Bits of Goodness Swaps; Wish.Wonder.Suprise. & The Elements -

I’m a member of a yahoo group called Bits of Goodness. I’ve just started my first swap with them and I wish I had found them YEARS ago “I TELL YOU!” (…anyone know that movie line?)

Please if you’re in this swap and want to be surprised…don’t peek. Also…my element mommas if you read this…fair warning! 😉

I signed up for the Wish.Wonder.Surprise swap and made 6 sets of Gnome or Fairy sized table with 4 chairs with a confetti type look to them. I also made gifts wrapped in little bows and a cake that just happened to have icing the same color as the bows on the presents at each individual table. You were to send 5 and a hostess gift as a thank you to the hostess for well…hosting! 🙂

The girls and I painted them after I’d glued them with a non-toxic hot glue. I’m proud to say I never burnt myself! 🙂 (Yes. Burning myself with the glue gun happens a lot. For some reason I’m always getting the molten lava they call glue on my fingers. And, I can attest it’s not toxic ’cause any time I hurt my fingers right into my mouth they go. There isn’t any ill effects like double vision or double vision or anything. 😉 ) Sunshine globbing the paint on is where I got the idea for my little nativity sets shepards hair. I have to say she still did a better job of keeping herself clean than I did. Paint’s like a magnet to me. I just get covered in it.

So, they were glued, painted and then I popped pretty little dots of colors on top of the chairs. I didn’t put anything on top of the table ’cause when the gifts and the cake were on it I didn’t want it to look too busy. Yep..I’m Martha Gnome-rt.

The gifts were wrapped in ribbons and the cake was painted to match. Pretty simple and adorable when put on a plate and set upon the table just waiting for the little ones to make a WISH as they blew out their candles, WONDER if their presents held their wish and be SURPRISEd when they open it and discover what’s inside. To me Wish.Wonder.Surprise is a child’s birthday celebration.

For the Elements swap I had 2 different partners as I wanted something for Tyler, Rhea and Sunshine. One momma had 2 monkeys so we were each making two different sets. My other momma and I were making only a set each.

For both my mommas families I made;

Earth- A beautiful log we found out hiking with the kids. It was soaked so I brought it in and sat it on top of some towels in front of the fire place. It rolled into this beautiful snail like shape. I had thought it’d make a lovely home for some wee animal for being u shaped but…rolled…oh…they’ll be very warm and cozy as they have an air lock now. 🙂 It also really looks like a snail. I cut it on a saw and it has these beautiful striations from where the bark grew..

Air- a small ring with silky netting of smokes and blues tied about it. I find it funny ’cause depending on if you have it in the air or on the ground it looks like either air or water. I thought it’d be great as when I was a kid those ribbons on sticks were used to dance with. (I had an album that allowed you to dance and exercise with it. I enjoyed the ribbon and would often use it dance and to lasso my little brother. I kept this in mind and made the ribbons short! 😉 ) I used a metal ring chromed so it’d be smooth to the touch. I’m so glad I used the metal ones because when set on a fan they make these really neat seaweed ocean floor thing and the fire one…really looks like a fire snapping and crackling in the air. Rhea figured this out but I have to do some checking with Ben to see if it’s safe to put a fan on it’s back so up it came as I worried about a REAL fire.

Fire- I made hemmed backgrounds out of a burgundy that glints like a ruby in the sun. The girls have used theirs to make flames come up out of their wood, as a backdrop for the ‘Land of Setting Sun’ where the harvest is always brought in and you can gather ’round the hearth to sip cider or doze while listening to stories and the creak of the rocking chair. Land of Setting Sun is my favorite story creation as its all about fall, brisk breezes, warm socks, crisp apples, warm stew and tangy sourdough bread slathered in raw butter (which is simply amazing). Their room is in the back of the house so in the evening the sun comes pouring into our bedrooms.

Water- a mobile made of snowflakes, beads from crystals to pearlized navy to hang in the window. It’s absolutely beautiful if I say so myself. The kids worked with me on it for the first one. But soon everyone but Rhea lost interest as it was tedious to follow the pattern we’d set out. We had painted the wooden snowflakes in white and a baby blue and along the edges I added silver for a little bling! Using my dremel I drilled teeny, tiny holes just big enough for the fishing line to fit through so there’s no ugly holes. The beads were pearlized as I think it gives an extra sparkle at night like real snow does when you’re out at night with a flashlight (never done it…it’s a definite have to do it thing…and go by yourself at least once…you’ll thank me.). They each have a crystal to bring chi energy into the room and disperse it to all. There are also 9 snowflakes. 9 is heavens number and accomplishment. 5 (the first row) is about change and resourcefulness. 3 (the second row) is family and creativity. 1(the bottom row) is new beginnings and unobstructed energy. The colors blue and white stand for knowledge and creativity. Silver supports the water cycle (knowledge) and I did the pattern in a triangle which is fire. In feng shui adding a bit of fire to water can make it steamy. Basically upping the juju factor on the knowledge, creativity and family/children. It’s all kinds of goodness for the kids. But, it IS a mobile..it’s not to play with ’cause it does have little beads that can choke a kid so…hang it up in the window.

