When I found out the favorite colors of my swap partner for an exchange I’m doing on one of the Etsy teams we’re part of… aqua, turquoise, chartreuse and gray…. I decided to put together a pillow sham in the style of the hope embroidery series I’ve been using on organic messenger bags for kids for the past few years.

7 flowers representing the 7 generations that the Iroquois Confederacy famously argued we ought to consider in any deliberation. May the world of my great-great-great-great-great-great grand daughter (and soon to be son) be a beautiful one. My vision of hope and interconnectedness.

With flowers cut from midcentury modern fabric scraps I’ve saved, bits of vintage lace, a wooden button, and a raw silk cocoon (leftover from the silkmaking process). And long, long stems.

For a limited time, we’re going to offer custom orders of these pillow shams in our shop – 18″ hand embroidered hope pillow shams in customers’ favorite colors and fabrics.

 

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LOVE this. Monster illustrations (prints) and pillows by Montreal designer Tyson Bodnarchuk. You can find him (and tons of other fabulous designers) over at Supermarket.

(We have a little shop there too. One I hope to fill much more before a certain little boy decides it’s time to be born).

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To wear: a handmade ladybug costume that I wished came in an adult size. Well, I guess since my mom made it – it could Maybe next year!

To set the mood: a fabulous “mystery lady” and her black crow, and a handmade spider my Mister made, using a chesnut, toothpicks and some soft yarn.

Tonight we’re going to tackle some fluttering white ghosts to hang in our trees, using leftover white fabric, and wool… and a giant web, sewing string to a giant black poster board.

How are your Halloween preparations going?

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As far as favors, table decor + gift tags go, little felted wool acorns and plantable papers are two of my favorites. So I decided to handcraft a set that would be make each even more beautiful.

A hand shaped paper, plantable seed heart for the wool acorn to sit atop. The rough, uneven texture of the thick paper heart contrasts beautifully with the smooth, needle and wet felted white wool acorn. I used an awl to carefully cut tiny holes in the heart, and the acorn, and attached them together with green embroidery thread.

The wildflower seeds and dried flower petals I add are visible and the hearts have an uneven and textured appearance. They are carefully, quickly dried to preserve the freshness of the seeds.

I can see them at a fall wedding, as two welcoming gifts offered on a dinner plate. As gift tags. As table decorations that add a little bit of sweet magic to an alfresco summer meal.

You can find them in our shop here.

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Needle felted and 3-dimensional. Entirely natural, and entirely charming. Soft and tactile – little mini sculptures to set on a mantel or shelf to admire and set hearts affluter (is that a word?) long after the special day.

Set atop vintage wooden spools, with bits of vintage white lace. Completely personalized.

Available in our shop.

Ahh, I remember our wedding cake. We had a very non-traditional wedding – a beautiful, 1930s styled reception at an old mansion where we exchanged vows, with a band, and different food stations, and lots of dancing and mingling. And we chose our favorite – a deep, dark, rich chocolate cake – many layers of German-baked deliciousness (from Stubbe, the best chocolatiers in Ottawa). We had marzipan fruits on top to give it color… What was your wedding cake like?

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