Educational Toys

I did not home school my kids, but I SO believe in the incredible value of educational toys - even, or especially! if your kids go to a traditional school.

One of my oldest son's favorite toys was a wooden alphabet puzzle - like this one:

Alphabet puzzle available at Wood That's Fun.

It taught him the alphabet! Colors! Manual dexterity! I made sure none of the letters got lost. I was kind of fanatical about it.....

Beneath the Rowan Tree has another take on alphabet games, with these coins -

The Enchanted Cupboard has another game - sorting and stacking bowls:

The acorns can be found at FairyFolk's shop.

It's been on my mind for a long time to create a memory game - Voila!

Available at Woolies!

Give your child something fun, that they will treasure forever! (Well, maybe not forever, they do turn into teenagers....)

:)

When I was a kid

When I was a kid, I was a tomboy, as my Mom said. I played with my brother and his friends - we climbed trees - I was always up in a tree. We rode bikes. I rode horses and ponies wildly, and when I wasn't on a horse, I was pretending to BE a horse. Dirt and sticks and stones were my friends.

There is one picture of me though, pushing a doll in a baby carriage. Seriously? My hair is even neatly braided. No Way. I need to find that picture and frame it. :)

Sooo - I rarely played with dolls, if at all (unless you believe that one picture, which I don't). Is this why I am now fascinated with dolls of all sorts??

For example, I really really really want this one............

I don't even want to tell you where to find her. (fairiesnest) (there, I put that in there so that if you want to buy her for me for my birthday in November, you can....).

This guy would be awesome to take on adventures! You can find him at Merrydale Dolls, but I'd rather you didn't. :)

This adorable little cutie I managed to snag, from Princess Nimble Thimble. I play with her a lot. When I'm supposed to be workiing, muhahahahah!

And here's one that I yearn for...................from Ruprecht.

And of course it didn't help that I have no girl children. So if you're ever wondering what to get me for a present, now you have some ideas!!

Natural Toys I want to play with!

Maybe one day I'll have grandchildren (well, hopefully not for quite a few more years yet....). I think it might be time to start collecting my favorites (the ones I don't already have but have been yearning for...).

Don't you want to play wild west with this set?

By Willowbaus.

Pretend that running water and inside plumbing wasn't invented yet....

You can find at PrettyDreamer.

Hmmm, I might be needing these woodland animals sooner rather than later....

by JustHatched.

And I have this thing for mermaids....

At TheEnchantedCupboard.

And, for sweet dreams at night, who doesn't need a dolly best friend?? At LittleElfstoyshop.

You can find more wonderful MAGICAL. natural toys for children HERE.

Acorn Pixies!

Quite a few years ago, I used to make Pixies out of bendable wire and felt, and wooden beads for their heads. There are quite a few wonderful shops on Etsy that make these adorable dolls. Including my teammates from the Natural Kids!

Anyway, I decided to try something a little different.

I have had a stash of wooden doll bodies for FOREVER. Finally, recently, I started playing with them. I'm not sure that I've perfected them yet, but I'm really having fun with them.

I have a wooden dollhouse, that sits up on a shelf in our living room. I am sure it is quite dusty. But these are the perfect dolls for that dollhouse.

Just wanted to share some of them with you - they are available in my Woolies shop!

I hope you like them!!

Win Millie!

You could win this adorable doll!

Head on over to The HandMaiden!

Natural Kids Team

If you read my blog, you've heard about the Natural Kids Team of sellers on Etsy. My shop, Woolies, is part of this team. I admire everybody's work SO much! Imaginative, clever, beautiful, toys and other things for children. The team is made up of wonderful, supportive people. I love this team, and just thought you might enjoy some items -----

Gnomie needs a Homie by haddy2dogs

Giving, Saving and Spending Tags by Mamaroots

Bunny Teething Blanket, by Dayanra

Gnome Home, by Mamakopp

Waldorf handwork doll, by Oritdotandolls
I want all of these (for myself, my teenage boys sadly have no interest!)

Please enjoy visiting all of these lovely shops!

OMIGOSH! A Flying Pixie!!!

She flies! Watch out! I should say, she's learning to fly! She doesn't have anybody here who is a particularly good fly-er, so she has to learn on her own. So she keeps climbing up on tables and chairs and kitchen counters - and jumping! Her little wings go flappity-flappity-flap, and she actually stays up for a little while, then - crash!

I have to say, she is very brave.

