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A cosy Octobery catch-up post with an autumnal craft tutorial & sneaky peak of some little Christmas Angels soon to fly the nest.
It's hard to believe that we're reaching the end of October already... it's one of my favourite months of the year, as I'm sure it is for many, with all its vibrant colour and beauty as the natural world around us changes... I love the warmth too, from all the colour and the soft but bright autumnal light, that morphs into a kind of crisp cosiness as the chill in the air begins to settle in.
Whilst the house is definitely beginning to feel a bit chilly at times (the heating hasn't gone on yet...), I've had some cosy moments crafting and been enjoying the atmosphere of this time of year. I have a little afternoon ritual of making myself a pot of tea when I sit down for my last couple of hours of making... and even though it's a year-round habit that I always enjoy, the steam rising from the pot with the autumn light shining in is definitely a small pleasure that creates a moment of cosy contentment at this time of year.
It's also been a busy time as well and yesterday I dropped some fairies into Haberdashery Twist in Stroud - I love seeing them sitting in the window there, right at home with all the sparklyness! The whole shop is such a treasure-trove I always come away feeling uplifted having visited.
Another fun little project this month was getting some of my labels reprinted as I'd almost ran out the little stickers that I attach to my hanging fairies. I sometimes take the opportunity to re-design them and it's always a bit fiddly and sometimes time consuming, but the local printers that I get them printed with are so helpful and friendly and I'm always super excited to see how they turn out! I was so pleased with these!
And, I have of course been working on Christmas fairies and angels too... I really felt called this year to make a few little angels... these little peace Angels were so sweet that I really wanted to make a few of them. I love their vintage feel. Their dresses and wings are all hand-felted and hand-sewn, and their little crowns are hand-made too. These are all going to the Museum in the Park in the next couple of days for their Christmas display in the shop throughout November (the Museum will be closing in early December this year) - here's a sneaky peak...
Earlier on in the autumn I made a sharpie-tie dye light-catcher for a family craft tutorial. It's been hanging in our living room window ever since and the effect of the sharpie-tie-dye is so vibrant with the light shining through that it's almost glowing! The colours that I used had plenty of warm hues so and have stayed bright even whilst sitting in the light. Although sun-catchers (and also tie-dye!) are often a favourite summertime craft activity, having something in the window at this time of year really emphasised the light and reminds me to notice and enjoy it, especially as the days draw in.
Here's the tutorial in case you fancy having a go, or adapting it and using the sharpie tie-dye technique as a light-catcher - you could put some sharpie-dyed fabric in a recycled picture frame, or an embroidery hoop, if you didn't want to make your own base, and would still look wonderful popped in a window :-)
And finally... autumn also most definitely means mushroom/fungi season... Here is my favourite fungi picture that I've taken this year whilst out and about on our nature adventures. This one was taken in a magical wooded spot in the grounds of the enchanting Snowshill Manor in Gloucestershire... we had such a lovely afternoon, bathed in autumnal light, exploring the gardens there.
Last year, our fungi-spotting adventures inspired this simple craft activity and we all had lots of fun making our own mushrooms, and using them as table decorations throughout the autumn :-)
I hope you've had some bright and golden autumn days yourself. I don't quite feel ready for the clocks to be changing tonight, it seems to have come around so quickly this year, but I'm definitely looking forward to some more cosy moments before the (often rainy!) November days and the busy times of the festive season.
I really hope this post finds you well and wishing you plenty of gentleness and warmth as the days draw in and the wheel of the year turns once again... ♥