Itty bitty

The tutu fairy heard has a friendly couple living across the street that's expecting another baby. They were hoping for a boy. Today, they found out more pink is in their future....



Although still thrilled, the fairy thought this might help amp up the excitement for another girl babe.

It's an itty-bitty version of my other tutus. Just what every unborn baby girl needs, eh?

Reversible skirt

Just playing around with an idea for my gal and nieces. A reversible skirt that can be worn with a simple tutu beneath.
It turned out pretty cutely.

Photos turned out worse than that. I very much wanted to jazz up her hair, & insert a shirt that went with the "look." But, then I thought. "Ah, hell. Why bother?"



If you close your left eye, squint your right eye, and look out the side of your head - you can .ALMOST. see it, right?



If I'd had the foresight - I would have skipped this mess of a photo session, headed straight outside, and waited 2.6 minutes before pulling out the camera. By that time, she would have been sitting in the rainwater puddle and I would have caught a much better shot. She may have been sopping wet, but at least she wouldn't be a blur of highpitched bed-headed giggles.



Ah, but really...this RUN from the camera game is SO much fun!!!
It. just. never. gets. old.
......sigh......

A beautiful mess.

This is what became of the material Kenzie painted today (while I was graced with an exceptionally pleasant nap.)



The dried paint on the fabric adds such a neat dimension and makes it stiff and easy to sew on. I remember briefly thinking yesterday while working on the lion -- "oh god, please no. please don't ruin all the fabric too." But, immediately after I started putting the piece together, this type of thing started building itself in my mind. I could just -go nuts- on this particular idea.

My husband came home early from work, and I mentioned that it would be super fun to illustrate a children's book this way. Or to have a mother daughter art show. We were kidding.
(kind of).

I also decided that the artwork we end up with from this type of thing might be used to fill the walls of the very boring laundry room. The laundry room is actually attached to a bathroom downstairs and the door stands open much of the time, to allow window light in. I may paint the room, as I intend to do...and then layer all these little artworks upon the walls in there.

Closer:

Reasons....

Reason #324569087.25 why I love this man:



Is that he'll help me dismantle flowers so I can make tutus.
Without. Complaint.
I found a supplier of bulk petals, but I still dismantle many different styles myself - so that the skirts are chock full of special tidbits making them unique. It takes HOURS to take all the freaking petals apart. (even with his help). But, we like doing it sitting on our butts in front of the TV.

Reason #4092872.999 why I love this child:



Is that she can make me laugh - even after I squeeze too hard on an old bottle of paint, explode the top off of it, and douse the entire room in blue paint. Um, yes, this did concern me greatly. But, her reaction to my stress had me in fits of giggles. You can see half a bottle of paint on the sheet of paper, splattered across her shirt, forehead, & arm. What you can't see is that it flicked little droplets all the way up into the carpet, my freshly painted walls, the backs of chairs in the great room, etc.
NICE.

Additionally, my child enjoys creativity as much as I do. She insisted on another "Junk-a-doodle" today, so clearly enjoyed the experience yesterday. It's dismal out again, so I took her up on it. This gave me the opportunity to try a new idea out for the place where big and little art meet. She declares the topic. She paints the fabric. I'll take the fabric and arrange it into a scene, using my sewing machine to finish it. It's less child-interactive than our approach yesterday - but, I just want to see what will happen with it.

A happy long weekend to you all. I'm certainly looking forward to it. Mainly because it will include a lot of time with the two sillies I've shown above...

Kenzie's Doodle: Lion in a Flower Jungle

As our first contribution to: the place where little and big art meet. Kenzie announced we'd make: a lion in a flower jungle!
Our pile 'o junk:



(BTW, Bunny was supposed to help. Thankfully, he lost interest in the project moments into it.)



If you like art with kids.... You'll love this. We'll contribute one collaborative piece each week (most likely on Wednesdays, unless there is another rainy day - like today - forecasted, which may require some indoor entertainment.)



Other artworks can be found at: the place where little and big art meet.
A detailed summary of steps we took for this project can be found at: Kenzie's Doodles.

The place where big and Little art meet

I've been whining about not having time aside from tutu creations, to play around with more artful stuff. A wonderful solution fell right into my lap while stalking my usual blogs.

