Yesterday (Saturday), my mom and I had the pleasure of taking a class with and at the home of Mimi Kirchner. Mimi is a woman of many talents who currently makes the most wonderful handmade dolls which she sells at Boston area craft markets and online in her etsy shop. Her creations are made primarily from vintage and recycled materials--my kind of artist!
In our class Mimi guided us through creating our very own Tiny Worlds--a very fancy pincushion in a teacup. Not that I will ever be sticking pins in my creation. Instead I'm thinking of my Tiny World as my first soft sculpture(!)
It may have started out as what looks like a bizarre ball o' cauliflower, but after 6 hours, many tiny stitches, cutting, pinning, stuffing, and gluing, my world was born.
Of course one of the great things about taking a class (especially locally) is meeting other people who share your enthusiasm. There were a total of 7 students at Mimi's dining room table. Everyone brought their own teacup and the worlds were as varied as their creators.
*Disclaimer: photos were taken near the end of class but not everyone had yet fully completed their project but they were kind enough to let me take a photo anyway : )
So, let's take a peek into another world (or 6)...
First, my mom's (on the right, pictured
with mine). She used a lovely creamer as the base of her world. I love the apple tree forest that surrounds her triple roofed fairy cottage. Mom was the queen of the french knots!
Next, another wonderful world by Amy of Bumblebelly Designs.
Love her colors and her amazing stitching along the path. And how adorable is the duck??
Brooke of Bancroft Studios created an island in her tiny world. I love how the house is perched on top of it all.
Becky eschewed the house pattern. Instead she created her own castle for her tiny world--complete with flowering vines!
Jane had the most daring background for her world, a bold check pattern that beautifully complimented her teacup.
Barbara, who had to leave a bit early, made excellent progress on her world. Love her stitching and her 2 handled teacup.
Overall a fun and surprisingly relaxing day of creating that I enjoyed immensely. Thanks so much to Mimi for sharing her knowledge and opening her home. What a treat!