Clean.

Free sunhat pattern.

After a long, dark spring the sun is shining once again.

To celebrate, I sewed a new sunhat for each of my kids last week.

Sage's is identical to the one I made for him when he was seven. (That boy knows what he likes!)

Lupine's is a spunky, patchwork incarnation of the same pattern.

To modify the pattern for Lupine that I originally designed for her brother, I mixed up the colors and added a narrow patchwork strip to the side.

The patchwork is my favorite small detail on this hat. It is a simple addition, but takes the hat to a different level of cuteness. I created it with scraps from her baby sling and several outfits I've sewn for her. It also allowed us to use a favorite but barely too-short fabric for the main hat piece.

She is thrilled with it and proudly announces what each fabric was from when she shows it off.

The hat is reversible and lined in a single print (from another mama-made outfit), so it's two hats in one!

Want to make your own? Of course! The pattern and instructions are below. I've simplified them a bit since I first shared this pattern, including PDF files that should be easier for you to print to scale.

Enjoy!
Rachel

Summer Sunhat for Girls & Boys

Materials:

• Pattern - three pieces (below). To print, follow the instructions below. 
• Outer fabric
• Lining fabric
• Timtex or other stiff interfacing for brim (I was out of Timtex so I used plastic cross-stitch template)
• Matching thread

All sewing was done with a 1/2 inch seam allowance. This is sized for my 6-8 year old. Adjust as needed to fit a younger or older child.

1. Print out pattern pieces.

To print, click on the PDF files below.

Save files to your desktop.

Open and print each file without scaling. (The Sunhat Crown should measure 7 3/8" across.) 

Download SunhatCrown

Download SunhatBrim

 

2. Cut Fabric.

You will need to cut the following pieces:

Sunhat Band (No pattern piece. Rectangle 21.5" x 4")

Cut two (one lining, one outer fabric). This can be a sold fabric or pieced fabric as shown above.

To add a patchwork band as above, cut your main fabric rectangle 20" long. Sew a 2" wide patchwork band that is 4" tall. Join patchwork and main color and trim to size.

Sunhat Brim

Cut three (two outer fabric, one interfacing.) Note: When you cut out your paper pattern fold and cut so you have the entire 1/2 moon. I only copied down 1/2 of the pattern to make it fit on a single sheet.

 

Sunhat Crown

Cut two (one lining, one outer fabric)

 

3. Sew Brim

Cut interfacing brim down by 1/2 inch on all sides.

Sew outer curved edge of brim, right sides together.

Turn and press.

Insert interfacing and trim if needed to fit smoothly inside.

Top stitch outer curve through all layers to hold interfacing in place.

Sew Crown

Fold hat band so that the short ends line up (right sides together), creating a flattened cylinder. Sew.

Pin cylinder shape carefully to hat top (also right sides together). Sew.

Turn right side out and press.

Repeat with lining.

Pin brim to hat, centered opposite of back seam with top side of brim flat against front of hat (it will look like someone flipped the brim up, 1980's grade school style). If you added a patchwork detail, align this with the edge of the brim or however you like it best.

Sew into place and flip down. It should be starting to look like a hat now!

Press under 1/2" on bottom edge of hat and hat lining.

Insert hat lining into outer fabric hat and top stitch together very close to the edge.

You did it! Bravo, friend.

Spring craft round-up.

It's a snow day! It's snowing like crazy and our day's outings and lessons in town are cancelled.

Hm. So much for those warm days and cold nights! Well, if you're in the same storm-belt (or just want some simple kid crafts to do together), I've rounded up some tutorials to inspire you today! Many are from my own work, a few are from elsewhere, and all are big fun.

Enjoy!

Kid Art Stencils

Turn your little's art into your favorite T.

Painted Rocks (By ISabelle Hessedjian)

While I can't find her tutorial (and her site is not in english), these are worth staring at. And making.

Homemade Play Dough

Substitute white rice flour for wheat and your dough can be gluten-free!

Plant Magic (By Misty Horizon)

Plant a seed and watch it grow.

Fabric Bunting

More work for the adults than the kids, but a still a fun project to do together.

Wool felt Easter Eggs

These are addictive. Replace those plastic eggs with quick, simple felt eggs!

Painted Blocks (By LMNOP Blog)

Check out this simple fun project!

Date Balls

One word: Yum.

Fabric covered Tins (by Green Bee)

Make a treasure box

Beeswax Luminaries

Gorgeous, simple, magical.

