Arts in the Alley

 If you're local, there's another Arts in the Alley this Thursday in the alley next to Besso's. I'm having a bit of clearance sale on my plush toys. Whose idea was it to make a bunch of large crocodiles in my tiny studio, anyway?

Doughnuts, gob style

I've been experimenting with the Artisan Bread in 5 minutes A Day book all summer.  The texture of the bread, and the rise all work out so beautifully.  I still seem to be struggling a bit with getting the same yeasty flavor, but I'm persevering because this method is so so practical.

I was reading my old Beard on Bread the other day looking for a doughnut recipe because my kids are really into doughnuts right now.  I noticed the recipe for Dough Gobs, which is essentially fried bread dough.  He says traditionally mothers would take a bit of the dough they had left to rise over night, fry it and serve it with maple syrup for breakfast.  I love the old-timey practicality of this and though it would work nicely with the 5 Minutes dough made from their master recipe that I already had in the refrigerator. 

These are half wheat and rolled in powdered sugar.  I fried mine in coconut oil, partially because I love the sweet flavor of it, and partially to make myself not feel so bad about serving my kids fried bread for breakfast.  I thought they turned out excellent, and went nicely with strawberries.  I see lots of serving variations in my future (cinnammon, chocolate, raspberry sauce?)   Plus, I like that I can serve them to my vegan friends, too, because they're nice to have around.

Hmm, I think I'm going to go make some now...

Science-y Preschool Stuff (spoiler alert)

We finished our letter-a-week series this summer.  L really enjoyed school time, but my enthusiasm kind of petered out in the summer.  We took some time off for summer, but since this fall is going to be so busy, I really want to make school time with my kids a priority.  I'm eager to get back into a little morning home school routine.  (Who knew I needed routine so much?) 

I'm going to take advantage of some of the great ideas by others in the craft community.  We'll focus on natural science and art activities, but I'm also excited to start working on reading using Bob Books.  With the heat, we've stayed indoors this summer, so I plan to do plenty of outside projects in the fall.

Below is a loose plan of what we're doing this fall (I may not get to all of it).  Most of the crafty links come via Crafty Crow, projects in red are from Preschool Art,  and I'll be using my Nature Walk coloring pages as they relate to what we're doing.  I've also been using a lot of constructive play ideas from The Creative Family.    I have enough ideas to do 1 or 2 projects each week, with daily reading, coloring, and constructive play time.  I have no idea if this is an ambitious or lazy plan, so we'll see how it goes.  And this is a total spoiler for blog posts in the months ahead. :)

August/September: Bugs and Plants 

• Identify and frame the pressed flowers we collected this year 
• Set up a permanent Nature Shelf 
• Butterfly life cycle coloring page
• Observe at our Butterfly Feeder,
• then create a Paper Butterfly collection 
• Make Rock Bugs 
• Plant small plants for gifts 
• Make Leaf Pictures 
• Nature Walk coloring pages of bugs and plants

October: Light and Time

• Make Sunbonnets, p. 193
• Make a Sunflower Sun Dial to show how the sun relates to time
• This awesome Hour glass project to talk about measuring time 
• Draw Shadows, p. 235 
• Make Sand Candles to light at dinner
• Make Tin Can Lanterns to enjoy all fall
• Stargazing with Constellation Cards 
• Negative Space Drawings, p. 100

November: Water and Wind

• Solids, Liquids, and Gases coloring page and game, by me 
• Brick Making and Building, p. 244 - 245
• Peanut Butter Play Dough, p. 46
• Paper Boats from Whip up Action pack 
• Baths and Washing Harry the Dirty Dog 
• A found object Wind Chime 
• Making wind visible with Giant Bubbles 
• Paper Bag Kite, p. 251

December: Colors and the holidays

• Reading with Scrappy Collage Letters 
• Mostly for me, because I love Thaumatropes 
• Probably dangerous, but Homemade finger paint 
• Weave with yarn and fabric scraps,  p. 88 
• Make gifts and thank you cards
• Give away some of our excess toys

What do you do with your preschoolers at home?

What I Did on My Summer Vacation

I always think I'll have more time in the summer than usual, but somehow the time still fills up with lots of stuff.  We did a fair amount of summery things, of course.  Like:

bird watching

looking up bugs in our Golden Guides

adopting yet another kitten

baking bread

and finishing the alphabet.

