Sunday, February 28, 2010

Mother Bear Teddy Bears!

These little teddies are hand knit from a pattern i bought from The Mother Bear Knitting Project

This is an organization that sells a teddy bear pattern you can either knit or crochet, and then when the bear is made you can send it back to the organization where they ship out the bears to children in Africa who are suffering from HIV and Aids. My friend Melissa has crocheted many many bears and has sent them out to many children in Africa, and has actually seen pictures of the children hugging the bears she has made!

When i knit the bears i like to deviate from the pattern a bit and add a shaped muzzle and sometimes buttons and beads, and sell them in my daughter's shop, The Paper Sparrow. When i do sell a bear, i donate $10.00 to The Mother Bear Project so they can put that money where they most need it...
It really is a wonderful organization. I hope you take some time to check it out.

And if you'd like to help, these three little bears will be for sale in my Etsy shop just waiting for someone to love them. They have plastic safety eyes, so i would not recommend them for babies, but they are super soft and squishy and would make an older child a really nice friend....

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Hunny Bunnies

Spring is coming and so are the bunnies! Here are two new patterns i have tried just in time for Spring and Easter!
Both are bunnies, and both so different!This little guy is a pattern i got from a wonderful blog/shop called Twinsknit He is an amigurumi style bunny and super easy and fast to knit up. The good folks at Twinsknit are chock full of wonderful patterns and are ok with the sale of any finished toys made from their patterns... I LOVE their easy to follow instructions and bought a few patterns with intentions of buying many more!
And i am happy with the way this guy turned out...He was also surprisingly easy to knit up and is much more sophisticated than most of my other projects so far. You can also buy this pattern from Barbara Prime of Fuzzy Mitten in her Etsy shop. Barbara is also amazingly generous with her policies about selling toys made from her patterns, and even sharing the patterns with friends and families. You can read about her pattern policies here.
Anyway, both of these bunnies will be available either in my Etsy shop, or my daughter's brick and mortar shop, The Paper Sparrow in downtown Troy, NY. I'm working on yet another bunny pattern i bought from Twinsknit and i'll be posting that as soon as i finish her...
Oh i am having so much fun playing with all these knitted and crocheted toys!

Friday, February 19, 2010

It's Spring Again! (Inside the house anyway...)


My orchids are in full bloom. This one my son in law Ben picked out for me a few years ago for Mother's Day...

and this one my daughter Kate picked out the year before, again for Mother's Day. Thanks kids! They are the gifts that keep on giving!


Oddly, my Christmas cactus are just blooming now. More pictures to follow as i have several colors getting ready to bloom.

more orchid goodness...





and my African Violets are also blooming. These were my Grandmother Mary's favorite houseplants. They were like her children and every windowsill was loaded with them in their little pots. Every time one of mine blooms, it's like a visit from my Gram...


So, even tho Spring is still a month or more away(and i consider the slightest sign of Spring to be the first real day of Spring!) I can dream about it in my little house. Time to make plans for the gardens!

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

And then there were five....

It was right after we rescued that poor little frozen stray poodle off the street, that i started thinking that maybe....just maybe, i COULD have five dogs.... I mean, i felt so responsible for that poor little dog, and he was small and wouldn't take up much space, and yes, i would have to work out the fact that he would be older and might not like being chased by a dog eating parrot, but maybe we could work that problem out with time... After a lot of soul searching and worry, i had decided that i would go to the shelter and visit with that little guy and see if i thought it would work. That was Thursday evening...Friday morning he was adopted. I have to admit i was both disappointed and relieved...Then, that same morning i got an email from my niece, who had adopted Ruben's sister. She had decided that she needed to find a new home for her puppy, Little Honey, and did i know anyone who wanted a puppy??? Without even thinking i said yes! I could definitely help her out!

