The Maglebys

This is one of my most complex mobiles I have ever made.  The family it is for is grown and possibly a contender for "Most Interesting Family on the Planet".  It was requested by Julie, the mom.  She had so much wonderful information to share with me.  Her children are all well traveled and have unique and specific interests,  I would love to be a fly on the wall at their Thanksgiving dinners.  I am certain their conversations are a hoot and a half.  Mostly though, I am impressed at the true and clear love they have for one another, even as a grown adults.  You can't get to your twenties without swimming through some murky waters in life, and that can make some family ties a bit strained, so I love to see families like the Maglebys:  full of unconditional love.

I made Julie in her red chair per her request.  She is a self described internet junkie, and she says that whenever her kids come to visit, the first place they check for her is in her red chair.  Her daughter even used it in her engagement photos----only they took it out of the house and into some beautiful environment that I am assuming is a national park.  Her hubs is holding onto picture frames, as he is an art director for a museum.

She's got the puppy above in her lap.

Another reason I fell in love with this family is because they have experienced loss.  Their son/ brother Hal passed away from a brain tumor at the age of 15.  This is also the disease that took both of my parents, so it made me feel close to them in a way that only shared suffering can.  Here is Hal below, a blue-eyed, deep souled beauty.  

I sewed him in this crown and wearing his boy scout uniform.  It is hard to tell from the photograph, but I used golden thread for all of the seams, so if you look closely it looks as if he is full of golden,  Heavenly light.  His plush is one of my favorite I have ever made.

 

The daughter, I put in her wedding dress.   There is real daughter, up above, holding a bucket in her wedding dress for some reason.  She looks like the most laid back, I wanna have her for my neighbor, kinda gal.

Son #2 is holding an umbrella and wearing a top hat because he loves Gashley Crumb Tinies, which I also love. 

Son #3, a costume and super hero fanatic, is Godzilla.  Could you tell?  I was super nervous about his, because clearly he takes his costumes very seriously. 

I loved making this family memento and tribute.  I hope when Julie's grandchildren are playing underneath it that they look up at it then think of a million questions about their family's lives to ask their Grandparents and Moms and Dads and Aunts and Uncles.

The Narciso Family in Sweet Home Chicago!

The beautiful, big and fabulous Narcisos!  Aren't they lovely?!  Momma Gina keeps a great and inspiring family blog.

As I have aged, my answer to the "What kind of Super power would you choose?" question has changed from the typical "flying/invisible/able to control the weather" to "Super Organizational Abilities".  I had all these mom dreams before I became a mom.  Visions of apple picking, and apple sauce making, and elaborate themed birthday parties, and most importantly handmade Halloween costumes.  Those things take a lot of organization.  This year wasn't too shabby:  Walter was a fireman in his own paper mache-ed fire truck.  It must have had a powerful effect on him because he still wears his fire helmet every day.  Every.  Day.  But, what small potatoes compared the the Narsicos!  I am so delighted by these pictures.  Look at that Oompa Loompa!  Look at her!  And, there is even a golden egg involved!  They have PROPS!  I love it.  Such an adorable, fun-loving fam.  I was so pleased to make this mobile for them!

Oliver

It's safe to say that no interpretation of that face can beat the original's cuteness.  His name is Oliver, and he loves penguins.  He loves orange and yellow.  It looks like he loves orange and yellow, doesn't it?  He just beams sunshine and happiness.

I love penguins too.  Earlier this year, at the aquarium, there was one lone penguin swimming at the glass.  He was the only one showing any movement at all, and he was moving, I mean really moving in a determined way, only the tip of his beak was on the glass and he was going nowhere.  It was like he was on a treadmill and not aware of it.  My heart went out to him.  It was so inspirational, I wanted to whip out a pistol and break the glass so the tuxedoed little fella could get outta there and move on to brighter places (disclaimer:  I do not and will not ever own a pistol).  We even got lost and had to back track through the penguin exhibit a few hours later and he was still swimming at that glass.  What heart.

I'll be updating my blog more frequently with all the orders I have been working on this past month.  I have gotten to know so many amazing families through this process.  I can't wait for you to meet them all!

Sweet Maddie

This is a doll I made to look like the real-life Maddie.  My favorite part about making this lovely lady was trying to match her outfit.  So darling, my heart a puddle on the floor.  I hope I captured Maddie's spirit! 

A Mid Wife, an Electrician, Two Ballerinas and A Bun in the Oven

This one goes to an adorable family in Australia.  G'day mates! 

Dani's Family

A mobile I made for a sweet and big family.  The nursery theme is the Hungry Caterpillar so I tried to make wee little caterpillars out of felted wool balls on all the strings, and a leaf with a bite of it dangling in the center.

For Wee Little Sylvie

This mobile was really fun for me.  The mom shared pictures of Sylvie's nursery: a colorful, eclectic, vintage abode that was full of warmth and texture.  It was nice to try to match its style.  Little Sylvie is wearing pink moccasins.  She also has these little flower thingies on her shirt that I made by ironing Wonder Under on lace and then backing it to fabric and then cutting out circles.  If there was a crafting version of Macgyver, he would probably have Wonder Under in his pocket instead of duct tape.  Wonder Under allows for many possibilities.  I suppose though, Macgyver would also have to carry around an iron, which might not be as convenient as I thought.  

Don't you love big brother's curls?  So cute.  Walter's hair is curly too, especially in this southern humidity.  He likes to carry around sticks and arrows so I gave him little Cupid's love arrows.  Dad is a dentist, so naturally an appliqued tooth on a white coat seemed appropriate.  I had the most fun though designing Mom's outfit.  She loves Anthropolgie, so I tried to make it Anthropologie-esque,

I love Anthropologie too.  I am over the moon for their displays and store decor.  Over Christmas break as my family was driving our 12 hours back home from family's house we stopped in Jackson, MS for some food at a fancy outdoor mall close to the highway.  There was an Anthropologie there and Joseph watched Walter while I wandered through all by myself.  It was like a little, beautiful oasis right in the middle of road-trip-with-a-toddler-and-a-nervous-whiny-dog-H-E-Double-Hockeysticks.  My favorite part was these little winter city scenes made out of different cardboard containers.  They had been painted with black chalkboard paint and then drawn on to look like buildings.  They were so whimsical.  It made the rest of the car ride home so dreamy.

Anyway, this has been a favorite of my personalized mobiles so far, and I hope little Sylvie loves it!