I wanted to devote plenty of time to sewing for my book, which I was able to do.  But also, I wanted to just be with my family and spend a little time reflecting on the whirlwind year we've had with some very big ups and downs.  Its always nice to slow down sometimes and clear a little space in your head.

But NOW, I'm excited about the fall and a regular schedule again. We Wilsons have a lot going on this fall: I may be working part time, approaching some deadlines for my book, and if all works out as planned, we'll be building our house and moving in the fall!  Doesn't this look like a lovely house spot at the end of a long driveway?  I think so.  :)

 

So now I'm battling the distraction of all the lovely design websites and imagining the way I'll set up the furniture in my new studio.  My theme this fall:  time management!  What are you looking forward to this fall?

Glazed Acorn Squash with Onions

Hello, friends!

This summer my newest love is Squash. Yes, who knew? You did, I guess, but not me. I was a picky eater as a kid, so certain vegetables are only just entering my diet. We picked up a friends CSA for a week, and necessity being the mother of invention and all... Here's my new favorite recipe - it's yummy.

The recipe calls for acorn squash, but I started with patty pans, and I think it would work with many kinds [ahem*] of squash.  Cut them in half and scoop out the seeds. 

Bake 35 minutes at 350º cut side down.

Meanwhile mix:
1/2 cup almonds or walnuts
1/2 cup onions
2 TBSPs margarine or butter
2 TBSP maple syrup
Dash of salt and cinammon

After 35 minutes, turn the squash over, fill with filling, and bake 25 minutes more.  That's it!  It bakes a while, but it is pretty easy to put together, and the result is a veggie dish that definitely works as a main dish rather than a side.  And did I say, it's yummy?  

I also found some exciting things to do with Butternut Squash - like these pasties.  Give it a go, you won't regret it. 

*okay, you got me.  The big one is a cucumber.  That was a surprise. I'd stick with the squash.  :)

Kids' Crafternoon winners!

I was sketching out a new large pattern on a roll of wrapping paper this morning.  Which, of course, the girls found irresistible, and long story short - there is now wads of pink wrapping paper all over my living room.  I decided to go with it, and write the names of all the commenters on scraps of this lovely paper.  The girls each drew a name out of the hat. 

festive picture from the archives,

i.e. not what my living room looks like today

L drew Jennifer, and J drew Polly!  I'll be emailing the winners directly to get the Sewing and Papercraft books in the mail!

InchWorm Pattern and Give Away

Happy Summer!  I'm officially back, and what a way to come back!  A give-away below, and still one day left to enter the drawing for the Kid's Crafternoon books (enter here).

I've been sewing all kinds of new designs this year, but I just can't tell you about them yet (I say through gritted teeth).  I wish I could, it's much more fun.  So, when I had an idea that wasn't a good fit for the book, I was quite excited to put it together for you guys, here and now.  So here it is!

This little inchworm is quickly becoming one of my favorite toys.  He's pretty easy to sew and darn cute - but the way he moves?!  Be still my heart.  I can't get enough of perfecting my inching abilities.

I've been wanting to make an inchworm for so long, but couldn't figure out how to make him move.  As usual, the solution was pretty simple - it's all about the filling.  And the best part is seeing how the different fabrics move in slightly different ways.  Am I going on too much about this?  Have a look for yourself.



So, here you go, limited time give-away - he's available for download right here until Thursday morning whenever I roll out of bed. (Updated: the give away is now over!) Please, please, make some inchworms and show them to me!  After the give away, you can find the pattern in the shop along with a few of the inchworms themselves.

On Princesses, and other things

With little girls, I find myself in unfamiliar territory, surrounded by princess language and costumes.  Thankfully, my girls aren't too heavy on pink and glitter, but they do love to wear tutus, dresses, and crowns and be Princesses.  I guess it's unavoidable.

I've spent hours looking for girl heroes - not girls who are rescued or kissed, but girls who do heroic things.  I finally realized that I wasn't finding what I was looking for, because I was looking for girls filling the role of boy heroes - acting aggressively and violently.  Of course, girls can do those things, too, but in most traditional stories they don't.  So, I finally realized I needed to redefine for myself what a girl hero is.   