Meet Little Honey...our new puppy... She is much smaller than her brother Rubie, and has more of a terrier personality than he does (Rubie is very laid back) but after just 24 hours of going from a home with two small boys and no dogs, to a home with no small boys and 4 dogs, she is adjusting and doing just fine!

She is learning so much from the pack here...
Meal time is interesting. I could use another hand to pass out the food bowls...

Here's a picture of Little Honey and Rubie standing next to each other so you can see the size difference. It's not a very good shot but at least it's not blurry. They play constantly with each other and the group...

Little Honey is learning how to share food from the community dry food bowl, to play doggie tug of war, and to fetch the balls i throw for the dogs every morning. And even tho there are more puddles to clean up around here, there is also more love.... Better photos and updates to come!

Monday, February 15, 2010

Aunt Millie's Bear

My Aunt Millie ( well, really my Dad's Aunt Millie, so she's my Great Aunt...wow!) collects dolls. She asked me to make her a teddy bear a while back and i guess i forgot, until she reminded me. (Aunt Millie may be a tiny little thing, but her size is deceiving...she's a powerhouse!) So i thought this would be a perfect time to try out making a jointed bear using thread and buttons for joints.
I knit him out of natural, undyed white wool. As you can see, i need to work at this, but practice will make me better at this i am sure...And maybe i should use a little less stuffing...Look at the belly on this guy!

Saturday, February 13, 2010

The Littlest Mermaid

Look at this sweet thing...I could not resist her as she reminds me of my Lola with a tail! I love mermaids, and well, you know how i feel about Lola!

I found her at Andy's Rascals on Etsy, and i will be collecting many of her pieces....Check her out!

Friday, February 12, 2010

New Rosaries

Every since i was a little girl i've had a fascination with rosaries and any kind of prayer beads

i used to go to religious education and i loved the nuns in their habits and gowns
and the big rosaries they wore at their waist

i loved the sounds the rosaries made when they would walk by me

And now i love to pray and meditate with my own rosaries and malas

and i totally enjoy making them...

It feels to me like all the while i am bending the wire and selecting the beads

that action is a form of prayer too...

I'll be making more rosaries in the next few days and putting them in my Etsy shop

(The green rosary is SOLD and proceeds sent to Haiti Relief! Thank You!)
The proceeds from the sale of the pocket rosaries will be donated to the Haiti Disaster Relief Fund thru ChildFund International

If you'd like a rosary in a certain color, please write and let me know and i may be able to make one especially for you or a loved one...

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

The Little Mommy

Lola's dolly cries until she picks her up and hugs and rocks her

i am hopelessly in love...

Monday, February 8, 2010

January Crafts

Sometimes it seem that i am not getting anything done around here

But when i line up all the projects like this

Wow! I've been busy!

Friday, February 5, 2010

The Little Rescue...

Here's a picture of the little poodle we rescued on that frigid cold day last week. He was confused, caked with dirt, burrs and ice, and wandering on an very busy street in my city of Cohoes. My sister and i caught him, wrapped him in her sweat jacket and brought him to our groomer Chiloe from The Animal House. She was very kind and had him put in a tub of warm soapy water so John could bathe him and then blow his fur dry. He has been sitting at the shelter all week, but not a soul has come to inquire about him or claim him, so i guess he will go up for adoption. Chiloe, our groomer who does free grooming for the Mohawk and Hudson Humane Society, groomed him today and cut away lots of the fur you see in this photo. She said he is very sweet, but a bit timid. They estimate he is about 10 years old and has very bad teeth... Still...i wonder if he would like to live here? Would he get along with my dogs, cat and parrot? Could i manage 5 dogs???

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Beary Sweet!

These two little Sister Bears are made with love as a special order for my friend Laura

They are wearing bows around their necks today but are traveling with their warm Winter scarves, just in case they need them. They will also each be wearing a little necklace too... All girls love accessories!
The little bears are headed to my Etsy shop for Laura's approval and off they will go to meet their new friends in California! Enjoy the warm sun girls!