a far away friend and a new challenge

It's not always important 

how close by or far away friends are,

more important is the feeling they give you !

Today arrived a little package from the US.

I was told it would be coming,

even knew a bit what was in it.

But to really hold it in your hands 

is special !

Nancy made something for me because of her blogaversary

(a year ago ! yes : she started when she knew 

who it would be for ...)

A real  s l o w  cloth piece 

(just like we learned from Jude Hill, right Nancy ?)

a tiny woven pouch

and a sweet card.

Such a gift really warms the heart !

Thank you so much Nancy !!!

*

While I was busy working on items 

we could take to the summer festival,

Sara Lechner started another "Challenge"

a hanging doll this time.

I was so busy doing other things, that I only had time

to look through the first two instructions

and glance at the pinterest board sometimes.

I didn't even have time for instruction number three

.......

But, last Monday I took the "Embellisher"

and the stuff I had collected during the first week

and made a start.

My plan was, not to make a doll exactly like Sara's,

but : a mermaid.

(hmmmmm ... I discovered someone else ended up

with a mermaid as well, but I decided to stick with my original plan)

Growing

Front and back of the same lady

(I could work a bit differently because I had seen lesson one ánd two !)

One side of the body fixed with the embellisher

the other side sewn together.

The face is embroidered on the wool itself, and a tiny blue extra cap

to fasten the hair on.

For now, "swimming" in the garden

A sideview with the tangle of seaweed-like hair

It was another fun "Challenge" Sara !

THANKS !

day 30

So sorry :

a very late start 

so it took some time before I finished my mandala today.

Then it wasn't simple to make a good picture after dark.

I used my day light lamp in the end

(better then flash light)

I made some fals starts

then there was this mermaid ...

A mermaid I thought ... why ?

Hmmmmm it's not always very nice and clean

to swimm in the oceans nowadays

NO !

We are dumping 

LOTS OF CHEMICALS AND PLASTIC WASTE EVERYWHERE

that finally ends up in our oceans

Right now sea life is duped

.....

in the end 

WE ALL ARE !

(so another awareness)

This is my Pink Ribbon mandala for day number thirty

"plastic soup"

Karisma colour pencils on heavy weight drawing paper  (A4)

the mandala itself is  14 cm  (5.5")  in diameter

If you want this original artwork

you can send me an email at

fiberrainbow@gmail.com

It costs  € 30, -  (+ postage)

Psssssst  :

the little one was very busy today

writing on Grandpa's shopping list !

(so good when they are helping out

... and on such a young age !)

(see you tomorrow,

on my last mandala day of this October

breast cancer awareness month)

exchange to and fro

In our felting exchange

we had the two "holiday months" July and August

together for one exchange.

You should think that was plenty of time

to accomplish that "big task"

.....

Well, it really was on my to-do-list

(but probably too far at the end)

So then came my wake-up call

a wonderful  red  feather from Karin

presentable on both sides !

THANK YOU, Karin  !

So I went to work at once !!!

to make a "woman"

(Karin's theme)

In fact, I decidede to make only "half a woman"

After the felting, there was some stitching

Here's the little woman, ready to go in the mail ...

... swimming all the way to Nijmegen

to join the other "women" that are already there   

;-) 

Then I took some more wool 

(a lot in fact) 

to start a scarrf

And while the scarf was a LOT of gentle rolling,

I started some small things too !

mandala and the embellisher pieces

Ahhhhhhhhh

13 - 11 - 13

it was such a fun date yesterday

That was supposed to be the name of the post 

.....

when our PC started to act really funny :

it took ages to open, to load sites and pictures,

and was altogether impossible to get a post done.

So here is yesterday's mandala

This year's theme are the Celtic celebrations

We started in September with

Imbolc which is the beginning of the year.

But that felt so akward (it being nearly autumn)

that we switched for the second and third meeting 

to a subject more appropriate to the season,

so yesterday was Samhain.

I just realized that I didn't post

the other two

Imbolc                                            Mabon  

*

Yesterday I was also working 

on the needle felted "Embellischer pieces"

(ahhh : I really don't know whát to call them)

The mermaid was this far when I left for the mandala group

(doing French knots on the star fish)

And here is the final result today

hand dyed (not by me) craft felt for the cut-out, fabric, tule

magic thread and four very old mother of pearl beads

blue and white pre felt of previous projects

little circle of mint silk (old blouse)

more glas beads

and the embellisher felted blue / green

mounted on a painted canvas 

(size  20 x 20 cm)

split personality

When I'm working om some technique 

(like felting figures at the moment)

ideas will come bubbling up

which lead to

new projects

...

Another thing to try to accomplish

Only a rough start ...

but then :

I knew "exactly" where I was heading

thin layer upon thin layer "it / she" was growing

Ohhhh ... attaching the arms is such a pain ! 

Making hands also

And finally, late at night, there she was :

(photographed the next day)

my little mermaid

the split personality

...... half I'm it and half I'm she .....

Ahhhhhh, it brought back memories

of the lovely Esther Ofarim

singing this song in her mermaid suit on Dutch television in 1964

(o, my ..... thát long ago ?) 

*

And the next one

but not yet finished

*

I almost forgot :

remember my dear friend H ?

(at the moment in South Africa,

 where she, among other things,

is sponsering a village school with lots of LEGO)

She gave me another bag of goodies

lovely lace and the finest embroidered batiste you've ever seen

Thank you !