Early Bird

Those who sign up before May 31 will receive $10 off the camp cost!

Summer camp

Inspiration & empowerment are the very heart of this camp. 

Girls will be inspired to freely express themselves 

& feel empowered to be confident in who they are

through the magic of artbooking!

What is artbooking?  art journaling + scrapbooking = artbooking

This is a camp for girls age 5 - 12.

Camp schedule:

welcome/get started on our project for the day  45 min.

snack time 30 min.

finish up art projects   45 min.

Projects include: 

day 1: creating an artbook

day 2: what makes me happy

day 3: a place to keep worries

day 4: being brave

day 5:  being me

Camp dates & times:

June 22 - 26 10am - 12pm (5-8); 1pm - 3pm  (9-12)

July 20 - 24 10am - 12pm (5-8); 1pm - 3pm (9-12)

August 17 - 21 10am - 12pm (5-8); 1pm - 3pm (9-12)

Each class is limited to 6 so that every girl gets the attention she deserves, & the help she may need. So sign up early to ensure that you get the dates that work best for your family.

Registration/Art supplies = $30

Camp cost = $50 ($40 if there are more than one girl in your family participating)

If you would like to host a camp at your house, your child will attend for free.

For more information, email me.

Camp location:   60194 CR 35 in Middlebury (my house)

      

We will be meeting in my backyard to work on projects. 

If the weather is rainy or too windy we will work in the house.

To sign up, or if you have any further questions please email me at Carriebeachey@yahoo.com

Deep Peace

pure white of the moon to you

deep peace

pure green of the grass to you

deep peace

pure brown of the earth to you

deep peace

pure gray of the dawn to you

deep peace

pure blue of the sky to you

deep peace

of the running waves to you

deep peace

of the quiet earth to you

deep peace

of the shining stars to you

deep peace

of the son of peace to you

Another Great Give Away!

Tollipop is one of my favorite places to visit throughout the week. I love her enchanted little tollipops & all the stories that go along with the lives they live. If you haven't visited, you really must.  You should make your way over this week. Tollipop is celebrating it's one year anniversary & the celebration is grand. What are you waiting for.... hurry along!

Felted Wool Balls: A Tutorial

It's Spring & lately I have been finding great joy in making felted wool balls.  I don't know why Spring time makes me want to play with wool. Maybe it's knowing that soon the sheep will be sheared that gets me all excited.

Here are some instructions for wool balls that I have found to be simple.  My children can make them, & they are fun to play with. Enjoy!

What you will need for this project:

A strip of wool cut from an old sweater

Natural wool roving

Several colors of dyed roving

A felting needle

An old sock

Step 1

Tie a knot a knot at one end of the strip of wool.

Step 2

Roll the strip of wool around the knot to form a ball.

Tack down loose ends with the felting needle.

Step 3

Using the natural wool roving, wrap the ball until it is the size you would like.

Again tack down loose ends with the felting needle.

Step 4

Choose from one of the colors of roving for the main color & wrap around the ball until it is completely covered.

Step 5

Using the felting needle, add any decorative designs you wish with the colored roving.

Step 6

Place the wool ball into an old sock

Step 7

Place in a washing machine with a few towels or jeans. Use a hot water cycle with the longest setting for agitation. On my machine I usually have to send it through 2 wash cycles before the ball is felted where I like it.

Variation:

Wrap some bells up into the center of the ball.

Dyeing Wool :: A Give Away

Have you ever dyed wool with unsweetened drink mixes?  It is a really safe and kid friendly project. You don't need to use separate dishes like with chemical dyes.  It also doesn't require a mordant.  It gives great results without taking a lot of time and is perfect for short attentions spans that crave instant gratification.

The kids and I did some dyeing ourselves to try it out.  I couldn't have asked for a better experience.  The kids did great.  There was no huge mess to clean up, and the results were awesome.  We got some great colors.

In celebration of spring, warmer days, and sheared sheep, I am offering a dyed wool project kit.  The kit includes 4  1/2 oz balls of white wool to dye, 4 different colors of dye/drink mixes, instructions for dyeing wool with kids & every thing you need to make felted balls once your wool is dyed.

To enter all you have to do is leave a comment on this post.  I will announce the winner Monday at 8 AM (EST).  Good Luck!

P.S. Tomorrow I will post a tutorial on how to make felted wool balls.

The winner is Amber!

Thanks for playing along.

Amber let me know how you would like me to get the kit to you.

