Crafty Caravan Trunk Show

 

Petaluma Craft Mafia is hosting it's first famiglia trunk show at our dear crafty friend and haven, Helen Graham's Country Crafts.

Come on out to Sonoma County, enjoy the fresh air, views of the hills, and an amazing craft show at the cutest craft store around. Grahams Country Crafts is a slice of heaven for crafters, and not to be missed. Shop local and support the familigia! See you on Sunday, July 18th.

happy happy joy joy

This is my latest creation to my whimsical wreath collection. It makes me a little giddy to be quite honest. Who doesn't need one of these hanging in their humble abode? Inspired by the warmth of summer, this wreath is bright and cheerful. I envision it finding a home in a little girls room perched next to her vanity, the owl entertained by the many tea parties going on nearby.

Get Ready for The Rivertown Revival, July 24th!! It will be an event not to be missed featuring our very own Craft Mafia Crafty Caravan, other artists and musicians, tarot card reader, kids activities, food, beer, and last but not least, a river regatta race! We will have our craftacular gondola racing, well at least floating, hopefully, down the river. This will be a sight to see.

Help support this great local fair by dining out at Central Market on June 17th. That's one week and one day away folks. Support the local businesses and help keep Petaluma the unique and oh so special place it is.

Wedding Cake Topper

We crafty sisters of The Petaluma Craft Mafia, are working on a line of wedding cake toppers. Here is my fantastical creation, perfect for the more whimsical bride and groom. A pair of mini squishies are nestled together amongst a forest floor of flowers, canoodling under a natural branch arbor. Ah, sweet. I will share the other gals creations soon. Keep checkin back for more wedding whimsy.

for your next party

Ok, check out these amazing cupcakes. They would be perfect for the gamers birthday party or a throwback party. How fun!

Vintage Transportation Blocks

Using some amazing vintage fabric I found online, I made my son curtains for his room. With the little bit of extra fabric I had on hand, I created these two plush blocks for him to play with. I adore this fabric, and he loves to point to all the various types of vehicles on the blocks and curtains. The colors are bold and stimulating and have that hand colored look to them. Now that I have figured out how to make the blocks, I will order more fabric and start making them as gifts, and to sell to anyone interested! I keep them next to the changing table for instant distraction and entertainment.

Easter Egg Decorating

Easter egg decorating. A timeless tradition, steeped in history. The outcomes of these beautiful creations are endless and a bit mysterious at first dip. My favorite was to draw on the egg with the clear crayon, haphazardly I must say, then do a series of dips in various brightly colored dyes. The color wheel was running through my head as I dipped red, then blue. My 13 month old son will partake in his first Easter egg hunt in a couple of days. I am so looking forward to watching him discover the shiny plastic eggs nestled in the blades of green grass. He has a white rattan basket to collect his eggs. I wonder if he will actually put the eggs in the basket? Will the basket get in the way of running and scooping up the eggs? A video will follow of this event.

Next year, Oliver will be able to decorate the eggs, and I hope the eggs will come from our own chickens in the backyard.

Melt in Your Mouth Deliciousness

This pastry has to be my favorite treat as of late. I make sweet bread dough in the bread machine, let it rise up to get that beautiful smooth round dome on top, and then punch it down and grab the soft gooey goodness out of the pan.  Sprinkle a bit of flour on the sticky mess, and gently knead and stretch the dough out until a misshapen rectangle forms. The dough is so lovely to work with. Next I smear on gobs of softened cream cheese and tangy apricot preserves up and down the center. After a few twists of dough, into the oven it goes, and I wait patiently, smelling the aroma of fresh pastry swirling through the whole house. The wait is well worth it. Oh yum. I'll take orders by the way. You won't be disappointed.

Recently

Recently I have rediscovered my love for bbq oysters with a trip to Marshall. My 13 month old son had his first taste of clam chowder, and from the looks of things, has discovered his love of seafood. I live in a beautiful town, surrounded by some spectacular views. I swear driving out to the coast, this place could be Ireland.

