Clara loves eggs! Boiled, fried, or scrambled, not a day goes by without a bite of her favorite protein. But when she heard that on Easter Sunday almost all eggs served are chocolate, she nearly lost her whiskers in excitement! If there is one thing Clara loves more than eggs, it is chocolate eggs!
"Clara" by Ulla Milbrath and vintage easter boxes available at Castle in the Air.
Little Ruby Rae has found the perfect cozy nook to rest her weary bones. Having just spent days upon days gathering nuts for her Mouseling friends - she may just sleep through the New Year - or until the Bluebirds sing!
(Ornament made for the annual Castle In The Air Christmas party - 2012)
Photo © Tue Nam Ton
Karima, our Castle Queen, will be posting one mouse a day on the Castle Facebook page with a little story for each written by me. If you don't already 'like' this page, please do now - HERE! We have so much magic to share with you... Photo © Tue Nam Ton
This spring, I am offering my Waxed Flowers class in two venues. First at the Castle on April 16th, and then at Chateau Sonoma on April 30th. At the Chateau we will be focusing on white flowers, specifically orange and apple blossoms, inspired by my collection of vintage wedding wreaths. I created this lovely wreath above, as my sample. See side-bar on right for more details.
Saturday was a very special day for one of the resident Castle Princesses. To mark the occassion I was asked to create a 'Chariot pulled by Butterflies with a Fairy inside' class for this 9 year olds Birthday party. (A students finished chariot is shown above) Its been a few years since I taught 9 year olds, and I had forgotten how attentive and focused they can be! They were as quiet as mice for the first half hour - watching, following and creating.
I hadn't expected them to finish their project so quickly! Karima, Queen of the Castle, came to my rescue and suggested that the girls also create tea-party settings, with toadstool bowls and golden Dresden cutlery. Suddenly their imaginations were set free... The Chariots continued to be embellished, some with umbrellas to protect the fairies from rain. Fairy's were given jewelry and belts. Little tables appeared, created from crepe paper and corks - kids are so ingenious! I was thrilled that they could expand on the theme and create magic!
A table was set up with 'grass' and Fairy Houses, so that the Fairy's had a place to fly their Chariots to, and perhaps even rest on a hammock!
Topping off our party, was a 'Princess Cake' covered in candles, joyous singing and smiles all around!
Every Friday Morning we receive a 'Farm Box' filled with organic fruits and vegetables grown in California. All three of us eagerly await each weeks edible treasures, and I have been loving the challange of cooking with in season, fresh and sometimes unusual vegetables. Often the best solution is the easiest, a simple stir-fry or raw as is. Other times, I need inspiration - and will spend hours looking through my cookbooks or going online in search of the perfect delicious recipe. Today, I discovered a truly delightful blog called "They DrawAnd Cook", filled with wonderful recipes - each illustrated by a talented artist! What a Joy and feast for the eyes as well as the stomach! I only wish I had known about this blog when I taught my 'Fairytale Cookbook Class'! Such Inspiration!!! Do visit this blog HERE, and brouse the many wonderful catagories for hundreds of recipes that are sure to make you smile as well as feed your soul!
(Press on each image to see it larger)
What was the noise Little Brother Bear heard yesterday? Non other than Santa Bear arriving in style! His green shoe sleigh is pulled by two white goats, decked in antique paisley finery. Santa Bear wears a felted wool jacket and holds a huge bag of toys, enough for all the little bears who are now asleep in bed!
Wishing you a most Merry of Christmas' and Many Blessings for the rest of the year!!!
Just for fun, here is a photo of my Inspiration (top left corner), Santa Bear before being costumed, and the antique chocolate mold I used for my paperclay sleigh...