Carve a Stamp (By Ishtar Olivera)

Simple fun for kids old enough to wield a knife.

Sew a Crown

A sweet, simple, free-form play crown.

Handmade Book (by Bird and Little Bird)

Craft a tiny book for tiny hands.

Felted Soap

All you need is soap and some wool.

Paint Peg People

(Really now. You knew I'd throw that in, didn't you?)

Homemade Butter

If you have heavy cream and a blender (or a jar and a couple of marbles) you can make butter!

Make a Naked Egg (By Imagination Station Toledo)

Dissolve the shell off of a chicken egg.

Matchbox Babies

We love these.

And with that, I'm off to craft with my kids. Have a wonderful day, whatever the weather in your world!

Love,
Rachel

Homemade playdough recipe.

There are few projects as satisfying to a five-year old (okay, or even a 35 year-old) as making playdough. It's fast, simple, and rewarding beyond the skills needed to make it happen.

I shared my playdough recipe once before, but I've rewritten it for you now, with photos of the process. Those help, since playdough goes through a "that-can't-be-right" stage just before it's done.

A note on wheat: though we do not eat gluten, no one in my home is celiac so this recipe is based on wheat flour. I'm working on a gluten-free version that I'll be sure to share when it's ready.

Homemade Play Dough

1 C white flour (I have used whole grain with good results as well)

1/4 C salt

2 T cream of tartar

1 C water

2 tsp food coloring (optional)

1 Tb oil

A few drops of essential oils of your choice.I am partial to Cranky Pants EO Blend, but use whatever you love.

Combine dry ingredients in a medium cooking pot.

Add wet ingredients (except essential oils) and stir.

Cook over medium heat stirring constantly. It will go through the following stages:

Wet soupy flour mixture;

still moist but becoming gooey and starting to stick to the pan;

very awkward to stir and rather chunky;

and then suddenly - voila! - a fairly smooth ball of dough in your pot.

Once the dough forms a ball in the center of the pot, turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Allow to cool for a few minutes, then knead until smooth. Make a dent with your finger to add optional essential oils. Knead in completely. 

For colored dough, divide as desired. Flatten each ball and make a fingerprint in the center. (But don't go all the way through!)

Add a drop or two of food coloring to each, then fold into a little calzone and carefully knead and fold to work the color into the dough. (This job is best for adults or older kids, and you might want to wear gloves if you are worried about a touch of coloring on your hands.)

We've had success with both grocery-store food coloring and the natural food coloring we use for baking.

Store in the fridge. Discard when it becomes sticky or if it starts to seem off.

Want a PDF of the recipe to can print it out? You bet!

Download HomemadePlaydoughRecipe

Have fun today!

Love,
Rachel

Foolproof Canned Pickle Recipe

I feel some days like there is so much to share with you. So much going on. And yet, where to begin? Part of me wants to start by telling you about the rain that finally fell last night and how worried this drought has had me feeling. Part of me wants to tell you about the swimming hole we just discovered, the kale going wild in the garden, the farm we are contemplating, or the visit from my sister-in-law.

Part of me wants to share a variety of stories - some heavy on my heart and others warm in my soul - but then there is that bushel of cucumbers on the kitchen counter, demanding that I tend to it.

Produce is good that way. It keeps us in the now. So we'll start with pickles. Because the cucumbers just won't wait.

How to Make Canned Pickles

If you have never canned before, pickles are a good place to start. They are simple, require few ingredients, and the product is outstanding. (Really. These will blow your mind.)

If you are interested I will share how to make live-fermented sour pickles next week. But for storage, canned pickles keep beautifully all year long.

Gather your supplies.

You will need:

A hot water bath canner. (I am using a pressure canner but not pressurizing it because it's all I have. We'll be hot water bath canning, which in a pinch can be done in a stock pot!)

Canning jars and lids. Check Craigslist and garage sales if you have the time or pick them up at the grocery or hardware store. My lids are Tattler lids because I am more comfortable with them as they are BPA-free but use what you have. Do remember that you need new metal lidsfor every batch. (Used rings, free of dents and rust are fine.)

Salt. Most recipes call for "canning salt" but mineral salt or sea salt works perfectly and provides minerals as well. Just stay away from salt with added iodine. Also know that if you use mineral salt you'll have some clouding in your jars (to which I say, "Who cares?").