This month has been a whirlwind of activity, and unfortunately, creating my own crafty goods was not on the list. I did however create cupcakes for birthdays, sweet treats and cards for friends, breads for family, and helped put on a gallery show for my high school students. Now that my school work is back to a normal rate of chaos, I will be delving into my studio again, working out all the ideas that have been swimming around in my head for the last couple weeks. They will be happy to be released! My soul will be all the better for it too.

Local beauty

During one of my walks with my son, I was enraptured by the fresh spring beauty of this time of year. I have learned to take my camera with me on our walks, so I don't miss moments like this. This was today's inspiration. The vibrant colors explode against the dark earth tones upon which they rest.

Valentines Gift

February is a busy month in the Pedersen household. My dad's birthday, then Valentine's Day, Oliver's birthday on the 15th, and mine on the 20th. This week has been dedicated to the many projects involved to get ready for these special days.
Here we go:
I made Oliver a happy birthday banner, and am working on the favor bags for the party.
I crafted a canvas tote bag for our Craft Mafia V-day gift exchange. It is lined with pretty quilted greenish blue and white striped fabric, has gold and white flowered fabric handles, and is adorned with a hoot-a-licious love owl.
I am in the process of crocheting a lap top sleeve for the hubby. It's nice kelly green yarn, that I will probably end up felting in the end. I will attach vintage buttons as closures on the flap.
I constructed an altered book night light for a gift exhange in my sculpture class at school. My students were instructed to create a 3-D gift for their "secret" valentine. I threw my name in the pile so there was an even number. After I made one for my student, I thought I might like one of these on my book shelves as well.
Sent out a couple handmade valentines cards, baked some cookies and lemon shortbread, and it's only Thursday!
Every other moment I am spending with my adorable son, who is growing and developing at lightening speed. This Valentines day we will celebrate the three of us, make homemade ravioli's and bread, and just be thankful for our wonderful, loving family. They are my world, my heart beats for them, and swells when I see them.

 

  

 

Hip Burb Cloths

10:03 pm. Writing a post after a day's work, ready to go to bed. My eyelids are heavy, burning a little, my hair a dishoveled mess. Today I made a new item to add to my etsy shop, burp cloths. Oliver wears cloth diapers, and I decided to take some of them and turn them into something more adorable with cute fabric. I sifted through my drawers of fabric bits that I collect and ration over the years. Here is what I created.

 

Now some zzzz's. Sweet dreams. I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

My first post.

The final days of January, and the daffodils are blooming in my front yard, the sun is shining through large white cotton ball puffs of clouds, my son is sleeping, and I am entering my first entry into Creative Curiosities. This is my start to a new creative energy in my life, one that has been simmering away for years, slowly gaining momentum, and would like to be a constant gentle boil. This is the beginning of my networking and communication to promote my own work, babble, and dreams in the makings, as well as local artisans and friends. 

Some day my friends, you'll see me in my store downtown Petaluma, Creative Curiosities, selling my treasured goods, baked and crafted, as well as those of the many talented artists in my life. 

At this point in my life, I am trying to balance being the best mama ever to my son, Oliver, almost a year old, and working on my art as well as my work as a high school art teacher. This is the busiest, most emotionally charged, yet happiest time of my life. As moms understand, we do an outrageous amount of work in a day, and don't stop till we drop at night, climb into our soft beds under the covers, onto the cool sheets, rest our weary heads, only to find we have monkey brain and can't sleep. And as soon as we are drifting off into peaceful slumberland, our baby wakes up in the other room crying for mama's boob! Ah, but it is all worth it, isn't it. My eyes might have bags under them, and I now have my first sighting of gray hairs, but my heart is full.

First on the agenda: Buy a nice digital 35mm camera to document and share the happenings and going ons for Creative Curiosities.