The Woolly Mamas: September 2010

The Woolly Mamas Mission

Who we are:

A circle of creative, progressive mothers who love wool, fiber-art and crafts, our children, each other, and Mother Earth!

What we do:

Gather to craft together, share nutritious food, nurture deep friendships, support one another as mothers, and inspire each other artistically.

Our mission:
Promote environmentally sustainable and community-building income earning opportunities for local mamas in ways that strengthen and nurture, rather than disrupt or negate the vitally important parent-child bond. By providing a physical and mental space where women can come together in defiance of urban and suburban isolation to raise children with the support of a community of women, while creating high quality, hand-crafted goods from organic and natural materials, we hope to:

Foster within our culture a value for the life-path of mothering.
Ensure that our children's needs are not sacrificed in the challenges of a changing economy.
Revive cottage industry and allow mothers to supplement or sustain their families income.
Promote the buying and selling of local, hand-made products.
Form uniquely bonded communities who pool skills, experience and advice in natural crafting and mothering, who impart to our children the importance of remaining bonded to one another and the Earth.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Wooly Mountain Mama

Hello all you Wooly Mamas out there! I am so glad to be a part of this creative collaboration, and share my love of crafting with all of you. Thank you Ani for gathering us together and getting this going!

So, a little about this wooly mama...

I am a modern homesteader in semi-rural Oregon, a homemaker, a mother of twins, a handcrafter, a wildcrafter, a food preserving maniac, a camper, a backpacker, a naturalist, a horticulturalist, a dreamer and an every day adventurer. I love to needle felt and wet felt wool, string necklaces with gemstone chips and animal pendants, fashion birds nests out of roots, and make little faeries with silk flower petals and leaves. My hands are always busy.

If you ever want to find me elsewhere, I keep another blog called Mountain Hearth Handcrafts about my homesteading efforts and outdoor adventures with my children, which you can visit at: http://www.mountainhearth.blogspot.com/, and one dedicated to my handcrafting business, Mountain Hearth Handcrafts, at: http://www.mountainhearthhandcrafts.blogspot.com/. The Etsy site for this is at: http://www.mountainhearth.etsy.com/.

I am looking forward to sharing inspiration and creative dreams!

Lara Katherine Mountain Colley

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Sunny Side Up

For Reya's third birthday, I created a couple of crocheted, cotton eggs stuffed with wool. Eggs are a source of big fascination these days, due to our recent family addition of a flock of three hens who reliably lay us a pretty, green egg each day.
What I learned about making them look like eggs:
1)The white must be white, not creamy white, like natural lambswool.
2)The yolk should not stand too tall, or it gets out of proportion.
3)The white needs to be wavy, not perfectly round.
4)Use smallish yarn- not bulky, and a small hook.
5)Third time is the charm.

Woolly Welcome

Hoorah for the Woolly Mamas! Glad to see the circle(s) growing.

I'm feeling it is time to open up the Colorado woollies again. I just don't have a location that can suit a group of women and playful children ... but I will have once the new house is ready -- in February or March perhaps? I've a little list of families who are probably interested.

The Woolly Mamas

The Original Woolly Mamas Spring 2008, Fort Collins, CO

Eugene, Oregon Woolly Mamas Fall 2010