join me for another swap?

A year ago, for my third blog-iversary, I hosted a peg doll swap.  It was very popular, and during the past year several people have asked whether I would be hosting another swap.  The answer has been "no," and my reason was as follows: I was told by several participants outside the US that, with postal rates ever climbing, it had cost them outrageous sums to post their parcels (and these were domestic rates, not international!)  I felt terrible and vowed never again to host another swap.

However, after gentle persistence and some brain-storming, my friend Anna came up with the idea of swapping FLAT items! Most countries have a much lower rate for flat items.  Generally the envelope must be less than 1/4 inch (1/2 cm) thick to qualify, but best to check with your local post office for exact specifications in your country.

All this to say... won't you join me for a FLAT item swap?  At first glance, this might seem boring.  Let's see... we could swap Popsicle sticks. Moth wings. Oak leaves and feathers. But then I opened myself to the challenge of imagining interesting things I could make which were also... flat.

embroidery & photo :: knitty gritty homestead

A piece of embroidery which could be framed or turned into something useful like a pincushion?

mitts & image :: purlbee

 Mitts knit at a very fine gauge...

mitts & image :: purlbee

 Or sewn from fine wool...

headbands & image :: totally stitchin'

headscarf bandana and image :: purlbee

needle book & image :: tiny happy

brooches & image :: purlbee

coffee cup cozies & image :: purlbee

finger puppets & image :: purlbee

banner & image :: martha stewart

ornaments and image :: martha stewart

a garland of stars and image :: path less traveled

lariat necklace and image :: martha stewart

A delicate necklace, bracelet or earrings...

brooches & image :: tiny happy

paper cut :: homemade happy

Right then.  I think you've got the idea! The choice is up to the creativity of the sender -- the main criteria are as follows: the item should be hand made by you, it should be the sort of thing you might like to receive yourself (or which you think the recipient would like), and it should be flat enough to meet postal rate specifications for shipping a flat item.

ALL THE REST OF THE DETAILS

 -- Sign-ups are open starting today (Monday March 3rd.)  To sign up, please email me margaret (at) flyingteapot (dot) com with your name, mailing address, email address, blog URL (if you have one), plus a few sentences about yourself; you can mention your family, information about where you live, what kind of crafting you like to do, materials you like to use, etc... 

-- This swap is open to anyone anywhere in the world and to participants of all crafting levels.

-- Each participant will be matched in a group of three (i.e. you will create a flat item for each of your two swap mates and will receive a flat item from each of them in return.)

-- Sign-ups will close Sunday March 9th and information about your swap-matches will be emailed to you by Monday March 10th.

-- By signing up for this swap you agree to create, with you own hands, a flat item (the sort of thing you might like to receive yourself) for each of your swap-mates and send them off in a timely fashion.

-- Preferably, parcels should be posted to recipients by Monday March 24th.  If you are delayed in sending your parcels, it will be important to communicate this directly to your swap-mates.

-- Any questions?  Please feel free to send me an email!

Peg Doll Swap Wrap-up: Wee Folk & Magic Critters

doll & photo by Tanja: Watermellish

Wecome to day #2 of my Blog-iversary Peg Doll Swap Wrap-up. Below you will find more wee folk (and charming critters) made by swap participants.  

To start off, Tanja (VIC, Australia) modeled her dolls after the character of Pelle from the book Pelle's New Suit.  She wrote:
 

I based my peg dolls on a favorite story in our house – Pelle's New Suit by Elsa Beskow. 

It's the story of a little boy, Pelle, whose clothing is becoming too small. He finds a solution to this problem by shearing his lamb and trading his labor (weeding gardens, feeding animals, running errands) to have his grandmothers card and spin the fleece. He dyes it blue himself, and again trades his labor to have his mother weave the yarn into cloth. Then the tailor sews him a new suit. The book ends with Pelle wearing his new blue suit and thanking the lamb for it.  

I painted the Pelle and made a simple lamb from a pipe-cleaner and carded wool.

photo & dolls by Dee: Triskele Threads

Dee (VIC, Australia) of Triskele Threads created these sweet autumn folk.  I love the leaves and acorns embroidered on their gowns, and the distinct reminder that, as we in the Northern Hemisphere are turning towards Spring, our friends in the Southern Hemisphere are in the thick of Autumn!

 And here is more autumnal beauty from my darling friend Clare (ACT, Australia.)  Clare calls these wonderful little folk "beechlings," and about them she wrote:

Heath, Myrtle, Fagus and Tanglefoot are the common names given to two Tasmanian deciduous Gondwana cool temperate rainforest species that grow as either a shrub (in poor conditions) or tree (in sheltered, nutrient rich and warmer valleys) of Nothofagus cunninghamii and Nothofagus gunnii. As the weather becomes cooler, like all deciduous plants the leaves change colour as the plant begins its Winter domancy.