Vinegar. While most recipes call for white vinegar I love apple cider vinegar for pickles. This time I did half of each since I was a little low on both. (I just refrained from making a joke about being "in a pickle becasue I was low on vinegar". Sorry. I couldn't resist.) The message is: use what you have. Any 5% acid vinegar will work.

Cucumbers, of course. You can pickle all manner of firm vegetables but we're starting with the basics. Cucumber pickles made by this recipe will become your addiction. We ate through a double batch of these by February last year, so I made a quadruple batch this time. I just hope they last.

Prepare to Can!

Soak your cukes. Unless you just picked them moments ago, submerge your cucumbers in ice water to rehydrate them. You can soak them overnight or just for an hour. It's up to you. Your pickles will be better for it, but if you are in a time pinch don't fret - just skip to the next step.

Wash and sterilize your jars. Yeah, I hate washing clean jars too. If they are in my kitchen cabinet I don't bother but jars from the basement need a quick wash. Fill your canner with enough water to cover your jars. Bring to almost a simmer, then submerge your jars. Bring to a boil, turn off heat, and soak for a few minutes. Remove jars pouring water back into canner.

Sterilize your lids. Bring a small pot of water to boil. Remove from heat and add jar lids, gaskets (if applicable) and rings. Leave in hot water for now.

Cut off the blossom ends of your cucumbers. This is the end with the tiny belly button rather than the wider stem belly button. A friend and reader shared this tip with me last year. There are hormones in here that will soften your pickles over time, so cut that end off by 1/4 or 1/8 inch. Discard.

The Recipe: Viroqua Pickles

makes approximately 7 pints

4 lbs (or 1/4 bushel) of cucumbers, preferably small and firm

2 3/4 C vinegar

3 C water

1/4 C salt

7 cloves of garlic

peppercorns

1 bunch of dill

Process

Bring vinegar, water, and salt to a boil. While the brine heats place in each jar 1 clove of garlic, a pinch of peppercorns, and a few springs of dill.

Place whole small pickles or cut larger pickles in the jar. Be mindful to really pack them in, standing spears on end and wiggling as many in as possible.

When the brine comes to a boil pour over cucumbers, leaving 1/2 inch of head-space. (The neck of the jar is more than enough room.) Carefully wipe the rims of your jars with a clean dry cloth.

Drain the water off of your lids and rings. Lid the jars being mindful to not over tighten. (I tighten mine and then unscrew them just a touch.) Using canning tongs, lower the jars into the hot water. Add more water if necessary to cover jars with at least 1" of water or remove a bit if your pot is overfilled.

To prevent jar breakage, don't crank the heat! Lid the canner and set heat to medium-low. Allow to come to a simmer. This will take a while, maybe 10 or 20 minutes, depending on the batch.

When the water reaches a slow boil/heavy simmer set your timer. Simmer for 10 minutes for pints and 15 minutes for quarts. Check occasionally to ensure that it's still simmering. If you find it isn't simmering anymore adjust the heat and add a couple of minutes to your time.

When the timer chimes, remove with tongs and set gently on a towel. Allow to sit undisturbed for one hour, then check your jars. For metal lids, just push down the center to test the seal. If the lid pops down your jar did not seal. Fridge it or attempt to reseal. To reseal, check rim for chips and lid for damages, then reprocess as above. To test the seal on Tattler lids carefully remove rings and gently lift lid. It will come off if the lid failed.

Your pickles are done! Bravo!

I saved the text above as a PDF for you to print out. Have fun with this. You are awesome and so are your pickles.

Viroqua Pickles PDF

Sew a Sunhat.

Hi friends. I want to give my kids my full attention today and not be distracted by time at the computer. With that in mind, I am reposting my sun hat pattern from two summers ago for your enjoyment. Perfect for your little boy or girl, choose their favorite fabric and start stitching! The hat sews up quickly and is fairly easy for even a novice sewer.

If you've made the hat already, I'd love to hear how it turned out!

Have a great day, friends.

Love,
Rachel

~ *~ * ~* ~ * ~

This is a little late in coming. I promised you this pattern weeks ago! I didn't make the time to stitch up a second one and I didn't want to post it without photos, thus the delay. But summer is wearing on and I have this image in my head of many little boys out in the sun, squinting like mad.

So here it is - a sewing pattern without photos - but a pattern none-the-less. Go forth and sew hats, you brave, bold mamas.

(Note: the hat below seems a bit too tall to me, so the pattern trimmed off about an inch.)

