Showing posts with label naturetable. Show all posts
Showing posts with label naturetable. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Milkweed Pod Flowers




We are beginning to get a little hungry for spring over here. To tide us over in this last leg of winter, we decided to make some flowers. Milkweed pods are so lovely to work with and are one of the last  nature crafting bits still visible above the snow! 
I geared this craft to be doable by little hands (as well as big!). I tend to be a little glue gun happy but thought I'd branch out and create a nature craft that doesn't require any high heat dangers!

Here's what you need

white modeling clay
milkweed pods
milkweed stem
dried berries if you choose

To create..
Gather your milkweed pods.


Flatten a small circular disk out of modeling clay... 


and wrap it around your pod.


Attach your pods by squeezing them together.


Roll the clay in your hands to make a little flower center and press it on.


Gather up some dried berries if you have them, or any bits of nature you want to press in the center.


Press your bits of beauty into the flower.


Press your milkweed pod stem into the back of the flower and add a bit more modeling clay to attach.


Place your flowers around the home....  as plant pokes, in a vase or as to give as gifts to brighten up the last stint of our winter days!



For the love of flowers,

Shanti

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Our Autumn Swap!


This afternoon my house was filled with the LOVE and JOY of friends and their children!
It was the day of our Autumn swap!
We decided to do a swap so we could grow our collection of nature table goodies...this ended up being a low cost way for us all to enjoy some beautiful handmade works of art and craft for our homes.
I tell you, as we're pulling out the goodies, it was like Christmas...all the kids were busily playing, but us moms were all gathered around the table like anxious kids on Christmas morning. 
There were many squeals of delight!


the chaotic kitchen table...brimming with goodies to eat and beautiful gifts!


sweet Autumn gnomes...with hand dyed felt from our mysterious good friend at Wabi Sabi Wanderings and a lovely knitted acorn from Stephanie at The Knitty Gritty Homestead!


Here is Stephanie showing off the lovely Autumn garland from our friend Erin at Embracing the Now!


Erin also included a copy of this poem for us all!
Beautiful!


And a set of acorn fairies from Shanti, (my bloggin' partner and dear friend).  They are so dainty they went straight to the nature table!

If you look a few posts down, you'll see the lovely felt pumpkins I made for everyone!

The reason I want to share this with you all is because this is truly a low cost and FUN way to expand your own goodies for your nature tables.  If you don't have crafty friends nearby to swap with, then start with your blogging friends...SO many of the beautiful bloggers out there are talented and crafty!  Ask around,  the worst someone will say is "no thank you!" 
As we set up our nature table tonight, I just felt this great sense of warmth...the beauty of my friends now radiates on that table and their energy and LOVE will get us through another season here at the Toadstool!

with thanks!
xo maureen




Monday, June 21, 2010

Happy Summer Solstice...bring on summertime!!!

This is Shanti's magical nature table...


Today is Summer Solstice...the longest day and shortest night of the year!  The Solstice is a festival of fire...many people in the past, and today celebrate Solstice by lighting a bonfire.  The bonfire is reminiscent of the heat of the summer sun.  Our ancestors for thousands of years, understood the importance of the sun...the sun played an essential role in helping their crops to grow, and we all know, a bad crop meant certain starvation for some.  Today as we prepare to celebrate the Solstice, I wanted to share some images of our nature tables, and the last very simple craft we did to prepare for this day. 

We painted suns together...to hang over our nature tables...such an easy and sweet craft, (you don't even have to use watercolours...just paint a sun in honor of Solstice day!).  Today, thank the sun in all her radiant glory!

Luna and Solana painting...

Matilda LOVES "helping" Ruby...

Below is a picture of our nature table...with some of the crafts from our "sun" inspired craft week!


And with permission, the wonderful mamma from twolittleseeds, gave us permission to put up a picture of her fabulous Sun King...isn't he absolutely splendid??!!  I think I may just have to make one, as a lovely addition to our Nature Table!   Please go and have a gander at her lovely blog and prepare to get inspired!!


Now we have some serious celebrating to do!
Have a lovely Solstice Day!!!
xo maureen

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