*Lyrics from Aretha Franklin’s Baby, Baby, Baby from her album I Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You. Classic. Though in this case the baby I’m talking about is an actual baby. You know, of the 6 month old variety.
Beauty shot: I wish I could paint this image.
Firstly, let’s talk about spring. It’s been a crazy weather year (past 12 months, not calendar year) up here in New England, and spring has been no different. After a snow-less winter (practically) I was really looking forward to the slow discovery that is springtime. First, you notice little changes – trees start to look like they’re greening up, buds emerge from the branches on bushes, crocuses and daffodils and tulips push up from the soil, all teasing warmer weather on the horizon. We wait (usually) for that one warm spring day where you can fling open your windows, where you can finally be outside with only a light jacket, where the cool air is scented with bulbs and warming earth. However, this year spring decided not to tease us burlesque-style, but instead to head straight for the goods, flashing us like a drunken college girl on spring break. We were plunged into 80 degree weather for almost a week making the daffodils pop up and begin to wilt within a day of opening. My normal excitement for the possibility of wearing shoes with no socks, of wondering when (if) the new bulbs we planted in the fall will push through was crushed by heading straight to using the air conditioning in the car to avoid sweating through my short-sleeved shirt (which probably should have been a tank top), and wondering if I’ll fit into my summer clothes yet. Not cool, spring. Not cool.
But, the weather has subsided, and we’re experiencing a cooler, quieter springtime now. Which is why this post might begin to (re)stir your (and my) desire for summertime again. I give you the gorgeous colors of late summer in the ever beautiful, ever symbolic of late summer (faux) hydrangea bloom.
Faux blooms, some left over from my sister and brother-in-law's wedding, some added, awaiting transformation.
During the summer of The Great Renovation (as it shall now be called), I helped my sister-in-law choose some faux flowers for her October wedding. They couldn’t do real flowers (for financial and logistical reasons) so I headed to Michael’s to select some potential stems that she could then recreate at her local Michael’s (we were living 3 hours away from each other at the time). I never did get around to returning the flowers, so I had this pile of blooms that were both sentimental and out of place in our home. I knew I wanted to do something crafty with them for my sister and brother-in-law (let’s call them B&Y), but didn’t know exactly what. Then they had a baby (let’s call her baby M), and I knew that I needed to make something for little miss M.
However, since M is a girl, I thought it would be appropriate to add some pinks to round out the color palette (the original palette was a mix of blues, white and deep plum). I’m not, nor are her parents, super ‘she’s a girl so everything has to be pink!’ people. I just thought that the pink would be visually stimulating, and would take the existing blooms to a place that was inclusive of all three members of the family. Plus, pink is probably my favorite color (I sound like I’m in 7th grade again!), so it was partly for my own selfish reasons that I felt like adding pinks to the mix. What I decided to make with all these blooms was a mobile.
Now, they already have a mobile, so I figured this one could be used over her changing table (I was partly inspired by Sherry’s creation on YHL). I figured I could make something that would keep her entertained while the job of cleaning her delicate lady bits was carried out in a hasty manner (babies don’t always like the cold bum, I’ve noticed). I also thought that it could be something sentimental for B&Y who recently decided to get rid of their last wedding centerpiece (since they were moving to the west coast, and were trying to keep the number of things they were paying to haul to a minimum). Plus, I’m crafty, and like to make things for people. Especially baby people who I’m related to. They get special treatment.
So, behold, my process (not very scientific or re-creatable – if you have questions about any of the steps leave a comment, I’ll be happy to try to answer them), and the delightful end result. I was able to Skype with the whole family to reveal the finished product, but somehow I think seeing it in person will be more satisfying. Pictures! Enjoy! xoxo
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- Faux blooms, some left over from my sister and brother-in-law’s wedding, some added, awaiting transformation.
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- Fake or not, these ruffled edges, saturated and variegated colors scream summertime to me.
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- Beauty shot: I wish I could paint this image.
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- Beauty shot: Or this one. Makes me want to rub my face on the petals.
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- First, I took two square dowels, notched and glued them together, painted them white, then added eye hooks and jewelry chain to them.
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- I wanted to add a little sparkle to the top of the mobile, in case it drew little baby M’s eye to it, and gave her some more dimension to ponder.
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- After amassing the blooms I plucked the heads, sorted them, and began assembling them in pairs with a little piece of jewelry making silver, and a few beads (left over from MY wedding).
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- My instagram experiment. Plus, it shows you how the blooms are connected.
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- Basically, I added a bead on either side, and looped the rest of the silver thingy (it looks like a lowercase ‘i’ complete with circle on top) to make the ‘i’ have two circles.
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- Here was my collection of blooms: the pink ones were added because baby M is a girl, but the blue, white and purple ones were from her mom and dad’s wedding.
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- I began by stringing the blooms onto clear plastic thread (fishing line).
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- Eventually, after hanging down for a few days, the string straightened out.
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- I constantly checked to see how baby M would view the piece, as well as how mom and dad would experience it.
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- Each bloom was hand tied onto the jewelry chain affixed to the dowels.
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- Perhaps not the most elegant solution, but the string is clear, so you can’t really see it unless you’re staring at it in the sun.
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- Here it is, in all its glory. It measures about 2′ tall, and about 12″ across. I didn’t bother to count the blooms.
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- See, all the strings have straightened out. And I arranged the blooms to maintain a certain amount of contrast (which is mesmerizing for babies).
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- There is a center bloom, which was an accent from the wedding centerpieces, that I strung with a few extra beads to add a sparkly touch for baby M to try to spot.
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- This is the view from below, as little M will see it.
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- I’m hoping that she’ll be entertained by the blooms as they dance in the breeze, or glint in the sunlight.
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- Beauty shot: I really need to learn how to paint. This is abstract art I can totally understand.
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- All of the faux blooms came with a variety of sizes on their heads, just like in real life. They’re actually quite convincing.
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- And I love how the shadows create another layer of visual interest.
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- Forgive the dirty window. I also loved how they looked reflecting on glass.
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- You can see how each bloom is different, and how stimulating it could (hopefully will!) be for a baby.
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- So there you have it: a little piece of my wedding mixed with a lot of B&Y’s wedding, and a little bit of baby M and you’ve got a sentimental, pretty mobile.
Yay! Can’t wait to hang it up!