Sage's Sunhat

Materials:

• Pattern - three pieces (below). Print without scaling so that you get the proper size.
• Outer fabric (I used linen)
• Lining fabric (I lined with the same)
• Timtex or other stiff interfacing for brim
• Matching thread

All sewing was done with a 1/2 inch seam allowance. This was sized for my 7 1/2 year old. Adjust as needed to fit a younger or older child.

Boy Sunhat Band (No pattern piece. Rectangle 21.5" x 4") - cut two (one lining, one outer fabric)

Boy Sunhat Top Pattern - cut two (one lining, one outer fabric)

Boy Sunhat Brim Pattern - cut three (two outer fabric, one interfacing.) Note: When you cut out your paper pattern fold and cut so you have the entire 1/2 moon. I only copied down 1/2 of the pattern to make it fit on a single sheet.

Brim

1. Cut interfacing brim down by 1/2 inch on all sides.
2. Sew outer curved edge of brim, right sides together.
3. Turn and press.
4. Insert interfacing and trim if needed to fit smoothly inside.
5. Top stitch outer curve through all layers to hold interfacing in place.

Crown

1. Fold hat band so that the short ends line up (right sides together), creating a flattened cylinder.
2. Sew.
3. Pin cylinder shape carefully to hat top (also right sides together).
4. Sew.
5. Turn right side out and press.
6. Repeat with lining.
7. Pin brim to hat, centered opposite of back seam with top side of brim flat against front of hat (it will look like someone flipped the brim up, 1980's grade school style).
8. Sew into place and flip down. It should be starting to look like a hat now!
9. Press under 1/2" on bottom edge of hat and hat lining.
10. Insert hat lining into outer fabric hat and top stitch together very close to the edge. 

Your hat is done! Dance around a little and then call in your boy (or girl) and share your creation. Feel free to leave comments or send emails with your questions.

xo

Rachel

How to Make Beeswax Luminaries

Welcome! Make yourself cozy and have a look around. Crafy tutorials, fabulous eats, natural parenting musings (like this favorite), and other inspiration abounds. Peace, Rachel

Glowing beeswax luminaries. Magical? Heck yeah. Add to that easy, affordable, natural, and DIY and that's my kind of decorating.

It all started with Pinterest. I saw this tutorial for making luminaries with paraffin wax and balloons. And I though: how about beeswax? Beeswax would be warm and sweet and wonderful. So much more alive than paraffin and more "me". Oh, yes. That sounds exceptionally nice.

So with a goal of warm golden globes scattered around our home on New Year's Eve, glowing warmly and scenting the room with the sweetness of summer I dug in. We're having friends over this weekend. Ambiance, anyone? I'm in.

I jotted down a quick tutorial for you, too. If you have some beeswax and balloons you're pretty much set.

DIY Beeswax Luminaries

Supplies

9" balloons

Beeswax (2 lbs or so with plenty left for other projects...)

Double-boiler, slow cooker, or stainless pot

Parchment paper

Process

Fill balloons with warm water. (Or if the only faucet in your house that will take a balloon is cold water only, fill a basin with warmish-hot water and soak your cold balloon's for a while.) Fill them to the size that you want your luminary to be.

Your balloons should be full enough that they are plump/taught. If you want smaller luminaries, simply knot them off as tightly as possible like the balloon above (note the long "tail"). I say this because I had trouble with under-filled balloon's. The luminary cracked when I set them down to cool, an issue I did not have with full or tied-with-a-long-tail balloons.

Heat your beeswax. Ideally you want it around 160-170F. I do this in a slow cooker that I picked up at a thrift store just for this job. If you don't have a slow cooker you can simply use a cooking pot on low heat or fashion a double boiler out of two pots. (Be prepared to donate the wax pot to wax forever more. Though it is possible - and a bit of a headache - to clean out.)

Melt the wax on high, then turn it to low before you set to work. I only checked the temp twice during a 40 minutes of luminary making and it held temp well. No thermometer? No worries.

Troubleshooting Temperature

If you don't have a thermometer, wing it. Here's how you know you have the right temp:

• Is the wax sticking smoothly to your balloon? Then it's your temp is good! Dip.
• Is the wax lumpy? Too cool! Heat it up.
• Is the wax melting the previous layer off when you re-dip? Too hot! Allow to cool.

Dip your balloon repeatedly. Do not dip beyond the water/air line on your balloon. If you wonder why and decide to try it your balloon will dramatically explode, filling your wax pot with water and causing you much grief. (Ask me how I know...)

