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Thursday, October 29, 2015

My Newest Tutorial Is Now Listed ..

Hello  my dear friends,

I just wanted to let you know that I have finally completed my newest tutorial, my Poinsettia Christmas Stocking and it is now listed for sale in my Etsy shop.


I am just adding the final touches to my Poinsettia Christmas Stocking kits and I am hoping to have a few of them listed this coming week. So if you are interested in a kit, do visit me here at Todolwen soon again to see if they are available.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.


Friday, October 23, 2015

On My Worktable These Days ..

Hello my dear friends,

these past few weeks I have been busy in several ways.

 With winter is on it's way, I have been working in our backyard to get it ready for the cold weather and the snow. Our pool has been already winterized and our willow tree will our big focus 
for the month of November. It is sure going to be something and I will share what happened with and to our tree once it is done.

But that is not all that I have been doing, I have also been very busy working on several projects and my studio is covered in all sorts of bits and pieces and projects.

I am adding the final parts to my tutorial for my poinsettia Christmas stocking and the kits are almost done as well. Right now I am just waiting for something to arrive in the mail and then my kits can be finally listed in my Etsy shop. Fingers crossed they will both be ready very soon.


In the meantime I felted another blanket and I have almost finished a new poinsettia stocking that I am making from it. This time the blanket was a lovely cream colored one and looks so nice.


I am also working on some of my poinsettia napkin rings for my Aunt Rickie. I had made her some already but she loves to have guests so I am making her a few more for her Christmas table.


I am not sure if I had share this with you, but something else I am working on is another new tutorial of a Christmas project that I had started some time ago and I am hoping that this one too will be ready soon. ( I think, I better 'get my skates on' slowly to get all these projects done in time.)

Oh and last but not least, I am working on these ...


... little fellows too ~ more pearl snowmen.

So as you can see I am up to my elbows into Christmassy stuff and loving it too. 

Thank you for stopping by and visiting me. Do come back again some time and see what I have to share here on Todolwen.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.

Monday, October 19, 2015

Feathered Critters ..

Hello my dear friends,

my most favorite feathered creature is the Canada Goose.
 I just get such a buzz when I hear them honking, flying high above me so graciously. I have a huge love these beautiful animals but I have now got another favorite feathered being, which is owls.

I remember when I was a little girl, visiting my Grandma in Saskatchewan for the summer and one day she climbed up into the attic from the outside of the house. Shortly later she came back out holding a huge bird in her arms. This bird was a large and beautiful barn owl. I never forgot this experience, it was so special to me. 

Some time ago I found this little barn owl creation by the amazing artist Emma Hall.

(Photograph courtesy of Emma Hall)

It is made from fabric and old lace and is so stunning ~ I love it!
Here is a link to her website ... Emma Hall

I have made Canada geese from canvas years ago and now I would like to try and make an owl and  hopefully it will look something like this little one below ~ it is my newest love. I recently found this picture of  this baby owl on Pinterest.


(Unfortunately my search of who took this photograph wasn't successful but whoever took it ~ thank you for doing so and sharing it.)

I have no idea what kind of owl it is but it just melts my heart, isn't it just the cutest?! 
So .. what to do? If I can't have a real one of these cuties, I will have to make myself a little owl that can live somewhere in my studio. I can already see it in my mind but now the real work is going to start which is trying to create the pattern to make this feathered critter. I already know it is going to take several attempts and some time but hopefully in the end I will get there ~ so fingers crossed. I have already started to search for fabrics to use and I am hoping I will find something suitable for it.

(Some time later ...)

Believe it or not but I had started to write this post several months ago, that is how long it has taken me to finally, finally find some fabrics that I think might be the right ones to create this little baby owl with and I wasn't even looking at that time. I found the fabrics just by chance whilst out and about buying sewing thread in my local Fabricland.


I found three different fabrics that look almost like the soft feathers of the baby owl. Two of the same type just in different colors and one other one that is also a possibility. Now it time for trail and error to begin. I have already found a few tutorials on how to make bird feet from wire and I hoping that one of them will be the right one for my little hooter. How long is this going to take until my little owl might be done? I have no idea but once done I will of course share it right away.

So do stayed tuned or pop by to visit me here at Todolwen from time to time and see what I have been up to. I am working on more than one creation as always and will have something to share soon again.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.

Sunday, October 18, 2015

The First Snow Of The Year ..

Hello my dear friends,

this is what I woke up to this morning, October 18th.

 Many leaves are still hanging bright and green on the trees and now the are being covered in a blanket of white prettiness. Since yesterday we have had snow squall warnings which made me change my plan on heading out to visit beautiful Michigan again. 

This is the second weekend now that we had to change the plans of our little road trip due to things happening. Last weekend was actually a little scary. We were about 40 miles out of town in the midst of lovey Ontario countryside when my car decided that it didn't want to play nice anymore. It started to slightly jolt constantly, like it was loosing power and the engine light came on. We were forced to head back to town and straight to my dealership. Five hours and over a thousand dollars later, my car was fixed and working again. I was very happy because things could have turned out so much worse.

But enough of that and back to something much nicer ... here is a little snow for all you Lovelies.


I hope you can get an idea of how much it snowed looking at the above photograph.








My little rosebush, still in bloom ...


... also got a heaving dusting of the chilly white stuff.





This is the way into our backyard and ...


... it almost looks like you are entering a winter wonderland.

Of course I just had to add a 'few' photos of a little furry critter that was sitting in our maple tree, trying to keep warm from the cold and looking for something to eat.






I also couldn't resist throwing a few peanuts out onto the deck  ...



... which were quickly found and very much enjoyed.

Looking outside now, a few hours later, all the snow is gone again and the sun is shining but I am sure it won't be long before the next time the skies open and let more snow fall down to earth.

