An Earth Day Craft!

We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, 
we borrow it from our children.  

~Native American Proverb~

In honor of Earth Day I wanted to share
our earth lovers craft...

A globe luminary 

An opportunity to "light up the world"

taking a moment to offer a blessing of gratitude 

for our great mother earth 

and the many gifts she bestows upon us all.

To create you will need

green & blue tissue paper

mod podge

glass bowl

paint brush

To begin rip your blue tissue paper into smallish pieces.

Paint mod podge onto your glass.

Add pieces of tissue paper on top

Paint on more mod podge over your tissue paper (love that stuff!)

Once your first layer has covered your whole bowl and dried...

add another layer.

Draw out your pieces of land onto your green tissue paper.

 I used this basic outline.

Mod podge it onto your globe.

Let it dry 

and ignite your flame!

Earth teach me stillness                                                         as the grasses are stilled with light.                                                           Earth teach me suffering                                                           as old stones suffer with memory.                                                           Earth teach me humility                                                            as blossoms are humble with beginning.                                                        Earth Teach me caring                                                  as the mother who secures her young.                                                         Earth teach me courage                                                        as the tree which stands alone.                                                        Earth teach me limitation                                                            as the ant which crawls on the ground.                                                     Earth teach me freedom                                                    as the eagle which soars in the sky.                                                           Earth teach me resignation                                                             as the leaves which die in the fall.                                                          Earth teach me regeneration                                                          as the seed which rises in the spring.                                                              Earth teach me to forget myself                                                               as melted snow forgets its life.                                                                          Earth teach me to remember kindness                                                                      as dry fields weep in the rain.

Take nothing but pictures.
Leave nothing but footprints.
Kill nothing but time.
~Motto of the Baltimore Grotto

And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.
Khalil Gibran

Here's to celebrating our earth
and all the practical ways we can help preserve her gifts.

What ways do you teach and celebrate Earth
Day with the children in your life? 


With Love 
~ Shanti~

P.S. in honor of digital detox week (taking place right now all over the globe!) and Easter we shall be signing off for a couple of weeks.
See you again soon!
xo
Shanti & Maureen

Beautiful Paper Butterflies!

Here is a sweet and simple craft to bring some "Spring" into your home!

Inspired by the book All Year Round.

You'll need:

watercolour paper and paint

tissue paper

glue stick and scissors

First paint your paper in spring colours...let it dry.

Fold your paper in half and draw on a butterfly shape...

cut it out.

Turn it over and glue on some tissue paper over the "holes".

Now take a triangle of your watercolour paper...

roll it up and glue it onto the front of your butterfly, (this is the body).

Now hang them up in a bright sunny spot and enjoy this reminder that Spring is on her way!

Today was a cold and wintery day...I so needed this reminder that soon my soul will be nourished by Maiden Spring!! 

xox maureen

Sharing Some Toadstool Love!

I wanted to share this simple tutorial as an enchanted offering for those wee folk on your Christmas list ~ or for those young at heart, woodland lovers.

Toadstool Potato Print Tees!
(or bags, pillow cases, cards, baby clothes, gift boxes or wrappings...)

To make these you will need

Fabric paints

a potato 

paint brush

a tee shirt

To begin cut your potato in half and cut out "handles" on the top of your potato stamp (not absolutely necessary but it makes it easier to stamp with). 

Next cut/carve out your toadstool shapes ~ (the top and bottom are from separate pieces of potato).

    and then firmly press down on your shirt.

Place a piece of cardboard on the inside of the shirt to prevent  it from leaking through.

Blot the surface of your potato to dry up any moisture.

You can dip your toadstool cap into paint or (what I prefer) use a paint brush and paint on the color

Next stamp your stem.

Then with a paint brush carefully add your white dots and a little green grass if you like!

Voila!

In woodland love

~ Shanti ~ 

*Queen Winter* Found Love!

Queen Winter was wandering in the snowy woods when she came across a wonderous sight...

King Winter!

* It was love at first sight *

Their love expanded and burst forth as...

Babe Winter

Now the clan of winters is off in the snowy woodland in search of magical adventures...

*** 

Such fun! My girls love playing with the winter family ~ I'm not sure who loves it more though (them or me ; ) I always seem to get swept away with my fae creations as they come alive beneath my fingers!

~ To make these ~ 

Queen Winter instructions are here.

King Winter is basically the same except I cut him out a felt hooded cape and added some other embellishments.

