For the girl who adores snails

Miss E is delighted that we suddenly have an abundance of snails living right here in our backyard. I swear they are the ones we picked up on rainy walks a few months back. But they appear to eat dirt and dead leaves, so as long as they are not destroying our plants, I'm fine with them moving in. Most likely they will do some good! I'm guilty of helping collect them anyway, so I best not complain.

For her birthday, we gave her three snail books, and I found the most adorable crocheted snail (named Leni) on Etsy. And about three weeks ago, I put together a cute snail t-shirt for her. The only thing I didn't get done was the sewing! Alas, the birthday passed and the unfinished shirt hung in my closet, begging for attention. Tonight, I finished it, so it's hanging in her room, waiting for her to wake and find it in the morning as a surprise.

It proves that snails *can* indeed be girly. The t-shirt is a very bright pink (from Target) and the fabrics are Sandi Henderson, like so many other items I've made. I still love those Ginger Blossom and Farmer's Market prints; so feminine and pink. As my first attempt at an applique, it's not too shabby -- just a bit of a pull on the shirt at the top of the snail shell. And if I hadn't included the two buttons for eyes at the end of the stalks, I would have been informed that my design was incomplete.

I'll leave you with a snail joke, from my niece, now told and retold by Miss E:
Q: What do you call a snail on a ship?
A: A snailor!

An enchanted birthday

We had a blast with Miss E's fourth birthday this year. It took more time and effort, but cost less and was definitely a hit with the kids and adults alike. I don't really know how it all got started, but one afternoon, I was brainstorming and we came up with the idea of gnomes as a party favor and it took off from there. I studied the Waldorf gnomes I found on the web, and looked at a couple tutorials, then ordered a ton of people turnings from Casey's Wood Products in Maine. Worked perfectly! I did them in batches and I would estimate that they took about 5-10 minutes apiece.

The next fun idea that came out of brainstorming with the family was to make gnome homes as a craft project, at the party. That way, the children would adopt a gnome, then build a home for him or her, and take both to their home. It was a blast! My husband sliced up a bunch of cardboard that we had in the garage, making nice little 5x7 inch bases (or roofs, you choose!). I bought a bunch of cheap craft sticks in two sizes and 10 bottles of craft glue. The rest, we collected. We took bags, boxes and egg cartons full of sticks, bark, acorns, grass trimmings, pine cones, snail shells and more. The imaginations ran wild, and we saw all kinds of beautiful gnome homes. I'll include a few images as examples, but every single one was awesome.




To top it off, we had chocolate cupcakes decorated with snails (of course), and hot pink toadstool cupcakes that were strawberry. How the heck do we top this next year?

Enter Henri, the ginormous French garden snail

So it's been raining a lot around here. Most snails are still in hibernation, since it's a bit chilly for their taste. I happen to have a daughter who is quite enamored with snails, and it's driving her nuts. "When will the snails come back, Mommy? I can't WAIT." What am I to do? I can't change nature, can I? But I can sew ...

Enter Henri, the ginormous French garden snail. I felt like I was back in seventh grade home ec class, making "soft sculptures". Back then, I made a big stuffed clock, with poseable arms. Yesterday, it was a giant snail. (Funny, but there are a couple of other crazies like me who have snails on Etsy, and most of them came up with the same ideas I did!) I happened to have some knit fabric with, of all things, snails on it, and that worked for the big tube that became the shell. I went with fleece for the body, so I could sew the bottom to look like his big snaily foot, and not worry about frayed fabric. So his eye stalks are a big droopy, and no, I didn't make the feeler stalks yet, though both DH and daughter have said I need to add those. Maybe later on ... for now, though, Henri is happily hanging out in the house, where it is warm enough for his taste. His size? Well, he can be seen here with our 14.5-pound cat ... I think that says it all!

Henri crept into Miss E's room late last night, ready to surprise her this morning, and has been leaving his slime trails around the house all morning. He claims he loves French food, cooks better than Julia Child, and *should* have a mustache.