Every six dips or so gently place the balloon on a piece of parchment paper to flatten the bottom. Let it sit for a bit to cool. Between every dip allow 5-10 seconds for the wax to cool before you immerse it in the wax another time. (I like to do two balloons at a time, alternating between them.)

Random sidebar to answer the question you are asking: that's my dry erase board in the background above. The tutorial for making that is over here.)

After approximately 20-30 dips, gently place your balloon on the parchment and allow to cool. Your goal is a luminary that is thick enough to hold up to use, yet thin enough to let the light through. Once it feels firm to the touch (though still warm) take your balloon to the sink and pop it! It will startle you every time. I promise. And you will likely get a little wet if your aim is off. Peel away and discard the balloon.

Trim any ragged edges with a pair of sharp scissors while the luminary is still warm. Then place a tea light or votive (in a cup) inside and enjoy. (The brighter your candle the warmer the glow.)

Happy New Year to you. I'll be back her next week with more treats in store.

Love,
Rachel

How to Make Your Own Fairy Wings.

I know, I know. A fairy wing tutorial? On November 1? I'm a day late and a dollar short. Because Halloween was, like, yesterday. 

Yes. Halloween was yesterday. I woke in the morning with a random plan to be Rollie Fingers for Halloween. (I was a huge Brewer's fan as a kid and this guy's mustache has always been a source of strange fascination for me.) But my own kids were freaked by the idea of their mother in a baseball cap and a wool handlebar mustache. And then I couldn't find my baseball cap and the whole plan unravelled. I had to be something else.

But what? My costume stash is pretty lean these days, consisting of a too-tight-for-me-now wedding dress, a pair of cowboy boots and an Amish straw hat. And that combination was scarier than the mustache, so I needed a plan-B. A fairy! Of course. But Lupine's wings were too small.

I searched Pinterest for ideas and came across two useful tutorials (this one and this one.) I read them each over once, got a little overwhelmed, and just went for it on my own.

And they were so easy. Ridiculous. And because of the amount of glitter I used, extremely satisfying as well. (I don't know what it is about glitter. I wish I could put it on my food I like it so much.)

These wings took me less than two hours from start to finish (including a trip to Walgreen's for nylons when I realized that I simplified all of my tights right out the door last spring).

So easy and so much cuter than a handlebar mustache.

Here is what you need:

Four metal coat hangers or equivalent amount of other strong wire

Duct or packing tape

2 pairs of tights or nylons, mine were size large-ish and full length, though in retrospect thigh-highs would work great.

Fine glitter

White glue or Mod Podge

1. Shape each of the four hangers into a wing shape. My top and bottom wings have a slightly different shape giving a distinct top and bottom, but go with whatever you like.

2. Cut off the hooked part of each hanger and tape together your left and right wing pairs, as above.

3. Slip a nylon leg on each wing segment and cut it off at the appropriate length. Knot on the back.

4. Tape together the left and right wings to make a connected set. You're almost done!

5. Using diluted white glue (1:2 water to glue), paint the edges of your wings and sprinkle with glitter. Paint designs on the wings and add more glitter. Knock extra glitter off onto a tray or newspaper and reuse. Don't rub the glitter into place or you may smear the glue. Allow to dry while you admire your work.

Your house. Will be full. Of glitter. But that's okay. Because now your house is magical instead of messy.

6. Hide your packing tape under ribbon or fabric. I simply wound a long piece of velvet ribbon around the center until all of the tape was hidden and secured it with a straight pin. You can do something more permanent but I was under time constraints and didn't want to get glue on my coat. Fabric glue (Tacky Glue or some such) would work well.

7. Attach a super long length of ribbon (the long cream-colored ribbons below) for straps. Cris-cross over your chest and tie in the back or at your side.

Tie them on and say to your reflection, "You are so cute I can hardly stand it. Mwah!"

Edited to add: if you're looking for other clever costumes, how about this knitted bluebird hat? (Thought I'm a bit partial to the gnome hat...) Or maybe a crown is more your speed.

Felt Crown Tutorial

Today you can find me over on Whip-Up. I was honored to be asked by Kathreen to write a post for her guest blogger series and I shared a tutorial for crafting a free-spirited wool birthday crown or play crown. Click on over to my post and have a peek.

I love this project. Truly. Love it. That would explain why we have two children and four crowns. 