I've enjoyed Holli Conger's Illustration blog for a long, (many years long), while. I adore her style. I bought a piece for a baby shower once - and the whimsy and creativity that jumps off her site(s) is just so inspiring. She started "Woogie Wednesday," a joint art project with her daughter using found "junk" to create an artwork with her gal. I stepped out of stalker mode and mentioned that I'd like to mimic the process with my daughter. I meant it, and was so thrilled when she set up the following:



This morning, Kenzie and I have embarked on our first piece together. Since, it would be inappropriate to use my sewing machine with K, and I was originally a painter....and.... I just envision the junk-a-doodles as being a collaborative process that will actually work for K and I - I've implemented Holli's approach in our own work. Perhaps we'll broaden the scope as we move forward in this, if I can figure out how to do it - safely & sanely.

I've already learned a lot about not selecting too many "junks," how the color pallette narrows as her paints blend together, and how to remain vigilant that my entire breakfast nook doesn't become part of the artwork. I also learned that the phone WILL ring when the two of us are covered in paint. Sigh. I'll finish putting our first contribution together later today, and then will be share it here, there, and practically everywhere.

I may be assuming incorrectly, but this is a !!blast!! and I would think it may be highly appealing to most of you mama's frequenting my blog. Visit: the place where big and little art meet to participate. Directions to sign up - are on the side bar.

Later today, I'll unveil our "lion in a flower jungle." Kenzie's first choice was Strawberry Shortcake (don't know where that came from as we haven't ever watched it, don't have any toys of it, etc. Maybe she meant a slice of cake. I dunno, but was thrilled when she said "No wait. A lion. In a jungle. A flower jungle.")

Well, ok! Let's get started! (before you change your mind!)
...This is gonna be great fun...

Bling.

I'm speaking with another boutique about selling my tutus with them. This little tutu factory keeps evolving on it's own. Did I mention that a friend of mine has been taking some serious torture from me and sewing in the waist bands? I find that part of the tutu making completely mindless and annoying. And, she "says" she doesn't mind it. AwEsOmE.

Anyway - I may be breaking my self imposed rule. I may agree to doing three styles, replicating them, and offering them only at this shop. It's just too hard to do completely fresh photos of each unique tutu on e-retailer shops. So... I'm considering it. And, after this boutique - I'm done. No more. I mean it.

This is a tutu I've made for the shop owner's daughter, Fiona. She asked for a bit of bling, so that's what she gets. I don't believe I've done "bling" before. I'm good at bling.



Anyway - The manic posting frenzy may be coming to a halt for awhile as I play around with tutus. I have already done another few different ones. Scarfs as sashes, itsy bitsy baby ones, etc. The ideas seem to be multiplying at frightening speed. (much speedier than I'm able to achieve them, that is....)

I really meant to head back into some more artful endeavors, rather than drowning myself in tutus. Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Back to the factory.

Clarifications, review, & stuff

To clarify - (for those folks who thought I was a nut-job declaring that tutu as "botched."
The tutu was supposed to have this lovely sort of scalloped bottom. With ribbon ties that cinched it up to as high as the little princess wanted. I put in the cinches, which sucked. Then noted that it looked odd, as the uncinched spots dangled down too far. I then took the machine and permanently pinched in spaces in between, thinking it would be another perfect solution...and much easier. It ended up just being a mess of a cinched bottom - that just doesn't hang like I envisioned it would. It wasn't worth the effort. Not at all. SO - to Kenzie it goes!

I've also wanted to say thanks to the new commenters for the cheerleading. Everybody loves comments, eh? I'd tell you this in person but, those of you with blogger accounts don't seem to be linked to blogs. Anyway.

The sweet Melissa sent me some great pictures of her guy wearing one of my tails. I just love Melissa's words. She's got such a colorful way with them. And, she "reviewed" my tail over here . That was a pleasant surprise. Thanks Melissa.



I think I need to make a "gallery" of kiddos wearing my garb?

Botched.

I thought I had a brilliant idea for a new tutu, but was sorely disappointed with its outcome. No worries - Kenzie loves it. My poor baby - she gets only the botched goods these days. I didn't even give her a sash.



Anyhow, she wore it out bug-hunting. Cuz, that's just what she does. Get's all fancy to jack around in the mud. Sigh.

