You already know I love the legend of George and the Dragon.  Here's one version:

A town was held captive by a dragon.  The people tried to appease the dragon with sheep, but one day they ran out of livestock.  With no other options, the princess Elizabeth went out to the dragon as a sacrifice for her people.  Before the dragon could take her, however, St. George appeared and wounded the dragon.  Then, George took Elizabeth's sash and tied it around the dragon's neck, now a tame beast.  Elizabeth took the leash and lead him back into the city, where the people cared for their former enemy. 

 St. George is the hero of the story.  It's true.  But, I'm finding I love the role the princess plays too.  She is brave and self-sacrificing.  She didn't have the strength or swordsmanship to rid her people of the dragon.  But she gave what she had - herself.  And that is a heroic act.

 I also love, in this version, that George doesn't kill the dragon.  He wounds and tames it.  I could write a whole post about how beautiful and redemptive the transformation of the dragon is - but there's more about the princess.  George ties her sash around his neck, and she leads him home where the people care for him.  Nurturing is a thankless task at times, but when someone depends upon it, like a wounded dragon, that's heroic, too.

I made L a little Princess (and a whole series of George and Dragon brooches, too).  As she watched me sew the other night, I told her this story.  Later, I heard her retelling it to John.  That was priceless.

I recently stumbled across this beautifully illustrated children's book about the version of George and the Dragon that I love so much.  In this post, the author Jim Forest beautifully explains how true stories turn into legends and myths, even within Christianity.   I love the way people have always used stories to talk about beautiful and true things.  Isn't that just what art is?  What a beautiful thing to give to our children.  It looks like you can pre-order the book here. 

I'd love to hear about your favorite female heroes.  My sister has talked about princesses some, too.   I'll link to it if I can find it...Here it is! She's excellent.

Kids' Crafternoon: Paper Curtains and Free Books!

I'm thrilled to be participating in the Kid's Crafternoon blog party! By now you already know, Kathreen put together the Crafternoon series, and the first two books Kids' Crafternoon Sewing and Kids' Crafternoon Papercraft are just out! Each book is full of craft projects that kids can do mostly unassisted in an afternoon, hence Kid's Crafternoon! I contributed a little Pencil Pouch project to the Sewing book, and I adore how they styled in in the book.  Isn't this cool?

The sewing book is full of such clever ideas, perfect for kids in the 7-12 range.  My girls are a bit younger, but I knew they'd enjoy making one of the projects from the Papercraft book with me.  We decided to try the Paper Raindrops Curtain by the lovely Khali Whatley.   My girls love to hang out the window to wave goodbye and hello to anyone coming or going, so I knew they'd really dig this.   

I love the sweetly illustrated instructions, and printed templates are always excellent, but they are especially good for kid's projects.   It was super easy to jump right into the project.  I did all the cutting, but the girls picked out the colors and helped me glue them together.  We were all tickled with how cool it turned out, and even the little one pronounced it "beautiful!"  The girls eagerly waited for Daddy to come home so that they could wave at them through the clouds!

Hardie Grant was kind enough to give me a copy of each book to give away to one of you!  To enter the give-away, tell me in the comments which book you'd most like, and who you'd like to spend a crafternoon with!  Two winners will each get one book.  Be sure to comment with an account where I can contact you.  Winners will be announced on August 2.

Also, if you get the chance, follow along with the rest of the blog party to see more projects from these excellent books, and more chances to win a book:

July22, Poppytalk - July23,  Picklebums - July 24, Little Eco Footprints - July 25, Beaspoke quilts - July 26, Maya Made - July 27, Checkout girl - July 28, The red thread - July 29, We Wilsons - July 30, Maggie Makes - July 31, Mmm Crafts - August 1, Domesticali - August 2, Floating Ink - August 3, Elizabeth Abernathy - August 4, Mommy Coddle - August 5, The Long Thread - August 6, Hannah Fletcher - August 7, Between the lines - August 8, Go Make Me

Coming soon...

Just popping in to tell you about the new Kid's Crafternoon series edited by Kathreen, just released this month and available on Amazon now.  I contributed this Pencil Pouch project to the sewing book. 

I just got my copy of both the Sewing and the Papercraft book - and let me just say, they're pretty cool!  I'll be participating in a blog tour at the end of the month - which may involve a give away (wink, wink).  So be sure to check it out. 

I'll be resuming regular blogging in August, and I'm going to try to squeeze as much summer fun into the rest of the month as I can!  Hope you can do the same.