Val was so warm and opened up a dialogue with us about parenting and life. Her oldest son is in high school and in our discussion about kids, she encouraged Susie and I to maximize the teaching time we have with our children now, imparting to them the things we want them to remember when they are sponges and eager to talk with Mom and Dad. When adolescence hits and they begin to tune us out as they test their boundaries and individuality, they will have in their hearts the things we've said because we didn't wait until "later." That advice touched my heart and I have mulled it over often in the 4 weeks since our time together. I was doubly blessed by my time through learning a new art and being encouraged by an experienced mom!
Here is an unfinished life project: my family!
May God give me the strength to love them more than myself.
Here is part 1 of a finished product: my needlefelted square!
I love the colors that add a richness to the design. Val showed us how to blend colors. If it were me on my own, there would have been three colors - pink, blue, green. =)
I am planning on making this square into a pillow. The fabric is purchased, but I have not decided on the color for the ribbing. I could really pink it up, or accent the pink with the yellow. Feel free to chip in your thoughts!
So I've decided that I really enjoy needlefelting and I'd love to do more with it! I'm hoping to go back to Val this summer and learn how to needlefelt 3D objects (it does not require special glasses). I tried three different times to write out an explanation about needlefelting, but it's not coming out right. To get an idea for the beauty of needlefelting, check out Val's blog and Val's Etsy shop. And if you read this before May 27, you can enter to win one of her cupcake pincushions!! I was going to wait and write about my pillow when it was finished, but I get an extra entry if I link up to my blog, so I went for it and posted mid-project! =)
Some inspiration, a new craft, a fun day with Susie, and a super cute almost-pillow - Happy Birthday to Me!
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Dana, thank you for such a wonderful remembrance of our time together. I enjoyed it so much, too, and thought you and Susie so much fun to work with. The time just flew by, didn't it?! I'd love to do the 3-D class with you, and share more time together. I'm so glad you took more away than just a needle felting lesson. Those parenting " lessons" are really the important ones, aren't they?...
ReplyDeletex, Val
PS. You get an extra entry for writing such a sweet and generous post ;o)
Oh, that sounds like such an awesome birthday gift...too bad we live in OH and CA is just a bit too far for me. I would love to meet Val one of these days...she seems like such a nice person and is an awesome crafter!!! I really think that's a good point that we need to maximize our time with our kids...now. Too many distractions in this world, but what is ultimately most important?
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