And, this would be why I'm always whining about my "model."
She refuses me smiles, unless they are genuine.
She. does. not. pose.
Throws sand way too close to the camerawoman.
Flies around like a looney fairy.
And, she loses rolly-pollies in the tutu mid-photo shoot!

Purging...

In response to that post about the other skirt I made (which I really should have taken a close-up of the trim on that one. It's really the only reason why I couldn't part with it. It's gorgeous!)... Anyway, back to referencing the post: it was the one where I was basically whining, sniffing, and sniveling over the clothes in my closet that don't fit anymore... Andi kindly suggested that I should get over it already.. and clear the closet.

She was right. Shortly after 8:03 a.m. when I read her comment, I plopped my daughter in the big tub for a bath, and while she was playing around the corner, I weeded out about 1/2 of the clothes. I applied the - "if I haven't worn it in the past year it's not staying" rule, without regard to whether it was a size 4, 6, or ahem...my current size.

It was liberating! Although, I am feeling a wee bit twitchy about it - as the bags are still sitting in the garage. Sigh. Most of it was "working girl" clothes, and since I now work in yoga pants, etc. every day - they just aren't worth the extra baggage. Right?? My husband's side of the closet is WAY fuller than mine now. And, for some reason - that just feels so very wrong.

Now. I dunno know why I always want to do this to pants/jeans??? I love skirts. That's probably the root cause. But, every so often I do think..."hmmn. This pair of pants would be better as a skirt." I don't know if it's truly a good thing, but it's a different thing...and so here I go again:



The toddler was swarming me again as I tried to catch myself in a shot. And, the light upstairs was poor. So, I got crazy and stood on an ottoman in front of another mirror. The closer shot... shows better the insanity.



Being a mental health professional and all... I wonder if there is medication for such spontaneous urges to make pants into something they aren't supposed to be?? To avoid another bout with this kind of thing...I think I'll step away from the sewing machine and watch a Netflix movie instead. My husband is away for one more evening...and I best get in a chick-flick. Albeit, whilst wearing my new skirt!

Another happy customer.

pretty teething or tribute to Stacy Dinkel
Originally uploaded by mokulau.

Love this picture of a little gal teething away in one of my tutus. She was the flower girl in a lovely Key West wedding....

Love that bald head! However, I must face it. The kid is waaaaay cuter than the tutu.


And, I have lately decided against posting all the tutu productions here. Get's a bit boring, eh? So, I will share only new styles because the feedback is GOOD. (by the way, thanks for the ideas on my bedroom too. It's gone no where, but I'll share it when I've finished!)

Please join me in a tutu critique:



I picked up these funky sequined elastic belts and really like them as I can attach them in more than one spot to help hold them in place. The sashes are pretty, but they can only be attached in the front, to tie in the back - otherwise, obviously the elastic waist would be useless. I think they can be difficult to tie, come untied, get pulled by ornery brothers, etc.



I've attached the sequin belts to two tutus, and rather like the outcome. A neighbor squealed with glee, so I think that's a good sign. What do you think?? Yay or Nay? They are kind of loud and glitzy, but little gals (sometimes) are too!



I have also become quite fond of stuffing these babies with bits of tulle, rather than the flower petals as the result is so wonderfully POOFY. Too bad this approach makes for very difficult photography. I tend to send most of these to the boutiques, as the effect is just WAY better in person.



In closing - No - I am not on a manic mood swing crafting binge. The husband went with some boy pals to New York and has been away. I tend to have immense difficulty falling asleep (imaginary burglars), so I just sew until I can't hold my eyes open anymore. He'll be back tomorrow, and darn it --even with the burst of productivity -- I have so many things on my to-do list.

Horsey Tail

A fun little - yet highly challenging project - is a horse tail. A gal requested it through Etsy. This is the second version I made, which I'm kinda happy with.



It's for a 2 year old boy. Boys are hard! I could have jazzed it up with ribbons, etc. - but went with the multicolored "hair" instead, to keep it from heading to the girlie side.

Toddler woke up grumpy, refused pants - but by golly I persevered with a picture anyway. This required a candy bribe. Sigh. And she gets the first horse tail attempt by default. What's she got to be grumpy about???