For my momma with two I also made for her family

Earth-little bundles of wood. Rhea said that every home needed their own stash of wood to heat with so we made wood. I originally planned to do a cording of wood section like where wood dries out but she said no…it needed to be made so a small bunch wouldn’t be an eyesore in the forest. “It looks like some man made it Honey. Fairies would never be obvious about where they gather their wood.” I stand corrected and will do as the expert says, so…it was added to the Lincoln Logs and I made little bunches of wood the fairies can pick up and carry easily. I think of earth as what grows from it but Ben said the wood would be fire….so if you think fire too….well….you’ve got an extra set of fire! And I’m glad these were interpretations.

Air- a yellow sunny sky backdrop. The girls have used theirs as the sun and a roof for their tree house as well as veils, a sling for Sun baby, and skirts (there is nothing cuter than a 2 year old naked with a (scarf) skirt wrapped around her waist and a wee little butt poking out the back.) I also remember a serious conversation about how energy efficient it’d be over their felted leaves this summer. It’s stretchy too so it really handles being a beautiful addition to a child’s imagination. It was also serged as I noticed Sunshine could find the edges easier to hang it with.

Fire-A ribbon set like the air one but this one has deep reds and yellows and it REALLY looks like a fire as the ribbons tangle and set upon each other. Rhea sat her fan back and put it on it and it looked really neat but I was worried about an actual fire so she stopped. As I went trying to make the ribbons I tried out felt, cotton and some silk that was from Sunshine’s birthing blankets (they were tie dyed a rainbow color so all the different colors would lend her what she needed when she needed.). None of them would fall back on their self and make a fire and nothing mixed and moved like it. I found it in the bridal aisle. It also doesn’t ravel but I do recommend serging or sewing it for the backgrounds..

**And, don’t take it to a seamstress. It must roll on them or something because it cost $20 for the 3 backgrounds to be serged! They were also a lot smaller when I got them back. But, they still looked nice and I know the way my girls are with theirs so I hope they like them too.

Water- I ran out of ideas for water so I decided to make a table set that represents all the elements; earth, air, fire, water and ether. The table is ether and each of the four chairs represent earth, air, fire and water. I certainly hope that’s okay with my swappin’ momma!

I’ve made sets of everything for my children too to add to their handmade Christmas gifts. Unfortunately, they’ve seen them so…they have them now to play with. But, I must say our nature table has been looking REALLY sharp these past two weeks.

I highly recommend you join Bits of Goodness if you’re into handmade items and check out the flickr group too. I’ve enjoyed making the items and I’ve enjoyed the fun time that we’ve had crafting for others. I wonder what we’ll get, when the next swap will be and who will host! If you want to see more detailed pics you can check them out at Wish.Wonder.Surprise or Element Swap.

Honey

Comments

Vera Lothian says

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I love everything! I would also love to know where you got your tree? its amazing!

Sandra says

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Oh, Honey, you don’t stop to surprise me! Everything you made is so cool! And that log is amazing!

Honey says

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Hi Ali! I LOVE the log. I hope we can find some more ’cause I have so many ideas to do with them now!

Land of Setting Sun is actually told by me. I designed it one day while the kids were playing with some legos and I was painting. Tyler brought over his creation and he had made a hearth with pot for soup and everything. It had a loaf of bread baking in the oven, even had an oven door that opened. It was about 12×15 inches (one Christmas was a Lego Christmas) and I had these fall colors before me, had soup on the stove and sourdough bread and apple pie cooling on the rack. Tyler said he loved when everything was done and we could just be as a family together doing stuff. It just sparked a story. I never tell the same story. It’s always different and it always works with what’s going on in our life.

Honey

Castlequeen says

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Hi Honey, I too belong to Bits of Goodness” and I just had to visit your blog to hear about your creations for the the elemental swap – awesome. That log cut is so cool. Who is the author of the book “Land of Setting Sun”? it sounds really nice.
Blessings on you and yours.
Ali,
New Zealand