Karla's Cottage

Sugarplum Fairies

I had such a nice day at my friend, Tami's house.

She generously invites a group of us for craft parties and supplies lots of fun things to make.

While I was tempted by her table of goodies and the projects she had prepared, I had "homework" to do.

I wanted to finish up another flock of fairies to add to the Boutique.

So I brought my own items to work on, and managed to get about 10 fairies done that day between chatting, visiting with friends, and visiting the kitchen for magnificent, tasty treats.

I am blessed with good friends, the ladies from this group are Birdsong Peeps that are somewhat local, and who try to get together on a regular basis.

Thank you, Tami, for arranging these dates to enjoy our friends!

And thank you to everyone who has bought Sugarplum fairies from me this holiday season, so I could indulge myself in making so many of them!

I am rather fond of these little darlings!

If you would like one, they are $12 and you can find them in the Boutique.

Transforming a snow globe

Last summer, I found a boxful of ugly snow globes at an estate sale.  I had big plans to remake them, but ended up setting them out for sale at A Snowbird's Song.  

Apparently, no one wanted them... So I decided I needed to reclaim them for my original purpose. Some are easier to open than others, this one was pretty easy to get apart.

The snowman was exchanged for a little pink angel, and I made an arch from wired tinsel and millinery blooms and placed it over the vintage tree behind her. Then, poured on tons and tons and generous glops of glue.

The glue was camouflaged with mica flakes.

The wooden base got a coat of distressed white paint, some crepe paper and sparkly bits.

I am kinda glad no one else bought this $1 item, and I look forward to redoing the others that were not purchased.

Seashell Gnomes and Angels at Siesta Key

In honor of the holidays, I made some gnomes and angels instead of fairies.

I was inspired by these broken shells that already looked like toadstools.

The tiny red noses were a lucky find by my nephew, who found a sprig of them washed up on the shore.

Nieces also helped gather shells for me.  Shelli saw this “jawbone” and we crafted a Dino as a group project.

See the inspiration?

I think my little gnomes look like they are having a happy, little dance party.  They must love Siesta Key as much as I do.

 

 

 

A tree filled with Sugarplum fairies

I have been having waaayyyy too much fun!

These are addictive, I order making them.

There are so many ways to create them, and I find it hard to stop.

If you would like one, they are available in the Boutique.

Aren't they sweet?

They range in price from $9- $16 depending on size, materials. and time put into them.

They are all done from prints of vintage photos, hand tinted and embellished with as many foofy, vintagey goodies I could put on them.

They have been a delight to work on, even though the heat has been out in the studio.  I've had a space heater blasting on my toes, but these sweeties have taken my mind off of the cold room.

I find them "heart warming".  

 

Five Swans A Swimming

Lesa Dailey’s class project at a Snowbird’s Song was a feat of engineering, and an object of beauty.  I was thrilled when she gave the original to me!

Especially since she had already given me this sweet snowgal riding a swan.  It was way too generous of her.  I will treasure them, as I do anything she has made.

The tags she used on the packaging were equally adorable.  I thought about putting mine onto my tree, but instead, I am using it here with my newfound, swan collection.

The teachers at my arty weekends gift a kit to each other.  We don’t always get to craft them during the event, personally, I try to save mine to savor later when I have more time.

 And it makes me feel better  when I am missing my Peeps!

Since I was lucky enough to have the original, I wanted to make my kit in a different way, not try to match it. Instead of adding the darling swan boat hat, I used the sail material to make a crown.

I changed the beak to pink, and used faceted beads for the eyes. I also tilted the neck and head, but maybe she just looks crooked...

I made the ruffle into a double layer, added lace, strands of pearls, and millinery blooms. Then, I glued her to a candlestick for height.

Of course, I HAD to use to wonderful, white ruffle she provided.  But I kept the rest of the back simple, since I loved the soft, blue velvet and wanted that to show.

Thank you, Lesa!  We love your classes here at the cottage, not only for the challenging way they stretch our skills, but for the pure loveliness you create and the personality you infuse in each of your characters.

If you are interested in some of the items from A Snowbird's Song, I have listed a few of  the pieces in my Boutique.  There are kits for Angelique the Aviary Queen as well as the completed projects.  

The kits come with a collage sheet, so you can make the angel with your preferred lady.  That leaves you with a page filled with other images to use for other crafting plans.  Pink and white are available. There are some holiday ornaments for sale too. And thank you to those who have already shopped with me!

You can find them here.

 

 

 

New in the Boutique, Christmas pretties!!

I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving? Mine was quiet, but that was nice, I had time to create, photograph a variety of Christmassy goodies, and get things listed in the Boutique!

(I do have kits from the birdcage angel available. Please contact me if interested, they are not in the Boutique yet)

I am pretty proud of myself, even though I am bordering on being too late for holiday sales.

Most of the creations are examples for A Snowbird Song. 

Class samples, as well as ideas for using the supply table to make things during free time.

I also made some collages and ornies using the images from the collage sheets for the classes. 

Those images were so lovely, I was happy to have a few pages of them to work with.

Not everything is adorned with a hand made Sugarplum Fairy or an angel, tho.

There are a few other ornies too. 

And yet to come? Sugarplum Fairy Banners, always a favorite of mine.

There is more to list, and I hope to get to it soon.  I've had a ton of fun making things. You can find these festive, holiday creations here:

CHRISTMAS IN THE BOUTIQUE