, we added dots of glue to our trees, and glued down the snow. All done! (Note: the artist at Back to the Drawing Board added detail using a thin tipped marker. We opted not to add this detail.

Then, wah lah! Our Winter Tissue Paper Trees were done! They will add a cheerful addition to our homes throughout the winter months. They remind me of Eric Carle illustrations. Fun!

PS... Thank you, Pam, for the inspiration your project gave us!

Photo 12-6-12
 

Pixie and Fairy wanted to sew some Christmas ornaments for gifts. They had been busy making German Stars, but they love hand sewing so I made this gingerbread man for them. I decided to make it one of our 6" x 6" applique blocks, and use the pattern to make ornaments. Although the pattern can be enlarged or reduced to meet your needs, we will probably make ornaments this size. If you wish to make ornaments, just cut 2 of the bodies, applique the front piece using the directions below, then sew the front and back together, using a running stitch. Leave a opening and lightly stuff the ornament, then finish sewing up the side. Simply add a loop at the top, using 6 strands of floss, and it will be ready to hang on a tree!

BTW... use our "clothing" as a suggestion. You can easily change his outfit or add different embroidery stitches. Just think of this as a starting point :)

The pattern for the Gingerbread Man Applique Block can be found HERE.

The tutorial on How to Enlarge and Reduce can be found HERE.

The tutorial on How to Cut Out Felt can be found HERE.

The Stitching Glossary can be found HERE.

Directions:
Refer to pattern and photo for applique placements and cutting instructions.

Make a copy of the pattern.

Cut out felt using material list above and pattern. Transfer any embroidery markings.

Using a running stitch, sew cookie to block using 2 strands floss

Using a blanket stitch, sew icing to cookie using 3 strands floss.

Using a running stitch, sew vest to icing at shoulders, arms and sides using 2 strands floss.

Using a blanket stitch, sew vest neckline and bottom edge to icing using 6 strands floss.

Using a stem stitch, embroider a line up the middle of the vest using 6 strands floss.

Using straight stitches, add detail to vest using 6 strands floss.

Using a running stitch, sew bow tie to icing using 2 strands floss.

Using a straight stitch, add detail to bow tie using 6 strands floss.

Using a stem stitch, add detail to arms and legs using 6 strands floss.

Using a back stitch, add mouth using 3 strands floss.

Using a woven spider wheel, add eyes using 6 strands floss.
 

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Copyright © Wee Folk Art 2008 - 2012. All rights reserved.

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PHOTO: 6-14-11