Primroses

This is William the Pirate. He is on his way to a place faraway to be a special Christmas present for a little boy. When his mother bought William on my etsy shop, primroses, she asked how I had gotten a picture of her son.

I am closing primroses for Christmas. The dolls will be going to my favorite store, Kreatelier, here in Providence, Rhode Island. If you had wanted a doll for Christmas, contact me and we will try to get you one!

I'm off to the studio to make Christmas presents.

How to Make an Origami Box

You can make your own gift boxes this holiday by recycling calendars and last year's Christmas cards.



Start by making two squares. If one is slightly smaller than the other, it will fit inside of the other one really well.



Crease through the middle by folding diagonally each way. Good creases will make a crisp box.




Your paper won't be this creased, I was working ahead a little bit.

Fold points to middle.

Open up and fold sides in this way, reopen,

and that way.

Open and refold in these two points, and

the two sides.

Fold pointed ends under.

Fold ends up this way...

and down that way.

Open up but leave two sides upright.

Bring in the ends and tuck together for your box.

All the points should nestle inside of the box. That will hold it together.

About Waldorf Dolls

These are two little girls who like to wear fairy wings with their rain boots.

The oldest has ringlets in all the tawny colors of sun-baked wheat.

The youngest one has pale blond curls sticking up around her head like a new chick's down.



Their mother has some of each kind of color and curl in her hair.

This sweet Mama wanted to give her children dolls. She knew how special a Waldorf doll can be for a growing, imaginative little child.


A doll is "one if the most important toys for boys and girls alike, as it is an image of the human being...." (From The Children's Year.)


"They are real 'child dolls' not because they mimic exactly the features and form of an individual as many of the tough plastic toys available today try to do, but because they reflect the inner softness and warmth both of their maker and their owner." (From Making Waldorf Dolls.)



"When they are fashioned simply, they make the entire range of human appearance possible through the child's imagination." (From Toymaking With Children.)



I sat in my sunny kitchen while I sewed the dolls' hair on.

I thought about the children they would belong to as I stitched.

The mama let the girls pick out fabrics for the dolls from what they could see in pictures from my studio.



And then they were done. The dolls are traveling to meet their girls now. They are made with love and care. I think you can feel that when you hold a Waldorf doll.

Soon they will come to life. That happens when a child holds a doll in her arms, gives her a name, and begins to love her.

Red

I like red.

In the summer,

and in the winter.

In my coats,

and in my shoes.

I like red.

Red crayons.

Red paint.

Red walls.

and red toys.

Red to sip and

red to crunch.

Red to sew.

red to weave,

red for spinning,

red I've spun.

I like to knit red,

and grow red.

I like red boxes,

I like red cans.

I take it back. I love red.

How to Make a Tea Cozy

Here is how to make your own tea cozy. It would make a wonderful present for Christmas or a special birthday.

Gather your materials. You need:

paper for pattern, pencil, and ruler
felted woolen fabric
some calico for the lining
wool felt (I got my collection from Magic Cabin Catalog.)
matching and contrasting thread
buttons and beads

First make a pattern out of a brown paper bag or some tracing paper. You can probably find a plate which you can use to draw the curves or the corners. Try to make your pattern symmetrical, but it's fine if it isn't perfect. This size fits a large, fat teapot with extra room. Adjust to fit your own teapot.



Cut two thicknesses of the felted wool fabric, adding 5/8 of an inch all the way around the pattern, (or whatever seam width your sewing foot is set to....)



Now have some fun choosing some felt for the flower design on your tea cozy. I used a flowered calico for my lining, and decided to use felt which picked up the colors in it. It is not a practical choice. Brown is the ideal color for hiding tea stains on the lining. However, I didn't feel like being practical today.



To trace circles for the flowers, you could use a little demi-tasse or some other round form like this little matreshka doll to trace around. I don't really like to use perfect circles, though. I think oblongs have more personality. Cut out your main flowers.



Cut some flower centers out of a contrasting color, some stems of different lengths, (these stems are about as thick as a pencil,) and some raindrop-shaped leaves. I also cut out a couple of oblong pieces of ground.



