Halloween Lantern Bag

My granddaughter designed this Halloween bag--it's more like a Halloween lantern bag for a fairy--it turned out a bit too small for a candy bag, but still if this gets full of candy, isn't that enough?!

She wanted the willow round to be sewn to the outside...

and colored lights to be sewn on the inside! 

Zombie Wedding Party

We watched as four young beautiful people turned into gruesome zombies--here at my home last night!!  Both my granddaughter and I had dreams about zombies!

My son and daughter-in-law, the bride and groom zombies with their bride's maid and best man.  Great costumes and lots of fun to help out in their transformation!   We were wondering though--how does a zombie become a zombie?  Is it by getting bit by a zombie?  They eat brains..does a dead person with their brains eaten, then become one?  This was our discussion at dinner--at least these zombies were well feed.

Willow Rounds

Here's a few things I've been doing with the willow rounds that I made awhile back...

So sad to say that our bunny's untimely escape in the night ended badly--we used one of the rounds to make a hay wreath to guide the bunny's spirit back to the safety of the garden.

A dream catcher...

and a project in the making for Halloween.

Four Leaf Clover

My daughter sent this huge four leaf clover from Humboldt--it got pressed in the mail, but was folded in half--I was able to successfully unfold it and put it between two pieces of plexiglass.  Yes, I Photoshopped this picture for the fun of it!

Washing Feathers on a Wet Day

Feathers I found just this morning on the way to and from the bus stop.

Rabbit Hole

This bunny can burrow!  I couldn't feel the end of this tunnel!  She's constantly shifting dirt around--I had to fill this in--her house was shifting--I hate to undo all her hard work, but she'll find another spot.

Willow Rounds

I twisted some fresh willow branches into circles--I have them drying, hoping they'll keep the round shape.  Can you guess what I'm going to make with these?  Take a wild willow guess!

On Beyond Portfolios

Oh no..here I go.  I had to think about how these portfolios would be kept in the classroom and if I could make it easier to file the children's artwork away.  I'm not sure, but I might have just made filing a whole lot harder?!  
I made this portfolio holder from foam core, strung an elastic through the eyelets that I set into the corners of the portfolios.  I strung them in hopes that they would all stay together and not slip on down to the bottom of the holder--I still have to figure out a flap or something to close it a bit tight, so the holder can stand?---and then little tabs on each folder with the child's name for filing ease?  Please stop me...
The major flaw in this design is that you can't pull out any individual portfolio!!  You'd have to untie the bead and pull out the elastics, then re-thread the whole thing!  This is a major, major flaw!  I should have stopped there, having seen the obvious major flaw, but I pressed on--go figure!  Another flaw is that the children's portfolio cover designs are now hidden!  But, most likely they would be hidden anyway, since these would have to be stacked one way or another, so this is a minor flaw. 
This whole endeavor was full of indecisions--so much so, that I had one of those dreams where nothing could be found:  I couldn't find a rest room and my bathing suit--I was last to leave in a water race without my bathing suit and I didn't wrap up the required gift.

Well, I'm wrapping this one up!

Really--if this system doesn't work out, then it can easily be undone and the individual portfolios will have eyelets and a name tab--no harm done--no big deal--I'm putting this behind me--now!
Oh--and it doesn't stand on its own, but does work well against a wall--OK--now! 

Portfolios

We made art portfolios in my granddaughter's third grade class.  I prefolded the tops and sides for the children to glue.  We folded them in half, painted on one side, refolded and rubbed for a simple print.  The next week, using a black marker and crayons, they drew into the print to create the image or images they found in their prints.

Now to slowly fill these up!

First Rain of the Season

I got wet...

trying to keep the bunny and its new house dry!
Bunny update:
She has now spent two nights in her house--it works!--but I have yet to let her out of the garden area

A Bunny House

I made this bunny house--it took awhile since I used an old hand saw.  The wood was kind of old too, so I painted it all over with some old paint--the flap door is from an old outdoor rug.  (using some old things to make something new--I felt like a little kid making a clubhouse)  My plan is to make a snug house ready for the bunny to stay outside during the night.  I'm hopefully thinking that it could run free during the day, and it would happily hop back to its house when the sun goes down, then all I'd have to do is close the garden gate in the evening?  Well, it's worth a try...

I made it to fit on top of an old cooler that I had sunk into the ground a few years ago for an extra planter.  The planter idea didn't work out, so I emptied the dirt, put in a cushiony layer of wood chips and pine needles, topped that with the bunny house or bunny extension walls...

Then topped that with an old boogie board and heavy rocks--should work!  I'd live there if I were small enough!  My plan is dashed though, because once again the bunny is loose!  I planned on giving the bunny a few days to get used to this new house--maybe have it out during the night to see if she'd venture inside her new house--keep her caged until she's comfortable with it.  Now, I've got to catch her first--rats!

The Morro Bay Harbor Festival, 2012

A short dance recital at the Harbor Festival in Morro Bay--then a walk around to see the sights on a beautiful sunny Saturday...

There was a creepy puppet show going on in her skirt--she sang and the puppets would bob around--she did have a nice voice though!

Crazy vine lady on stilts--she moved very slowly and would creep an arm around you if you stood close for a picture--she had the best face for this costume!

A Small Wreath in Honor of the Blue Sky

Hummingbird II

Another hummingbird, another warm day--another Photoshopped picture taken from my kitchen window.

Hummingbird

No, not a painting--just Photoshop--taken at my kitchen window on this hot day for Morro Bay.