The leaves are dark green to olive green becoming tan, tangerine, rust, orange coloured as the temperatures drop. They are slightly transparent when the sun filters through almost like living tissue paper. The leaves don't always fall in winter leaving an extremely colourful spash of orange across grey/green/olivine/white lichen encrusted boulders high on the exposed slopes in mountainous Tasmania (and some parts of Victoria).

photo and dolls by Kelly: Happy Whimsical Hearts

I grinned wildly when saw these peg dolls by Kelly (ACT, Australia.) Kelly's dolls are patterned after the characters Snugglepot and Cuddlepie from a book her mother read to her when she was "a little tacker."

illustration from Snugglepot and Cuddlepie by May Gibbs

Here is an illustration of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie (after which Kelly styled her dolls.) Are you grinning now, too?

photo and dolls by Karen: Bridgit's Bell

Karen (New Hampshire, USA) of Bridgit's Bell created this royal family of peg dolls.  The details on these dolls are meticulous.

photo and dolls by Karen: Bridgit's Bell

I especially love how Karen used tiny punches to create the designs on their wee royal cloaks.

photo & dolls by Lacey: Life as a Schoolhouse

Lacey (NC, USA) of Life as a Schoolhouse has very cleverly used colored string to decorate the bodies of her peg folk.

photo & dolls by Jen: SEWNnatural

Here is a work-in-progress photo of matrioshka style peg dolls by Jen (Ontario, Canada) of SEWNnatural. I love their traditional red headscarves (and am always a sucker for gold embroidery...)

photo & doll by Melissa: Wild Faerie Caps

Melissa (FL, USA) of Wild Faerie Caps created this wee mousie peg child...

photo & doll by Melissa: Wild Faerie Caps

And also a golden version of a peg child critter -- this one seems rather leonine to me...

photo & dolls by Amanda: By Hook and Thread

For a swashbuckling, romantic tale (and close-up photos of these sweet dolls) you can visit Amanda (Nova Scotia, Canada) at her blog By Hook and Thread.

photo & dolls by Amanda: By Hook and Thread

Amanda also created this porcine trio -- you can read her hilarious version of the traditional piggy-tale here.

photo & dolls by Kat: The Awakened Heart

Kat (VIC, Australia) was inspired by the work of Mama Westwind when she created these love-bunnies.  Do you see the pocket that Kat has added to the back of the cape to hold a jelly bean egg?  Ingenious!

photo & dolls by Megan: Giants, Wizards & Dweebs

Last but not least are these snail folk by Megan (CA, USA) of Giants, Wizards & Dweebs.  When I first saw this photo I did a happy dance to the tune of an idiotic little song, the lyrics of which went something like this -- oh my, oh my, oh, love, love, love!  These peg dolls make me think of my toddler who has recently learned about snails and slugs.  When he finds one, he likes to give it a gentle poke, which causes it to retract it's antennae.  Then he waits patiently for it to put out the antennae again, and gives another little poke.  Did I already mention how much I love these peg dolls?  (oh, yeah, I guess I did...)

To see all the peg dolls from this swap (and also peg dolls from the swap I hosted in 2011) you can have a look here. All the photos are now posted in the Peg Doll Gallery -- Cheers!

Peg Doll Swap Wrap Up: Butterflies & Blooms

dolls & photo by Margaret Bloom

Dearest Peg Doll Swap Participants, I want to thank all 21 of you for joining in the fun -- And I offer a special thank you to those who have made photos available so we can all have a peek at your delightful dolls! 

The dolls from this swap have been so innovative that I am excited be able to share them here on my blog.  In today's post we have the first batch of butterflies & blooms (you can see my own contribution in the photo above.)  Please come back tomorrow for a look at wee folk and magical critters.

doll & photo by Stephanie: Knitty Gritty Homestead

Stephanie of Knitty Gritty Homestead (Ontario, Canada) left me feeling a bit swoony over these tiny (remarkably eency weency) luna moth wings...

doll & photo by Stephanie: Knitty Gritty Homestead

And these monarch butterfly wings which Stephanie created are perfect in every detail.

dolls and photo by Anette Grostad

Anette Grostad (California, USA) created a beautiful mama rose & baby rose (don't you love mama's fashionable ruffled collar?)

dolls by Anette Grostad

And she also created a pair of delicate snowdrops (I am lucky to have this pair sitting on my mantlepiece... they are so very pretty!)

dolls by Painting Pixie

The very talented Painting Pixie (Colorado, USA) stitched these exquisite pixies for the swap.  The perfection & intricacy of her cherry blossom embroidery is a bit mind-boggling...

dolls & photo by Marcy: A Simple Life

And here we have Flora & Blossom, created by Marcy of the blog A Simple Life (NY, USA.) Their inspiring headgear is bold, stylish and perfect for spring, is it not?

dolls and photo by Kenda

Kenda (MO, USA) stitched up these pretty flower fairies based on patterns from Wee Folk Art.  The colors Kenda chose are so cheerful and her embroidery adds a nice touch.

photo & dolls by Sara: This Mom Loves

And the last dolls for today -- softly colored springtime gnomes embroidered with tulips (and mushrooms!) by Sara (WI, USA) of the blog This Mom Loves.

