MyLuckyChicken

little projects

I've been doing some hand sewing lately and I feel oddly drawn to very little things. I made this little version of my blue bird for a friend who is moving on to a new job, some happiness to take with her.

A few more marble magnets...

and I was inspired by this garland (link coming as soon as I find it again) to begin a  little one of my own...

and I think these elf shoes aren't far behind!

more elf shoes and more...

Blue Bird of Happiness

I made this little blue bird last night.

He's been an idea in my head for quite a while and I was so happy to finally put him together. I used felt that I had and the color is partly what inspired me. I also used vintage yarn, embroidery floss and gold thread from my gray cabinet.

When I was little my bedroom window was just under a trellis that was over the front door. The honeysuckle that grew on it was a perfect nesting place for a pair of morning doves. I used to sit for hours and watch them, inches away through the glass, making their nest, laying eggs, caring for the babies. They were so sweet and comforting. I just loved them. Now we have some morning doves here. We feed them at the tree in front of the house. Just seeing them reminds me of being little and cozy in my room looking out the window.

So then my mom gave me a little wooden bird about a year ago. When my doves are away I can look at him. I love the form of birds, all puffy and round. So it got me thinking about making some birds. Then the blue, and the trims, and it all came together. I think I will be making many of these. I like the idea of them sitting on a perch somewhere spreading happy coziness. You can check the etsy shop or email if you're interested.

And...

Thanks to Mark for a mention in his column in the Boston Globe and welcome to all of you who got here from there !

Flickr Favorites

1. fabricbuttons, 2. from "holiday crafts you can make", 3. Vintage Tablecloth, 4. Turquoise, 5. wichtel-019, 6. Untitled, 7. 2007 Mug Collection - Color Mugs 2, 8. just like heaven, 9. Pretty, 10. New Creatures, 11. little covered buttons, 12. Lady Washington pearls 2, 13. Close-up #2, 14. 70s felt fever, 15. Fun "Poppet" Paperdolls, 16. Jen Duncan's super cute kitchen!, 17. Sunday Afternoons in the Spring * beautiful clothesline *, 18. 20060806 pyrex stack: 2, 19. use what you have soap box kitchen..., 20. Fun to Cook Book, 21. Vintage Bluebird, 22. glorious grey days, 23. 1940's Butterflies and Floral, 24. 1950's sewing box, 25. Plastic Floral Buttons

Unexpected Finds

On our way to look at a school for our oldest today, we stopped at what the signs said was a garage sale. It turned out to be more of an estate sale. Those kind of thing always make me a little sad. But we looked around and found a few things, a lamp, one of those little chairs that has stairs under it (that cleaned up nicely)and...

drum roll please...

a great little metal cabinet full of vintage sewing stuff!!! I am so lucky! There were also some little boxes of thread they threw in with it. I love that people consider this stuff junk and are happy for me to take it away.

 

Look how stuffed full it is. And how sweet is the vintage trim? Theres lots more that I didn't tkae pictures of because my camera card is full, but I can assure you it's all just wonderful. yeah!

I've been thinking about making my little sewing kits and now I've got all kinds of fun embillishment and materails. I think it's a sign, don't you?

Marble Magnets

I have to admit that I am oddly attracted to these little magnets every time I go into a place that has them. I think it is the snow globe quality; a sweet little world perfectly preserved just for me. and I can put it on my fridge - bonus.

So today I was sitting at the table helping the boys make various things out of pipe cleaners, (now called chenille stems, much fancier than what I worked with as a 5 year old) and I thought I'd make some thing too. I'd read about how to make the magnets here at Not Martha and on one of my Michaels trips I'd purchased the little glass marbles a few weeks ago. So I fished them out and voila! They are super easy to make and I am thinking of making some for family Christmas presents.

 

Here is a picture of one with paper from Martha Stewart and the other three are cut from pages from an old thesaurus. I can see many more of these little gems in my future, maybe they are a little crystal ball like too ;)

idea

I have an idea for what I should do with one of the quilt tops I got this summer. I am thinking about using the pieces and making little needle book type sewing kits. They could be Christmas presents or I could put them in the shop. What do you think?

Yum!

I found this great recipe for Banana Bread Pie while poking around the blogs I usually read. It's from Julie at Jane's Apron. Besides being crafty and fun, she has some great 'easy bake' recipes. I made this with the boys tonight and I can attest to the easy factor as the main chef was my 2 year old...

Here it is straight out of the oven...

and a la mode...

Julie has generously allowed me to repost the recipe here, but do go check out her blog!

Banana Bread Pie

2 very ripe bananas

1/2 cup biscuit mix (like Bisquick)

2 large eggs

1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk

1 Tbsp. butter; melted

1 tsp vanilla

Place bananas in a large mixing bowl and mash with an electric mixer until smooth.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well blended.  Pour the mixture into a 9 in pie place and bake at 400 for 25-30 minutes.  The pie should be caramelized on the edges but still a little soft in the center.

Todd's Farm, again

I often write about my finds at Todd's Farm so I thought I would post some pictures of the place.

It's just a big field and people are either dealers or just people emptying out their attics. What makes it fun is that you never know what you are going to find.

Some of my finds from about 2 weeks ago...

2 Pyrex bowls for the ever growing collection, some lovely hankies, a platter for $1, and some dollies. I can't even remember the last time I bought a doll. I must have been very little maybe 7 or 8. I saw these three in a box of stuff under a table of a man who was selling just random things. They seemed so forlorn I couldn't just leave them there. I brought them home, all three. One is still in her box. I am debating on whether or not to take her out. I'm not really a leave -it-in-the -box and admire her kind of person so odds are she'll be coming out. I don't know what to do with them but I really like the way they photograph.