I made three flowers and pinned and sewed them onto the right side of one of the pieces of tea cozy with my machine. Notice that I did not center the middles of the flowers. I feel it gives my design more movement. You could also hand stitch your flowers. I used red thread for a lively contrast.

Pin the right sides of the wool pieces together.

Sew with matching thread on the curve only. Do not sew the flat bottom edge of the tea cozy.

Notch the curve carefully.

Now cut two thicknesses of the calico, right on the edge of the pattern.



Pin and sew with the right sides together. Again, do not sew across the flat bottom edge.

Notch the curve carefully.

This is how the lining goes inside the wool.

But to sew it together, you have to put the right sides facing. The red wool is inside the calico in the picture below. Pin along the flat edge and sew, leaving an opening of about 4 or 5 inches, so that you can turn it inside out.

Now pull the wool out through the opening.

Sew the opening closed with little tiny stitches, and iron with the lining in position.

Pick out some buttons for decorating the flowers.




Sew the buttons through the lining layer, to hold the lining in place.



Choose a beautiful button or bead to sew on top for a handle, if you wish.

Sew the bead on through the lining layer.

Now put on the kettle. It's time for some hot tea! Would you join me for a cup?


If I am missing any details you need for making the tea cozy, please let me know!

Copyright 2009 Beth Curtin. I would love to see lots of people enjoy using my pattern to make special gifts, but help me protect my creations. Don't use my pattern for commercial purposes.

Making an Advent Wreath

I made our family an Advent wreath on Sunday. First I gathered some arborvitae from my yard. Any evergreen is good.



I got out my Advent candle holder, a wonderful Swedish one I got at Hearthsong catalog years ago, my three purple and one pink candle, some household string, (green gardener's twine is best because it is easier to hide,) some scissors, and the lining of a summer hanging-basket. I think it is coconut fiber. I used it to pad the candle holder and to retain a little water, to keep the evergreen moist and fresh for as long as possible. You could use straw, raffia, or even newspaper instead of the coconut fiber. You can soak your Advent wreath in the sink from time to time to refresh it during December.



I wrapped the coconut fiber on the candle holder using the string, and tied a knot.



Then I started to place evergreen cuttings on the coconut fiber, wrapping with string after I added each good handful. Try to cover the ends of the cuttings with each new handful as you go around.

The string will be showing after this first time around.

The next time around I tried to hide all the strings and any remaining ends sticking out with more bunches of evergreen. I tucked thick cuttings into the string, and soon I had a nice full wreath.

I added the candles.

We light a purple candle the first Sunday of Advent, two purples the second, add the pink one the third, and the last purple one the fourth Sunday.


We opened our beautiful new Advent calendar, which has a little storybook for each day, telling about the first Christmas.



Then we ate Brunswick Stew by the fire, our Advent wreath close by.



The Advent wreath is rich with symbolism. If you would like to read more about it, here is a good article: http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0132.html Or you can click on the title of this post for the link.

Cyber Monday Sale for Acorn Pies Readers

William the Pirate

I'm having a 15% off doll sale for Acorn Pies readers, all day Monday November 30th until 8:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (in the U.S.) in my etsy shop, primroses. Just click on the title of this post to go straight to my shop. Type "Acorn Pies" into the special instructions after you place your order. I will send you a 15% refund on the price of the doll! The price of postage will remain the same. This discount cannot be combined with any other discounts.

Here is the very happy recipient of one of my dolls. This darling little girl named her doll Elizabeth, and she sleeps with her every night. If you have never had a waldorf doll, one of the things which is very special about them is that they warm up when you hold them because they are stuffed with wool. It is very cozy to cuddle a warm and best-loved doll. My dolls are handmade by me with love and all natural materials, cotton, wool, and mohair.

I make girl dolls.

I make boy dolls.

Some of the boy dolls have a little wooden tool for adventure and work.

I make dolls in all the colors of people: chocolate brown, mocha, golden, peach, and fair. All of these dolls are 15% off for you, my wonderful Acorn Pies readers, this Cyber Monday.

Also included in the sale are my last two prairie bonnets for little girls.


Not included in the sale are some of my original handcolored lino block prints, designed especially for decorating children's rooms. The theme of my new series of lino prints is Children at Play.


I hope you will enjoy visiting my shop and taking advantage of my special discount for you. much love, Beth