In honor of our twittering friends that are finally returning to our yard I made these little birdies for my kids for Easter. They are felted wool stuffed with wool batting with Barry-engineered copper wire feet.  I also got this book.  It has been hiding in my closet and I can’t keep my hands off of it when the kids are in bed.  It is way, way cool.

Snow has been fluttering down here all day, but still thoughts of rebirth and renewal are at the forefront this weekend.  My mind has been so full of mental clutter.  It seems like the “We’re moving” thoughts are bulky and distracting– taking up so much space, sucking up my time in thoughts of getting the oven fixed, researching carpet prices, finding a match to the white paint on our baseboards and doors.  And while these things are necessary and even exciting in their own way I’m excited for tomorrow, the Sabbath, the most important Sabbath.  I am thankful for the time to focus and reflect on what life is really all about.

It seems the things I read, the lessons I learn from my children, the conversations I have with friends, the sad, painful experiences of loved ones in my family highlight so much what this season of rebirth is all about– love.  Pure, selfless love.  Knowing, believing, seeing that we are all of infinite worth, of infinite potential, full of infinite beauty.  That is what Spring teaches us–and that no matter how bleak and gray and cold the winter is, no matter how dark and deep we are buried, there is rebirth.  The little green shoots will poke their heads up again.  Blossoms will bud, meaning fruit will grow.

There is an infinite source of good, of peace, of renewal, of love.  The sun will always rise, there will be warmth and growth, because the Son did rise.

I hope you have a wonderful Easter!

Before it gets too far past Christmas I need to post about some hand made gifts. These are the only thing I managed to get made this year. After seeing Amy’s Aunt Sarah Dolls I’ve had this idea in my head and finally got it out this year.

They are hilarious. I drew the bodies, then had the kids color their own. I just used our printer to copy them onto the injet iron on stuff I found at Hobby Lobby. Simple enough. It did take me quite awhile to get them done, though. I made 4 sets, so that was printing, ironing on, cutting, sewing, stuffing (my mom was visiting, so she actually did that part),and closing up– times 16. Anyway, I don’t think about things that way when I embark on a project, so things always take me longer than I think they will.

I kept a set. It is pretty funny to see Ian chewing on himself!

Remember this guy? I designed him more than a year ago for this book, which came out in November. I just keep forgetting to post about it.

It is full to the brim with plush projects from awesome designers like Rosa and Lizette.

Now in the Spring 2007 issue of Adorn Magazine Heloise the Hexapus is featured! Go ahead and make one, everyone!

Meet Buttercup.

On Brenna’s birthday we spent the day making this little bear. She’s made from a fluffy throw I found at Marshal’s. It is almost too soft to describe. Brenna thought this bear needed to be seen by the internet, so she took her little Buttercup on a photo shoot.

Now Brenna is not the only one in this house that loves to sit in the living room and read ALL DAY LONG

Last night I put my 3-year-old-Jonah to bed and in the most dramatic fashion said good night to him forever. No more 3-year-old-Jonah, because today he turned 4!

He’s into robots and legos and transformers and all things buildable, so we’re having a robot party on Saturday. Last night I just needed to make him something and came up with this guy to fit with the whole robot theme.

I’m glad he turned out. Not bad for an hour or so of work on the spur of the moment. Jonah was sure excited about him this morning and Logan is very jealous.

He didn’t have a long list of friends to invite, so with his coaching I drew pictures for his invitations.

I’m still not 100% sure exactly what we will be doing at this robot party besides eating cake and ice cream. I still have tomorrow to figure it out!

I designed the pattern for a plush toy how-to book being published by Lark Books and in stores this spring/ summer. I got my check in the mail last week and this morning I clicked away at shopfosters.com (thanks for the heads up Dayna) and got this:

I’m plugging away at my nesting and beautifying. My room is the 1st place I see when I wake up and the last place I see at night, so that’s my starting place. I’m filling it with things I love, that are beautiful, that mean something… so that I’ll have a refuge.

This is the week of recovery, and discovery

the well behaved Chrsitmas Elephant.

Barry had a work Christmas party and the spouses were supposed to bring ornaments to exchange. I propably should have just bought one, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. So, I broke out my Japanese craft book and made the elephant I’ve been dying to make.

She’s very festive with the snowflake on her dress, her hairbow, and of course her sign to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. She has a red string on the top of her head so she can hang from a tree.

The recipient wasn’t quite as excited about her as I had hoped. Just another ornament. She will be missed. Brenna really played with her as much as she could before we wrapped her up. There will definitely be more elephant making around here, (but I might not get to fit it in ’til Christmas Eve, yikes).

So, she’s made with gray upholstery velvet, which is really great for tiny toys because it doesn’t fray. Her dress and bow are from a felted wool skirt, with a hand emboidered snowflake. The sign is just muslin, embroidered with iron on interfacing on back to make it a bit sutrdy and sewn to a little twig snapped off the berry garland on top of my amoire. Glass loop back eyes, jointed head, thread jointed limbs. About 3 inches tall when sitting.

or should it be hexapi?

The green one got sent away today…

He’s going to Lark Books, and if all goes as planned, he will make an appearance at a bookstore near you sometime next spring. Is that cool or what? The pattern will be available and all the crafters out there can fill the world with hexapi!! Hexapi, hexapi, hexapi!! (can I type that enough?)

I knew the red one would be lonely here without a pal, so I had to make another

and she is the most talented by far. As soon as she could see she whipped out the Prismacolors and got to work. Brenna was a little upset that her piece of paper got stolen, but they quickly warmed up to each other and were inseperable the rest of the evening.

Anyone else want a hexapus? Go ahead and send me an e-mail. (jessica at seedpodbooksandart dot com) They’ll be $35 including shipping. You can make a vague request as to color (like, bluish or greenish or DEFINITELY NOT PINK), but other than that you’ll just have to be suprised. My kids toss them around and twist their legs all over, so they do fine with children. Just be aware that there are buttons that could be pulled off, so they are not appropriate for children under three. Expect it to arrive about 10-14 business days after I receive payment.

He’s green, but don’t let that scare you. Despite his formidable appearance, he’s very sweet.

(This one is made from upholstery velvet with great textures.)

This little guy is fun to have around. Closely related to the aquatic animal, the octopus, a hexapus is a playful land animal with 6 legs. Watch out when you hold him–you may get caught! His twisting legs are stronger than you think.

The hexapus is a very adaptable fellow. He’ll gladly grace the top of an amoire and gracefully twist his arms to wave “hello,”or he’ll play gently as toddlers toss him around and yank on his legs, and he’s just as willing to sit on a craft room shelf and become a pin cushion, gripping pencils and scissors with wonderous skill.

(Details: This hexapus is sewn from recyled wool skirts, stuffed with lentils and polyfil, and his posable legs are made from flexible hair curlers. I was pretty proud of my epiphany to go to the beauty supply store as I was walking around Lowe’s looking for something to make my hexapus legs posable.)