Love,
Rachel

 

How To Felt Soap

Welcome to Clean! I frequently post simple craft tutorials as well as share my reflections on gentle parenting. I invite you to like my page on Facebook and keep up on what's happeing here. Peace, Rachel

What is felted soap?
Felted soap is a bar of soap encased in a wool cover. It is soap in a jacket. It is soap with a sweater. It is a built-in washcloth, poof, or scrubbie. And the real magic is that the wool continues to felt up smaller and smaller as the soap shrinks, staying tight around the ever diminishing bar. Cool? Very. And at the end all that remains is a wee scrap of wool that you can toss into the compost. I love that.

It sounds complicated.
No. Not really. As homeschoolers, my family is always looking for a project that is easy enough to satisfy our children but fun enough to be enjoyable for all. Wet felting is one such project. Quick, easy, and affordable, my children and I wet felt beads, paperweights, balls, vessels, soap, and more. Heck, you can wet felt a rock to make a paperweight Martha Stewart would be proud of. All you need is wool (roving), hot and cold water, a little time, and in this case a bar of soap. Each bar takes under five minutes, so you can make dozens in an afternoon.  

Ready to get started?

Good. Me, too.

Materials

To create felted soap you will need a few ounces of colorful 100% wool roving. Ask at your local yarn shop for a roving that wet felts well, or visit a website like Etsy and search for “roving”. Choose a few coordinating colors.

Soap (obviously). I'm partial to my own soap, and I sell "Imperfect Soap Samplers" (as pictured above) which are perfect for this project at a bargain. But use whatever you love.

Instructions

Begin by filling a soup pot with very cold water (toss in a few ice cubes for good measure). Set the pot aside by your sink.

Roughly measure the width of your soap bar. Tear off a piece of roving that is approximately three times this measurement. This will give you enough wool to wrap your soap with some overlap of the ends. (Don’t cut your roving. Tear with your hands. You may need to tease the roving apart a bit to make it thin enough to tear.) Tease apart the wool until it is a fairly thin and uniform layer. You should be able to see your fingers through the fibers. It if becomes much wider than your soap, pull away the excess and set aside.

Wrap the bar of soap tightly in the wool, overlapping the ends. Set aside your soap, weighting down the wool with another bar if necessary to keep the wool tight.

Measure the height of your bar and triple it. Working in the same color or a new color, again tear off a length of wool to wrap your soap in the opposite (vertical) direction. Tease the wool into a thin layer. Repeat vertically the wrapping process on your soap. You should now have a bar of soap completely covered in two layers of wool. Look it over. If there are holes move the wool around a bit to cover any exposed soap.

Holding the wrapped bar carefully, move to the sink. Turn on your hot water tap. When the water is very hot (as hot as you can comfortable place your hands in), set the faucet to a trickle. Take a dab of liquid soap or dish soap and place it in the palm of your hand. Using your fingers on the opposite hand, pick up a small amount of soap and gently work it into the wool on the top of the soap. Repeat on the bottom of the bar.

 

Move the wool-covered soap under the trickle of water to just moisten the fibers. (Do not soak the bar). Using a very gentle touch, massage the soap with your fingertips to lather up the liquid soap. Flip the bar over and repeat. When the wool is lathery, move under the hot water again and continue to gently massage the wool. This time the wool will become thoroughly saturated and the bar of soap will begin to lather.. The wool will be squishy and loose on the soap. This is normal. Be gentle. Use patience, a light touch, and go slow.

Continue to massage and lather the soap very gently in your hands. Alternate between the hot tap and gently massaging, then the cold tap and massaging ever minute or so. The combination of friction, hot water, and cold water will case the wool to transform into a dense felt, encasing the soap.

As the wool very gradually becomes more densely felted, you can apply more pressure to speed the felting process. Within a few minutes you will be gently flipping the felted soap in your hands like you are washing up. Continue to alternate between hot, cold, and friction until the wool is fairly tightly felted around the bar. When you are satisfied with the tightness fo the wool, rinse the bar, squeeze out excess moisture and set aside to dry. (The wool will be soapy. Don’t fret. It’ll dry up beautifully.)

Experiment with single colors, multiple colors, and even needle felted embellishments added after the soap and wool are dry. Happy felting!

How to Make Paper Lanterns.

Sometimes, you create time by bending the rules. Sometimes you change the scenery for a few days and see what unfolds. Lupine and I are off on a mama-daughter adventure. We've never done this before, just the two of us. And we're both so excited we woke up an hour early.