Babe Winter is a pipe cleaner piece glued to a small acorn and then wrapped tightly with white roving.  Her sleigh is a milkweed pod stuffed with lots of milkweed fluff for cozy warmth.

From the clan of Winters and myself 

wishing you endless wonder.

~ Shanti ~ 

Acorn Birch Bark Napkin Rings

Meal time as a family is one of my favorite times of day. Growing up I loved when our big clan (10 of us) would gather for nourishment, laughter, banter and connecting after our busy days. Now with my own kids, I value the importance of making meal time together a priority. Luna loves the ritual of setting a beautiful table and on special occasions getting out the placemats and napkin rings to adorn the table. 

Here are some nature inspired napkin rings you can create for your autumn table.

To make these you will need

acorns 

birch bark

napkin rings 

glue gun

Cut your birch in strips (measured carefully)  to cover each napkin ring. Glue on. Add you acorn embellishment.

Delightfully simple! 

Thinking these these would be great on a thanksgiving table...

or as a gift!

A easy addition to these napkin rings is to embroider a napkins to go with  them.  Embroidered napkins are a fun way for kids to personalize their own mealtime napkin or to give as a gift.

Solana did this one for her Grandpa David

Luna did this one for her Grandma Posie. 

They were so proud to give them to them.

These acorn napkin rings were part of a wedding gift for some dear friends. Here is a photo I wanted to share of this beautiful bride on her wedding day. Look at that fabulous rock and roll wedding dress!!  Love it!

Happy Autumn days to you all

~ Shanti ~ 

A Very Scary Window Treatment

 Halloween is quickly approaching, and my daughter keeps reminding me that we simply MUST decorate.  Let me tell you though, in our 6 years in this house we have yet to get ONE trick or treater.  In desperation to hand out "something" to "someone", I make up treat bags and get Ruby to walk them over to our neighbours!  We do have a couple of kids in our immediate neighbourhood, (like 3), but they tend to go to bigger and better places, (ie, the next town over) to get their trick or treat on! 

Trick or treaters or not though, the Toadstill WILL be decorated for Halloween!  Here is my favourite Halloween decorating trick...the Jack O Lantern window!

I came across this fabulous idea last Halloween, and of course, in the vast expanse of the internet I don't know where...please let me know if I stole it from you!

To make a spooky window of your own you will need

Black bristol board...large sheets...you tell me how many you need...I don't know how big your windows are!

Tissue paper...think Halloween colours...red, orange

copious amounts of tape

scissors

one spooky imagination!

So...measure your window...in my case we use a picture window facing the street...then tape your bristol board together as need be, (or cut down).  I need four sheets to do my big window. 

Then draw on a scary face...use a white crayon to do this

cut it all out

hang it up, (this is where the copious amounts of tape come into play)! 

enjoy the spooky shadows cast on the walls of your house!

and line the empty space with tissue paper, using tape to tape it on the back of your bristol board.

*please excuse this blurry picture...it was pouring rain outside when I took it!

Now, when it gets dark, get a light to shine behind it and go outside and admire your handiwork, (oh...take the kids out with you)!    I had to laugh when I saw how horrendously evil our window looks...positively spooky!  You don't have to make yours quite so evil looking...a happy pumpkin face would be nice too!

Isn't it marvelous???!!!!

So there you go!  One decoration down...many more to go!

xo maureen

Luminous Leaf Lanterns

Making this lantern was a bit of an experiment. I wasn't quite sure if it would work but when I imagined the glow of a candle through a kaleidoscope of fall leaves...I just had to try it!

If you want to create these too, it is so SIMPLE!
First  collect some vibrant leaves (we gathered from the sumac tree ~ glowing red right now in our backyard) and press them.

Gather up your supplies

leaves pressed (at least 36 hours)

mod podge ~ love this stuff!

paint brush

glass jar or bowl (I found this bowl at salvation army and thought...hmmm...lantern?!) 

To begin, paint a thick layer of mod podge onto your glass surface. Place your leaves on top.

Paint thickly over the leaves. Don't worry if they don't lie flat in all places, the leaves seem  to hold strong once the mod podge dries.

Let dry and Voila!

This lantern has now made its home on our nature table...glowing brightly...illuminating the the gnomes, acorns, felt pumpkins, leaves and all our autumn treasures!

Autumn Love and Light to you all

~ Shanti ~