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.

Sunday, October 11, 2015

Inspired By Rickie's Poinsettias ..

Hello my dear friends,

many of you are working on Fall and Halloween creations but I am thinking a little further already.

Christmas is slowly on it's way and now is the time to start being creative so that you will be ready for the special time of the year. I have been very busy and today I am so happy to share my newest creation with all of you lovelies.

 You all know how much I love poinsettias and I recently remembered my Aunt Rickie's napkin rings she had made from felt many years ago. They were little poinsettias that were made from red and green felt and at Christmas time the dinner table would look so festive and lovely with them. 

(Photo courtesy of Etsy)

These look very similar to my Aunt's napkin rings.

Some time ago she had gifted me with them but unfortunately over the years I am not sure if they  might have gotten lost or they might still be hiding somewhere in a box and I just haven't found them again. I liked them so very much and so this year I decided to create my own take on them.

Long story short, you all know me and colors. I love whites, off whites or naturals, grey and very subtle colors. Also one of my favorite things to work with is wool felt in white and especially when it has been washed hot and dried in the tumble dryer. It becomes this amazing textured felt that looks almost like fallen snow and it was perfect for my poinsettias.

At first I was going to go with the 'kissed by frost' look because I like it so much but in the end I decided against the glitter and instead went with needle and thread and a plain old running stitch to embellish my Christmas blossom and I am happy I did. It takes a little longer to make them but it also gives this beautiful flower a little more detailed look. Not only that ... the thread color could be coordinating with the color theme of the decor that is used.

And here is my first Poinsettia Napkin Ring in all it's prettiness.


I named it 'Rickie's Poinsettias' with my lovely Aunt in mind.
I wonder if she will like it?








What do you think? I love the way it turned out!

I hope the next part of this post will put a little smile on some of  your faces because it is my newest free tutorial for all you lovelies.

  I thought that maybe a few of you would like to deck your Christmas table with these lovely flowers this year, so whilst creating my poinsettia napkin ring, I also made the 'how-to' for it.

This is what you will need to gather to make them ...


~ Printed pattern
~ Cardboard (cornflake box)
~ Glue stick
~ Scissors
~ White wool felt ( you can find this at Joann's)
~ Pearls in 2 different sizes
~ Seam binding (in two colors of you choice)
~ E6000
~ Button/craft thread (in the color of your choice)
~ Needle 
~ Disappearing quilters marker
~ Large pin (optional)


A short note about wool felt ...  I love to shrink my wool felt!
 I do so by washing it hot in the wash machine and then drying it in the tumble dryer on hot. It will shrink by almost half of it's size though, so keep this in mind if you are buying wool felt and want to shrink it. You of course can also make you little napkin rings with 'as is' bought wool felt if you wish.

The thread I used was button/carpet thread from Dual Duty and was a close match to the pearls I used. The pearls were from Michaels in the color bronze and I also used two different colors of seam binding which were oatmeal and leather tan. If you like you could used little bells instead of pearls and ribbon instead of seam binding, it all depends on what you prefer.

Poinsettia Napkin Ring pattern page.


Right click the pattern page and a window will appear.
 (Click on 'open link in new tab'. You can enlarge and save the pattern from there.)



Print the page off, glue it onto a piece of card (cereal box) and then cut the templates out.


Place your templates onto the felt and trace around using a disappearing pen.
 You will need to cut 1 x A, 1 x B, 1 x C and 2 x D  (I work on one flower a time because your markings might fade before you are done cutting the pieces out.)


Once done, cut all your pieces out.

 Now using a single thread of your hand quilting thread and using a simple running stitch, embellish each petal as shown on the pattern.


Stitch upwards with a running stitch one way ...


... and going back down fill in the gaps in between the stitches you made the first time.
(I hope this makes sense to you.)


Once you have done the lines, turn over, secure you thread and cut the excess off.

Do so with all pieces ...


... and don't worry about the neatness of your stitches because they don't have to be perfect.


Next very carefully cut a 'X' in the center of the pieces marked. Be careful not to cut them too big because then it might not hold or even tear.    .

And now you can assemble your napkin ring.


Fold piece A in half so that the petals are together, you need to have the right sides facing each other inwards. (I didn't when I took this photo)


Now feed the petals of piece A through both pieces of D and then through piece C.


Arrange your pieces the way you would like them to be. I did mine that they are not on top of each other but a little offset.


Take piece B and with a single thread sew a running stitch as shown in the photograph ...


... pull together, secure your thread but don't cut it off just yet.


Place piece B onto the center of the main flower part and ...


... attach it with a few stitches.


Once done, go through the center, secure it on the underside somewhat hidden away and now you can cut the thread off.


Now cut two pieces of seam binding. I did mine approx. 19 inches and one about 14 inches long but you can cut yours longer if you wish.


Knot the ends of your seam binding pieces.


Now turn your napkin ring up side down and wrap the longer piece of seam binding around the felt part (ring) that will hold the napkin  ...


... and tie it once.



Next place your other piece of seam binding on top of the first 'tie' and ...


... now tie it again, making it a knot.

You are almost done now with your first napkin ring ~ there is one last step.


Turn your poinsettia back over and add a blob of E6000 to the center of your flower.



Place your pearls into the glue, making sure that there are no holes of the pearls showing.
I use a large hat pin to turn mine the right way around.

And now you are done!

I hope you have had fun creating one of my poinsettia napkin rings.
If you have any questions about this tutorial, please drop me a line.


Thank you for taking the time to visit me here today at Todolwen and I hope you will come back some time again and see what I have been up to. 

I hope you are well my dear friends and life is treating you kind.

Have a peaceful and creative day.