Category: Cuteness

showing off anything and everything that i consider adorable

armful of narwhals

an armful of freshly-sewn narwhal plush

My coworkers have discovered that I make plush narwhals, so the narwhal factory* has been super busy! One of my friends ordered a narwhal for each of his nieces, so I had a whole pod of narwhals keeping me company the day before delivery. Usually I make them one-by-one, so I don’t get to be surrounded by armfuls of narwhals… what a happy day!

They just get cuter in large numbers, don’t they?

pod of plush narwhals - it doesn't get much cuter than this!

*well, factory of one… just me!

chalk festival 2011: cleveland museum of art

our chalk giraffe in its initial stages at the cleveland chalk festival 2011

Every September, the Cleveland Museum of Art hosts a Chalk Festival on their spacious back lawn. Their walking paths are paved with large stone squares whose smoothness is ideal for chalking. The museum is a very short walk from Case’s main quad, so every year I’ve ended walking by in time to witness the colorful aftermath. Last year, I swore to myself that no matter what I was doing, I would not miss the 2011 chalk festival.

brad chalking at the cleveland chalk festival 2011

So despite being exhausted and haunted by an extremely challenging group project, Brad and I headed down early Saturday morning, the 17th, to pick out our squares and get sketching.

giraffe and girl with balloons at the cleveland chalk festival 2011 (click for larger)

After multiple hours of laying in the sun on this gorgeous day, this is what we ended up with. (click for an even bigger picture!)

giraffe at the cleveland chalk festival 2011

Participating in a community art project was a new endeavor for me. This was especially fun because there were so many children there… they all had the most delightful comments. Some observations included, “that looks just like a giraffe!”, “i like your grass, that’s really good grass”, and my favorite: the little boy who said, “wow! you’re a really good artist.”

It was exciting because all day people were walking by, and a member of the party would say, “ooh, look at the giraffe!” because they considered our squares among those that should not be missed.

crowd & clouds at the cleveland chalk festival 2011

Did I mention that it was a gorgeous day?

girls chalking at the cleveland chalk festival 2011

We also got to walk around and see everyone else’s wonderful drawings. There were so many people, all making amazing things and enjoying the lovely day. It was good for the soul.

balancing businessman at the cleveland chalk festival 2011

This one was drawn by a boy who couldn’t have been more than 11 or 12 years old – it was incredible!

"pancake explorers" at the cleveland chalk festival 2011

Pancake Explorers! See the little guys climbing the pancake? They have a tent!

sam and brad chalking at the cleveland chalk festival 2011

After waiting so long to actually participate in the Chalk Festival, it made me really, really happy that we were able to draw something so awesome. In the midst of such a stressful weekend, the opportunity to make something outside in the presence of other creative people was just perfect.

close-up: owl eyes

owl eyes (day 12 of the 30 day photo challenge: close-up)

Who?

owl pincushion made for me by my aunt mary!

It’s a little owl pincushion! This little guy was a surprise made for me by my Aunt Mary! He’s so perfectly stitched & perfectly adorable. I especially love the scalloped stitches on his wings; can you see them?

It’s a beautiful day today, it was even chilly last night! The morning breezes are starting to almost sound like autumn, and I’m always ready for autumn weather. My favorite.

This photo is part of oh so lovely’s 30 Day Photo Challenge. Today is Day 12: Close-Up.