Her name is Fiona. She's a hand knitted pixie-fairy. She's knitted from a mix of organic cottons, and wool/cotton blends. She's stuffed with clean carded wool. She has a flower in her hair, with neat and tidy (most of the time) little curls. She has a sweetly embroidered face, so she is safe for all ages - no buttons!

And - best of all - you can purchase her right here at my blog - look over to the right!

Please let me know if you have any questions! I do hope Fiona finds a good home, with lots of supervision while she learns to fly.

:0)

Natural Kids Giveaway - #4 !!!!

Natural Kids Giveaway #4 !!!

The Natural Kids is a team of Etsy shops that create items for Kids using natural materials. I'm in love with the items for this next giveaway - can I enter to win???


These truly are heirloom pieces that your children will reach for again and again. Total Prize Value is $65!!!



First we have PolarBear Creations Mini-Baby. I can imagine this baby being toted around all day, everyday.

Next is Pupa's cotton bunny. Safe for young children, as the face is simply embroidered. All natural and so beautiful.

Wee Blossom Babe from FaerieRebecca would bring joy to any young child's playtime.


The Rules:

Visit each of the 3 shops

Polar Bear Creations

Pupa

FaerieRebecca

Come back here, and leave a post with your favorite item from each shop. This Giveaway will run for 2 weeks, and end on May 130th. (Which is when the next one will start).

You MUST leave an email address for me to reach you.

Have fun!

Natural Kids On-Going Giveaway!

OOOOOO you're going to have lots of chances to win absolutely amazing natural children's items !!!!!!!!

The first round of the Natural Kids Giveaway features three shops ~ Nushkie, Natural Star and WrenWillow.

On Etsy, my Woolies shop is a member of The Natural Kids Team. We are a group of shops that make items for kids out of natural materials. You will find some of THE most georgeous, innovative, heirloom quality, imaginative, exciting.....there are not enough superlatives to express my amazement at the work and skill that goes into these toys and items.

So, every two weeks for the next few months, The Natural Kids Team is offering you a chance to win some of these amazing works of art.

The rules are simple.

Each giveaway will consist of 3 (THREE) shops giving away a prize.

You will have to visit each shop.

Then you will have to come back here and post about your favorite item from each shop.

*You can put all your favorites in just one post*

*Please* leave an email address or a link to your blog so I have a way to reach you if you are the grand prize winner.

The first giveaway starts April 1st and will run for 2 weeks - ending on April 14th at midnight.

The second giveaway will start on April 15 and run for 2 weeks - and so on. So if you don't win during the first round - you will have lots of chances.

SO - onto the details of the Natural Kids Giveaway #1!

The Shops to Visit are:

Nushkie

Natural Star

WrenWillow

There will be ONE winner during each giveaway. Each winner will receive all 3 items from the featured shops! Questions? Please let me know.

So head off to find your fav item from each shop; come back to my blog and post about it. Enjoy all the wonderful shops that are part of The Natural Kids Team!

We have a winner - JJ! Thanks to all who entered. Look on my blog for the next giveaway!

Nature's Enchantment Giveaway!

Rainbow Acorns! 6 Large Rainbow Acorns, needle felted wool for nature tables, waldorf inspired

Here are six large "acorns", made with real acorn tops and needle-felted bottoms. They are made using wool roving in the colors of the rainbow.

Haven't you ever seen a purple acorn?!

They each measure about 1-1 1/2" in length and are great for nature tables or seasonal tables.

All of the colors are primary, colors of the rainbow

A wonderful unique treasure!

CONTEST RULES:

1. Please VISIT Nature's Enchantment. (One of my all-time favorite Etsy shops!)

2. Pick your favorite item.

3. Come back to my Woolies blog and leave a comment with your favorite item.

4. NEW RULE: you must leave your email address, or blog address. If you do not want to post it here, you can contact me privately at either of my shops - here are the links to them:Buster and boo, or Woolies.Just because you have registered with blogger does not make your email address visible. If I cannot reach you, you cannot win.

5. Contest will end one week from today, September 7th at 12 midnight.

PS If you LOVE Nature's Enchantment, you will probably love all the other Natural Kids Team shops. You can search for them by going to the search bar on Etsy and typing in NaturalKids Team, or you can see a few of them by going to Natural Kids Store. All the members strive to bring you wonderful toys and children's products made from natural materials. Thank you!

the winner is MOONBEAM! #47 - thanks to all who entered!!

Farmers Market Basket Giveaway!

Fresh from the garden! A fabulous basket of goodies!

