Have a look around the yard

It's chore time at the Jenson home. James just came back from milking the cow and Rebekah is feeding the chickens. On the left you can see the tree stump and ax that James uses for chopping wood for the fire. Looks like he needs to get busy - there's no wood pile!
The chickens seem to be enjoying their meal. :-)
At this end of the house you can see the wagon wheels James is repairing. You can also see the latch string on the door. It's actually functional. The outhouse will go at this end of the yard.
I would also like to add a large tree to the front corner of the yard at this end.
Rebekah planted some flower seeds that she brought from home. It looks like everything is coming up.

A wedding in the park

This is the wedding gazebo I mentioned in an earlier post. The actual gazebo is a real life bird feeder. There are many "firsts" for me in this display. My first polymer clay roses - on the cake, in the bouquet and the bride's headpiece, and the flowers vining up the sides of the gazebo. This was also my first wedding cake. I used various sizes of bottle caps for the cake layers. The cake table is my first attempt at pleating the cloth into soft folds. The area around the gazebo is my first attempt at landscaping.

The groom is an older doll given to me by my husband's aunt. I gave him a new white shirt, a tie and a boutonierre for his park wedding. The bride was sculpted and dressed by me.

This was a fun little project. One of my favorite things to do is to make over real life items.

Dreaming of spring

Here in Indiana, we've had snow on the ground since December. I love winter but even diehard winter fans are beginning to dream of spring. In farm country, spring means planting season. I made this garden center in a watering can last year. Several friends from the Small World miniatures forum contributed items. This was my first attempt at landscaping and I'm actually very happy with it. The mulch and soil are made from dried tea and the grass is the landscaping foam sold for that purpose. I made the store fixtures from scratch. The seed rack is made from clothespin halves glued around a dowel. The shelf and potting bench are made from miscellaneous wood scraps. I made the plants from various bits of silk and plastic plants. Some of the pots are actual mini plant pots but some are made from found objects. This was such a fun project and when I look at it I think of all of the friends who contributed items for it. I hope you enjoy the little glimpse of spring.