Reinvented skirt

Every once in awhile I start peeking in the closet and feeling forlorn at the clothes I still cannot wear -- 3 YEARS -- after my child was born. Hmnn. Wonder when I'll give up and just clean out the damn closet? Or, decide to do a diet?

Anyway. Sigh. This skirt used to be a really cute tank dress. It's a very, very light silk, which means... it's very, ahem, "telling" when things aren't so slim beneath it. So, I did away with the tank, and made it a skirt.

Perhaps using that iron in the background would be nice. :) And, just look what I had to go through to actually catch a picture of it....
Seriously. As if, taking photos of one's self isn't hard enough???













Sheesh. I even turned the TV on - in effort to distract the little camera hog.

She Loves Being Her Mama...

~::slept in:~:a lawn full of flowers:~:a lovely brunch:~:a wonderful family::~

& I managed to take some good pictures with my offspring.



~::a happy Mother's Day::~

Wishing the same for you...

Soliciting advice..

I've finally finished painting my bedroom and attached office. The main rooms are a light greenish color, with single accent walls in a rich chocolate brown.



The hunt is on for window treatments, french doors, and more wall art, but I'm perplexed. I like nice clean lines, nothing too obnoxious. So, what would you do in this room with window treatments, throw pillows on the bed/chair, etc.?

We just picked up the picture we had framed, yesterday (which is on the wall above the chair, but blurred in the room photo). It's a fingerpainted mess that Kenzie & I did last year. It's really cool in person and we're really pleased with it. BTW, everything is larger than it appears in these photos. The room is large, the bed is large, the armoire is large. It all looks a bit miniature in these pics. Not to mention the colors aren't quite right, but I'm disinterested in trying to photograph it again.



Finally, I'm not opposed to recovering the bench. We bought the comforter because it had all the colors of the bench...but the bench is missing the orange color, and it looks "ok" but not quite right. So, perhaps that's the problem piece that needs to be overhauled along with the addition of the other elements???

I enjoy the styles of so many other bloggers, and am hoping that someone might send me in a direction that will pull this room altogether. I'm almost wondering if solid window panels and throw pillows is the way to keep it serene. But, what color? Or, if there is a fabulous print out there that will blend well, I'm all for it.
Any wise ideas?

Mailed the goods &...

to photograph it. Darn it. I completed a Mother's Day gift for my mom and just dropped it in the mail.
Sigh.

A few days ago, I also mailed a package off to Keet (of Relentless Toil ) in exchange for those great art pieces of my gal, and a friend's gal I showed a while back. I sent two imagilands (one was also previously posted), a tutu, a crown, and some other silliness.



Here's a few photos of the last bits, which I did have the foresight to snap, before dropping at the P.O. This imagiland has little bunnies hidden about it, including behind the greenery. I did create some silly shrinky dink play pieces for imagining about the lands, although plastic animals, etc. will work just fine. Those silly bunnies in this land aren't allowed on a carrot farm, and clearly are ignoring the sign that's posted. This one turned out pretty fun. The roads intersect on both play quilts, so that play can continue from one... right on down into the other. I hope the wee little Maya enjoys them.



I still want to make one more play quilt, but time has been lacking and I wanted to send this collection off - due to the guilt of having my "goods" on a very timely manner. Thanks Keet!! :)

Progress.

Master Bedroom and Office Repaint - DONE!
Swap goodies - DONE!
Giant Tutu order - DONE! {Well, Kinda...I'll send a second shipment later. After the cat munching fiasco, I wanted to get some into the boutique right away, rather than waiting to recreate those tutus that were well...shredded.)

Excuse the bad photo. It's raining AgAiN. And, my new chocolate brown wall was nearest to me and the camera. A brighter scene would make this tutu look more like it does in real life...and probably less shiny. (it's not shiny at all).

Can you spare some reactions to a black tutu? I love it. But, I tend to react to the more unusual children's goods. The boutique requested that I send only one black one, so I have another that I'll add to my Etsy shop once the sun comes out and I can take a decent photo of it. (Please sun!!! Please come back! Not for the tutu. But, for me. I NeeD you!!)



What do you think? To Black Tutu...or not to Black Tutu?? :)

I am desperate to get back to some more artful stuff. Hopefully that's on the agenda next.