Snowmen & Daffodils

I don't know how it is in other parts of the Midwest, but in Indiana, Spring is notorious for being a tease. 

It's been nice out lately. Really quite nice. I even have gone through all my children's clothes & set the ones that won't fit next fall aside for a garage sale.  We've been working in or garden, & overall planning for the warmer days of summer.

Then yesterday I woke up to this! Snow everywhere!

Jacob was quite excited. He decided that it must be almost Christmas time again. He wanted to go out to play first thing this morning even before the others woke up.

In the afternoon Phil ventured out to help the kids build a snowman. I'm sorry to say that this is the first time all winter that we have had a chance to go out play with the kids. 

Thank you Spring for this one last chance! 

Everyone had a blast!

Nona found these daffodils for me to enjoy. She brought them inside and said

"These flowers are so poor mom. They were out there in the cold all alone and without any mom or dad to take care of them. So I brought them in for my mom to take care of them."

Knitting Scouts

While reading this post  last week, I was reminded of the badges I found awhile back for Knitting Scouts. I wanted to share them with you along with some stories of how I have earned some badges.

The "Proselytize Knitting" Badge

This one is easy to achieve.  I know personally any time I hear someone mention " I need a hobby", I'm the first one to suggest knitting. I've even been known to deliver knitting supplies to patience I know have a long hospital stay. 

What else are they going to do sitting there all day?

The "MacGyver" Badge (Level 3)

The recipient must demonstrate clever use of a non-knitting tool in a kitting-related scenario. 

I use safety pins on a regular basis as a stitch holder when knitting a thumb for a glove.

The "Rejected by Interweave Knits" Badge

I submitted to patterns two Interweave Knits for their Spring 2008 issue. One pattern was for a "Fancy Nancy" art apron, the other was for a butterfly net. 

 Yeah, they were both rejected.

The "Can Be An Asshole When It Comes To Knitting" Badge

I know there has been plenty of times where I have scoffed at another knitters choice in using Acrylic yarn.  I have also answered "No, but I could" to the frequent question, "Did you knit that?".

The "Knitting While Under the Influence" Badge

How can one resist having a few drinks with the girls when gathered to knit? I certainly can not.

The "Knitting Has Forced Me to Seek Medical Attention" Badge (Level 1)

I have asked my husband (who is a Registered Nurse) to look at my wrist after knitting a lot. It was hurting pretty bad.

The "Knit Items With No Conceivable Practical Application" Badge

My first felting project was to be a market style bag. I didn't use a pattern. I was pretty confident I could figure it out. Just knit the bag twice as big as you want it to be right? WRONG.  I didn't know felting shrinks more vertically then horizontally.  I ended up with a very shallow, but very wide bag. It's pretty much good for nothing, but cutting apart & repurposing.

The Country Bunny

"We hear of the Easter Bunny who comes each Easter Day before sunrise to bring eggs for boys and girls, so we think there is only one.  But this is not so. There are really five Easter Bunnies, and they must be the five kindest, and swiftest, and wisest bunnies in the whole wide world, because between sunset on Easter Eve and dawn on Easter Morning they do more work than most rabbits do in a whole year..."

When I was growing up, my mother would ready this story to me. It was one of my favorites. I remember being pulled into the story, the amazement I felt over all the Easter eggs, & the excitement I felt seeing the small child at the end with the most beautiful egg. 

I had forgotten about the book for many years until last spring when I was at a large resale of children's items. I was searching through box after box of picture books when I came across this one. I was immediately taken back to the days of my childhood, cuddling on the couch while mom read to me. 

Now as an adult reading this book to my daughter, I love the message that the book gives to young girls. A message of how a woman (or female bunny) can accomplish any thing she wishes to. How with hard work and determination, she can reach her goals even when others say she can not.

This book has become one of my daughters favorites as well.

If you have not read  "this gem of a fantasy",  you really must.

For Nona

Jacob composed his first song today. He lovingly sang it to Nona in hopes that it would help her feel better.

She was a little baby and,

She drank her bottle.

She grew so big.

She had a little brother.

He drank his bottle.

He grew so big.

She held her baby brother.

I love you, I love you, I love you.

"There, wasn't that nice Nona?"

I apologize

I realize I haven't been adding too many post is the last few weeks. I have been sick & my children have been sick & we are trying to get the garden ready for planting. I hope you understand. I do have a few things I'm working on for the upcoming week. Do check back!