I am an emotional creator. I can’t seem to bring myself to create Christmas items in June or Halloween things in January. I need to feel the season in order to have the motivation to create. I also need to have the time.
The last couple weeks, the outdoor work has dwindled to almost nothing. I felt like I actually had the time and interest in making a few fall items.
When I harvested the few corn that we actually got on our tiny stalks, I attempted to salvage some corn husks or corn stalks but they were not really usable. I had, however, saved my corn stalks from my harvest last year and they had been drying almost a year. I got the urge to make something with them. I layered them in three layers and glued them to a wood slice. I burned dots on another wood slice for the center and here is the result. I am still not sure whether I will mount it to an interesting branch or use it as a centerpiece next year but I am pleased with it.
I had also bought corn at Superstore in late August for $.28 an ear. I bought a dozen and was careful when removing the husks. I cut off the ends so the husks would pull away whole. I laid them out on drying racks on the back deck for a few days to air dry. My plan is to make a corn husk manger scene sometime before Christmas.
Another project I worked on this week was a fall wreath. I have been acquiring small pieces of fall coloured fabrics over the years but never had quite enough to make a full wreath. I was at our local Mission Thrift store and found a few baggies of fall coloured prints that were perfect. I spent the better part of an afternoon cutting 6 inch long 1/2 inch wide strips. I had an empty metal wreath form with four loops. I laid out the different strips in the colour pattern that I wanted. I folded each piece of fabric and created a loop. The ends of the fabric piece would go around the wreath wire and back through the loop. I started from the outside ring and worked my way to the inside ring. I tried to start the colour pattern in a different spot for each ring of the wreath. Initially I didn’t have any red and realized something was missing so I found some dark red fabric in my Christmas fabric and just added it in. With other tied wreaths I have tied a granny knot instead so there was no smooth center. I think I might like it better this way.
My other stab at embracing a fall themed art project was my leaf woman. I stole the idea from Instagram. I am toying with the idea of yellowing some thanksgiving music and gluing her down onto it. This was just something I decided to do one day and it made me happy.
Already the tide has turned and I am thinking less of fall creations and more about what I could make to add to my Remembrance Day decor. The best part of creating decor at the end of the season is that it feels new the next year when you pull it out. After Remembrance Day there is the three week lull before December 1 where I don’t get into a Christmas mood until we get snow on the ground to stay.
They are all pretty and useful good work!