The car is packed. With the necesities. Like colored pencils, felt, scissors, acorn caps, glue, and plenty of knitting (including her own! My baby is a knitter!). We brought tea and books; good food and wool slippers. We'll be back here early next week with a report from the road.

In the meantime, here is a repost for you from last fall. This is the perfect time of year for a lantern walk! This is one of my favorite projects.

See you out there.

Love,
Rachel

The days here in the north are growing shorted. By dinner time the outdoors are immersed in complete darkness, and when we wake in the morning the sun is still nowhere to be seen. And the days are growing shorter still.

To celebrate the light that shines within each of us (even during these darkest days) the children and I made paper lanterns and carried them out into the darkness for a bedtime walk. The lanterns represent the brightness we bring to the dark, and the positive effect our bright spirits bring.

The process of making the lanterns is more simple than you might imagine. We loosely interpreted the pattern for Martinmas lanterns from this lovely book (another recommended read) as our jumping off point. I have shared our version of the lanterns below.

Supplies

Watercolor paints

Watercolor paper (ours is approximately 14" x 20", purchased here)

Ruler

Scissors

Pencil

Craft knife

Cutting mat or board

Kite or tissue paper

Glue stick

White glue

5 spring-type clothespins per lantern

Yarn or wire for handle

Hole punch (optional)

Fireproofing spray (optional)

Instructions

1. Create a simple watercolor painting. Allow to dry completely. (You will have enough paper for two lanterns from each piece of paper.)

2. On the back of your painting carefully mark the following measurements with pencil and a straight edge:

• Divide the painting in half with a horizontal line. To simplify, you may cut your paper into these two long thin strip now. (Our strips were 7 1/2" tall and almost 20" long)
• Parallel to your original cut mark two lines: one 1/2 inch down from the top and a second line 2" up from the bottom. These will form the top lip and the bottom of the lantern.
• Perpendicular to your original line, begin at the left and measure in 1". Mark line. This will be an overlapping piece used to form the lantern during the final steps of the project.
• From this 1" mark, measure five 3 1/2" panels and mark. These will be the five window panels.
• Cut off any excess after your last 3 1/2" panel.

3. Score all lines using a straight edge. (This will make folding your lantern easier.) 

4. Cut tabs for the top and bottom of your lantern by cutting all lines above and below your two long horizontal lines. (Confused? See two photos below for a visual of where you cut.) These tabs will overlap and form the bottom and the top lip of the lantern when you glue the lantern together.

5. With a pencil, draw the shapes you desire for windows on the back of your paper strip. Think simple forms - circles, stars, even rectangular "windows".

6. Use a craft knife (X-acto type) to carefully cut out the windows.

7. Flip over your painting and admire your work! Add additional details if desired with hole punch or craft knife. I used a small circular hole punch to embellish ours.

8. Cut kite paper windows the size of your main panels. Glue into place with glue stick and smooth.

(Note: the next step requires a teeny bit of patience. At least it did for me. The lantern has a propensity to spring open while you are encouraging it to stay closed. Hang tight! You are almost done, and you are smarter than the glue.)

9. Fold your lantern carefully into shape, creasing each scored line firmly. Observe where the flaps overlap on the top, side, and bottom. Apply a thin layer of white glue on each overlapping point, then refold the lantern pressing the glued panels together. (These will be triangles of glue on one end of each flap.) Be consistent with the end you glue (all on the left, for example) so that you can neatly close one flap after another and end up with a firm secure bottom.

10. Use a clothespin at each overlapping point on the top of the lantern to hold the tabs together until the glue is set. Before the glue is all the way dry remove the clothespins. (This way you don't accidentally tear the lantern when you remove the clips). 

10. Cover the hole in the bottom of your lantern with a scrap of watercolor paper approximately the size of the base of your lantern. Secure with more glue.

11. Punch two holes in the lantern's top rim and string through some wire or wool yarn. Knot yarn securely and add a tea light candle, securing to the bottom with poster putty (if you, like me, lack poster putty gum will work in a pinch, and adds a minty smell to the whole event.) (One thought: for those of you with young children or a concern of you little one holding a paper box with fire inside, battery powered tea lights are a good choice. I believe that the responsibility of holding a lantern with a candle inside is wonderful for a child, but perhaps that should wait until they are 4 or 5.

12. You are done! Now just wait for nightfall and take your lantern with you to spread a bit of light into the darkness.