This basket includes carrots, peas in a pod, mushrooms, strawberries and plums! All have been needle felted by the wonderful member of our Natural Kids team, The Polka Dot Dragon!

Also included is the basket! Wouldn't your child love to play with this pretend food? He or she can feed it to their friends (stuffed or otherwise), play market, play gardening - so many open-ended imaginative play-times can develop!

All food is made from wool of sheep friendly farms. Core of food is 100% organic wool batting.

This wool food has been needlefelted - I have the UTMOST respect for needle felters, having stabbed myself numerous times during my attempts.

Wool food is best for children who are age 3 and upand who no longer put toys in their mouths.

CONTEST RULES:

1. Please VISIT The Polka Dot Dragon's shop.

2. Pick your favorite item.

3. Come back to my Woolies blog and leave a comment with your favorite item.

4. NEW RULE: you must leave your email address, or blog address. If you do not want to post it here, you can contact me privately at either of my shops - here are the links to them:

Buster and boo, or Woolies.

Just because you have registered with blogger does not make your email address visible. If I cannot reach you, you cannot win.

5. Contest will end one week from today, August 18th, at 12 midnight.

6. Any questions, please do not hesitate to ask me!

Good luck!!

UPDATE: this contest is over, and the winner is #28, deedee, chosen by random number generator. Thanks to all who entered!!

Little Elf's Toyshop - Giveaway!!

When I first joined Etsy over a year ago, Little Elf's Toyshop was one of the first shops I 'discovered'. And one of the first shops that I purchased something from - an adorable polymer clay pony. Little Elf continues to astound me with her work.

Elfie has graciously offered one of her needle felted sculptures as a giveaway. If you are not familiar with needle felting, it is the art of stabbing wool roving (wool before it has been spun into yarn) with a barbed needle, thereby 'felting' the wool fibers. You have to be VERY careful to NOT stab yourself, it hurts (I know from experience). But it's very fun, and if you're very talented, you can create work like this:

So, if you would like to win this beautiful little bunny -

1. visit Little Elf's Toyshop

2. pick your favorite item for her shop

3. come back here and leave a comment with your favorite item

4. Contest will end Monday, June 9th, 2008 at midnight.

Thank you!!!

NOTE: some of you that have been wonderful enough to enter this contest have not left me a way to reach you. I will post the winner Tuesday morning, and here's hoping it's somebody that I can contact! Next time I promise to leave a reminder. Or feel free to come back and leave another comment with your contact information!!!
thanks!!

Happy Mother's Day!

To celebrate Mother's Day, enjoy these beautiful pieces of art from some of my friends on Etsy.

The artists featured are haddy2dogs, woolcomesalive, germandolls and oritdotandolls.

Happy Mother's Day!

Ponies

Just had to share all these ponies! They look so cute all lined up together. They are made in the Waldorf tradition - no facial features. It is up to the child to decide if their pony is happy or sad, playful or wants to nuzzle. There are six of them - being shipped off today! Next up - 5 black sheepies!

:0)

Fairies Nest

It's all about the dolls for me...some people just gravitate to jewelry, I'm instantly drawn to animals, dolls, little people. Maybe I just didn't have enough of them as a child. I was pretty much a tomboy though..

Here is an artist, Fairies Nest, that is spectacular.

If you don't instantly just fall off your chair with your jaw hanging open and drool dribbling down your chin, then I just don't even want to know you!

Now, if I was shopping for dolls, and had the good fortune to find this shop, I wouldn't know which one to buy, because all her work is so magnificent. Look at the details!

Incredible.

Just puts a gigantic smile on my face, and I HAD to share.

:0)

Wholesale!!

It's been my goal to do wholesale work. It's a way to expand my business - to reach WAY outside of the Etsy world. My work has been accepted at an online Waldorf-type shop, and I am SO EXCITED!!!!

Here is what I've finished so far:
2 ponies and 3 acorns...!! More to come!

YAY!!!

The Art of Needle Felting

I have such admiration for the artists that utilize the technique of needle felting! It is MUCH harder than it looks - I've taken two classes. In the first class, we needle felted a teddy bear. Such a dismal failure, that I didn't even care that our kitten got a hold of the teddy and shredded it.

My second class was much better, I did a bunny that is for sale in my etsy shop.

HOWEVER, check out Cozy Cottage Creations! Now, here is somebody who has truly perfected the fine art of needle felting. Her work is fabulous! The details are astounding. somebody already bit into that apple!

I'm going to go have strawberries for breakfast!!