I hope you will come back tomorrow to see the rest of the gorgeous peg dolls from this swap!

A Blog-iversary Peg Doll Swap

Today is my third blog-iversary!

I started this blog three years ago and so much has happened since then.  When I began, I hardly expected to make wonderful friends, to discover so much heart, spirit and creativity... and three years ago I hardly expected to end up writing a book on peg dolls!

daffodil doll and photo by Painting Pixie

In honor of my third blog-iversary I have decided to host another peg doll swap (after making so many peg dolls, one would think I'd get a bit tired of them... but I'm not!)  On a regular basis I get comments on my blog and emails asking if I would ever host another doll swap.  Really, I'm a bit busy right now, but I feel in my heart that this would be the best way to celebrate.  For me, swaps are such a source of creativity. When I participate, I always challenge myself to try something new, and, as far as I'm concerned, this is as much fun as receiving parcels full of surprises in return.  I hope this swap brings you similar inspiration and joy!

HERE ARE THE DETAILS

-- Sign-ups are open starting today (Sunday March 3rd.)  To sign up, please email me margaret (at) flyingteapot (dot) com with your name, mailing address, email address, blog URL (if you have one), plus a few sentences about yourself; you can mention your family, information about where you live, what kind of crafting you like to do, materials you like to use, etc...  This will help you and your swap-mate get to know each other a bit.

-- This swap is open to anyone anywhere in the world and to participants of all crafting levels.

-- Each participant will be matched in a group of three (i.e. you will create a doll for each of your two swap mates and will receive a doll from each of them in return.)

-- Sign-ups will close Saturday March 9th and information about your swap-matches will be emailed to you by Sunday March 10th.

-- By signing up for this swap you are agreeing to create, with you own hands, a peg doll for your swap-mate and send it off in a timely fashion.

-- Preferably, dolls should be posted to recipients by Saturday March 23rd.  If you are delayed in sending your parcel, it will be important to communicate this directly to your swap-mates so they know when it is coming.

-- Any questions?  Please feel free to send me an email!

NOTE: Sign ups for this swap have ended...

icarus peg doll and photo by Faith Pray

And now for a further bit of blog-iversary fun. Starting tomorrow I will be having not three, not four but five give-aways!

I will post the first give-away on Monday and each day consecutively next week.  They will be what I think of as "flash-give aways" -- meaning that the turn-around will be quick.  You will have one day to leave a comment before the opportunity closes and a winner is announced.  So, if you're interested, be sure to stop by starting Monday to see what I'm offering (small, sweet & fun... I promise!)

dolls and photo by Mama West Wind

p.s. I mentioned in this post here that I would take a break from posting about peg dolls.  I guess I changed my mind.

Mysterious Botanicals

You might remember, way back in September when Jen (of Sewn Natural) and I launched a brooch swap?  Well, the brooches I created for the swap have landed on the doorsteps of their recipients, so I can finally reveal my work...

The swap was intended to be 1:1, however, because we had an uneven number of participants, I took the opportunity to swap with 2 participants.  The first person with whom I swapped is Laura Sheppard.  She has an etsy shop called sheppardhandmade where she sells hand spun yarns and ceramic buttons -- mostly ceramic buttons.  You must see her buttons!  They drive me a little bit crazy, they are so sweet, and in the most delicate of colors and tones.  The brooches pictured above were loosely inspired by some of her buttons; soft tones, circular and symmetrical.

 

The second person with whom I swapped was Jen's very own mother (such an honor!)  Jen's mother is an accomplished designer and, as I sat down to stitch, my imagination spun towards the botanical.  I started in a garden, alive with the buzzing of bees and the song of birds...

And ended up someplace a bit more wild.  These tiny canvasses of felt were strangely addictive to stitch, and I found myself creating one after another.

As I stitched, I imagined what might happen were I to inhale the aroma of one of these mysterious blossoms.  Would I perhaps fall into a swoon, to awaken surrounded by lush jungle beneath the gaze of seven enchanted tigers?  If I pricked my finger on a thorn, would I turn into a little green lizard?  If my tears should fall upon the roots, would the plant magically transform into a fat, pink baby -- the abducted prince from the lost kingdom of Gondal, so well hidden that no one has been able to find him for a year and a day?

And are you, my dear friends, now wondering what I have added to my coffee this morning?  Nothing but almond milk, I assure you (plus a good serving of rampant imagination on the side...)  Also, before you give me too much credit for dreaming up these botanical designs all on my own, please know that some of my design ideas were blatantly purloined from here.

Come back soon for a brooch swap wrap-up, where I will be posting photos of brooches made by several other participants!